unOrdinary: An Old Friend Returns

Prologue: A Sandcastle, A Boy and A Girl

I first met John at the beach. He was there with his father making sandcastles by the shore. The ocean breeze was pleasantly blowing in from the water, cooling down my skin. I had snuck away from home and hitched a ride on a cargo train the night before, so I struggled to keep my eyes open in the bright midmorning light. However, I was not going to let my weary bones stop me from enjoying myself.

Rising from my crouched position behind one of the mounds of tall grass at the corner of the beach, I sprinted towards the water. My feet felt the hot sand beneath my toes, my sandals in one hand, and my yellow daisy sunhat in the other. A few feet before the water, I dropped my beach bag, the sandals, and the hat and running dove into the refreshingly cool water. Finally!

Turning to float on my back, eyes closed in contentment, a sudden shadow obscured my view. Opening one eye I saw a boy, about my age, maybe a little older due to the frown on his face.

"Yes?" I asked, curious to know why he had approached me.

"You! You... you dropped your stuff on my castle!" He said indignantly.

I looked at the water's edge. I could see that my stuff had landed on a mound of some sort. I guess this was the castle the boy was referring to. Glancing back at the boy, I saw that his cheeks were getting red, not due to the hot sun but because of the boiling anger that was simmering below the surface. I knew I would have to act fast; I could not draw too much attention to myself.

"I'm so sorry. I was so excited to jump into the water that I did not see your castle. Please let me help you rebuild it."

He looked at me with doubt, probably considering if I could be trusted to even aid in such an endeavor. Running the idea over in his mind, he turned when he heard his name. "John! Who's your new friend?" An older looking man called out from the sand.

"She's not a friend. She ruined my sandcastle!" John yelled back.

I stopped treading water on my back and stood up. The water reached just over my shoulders and I extended a hand to John. "My name is Eloise. Nice to meet you, John!" He scoffed and walked back to shore towards his father.

Perhaps it would not hurt to make a friend.