Secret Jewel of the Ocean

Chapter 3

"Look at you, Ms. April!"

My grandmother's typical greeting. It was the same thing every summer...

I smiled to be sweet and gave her a hug. "Grandma, this is my best friend, Jewel," I said, displaying Jewel as though she was in fact an actual jewel.

Jewel beamed and threw her arms around my grandmother, acting like she knew her for her entire life. Surprisingly, she didn't.

It was really weird that Jewel didn't know my grandparents, considering she was practically my sister. I knew it was because I only saw my grandparents for two weeks out of the year, and those two weeks were the only two weeks I didn't spend with Jewel. But I still felt as though there was a strange reason why Jewel never joined my family on our trips to Maine. It was almost as if something was keeping her home. That she would be better off at home.

But not this time.

Or so I thought.

"Well hello, April!" my grandpa limped over to me, welcoming me into a warm hug. "You look so grown up and beautiful." He smiled and shook his head at me. "And who is this?" he asked, turning to Jewel.

I looked at her, and she was beaming. As always. "I'm Jewel!" she said with excitement and enthusiasm, her silky blonde curls bouncing to the beat of her voice.

"Very nice to meet you, Jewel."

I smiled, finally happy to be there in Maine. It was weird to think that I didn't always enjoy visiting that place, considering how beautiful it was. I guess that I just never had anyone there to enjoy with. Besides four older people...

"You guys wanna join us for a trip to the beach?" my dad asked my grandparents. "We're gonna head to our beach house to unpack and then most likely hit the shore."

"Oh, we'd love to! We'll meet you there." My grandma grinned, happy to have my family back for a few weeks. She constantly told me how she lived merely for those two weeks of seeing me and my parents per year. I guessed it could get pretty boring with no one else around. Even though she had my grandpa, I understood how things could be a bit on the dull side, being so far away from the rest of the family.

Once we reached our beach house, which was a decent size and very comforting, Jewel and I got changed into our bathing suits. "I can't wait to go to the beach! I heard that Maine's beaches are breathtaking," Jewel said with a glow in her eyes.

"They really are. I love Maine's beaches. They're so unqie and beautiful," I told her, pulling my golden brown hair into a loose ponty-tail. "Ready to go?"

"Yes, ma'am!"

The sun was shining bright as ever, but Maine very rarely got hot. The temperatures during the summer were usually just warm, and often pretty cool. But it was still pretty easy to get a sun tan. And at night, when it got really chilly, I normally took walks on the beach in my sweats, sipping hot cocoa made by my grandmother.

But these summer nights will be a lot different, I thought to myself. I couldn't wait for new experiences and adventures. And I promised myself that I wouldn't just sit back and watch my life pass me by. I would take chances and live my life to its fullest, just as Jewel always did.

Setting my beach towel down near some natural rocks on the beach, I looked all around. There were very few people out. The beach we stayed near never got too crouded. Sometimes I preferred it that way while other times I felt alone and distant. "It's kinda chilly," Jewel said as she took a look at the water crashing on the rocks, chewing on her nail in the process.

"We don't have to go in the water. It's usually really cold. And I mean really cold."

Jewel giggled, turning to me. "Are you kidding? I don't care if it's negative thirty degrees in there. I am swimming!"

And with that, Jewel and I ran to the water, dunking our feet and screaming in pain from the coldness of the ocean. "My feet are numb!" I laughed, jumping up and down from foot to foot. Anyone who saw us must have thought we were completely insane.

But we didn't care, as long as we looked insane together.