The Beach House (a The Kissing Booth novella)

10: The Beach House

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We didn’t actually win the sandcastle competition. It was either because we used sand that was so dry our castles kept falling away, or because I tripped over Noah and totally faceplanted (again, in front of everyone, for the second time that day) into our messed-up-but-still-pretty-cool sandcastle.

            We headed back to our usual spot, nearer to the beach house, after lunch.

            Lee and Noah went body boarding again, but I stayed lying on my towel. Tipping my head back so the sun practically melted my face off, I closed my eyes against the glare of the sun that managed to burn through the crappy lenses of my five dollar sunglasses.

            I didn’t mean to fall asleep. I wasn’t even all that tired.

            I guess it was just the effect summer had on me; but either way, I fell asleep.

            And when I woke up, someone was patting sand around my shoulder.

            I shrieked out, “Lee!” and made to sit bolt upright – except I really couldn’t move. They’d managed to bury me so much, I couldn’t even wriggle my toes properly. And the sand came right up to my collarbone. I could move my head, and that was it.

            I don’t think, in all the years we’ve been burying one of us who falls asleep, I’ve ever been the one to fall asleep first. I’ve always contributed to the burying.

            “You guys!” I whined. “You buried my towel, too! Now my towel’s no good because it’s covered in sand!”

            They just dusted the sand off their hands and laughed at me. Lee stood up and poked the mound of sand where my ribs were. “Jeez, Shelly, all that food is finally getting to you. I can’t feel your ribcage anymore.”

            “Ha-ha.”

            Noah laughed, though, and then he stood up too. “Man, that was thirsty work. I really need a drink now. Lee, are you thirsty?”

            “You know what, I’m absolutely parched,” he said, grinning impishly at me but then pulling a serious face when he spoke to Noah. “We should go get a drink.”

            “Yeah, good plan. Let’s go.”

            “Guys!” I yelled as they started walking off. I knew they were just teasing me, trying to scare me – but I still thought that they might actually leave me here like this. “Guys!”

            They actually got pretty far away before Lee burst out laughing and turned back.

            “Don’t do that to me!” I wanted to throw sand at him or something, but all I could do was crane my neck and glare through my five dollar glasses. “Okay, you’ve had your fun, ha-ha, take a picture already, then unbury me.”

            “Unbury you? You want us to help you out, after we spent so long burying you?” He looked like I’d just suggested he should go on a diet, gaping at me with his eyebrows together and his eyes bulging wide. I wanted to laugh so bad, but I was trying to keep a straight face to glare at him.

            “Okay, okay,” Noah said, finally wandering back. “I’ll get the picture now.”

            He picked up a camera that seemed to have appeared from nowhere. It was one we’d all pitched in to buy a couple of years ago, the kind that printed out polaroids straight away. It did mean that we ended up buying a hell of a lot of film to go in it the first summer we had it, though. I’d forgotten all about it.

            “Where’d you magic that from?”

            “I ran back to get it so we could take a picture of you finally buried in the sand, and laugh about it for years to come, while you were being buried.”

            I rolled my eyes.

            “Say cheese!” Noah cried, laughter in his voice. I was still giving him a look that definitely didn’t ‘say cheese’ when he snapped my photo.

            “Noah! I wasn’t ready!”

            “I said say cheese! That means I’m gonna take your photo!”

            “No it doesn’t!”

            “Um, it kinda does,” Lee put in.

            “Shut up! Take another one!”

            Noah chuckled at me, stubbing his toe into the sand somewhere near where my feet seemed to be. “Fine, but this time, when I say ‘Say cheese!’ it means I’m going to take your picture straight away, alright? You think you can follow that?”

            I laughed sarcastically. “Yes.”

            “Okay. Now…” He elaborately positioned himself, looking into the camera lens and then scooting across, like he was trying to find better lighting. I couldn’t help but laugh at him. So when Noah finally said, “Say cheese!” I said, “Cheese!” at the top of my lungs, laughing and smiling for this picture now, and looking at Noah instead of into the camera.

            “Let me see,” I said at the same time as Lee said, “Let’s see!”

            Noah shook the polaroid out and walked over to us with it. He smiled at the picture, and then turned it, holding it out for us to see.

            And the first thing I saw was that they hadn’t just buried me in sand; they’d made a point to shape the sand so I looked like a mermaid. I had a tail and everything. It was probably Lee’s idea of a joke to make me a topless mermaid, too.

            I wanted to be mad – just because. But I couldn’t be. It was just too funny.

            I was like a giant sandy mermaid.

            And they had a picture of it.

            I laughed until I was gasping for breath, and kept on laughing even then.

            “Okay,” I gasped at last, “you can dig me out now.”

            And this time, at least, they did start to destroy the mermaid-masterpiece that was me buried in sand, and dig me out. (And, for the record, I was still shaking sand out of my hair the next day. After I’d rinsed-and-repeated with my shampoo in the shower at least three times.)

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I think I may do some kind of one-off short story for Christmas... Just because I am rather a festive person (we decorated our sixth form common room in school, it's exceptionally cool!) but yes, may be a short story! I shall see if I can write one! :)

Next chapter will be up probably on Tuesday!

Ps. I have a fantastic surprise coming up in this book and I don't think any one of you are going to expect it... See if you can guess what it is ;) xx