Once Upon A Surf

Chapter Twenty Four

               "Hey, I brought—" I opened the door to the Shack only to have a beach ball come straight at my head. I ducked, wide-eyed as I took in the scene. Drew and Braxton gave me equally pathetic sheepish grins and I blinked, cocking an eyebrow at them.

"Thank goodness you're here," Braxton gushed, brushing past me to pick up the beach ball. "I was just, uh, testing out the efficiency of our beach balls. They're much better than the ones at the dollar store."

I gave him a flat glance as I walked to the counter, setting down the paper bag I was carrying along with my keys and wallet.

"Hi babe," Drew said, sliding up next to me and tapping his hands on the counter. "How are you?"

"Good. I brought sandwiches," I said, sliding his down the counter and into his waiting hands.

"Sweet," Drew said, instantly tearing his open. "I'm starving."

"Me too," I said, setting my food out before turning to look at Braxton. "I didn't bring you anything. I figured you'd be gone by now, since your shift ended ten minutes ago."

"That's right, you're ten minutes late," Braxton said smarmily, making me roll my eyes. "And I'm so glad you're here. Donna wants the swimsuits reorganized by size and color."

"What?"

"And she told me this morning, but I thought, 'I know my good friend Lindsey would love that job'," Braxton grinned at me deviously.

"You're an ass."

"You owed me, remember?"

I sighed, flicking my straw wrapper at him. "Fine. I'll get it done."

"Good," Braxton tucked his keys into his pocket, slipping his sunglasses on and waving at Drew. "See you, bro."

Drew held up a peace sign, his mouth full of food as Braxton left the store. I took a bite of my sandwich before slipping behind the counter to open the cash register and check what money needed to be refilled.

"How was training today?"

"Brutal," I said without looking up, writing down that we needed pennies and ten dollar bills. "Your dad has me kicking my ass to get this stupid move."

"But are you getting it?"

"I mean I guess," I said, closing the cash register and taking a sip of my drink. "I've only been working on it for a week."

"You'll get it," Drew stood, tossing his sandwich wrapper in the trash and wiping his mouth. "My dad's a good teacher."

"That he is," I said, smiling at Drew softly. "I like him."

"He's alright sometimes."

I shook my head, stepping into the swimsuit section and beginning to work on reorganizing the swimsuits by size. Drew stood, stretching out his arms and picking up the broom. He spent the next ten minutes sweeping the floor as I sorted the swimsuits. Once he was done, he disappeared into the back, humming quietly to himself.

"Has it been slow like this all day?" I asked, raising my voice so he could hear me. When I didn't hear a response I frowned, setting the swimsuit I was holding down and walking towards the back. "Drew?"