mileven season three

quarry 1

Mike pulled his bike to the edge of the quarry. It was a little hard to stop since there were two people riding on it, but it was nothing he hadn't done before. The rest of the group parked their bikes, threw off their shirts and ran straight into the water. 

"Mike what's taking so long?" Will yelled, swiping his freshly cut hair out of his eyes. 

"I'll be in soon," Mike responded. He folded out a small blanket on the rough ground, then laid a stack of clean towels on top of it. Dustin was trying to drown Will and Sadie and Caleb were seeing who could hold their breath the longest. Mike glanced over at the small girl who was standing at the edge of the water. He bit his lip to hide his smile, took his shirt off, and made his way over. 

"El, you wanna come in?" Mike asked. El turned to face him. She looked him up and down, surveying his scrawny torso. Casually, Mike wrapped his arms around his waist. El looked up at him. 

"Uh," El responded. 

"Let's get you out of your clothes and into your swimsuit," Mike said. El nodded and took off her striped dress. It was her favorite because it reminded her of the shirts Mike wore all the time. Mike looked at El and tried his best not to show any emotion. El was wearing a purple one piece, with little yellow flowers scattered among it. El set her clothes down and headed over to Mike, who was already knee deep in the water.

"Mike..."

"Yeah?"

"I can't swim..." El muttered. She looked down at her toes and fiddled with a piece of her hair. It was now shoulder length and she liked to wear it straight and sometimes slicked back. Mike wondered what her natural hair looked like. 

"That's ok. Wanna figure it out?" Mike asked, reaching for her hand. She took it and wadded deeper into the quarry. It was cold, but not cold enough to make her get out. 

"Ok, we can stay right here where you can touch, see?" Mike said, going further out. El followed until she was on her tiptoes. 

"Ok, stop here," she said. Mike nodded and flagged the rest of the group to come closer, and they swam over to the two. 

"Bout time you got in," Lucas said.

"Yeah, these guys are booooring... Right El?" Max asked. El giggled and nodded.

"We should play a game," Will suggested.

"Like what? Breath competitions?" Mike asked.

"Oh you know I would smoke you losers at that," Max said, raising her eyebrows. Lucas got even darker during the summer, but not enough so you couldn't see him blushing. Lucas was whipped for Max, and there was no hiding it.

"No... What about a splashing game?" Will yelled, splashing Dustin right in the face.

"SON OF A BITCH!" Dustin yelled, splashing him back in the face. The quarry erupted with splashes as the group of kids played to their heart's content. Their backs became sunburnt, their freckles multiplied and their fingertips became scrunched like a prune. They taught El how to hold her breath and how to doggy paddle. They taught El how to do a handstand underwater and soon realized that she was the best at doing them. They showed Will where the state troopers found his body and searched for fish. After a while, El started to shiver.

"El, are you ok?" Mike asked her, placing a hand on her shoulder.

"Y-yeah, just c-cold," She said. 

"Let's go," Mike said, scooping El up in his arms. It was much easier to carry somebody underwater than on land. El laughed and buried her head on his bare chest. He carried her all the way to the towel, and gently set her down. He wrapped a towel around her, then did the same to him and sat down next to her.

"Better?" He asked.

"Yes, much better. Thank you, Mike," El said. She scooted closer to him and rested her head on his shoulder. They stared off at the water and watched the rest of the kids play. Once they got tired, they retreated over to where Mike and El sat. 

"Yo, lovebirds wanna help us look for skipping rocks?" Dustin asked. 

"Sure," El said, standing up. She dropped her towel and skipped over to the edge of the quarry. Mike got up and followed the group. Max and Lucas were holding hands, which was out of Max's character. Mike grabbed El's hand and she smiled. 

"What does a good skipping rock look like?" El asked.

"Well, it's flat so when you throw it, it bounces along the water," Mike responded, searching the ground with his free hand.

"Oh... So like this one?" El asked. She picked up a perfectly flat, oval-shaped stone off the ground.

"Exactly like that one. Good job El," Mike said, pulling El in closer. El smiled and looked down at his lips. Before they knew it, their lips collided together and the rest of the world melting away. Mike dropped the stone and put his hands on her face and pulled away. 

"Come on El, we got some stones to skip," He said, squishing her cheeks before picking up the stone. She blushed and ran her fingers through her curly hair. Mike looked at the top of her head as they were walking back to the group.

"Your hair... It's curly," Mike said. He had never seen it like this.

"Do you like it?" El asked.

"I... I love it El. You look beautiful." Mike said. El squeezed his hand and smiled. She made a mental note to never straighten her hair again. 

Mike ruffled her hair with his hand, and the two walked back to the group hand in hand, smiles plastered on their faces.