A Silver Summer

Chapter 16

"Why on earth would they want to do that?" Keira shivered at the thought of being consumed by the inky black water. 

"Because kids are idiots?" Anika offered as she watched one poor girl freak out as her male partner started to teasingly rock their canoe.    

"Just don't think about it. We'll stick close to the edge." Anika promised. 

"Thanks." Keira sighed in relief and released her grip on her seat so that she could help Anika with the paddling. 

After forty-five minutes of getting used to the boat, Skinner paddled up to the girls' canoe. Ivy's eyes widened as she looked at his outstretched hand. 

"W-what are you crazy? I'm not hoping here to there." Ivy pointed to herself and then to his canoe. "We have to go back to the dock."

"Aw, Ivy. Come on and live a little." Skinner teased, still holding out his hand. Their canoes jostled against each other and Keira snapped her eyes shut and went back to griping her seat. 

"Just hop in his canoe Ivy. And do it quick." Keira squeaked as the boat rocked more dramatically. 

"I swear, if I fall in...." Ivy muttered, and cautiously took his hand and shakily stood up. 

"I won't let you fall in. Now bend over a bit and swing that leg into here." Skinner held Ivy's smaller hand in his large one and gave her the help she needed. When she was half in Skinner's canoe and half out of Keira and Anika's canoe she heard Keira squeak and Anika curse. 

"Ryleigh don't!" Anika growled but it was too late. 

"Hold on Ivy!" Skinner dropped his paddle and reached out to grab Ivy as she lost her balance. Ivy's scream mixed with Keira's as Ryleigh rammed Anika's canoe from the side. The shock of it had Keira and Anika leaning to the other side so the canoe rolled over about fifteen feet from the edge of the lake. Anika, Keira and Ivy all fell in with splash but because Skinner went to stop Ivy from falling, he lost his footing and tripped over his oar so he too landed in the water.

Underwater, Anika kicked her way back to the surface and sputtered once she filled her lungs with air. 

"I'm going to kill you!" Keira beat Anika to the threat as the golden blond girl feverishly spun around. She was freaking out because if Anika couldn't touch the bottom, neither could she. 

Instead of hurling insults at a laughing Ryleigh, she focused her energy on trying to roll her canoe over with Skinner's help. Ivy was trying to keep Keira calm and treaded water a few feet away. Skinner could just about touch the sandy bottom with his lanky six foot four height and managed to righten the capsized canoe. 

"I could probably get back in, but I don't think Keira can." Anika wiped a strand of her black hair out of her eyes as it suctioned to her forehead. 

"Let's bring it to the shore then." Skinner pulled the canoe behind him towards the direction of the trees on the lakeshore. 

"Come on Keira. The closer you swim, the quicker you'll find bottom." Anika coaxed the blond to swim over to her and helped the exhausted girl ashore. 

"I have this. You go get your canoe." Anika flipped her canoe over and jerked her chin up to where Skinner's was slowly floating away with out anyone in it. Without another word, Skinner swam back out to his boat and towed it to the shoreline. 

"Okay, Keira, you can go in." Anika held the boat steady as the tall blond inched her way back into the canoe and took her seat at the front again. Skinner took Anika's spot at holding the boat steady as she climbed in. He gave a gentle push and the two girls were off floating again, sticking closer to the shore than before. 

"You two good?" Ivy called from the front of Skinner's canoe. Skinner pushed them off the shore from the back and paddled them out a little farther until they were a few yards away besides Anika and Keira. 

"Yeah." Anika assured and raked her eyes past her friend's canoe. She caught Ryleigh and his friend already across the lake and thought to herself how she couldn't wait for tonight.  

"He what?" Mel angrily shot up from her seat on the bench and glared over at Ryleigh's table. 

"Calm down Mel. He'll get what's coming to him." Keira grumbled bitterly and tugged on Mel's arm to sit the red head back down. 

Anika frowned at her iPod as it lit up with the notification that she had an email. She opened it and her frown deepened as she watched the video. 

"Guys, someone videotaped it." 

"Oh god, I look like a flailing fish." Keira groaned in embarrassment as she watched the scene replay on her own screen. All around them, people laughed and turned to look at their table. From across the room, Anika glared at Ryleigh but let an evil smirk peek on her lips, which made his smug grin falter slightly. 

"Alright, let's head out." Anika stood up and collected her dinner tray.

"What? Already?" Ivy questioned but followed Anika's lead. 

"Yes. It's time." Mel confirmed. As the group walked out of the cafeteria, Anika made sure to use the closest exit to Ryleigh's table so she could bump his chair, hard. He growled lowly but Anika kept walking. 

He was going to wish he hadn't started this war. If he wanted to bring videos into this, than so was she.