In my dream, I was surfing.
The ocean seemed more gorgeous than ever before, and I was flying, the cawing of seagulls in the background like music to my ears. I grinned, crouching as the wave formed a tube, and stuck my hand out to let it knife through the liquid wall.
I had just burst out of the wave when I saw him.
"Dad?" I mouthed, losing concentration for a split second and tumbling off the board, crash landing into a coral reef. I came up out of the water sputtering and cursing, my arms burning from cuts. I scrambled to my feet, glancing around the shore.
"Dad?" I called out.
"Lindsey," I heard his voice, filled with worry, with pain. "Lindsey, where are you?"
"I'm right here, I-" I stumbled forward, my eyes frantically searching the area. "Dad, I'm coming, I-"
"Lindsey!" Dad's voice was getting further and further away and I couldn't breathe as I kept running, running, running-
"Dad!" I jolted awake, my heart slamming in my chest. I blinked, my body trembling as my eyes adjusted to the dark room.
"Lindsey!"
My eyes widened and I leapt out of bed, my heart racing. I ran through the doorway, my bare feet slapping on the cold wooden floor, pressure building in my chest. I heard his voice again and flew around the corner, stumbling into the living room before skidding to a stop.
"Lindsey! There you are!" Dad's voice turned happy as I surfaced out of the water, a grin on my face. In the video.
It was all a damn video.
I clamped my hand over my mouth, furious tears leaking from my eyes. Donna was sitting on the couch, dabbing at her eyes every so often, completely oblivious to my presence. I leaned against the wall, sliding down to the floor, my shoulders shaking with silent sobs.
My father was dead.
Every so often the pain came rushing back, raw and burning, consuming every part of me. Things like this, things that triggered it, were addicting-watching videos, hearing his voice. I felt stupid for believing he was actually here, and it hurt more than anything, made the pain all the more real. There was only one way to solve it.
I needed to surf.
I clambered to my feet, rushing to my room, wiping frantically at my eyes. I couldn't stop crying, no matter how hard I tried, and couldn't seem to suck in enough air. Surfing would clear my mind, would free me from all of this. It was only three thirty in the morning yet I was wide awake, fully aware of how ridiculous this was.
I was shaking as I got dressed, my head pounding, the tears refusing to stop. I had to be careful, because if Donna found out I was sneaking out at this hour I was sure to be in trouble. I grabbed my keys off my desk and slipped out into the hallway, silently moving past the living room. Donna was no longer there, the TV switched off, and I assumed she had gone to bed.
The drive to the beach only took minutes. I frowned as I pulled into the parking lot, squinting out at the rising sun. The waves were enormous; for most people they would have been terrifying, but this is what surfers lived for. I got out of the car, shutting the door behind me and grabbing my board.
The second I hit the water, everything disappeared.
I was there for hours, catching wave after wave, at first just enjoying it. Soon, I was working on my 360 spin, though I couldn't manage to land it. I wasn't getting enough air, I wasn't spinning fast enough, I wasn't starting the flip soon enough. Everything was going wrong.
I smacked into the water after my twentieth failed attempt and came up cursing, slamming my fist onto my board angrily. While I could probably make it past semi-finals without it, I needed that move perfect in order to make it any further in the competition.
The beach was starting to grow busy, the Saturday morning rush settling in. It had to be seven or eight in the morning, and soon Donna would awaken and wonder where I was. I had a shift at the Shack starting at ten and needed to be back, yet I wanted nothing more than to stay at the beach all day. I had a week until semi-finals. There was no time to waste.
No matter how much was at stake, Donna would not excuse me missing a shift at the Shack. With a sigh I paddled towards the shore, crawling out of the water. My muscles ached and my head was still throbbing, and I still felt I needed more practice, more hours.
The number of hours Donna was allowing me to spend in the waves weren't near enough, which meant I would need to start sneaking around-again. The thought sent a rush of fear through me, though I quickly blocked it out as I threw my board up into the van and hopped into the front seat. It was necessary, and I was good at slipping out of the house unnoticed-I had years of practice under my belt.
I pulled into the driveway and dragged myself inside, changing into my work uniform just as the house was starting to wake up. I scrambled into the kitchen and started on breakfast, setting out plates and whipping up egg whites almost simultaneously.
I heard someone walk into the kitchen and turned, offering a fake smile towards Taryn. "'Morning!" Was that too much?
Taryn's brow creased. "What's with you this morning?"
Definitely too much.
"Uh, nothing. Just, um, making breakfast-"
Kelly walked into the kitchen after her sister, giving me a knowing look. "Have a nice surf?"
I forced another smile, clenching my jaw and turning back to the eggs. "I don't know what you're talking about."
"Whatever," Kelly muttered, sliding into a seat at the table. "Don't blame me when you get caught again."
I ignored her, sliding an omelet onto a plate and handing it to Taryn. She frowned, inspecting it carefully. "Egg whites?"
"Yep."
"And no onions?"
"Never."
Taryn seemed satisfied as she sat at the table, and soon I had the food completely set out as Donna breezed into the kitchen. I started cleaning up immediately, glancing at the clock. My shift at the Shack started in only an hour.
I tuned in to the conversation at the table as the sink was filling with soapy water. "But mom! There's a huge party Friday and I need a new outfit!" Taryn whined. Donna refused to take her shopping today because she had to attend several meetings, and after my shift at the Shack we needed to go pick up my new surfboard that I had ordered a couple of weeks ago.
"I said no, and that's final," Donna waved her fork in the air. "I don't want to hear another word."
I silently smiled, leaning over the sink. "See, mom? She's laughing!"
Really?
"Lindsey Marie, wipe that grin off your face this instant!" Donna snapped. I muttered an apology and set to work scrubbing the frying pan.
"Mom, it's not fair. Everything is about Lindsey now. 'Oh, Lindsey has practice, so I can't drive you to the mall.' 'Semi-championships are coming up soon, and you need to come with us to the beach for Lindsey to work on her sharp turns.'" Taryn huffed.
"It's actually semi-finals," I pointed out, though the table ignored me.
"Taryn," Donna sighed. "I need to go get Lindsey's surfboard, honey."
"You won't have to worry about it. Lindsey can go get it herself," Taryn said. I glanced up.
"Actually, I can't. I need a legal guardian's signature-"
"Can't it wait until another day?" Kelly said, bored. "I'm sure Lindsey can survive without her surfboard for a while."
"I need to get used to-"
"Well, Lindsey, I could give you a signed form and you could go get it on your own," Donna looked at me warily.
"I have to have a guardian present."
"Then you'll have to just wait another day," Kelly shrugged.
"Would it really hurt to wait a day, Lindsey?" Donna said. I blinked.
"I need as much time as possible on the waves with that board, or else I won't perform as well, and we'll lose all of our sponsorship money."
"Don't you have a job you need to get to?" Taryn said with an innocent smile. I glanced at the time again, giving Donna a helpless look.
"I really need this, Donna."
"I'll tell you what," Donna set her fork down. "Taryn and I will run to the mall after my last meeting, and we won't stay long. I'll be back in time to pick you up from the Shack as soon as your shift ends, okay?"
I nodded silently, fully aware of the possibility that Donna would run late. This was the best option I was going to get, so without another word I picked up my keys and left to go to work.
***********************************************************************************************
I had been waiting outside the shack for an hour and a half.
Donna hadn't shown up, hadn't even bothered to send a text or call to let me know she was running late. Part of me was furious, disappointed, bitter that she hadn't come. Another part had expected it all along. I didn't know why I continued to wait, and yet I sat there still, wishing Donna would at least return one of my calls.
"Hey."
I glanced up in surprise at the familiar voice, my eyes widening at the sight of Drew. "Um, hi."
Things had been weird between us since the night surfing, yet he still smiled and held out his hand, helping me up. "You've been waiting here a while."
"Have you been watching?"
"Maybe," Drew grinned. "I'm assuming you have nothing going on right now, then?"
I glanced at the shack, then at my phone. I shouldn't leave to hang out with Drew, shouldn't take the chance of getting caught by Kelly or Donna, but at the point I was too frustrated to care. "No. Did you have something in mind?"
"Are you up for an adventure?" Drew asked. "I have this really cool place I wanted to show you."
My heart leapt at the idea he had wanted to show me, of all people. I smiled, sticking my phone in my pocket. "Sure. Sounds fun."
Drew led me down to the beach, where we started walking across the sand toward the rocky wall at the west end of the area. "So what were you waiting on?"
"My stepmom," I said. "We were supposed to go get me a surfboard, since I have semi-finals coming up, but she never showed up."
"Oh, yeah," Drew nodded. "The big surfing competition. I'll be there."
I raised an eyebrow. "Secret surfer fan?"
"Kind of," Drew flushed, rubbing the back of his neck. "My dad...he's a big surfer. Uh, Mitch Shepherd, actually."
I stayed silent for a moment before smirking at him. "I know."
Drew glanced up, his eyes wide. "You know?"
"When every girl in school is trying to play your 'mystery girl' because you're the son of a famous surfer, word gets around fast," I said, trying not to sound too over interested. Best to talk about it casually. Then he'll have no clue.
"Yeah," Drew smiled. "I guess it sounds kind of crazy."
"Just a little bit."
"Tell me something," Drew said as we neared the edge of the beach. "Do you have any idea who this girl is?"
I blinked, avoiding his eyes, trying to act casual. "Um, no. Why?"
"Well, you're a surfer," Drew said. "You know all the other surfers."
"Not true," I scoffed. "I have the social life of a hermit crab."
"That's surprising," Drew said. "You seem really cool."
"You're not so bad yourself," I said, blushing slightly. "Where are we going?"
"It's right up here," Drew gestured towards the cliff and I raised an eyebrow, though followed after him. We climbed up a worn down path before breaking free from it, kicking loose stones off the side as we headed towards what seemed like nothing.
"Are you sure you-" My words cut off as we reached a small entrance, where Drew ducked through. I went in after him, my eyes widening at the massive size of the cave. The area was dark, rays of sunlight breaking through small cracks in the black rocks. Some parts of the walls sparkled where the spots of sunlight hit them, and Drew turned to face me.
"This is amazing," I said quietly, my eyes wide as I looked around.
"You think this is cool?" Drew grinned. "Check this out."
I followed him around a corner and gasped, my eyes widening at the view. The cave broke into a massive outlook over the ocean, the blue waves glimmering as they shifted back and forth. The sun was just beginning to set, a beautiful golden globe surrounded by layers of color-oranges and yellows bleeding into tinges of pinks and reds. The colors reflected off the stunning blue water and the whole setting had an aura of peace. I sat down, breathing in the heavy scent of saltwater and listening to the waves crash against the rocky face of the cliff, the sudden quiet as they receded, before rushing back again.
"It's beautiful, huh?"
I blinked my eyes open to look at Drew. "I...wow."
He slid into a seat next to me, our legs dangling over the edge of the cliff. "I found it the other day while I was hiking. Good place to just...relax."
"I wonder why more people don't know about it?"
"I don't know," Drew took a deep breath, shooting me a smile. "For now, it's our place."
I glanced down, trying to hide the blush in my cheeks. "So what's your story?"
"What do you mean?"
"Well I'm sure being the son of Mitch Shepherd is not your only attribute," I shrugged. "So tell me. What you like to do, what's your favorite food, you know, stuff like that."
Drew laughed. "Okay, sure. I'm into photography, as you might have guessed. It started when I was around twelve, and I just loved taking pictures of my dad. I could show you some of my shots sometime, if you wanted."
"Sure," I smiled. "That would be cool."
"My favorite food is definitely frozen yogurt," Drew said. "My favorite color is blue, like the color of the ocean. I like to read a lot, I've played baseball for ten years, and yeah. That's about it."
"Sounds simple," I grinned. "Do you plan on playing baseball this year?"
"If I can," Drew nodded. "Anyway, I went. How about you? What's your story, Lindsey Fisher?"
I shrugged. "It's still in the making."
"Lame," Drew leaned back. "You always seem to be busy. You've got to have an interesting story."
"I-" I opened my mouth to speak when my phone blared in my pocket. I frowned, pulling it out and pressing it to my ear. "Hello?"
"Lindsey Marie, where are you?"
I winced. "I'm at the beach, Donna."
"You were supposed to be waiting for me at the Shack, and instead you run off to go surfing?"
"No, I-"
"Come home immediately," Donna's voice was cold. "We'll discuss your punishment when you get home."
I heard the line click dead and gave Drew a sheepish smile. "My, uh, stepmom wants me home."
"I could hear," Drew raised an eyebrow. "Is she always like that?"
I got to my feet, rubbing my fingers against my palms uncomfortably. "It's complicated."
Drew's brow creased as he studied my eyes carefully, before letting out a sigh and standing. "I'll walk you back."
"No, it's fine," I smiled. "I can handle it."
Drew looked ready to argue but thought better of it, smiling. "We should do this again sometime."
"Yeah," my heart jumped and I had the incredible urge to kiss him, but took a step back instead. "Thanks for this. For everything."
"No problem," Drew nodded. "See you, Lindsey."
I smiled and ducked through the doorway of the cave, dashing up the beach towards my house. I was fully aware that I would probably be grounded, or get extra hours at the Shack, but couldn't bring myself to care.
Being with Drew was so worth it.