I catch an eye roll from Todd as Asia announces that we can build anything we want, using only sand and water for the primary structure. The tools and props set before us are the only things we can use. And we can only build in our designated area.
“The grand prize will be a $500 resort credit per person on the winning team!”
Suddenly, James and Todd perk up. Vernon rips his Ray-Bans from his face, standing tall like he’s been called back to life.
“Wait. Five hundredperperson?” He grabs a bucket with renewed energy, and I almost laugh out loud.
“That’s that steak house dinner and a massage I’ve been wanting to get,” Todd admits.
Asia starts the countdown and then blows the whistle around her neck to begin the race. Vernon huddles us together, face serious with creases in his forehead. “Listen,” he starts, “we’re gonna dig a moat around the base, stack the walls wide and symmetrical, and carve in tiers. Then we sculpt towers at each corner and use shells to line the windows.”
We all blink at him.
“The fuck, boy?” Todd quips.
“What?! I used to go to school for architecture,” Vernon says with a shrug. “I only got my Bachelor's, but I know a little somethin’, somethin’.”
“Damn, Vernon,” Gavin laughs. “Where has this energy been?”
“Apparently buried in the sand,” James snides.
We settle on a three-tier tropical fortress with a spiral shell turret, and a seashell drawbridge that Vernon insists is“structurally necessary.”
I didn’t even realize two hours had passed. Between the building and trash-talking, you would think the bonding would make me feel more at ease with these guys. But it doesn’t. I still feel like an unwelcome visitor. And maybe that’s because I noticed Gavin keeping his distance from me. Like he’s too scared or unsure to get too close.
The ladies are hard at work but having fun, making TikTok videos as they sculpt their sand into a wedding cake that looks surprisingly impressive.
We’re nearing the end of our fort when Todd and Vernon start to argue over the placement of the seashells. I wipe sweat from my brow and step back to admire our work of art. James takes a long chug from a bottle of water, gulping the whole thing down in a matter of seconds.
“Good job, my man,” he says to me, and gives me a fist dap.
Gavin, Todd, and Vernon are all clapping and locking hands as if they just won a championship game.
“You guys can pack up! You lost this one,” Danielle hollers.
“Yeah, you can’t outbeat this. Do you see this?!” Carina adds amusingly. She shows off the masterpiece they just built like she’s Vanna White showcasing a prize. Gavin looks at her like she just hung the moon in the sky. Mesmerized and in love.
I wonder if he’s just lovesick or star-struck. In disbelief that he, a country town nobody, is marrying an A-list celebrity. Or maybe I know nothing, and this is real.
“You good?” James asks, squeezing my shoulder gently.
“Yeah, I’m good.”
Or was I? There is a bitter feeling in my chest. And maybe it’s because I’m still not sure if Gavin and I can ever go back to the way things were. My aunt always told me that you can forgive someone who betrayed you, but forgiveness doesn’t always rebuild what was broken.
18
twilight zone
MARLEY
Damn it.
I rise from the bed like I’ve been doused with cold water.
I overslept.
The sky is now indigo, which means I’m probably late, but my headache is gone, so that’s a good thing. There’s a note on the nightstand. And the monogrammed cup from the welcome basket, next to my Tylenol.
