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After the craziness of the weekend and the altercation with Carl, I decide to go to the surf shop. When I surfed after the wedding, I noticed my board could do with some love, and there was only one place for that.
"Z!" Jace hollers as I walk into "Surf S'up!" one of my favorite places in town, and also where my best friends tend to hang out.
"Hey, Jace," I greet him as he saunters over, coming to fist-bump me.
“How’s it going, man? We missed you on the dance floor Saturday night. Where were you? You missed the most EPIC night. Dave got hammered," he laughs. "You should've seen Mel's face when she was dragging her newlywed and absolutely wasted husband off a table," he laughs again loudly, patting his hand on his leg "Priceless man, so funny." Jace can talk for hours if you let him. It's one of the reasons why I love him.
I laugh along with him, trying to ignore the guilt of leaving early and also the subtle detail of sleeping with Dave’s daughter. In my defense, she lied about her name. But you kissed her again, whispers my inner consciousness. Shut up, inner conscious, you're not helpful.
I scratch the back of my head, tactfully ignoring Jace’s query about where I was. He'd know something was up if I said I left to go and surf; we have a rule against surfing at night. We know first-hand how unsafe it is, so we made each other promise to only hit the waves in daylight.
"Yeah, it was an awesome day, man. Dave looks so happy, and yeah, we all had a great time" Jace nods in agreement.
“Is that the Z dog I hear?” calls out a voice from the back.
I laugh and howl back, a silly thing we started years ago when we were kids. An even louder howl answers me, then turns into a cough. Jace and I burst out laughing, nothing being funnier than Dan embarrassing himself.
He emerges from the back, still shirtless and wet. He must’ve just gotten out of the water.
“Don’t laugh at me, assholes!” he chastises us, shaking his wet hair all over us.
"Put a shirt on," I call out to him, chucking him some merch in his size. A tie-dye t-shirt that fits the stereotype of a surfer.
“You know I can beat you both up," Dan claims, pulling the shirt over his head.
“Yeah, I'd like to see you try." Jace squares up playfully. I step in between the two of them; they can be real children sometimes.
"Okay, tigers, calm it down."
Dan shakes his hair on Jace one more time, unable to resist aggravating him, and I walk off as I see the two of them begin grappling again.
With the two boys' humor continuing to flow, I step away, content with the fact I'd found a special corner of the world with my favorite people. We’re all just big kids, really. It’s the least popular surf shack in the bay, and we keep it like that for a reason. I brought the Surf S'up! to life all those years ago, choosing Jace as the manager and keeping it hidden away from tourists.
We all agreed to offer only advanced lessons and keep the exterior looking rough, to put visitors off. They all flock to the newly built shop down the bay, which has five instructor surf teachers all summer. It takes away from any potential profit, but it means my friends have a place to express their love for surfing and spend quality time together without the craziness of the summer season. Plus, it keeps my buddy in a job doing something he loves and gives me a place to hang out and act silly. As I see it, it's a win-win for everyone.
These guys and Dave are my family here. I’ve known Dan and Jace since we were in pre-school. The three of us formed a friendship based on the fact we preferred the ocean to most other things.
Izzie
As I open the front door to the apartment I share with Charlotte, a feeling of joy and relief comes over me. Returning here feels like coming home, and yet it’s so surprisingly different. Charlotte has used her creative flair to spruce up the place with vibrant crystals and adorn it with little trinkets. Charlotte believes the right crystal could be the answer to many of the ailments that befall us. Despite my skepticism, I have to acknowledge that she was the one who introduced me to yoga, and it ultimately helped me tremendously. Even as I wander in thoughts of amusement, I still ponder the notion that maybe, just maybe, she is right and the rest of us are the crazy ones.
We met during college orientation and just clicked, something Charlotte would call our 'energies' - a concept that still remains a mystery to me. I am unbelievably grateful for Charlotte. Without her by my side, I'm not entirely sure I would have survived college. Being back in the city is the best feeling - only a few miles from my yoga classes, and I never have to settle for the same eatery each evening. Absorbing this tranquility proved daunting, though, since I made a commitment to my father and his new family to spend the summer with them. It's a promise my father and I do not take lightly, so in two weeks, when my final exams are finished, I move in with them so we can have that 'family time.' Even so, these two weeks are a gift I intend to savor while I still can.
I hear Charlotte's loud cry, "Hey girl!" before I even see her. She is standing in the middle of the room wearing the craziest outfit ever - I've never seen such a wild combination, but, hey, this is the big city, and people are definitely more daring here than back home. I can’t help but grin at her and pull her in for a much-needed hug. "I've missed you!" I tell her, squeezing her even tighter. She pulls away and lets out a delighted giggle. "Well, of course. Everyone misses me! So, tell me, how was the big day?" Sighing, I drop my suitcase and lead the way to the sofa, motioning for Charlotte to follow. This is a conversation that definitely warrants a sitting-down session. I begin to fill her in on the night before the wedding, going into detail about the handsome stranger I'd met and our night of fun together. Charlotte laughs along, always encouraging any of my antics. "Ugh, I love single Izzy! She's so much fun," she says, giving my arm a playful pat. Then the mood changes slightly as I somberly mention the one teeny, tiny detail I'd left out - the fact that I'd lied about my name. Charlotte blinks slowly as she processes this information. "Okay...that's a little weird, girl, but it's fine. Who cares if you want to lie about your name? It's not like you're ever going to see him again." Immediately, my face must be betraying me because Charlotte realizes I was holding back; she could tell there was something that I hadn't even said yet. "Oh...It's not like you have seen him again, though, did you?" Cringing, I grab a fluffy pillow and bury my head in it. Charlotte snatches the pillow away from me, and here I am, face exposed, waiting for her reaction. She looks at me seriously, wanting answers. "Iz! You can't leave me on this cliffhanger - what DID you do?"
I take a deep breath and gulp down my guilt before blurting out, "I slept with my dad's best friend." Charlotte's shocked gasp almost echoes off the walls, and she quickly covers her mouth with her hands. "Iz!" she says , her eyes wide with disbelief. "I know, I know," I say, falling backward onto the sofa with a dramatic huff. "I'm a terrible daughter. I didn't even realize it was him until I was walking down the aisle and saw him standing next to Dad." Charlotte lets out a loud laugh, despite the serious situation. "I know, I know," I repeat, my voice barely containing a grin. "What am I going to do?"
I sit back up. "It's not funny!" I say, pouting at her. Charlotte takes a long sip of her water and then slowly shakes her head. "Okay, okay, fine. But it's alright. Now you know you can just both never mention it and pretend like it never happened." Her eyes narrow as my face betrays me again. "Iz! You didn't... did you sleep with him AGAIN?" Groaning, I say, "No," though Charlotte clearly doesn’t believe me. "Okay, no," I amend as her eyes bore into me. "But I DID kiss him again - in a closet at the wedding." She gapes at me. "But he's a total ass anyway! He kissed me, then shouted at me, and I just... I have no idea what he's thinking. I think a part of him enjoyed the craziness of it all." Charlotte lets out a laugh as she takes in my haplessness. "You are insane, Iz! You can't go around sleeping with - and kissing - your dad's best friend!" "I know," I sigh, my voice full of self-loathing. "But," she continues, her voice lightening, "it does make an excellent story and entertains me endlessly! Speaking of assholes...." Charlotte says , causing my eyebrows to raise in question. "Marco has been calling, asking about you." I cringe at the mention of his name. The thought of the man that had broken myk heart makes me want to curl up into a ball and disappear. I'd been in love with him; I had been ready to marry him until I found out he'd been cheating on me this whole time. "I hope you've blocked him," I mutter darkly. Charlotte fixes me with an earnest look. "You know I can't do that; I work with him. He says he's sorry and really misses you," she says, holding her hands up in a defensive gesture. "Don't shoot the messenger! I told him he's a dick forever for cheating on your fine ass, but that didn't go down very well. I know that he wants to try to see you soon." My stomach drops at the thought of having to face him again. Maybe getting out of town for the summer will end up being a good thing after all.
“Yeah, well, we’ll see about that. I don't think I ever want to see him again, to be honest.” She gives me a sympathetic look.
She had been there from the start, from the electric hum of fresh attraction to the agonizing decay of love. Charlotte has been an absolute saint for putting up with me throughout this whole experience. Charlotte smiles sadly and stands , patting her thighs on the way up. "It was nice to see you again, sweetie," she says . "I've got to go to work now, but I'll see you later, yeah?" I nod, squeezing her in a tight hug as she pulls away. I watch her disappear down the street before slumping back into the sofa, feeling thoroughly dramatic. I pull a pillow over my face, letting out a scream, and for a moment, I wonder if I’m not going truly insane. The outburst seems to have released something, a long-suppressed memory. Against my will, Zak's face creeps into my consciousness, his deep brown eyes and tender lips inadvertently bringing a pang of emotion. How could somebody make me so alive when I knew that nothing could come of it? My phone chirps loudly and vibrates in my pocket, jolting me back to reality. It’s Marco. His message reads, "You're back in town. Come and see me." The arrogance of this man was limitless; he seems to think that I’m ready and willing to drop everything for him whenever he declares it. When we'd first started dating, I saw his need for control as a sign of passionate devotion. I thought that if someone wasn't ready to commit to me at all times, then they didn't love me. Now, I know better. I know that I need to put my own needs and wants before anybody else's. And yet, even though I try to fight it, a small part of me still wants to reply, "Where and when?" But I manage to shut it down, to come to my senses and grapple with the knowledge that this is a situation with no good outcome. Taking a deep breath, I throw my phone across the room, knowing that the only way to resolve this is to leave town—to go to Hoola Bay for the summer. That way, I can escape the reach of temptation, though I am aware that there might be even greater temptations with beautiful eyes waiting ahead of me.
Zak
Revving my engine, I slam my horn in frustration. Tourists! They never know how to drive. Especially the ones who flood into this town during the summers. The lovers coming in for romantic getaways, college students learning to surf, and families in summer houses all bring a great boost to the economy and population of the town, and as a business owner, I certainly benefit from the influx. But I do get a little road rage from time to time. Avoiding the busy areas with the majority of tourists is my own goal for survival.
“Watch where you’re going!” I slam on my horn again as I shout out my window. Some people just have no idea how to drive. It infuriates me; this is what it's like in summer; all the extra cars around mean that it takes about ten times longer to get anywhere.
