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He barks a laugh.
We round another copse of trees before the path opens up to the familiar beachfront. South of us, a dock stretches over the placid blue water. Sensory memory washes over me, melding the past with the present.
“You don’t have to,” Jeremy whispers beside me.
Lucas stands at the end of the dock, hands on his hips, moonlight wreathing his face and the maniacal grin on it. He knows I never turn down a dare.
“It’s fine,” I tell Jeremy, pulling off my shorts and T-shirt to reveal my one-piece suit.
Leaving Jeremy, I march down the dock. My heart pounds hard, fear spiraling through my limbs. But I don’t let it stop me.
“Quiet, Bigfoot,” Lucas says as I near him. “You wanna get us busted?”
I ignore him. “To the buoy and back? Winner gets loser’s dessert for the rest of the week?”
Lucas nods. Then his smile falters. “You know, maybe this isn’t the best idea. Let’s do something else.”
“No take backs,” I snap, and before he can do something stupid, like tell me I’m not a strong enough swimmer, I leap past him and dive into the cold water.
“What are you thinking about?” asks the man-sized version of my childhood best frenemy. “Your eyes glazed over when you looked at the dock.”
I shake my head, coming back to the present. Sunlight glimmers on the lake’s surface. The old buoy still floats a hundred feet out, its orange faded. It’s not far at all—I could swim there and back easily now. But then…
“That time I almost drowned.”
Regret flashes over his face. “Man, I was an asshole.”
I shrug. “You tried to stop me, and then you saved my dumb ass. Anyway, what is it you wanted to show me?”
Lucas watches me for another few moments, then nods and sets off across the beach. It’s more rock than sand, bordered by boulders. There used to be intense turf wars over the larger, flat boulders, nicknamed Sun Rock and Dive Rock.
Over his shoulder, Lucas asks, “Remember that year the counselors had to rope off Sun Rock because those girls kept pushing people off it?”
“Teenage girls are feral,” I say, nodding. “But don’t forget, the same thing happened to Dive Rock when boys wouldn’t let girls jump off it.”
Lucas grimaces. “Man, I hope kids these days are cooler than we were.”
“We never did that shit,” I remind him, then add, “I think you’ll be surprised by the younger generations. They’re more mature than we were, a little more in tune with empathy and compassion.”
He smirks. “Because all their parents are in therapy?”
I elbow him, but I’m laughing. “Maybe.”
We make it to the dock, stepping onto the platform that straddles land and water.
“It’s smaller than I remember,” Lucas says softly.
“You’re a giant now,” I quip, then move past him, intent on the distant end.
“Whoa!” His arm shoots out, forearm against my breasts for a pregnant moment before I jump back.
“What the hell?”
His eyes are wide. “Jesus, Peapod, did you even look where you were stepping?”
I look down. My stomach turns at the sight of lake water beneath a giant hole. “Oh.”
“Oh?” he echoes, then shakes his head. “I didn’t bring you over here for a buoy race, you menace. I wanted your thoughts on moving the dock to the north side of the beach.”
