The Beach House

Chapter 5: Ok, But You're Paying

When Tess and I finally reached the others, they've already set up the chairs, towels, and umbrellas. Ali left a chair for me in the shade of a beach umbrella with my favorite light blue towel spread out on top. I fry like a fish in the sun no matter how much sunscreen I wear, so some shade is always kindly reserved for me. I envy Ali and Tess's ability to get the perfect, even, summer tan. All I get are burns that peel and freckles. Well, hopefully that's all I get. I'm sure it doesn't take much sun for someone as fair as me to get skin cancer.

I smile gratefully and thank Ali for the set up as I settle down on my beach chair. Tess was right. Running made me break into a small sweat. I self-consciously wipe at my upper lip to hide the evidence. Sweating is my least-favorite summer side effect. I blame my genetics. My dad is one sweaty guy.

It's only after I've gotten comfortable in my chair that I take in the scene around me. Luke, Robin, Connor, and Noel have obviously refused chairs and instead set their towels directly on the sand. Their shoes and shirts are scattered on the ground and i can see them about 20 feet away, splashing and laughing in the water. Next to a green and white striped towel, I spot Annika's beach bag and flip flops. Usually, Annika is a tan-and-read-trashy-magazines kind of girl, but looking at the water, I can see her splashing along with the boys. Emi is with her for what i guess to be moral support, but i catch her talking to Noel every time i look back. Annika's eyes are trained on Luke and I can't help but notice him staring back at her. It makes me smile. On the other side of Ali, Tess has broken out a Vogue magazine and headphones. I know better than to disturb her during her precious tabloid time. Ali has on tanning oil and earbuds. I guess she's out of commission, too. As I begin to settle into the comfortable silence around me, I hear the sound of a spray sunscreen bottle. I didn't even realized there was someone next to me.

I turn to my right and see none other than New-Boy-Soren sitting on a towel-covered chair. I guess i forgot to account for him. I'm so used to it being the same group every year that my brain entirely skipped over him. The wind picks up and sends his stream of spray-on sunscreen in my direction, making me cough.

Soren looks up surprised. "Sorry, I should've warned everyone to cover their faces," he says with an easy smile. His words are apologetic but his face tells me he thinks it's funny.

The sunscreen isn't too irritating but I feel like being dramatic so I continue to cough dryly anyways.

"I heard that stuff can give you cancer if you inhale too much of it," I say inbetween coughs. It's not true. I've never heard anything cancer-related about SPF spray. It's just the first thing that comes to my clearly disturbed mind after just thinking about skin cancer seconds earlier. Who thinks of stuff like that? And who actually says stuff like that out loud?

"If that were true, I'd be dead by now," he challenges. "I use this stuff at least four times a day in the summer." His smile never wavers.

"All I'm saying is if I end up in the hospital, your paying my bills," I respond. I let my coughing die out and try to breathe normally again. I find it surprisingly difficult with Soren near by.

He mockingly bows his head and says, "Gladly," with a smug smirk. I blush at the flirtatious gesture before looking down at my hands. I fiddle with my sunglasses to avoid looking at him.

"So, do you spend a lot of time in the sun, then?" I ask.

I keep my eyes still and low. I haven't done anything wrong besides start a conversation with someone, but I still feel a wave of guilt. I wonder if Noah would care that I'm talking to some random guy he doesn't know. Not that it's like that or anything. We're just chatting. But something tells me he very much would mind. He doesn't really like when i talk to any boy he doesn't know, even when he's with me. Which only makes me feel more encouraged to continue the conversation. I guess I'm feeling rebellious today.