Lifeguard

3. First day

Sydney was sitting under a white umbrella, proudly wearing a red lifeguard swimsuit. She had just returned from her first beach walk-around, inspecting those tourists who had decided to go further in the water than it was considered allowed. Kyle Roche was nowhere to be seen, which still surprised Sydney as she thought there always had to be a present lifeguard.

She took a sip of her relatively cold water and relaxed back in her plastic chair, enjoying the sound of the waves crashing against the shore. Noon was about come which meant she would have 45 minutes to grab something for lunch. It also meant she would have time to see her family.

Oh, how excited she was for that!

Sydney was a person who enjoyed silence, so Kyle's constant quietness didn't bother her. Of course, she would have liked conversing with him more, but she came to the realisation that perhaps it was better the way things were. She focused her thoughts on her first training the coming afternoon.

Sydney understood she had to go through basic training before she was entrusted with saving people, although she had already done that. She had nothing against the week-and-a-half fast course. What she didn't understand was how Kyle Roche allowed himself to be absent for so long when she wasn't exactly qualified yet.

''What's that kid doing on your 2 o'clock?'' A deep voice took Sydney out of her thoughts, her eyes widening because she thought she had missed someone drowning.

She tried to hide her shock by sitting straighter, ''her father is right next to her. He just emerged from the water.'' Sydney informed Kyle who had just shown himself before her.

''I know,'' He crossed his arms in front of his chest, ''because I have already spotted them. But you hadn't and this mustn't happen.'' He pulled the other chair and sat next to Sydney under the umbrella.

''What makes you think I haven't spotted them?'' Sydney raised an eyebrow, turning to Kyle. She didn't want to give him the pleasure of knowing she hadn't seen something important.

''For starters, you're asking me. Secondly, if you had, you wouldn't have been looking in the other direction.'' Kyle smirked when he noticed Sydney didn't have a proper reply to defend herself with.

Sydney sighed, ''I see why I got teamed up with you... you're really good.'' She didn't mean it as a compliment, but Kyle's increasing smirk meant he had taken it otherwise.

''I know,'' He repeated with the smirk still present on his face. Sydney spent a moment too long staring at him before she looked away, ''as I already told you, the job isn't too hard, but it requires a lot of concentration.''

Sydney let those words sink in, nodding her head. She paid attention – sometimes more than necessary – so she remembered very well when he had told her about the hardships of the job. But she also remembered how he was gone while a child was drowning.

She narrowed her eyebrows, shaking her head a little. She judged herself for thinking like that – it could have happened to anyone, and she was wrong for judging him. Kyle may have been distant and too full of himself, but he was friendly with her in his own way.

''When's your lunch break?'' He asked without looking at her. He looked strangely hot with his black sunglasses on.

''Precisely, at 12.45 and according to the schedule, I should be back at 1.30 pm.''

''Scratch the schedule, you'll take your lunch break after 1.30 pm.'' Kyle said matter-of-factly like he was the superior lifeguard who created all schedules. Annoyed, Sydney glanced at him,

''But I can't take a break after 1.30 pm and you know it. It's against the rules.''

''What? You're afraid of breaking the rules because someone may catch you red-handed?'' Kyle returned her glance, but his eyes were still covered with his sunglasses. How Sydney wished to remove those shades!