- surfing feelings ⛅️ | ari gibson | a surviving summer fanfiction

part 12 - shenanigans

To recap, Poppy told me her history of her crush on Ari Gibson. And now I don't know what to say. We talked for a bit more and walked back home instead of Manu picking us up. It was late, anyways.

I jumped onto my bed with full force and landed on my stomach. Turning my head to the side, I get what Poppy meant about the room. It was bare and I did still have a few boxes that were never opened, just collecting dust for the past seven months in the corner of my room. While brainstorming ways to decorate and make this place feel like home, a rapping noise came from the window. At 1 am, it isn't the best thing to hear. It caught me by surprise and I landed on the side of my bed trying to roll over and grab a weapon. I went to my closet and grabbed my old softball bat from pre-k.

The best thing about my room is the window seat. It was a half-circle type of window seat and willowy curtains I've never changed out. Inching close to the window and opening it quickly before backing up again, a blur of hair popped up.

I screamed with hair covering my face after falling over again in fear and smacked something hard with the small bat with all my might.

"Oi! It's me! It's Ari! Put that thing away. It hurts like hell." He rubbed his head and put his hand up, trembling.

"Ari?! What the heck are you doing here?!" He could've come by in the morning time like a normal person and not scare the living daylights out of me. I was ready to kill him and bury his body in the woods or throw him into the water. Enough crime documentaries have told me to puncture the lungs so the body doesn't float up in the water.

"I just needed to come." I felt myself get heated and my body temperature rise. I let it out on him.

"Come for what? Because obviously we're just great friends and normal friends don't climb into other friends' windows! Especially the opposite gender! You're being stupid." I crossed my arms and he just stared at me. I tapped my foot on the hardwood floor. "I'm going to get Manu and he will beat you up if needed. Speak now."

"I don't know. I just thought you'd want to talk, maybe." He put his hands into his pockets and shrugged. "Summer has been telling me to take more risks."

"Talking. Can wait for tomorrow. Besides, Abbie will kill you. I wouldn't even be surprised if she was waiting for you outside right now!" I tried to push him back to the window. If needed, he will be pushed two stories out onto a pile of surfboards. I can't even look at him right now.

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I managed to shoo Ari out of my room after his stupid nighttime escapade. It's been a few days since then of just waiting around and training under Manu's watch for the Subtropix Wildcard Trials. The announcer started to count off all the competitors that were coming up. I was so ready for this.

We had driven up the coast for an hour to a beach near a food truck my mom would talk about going to in high school. She said it was the best seafood tacos in the area, apparently. It was called Australia Supreme and I could smell it from one end of the boardwalk to the other.

"You smell it too, right? I'm so full of nerves I can barely stomach a sandwich, let alone seafood tacos. It smells so good, though." Poppy said as she walked up next to me. I took a look at the food truck with a long line in front of it. It was gaudy looking and old with smoke coming out the roof and a faded teal color. The truck had definitely seen better days. "Let's go get some after the heats. I'm starving after getting on that workout and diet Manu put us all on."

She wasn't wrong. With the quarter-finals and everything, every year was getting harder with competition getting fiercer. The year before I wasn't ready to even take on Jackson Bay, but being part of the Boardriders, Manu increased the training regime as the years passed.

This year was different.

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Author: So sorry this chapter's short! I'm trying to figure out some things, but the next one will be better!