Language of Love

Chapter 19 - Hoppo

The following day, Troy was on an early. Abi jogged down to the beach with him and left him at the tower to complete her morning run along the sand.

A rhino soon overtook her, beeping its horn, as Whippet and Reidy went past on their way to put the flags up at the North End.

When she got to North End, they'd already set the flags and were waiting for her beside the rhino.
"Morning Bambi. Need a lift back?" Whippet asked. Abi shook her head in response as she caught her breath.
"I'm going to have a swim at the pool."
"Drop into the tower before ya go. I'm stuck in there this morning with this one." Reidy said.
"Gonzo will be at middle flags." Whippet added.

The pool was practically empty so early in the morning. Abi swam her 800m then sat by the pool to dry off a little before throwing on her running gear. She jogged back up the beach.

Positioned at the middle flags with H, Troy watched the few early swimmers whilst H hummed a random Jazz tune. Scanning the beach Troy spotted Abi jogging back from the North End. He watched her jogging with her head down, pushing herself. She seemed determined to improve her fitness to be able to keep up with him on a run. It was a competitive side to her he'd noticed since their first surfing session and another side of her that he loved.
"So that's your girl?" H asked, watching Troy watching the blonde who was jogging along the shoreline.
"Yeah." Troy didn't manage to contain his satisfied grin.
"The boys don't stop talking about her in the tower. They like her."
"She's easy to love." Troy said, then blushed when he realised what he'd said. H chuckled and clapped the younger man on the back.
"It's still quiet. Go see her."

Abi was heading for the middle flags, pushing herself to keep up a faster pace and watching her feet pound the sand. Focussed on her breathing and pace, she nearly collided with a solid muscular chest. Strong hands gripped her upper arms to steady her.
"You're pushing hard today." Troy said. She smiled at him whilst she caught her breath.
"Got a bunch of lifeguards who can run rings around me. Got to at least make some effort to not be completely hopeless."
"You're far from hopeless Abs. Don't push yourself too hard."
He placed his hand on the small of her back and guided her to the rhino, instinctively scanning the water as he walked.

"So you're the infamous Bambi. I'm H." The older bald man standing by the rhino offered his hand. Abi shook it.
"Hear you're quite the legend down here H." Abi greeted him. H seemed pleased and started to regale her with stories of his rescues. Troy slipped an arm around her waist and watched the water.

Half an hour later the radio buzzed.
"Bondi Central to Middle Flags. Send Bambi up, we've got a German lady with a fin chop. Limited English." Reidy sounded serious. Abi quickly made her way up to the tower.

The German woman was clearly scared and in pain, lying on the medical bed with a significant cut on her arm. Abi tried to avoid looking at the cut as she talked to the patient. Reassuring her and her partner whilst Whippet cleaned and bandaged her wound.  The ambulance arrived quickly and the tower was soon calm again.
"You're proving useful Bambi." Whippet ruffled her hair as she helped him tidy up the medical bay.
"Thought you were gonna faint when you saw that chop."
"So did I. That was nasty."
"Seen gnarlier. Troy had a real gnarly one a few years ago."
"Oh! Is that what that scar on his thigh is?"
Whippet wiggled his eyebrows at her. She swatted him on the arm.
"Grow up!" She laughed.

"Come join us Bambi." Reidy called from the desk. "You can even borrow binoculars to perv on Gonz."
Abi followed Whippet up the stairs and laughed when he gallantly pulled out a chair and bowed for her to take it. She held her hand out towards Reidy, who passed her a pair of binoculars with a grin.
She unashamedly used them to check out Troy.
"Mate, you actually are perving at him!" Reidy exclaimed.
"Be wrong not to." She laughed but had already moved to scanning the water as Reidy cackled beside her.
Whippet called out a rescue at South End at the same time as Reidy highlighted a struggling swimmer at the back of the flags. Abi watched as Yatesy responded to Whippets call and H ran in to collect the struggling swimmer at the flags.