Together

69. I'll tell Kiara you say hey!

I know if I saw you, and we kissed just once
You could be happy, maybe you'd come back
Cause I really miss you, don't know how much more I can take
You've been on my mind
You've been on my mind
You've been on my mind, so long I can't deal with it
-Cigarettes After Sex

A few hours and less sleep than JJ would have liked later, and Shoupe was pounding on the door, irritated that he failed to keep the two teens separated on day one. JJ was quick to attempt to ease the man's worries.

"We didn't do anything!" he cried. "Although it'd be easier to prove if you weren't roaring like a busted muffler all night."

Shoupe promised to sleep upright and get JJ ear plugs so long as he stayed in his own room and they moved on.

Now, JJ's standing on the beach in the waiting area for competitors. Shoupe and Kie left a few minutes ago to head towards the spectator's section, wanting to get a spot that would have a better view of the competition.

JJ can still see them a ways away but he keeps his focus on visualizing his moves. He turns towards the break, and sets his features in a serious expression, putting on the face a skilled competitor who's only thinking about the win. The waves are gnarly, and he can't fucking wait. Competition aside, he just loves being out there and could feel the ache in his bones to get started.

He's "in the zone" as Ben would call it. That mental toughness was something they were working on before he had to leave for San Diego. It's all about getting your head in the right place and feeling in control. Nothing is gonna pull him from his thoughts, he's a picture of zen and some shit. He's even confident enough to look at what competition he's got, then he hears Kie's laugh.

Normally he would swerve in her direction, but he reminds himself to keep focused, he'll see her later. Then he hears it again and it's like her voice is a beacon calling him. He can't help but turn towards it because what the fuck was so funny? Shoupe definitely isn't.

He clocks her immediately.

She's easily the prettiest girl out here with her yoga pants and a tight crop top that was only mildly distracting him along with her curls blowing in the wind and her voice dancing musically from her mouth. He almost forgets to take in the whole scene, honestly. He hadn't really appreciated her while she was standing next to him, trying too hard to be fucking chill to notice.

But then he does. Cocking a brow, he watches her laugh at something another competitor is saying to her. He's got dark hair and stands a few inches taller than Kie, maybe nineteen or twenty years old. No way he's still in high school.

Kie glances in his direction and smiles at him, nodding her head in his direction and making the other surfer turn and he waves in a move that JJ himself would find completely awkward. Who the fuck is this guy?

He gives his own short nod and turns to face the break again. He registers that the dark-haired surfer is jogging in his direction and guesses that they are going to be in the same heat together.

"Hey, man," the guy introduces himself. "I'm Daniel Scott, you're JJ Maybank right?"

"Yup," JJ responds glancing over the guy's shoulder and sees Kie talking to Shoupe. He looks back and sees that Daniel has extended his hand and fights the urge to roll his eyes. What are they fifty?

"Cool, I just met your friend, Kiara, I think?"

"Um, yeah, my girlfriend," JJ corrects, giving him a skeptical eye. Kie wouldn't call him just a friend, and like anyone would need to be reminded of her name.

Daniel either doesn't notice or doesn't care about JJ's drop of relationship status because he just slides right into talking about himself.

Apparently, Daniel is a seasoned competitor, traveling every weekend to different competitions and making a name for himself. He mentioned being at the one in Kildare but admitted JJ probably didn't notice him because he made a mistake and was tossed out the second round. He's graduated, like JJ thought and is just doing surf contests hoping to land a sponsorship.