The Summer We Changed

a boardwalk tournament

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The boardwalk was lively when they had arrived, the sun reflecting brightly off colorful metal rides. Jewel could feel the heat on her skin, the breeze blowing against her bare legs as she adjusted the waistband of her skirt. Despite the heat bothering her, she couldn't ignore how at peace she felt seeing everyone together. 
"See, aren't you glad we came?" Belly asked, her head turning to face Conrad.
"How is this any less hot than it would be inside?" He questioned, looking out over the waves of people surrounding them all ignoring the beating sun.
"Because you have the magical sea breeze to cool you down." She answered, a smile on her face as she tried to lift his mood.
"Cool breeze, my ass. I want some ice cream. Nature's air conditioning." Taylor remarked, a little laugh emitting from both Jewel and Steven.
"You know, I'm kind of a natural introvert, so I can't tell if this place is horrifying or if it's just, like, my lizard brain in action." Skye spoke, Belly reassuring her that the boardwalk was a fun-centered place.
"Fun? Because I seem to remember the last time we were here, you were crying." Jeremiah reflected, an amused brow raised as he looked toward her.
"Belly was 12. And Conrad beat her at Shoot Your Shot. And her penalty was to ride the Tower of Terror." He explained to Skye, Jewel struggling to contain a laugh as she remembered the incident.
"Yep, Belly, you were so scared, you threw up." He laughed, the group watching as a light blush crept onto Belly's cheeks.
"I was sick." She excused, despite all of them but Skye remembering the incident vividly.
"Sick with fear. My mom had to throw out your clothes and carry you home in a caftan." Conrad corrected, ice cream cooling his mouth as he reminded them.
"Susannah used to force my mom to come here when they were kids. My mom always hated it, but Susannah loved it so much, so..." Skye spoke, taking a bite of the ice cream as their voice trailed off.
"You know what else my mom loved? The beach house." Conrad replied abruptly, their eyes shifting toward him in a scolding manner. Skye's footsteps halted against the wooden planks, offended by his petty comment.
"My mom's not evil, Conrad. And your mom wasn't a saint." Skye snapped back, sending an uneasy feeling down Jewel's spine. Light tension filled the air between them as each teen remained focused on their ice cream.
"Skye, have you ever played Shoot Your Shot?" Belly asked, watching as Skye shook their head in denial.
"No, and I'm fine keeping it that way." They replied, clearly not in the mood to compete with Conrad.
"Well, do you want to watch me beat Conrad's ass?" Belly played, enticing Skye with a more intriguing offer.
"You could not do that." Conrad denied, feeling a challenge grow between them.
"I wouldn't hate watching that." Skye admitted, a little entertained with the family rivalry.
"You think you still got it, Conrad?" B
"Okay, no, please, not another Great Boardwalk Showdown." Steven groaned, pointlessly trying to prevent the inevitable. That was something Jewel loved most about the boardwalk. Nobody how they were feeling, they could always rely on the boardwalk and each other for a quick pick-me-up and a playful competition.
"Why not?" Belly spoke disappointed, despite knowing that Steven and Taylor couldn't delay such a traditional event.
"So, they used to do this big tournament on the boardwalk every year when they were kids. I would get a riveting play-by-play as soon as Belly got home." Taylor explained to Skye, clearly uninterested in another repeat.
"Well, yeah, every year until Belly and Conrad got too competitive. And then my mom banned us from ever playing again." Steven finished for her, entertained with the topic at hand.
"Are you down, Jere?" Conrad asked, his gaze shifting toward his brother. Jeremiah debated his participation, seemingly reluctant to agree, as his eyes shifted between them.
"Uh...Hell yeah. Let's do it." He finally agreed, the group getting hyped up over another boardwalk tournament after so long.
"I should actually, um, head out." Skye spoke, considering themself an outsider amongst the nostalgic family.
"No, you should stay. It's fun." Conrad spoke, lowering his hostility in hopes they accepted the invitation.
"It's too late. You're already on my team." Belly retaliated, refusing to allow Skye to isolate themself from a good group experience.
"Fine. You win. But I don't do high fives. I'm not going to, like, whoop in the air. I don't trash talk. The corners of my mouth might turn up just a little bit, but I'm not gonna smile." Skye spoke, setting the guidelines for their participation.
"Deal." Belly agreed, unfazed by the special demands. 
"Deal. So then what's the prize?" Skye
"Losers have to buy the winners the biggest bag of candy of their choosing."
"Really? Candy? No, I mean, can't we think of something, like, sexier?" Taylor suggested,
"Candy's always been the prize. I mean, it was Belly's choice, obviously." Jeremiah reminded her, not seeing a reason to change something traditional.
"You know, you're at a little bit of a disadvantage here." Jewel reminded them, knowing Skye would likely choose their team over their petty-filled cousin's.
"I'm confident we'll be fine." Conrad spoke smugly, watching as Jewel raised an eyebrow with intrigue. She looked toward Belly and Taylor, both clearly eager to prove him wrong, before shifting her gaze back to match Conrad's.
"Alright, I hope you know our favorite candy." She shrugged, her competitive side soon to get the best of her as she accepted the friendly challenge.
Conrad's lips formed in a small smile, his eyes flicking between them.
"Well, fine. Fine. We can play the games. But... we start at the arcade because it is hot as balls out here." Steven reasoned, the group agreeing as they turned to head toward the air-conditioned building.
"Airheads, by the way. I hope you know ours." Conrad spoke from behind her, Jewel's eyebrows furrowing at the cheeky comment as he moved in front to join the others. She followed behind them, excited once again see the playful side of the boys after so long without.