3's A Crowd

Ow Cody, that really hurt.

9 months before the Instagram pictures...

The sun streamed brightly through the French doors of Airy's balcony as it made its ascent towards the dimly lit morning. It cast odd shadows along her brown skin as she shimmed into her grey wet suit. Her body hummed with excitement as she zipped up the back before she grabbed her board and tip toed down the stairs. He was going to hate that she beat him.

She bounced along through the baby blue halls covered in family portraits of Sheckler, his siblings and their friends. She was in many of them; his mother had loved her from the very start. The green eyed women had a very special place in Airy's heart, she always would. That's why she'd abandoned school in the middle of the semester, flew to Australia and promised to wear whatever dress the woman picked out for her wedding.

Opening the front door she grinned at the ocean, sucking in the crisp morning breeze. It was a good day to surf. She was more than excited to see that at least someone's coast wasn't down cast with torrential rain, dim clouds and the grumbling underbelly of lightening and fog. Australia was a 3rd home to her, London being her second and California her first. She hadn't been here in years and getting to take a month out of school, a sort of extended spring break, to hang with her friends and catch up with Sheckler and his family was totally worth all the extra work she would have to do when she got back.

With a hearty laugh she raced across the white sand, pink toes sliding through the grains like a knife through butter. They say the best thing about music is that when it hits you, you feel no pain. Airy agreed with that, but she loved the first slap of ocean spray against her goose pimpled skin, the best kind of abuse. Slicing through the waves as she paddled out her chest expand with an electric joy.

A bubbling release of stress in exchange for this openness, she liked to imagine it was freedom. The ocean was vast and never ending. It made her feel so small out here, like a speck on a larger speck. And yet, she was unstoppable. She could go anywhere from here, this water touched a million shores all over the world. She felt like a true wanderer when she thought about how the cool liquid swirling against her legs, might've have traveled from the North Pole to get here. That if she closed her eyes she could go anywhere, do anything, and be anyone. The world was in the palm of her hand, resting against her skin. In the moments when she rode out a crest, body crouched low on her board, water rumbling in her ears, she was infinite.

Almost 2 hours later, Airy paddled in body sore, wrinkled and tingling with adrenaline. Laying her head against the smooth surface of her board she closed her eyes and purred beneath the sun.

She would have to leave in 4 hours for Lou's dress fitting for her bridesmaids. She was so happy for Sheckler's mom, it had been a real struggle when she first came out to her family about her sexual orientation but they had all been supportive.

Sheckler however was struggling with the situation. With her insistent urging he managed to put on his best face for his mothers sake. Airy figured it had something to do with Lou divorcing Sheckler's father, Morton. Sheckler had a really close relationship with his father and it had hit him hard when they separated 4 years ago.

Even still Lou and Morton were like best friends. In fact he would arrive later on in the week to help with preparations. Hopefully Sheckler would be over it by the time the wedding took place, 3 weeks from now.

Duck walking through the now waist high water she sighed happily, ignorant of the boy coming in fast behind her. With a loud thwack, Airy went toppling over, head throbbing. Resurfacing she sputtered completely un-lady like as she muttered a few choice words, eyes narrowed looking for the jack off who smacked her with a pretty solid board.