All I Am (Wattys2015) (ON HOLD)

Chapter 25

Chapter 25

Maddy and Blue spent the next 45 minutes looking at boards. They looked at several different brands and compared 7'6" boards to 7'9" ones. They looked at tail pads, fins and leashes. They finally decided on a 7'6" board with a magenta tail pad, and then got fins and a 6' leash.

"...so the great thing about this board is that it's what most women start on, and you'll get a good feel for the wave with it. You might even be able to look into downsizing after 5 or so months if you surf frequently," the salesman was saying.

Downsizing? Blue was getting even more excited then she already had been for the past hour.

"But, um, how am I going to get it home?" Blue asked cautiously.

"You'll need a soft-top roofrack for that, hun, unless you wanna look at $550 – minimum – for a hard rack."

Blue swallowed hard. "And how much is the soft-top going to be?"

"'bout $110, but since you're getting the board and all that today we'll give it to you for $90."

She nodded.

"I've got a hard-rack on my truck, so we can strap your board onto that to take it back home," Maddy cut in.

"There you go! Get to try the hard one out that way – your friend can probably show you better than me how to put 'em up on it."

Blue nodded and smiled tightly.

Ten minutes later she slid her parents' credit card and signed the receipt. Maddy picked up Blue's new board and carried it outside, grinning at her. She smiled back excitedly.

Maddy stood on the step of his truck and set the board down easily on top of his roof-rack. He centered the board, then proceeded to show Blue how to tie a board down on a hard-rack.

Once they were in the car and on the road back to Piha, Blue looked over at Maddy. She smiled at him. "Thank you. I really appreciate you taking the time."

Maddy looked over at her. "No problem. I loved it." He suddenly reached over and took her hand, holding it tightly.

Blue looked up at him quickly, smiled and then settled back, enjoying the ride. She studied his blonde hair which was pushed back in a bandana. His blue eyes were hidden behind his sunglasses. She couldn't find anything to say, but was strangely comfortable with the silence.

"So I guess you got to talk to my parents for a while today?" she finally asked. God, that sounded stupid. Like she didn't want him to know her parents. Which wasn't all a lie...

"My mum and I have been talking to them about this for a little while now," he replied, pulling her out of her thoughts.

"Well, I'm thankful you convinced them. I can't wait to try my board out now."

Maddy glanced over at her thoughtfully. "You know, you can always come out with me if you'd like. I can just text you 10 minutes before I head out."

"That's great," Blue said vaguely. She didn't want to become a burden to Maddy.

"Your mum's very nice."

Could've fooled me, Blue thought, although she felt a bit guilty afterward. But her mum was a very different person in public compared to at home. "Yeah, she us-yeah, she is. Thanks." Blue drew in a deep breath. Why did she have such a hard time shutting her mouth around Maddy?

Maddy took another look at her. Her grip tightened on his hand. Was it his imagination? Or did she really seem to shut down every time her mum was mentioned, despite trying not to. He watched her stare out the window, and started stroking the back of her hand absent-mindedly.