The Beach Princess

Chapter 1

“I’m home.”

“Wash up, Marybeth, you have your violin exam tomorrow. Make sure you practice hard,” was the stern voice she heard from her mom. Marybeth did not reply—she walked up the carpeted stairs that led to her white-doored bedroom. She placed her thumb on a small machine by the door before it clicked open, letting her in.

“Ergh,” she grunted.

As usual, her bathroom was clean. The marble white bathtub had been previously filled with bubbly warm water, and a trace of freesia fragrance that tickled her nose. Marybeth removed her clothes and bathed herself, resting her pounding head on the wall.

Sometimes this was all too much for her.

“Beth? You okay?”

She must have stayed too long in the bathroom because Collin was never early nor late. Very quickly, she stepped out of the bathtub and dried herself. She ran back to her bedroom and picked the outfit on the topmost of her closet—a light blue tank and shorts. Then she opened the door.

“Sorry—I’m just relaxing myself back there,” Marybeth grinned. To be honest, Collin’s punctual visit every sunset was the best part of her day. She felt swallowed and trapped in this big, castle-like mansion where she was mostly alone, only accompanied by the maids and their endless service for her. She went to a high-classed school where she was surrounded by filthy rich snobs she never liked. And, as if that wasn’t hell enough, her mother signed her up for classes she thought would make her even more ‘elite’—violin, ballet, and all that trash.

With Collin, things were different. He was like Fortuna’s apology to her for making her life so suckish—he was her head chef’s son, about the same age as her, and he was very friendly. The head chef in her house was almost as busy as the head chef in a five-star restaurant, so Collin took over the task of bringing Marybeth’s dinner.

“My mom made her signature mushroom soup today. And some bread, too,” Collin knelt down, offering the tray like Marybeth was a princess.

“Stop it,” Marybeth laughed. “Thanks a lot, Collin. Ugh—I really wish you’re in my school. Things would be so different.”

“I gave up on school long ago,” Collin sighed. “Eat well! And you—you… don’t be like me. You’re so lucky to have parents that can afford every minute of your life with luxury… Be someone great, you know?”

“It’s just too exhausting,” Marybeth dipped her bread in the bowl of soup, swirling it playfully. Collin looked at her wistfully. It’s not like Marybeth wasn’t beautiful—but she never stepped out of the house without her father’s grand car, and on the weekends she would be forced to cram and cram and cram. As a result, her skin was pale and she was really thin. Every time he looked at her, Collin always felt like looking at a delicate, fragile figure of Snow White he needed to protect. That was why they became close friends.

Collin raised his eyebrows. “You know what? You need to have some fun.”

“Just a synonym for getting killed by mom and dad,” Marybeth rolled her eyes.

“But Beth—you’re like, 17 now! You should hang out once in a while! Enjoy the night life, break the rules, get crazy, you know?” Collin laughed. Marybeth’s black eyes rounded up in excitement. “Are you serious? We’re gonna do all that?”

“Yes, my friend,” Collin pulled her to stand and circled her shoulders with his hand. “We’re gonna sneak out of your castle.”

-

“You’re killing me!” Marybeth’s lips formed those words without letting out a single sound. Collin was far below her, in the front yard of her house, and she was by her bedroom window. Collin had showed her how to climb down first.

“Hurry up! The coast is clear!” Collin semi-whispered with both hands forming a funnel aroud his mouth. Marybeth knew all the maids in the house were busy at this moment—her father was expecting dinner with his new client, and he was always such a perfectionist about first meetings. Marybeth held her breath, closed her eyes and climbed down.

“Easy, easy—few more—yeah!!” Collin felt the excitement run in his veins as Marybeth reached the perfectly-mown grass . “Now follow me. Back fence!”

-

Marybeth’s mansion was lonely—there weren’t many other houses around it. The closest ‘fun’ Collin could bring her to was a secluded beach nearby. Marybeth remembered the beach as one of the reasons why her father built their mansion there—her mother had always been really fond of these beaches.

“This is really beautiful I feel like I’m dreaming,” Marybeth’s voice trembled with glee, as she drowned her bare foot in the coffee-brown sand. “Collin—thank you.”

“Don’t thank me now,” Collin reached Marybeth’s hand as they climbed a rather high area in that beach. There, the sky that had just been left deep purple by the setting sun was clear to them. Marybeth locked her eyes on that breathtaking view, her pale cheeks now flushing in red. Collin smiled. “Having fun?” he asked.

He then piled up the sand between his legs into a castle. Marybeth laughed and took two broken twigs nearby, helping Collin shape the sandcastle. “That’s a pretty boring castle, isn’t it. I prefer to be here,” she drew a route from the sandcastle to a wide area. “In this beach.”

“From now on, you can ask me anytime to come here, Princess,” Collin promised. He took the twig from Marybeth’s hand and wrote “Princess M Was Here” on their ‘beach’. They both laughed.

“Beth—there’s actually something that I need to tell you,” Collin cleared his throat. Dang—is he really going to say it? This is suicide, Colls, you would not—tell her about your true feelings, would you?