Life starts now - A Bondi Rescue story

A Day Off

The next day was her day off and the teen was glad for it. In the morning, she cleaned the house and went grocery shopping.

In the afternoon, she decided that she needed to clear her head because her thoughts were still circling around Chase, his struggle and the what-ifs. And so, after checking the weather report and surf charts, the young trainee lifeguard was off to Tamarama.

A couple of hours later, Melanie sat on the sand, hair hanging into her face in drying curls. It had not been her best day in terms of surfing, but she hadn't expected much else. She had simply enjoyed the waves, accepting the wet embrace of the water whenever she bailed or got dumped. It had helped and she felt a lot calmer now, her mind more at peace.

The brunette idly watched as a group of children played in the shallows, shrieking and squealing with laughter. A little girl, probably a bit younger than Hannah, was splashed right in the face and started crying. Before any of the adults that were supervising them could even move over to them, one of the other kids toddled through the whitewash and wrapped the sobbing girl in a tender hug.

"Don't be sad, Susie", the boy said as he soothingly patted her head. "The owie is gonna go away soon."

Melanie chuckled softly. Salt water did sting when it got into the eyes, but after years of surfing and swimming in the ocean almost daily, she hardly noticed it anymore. Smile still lingering on her features, she got to her feet, grabbing her board and now mostly dry wetsuit.

"Alright, Mellie?", a familiar voice called.

Turning, the teen's smile broadened. "Hi Azza", she greeted her colleague, Aaron Buchan, who was patrolling the beach, keeping an eye on the crowd even as he came to stand next to her.

"We saw you out there", he told her. "Caught some good ones, eh?"

She nodded. "Yeah, the swell was pretty sweet."

He gave her a companionable clap on the shoulder and commented: "I didn't know you were a goofy-footer."

Melanie laughed. "Sorry to disappoint", she quipped. "But I'm awful at riding regular."

After chatting for a few more minutes, the brunette excused herself. "Don't want to keep you from doing your job", she joked.

"Nah, you're alright", Azza waved off with a smile. "See ya, Mellie."

"See ya."

***

She had a big bubble of happiness in her heart as she headed home. There was also a little bit of pride somewhere in there because she had actually managed to have a conversation with one of the boys, even joke with him, without stuttering or blushing or making a fool of herself.

With a jolt, Melanie realised that she hadn't even been nervous! No shaking, no racing heart, no frantic scrambling for right words. A laugh bubbled up inside her and a big grin spread on her face.

After putting away her surfboard, hanging up her towel and wetsuit, scrubbing the zinc residues off her face and hand-washing her sports bikini, the teen decided to do some baking. There was a new recipe she had been wanting to try out for a while and now she finally had the time.

Fishing out ingredients and bowls, Melanie shuffled around some papers on the kitchen table until she found the recipe. Studying it closely, she arranged the ingredients after her own system, which probably looked like utter chaos to any outsider. Then, turning on the radio, she happily sang along as she started mixing sugar and eggs.

***

She was in the middle of washing the used utensils when her mobile phone went off. Haphazardly drying her hands by wiping them on her trousers, the brunette took the call while throwing a glance towards the timer sitting prominently on the counter.

"Hello?"

"Hi Melanie, how are you?", came the slightly accented voice over the line.

She pinned the phone between her shoulder and ear to continue her previous task. "Oh, hey Rita. How's it going?"

Melanie listened with an amused smile as Rita, her synchronised swimming trainer, told her all about the last competition. "The girls have done really well", she praised. "But some of my lower level kids still have trouble with stamina."

The girl chuckled. "Yeah... If I hadn't practically grown up on the beach, I'd have trouble with that, too."

She could hear Rita's smile in her voice when the older woman answered: "Indeed. That is why I have been planning to train them at the beach occasionally. If they have to swim against the ocean, it will build up their strength."

Leaving the bowls to dry in the dishrack, Melanie once again checked the timer before switching the phone to her right ear and drying the rest of the utensils.

"It would be pretty hard to hold a training session at the beach", she pointed out. "There's thousands of people there. And after 7, there are no lifeguards or rescue equipment around."

Rita sighed. "I know. I don't want to put the girls in danger, so the only option I see is Saturday mornings, around 7 or 8."

The brunette gave a hum of contemplation, scratching at a spot on her forehead. "There's usually not too much going on around that time", she agreed. "Especially at Tama."

After deliberating for a bit more, Rita decided to let her plans rest for a while. "They need time to grow. Like a flower", she laughed. "Right, I have to prepare for training. I'll see you next week."

Melanie nodded. "See you next week, Rita."

Hanging up and putting the mobile phone back on the counter, she hummed along with the song on the radio while she waited for the timer to ring. Ten minutes and a few burned fingers later, the teen had the first cookies on the cooling rack and was putting the next batch in the oven.

***

She called Deano in the evening when doubts and what-ifs started gnawing on her again. He listened patiently while she tried to put her worries into words and reassured her that she had done well. When Melanie suddenly felt stupid and self-conscious, apologising for disturbing him so late, he insisted that it was fine and that he was glad that she had called.

The rookie lifeguard went to bed with his gentle words of advice in mind and she slept through the night without any dreams disturbing her slumber.