How To Rule Your High School

Chapter 9: Trouble in Paradise

     What if he turns around and leaves the second he sees I'm here? He wouldn't do that! At least, I don't think he would...

     Then again, I also thought he'd believe me when I tried to explain...

     Ugh, okay. What do I do?! Turn around and hope he doesn't realize it's me? But clearly the jogging attire and blonde hair would give it away. Okay wait, this is Clairview. Everyone's blonde and pretty much everyone jogs. Right.

     I pivoted in the sand and sat myself back down, straining my ears behind me. Would he drive away? Would he move to the other end of the beach? Would he just flat out ignore me?

     "Get a grip Madison!" I thought. It was Tyler, one of my best friends...or maybe a recent ex-best friend. But that I could fix. I hoped.

     I was shocked out of my thoughts when I heard a car door close - hard. I didn't dare look around, but I desperately wanted to know if it was Tyler. Before I had a chance to risk it though, I heard running footsteps. He was running to me! I knew it! I knew he'd forgive me!

     I was about to turn around and say something when he jogged in the other direction, off towards the water, his expression tight and his eyes distantly focused on the waves. He wasn't even in a wetsuit today, he was just wearing a customary bathing suit, which was weird. But the combination of seeing his exquisite, bare upper body and the fact that he'd totally just run away without so much as a hello caught my words in my throat. I felt like a fish out of water, my mouth hanging open with my lips poised to say words that just wouldn't come.

   He didn't see you, the little voice in my head squeaked reassuringly. Sure, because you know this beach is positively hopping with people, I thought sarcastically, peering around towards the only other people at the beach at this hour: a lady tossing a stick into the water for her dog and the last few lifeguards joking around near one of the towers. And Tyler.

     So now what? Do I wait half an hour for him to stop surfing, sitting here like an idiot? And what if he decides to ignore me again on the way back to his car? But if I leave now, he'll think I don't have anything to say and that I really do want to go out with Will! Agh!

     Pulling my knees to my chin, I watched Tyler and realized there was something a little off about his surfing. I couldn't quite pin it, but he seemed to be cutting his board around quite viciously, which only made him lose his waves faster. His paddling was quite vigorous too. Whatever, he was probably just practicing for Friday or something.

     I was about to get up to leave when he just sank down onto his board and sat there motionless, just drifting. My eyebrows came together when out of nowhere, he viciously smacked his board and started padding aggressively once more. That's it, I thought, the next time he's down, you're running down there and talking to him. Shouting's more like it, if I wanted him to hear me, but the conversation needed to be had.

     He was down pretty fast again and this time he just floated there again, leaning on his board. I desperately tried to summon my courage but my butt seemed permanently welded in place. Instead of relief, I felt a sense of foreboding when he started paddling back towards the shore, hopping up to ride his board slowly through the wave until it came crashing down.

     Sure enough, he emerged from the water, board in hand, with his face turned towards his feet and his free hand absently massaging his neck. I jumped to my feet, not even bothering to wipe the sand off my butt. Despite the pit of dread in my stomach, I knew I had to talk to him. I had to set this right.

     "Tyler!" I called. We were still a good distance apart since he had barely cleared the tide line, but he looked up, surprised as if he was just seeing me for the first time. But instead of saying anything, he simply stopped walking. For a heart stopping moment, I thought he was going to turn around and run back into the water, away from me. Determined not to let that happen, I ran up to him barefoot.