❝So collapse. Crumble. This is not your destruction.
This is your rebirth.❞
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The tide pushed against her.
Here she was, standing under the heat, trying hard but failing to keep her promise to support Travis. And she'd kept a safe distance until the crowd suddenly engulfed her and pushed her forward, making her closer to the ocean than she was before.
The waves were so close. Right there. Don't panic, she told herself. Just push back, and it'll never touch you. Push. Back.
She really couldn't.
Then she felt water droplets on her skin.
Her entire body froze. Suddenly it was hard to breathe. She scratched on her skin hysterically, trying to make it go away, anything to make it go away —
"Whoa!" A familiar voice caught her amidst the noise. "Lenny, is that you?!"
The sight of Zach made her body flood with relief. "Zach!"
"Are you okay?!" She didn't hear him, and he shouted, "Hold on, let's get the fuck outta here first!"
"Agreed!"
With the help of his hand on her elbow, the two managed to get themselves out of the fold. People only pushed harder once El and Zach left their empty spaces. When they found a better spot near the palm trees, she turned to him with curiosity, first and foremost.
"You're not on the waves?"
"Nah," he shrugged, leaning against the tree bark. "Coaches put me into separate groups from your boyfriend after the fight. Which, I'm guessing, was who you were rooting for back there."
She reddened. "Guilty."
"Don't be, we're good." He lowered his voice. "I, uh, wanted to ask you about something."
She tensed. First, because every time they had one-on-one conversations, it was always serious, and involved the Samuels brothers. Second, she already knew that it did.
