The Art of Learning to Speak

Intro

There is something beautiful about the human face underwater.

I don't mean that people look better than before they were submerged. They just look peaceful, almost as if they were dreaming.

And that's exactly what Evelyn Winkler was doing.

Evelyn Winkler was dreaming underwater.

My Uncle Davis kept asking me if she was okay. Which, reader, of course she was, or else I wouldn't be swimming next to her. She just really liked to be underwater. I mean, really, liked it. She must of had gills underneath her swimsuit, because I would keep coming up for air, but I would never see her head beside mine.

She was really good at keeping her eyes open underwater, too. I noticed it when they met mine, though it wasn't for very long. Her short hair swarmed around her in a bundle of colors, reflecting the sunlight at whatever turn or twist she made. It was as if she was destined to be in the water.

"Son, why don't you come out and take a breather?" said Uncle Davis. My brother and sister were already making their way over to the dock, though we had only been in the lake for a half an hour.

Bobbing slightly, I looked over to where my uncle was standing, my jaw nearly dropping when I saw what he was carrying--with great difficulty--to the picnic tables.

"...yeah, okay." I said, swimming at a faster pace. To my not-so-surprise, Evelyn swam right passed me, not even blinking an eye.

When we reached the dock, I didn't even grab a towel. Do you know what I did? I'll tell you. I plopped my soaking butt down on the picnic bench, reaching my dripping hands forward to bite in to the most juicy, delicious thing in the whole wide world. I'm telling you, Uncle Davis's watermelon is even better than an Orange Pop on a hot summer's day. Which today was one of those days.

"Your fruit never ceases to amaze us, uncle." said my sister, diving in for a third piece. My older sister is a bit on the bigger side, though everytime I open my mouth about it, she slams whatever door is nearby and goes to her room to cry for the rest of the night.

I don't understand girls.

Speaking of which...

"Hey, Sandra." I elbowed her. She elbowed back.

"Yeah?"

"Is that girl over there your friend?" I pointed to Evelyn, who was sitting at another table with whom I assumed was her sister. Obviously I knew that they were friends or else I wouldn't know her name; I just didn't want to blow my cover.

"Oh, Evelyn?" My sister smiled. "I guess you could say we were pretty good friends." Then she looked down at her piece of watermelon, like she knew something that I didn't.

"She goes to your school, right?"

"Uh-huh."

"Well she's a really good swimmer."

"You can say that again." There was a brief pause before Sandra asked, "Do you like her?"

I stared at her with disbelief. "How can you like someone you haven't even met?"

She laughed like I had just told the funniest joke she had ever heard, shoving another piece of watermelon into her piehole.

"Oh, wouldn't you like to know?"