A Summer To Remember

Chapter 2

Dad wandered to the beach right behind our house after lunch, without saying a word. I put my swimsuit on and put on some new clothes. As Timmy got ready, I wandered out to where dad was sitting in a lawn chair, reading a book. I wanted to check on him before Timmy and I head down to the public beach.

"What are you doing out here?" I asked once I was directly beside him.

Dad looked up from the book to look at me. "I just need to think for a moment."

He watched me as I sat down on the sand beside him. "Is everything okay?"

Dad smiled and nodded. "I'm fine."

I looked up at him and shook my head. "Are you sure? You hardly ate any lunch."

Dad gave a not so convincing grin. "I'm fine. I just have a lot on my mind."

I nodded. "So, when are we planning to head to the beach?"

"You and Timmy head down. I'll come down if I'm feeling up to it."

I nodded and stood up from the sand. "You sure you're okay?"

Dad tried to give a convincing smile. "I promise you that I'm fine."

I nodded. "I really hope so." I put my hands in my jeans pockets. "Can we have some money?"

Dad nodded, placing his book on his lap to grab out his wallet from his back pocket. "Yeah. How much?"

"Just enough for some food and Timmy also needs more surf wax."

Dad nodded and looked through his wallet, pulling out a few bills. "Would thirty dollars be good?"

I nodded and politely took the money from him. "That's fine." I looked at him sympathetically. "You sure you don't want to come?"

Dad waved it off. "I'm good. I'll just sit here while you two are out. I'll meet up with you two later."

I nodded. "Okay, dad. I'll stop by and check on you in a couple hours."

He smiled. "I told you I'm fine. I just want you to bring me back the change."

I nodded. "Will do, dad." I smiled and leaned down to give him a small hug. "Love you, dad."

"I love you too. Have fun."

I leaned back. "Thank you." I gave him one more smile before turning back to the house and walking towards it to grab my stuff.

***

Timmy and I walked down the crowded beach, side by side. The beach was packed with kids, teens, adults sunbathing. A few lifeguards patrolling the beach. Kids' splash in the water as their parents sat back and watched. The teenagers ran around throwing Frisbees and playing other games that involved running. A few teens almost ran into us a couple times.

"Wow, pretty crowded," Timmy said as we found a clear spot to put our stuff. "You mind running into the shack to get a few things?"

I nodded and placed the things I was holding down. "Okay." I turned and walked around people to the shack. It was this old wooden shack. It was stable and was well decorated both outside and inside. It had this old Hawaiian vintage feel to it. Very comforting. I walked around the racks of swimsuits to get to the surf wax shelves near the racks of surfboards. I was glad once I stood in front of the waxes. It was more open and I didn't feel as isolated as I did before. I sighed and started looking at the waxes. I was soon pissed off when I couldn't remember the brand name Timmy usually gets back home. Timmy only has ever used one surf wax brand while I used whatever was available. He'd noticed in an instant if I bought the wrong one.