A Year Around the Sun

f i f t e e n - that was kind of abrupt

i've found my sweet escape
when i'm alone with y o u . . .

🌊🌊🌊

Most people hate Sunday's, but I love them. Only during the summer though because when it's a Sunday any other time of the year, it's known as the dreaded day before a new week of school. With this upcoming weekend being the start of August, I didn't even want to start thinking about going back to that mindset. For right now, my summer is still thriving with the five or so weeks I have left.

A Sunday in late July for me usually means no work, no priorities, and no reason to wake up early. A Sunday with a gloomy sky and turbulent sea for Brody Lambert means getting up early and taking advantage of the waves. So of course, he asked me to join him on the beach just a couple days after our first date, and I agreed.

Instead of staying cooped up in my bed for a majority of this dreary day, I found myself sprawled out on my towel in the sand, watching Brody shred across the water.

It was so mesmerizing to see him ride the waves with pure ease, which made it look like anyone could hop up and do it themselves – including me. He did it with such expertise that he makes a clumsy person like myself want to face their fears and get out there to experience it. But I know how it takes years of practice to get remotely as good as Brody, and in the mean time, I think I'll just observe.

Even though the sun was hidden behind all the thick clouds covering the sky, the heat didn't let up. I was in the ocean earlier, swimming around aimlessly while Brody coasted on top with his board, but my no-longer-pruny fingertips told me it was time to get back in. While I saw Brody slide in towards the shoreline to get out of the water, I swept my hair behind me and stood up.

Approaching me with a smile, he placed his board down on the sand and shook his hair out in front of me, spraying me with the excess water.

"You going in?" He asked, running a hand through his wet hair to keep it out of his face.

"Yeah, I need to swim some more," I nodded. 

His lips lifted quick into a smirk. "Race ya," he spat, and before I could reply, he was off and running back to the ocean.

I took off after him, colliding with the warm water and stopping when it reached my chest. Brody was right near me and we both watched as a mammoth wave make its way closer to us. With a glance at him, we got ready and simultaneously dove under it, bubbles from the crash of the wave washing over my entire body.

I rose to the surface seconds later and wiped my eyes, looking for Brody. But all I saw were the other strangers swimming in the sea with me.

"Brody?" I called out, spinning around and trying to seek out his familiar face. Just as I opened my mouth to say his name again, a pair of arms crushed my body and took me underwater.

A gasp escaped my mouth before my face submerged, the arms releasing me almost instantly. I struggled to find the surface at first but when I finally did, I saw Brody in front of me, grinning from ear to ear.

"Were you trying to drown me?" I panted to try and catch my breath.

"Maybe," he shrugged jokingly as he looked away from me. "Guess you'll never know now. You kind of ruined my plan."

I couldn't help laughing as I flung my arms out and shoved him. He stared at me in mock surprise for a second, then wrapped me in his arms and dragged me under the water again.

🌊🌊🌊

"I'm hungry," I sang my thoughts to Brody as we made the walk back to his house. We brought lunch to the beach and had some snacks, but with dinner time looming over our heads, all I could think about was eating again.