Hours

32- Friday, May 18th

10:58 AM

And then, suddenly, we're there. Micheal's phone beeps to inform us that we've reached our destination, and I look up and we're in the same place I was more than ten years ago. The beach seems smaller, almost nonexistent, but it's still rocky, blue, and deep. Micheal parks the car, and we both sit in silence for a moment, waiting for the other to make the first move.

"So..." Micheal says softly. I look over at him, and he laughs a little like he knows a joke I don't. "You do realize it's May?"

"Yes?" I say, not getting the point.

"And that's a lake."

"And?"

"Winter ended like, six weeks ago."

"So, your point is...?"

"It's not going to be warm!" Micheal bursts out laughing, looking at both me and the water in amazement. "It's going to be freezing!"

"I'm not expecting it to be warm!" I shoot back, giggling.

"'Let's skip school', 'Let's have a beach day'," Micheal mocks, not unkindly. "Where do you think we live, Kayla? Brazil?"

"Ew, spiders, no!" I laugh, pretending to shudder. "I was thinking more... The Caribbean?"

"You don't think the Caribbean has spiders?" Micheal asks

"Nope! And you're not going to ruin it for me, either!" I say, jumping out of the car with a shriek. I run to the front of the car, getting to enjoy the look on Micheals' face as he climbs out after me- aghast and grinning.

"Kayla, you can't possibly-" He starts, but I throw my hands over my ears, yelling 'Nope!' again. Micheal huffs playfully, rolling his eyes at me.

"Okay, okay, fine!" Micheal says loudly enough that I can hear him. "I'll let you live in your delusion." He locks the car door and walks slowly towards the water's edge, looking concerned.

"What's your problem?" I ask playfully. "You're not afraid of water, are you?"

"No, of course, I'm not afraid of water." Micheal gives me a pointed look. "I'm afraid of hypothermia. Seriously, Kayla, look at the water. It's practically gray! I don't care how warm it is outside, the water isn't going to be warm at all, and you are not going to get me in the water."

"It's not going to be warm? Micheal, do you think I care if it's warm? We drove two hours up here, skipped school when we have some very important projects going on. You're getting in the water if I have to make you get in with me." I say in a mock-stern tone.

Micheal looks at me and smiles, and I use that moment to take him by surprise. I run at him, grabbing his arm and pulling him back towards the water. He starts exclaiming, trying to pull away, but I run behind him and start pushing him towards the water still. We end up going back and forth until our feet are in the water up to our ankles. It is colder than I had expected, but I refuse to acknowledge it and so does Micheal.

There's no time to feel cold; this is war.

We face off like two cowboys from a Western movie. We're both laughing, but there's a determination in our eyes that can't be shaken.

"You're going down, Price," Micheal says, trying to find the space on the rocky beach with the least water.

"Mighty words there, Micheal. Hope you live up to them," I shoot back, rushing towards him again. He shouts, holding his hands out to block the water I scoop up in his direction. Some gets on his shirt, and he wipes his face to clear the droplets that landed there. He comes towards me, and I rush back into deeper water. It's almost up to my calves now, and each movement reminds me of how cold it is. It's not unpleasant, though, it's almost kind of soothing.

Just as Micheal is about to reach me, I duck out of the way. He stops, but loses his footing, slipping in the water. He falls back into the water, and we both gasp.

"Oh, my God, Micheal," I say, covering my smile with my hand, "Are you okay?"

Micheal looks down at his wet self and grimaces. I walk closer to him, offering my hand to help him up. He takes it...

And then picks me up as well. I shriek, trying to get loose as he carries me into deeper and deeper water. "Micheal!" I laugh, trying to ignore is cold hands on my legs. Eventually, we reach a shelf where the ground drops off abruptly, and Micheal stops walking, now up to his thighs in water. The shelf drops off another two feet, almost making it too deep to stand. "Micheal, don't you dare-" I warn, not actually believing he's going to do it, but before I can say anything else, he throws me into the water.

I gasp as I land in the water, the cold water flowing around me, making my clothes heavier. My hair tangles and I pull my head above water, pushing myself off of the rocks every few seconds to keep my head above water. I take my hands out and shake the water off them, all the while not saying anything. Micheal's grin has begun to slip, and I look at him.

"Kayla, are you-?" Micheal starts

"Get in here, you idiot." I cut him off, swimming towards where he's standing on the shelf.

Micheal hesitates only a second, then jumps in beside me, landing sideways. His splash sends water over me again, but it's less cold this time. Micheal emerges and shakes the water from his hair, breathing heavily.

"Okay," He says, pausing to breathe shakily, "Okay, can you finally admit how damn cold this is?" He laughs, treading water as if it would keep him warm.

"It's not cold!" I lie

"Dunk your head under, then!" Micheal challenges. I hesitate and then shake my head. "No?" He asks, and I shake my head again, grinning. "Why not?"

"It's too cold!" I shout, trying to decide whether it's warmer to keep moving or stay still.

"A-ha!" Micheal shouts, swimming towards me. I swim backwards, but he grabs my ankle and pulls me towards him. I kick at him, but he wraps his arm around my waist. "3... 2... 1!" He counts, dunking us both beneath the water. We come up laughing but freezing. He pulls his arm away, and I can feel where he was touching me as the cold water floods back onto my skin.

"We should get out," I laugh, noticing my fingernails turning a little bit blue. Micheal nods, and we both begin to swim back to the shelf.

"So... did you bring any extra clothes?"