Rush
rush
. . .
O ur conversation stalls and the five of us linger. No one knows what to do or how to proceed. I can’t seem to take my eyes off Eden, nor can she look away from me.
“Do you guys want to go sit in the lodge?” The words are out of my mouth before I realize what I’ve said. I know I had thoughts of talking to Eden more and could picture us sitting around the fire, but I hadn’t meant to suggest it. I can sense Boomer staring at me, and I refuse to look at him.
Eden smiles brightly and nods. “Yeah, that would be great. I’d totally invite you back to our house, but my parents are there, along with my aunts and uncles, and no one needs their noses butting in our business.”
I motion for them to follow me, and after we pick up all our gear, we make our way toward the main lodge. It’s not really set up for people our age to hang out. When my father and I come here, he sits by the hearth with his legs crossed and sips on scotch or bourbon. It’s very posh, but whatever. It’s the only place I can think of where we can chat which isn’t outdoors, where it’s freezing.
We leave our boards outside and make our way in. Thankfully, no one is sitting by the fire. Eden sits on the couch, choosing a corner. I take the chair directly opposite her. I want to be able to see her while we’re talking, and if I sit next to her, I’m afraid I might try to hold her hand or something.
“Good afternoon, Ms. Davis and Ms. Westbury. What can I get you and your guests?”
Eden turns red, but Paige looks at all of us. “What would you like? You can order anything.”
“Um . . .” I don’t know what to say and look to Boomer for help. He shakes his head.
Mack speaks up and orders something to drink, so I do the same, as do the girls and Boomer. As soon as the waitress leaves, Boomer leans forward and says, “What was that?”
“What?” Paige asks.
Boomer points. “How come the waitress knows who you are?”
Eden looks at Paige, and it’s like they’re having a secret conversation. Eden seems very uncomfortable, and I don’t understand why. She clears her throat. “Our dads are famous,” she says, but it’s so quiet I can barely hear her.
“Wait, what?” Boomer asks. He’s on the edge of his seat like the girls are dangling a chocolate chip cookie in front of his face.
“Paige’s dad is Liam Page, the lead singer of 4225 West. And Eden’s dad is Jimmy Davis, the bassist and piano player.”
I watch embarrassment wash over Eden’s face, and it confuses me. So what if her dad is in a band or famous? I’ve never heard of the group, so what do I care?
“Wait, so your name is Paige Page?” Boomer asks. I stifle a laugh.
Paige rolls her eyes. “No, my dad uses Page as a stage name. But I am named after my great-grandparents. My last name is Westbury.”
“Stage names are confusing,” I say to no one in particular, and then I look at Paige and Eden. “I don’t know your dads’ band, so I don’t think it matters.”
Eden nods. “Some people use us to get to them. It’s annoying.”
“Still doesn’t explain why the waitress came up to you,” Boomer says.
“Because the staff knows we’re here and we’re to be taken care of,” Eden says.
“Ah, gotcha,” Boomer says, but I think he is still confused. I sort of get it. People come up to me and ask for photos or an autograph, but I’ve never had the hotel staff treat me differently. I watch Eden and Paige for a moment and wonder if they live under scrutiny. Are they free to do whatever they want, or do their parents monitor them because of the media? Now, I have questions but don’t want to come off as some nosey guy who is only interested in them because of their fathers.
Eden clears her throat, and I glance at her, meeting her gaze. Jesus, she’s beautiful and doesn’t strike me as someone with a famous dad. Although, I’m not sure I’ve ever met anyone uber-famous, and I suppose all of that will change after I win the gold medal at next year's Olympics. I’ve seen what winning has done to Shaun White—and I’m not gonna lie—I want that kind of lifestyle. No more worrying about much of anything except landing the craziest jumps ever.
“What do you do?” Eden asks. “As in, do you go to school? Work? I feel like you know everything about me already, but I don’t know much about you.”
Boomer slaps me on the shoulder and laughs. “Rush here is going to bring home the gold in the halfpipe.”
“Is that so?” Eden looks at me when she asks, not at Boomer. She wants to hear about me, from me, not him.
I nod. “God willing, of course. But . . . huh . . .” I’m suddenly nervous to tell her about myself. So far, I think Eden’s a cool chick, and I want to hang out a bit more, but I bet she hangs with a lot of people way cooler than me.
Nah, I’m pretty freaking cool.
“I go to a private school, not far from here,” I tell her. “It’s a school dedicated to skiing and snowboarding. I’m on the snowboarding team, and this summer, after I graduate, I will start training for the Olympics.”
“That’s pretty awesome,” Mack says.
“What’s awesome is that he’s only been competing for a year and is already one of the top boarders in the country.”
Eden watches me, and I’m reasonably certain I’m blushing. “What’s your event, again?”
“Halfpipe,” I tell her.
“I’d like to see you perform,” she says. “I feel like it’s only fair since you have watched my videos.” Eden laughs while I shake my head.
“Hey,” a voice says from next to me. I turn, and my mouth drops open.
“Hi, what are you doing here?” Eden asks.
“Wait, you know him?” I point to Quinn Freaking James.
She nods, and Paige giggles. “He’s our cousin,” Paige says as if we’re supposed to know this.
“Okay, now I’m officially jealous,” Boomer adds. “This whole time, I’m thinking it’s no big deal that your dad is in a band, but Sinful Distraction is my favorite band, and holy shit !” Boomer’s voice squeaks at the end, and our three companions laugh.
Quinn looks from Boomer and me to the girls. “You cool here?”
“Yes,” Eden says. “Rush was just telling us how he’s going to win the gold in the halfpipe, and I’m trying to convince him to show us his tricks.”
“No shit?” Quinn states.
“Uh . . .” I can’t find the words and feel like I’m becoming the biggest fanboy in the history of fanboys.
“Let’s head out there.” Quinn motions toward the doors. Mack, Paige, and Eden all stand.
“It’s not safe,” I tell them.
“What do you mean?” Mack asks.
“There are too many people. A lot of novices, and it’s not safe.”
Eden looks at Quinn and raises her eyebrows. “I’ll take care of that. I’ll meet you out there.” He leaves, and Eden stares at me, waiting for me to stand.
“What’s he going to do?”
Eden sighs, and her face creases. “He’s going to clear the pipe so you can board.”
“What? How?”
“Well, he’s going to go to the concierge and tell them that he wants to use the pipe, in private, and they’re going to shut it down for him.”
“Holy shit,” Boomer mutters. “He can do that?”
“And so much more,” Eden says. “Come on. I want to watch you. Maybe I can learn a thing or two.”
The five of us head outside and grab our gear. When we get to the lift, we pair off and unfortunately leave Boomer to ride up the mountain by himself. He could’ve sat with Eden and me, but thankfully he took a social cue and realized I wanted to spend a bit of time alone with her.
Once we’re on the chair, I find the nerve to say, “I hope you don’t think?—”
“That you’re hanging with us because of who our family members are?” she interrupts me to ask. “I don’t, and neither will Paige.”
“And Mack?”
Eden looks behind her. “Our family is different. We’re super close, very tight-knit, and do a lot of stuff together. But it’s complicated. Like, none of us are actually related. My dad joined Liam’s band eons ago, and he met my mum through my mum’s best-friend Josie, who is Liam’s wife. Quinn’s sister Peyton is married to Paige’s brother, Noah. Quinn’s dad is the drummer for 4225 West. However, Peyton is the daughter—well, one of them because they’re twins—of Katelyn and Mason. Mason died a long time ago, and Harrison adopted the twins, and to really confuse you, Mack is Noah’s step-brother. Mack’s dad raised Noah for a bit. It’s truly complicated.”
I hold my hand up. “This sounds like a soap opera.”
Eden laughs. “It sort of is, but they’re all super cool people, and we’re a family. Like, if I need anything and I’m not comfortable going to my parents, I can go to my aunts, and they’ll help me. Or go to Quinn or his girlfriend.”
“That must be nice. It’s just my sister and me.”
“What happened to your parents?”
I shake my head. “Oh, no, nothing. They’re around. I’m just saying I don’t have a big family or a ton of cousins. Both my parents are only children. We occasionally see my parents’ aunts and uncles, but it’s nothing like you’ve described.”
“My family can also be overwhelming,” she tells me. “I didn’t want to come on this trip, but my Aunt Josie wanted us all here. I’d rather be in Hawaii, surfing.”
“I’m sorry.”
Eden looks at me. “Don’t be. I think I might like the snow now.”
Right now would be an opportune time to reach for her hand, but big bulky gloves prevent us from doing so. Instead, I lean into her, pressing my shoulder into hers and ducking my head a bit lower. “I really hope I don’t embarrass myself.”
“You won’t.”
“I love your confidence in me.”
The lift arrives at the top. I reach for her forearm and help her off. She thanks me, and we step aside to wait for the others. Once everyone is off, we trek toward the halfpipe, which I’m surprised to see is empty.
“Wow, he’s got some power,” Boomer says. He straps up, fastens his helmet, and drops down.
“He’s been waiting to do this all day.”
“He’s not doing any tricks, though,” Paige points out. “Isn’t that the whole point of this.”
“This isn’t his element. Right now, he’s checking for bad spots, so I know what to avoid when I go down.”
“That’s a good friend,” Eden says. “Maybe I need a friend to fly a drone or something over where I surf so I’m not racing a shark to shore.”
Everyone laughs, including Eden.
“Don’t tempt your dad,” a voice from behind says, and I recognize it instantly. “Rush, right?” Quinn sticks his gloved hand out to shake mine. “Quinn James. I’m Eden’s?—”
“I already tried to explain it,” Eden interjects. “He called us a soap opera.”
“ How Beaumont Turns or something like that,” Paige says with a snicker.
“Don’t give your mom and aunts anything to think about,” Quinn says and then claps his hands. “I’m excited to see what you can do, Rush. This is one of my favorite Olympic sports.”
Nervous doesn’t begin to describe how I feel. I nod, pull out my earbuds, and turn on my playlist. “I’ll be back,” I say as I wink at Paige. I have never wanted to impress someone more than I do right now.
Once strapped in, I move toward the front and lean back to keep my board stationary. I look at the pipe, imagine my routine and how I will land every trick and drop in. “Here goes everything,” I say as I glide toward my first flip.