Chapter 1 #2
Stopping him, I take his tumbler and drop it next to the cooler. “Time to cut you off.”
He laughs and heads over to the girl. Making his standard introduction, he gets her to smile and agree to whatever it is he’s selling her.
Hopefully, she’s smart enough to keep her distance when he makes his move. Leaving him to it, I stretch out on the sand.
Closing my eyes, I let myself enjoy the heat. I’m dozing off when a light, citrusy vanilla scent drifts toward me.
My face turns cool, and I hear a camera shutter.
When I open my eyes, I see the blonde lifeguard standing over me. She’s putting something away in her hip pack.
Did she just take a picture of me?
Close up, she's a vision. Fair skin warmed by a golden undertone. White-blonde hair and clear blue eyes that shimmer in the sun. A light dusting of sand clings to her like glitter, catching the light. She's... bright. I glance at the lifeguard stand and see that another guard has replaced her.
“Where’s your friend?” she asks.
“Who? Mark?”
“He’s been drinking.” Hands on her hips, her face is serious, as if she’s scolding a child. This is going to be fun. I sit up.
She spots the tumbler. Picks it up and sniffs.
“Vodka.” She pours what’s left of the liquid onto the sand, closes the lid, then puts it back in its place.
“Alcohol is prohibited on the beach.”
“Sure.” Smiling, I try to look innocent. Which I kind of am. “I’ll make sure he knows. Anything else I need to tell him?”
She sits down beside me and stares at the sand, then bites down on her lip. Curious now, I watch as she looks up, then down, then back to me.
“You’re Nathan Carter.”
“That’s me.” Now I’m really curious.
“Hi.” She stares and waits.
“Hi?”
“I’m nervous.”
I try to stop myself from smiling. And I’m dying to know what she’s going to say. “Don’t be. Just spit it out.”
“I need a student mentor.” She pauses again, then clears her throat and sits up straighter. “I’m majoring in marine biology.”
“Oh yeah? We have something in common. My mother is a marine biologist. Both my parents were,” I say. I think of my mom and my little sister, Mads. A pang of guilt hits me. I’m here, focusing on my future, while they’re home alone. But Mads is sixteen now, and Mom had insisted.
Her mouth curves, the tension draining from her face, replaced by a cautious openness that hadn’t been there before.
Who is this girl anyway?
“I’m curious—why are you asking me to mentor you? Have we met?” I know we haven’t. How could I forget if we had?
“No… I’ve heard you’re the smartest, the best—I want to learn from the best.”
My mind goes blank. I’m clueless about what to say. Is she really asking me to mentor her? Because I have zero time for that.
“Will you teach me? I won’t disappoint you. I’m the hardest worker you’ll find.”
“Hmmm.” I’m so intrigued, I almost say yes.
But I’m going to have a little fun with her first. “Before I commit, I have to know you’re a serious student.” I give her a firm stare. I’m struck by her eyes. They’re unnerving. Like mirrors.
“Can you explain diel vertical migration?”
She nods enthusiastically, and I can tell she’s about to spill out all the textbook knowledge she’s sure to have on the subject. I raise my hand. “Wait a sec. Teach me like I’m a little boy with no knowledge of marine biology.”
Rose-colored plumes flow up her neck.
Got her.
She’s going to need to think about her answer. Good.
Clutching my hand, she clears her throat. I stare at our clasped hands.
“So, have you heard about how birds, butterflies, and fish—like salmon—all leave their homes in big groups and move over long distances each year to find food and shelter or to have their babies?”
“I think so.”
“Well… those are called animal migrations, and they’re super important in the cycle of life. Did you know the biggest mass migration in the whole wide world happens every single day in the ocean?”
Most people I’ve met talk with their hands when they’re explaining something they’re enthusiastic about, as if to occupy them while they search for the right words. Not her. Her body is still.
But her face is the most expressive I’ve ever seen. Alive. As though there is no gatekeeping of her thoughts and emotions. A verse from my favorite poem comes to mind: “A mind at peace with all below…”
“No. Tell me more.”
“At night, when it’s dark, billions of little sea creatures all swim up to the surface of the ocean so they can eat. Then, when the daylight comes, they swim back to the deep to hide from the bigger creatures that want to eat them.”
She’s a good teacher. I’m mesmerized by the cadence of her voice and how the words glide out of her lips, their color a hue I’ve only seen in my mother’s garden.
“That’s cool.”
“It sure is. And it’s important for the health of the entire ocean—to speed up circulation and keep everyone fed. Every creature, large and small, plays a big part in our world.”
“How do they know how to do that?”
“They don’t. Their bodies are made to do it.” She pauses for effect. “Nothing’s random. Everything has a purpose.”
Her naivety both touches me and surprises me. It’s a beautiful thought, but does she believe it? Do I?
“Are you a philosophy major too?”
Her face falls, and her lips tremble.
Shit, Nathan. I squeeze her hand, surprised to see I’m still holding it.
“Hey,” I say softly, “let me put you out of your misery. A+. You’ve got yourself a mentor.”
She shakes my hand as if she’s going to yank it off. “Thank you, Nathan… thank you so much.” When she pulls away, I hold on a little tighter. I want to talk to her some more.
A shrill whistle cuts through the noise of the crowd.
In an instant, she’s running off. What the?
I didn’t get her name. Several lifeguards are rushing to the waves.
A beachgoer must have gotten themselves into some trouble.
The woman Mark had been hitting on is standing in front of the crowd, screaming. Oh no. Mark.
They’ve already got him pulled out by the time I get there. He’s sprawled, arms spread wide, until they roll him onto his side. The blonde girl is crouched, leaning over him, gently touching the sides of his face.
“You’re safe now, Mark. My name’s Crystal, and I’m here to help.”
“Thank you.” He grasps her hand and pulls it toward him. That’s when it occurs to me. I just volunteered a shitload of time—time I don’t have—to mentor a freshman.
Oh well. Time is relative.
And I think I’m gonna be learning as much from her as she will be from me.