Chapter 1
Tilly
Sand might just be my worst enemy, and that's kinda ironic if you ask me, since I spend more time with it than with my own family .
I especially hate it when I’m in the middle of a gam e.
Right now, for example, I’m mid dive for a volleyball Luca just lobbed in my direction .
It takes everything in me not to lunge at him.
K nowing Luca Rossi, he probably threw it in the wrong direction on purpose.
My dignity i s somewhere between the net and the core of the earth, and in true Luca fashion, he’s laughing.
Ugh.
“Are you done?” I shout while brushing the sand off my knees. “No need to embarrass me further.”
“What was that, T?”
God must have skipped the process of developing his brain, because it is not made correctly.
I roll my eyes and turn around. But I can’t stop the smile spreading on my face because I have way too little time to dwell on things.
“Tills ! Why’d you have to do us dirty like that?” Matt groan s .
“ Y ou saw how Rossi threw the ball !” I glare. “ That was impossible to get.”
He nods sarcastically, and I give up.
I walk to my bag and start packing away my stuff.
While Zara and Yana join me, t he guys r u n straight to the water.
“That was such a petty thing to do. Why did he mess up while in such a good position?” Yana ask s.
“Because he’s a guy?” Zara shrug s , and I f ind that pretty comical.
Yana groan s . “And they say girls are petty. Whoever says that clearly hasn't met Luca Rossi.”
I laugh at that. “True . ”
Luca and his pettiness. “It might just be Italians,” I add, because Matt is not as crazy.
Ok, total lie. “Polish and Italian men.” I changed my mind.
“What do you say we go in the water?” Yana gives me a side hug and rests her head on my shoulder.
We must look comical, both of us covered in sand.
Sweat and sand, I hate sweat and sand.
I turn to Zara. She starts shaking her head. “Oh, hell no.”
“Come on, you look so lonely over there.”
She starts backing up, and Yana laughs. “Zeze! You can’t turn down a hug from Tilly.”
“You two look perfectly comfortable sharing blood, sweat, and sand together.”
“Whatever.” I roll my eyes sarcastically. “Yeah, let’s go. It’s not like we have anything better to do.”
Yana tags me and speeds to the ocean.
I look at Zara and shrug. We both start as well, and I can slightly make out Matt and Luca miles from shore.
Starting Volleyball might just have been the best decision I've ever made. Living at the beach in Australia with four amazing people as my roommates, all while pursuing my dream? I might just be the luckiest girl in the world.
Does it ever get annoying? Absolutely.
Living with four extremely different people who are everything but normal is a full-time job.
But does it ever get boring?
Never.
We all met in a volleyball summer camp five years ago, and we decided to all go pro together. Now at nineteen, we are pretty successful volleyball players in Queensland, Australia.
And we are the epitome of best friends.
We all share a huge apartment .
Although Matt and Luca might argue about the sharing part.
Zara, Yana, and I basically run the apartment.
W e generally have a good life going.
“Hey guys, how’s the water?” Yana swims toward Matt, dunking her head under the water the momen she’s deep enough. I slowly walk in, getting used to the temperature.
“ A mazing. You should join me here .” Matt tries grabbing her waist, and she dodges, laughing.
“In your dreams, Matt. I’m only here because Tillybean forced me.” She splashe s me.
“ Sure, because I’m the one who basically sprinted inside you , witch.” I splash her back.
“Luca, why’d you do that!” I turn and see Zara glaring at Luca, soaked.
“What? No one was splashing you. I thought you were feeling lonely.”
“Funny, that's the second time someone said that to me today. ” She glares at Yana.
“Glad you enjoy my humor,” Luca smil es at her.
I love this beach so much.
I remember the first time I came here after moving from my hometown. I was absolutely gagged. The water is a stunning shade of turquoise, and the sand is basically white. The sunsets here are absolutely gorgeous, and they are the reason why we don’t usually leave the beach until it’s pitch black.
I make us stay until the colors have dissolved into darkness, because it feels so wasteful to admire the beauty of it.
“Who is hungry?” Matt asks after we get out of the water.
All of us are wrinkly and shivering.
“Why are you asking Matty? Offering to cook?” Yana is sharing a towel with him, while Zara and I a re huddled together. Luca doesn’t believe in ‘human heat sharing’.
His words, not mine.
“Nope, just offering to give you my great company . ”
“I mean, I am, I already know T is,” Rossi look s at me expectantly, so I nod, and he look s too pleased with himself .
“ J ust like I thought, Queen Z over here doesn't need to confirm something that her stomach already did a second ago . So I vote to go to Grill’d for some burgers?”
“Always such a boss, L uca ,” I tease.
“But you are down, aren’t you? That means I win.”
“You should already know, I always win.” I wink.
***
“Told you,” I smirk while watching Luc a pay for m e . “I always win.”
He groan s . “Such a princess.”
I smile sweetly. “Nope, it's all my abilities and your weakness for puppy eyes.”
“ Your puppy eyes .”
I roll my eyes, but smile.
Matt stretches and sneaks his arm over Yana’s chair. “So, ready to go?”
“Yeah, but first I need to go to the bathroom.”
“Same,” I nod to Zara. “You?”
“Yeah.”
He rolls his eyes. “What is it with girls and their need to go in packs?”
“No clue, bro, but let’s not ask questions we don’t want answers to.”
“What tells you I don’t want to know?” Matt scowls at Luca.
Honestly, I think the big mystery is just that there are always long queues in our bathrooms, so we like to go together, but I let the boys think more of it, because it’s so fun.
I think all the girls signed a secret agreement to never say anything about it, and I am here for it.
Once we get back to the table, the boys already have our stuff, and we get in the car.
Luca is in front with Matt driving. Yana is sitting between Zara and me in the back because she has motion sickness.
“I dibs the shower first.” She randomly sits up after we finish screaming our song, Tongue Tied by Grouplove.
All my favourite memories with Apartment 14 happened while this songs was playing. I remember when camp ended that year, we all sat next to each other, put our headphones on, and played the song at the exact same time.
“Damn it, Yana, you scared me.”
“Calm down, Ze e . I was just dibsing .”
“I’m fine with that, but only if you let me wash my makeup and rant to you while you shower . You always take forever.” I tell her because I hate waiting hours before I can get to the bathroom.
Yana look s at me like I personally offended her.
“What, it's true.” I nudge Z e e in the shoulder. She nodded solemnly . “Absolutely true.”
“Fine. Z ara , I already know you will also want to talk , so I give you permission. But that was mean. I do not take ages in the shower. Only hours. That's a massive contrast,” s he sa ys as she walks out of the car.
“Thank God we have our own shower,” Matt mutters.
“Yeah, if we shared with these bastards, we’d never bathe,” Luca laughs.
I give him a look that says you’re so dead .
“It’s not like you bathe anyway. You always smell like the bio bin,” I shoot back. “And who are you calling bastards? We are ladies , you idiot.”
“Do we need to rewatch Lady and the Tramp ? Last I checked, ladies don’t start fights — they finish them. And you definitely start them,” Luca says, smirking.
“Rossi, you know I prefer your mouth shut. But you never seem to keep it that way — always talking. I don’t need manner advice from someone as far from a gentleman as east to west.”
Matt laughs.
“If you ever need advice, come to me. I’ll gladly slap some sense into you if you don’t hold the door open for this bastard .’” I get out of the car and walk toward our apartment.
“Hey, your bag!” he calls after me.
I turn, grinning. “You’ll manage, Dreamer Boy.”
Matt is still laughing.