"How did she do?" Sidon asks Mipha as they are storing the surfboards in the back of his truck.

"She did great," Mipha says, considerately hiding the fact that we were tanning and chatting the majority of the time.

I'm a few feet away from them, checking my phone for new messages from Link. He says he will pick me up at the pier at 6 PM. I don't know how I did it, but I managed to keep our date a secret all day long, despite the prolonged discussion about Mipha's feelings for him.

"Zelda!" a guy calls my name and Sidon, Mipha, and I turn around to see three guys with surfboards walking up to us.

"Armes! Fin!" I greet them with a surprised smile.

"What are you doing here?" Fin asks me curiously.

"Surfing," I say casually.

"Dope," Armes looks impressed.

They stop in front of me and acknowledge Mipha and Sidon with a friendly nod.

"What's up, I'm Fin," Fin introduces himself to the siblings. "These are my friends Armes and Russ."

"Oh yeah, I saw you doing a pretty advanced rodeo flip earlier," Sidon praises Fin. "Are you a snowboarder?"

"I am! Thanks, man! Russ and I both snowboard. What about you guys?" Fin asks us.

I quickly shake my head from side to side. Any winter sport sounds scary to me, I don't get those people who would voluntarily tie their feet to a plank and hurl themselves down a mountain. They are all mental adrenaline junkies.

"I ski," Mipha affirms Fin's question. No offense Mipha, but I stand by what I said.

"Recommend any ski runs?" Russ asks her.

Optically, Russ is the complete opposite of Fin and Armes. He is blonde and pale, and a bit shorter than his friends.

"Are you familiar with the White Bark Ridge?" Mipha says to Russ.

"Shut up!" Russ' eyes sparkle and Fin looks just as thrilled. "Fin and I actually own a small business in Mammoth Lakes! We sell snowboards and some other equipment."

"Wait, Mammoth Lakes? As in Mammoth Mountain?" I ask, my brows drawn together and my head tilted.

"Have you been there?" Fin asks.

"My family owns a lodge up there," I mutter.

The three guys gape at me with their mouths wide open.

"Well then you should join us on the slopes this season," Fin suggests but I have to decline his kind invitation.

"I don't ski," I say.

"Doesn't matter! We'll teach ya!" Fin says confidently.

"Oh, I don't know," I shrink. I'm not a huge fan of the cold. Or getting into life threatening situations.

"You don't even have to ski with us, there are plenty of other things to do in Mammoth Lakes. And then during the evenings we could all go out for drinks," Russ suggests to the group.

Drinks? Are they even 21 yet?

"I'll consider it," I say with a smile. It's the same thing I said to Pik, and just like I did back then, I already know I will not agree to it. Hopefully Fin isn't as good at detecting my lies as Pik.

"That's better than a no," Fin notes, satisfied.

"Hey, are you guys down for some beach volleyball?" Sidon asks us.

I check my phone for the time. It's already past 5 PM and there will probably be some traffic on the way to the pier, so I have to leave now if I want to be on time for my date.

"I have to get going," I say, nearly regretting that I cannot stay. Even though I haven't made any good memories playing volleyball, this group seems fun and I wouldn't mind giving beach volleyball a try. It's odd to find myself interested in a sport but what is even more unusual is the fact that I am declining it because I have a date with an athlete in less than an hour. A real date, with a real boy. This is crazy. The butterflies in my stomach have to calm down or I might just throw up in the car.

"So soon?" Sidon pouts.

"Next time I'll play with you guys," I say and Mipha's smile is impossible to ignore. I said next time without thinking much of it but to her it must have meant a lot.

"You guys can stay and play though, I'll call myself an Uber," I offer.

My phone is at 2%, I had it turned off all day. I hope it will last until the pier, until I'm with Link.

"An Uber? Out of the question," Sidon says, grabbing his keys. "How much longer are you going to stay?" he asks the other guys.

"At least a couple more hours, there's going to be a bonfire tonight," Fin tells him.

"Incredible! I will take Zelda to the dorms and return in no time. It will be a bliss."

"It's okay, stay, I can get an Uber. Really."

"That's not safe," Sidon says merrily and walks over to his car.

I don't want to be a burden, but the idea of getting into an Uber with an nonfunctional phone does scare me a little.

"Okay, thank you so much, Sidon," I get in the passenger seat.

"Is that really okay?" Mipha asks me through the rolled down window. "I can come with you."

"No, it's fine," I say honestly. I'm pretty comfortable with Sidon, even though I have only known him for a day.

Mipha stays with Fin, Armes, and Russ, and waves us goodbye. Today was a pretty fun day. I had to overcome a lot of my fears and insecurities, but it was ultimately worth it. I rarely have as much fun as I did today. I even forgot about my dispute with Father for a couple of hours and got to relax a little.

Talking to Mipha about her feelings for Link was inconvenient at first but I also learned a lot about her and felt like we were actually getting closer. If this friendship continues to grow, and if Link and I eventually become a real thing, I will not get around telling her about it. It could break her heart to find out, but I am not going to worry about that now when Link and I are still figuring all this out ourselves. I do, however, wonder about his feelings for her. After everything she has told me, and knowing how far back these two go, it comes as a surprise that they haven't confessed to each other yet. Mipha even transferred to HU just to be close to him. She used to attend UCZD, the school with the nation's best swim teams, but she chose love over merit. 

On our way back, Sidon tells me all about his hobbies and his family. He is in great admiration for his sister and talks only fondly about his Father. Swimming has always been his passion, and though he looks like he could be in his mid-twenties, he is a year younger than Mipha. She was his coach when they were kids, always eager to teach him all the new techniques she learned at swim practice.

The truck slows down to take a turn onto the road that leads to the dorms.

"Actually, would you mind dropping me off at the pier? I am meeting someone."

"Not a problem at all," he says and keeps straight on the main road.

A minute later he parks his truck by the pier. My phone is dead and I'm not really sure where I'm supposed to meet Link. Great.

"Do you happen to have a charger?" I hold my phone up.

"No, I'm sorry."

"It's okay. Thanks for driving me."

"Hold on, I'll come with you."

"What?" I shake my head but he's already getting out of the truck. "I don't think that will be necessary."

"I insist," he smiles at me like a big brother. "If your phone is dead, I have to make sure you find your friend."

I press my lips together and nod in a stiff motion. He is very persistent but he means well so I can hardly stay mad at him. After all, he doesn't know that I am secretly meeting Link, his sister's crush. 

I follow him to the entrance of the pier and look at all the faces around us. The sun is setting, turning the entire place into a Disney movie scene. All that's missing is singing animals and a problematic princess. Well, I guess I've got that last part covered.

"Do you see them yet?" Sidon asks when we reach the other end of the pier after an unsuccessful search.

"No," I answer.

Why did my phone have to die? Back in the truck it was already 6.05 PM, so it's probably a quarter past 6 by now. I detest being late.

While we are walking back toward the front of the pier, my eyes roam the beach below. A lone boy is walking alongside the water, phone in hand. I have to look twice, for I almost don't believe my eyes. It's Link! What's he doing down there? I step toward the railing and lean over just a tad to make sure it's really him.

"Is that your friend?" Sidon asks.

"Yep, that'll be him."

Sidon doesn't seem to recognize Link, at least not from up here.

"Say hey there!" Sidon calls down. He receives no reaction. "Young one," he shouts again when Link is within earshot.

"You're the same age," I say to Sidon, making him laugh.

Link stops and takes a look around, finding no one around.

"Up top! Above you!" Sidon shouts and jumps over the ledge. Hylia!

I lean further over the railing, scared to find Sidon dead. A sigh of relief, he's fine. He's talking to Link now and I hurry down to join them, not by jumping off the pier like a maniac, but by choosing the human way around.

"Pardon the entrance," is the first thing I hear Sidon say when I get closer. "Wait, are you Japanese?" Sidon points at the letters on Link's t-shirt. Link gives him one nod. Oh my, how will this silent man handle his talkative opposite?

"I knew it!" Sidon cheers. He notices me and smiles. Link looks at us with much confusion on his face.

"Oh, pardon me..." Sidon says to Link and flexes his arm. "I am Sidon! And what is your name? Go on, please tell me."

"Link," he answers.

"Link? Your name is Link?!" Sidon's smile is nearly jumping off his face. Does he recognize the famous athlete now? "What a fantastic name!" he continues. Looks like Link is a new face to Sidon. I had hoped so, for Link's sake.

"Hmm..." Sidon holds his chin in his fingers. "Though I cannot shake the feeling that I have heard it somewhere before."

I spoke too soon. He is going to recognize Link.

"Well, in any case, it is a strong name!" Sidon says.

Never mind. This is giving me a headache. Maybe Sidon doesn't recognize Link for his athletic fame, but from Mipha's mention of him.

"Sidon," I interrupt their very one-sided conversation. "I appreciate you driving me, it was a very eventful day, but Link and I have to get going now."

Link takes a closer look at Sidon now and puts one and one together. It is undeniable that this young man resembles his sister not only in appearance but in the way he was raised to be polite and appreciative.

"Of course," Sidon grins apologetically. He hugs me goodbye, gives Link a quick shake with the hand, and heads back up to his car.

Link and I exhale at the same time.

"Sorry about that," I laugh red-faced.

Link smiles, waking all the butterflies in my stomach anew. Even just looking at him makes me float. He's wearing gym shorts and a black t-shirt with white Japanese writing across the chest. I'm glad he didn't dress formally, otherwise I would have to go home and change before our date.

"So, what are we going to do?" I ask. Are we going to stay at the pier? That would be too risky.

Link steps closer and kisses me right beneath the pier. I close my eyes and enjoy the touch of his lips, suffocating the thought that we both agreed to take things slow.

"This is not what I expected for our date," but I'm okay with it. More than okay.

Link chuckles lightly.

"No, I actually have something planned for tonight."

"Oh." Not embarrassing at all. "So what have you planned?"

"We have to drive there."

"I don't have my car, I left it at the dorms. Sidon drove me here," I explain nervously.

"I can drive," he says.

We walk to a nearby parking lot. Only one car is parked there and I head straight for it but Link doesn't follow. I turn around to see where he went. No. Not going to happen. He's standing next to a motorcycle.

"Nuh-uh," I shake my head when he holds up an extra helmet for me. "Not a chance."

I'm not getting on a motorcycle with him!

"I'll drive safe," he promises.

"No, no way am I getting on that heaving metal horse."

"Don't be scared."

"I'm not scared." I'm totally scared.

He smiles. I cross my arms.

"Please," he says patiently, his eyes as charming as the twilight aloft.

"Ugh, fine," I sigh in defeat and step forward.