0 5 | c r o n u l l a

I CROSSED MY ARMS, stomping out of my house and down the porch steps. It was dark, my mum was still asleep, but I had work.

And worse, I'd have to see Everett again.

It had been a mission to get out of bed, but it was a saving grace that at least I'd see Austin today.

My bag had been slung over one shoulder while I held my baby blue surfboard tucked under my arm. We'd planned to go surfing after work today since I'd be finishing early – Wednesdays were always slow – so Austin would be picking me and my board up.

As if on cue, a red Jeep rumbled to a stop in front of me. He beeped twice, waving his head out the window.

"Isla!" Austin called, his grin wide and his brown hair flopping in the wind.

I smiled, immediately feeling better.

"Hey!" I shouted back, jogging towards him. I pushed my surfboard onto the roof alongside his own and strapped it in before rounding the car and sliding into the passenger seat.

"Morning, Isla," he said, reaching over to ruffle my curls. I laughed, shoving his hand away and mussing his own hair up.

"How do you like it?" I teased, my fingers running through his waves.

He smiled, staring up at me with his honey brown eyes and long lashes. "Feels good."

My heart skipped a beat and I felt my cheeks warm. Quickly, I whipped my hand away and turned to face forward.

"God, you're such a puppy."

"I take that as a compliment," he smiled, starting the engine and beginning the bumpy drive to the beach.

I sat back in the seat, watching as the sky slowly lightened and turned more blue, trying to ignore how close Austin's hand rested to my thigh, how fast my heart was racing in my chest.

I would never get used to him.

We rumbled over the hill, slowing to a stop outside the Clemente House where Everett stood, a cigarette lit in his mouth. Austin leaned out the window, waving a hand.

"Hey, Connolly!" he shouted. "Get in!"

Everett furrowed his brow, narrowing his eyes at the car. I leaned forward and his eyes landed on me, widening in realisation. Slowly, he put out his cigarette and walked over to the car.

"In the back, Everett," I said drily.

He rolled his eyes, pulling the door open and sliding into the middle of the backseat.

"Isla," he greeted curtly with a nod. "Austin."

"Hey bro," Austin grinned, reaching a hand towards him. Everett ignored it.

I scrunched my nose at him. "You stink like poison sticks."

He ignored that too. We drove in awkward silence for a minute before Austin spoke up again.

"So, Everett, you comin' surfing with us today?"

Everett sent an icy look to me, quirking a brow. "I wasn't aware you were going surfing today."

"Well, you ran away before I had the chance to tell you," I shot back.

His lips twitched in a smirk, his eyes lighting up, but he stayed silent.

"Have you ever surfed before?" Austin asked, his eyes trained on the road, oblivious to our mini argument.

"Nah," Everett shrugged. "Not much of a surfing scene in New York."

Austin whistled, nudging me on my shoulder, and I felt my cheeks flame. "Can you imagine never surfing?"

I shook my head, not trusting my voice. My eyes drifted to the rear-view mirror to find Everett already staring at me, his eyes narrowed scrutinisingly.

I was suddenly keenly aware of the redness blossoming across my face – subtle but clearly there. I wondered if I could excuse it for sunburn.

"Right?" Austin continued to babble. "We've been surfing for our entire lives, ay?"

"Yeah," I croaked out; my voice strained. Everett raised a brow at me in the mirror.

"I still remember you stealing my surfboard because you thought it'd make you surf better," Austin laughed, oblivious. He grinned at me, reaching over to ruffle my hair. I swatted his hand away. "You were so cute."

"Shut up," I managed weakly, my face already buurning. He'd called me cute. A pressure rose in my chest and I found myself glancing in the rear-view mirror to see Everett already watching me.

His smirk grew wider, his eyes flashing with knowing. Shit.

Soon, the streets faded into sand and Austin parked his car by the beach. The sound of waves cut through the air and the taste of salt lingered. I hopped out of the Jeep, avoiding Everett's stare and grabbing my bag.

"I'll meet you here at twelve then?" Austin asked, pulling his surfboard down from the Jeep roof. He'd already shed his t-shirt, his muscles flexing and bulging as he reached up.

"Yep," I nodded, heaving my backpack higher. I glanced over at Everett whose eyes darted between me and Austin. "Are you coming?"

"He can chill with us," Austin cut in, smiling. "If you want to, of course."

"Yeah," Everett began, his smile mischievous. "I think I'll stick with Austin. We have a lot we can talk about."

My eyes widened and Everett's grin grew wider. He was trying to rile me up – he was teasing me. He knew. Did I really make it that obvious?

"I don't know, maybe you should stick with me," I said slowly, sharpening my voice at him.

He arched a smug brow at me, leaning lazily against the car. "Nah, I'm good. I have a lot I want to discuss. You know. Man to man."

Oh, he definitely knew.

"Well," Austin said, interrupting our little stand-off. "See ya, Isla."

"Right," I said warily, sending Everett one last glare of a warning. "See you guys."

And with that, I left them, turning to make my way down the beach until I reached the Shack. I was immediately busy, opening the Shack and preparing for today's customers. I opened the directory on the counter, pulled out my pens, filled in the schedules, answered calls.

Wednesdays were slow, but we'd had a few large group bookings for today, so I got to work with preparing their kayaks, boats and surfboards that had been rented in advance.

The rest of the day rolled by slowly until Tom stepped out from the back.

"Isla," he said, grinning. "It's pretty slow, why don't you head off early for today?"

I glanced at the clock – I'd be finished in twenty minutes, but I had spent the better part of an hour just sitting here, staring longingly at the ocean. So, I nodded, smiling.

"Thanks Tom, always the best boss," I said.

"I try," he shrugged.

I grabbed my backpack, leaping over the counter. Slow days were boring, but at least it meant I wasn't as tired and sore as usual.

I tracked my way back to Austin's Jeep, still parked in the same spot. From afar, I could see the rest of the boys had gathered, lounging around the car.

River sat on the roof of it, lying back with a cigarette in his mouth – a bad habit that I'd scolded him about a million times. All the boys knew how much I hated smoking. Connor sat beside him, his legs dangling over the windows. He spotted me and broke out into a grin, waving a hand wildly.

"Isla!" He shouted.

I smiled sheepishly, waving back.

The rest of the boys spun at his voice, River sitting up with a nod and Austin turning from the sand, a wide splitting across his face. Everett sat on the sand next to him, his shirt missing and his chest already wet.

He ignored me completely.

"Hey guys," I said when I reached them.

"You're early," Connor regarded, sliding off the rooftop to throw an arm around my shoulder.

"Tom let me off," I said, shoving him away from me. "It was really slow."

"Cool," Austin said. He reached out, offering a half-eaten sub. "You hungry?"

"Starving," I laughed. I grabbed the sandwich from him, ignoring how my heart skipped a beat when our fingers brushed, and took a large bite.

"Me too, thanks for asking," Connor teased, leaning over me to take a bite himself.

I whacked his bare chest. "Hands off, Thomspon. I woke up at four today."

"Hey, you're the one who signed up for the job."

"We can't all be rich like River," I shrugged.

"I'm not rich," River called from the roof.

"Stop denying it, Bennett," Connor shot back.

River didn't reply, but I could just tell he was rolling his eyes. Connor was an expert at getting on his nerves.

"So," I said, swallowing the final bite of the sandwich. "Let's go?"

Immediately, everyone became energised. River slid off the roof of the car while the others moved to grab their boards. I picked mine up, stripping my t-shirt and shorts off to reveal a baby blue bikini.

We began walking towards the water, the sun bearing down on our backs. I smiled, savouring the feeling of sand between my toes and the smell of the salt of the sea.

This was where I'd spent my life – on the ocean.

It was like routine.

My surfboard dragged in the sand and I watched as Connor raced Austin to the water, River following behind, rolling his eyes at their idiocy.

Behind me, Everett walked along, his hands empty of a surfboard and a tight frown on his face.

I slowed, falling in step beside him.

"Hey," I said.

He shot me a look before turning his eyes back onto the shore. The sun hit them, turning the brown into a rich hazel, reflecting the green of the ocean.

"Brr," I teased. "No need to be so cold, Everett."

"Are you always this annoying?"

"Only to you," I answered smugly.

"Oh, right," his frown turned into a cheeky smirk. "Not around Austin, right?"

My heart jumped. "What?"

"Don't play dumb, Monroe. I saw you pining over him the entire car ride. It was kind of pathetic, might have to hurl myself out the window if it happens again." He pretended to gag, sending me an arrogant grin.

"I don't know what you're talking about," I said, my face heating, my ears turning red. I shook my head, trying to change the subject. "You're not surfing?"

He quirked a suspicious brow, but let it drop. 

"Don't know how to," he said. "Remember? Never surfed in my life." He paused, his lips twitching. "Or were you too busy staring at Austin to hear that?"

"You could try," I suggested shortly, ignoring his last sentence.

We'd reached the water by now. The rest of the boys were ahead, already shouting from the waves. The tide washed over our bare feet. I turned back to see Everett staring ahead, watching the boys race and shout and tease each other, floating on their surfboards.

Austin – the best of us all, other than me of course – was stood on his board, soaring through a wave. Everett's eyes remained focused on him, watching as he climbed the waves, gliding the sea, and then came crashing down in a splash of water.

The boys pounced on him, teasing him, cheering for him, trying to shove him back off his surfboard. I laughed, already itching to be out there with them.

"Well?" I said, nodding towards the water. "We have surfboards back at the Shack. I could get one for you."

His expression seemed unsure for a moment and his eyes lit up, like he was really considering it. But the light lasted only a second. Everett shook his head, his smile vanished, his eyes dark.

"No way," he said, his voice quiet, lacking any real defiance. "I don't give a shit. Do what you want, I'm not one of you."

And with that, he turned, making his way back onto the sand.

I paused, speechless for a moment, before rolling my eyes, flipping the bird at his retreating back. I was just trying to be nice. He always had to sour everything, didn't he?

Whatever. I didn't know why I kept trying with him. He didn't deserve it, and I certainly wasn't going to let him ruin our last summer together.

I ignored him, turning to the water and beginning to paddle out towards the boys.

I waited, chest to board, as the ocean washed over me with a chill, salt and sand and water sticking to my skin. I felt the ocean, sensing the tug and push of the water until a wave was upon us. I listened to the rhythm, waiting, and then –

I felt excitement swell in my chest, rising like the ocean, and pushed up.

I soared over the water, high above the wave, and released a yell of excitement.

My smile wide, I turned to face the sands, feeling the mist of the water on my skin. Feeling the sun bare down on my back and the waves thump beneath my board.

I searched for Everett; my eyes gleaming, excited to show him what he was missing out on – what he needed to try. I scanned the sands, searching desperately for him. 

But then my balance wavered, and I was crashing back into the water, salt flooding my nose and mouth, a cough escaping me in the form of muffled bubbles.

Everett was nowhere to be found.

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A U T H O R ' S N O T E

Hey! Thank you so much for 2k reads! Here's a double update in celebration! So, any theories about Everett? Why do you think he's so angry and distant? In our next chapter, we find a bit more about him and Isla. Any guesses?

Thank you for reading, voting and commenting as usual! See you ❤️