SURFACING FROM THE ocean, the air re-enters my lungs as I pull off my snorkel and scuba mask. Shaking my head and running my hands through my hair to smooth it back, I look at my surroundings in the middle of the ocean. The only thing that I can see for ages is my boat that is anchored.

Swimming back to the boat, I throw my equipment in and lean my arms on the side of it before drawing my attention to the woman lied on her stomach on the beach towel in nothing but a bikini as she reads her book. She pays me no attention, with her dark hair falling around her face like a curtain, blocking me from her view.

Having Thalia on the boat while I snorkel has become a regular occurrence and something I enjoy, rather than going back to an empty boat. Especially since this view is much nicer. Reaching my hand into the water, I splash her with it as it goes onto the boat, a few drops hitting her body. She flips me off and I can't help but chuckle before resting my chin on my hands.

"You got my book wet," she comments, closing her book after bookmarking it and she turns her head to face me.

"I'll buy you a new one," I say, winking at her, and she rolls her eyes. She places her book in a beach bag before sitting up on her towel and leaning her back against the other side of the boat, stretching her legs out and I can't help but notice.

"How was the dive?" she asks as I pull myself up onto the boat, as she holds the other side. Once I'm back on andsat down, I remove my fins and she hands me a towel. I thank her before drying my hair and my shirtless body, her eyes following the movement as I do before looking away, which makes me smirk.

"You should come down with me one time. See what's underneath. It's relaxing," I say, throwing the towel to another part of the boat.

She scoffs. "As amazing as that sounds, I can't even stand up to my knees in the ocean yet."

"You'll get there. I believe in you," I say honestly, and she smiles but doesn't look convinced. I lean back on the side of the boat so I'm facing her with my arms spread out over it. She tilts her head and looks at me curiously as she taps her fingers against her leg.

"Did you ever consider turning your hobby of snorkeling into a business idea? You could offer day trips as part of your business," Thalia suggests, and I raise my eyebrow before scratching my chin.

"I never really thought about that. I just love doing it as a hobby," I say, although my mind is now reeling with possibilities. "Although it sounds like a good idea. I'd love to show people how amazing it can be."

She shrugs. "Just a thought if you ever get bored. I mean, I know I'd definitely want to try if I wasn't petrified of the ocean right now."

"Promise me one thing. When you go snorkeling, don't you dare ask anyone else to take you," I say, pointing at her and she chuckles before holding her hand up in the girl scout sign as a promise.

Leaning my head back, I close my eyes and allow myself to feel the sun on my body, the noise of the wind, and the smell of the ocean.

"Can I show you something?" I hear Thalia ask, and I open my eyes before looking at her. Raising my eyebrows, I nod, and she digs her phone out of the bag before summoning me over. Moving to the other end of the boat with her, I sit next to her and rest my arm behind her on the side of the boat. She leans in closer to me as she scrolls through her phone. The side of her soft body is pressed into mine and my eyes look at the side of her face while she concentrates.

She hands her phone to me, and I see she has pulled up her surfer's Instagram account and a recent post. The picture is of the back of her sat on the beach at night, facing the ocean with a hoodie covering her body. Underneath is her caption—

There has been a lot of speculation since my accident. I am currently taking some time to recover from my injuries and taking time for myself. I will not be returning to the circuit for the rest of this season, and I will keep you updated about the future seasons.

Thalia's agent had been pushing her to decide since she arrived. One she wasn't comfortable making just yet. So, for her to have put out a small statement about what is going on is a big deal.

"You put out a statement," I mumble, and she nods her head, fiddling with her hands.

"I figured it was time and maybe it's the first step to accepting this isn't going to just go away," she says, shrugging as she looks out at the ocean in front of us.

"I'm guessing your agent was thrilled," I say, and she chuckles, nodding her head.

"Not so much about the fact I couldn't say with certainty about what my future will entail, but she was happy enough to where news teams would stop contacting her," she explains.

"You'll get back out there one day. Might not be tomorrow, next month or even a year, but one day you will. It's in your blood," I tell her, and she smiles, nudging my shoulder.

"As sappy as it sounds, the silver lining in all of this is Sandy Cove, meeting you and Gabi," she says, and I smirk. "Don't get smug."

"I can't help it," I say, laughing, and she shakes her head. "It's the abs, right?"

"So humble." She rolls her eyes.

"You ready to head back?" I ask her, and she hesitates.

"Do you mind if we just stay out here for a while longer?" Thalia asks and I nod my head. "It's peaceful out here."

"Whatever you want, Thalia."

✺✺✺

Buttoning my shirt up and rolling up the sleeves to my elbows, I push my hair back with my hand, although it has a mind of its own—like usual. A knock sounds at my apartment door and I shrug off any chance to redeem the hair. Walking out of my bedroom, I make my way to the door before opening it, seeing Gabi on the other side. In her hands is a six-pack of beer for our group dinner tonight that I am the one hosting.

"You know I have beer, right?" I ask, shutting the door behind her, and she scoffs.

"Not good beer," she says, and I roll my eyes before following her into the main part of my apartment and I head to the kitchen to check on dinner. "Seriously, you have the crappiest tastebuds if you think this—" she says, holding up a beer from my fridge, as she goes to put hers in. "—is good beer."

"Can I uninvite you if you're already here?" I ask her, and she shakes her head.

"How was snorkeling?" She asks as she jumps up on the barstool on the other side of my counter.

"Relaxing. You could have come with," I say, and she waves me off.

"You had Thalia. I'm sure I didn't need to be there," she says with a smirk on her face, and I raise my eyebrow.

"What's that look for?" I ask her curiously, turning to lean against the countertop.

"What's going on with you and Thalia?" she leans her chin on her hands as she sits on a barstool at the counter.

"What do you mean?" I ask, crossing my arms and she shakes her head before picking at her nails.

"You know what I'm talking about," she says, and I shrug.

"No idea what you're talking about," I tell her, and she rolls her eyes.

"Please," she scoffs. "You can't fool me."

"You realize we're not twelve-year-old girls gossiping about a boy we like, right?" I ask her, leaning my arms on the counter.

"So you do like her?" Gabi inches forward, excitement covering her face, and I chuckle. "It's been a while since you've liked someone and, as one of your best friends, I want to see you happy."

I scrunch my nose up at her sappy display. "Noted, but I'm not talking about this with you when I know you'll spill it to her."

She huffs, crossing her arms like a child who just got told they can't have a puppy. "Fine. But for the record, I think you should ask her out."

A knock sounds at the door, and I smile. "Perfect timing. Mind getting that?"

"This isn't over!" She shouts as she walks away to go answer the door as I stir the food. Shaking my head at her, I hear muffled talking to the person on the other side of the door.

"I thought your place would be messier."

Thalia's voice rings through my apartment and I turn around, wiping my hands on the dish towel as her gaze travels around the room. Meanwhile, my gaze flutters over her dress that hugs her curves generously.

Thalia trails her hand along the countertops of my kitchen as she walks through the apartment, studying it. A low chuckle comes from my throat, and she stands in the center of my living space before turning around, as I stay rooted in the kitchen.

"Believe it or not, I tidy up before I have guests," I say, amused, although I won't admit how bad it was before I did.

"That's the only time he does," Gabi encourages, and Thalia laughs.

She continues to wander around, looking at the photos on the wall that have different ones of my friends and family. Walking to her, I stand next to her and see her staring at the one of me and Easton with June when we were kids. "That was the day I officially was adopted."

"You look so happy."

"Best day of my life," I reminisce, and she smiles. "I'm sure the others will be here soon. Can you both help to get sorted?"

They both nod and Thalia helps me in the kitchen, preparing the salad as Gabi works on the table. My eyes flicker over to her as I stir the food. "You look nice."

"Thanks. I'm guessing this is the only real time you dress up?" she asks, referring to my slacks and button-down shirt.

"Pretty much. Dates as well, important events.'' I shrug. "Pants feel restricting."

She stops chopping and raises her eyebrow. "Atlas...are you a nudist?"

I burst out laughing, throwing my head back. "While I will admit I do like being naked and have zero issues showing off my body, I'm not."

"Humble as always. So, did June teach you how to cook?"

I lean back against the counter as she continues to make the salad. "She did. Both Easton and me. She thought it was important we learned, which I'm sure comes in handy on the pro-circuit."

"Definitely. There are some people who come onto the circuit who don't know, and it makes it harder when you're stuck to a regiment for training," she explains, and I nod.

"June had us cook with her. Not every night, but we'd all pitch in when making dinner and just naturally learned that way," I explain. "You don't mention your parents much."

"We're a pretty normal family and I always had a good relationship with them. They used to come out to some of my competitions, especially when we were back in North Carolina. I just don't want them fussing over me," she says, and I nod my head.

Another knock on the door sounds and Gabi bounces over to let everyone in. After quick greetings, we all get the food onto the table and sit down. Picking up our glasses, we cheer together, and my eyes go to Thalia, who sits across from me. She looks back and smiles as I wink at her.

✺✺✺

"What in the world is this fucking movie?"

After finishing dinner, we all congregated in front of the TV to watch a movie. Regretfully, we let Gabi choose and Landon clearly isn't happy with the movie. Gabi takes offence at that comment and slaps him on the shoulder.

"It's the greatest movie of all time!" Gabi insists. I think she is the only one actually enthralled by it.

"You have shit taste in movies then," Sam adds on, and Gabi throws her arms into the air.

I can't help but chuckle from where I sit on the floor with my back against the couch. Taking the intrusion from their bickering, I turn my head to where Thalia sits on the couch, and I nudge her leg with my hand. She draws her attention away from the bickering and to me.

"What if I said that you could snorkel without getting into the ocean?" I tell her and her eyebrows raise in surprise as she clearly doesn't believe me.

"I'd ask if you were a magician," she says, and I chuckle, shaking my head.

"That's not on my list of skill sets, no. You said you want to go snorkeling but obviously can't, and this remedies that," I say, and she still looks sceptical. "Trust me."

She sighs, placing some of her hair behind her before nodding. "Fine."

"I'll pick you up tomorrow after lunch," I say, squeezing her leg before turning back to the group, seeing Gabi is gone. "Where did Gabi go?"

Millie speaks up. "Apparently to find new friends who have good taste in movies."

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A U T H O R   N O T E

This is the last update before Christmas! Just want to say I hope you all have an amazing Christmas for those who celebrate and thank you so much for the love on Riptide so far. 

What do you want to see in the future chapters of Riptide? By this I mean any specific scenes/instances. 

Don't forget  to vote & comment. Thank you for those who do, I see the recurring readers who comment & vote and thank you so much for all the love and feedback provided.

Merry Christmas 🎄