I swam all the way out to the raft. It was bobbing up and down on the ocean as the waves gently lapped over it. I climbed up the ladder and sat, dangling my feet into the lukewarm water. As a school of fish swims by, I watch them go through my legs, like they were doing an underwater dance. I wanted to be like them. Free, I mean. Not a care in the world. No responsibility, nothing.

 I swept my feet up onto the raft and stood up. It was almost six o'clock so the sun going down. I walked around on top of the raft and stopped when I reached the corner. Instinctively, I went down into my diving position and dove into the water, making a louder sound than I wanted to. I sighed, climbing back up the ladder to try again. This time, I cut through the water almost without a sound. Better. I tread water, thinking about what I should work on. Then it hit me.

 I ducked underwater and swam back to the raft for the third time. I climbed back up the ladder, but this time instead of getting in my diving position, I stand right at the edge and do a flip into the water. My feet hit the water first. I had been practicing this trick for a while, and I thought that it had improved a lot. The sun seemed to be setting down on the horizon so I decided to head back to my house.

As I swam back, I glanced back at the raft, and at the fish that had made me think. I blinked out of my trance and then slipped back into my room. I toweled off and changed into a pair of blue pajamas and my yellow slippers. I made sure to close the trapdoor on the floor, so I didn't fall into it if I sleepwalked. 

I flopped down onto my bed and pulled the covers over me. Surprisingly, I went right to sleep.

~The Next Morning~

I woke up and stretched wide. I pulled off my covers and glanced at my clock. 

7:30. Perfect. I quickly changed into a pair of blue jean shorts and a green t-shirt. I slipped on my blue converse and walked into the kitchen. I pulled out a box of my favorite cereal, Reese's Puffs, and the carton of milk. I poured my cereal and the milk into a bowl and stirred it around. I took a big spoonful and ate it. Soon, I had finished the whole bowl and Lillian was downstairs. She finished eating her breakfast quickly so we could go shopping.

Lillian was dressed in pink shorts and a purple My Little Pony t-shirt. She had pink flip flops on and her hair was up in a bun, making her look like a little librarian. She's only 8, but she thinks she has a great sense of style and most of the time wears a feather boa to school. 

Once we are all ready, we head out to the surf store. We hop on our bikes and bike down the boardwalk towards the row of shops. Lillian and I park our bikes out on the bike rack outside the building. We walk in. The first thing that I notice is the beads hanging down from almost everywhere. They are reflecting the light so the whole room is bathed in a rainbow-y glow.

Lillian automatically walked to the back of the room where she had caught a glimpse of a 'My Little Pony' logo. I stayed in the front of the shop, searching the racks for the surfboard that I had seen last night. I find it hidden behind a surfboard that was bright yellow and had Hawaii Surf written on it. I pick up the turquoise board and walk to the back of the room, where Lillian was focused on choosing between a pink surfboard with Pinkie Pie on it or a purple surfboard with the 'My Little Pony' logo on it. 

"Come on Lil, you can't have both!" I said pointedly.

"I know, but it's so hard to choose!" she replied, looking back and forth between the two boards. She eventually chose the pink one and walked to the front of the store pretty satisfied with her choice.

We stepped up to the cash register, where a lady who looked like she was in her twenties had us pay for our boards. I took out the money my mom had given me and handed it to the lady. She smiled, counted it, then put it in the cash register.

"Have a nice day." She waved at us as we walked out the door.

"You too!" Lillian waved and smiled at her.

We unlocked our bikes and started back down the boardwalk, our boards on the back of my bike.