Last Summer

"Get in the car, we're going on a road trip."

I stopped in my tracks, halfway through closing the front gate to my house. Everett was in front of me—or more accurately, Everett sat in the driver's seat of a car in front of me. A fancy car. I blinked.

"Everett did you steal a car?"

"Depends on your definition of steal."

"Take without asking."

He hummed. "No. No, I definitely asked."

I rolled my eyes striding up to the driver's window to frown at him. "Whose car is this?"

"My grandma's," he replied easily.

"This?" I gazed over the red, soft-top Porsche and frowned. I couldn't imagine Mrs Clemente cruising down the highway in this car, the wind blowing her glasses and dentures askew. And even more—I knew Everett's family was well off, but a Porsche? Even my old, beat-up car had been a 1997 Mitsubishi that had cost me a few thousand from my old neighbour. Compared to that, this car could've been a Ferrari, worth millions, and I would've had the same reaction.

"Are you getting in or what?"

He didn't have to ask me twice. By the time I reached the passenger's side, Everett had leaned over to push open the door for me. I slid into the cool leather seat and looked around in wonder. This car was probably worth more than my house.

"So, where are we going?" I asked, buckling my seatbelt.

He grinned at me. "It's a surprise."

I quirked a brow, suddenly unsure. "Should I bring, like, an overnight bag or something?"

"We'll be back by then." He turned the key and the engine roared to life. I startled, facing him uneasily as he flicked through the buttons on the console. My frown only deepened.

"Are you sure you can drive in this country?"

He glanced at me, a wide grin on his face. "How hard can it be? It's just all... reversed. Right?"

"Not exactly."

"We'll be fine." His left hand left the wheel and wound our fingers together. "Ready to head to Sydney?"

I snorted. "I thought it was meant to be a surprise."

"Shit," he muttered. He shook his head, frowning. "Can you pretend you never heard that?"

"Heard what?"

***

Everett chose the worst possible time for a spontaneous visit because my midterms didn't finish until Everett's last day in Sydney.

Our week together was filled with stolen moments between studying, assignments, and Everett's stubborn jetlag. They were kisses between study breaks, lazy cuddles in the mornings we were too tired to get up, and... slightly more than cuddles in the nights we couldn't sleep—him because of his perpetual jetlag, and me because my mind was filled to the brim with formulas and definitions.

It seemed every time I shut my eyes, a number or a biological structure floated beneath my eyelids.

It didn't matter, though. Exams were over, and I'd done the best I could. Everett was back in America. And I still had a few days before my first class back at uni.

I rolled over in my bed, groaning into my pillow. Why did he have to leave right when my schedule freed up? We'd barely done all the things we'd had planned.

Really, I just wanted him here to hold, to talk to, to complain to—just here with me.

Before I could turn over and wallow in my own self-pity further, my door was thrown open.

I sat up on my bed, eyes wide to find River standing there, his head freshly shaved in the choppiest haircut I'd ever seen and a fire in his eyes.

"River?" I sputtered.

He marched into my room, tossing a duffel bag onto my bed.

"What are you doing? I could've been naked or something!" I screeched.

"Get packed," he said simply. "We're going to Shellside Bay for the weekend."

"What?" I blinked, hard. Was I dreaming? Had I slipped into a coma somewhere along the night? I reached for my phone, squinting at the time. "It's three in the morning, River. Why are you awake? What happened to your hair?"

"Why are you awake?" he shot back, narrowing his eyes.

I glared back. "Touché."

"And I shaved it," he said, answering my second question.

I snorted, stepping out of my bed to cross the room, and run a hand over his choppy hair. "I can see that. Looks like you shaved it with a chainsaw. Why?"

His mouth opened, then he hesitated. He turned away with a shrug. "Get dressed and get packed. We leave in fifteen minutes."

He left my room without a look back, leaving me with a sagging duffel bag and confusion. Stunned, I stood and began to pack, tossing random clothes into the bag—whatever was clean—without any thought.

Why did River suddenly want to go to Shellside Bay? And at three in the morning?

I snorted at the idea. In a way, it was like the old River had come back, the Summer River, the River who loved spontaneity and stupid ideas, because that was what our summers had been crafted of after all.

Ever since we'd arrived in Sydney, he'd morphed into this River I'd never seen before. He was still River, but he had lost that spark that he seemed to carry on his shoulders and in his smirk back at Shellside Bay.

River in Sydney was all about moping and sleeping in, parties with no meaning to them, daily hook-ups with Alistair who seemed to be a bad replacement of Connor—and between all that, I'd barely had a moment with him.

Maybe he needed Shellside Bay as much as I did in that moment.

Fifteen minutes later, true to his word, River reappeared at my door, a bag slung over his shoulder and a hood pulled over his shaved head.

"Ready?" he asked.

I nodded. He turned, and I followed him as we left.

***

"We swapped!" Sky exclaimed, grinning, and pointing between her head and River's.

Her hair had grown a few inches since I'd last seen her in person and it seemed to jut out at all angles, brushing the tips of her ears. She leaned forward in the backseat, grabbing River's hood, and tugging it completely off his head.

Her lips twisted in a grimace. "My shaved head looked way better than that, though."

River frowned, pulling the hoodie back over his head. "Why did I decide to pick you up on the way?"

"Oh, come on River," she teased. "You know Shellside bay isn't the same without all the Nauti Buoys."

"It's also not the same when summer's over," I said, lifting a brow. It was true—we were all dressed in hoodies and sweatpants. Summer had ended. This was Shellside Bay in autumn mode.

"Shellside Bay in autumn is better than no Shellside Bay at all," Sky added wisely. She leaned forward again, her seatbelt pressing against her chest. "So, what's the plan, Riv?"

"Riv?" I echoed.

"Bad nickname?"

"Horrible," River replied with a glare. He shot us a half-shrug; his eyes focused on the road as he drove. "I was thinking go for a surf, take the Nauti Buoy for a spin, and then wrap it up with a classic bonfire tonight."

"A bonfire party in autumn?" I frowned. While bonfires were a summer staple in Shellside Bay, they definitely weren't as much of a thing in autumn.

In autumn, the sun set earlier, and the heat of the sand faded quickly, the sun ducking behind clouds pushed by wind. It wasn't the same.

"Well, I think a bonfire party sounds great," Sky said, grinning.

"You think any party is great," I said.

She shrugged, her grin growing larger.

"That's my kind of attitude," River said, reaching a hand out. Sky slapped it in a high-five, and I rolled my eyes, leaning back into my seat.

"Did you tell Austin and Connor about these plans?" I asked.

River's smile wavered. "It'll be a surprise for them."

I blinked, exchanging a look with Sky before turning towards him. "You didn't even text them?"

River shrugged. "They'll find out soon enough. We're thirty minutes away."

"Besides, they probably won't even check their phones," Sky chimed in.

I released a breath, sinking into myself. She was right. A few months away from the Nauti Buoys and we'd managed to fade into monthly texts and clipped conversations. The most depth I'd had in a conversation with Connor since I'd moved to Sydney was a reply to an Instagram story.

"They're busy working," I muttered because it was true. Not that it made it hurt less.

"Exactly," River affirmed. "Which is why I didn't bother texting them. It's more fun as a surprise anyway."

"Is it though?" I asked, tilting my head.

River scoffed. "Just because you didn't like your surprise doesn't mean you need to shoot it down, Isla. They'll love it."

"Whatever you say, River," I replied. "So, who are we surprising first?"

His face fell, his brows scrunching and lips parting before he shook his head and tapped his fingers against the steering wheel.

"Austin," he said with a nod. "We'll surprise Austin first."

***

Austin wasn't home.

Austin wasn't home, or at work, or at Connor's, or at the beach. Neither was Connor. No, both had vanished into the mysterious world of construction sites, hours away from Shellside Bay.

I frowned, digging my toes further into the sand.

After the surprise was a bust, we'd parked by the beach. The beach that I'd grown up on. Had it always been that small? That empty? Was the sand always that brown? I remembered it whiter.

I walked up to Clemente House to see Everett's grandmother, Mrs Clemente, and visit my mum for her lunch break at the café near there.

Even my mum seemed to have changed in the time that I'd been gone. Her skin had turned paler, her hair chopped short. It looked longer on camera, in our video calls. Her voice was the same though. Her smile, her hugs.

I'd needed one of her hugs.

A thirty-minute lunch break wasn't enough to even touch on the existential crisis that university had brought on.

When I got back to the beach, River was standing at the shore, the water up to his knees where he'd rolled his track pants up. Sky was watching from the sand, her feet buried in the sand, and I joined her.

Minutes of silence ticked past us.

I leaned towards her, knocking her shoulder with mine.

"How long has he been standing there?" I asked.

She sighed, shaking her head. "Since you left."

"And he's just been standing there?"

We both turned to look at him, watching as he kicked at the water, took two steps forward, then stilled.

"I think he really needed that surprise," Sky muttered. She lifted her knees to her chin. "He needed something to go right."

"What he needed was a reminder of summer," I said.

As much as he tried to avoid saying it aloud, it was obvious to me. He needed the Nauti Buoys together and his shaved head. A surfboard over the waves and his boat, speeding towards Isla in forty-degree heat.

He didn't need to say it to me. I knew because I needed it too.

"Except summer's over," I continued, pulling myself to stand. I dusted the sand off my clothes. "Austin and Connor are working, the sun disappeared hours ago. Even the Shack is closed."

"You want to tell River that, or should I?" Sky teased.

I shook my head, beginning to trace my path across the sands. River heard me before he saw me, my feet splashing wet sand and sea foam behind him. I came to a stop beside him, tilting my head until I was looking at him directly, as much as he refused to turn to me.

"What are you doing?" I asked.

He kicked at the water, finally looking at me. "Water's shit. No waves. Bad surf."

"Well, maybe tomorrow—"

"Doesn't matter," he cut in, turning, and beginning to walk back to the sands. "It's getting dark anyway. People will be here soon."

I frowned, trailing after him. "I texted Austin and Connor. I know they have work tomorrow, but I'm sure they'll come, at least for a bit."

"They will come," River said. He didn't turn to look at me, only continuing to wade through the water towards Sky on the sands.

"Of course, they will," I replied.

It wasn't until the sky had turned completely dark, the sun disappearing over the horizon and the shore creeping higher up the sand, that the boys turned up.

I stood beside Sky, holding a beer to my lips as we stood at the edge of the party. The bonfire was burning hot, the music was loud—everything was just how it was in summer, and yet nothing was the same.

Half of our graduating class had vanished. They had either moved out of Shellside Bay or, like Austin and Connor, were stuck working. We were all adults now, after all. Not everyone had time to drink on the beach at a bonfire, as if tomorrow wasn't a promise.

"Do you have any idea who these people are?" Sky muttered to me; her voice low beneath the music.

I shrugged, taking a swig of my drink. "I think they're the grade below us from high school?"

"Ah," she murmured. "Children. Enjoying life. Not thinking about their chemistry group project due in two weeks which, if they fail will delay their graduation by at least another semester. They don't know how good they have it."

I snorted, elbowing her in the ribs. "You're talking like you're about fifty years older than you are."

"I feel fifty years older after these past few months."

"You can say that again."

I held my bottle out to hers and we clinked them together in a cheer before lifting them to our mouths simultaneously.

Suddenly, an arm was slung around my shoulders. I turned, half-way through shoving it off of me, only to find Connor's grinning face. Behind him, Austin stood with a matching smile.

My eyes widened, a sound that was a mix of a gasp and a squeal spluttering from my lips, and I jumped forward, pulling Connor into a tight hug.

"Oh, my God!" I shouted.

I threw my arms around his neck, squeezing him, before pulling back, my eyes darting all over him. His face, his hair, his clothes. He still wore his work clothes, and I felt a strange sense of not belonging. When had he become those tradies that I used to see on the bus? When had he become a man?

I shook my head, smiling at him. "Look at you! Your hair is longer!"

He shrugged, pushing a hand through his hair. "D'you like it?"

"Like it? You look like a proper surfer boy now," I teased. I grabbed his face in my hands, forcing him to look at me properly. "And you're so tan! You have freckles! It's, like, basically winter. How the hell did that happen?"

He shrugged again, chuckling, and wriggling out of my grip. "I work outside every day."

"I hope you've been wearing sunscreen."

He rolled his eyes. "All this about me, look at you."

"Me? Nothing's different about me!"

He shook his head, gesturing towards me. "Your hair is longer and darker—did you dye it or something?"

I frowned, subconsciously pulling at a curl. "No, I—"

Before I could finish speaking, Sky flung forward, pulling Connor into a hug. She squealed, repeating the same things I'd said in a higher pitch, her voice probably loud enough to alert the entire beach of their arrival.

Behind her, Austin smiled at the pair before turning to me. He waved awkwardly before shifting it into pushing his hair back.

I stepped towards him, smiling. "Hey, Austin."

"Isla," he greeted shortly.

I laughed, rolling my eyes, and opening my arms. "Give me a hug you big idiot. I haven't seen you in months."

He didn't have to be told twice. He stepped forward, scooping me into a big bear hug, his arms wrapping around my waist.

We pulled apart and I took a second to really look at him. Like Connor, he was tanner, his hair turning a lighter shade of brown. Or had it always been that brown? I couldn't remember anymore. He'd cut it shorter, like how he used to on the first day of school, when his mum would take him to the hairdressers and tell them to cut it inches shorter than he'd wanted. And he still wore his work clothes, neon orange with spots of dust and dirt splattered across it.

He must have caught me looking at his clothes because he dusted them off and said, "Sorry. Did I get your clothes dirty?"

I blinked, meeting his eyes. "Oh! No, no. I was just thinking... It's so weird that you're, like, a proper working adult now."

He laughed, tugging on his shirt. "It is weird, isn't it?"

I nodded eagerly. "Yeah, it's like just yesterday you were this annoying kid who wouldn't stop bothering me in surf club."

"I was the annoying one?" He quirked a brow at me.

I grinned. "The most. The annoying-est, really."

"If you say so." He paused, shifting his position, glancing over my shoulder, then looking at me again. He cleared his throat. "So, how's Everett?"

I shrugged, looking at the sand for a moment. "He's good. He's busy with university—I mean, we both are—but he visited just the other week."

"Right, you texted me about that, didn't you? Sorry I didn't reply. Work's been so busy lately, I've just..." he sighed, running a hand over his face. "I've been exhausted."

"It's okay," I said. I offered him a small smile. "I get it. Really. Uni's kind of killing me. I just spent the past two weeks cramming for midterms. I have no idea what I'm going to do if I don't do well in them after all that."

Austin let out a laugh, shaking his head. "You'll do great, Isla. You've always been the smart one of the group."

"That's not really saying much when I'm stuck with you drop kicks who care more about surfing than studying," I teased.

He laughed, his eyes drifting over my shoulder. A grin erupted on his face, and he lifted a hand.

"River!" he shouted.

Behind him, Connor's head snapped to the side, watching as River strode across the sand. He reached Austin first, slapping hands and pulling each other into a short hug.

"What the fuck happened to your hair?" Austin asked, slapping him on the back of his neck.

River scowled, shoving his hand away. "I don't see or hear from you cunts for months and that's the first thing you say? Where the fuck have you been?"

"Work is busy," Austin said, shrugging.

Connor stepped forward. "We can't all have rich parents like you."

Normally, we would joke about River's rich parents as often as we breathed, but this—Connor's voice—it sounded almost like an accusation. The first thing he said to River in months, and it was this.

River frowned, turning to face him. They stared at each other for a moment until I cleared my throat, stepping between them.

"Well, you're here now," I said. "Can I grab you guys a drink?"

"Oh, no," Austin replied instantly. "I shouldn't. I have to wake up in, like, six hours."

"Same here," Connor said, waving a hand.

"Oh." I frowned. "Well, maybe a surf could cheer you guys up? Like our old bonfires in the summer, y'know?"

"No, I, uh—" Connor cleared his throat, fishing his phone out to glance at the time. "I actually need to get going soon. But, hey, it was great seeing you guys again. Maybe we could grab dinner tomorrow?"

"If I don't have to do overtime," Austin muttered. He shook his head. "I'll try finish early. Maybe we could take the Nauti Buoy up to Isla for it or something."

I glanced at River, gauging his reaction. He nodded curtly, his jaw clenching tight. There was a second of silence, where we could only hear the quiet music in the background, mostly drowned out by the rising shore and growing chatter, before Austin spoke.

"Well," he began, "I'd better get going. It was nice seeing you guys."

Connor nodded, stepping beside him. "Same here. I'll, er, see you guys soon. Yeah? Tomorrow."

I lifted a hand in a short wave, watching as the pair turned, disappearing almost as quickly as they had appeared. Once their silhouettes had completely faded into the night, I turned back to River.

Sky was watching him too, neither of us sure what to say. River looked away, lifting his drink to his lips. The fire flickered before us, reflecting in our eyes and on the glass bottles of our drinks.

We were in Shellside Bay, except everything had turned a little bit colder, a little bit quieter, and suddenly, it didn't feel much like Shellside Bay at all.

▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔▔

AUTHOR'S NOTE

Surprise! Extra update this week hehe I hope you guys loved this chapter as always! I'm back at uni next week (rip) so I wanted to edit as many chapters as possible before I go back... so far that has been 1 and a half lmao anyway see you again on Friday!

Next time: Isla spends a day in Shellside Bay