Chapter 5
With every ounce of strength she could muster, Jade pushed her arms through the water, digging deep as she paddled. One of the boys gave her a push, and suddenly, the wave took over. She pressed up on her palms, quickly moved her leg forward just like they had shown her and lost her balance. The board flipped, and Jade tumbled into the ocean with a splash.
Underwater, she tumbled in sync with the wave, feeling the strong pull of her ankle strap as her board tugged away from her. After what felt like forever, the wave slowed, and Jade broke through the surface, gasping for air. She spotted her board floating nearby and swam toward it, draping herself over it to catch her breath. She raised her head, scanning the water for Sam and Aiden. Spotting them, she gave a thumbs-up, climbed back onto her board, and paddled out again.
“I’m going to do this,” she muttered, determination setting in as she turned her board back toward the shore. For a moment, she caught sight of Benjamin, standing effortlessly on a wave. He moved so naturally, taking confident steps along his board to control his speed, even managing a few tricks despite the small waves. She couldn’t help but be mesmerized by how at ease he seemed in the water.
“Jade! Here comes a set!” Sam’s voice jolted her back to reality, and she began paddling.
This time, she managed, without any help from Aiden. She caught the wave, feeling the surge of adrenaline as it propelled her forward. But just as she tried to fling her foot forward to stand, her balance gave way, and she tumbled off the board again. Appearing from the water, she paddled back out, her arms aching but her determination still intact.
After what felt like a dozen more tries, each ending in a not-so-graceful belly flop, Jade reached her breaking point.
“I can’t do this,” she groaned, collapsing onto the board, utterly spent. “It’s physically impossible for me to stand up on this thing.”
She crossed her arms in frustration, trying to look defiant while balancing on the bobbing board—a tricky task when all she wanted was to let herself drift away with the current.
“Come on,” Aiden prodded Jade with a playful poke. “Wakey wakey.”
“No,” she mumbled, channeling her inner five-year-old.
“One more I have a really good feeling about this one.”
“Oh, fine.” She sat up, letting him spin her board around.
She glanced back, hoping to catch Benjamin in action, but instead, she locked eyes with him. His gaze had shifted to match the color of the sky, and for a brief moment, he offered a half-smile. She thought it was meant for her until he turned his attention to Shaun, who was now standing on his board, dramatically reenacting her earlier wipeout—a full-body flip off the board the second she tried to stand.
A surge of anger lit a fire in Jade. Nothing motivated her more than proving someone wrong, especially when they were mocking her.
“Aiden, I am so ready for this,” she declared, newfound determination voice. “Don’t push me into the wave. I just got that feeling—I’m going to kick some ass.”
Aiden grinned and released his hand from her board, letting her take control.
She watched the approaching set of waves, remembering Aiden’s advice to let the first, smaller wave pass. She started paddling as the second wave approached, feeling the surge of energy as the wave caught hold of her. With precision, Jade lifted her upper body, slid her foot into position, and flung her left leg to the front of the board. She stood quickly, bracing herself for the inevitable wobble or fall—but it never came. She kept her balance, her board gliding smoothly over the water.
This is exhilarating, Jade thought, a thrill coursing through her as she sped toward the shore. The longer she stayed upright, the more her excitement grew. As the wave finally lost momentum and the beach came into view, she couldn’t hold her elation. She threw her hands up in the air, leaped off her board, and jumped up and down in the shallow water, splashing everywhere.
Aiden and Sam rolled in on the next wave, just seconds behind her. Aiden scooped her up and spun her around, while Sam slapped her hand in a celebratory high five.
“You did it!” Aiden shouted, beaming.
Jade laughed, her heart still racing from the thrill of the ride. “I did it!”
Jade looked over at Benjamin and caught the grin curving his lips. Maybe he had been rooting for her all along, she mused.
“That was awesome,” Jade said, beaming with pride.
“It was. Now let’s grab some food.” Aiden turned toward the towels with a hopeful look, silently praying that Lacey and Alex hadn’t emptied the cooler.
“What? Food? I just got the hang of this!” The boys turned their heads toward her, each wearing a sad puppy-dog face.
“Okay, fine. You guys go eat, but I’m going to catch a few more waves,” Jade said, shooing them away with a smile.
“You sure?” Sam asked, and Jade could sense that he had finally warmed up to her. A day in the water could do wonders for breaking the ice.
“Go, go. I’ll be in soon,” she reassured them before throwing herself back onto her board and paddling past the breaking waves.
The next wave rolled in, and with newfound confidence, Jade rode it perfectly to the shore. She paddled back out for more, growing more comfortable with each turn on the smaller waves. But after a few successful rides, she decided it was time to push herself and try something bigger.
Benjamin was sitting alone in the water, closer to the pier where the waves were breaking earlier and growing larger. Some part of her felt an urge to prove him wrong—wrong for judging her based on stolen glances, and wrong for making fun of her earlier. She could feel his eyes on her as she paddled closer, and maybe she was being too self-assured or too driven by the anger he had ignited, but she knew she had to show him something about her that he hadn’t already assumed.
She avoided meeting his gaze. She didn’t want him to know how much his presence affected her, so instead, she focused on the horizon, scanning for the next set of waves. She spotted a promising curl forming in the distance, breaking early against the pier, and paddled with all the strength she had left.
As the wave approached, Jade realized it was bigger than anything she had ridden. Doubt crept in, and she almost considered backing out—but Benjamin was still watching. She couldn’t let herself give up.
The wave caught her board, propelling her forward faster than she had ever gone before. But as she tried to stand, the nose of her board dipped sharply, and in an instant, Jade was thrown headfirst into the churning water. She tumbled underwater, flipping over and over, disoriented as the powerful wave tossed her around like a rag doll.
The strain of her board pulling her forward seemed endless until Jade finally broke the surface for air. She gasped, but before she could fully recover, the next wave crashed over her, pulling her under again. As she caught her breath briefly, the third wave in the set hit with relentless force, overwhelming her. The wave shoved her deeper, and her board smacked her forehead, sending a sharp pain through her head.
Pain flashed, and then everything went dark. She was sinking, her board dragging her further underwater.
Suddenly, she felt herself falling into darkness.
“Jade, come on.” The voice was deep and urgent, but she couldn’t respond. “Jade, wake up.”
A hand slapped her face—once, twice, and then a third time. Her eyes shot open, but her throat felt constricted. Someone flipped her onto her side, and she began coughing, expelling what felt like a gallon of water. She lay back down, her eyes closing as she yearned for sleep.
“Jade!” Another slap landed on her face. “You have to stay awake.”
She forced her eyes open and saw a blurry outline of a boy with dark hair and tan skin. “Benjamin?”
“Hello.”
Through her foggy vision, she saw the corner of his mouth curve into a half-smile. “What happened?” she managed to croak.
“You were being reckless,” he drawled. The memory of the wave and her wipeout came flooding back, and her anger flared up again.
“Only because you were being a jerk,” she grumbled. He laughed softly, unaffected by her ire.
“Come on, try to sit up.” Benjamin wrapped an arm around her back, helping her lift herself.
Jade noticed then that they were both only in their swimsuits and she was essentially sitting on his lap. She couldn’t help but notice the chiseled muscles of his chest and the defined bulge of his biceps. Her gaze lingered a moment longer until Benjamin lifted her enough for the pain in her head to register fully. She groaned, placing a hand on her forehead and curling closer to him.
“Ow.”
“Yeah, your board hit you pretty hard.”
“I know,” Jade said, irritation creeping into her voice. She pulled her hand away momentarily. “Crap! I’m bleeding.”
Benjamin’s gaze shifted from her hand, now smeared with red, to her head. He leaned in, inspecting the wound closely.
Jade could no longer bear the silence. “Benjamin, tell me straight. How bad is it?”
He seemed jolted from his focus. “Oh. It’s nothing. You’ll be fine. Might need a few stitches.”
He helped her sit up and then stepped back.
“Thanks…for helping me, I mean,” Jade said, her eyes awkwardly meeting his. His expression shifted through various emotions before settling into a half-smile she found oddly reassuring.
Benjamin grabbed a shirt from a nearby towel, looked at it, then at her, and shrugged. He pressed it to her head. “Hold this here,” he instructed, helping her to her feet.
“Get away from her!” Aiden’s voice thundered from behind. He stormed in, shoving Benjamin aside.
“Chill out, Aiden. I didn’t do anything.”
“I don’t care. Leave,” Aiden demanded, his voice filled with anger.
“And if I don’t want to?” Benjamin challenged; his tone was more curious than defiant.
“Then…” Aiden hesitated; his fists clenched as he scanned the area. Without another word, he punched Benjamin’s face. Jade saw a flash of light—likely the sun—before Benjamin hit the ground.
“Aiden! Stop it! He just saved my life.”
“Come on, Jade,” Aiden said, pulling her away. She looked back at Benjamin, who gave her a nod. Reluctantly, she followed Aiden toward the car.
They drove to the hospital, where Aiden carried her inside. As they chatted about mundane topics to keep her mind off the pain, Jade struggled with a mix of thoughts and emotions. She decided to keep the punch to herself for now and focused on the immediate concern of her injury.