I ran one hand through my hair, only succeeding in tangling it further. Bella snickered from the driver's seat as we pulled into the parking lot, her dark hair hanging in glossy curls down her back,

"Nervous, Eddie? You're giving yourself sex hair. Just think of all the cute guys we'll get to scope out this summer!"

I silently cursed my best friend for knowing me better than I knew myself, but put my hands down in my lap. Cute guys indeed. I had known I was gay since I had turned fourteen and realized that my crush on my soccer coach wasn't something the other boys felt. Bella knew, but then again, she had known for longer than I had, or so she said. No one else in my life knew, and that was exactly the way I wanted to keep it. Forks, Washington wasn't exactly the easiest place in the world to come out of the closet. It was the quintessential small town, with a gossip mill that could destroy a reputation based on rumours alone. I shook my head to clear it, smiling wanly at the thought of the boys on the beach this summer. The sun was blazing above us, the sky a piercing blue that signified summer had truly arrived. The beach would be busy today.

"I guess so. It's a lot different than the pool, Bells."

She shrugged, pulling her hair up into a ponytail as she kicked the door of her ancient red pickup truck closed, stuffing half a banana into her mouth. She winked at me as her cheeks bulged out, grabbing her swimsuit, flip flops and fanny pack out of the back.

"Yeah. But exciting. And we'll both be sporting wicked tans. Catch!"

Bella grinned at me, tossing me my bottle of sunblock, her dark eyes sparkling with mischief. Bella had always taken the sun better than I had. Even when we were kids, growing up on the lake together, she had been a whip thin, browned creature, while I had burned, even in the fading evening sunlight. Last summer, our first summer back from college, we had carpooled and worked together at our local pool. Memories of chlorine clinging to my skin and tiny children clinging to me during lessons were more than enough to convince me that the beach option was the better call this summer. Bella had been more than excited when we were both offered jobs. Plus, it gave us a chance to spend some time together—schools on separate coasts had seemed like an okay idea, better for our respective degrees, but man did I miss my best friend for those eight months of the year. That was part of the reason we had decided to move in together this summer, in a tiny, dingy, overpriced apartment. Regardless, it was bliss.

The stone path leading down to the beach was riddled with weeds and tourists with children. School wouldn't let out for another three weeks, but apparently, Forks, Washington was the place to be this summer. Or at least our beach was. The sun bounced off the water, glittering turquoise against the sand. Tots toddled in the shallow surf, parents watching from the shade of beach umbrellas. In the center of the beach, the guard stand towered, brilliant white against the blue of the sky. Bella skipped ahead and up the slated ramp into the guard office. I followed more slowly behind, somewhat apprehensive. Certified lifeguard or not, being on the beach would take some getting used to.

The guard office looked much like any other guard office. A spinal board, oxygen tank and first aid kit lined one wall. On the other, a cot rested against the wall, next to a mini-fridge. A desk, with a tiny girl wearing a sleeveless shirt emblazoned with LIFEGUARD seated on it, swinging her legs, sat beside the doorway, bathed in sunlight. She was smiling and chatting eagerly with Bella,

"It takes some getting used to. Obviously. But it's a fantastic place to work. You can't beat the surfers. Or the beach volleyball team that practices here on Saturdays. Gorgeous. Oh! You must be Edward. I'm Alice."

She turned, extending one hand towards me. I shook it, watching her tiny hand disappear within my palm.

"So, my other guard, Emmett, is patrolling right now. You guys will meet him later, he's a big sweetheart. Em and I usually guard together, and the other full time guards are Jacob, Jasper and Rosalie. I think Jasper's coming in later, and we'll have to see how the guard teams shake down over the summer. One guard remains in here, but we keep connected with radios. "

She gestured to the walkie-talkie on her hip.

"The emergency boat is out front, but for the most part, we just use an aid and swim out. It's faster. Spine board is there, O2, first aid kit...the buoyant aids are hanging out front, and we take one when we're patrolling. Just like at the pool, most of what we do involves swimmers who have simply gone out too far, and wind up over their heads, unable to get back, becoming drowning non-swimmers. Unlike the pool, though, we have to be extremely vigilant in preventing DNSs, by watching parents and ensuring children who are in the water know how to swim."

I guess some of my apprehension must have shown on my face, because Alice paused, grinning at me,

"Don't look so worried, Eddie. I'm just giving you the run down. You know how it is—things rarely happen. Serious incidents hardly ever. I've only ever heard of one spinal injury here, a surfer who went out to far and ran the rocks."

She paused briefly, maybe to take a breath. Alice was vibrant and outgoing, and obviously excited about the summer ahead. She had been chattering a mile a minute since we'd arrived, pointing things out in the guard office. Bella took advantage of the momentary silence to question Alice.

"So, Allie—can I call you that?"

Alice grinned and nodded, I could tell that they would be fast friends,

"This might be a really stupid question, but...what about sharks?"

Alice laughed, a high, tinkling sound. Bella and I had argued extensively on this very point all the way to the beach. Unfortunately, I had been unable to convince her that there are no sharks in Forks.

"That's always the first questions of new guards on the beach! It was mine too, don't worry. No. There are no sharks here, mud sharks and dogfish, but not like Jaws. But if you ever needed to clear the water for another reason—thunderstorm, high winds, whatever—there's an airhorn on each guard chair, plus one outside, and another one in this drawer. If we need to clear the beach—which is so unlikely, but whatever—if there's a tsunami, or excessively high surf, or...I don't know, something realllllly bad happens, then we press this button, and the alarm will sound beach-wide. It's super loud, we only use it during training drills. It also calls Emergency Services."

Alice turned, grabbing two more shirts with LIFEGUARD adorning them, and tossed them at Bella and me. The shirts were bright white, with a red cross on the front left hand side. Unlike the shirt Alice wore, though, ours had sleeves. Bella looked from the tee-shirt to Alice, a horrified look on her face, as she no doubt considered the tan lines she'd have. Alice giggled,

"Don't worry. You can cut the sleeves off. We all do. Any other—"

She was cut off by her walkie talkie.

Hey Allie, I got a nosebleed out here. Can you take it, or cover me?

Alice snatched up a handful of gauze and a pair of gloves, pressing the button to answer as she dashed out the door.

"You betcha, Em. Be right there."

She was running down the beach at full speed before Bella and I caught up with her,

"That's the other thing about this job,"

Alice called over her shoulder as she ran,

"You gotta move fast."

She reached the guard chair, where a little girl was sitting, wrapped in a towel as blood dripped through her hands. Alice knelt down, pressing gauze into the little girl's hand, pulling her gloves on as she assessed the situation.

"Hi sweetheart. My name's Alice. I'm a lifeguard here, and I'm going to help you, okay? What's your name? Can you tell me what happened?"

"You got it, Allie?"

Bella and I both looked up, and came face to face with the biggest guy I'd ever seen. He must have stood at least 6'8", and was all muscle. His hair was cropped short and blonde, and he had warm brown eyes. I assumed he was Emmett, Alice's guard partner.

"Yeah, I got it. Are her parents around?"

Just then, a chunky woman in a red bathing suit trundled over,

"Oh, Jane! I'm so sorry to be a bother, her brother hit her in the face with the football. I didn't expect her to bleed like this, though."

Alice smiled patiently,

"No problem, ma'am. Those hits to the face bleed a lot, but they're usually not serious. I'm just going to take her up to the guard room to stop the bleeding and get your information."

Alice walked away, with her arm around the little girls shoulder. The mother trotted along behind them, gesturing exuberantly with her chubby hands. Emmett turned his attention back to the beach, surveying it briefly before turning to look at Bella and me.

"Hey, you guys must be the new guards. I'm Emmett. Nice to meet you."

He extended one massive hand, turning his attention back to the waterfront as he spoke. Bella and I both shook his hand, turning to survey the beach with him, as had become habit after guarding for three consecutive summers. Emmett grinned, unhooking his walkie talkie from his shorts. He passed it to me,

"Alright, new guy. Let's see what you can do. This summer is gonna be a blast. Trust me."

I took the radio, smiling slowly. Emmett's enthusiasm and mischievous spirit was totally infectious, and I felt less anxious talking to him then I had all day. He smiled at Bella,

"Alright. Let's leave Eddie here, and set you up in the other guard chair. Just radio if you need anything, okay man? Jasper's coming on at six, so he'll bump you off."

I nodded, already scanning the beach for the hazards I would be watching for the next months. The sun was already beginning to sink lower in the sky, painting it in shades of gold and purple over the ocean. The beach was far less busy than it had been when Bella and I arrived this afternoon. A couple kids splashed around in the water, and some teens were sunbathing in the waning light, but it was nothing like the plethora of families that had been here earlier. I thanked my lucky stars that Alice and Emmett were introducing us to this slowly. I appreciated it.

Bella had been right about the boys. The surfers who had been kicking around earlier were hot, with their beach tangled hair and tanned bodies. Too bad we lived in Forks, and I couldn't ask one of them out. That was the only downside to this summer. September meant a return to college, where being gay was totally accepted. And there were gay bars.

As I was contemplating school, my attention focused on the water, the most gorgeous blonde I had ever seen wandered onto the beach. His hair was blonde, curling gently at his cheekbones, and his body was...perfect. From what I could see, anyways. He wasn't wearing a shirt, just low slung shorts that emphasised his defined abs and sunglasses. Good lord. I was immediately distracted from what I was supposed to be doing, my attention focused solely on him. I had always been a sucker for blondes, but this one was something special. He caught me staring, and smirked up at me. I felt heat rise in my cheeks from his knowing look, and immediately turned my attention back to the water, watching a toddler in a pink bikini splash in the surf. God, he must think I'm such a freak. But what if he doesn't? The voice in my head questioned. Maybe he was watching you, too. Doubtful, but I chanced another look in the direction the blonde had been.

As I looked back in his direction, I came face to face with the bluest eyes I'd ever seen. Crystalline blue, with flecks of navy, so deep I felt like I was drowning immediately. The silence as we locked eyes, this gorgeous blonde and I, seemed to stretch forever, although I'm sure it only lasted a few seconds. Bathed in the fading sun, he looked like a god, fallen to earth. The screams and giggles of a little girl broke the moment, as we both turned to look. He grinned as my attention turned back to him,

"Hi, I'm Jasper."

Hii, Ah'm Jahsper. Holy hell. His accent, a lilting Texan drawl, made me straighten and cross my legs uncomfortably to hide the hard-on I was rapidly sporting. He extended one hand, and I shook it. A jolt of electricity passed between us, something unreadable flitting across his face as he pulled away.

"Edward. Nice to meet you."

I didn't stutter, and my voice didn't break—a miracle unto itself—but my words came out deeper, raspy and somewhat slurred. Jasper looked at me questioningly, but didn't voice a question. Thank god. Apparently, the gorgeous blonde was my new co-worker. The one boy who was totally unattainable—I couldn't even check him out on the beach. And the other boys on the beach had nothing on him. I was so completely and utterly fucked. Jasper cleared his throat,

"I'm here to bump you off, I guess. How was the first shift on the waterfront?"

Jasper began climbing up the ladder to the top of the chair just as I shifted to get down, bringing us chest to chest, and far too close together. I bit my lip, desperate to keep my breathing steady as his warm skin pressed against mine through my teeshirt. The same electricity that had passed between us when we shook hands hung in the air, the moment seeming the last for hours. As I struggled not to lean into him, the smell of beach and boy and warmth so attractive, Jasper jumped back like he'd been burned. Instantly brought crashing back to earth, I tried to string together a coherent sentence. What was the question again?

"Good."

Jasper smiled guardedly, his attention fully on me.

"Well, I'm glad. You have a good night, Edward."

My name fell like honey off his tongue, and I almost groaned out loud. There must be some divine plan to torture me this summer, and to ensure I went back to the pool next year. As I began walking away, away from the piercing stare of his eyes, I managed to pull myself together long enough to wish him well.

"You too, Jasper."

I grinned a megawhatt smile over my shoulder at him. The same unreadable look he'd gotten when we shook hands flittered over his face, before he grinned back at me, waving me off the beach.

Bella was leaning against the car, bathed in the red-gold glow of the sunset, when I got back to the parking lot. She grinned at me, her eyes lit up.

"That was fantastic! I love the waterfront. And Emmett and Alice are so sweet!"

"Yeah, it's going to be a good summer."

I smiled wanly. Bella picked up on my turmoil immediately,

"You okay?"

I shrugged. Meeting Jasper had hit me harder than I thought. His strange behaviour bothered me far more than it should. The strange, unreadable look that had passed through his eyes when we touched intrigued me, but there was something dark hidden there that scared me.

"Yeah, I'm okay. It's...Jasper."

"You always were a sucker for blondes...but is he even gay?"

Bella watched me with concerned eyes, biting on her lower lip as we pulled onto the freeway. She knew exactly what was bothering me, and cut straight to the heart of the issue.

"I don't know. I...just need some time to get used to him, I guess."

"You'd better get used to him fast, love. You're working together tomorrow."

I was suddenly short of breath. I took a deep breath, trying to steady myself. Working with Jasper should be no big deal. I would treat him just like any other co-worker, and squash whatever I was feeling for him down before it became a crush. Before I fell head over heels for someone I couldn't have. I rested my forehead against the cool glass of the window, watching the world blur by as Bella drove us home in silence.