California Nights

by Lauren

Note: Thanks to TigreMalabarista (MelMac) for beta'ing.

------------

Prologue

The sun shone brightly on the summer day, nicely toasting every uncovered body on the beach and out in the water.

A young man with dirty blond spiked hair sat in the sand waxing a bright red, long surf board. He watched as teens and young adults walked by, holding a sheet of paper. Those sheets of paper were his main interest: they were sign up sheets for the surfing contest that weekend.

His attention shifted. He watched one young man with brown, curly hair talk with a couple other teens. Then he spotted another young man with long, blond, straight hair chatting up a couple of young women.

The young man paused in waxing his board and gave a slight smirk. The set up was perfect.

------------

Chapter One

Pam walked out the back door into the backyard. She went over and stopped next to the striped, blue surf board propped up on two saw horses. "Ralph?"

"Coming...!"

Pam turned toward the newly built shed and saw the door was open. She walked over, finding Ralph inside, seemingly digging for something. She waited a few moments, then cringed at the crash that resounded from inside the shed. She peeked around the door. "Are you okay, hon?"

Ralph gave a sheepish smile and glanced down at the pile of cans, a hose, a couple tools, and other assorted items now resting on the ground around him. "Fine." He reached over and grabbed a small can, then left the shed, stepping over the mess he made. "I found the wax."

"Ralph, I meant to ask... when was the last time you surfed? I don't really remember you ever mentioning it." She followed him back over to where the board was set up.

"Well, I used to surf alot as a teen and then through college." He sighed. "After that, I sort of fell out of it." Ralph removed the top of the can and dipped a cloth in the wax. "Literally, I fell out of it. I wiped out pretty bad. Never found my board. All I knew was one moment, I had the wave under me, the next I'm lying on the beach with a couple paramedics and many more on-lookers around me."

"Let me get this right: Since then, you haven't surfed since, right?" Pam asked, and he nodded. "So why the sudden interest again?"

He reached into the back pocket of his jeans and pulled out a slip of paper. "This."

Pam unfolded the paper and found it to be a flyer. "Surfing contest. First place, $1,000." She glanced up at him and stated, "You knew about this before buying the board while we were at the convention."

"Yes," Ralph answered.

"I don't know, Ralph..."

"I don't know, either, Pamela. It's been about ten years since I've been on a board. I was pretty good at it then and I'm wondering if I still have it or not. At the least, it'll be fun and something to do for an afternoon."

"Okay, but promise me you'll be careful out there."

"Of course, I will! Besides, I'm going to practice before the contest."

"That's good to hear--"

"Where is everybody?" Bill's voice suddenly resounded from inside the house. He stopped in the doorway. "There you are." He stepped out into the yard and stopped, seeing the surf board and eyed it. "What is that?"

Ralph rolled his eyes. "It's a surf board, Bill."

"I know that, kid. What're you doing with it?"

"Waxing it. I have to practice so I can be in that surfing contest this weekend."

Bill grinned. "Oh, yeah, that. Say, uh, Ralph..."

"No, wait, Bill, I think I know where that's going. I've heard this before," Ralph interrupted, all too familiar with Bill's ways of asking him to help out on a case. "This wouldn't happen to be one of those cases to end all cases, would it?"

"Well, um, yeah, it might be. Really, Ralph, I've got the case file and I've gone over it, but I can't make heads or tails of some of it," Bill admitted.

"How come?" Pam asked.

"Because the head guy is apparently a beach bum that surfs. What do I know about surfing? That's where you come in, kid," Bill said.

Ralph rolled his eyes. "Bill, I never told you I knew anything about surfing. You were taking a mighty large gamble that I did!"

"But you do know, kid, and that's what makes this work out so perfectly." Bill pulled a paper from an inside jacket pocket. "You got one of these yet?"

Ralph took the paper. "The flyer. Yeah, I've got one."

"Great, kid. Now, go grab the jammies and lets go to the beach," Bill said, with a grin.

"Wait just a minute, Bill. I wasn't planning on wearing the suit to surf in, first of all. Second, I haven't been on a surf board in about ten years. I need to practice," Ralph said, folding his arms over his chest.

"So practice. I'm not stoppin' ya. Just bring the jammies and we'll see if you come across any vibes. I'll be in the car. Five minutes, Ralph!" Bill made his way back into the house, heading towards the front.

Ralph sighed. "Why me?"

------------

The beige Dodge Diplomat made its way towards the beach and pulled into the parking area. The blue striped surf board was tied to the roof. All three got out of the car, Ralph now in a full-body wet suit, over the jammies.

"Okay, kids, we'll take a look around first, vibe the place out, see what we find. Then, Ralph, you can practice your surfing," Bill said.

"Gee, thanks, Bill," Ralph replied, rolling his eyes.

Bill made a slightly irritated noise, but didn't say anything. The trio began down the stairs, leading to the beach.

People milled about and relaxed on the beach, making it very crowded. Bill stopped at the bottom of the stairs, and moved off to one side. Pam and Ralph moved next to him.

Ralph glanced around, then turned to Bill. "Looks like a normal day out here to me."

"Looks can be deceiving. C'mon, Ralph, vibe around, see if you get anything," Bill said.

"Alright, alright." Ralph took a couple steps, then turned back to Bill. "You know, Bill, of everyone out here, you know who looks the most suspicious?"

"Who?"

"You do. Most people don't wear a three-piece to the beach." Ralph grinned, then turned away again. He started away, hearing Bill's sound of annoyance.

Ralph made his way towards a small building where people were going in and out every few seconds, some with boards, food, etc. or nothing at all. He moved and stood with his back to the wall of the building, then leaned back against it, folding his arms. He waited to see if a holograph would appear, but it didn't. He shook his head and pushed off. He walked around the building to where they kept several racks of boards for rent. He went past each rack, dragging the tips of his fingers over each board. He received a few minor vibes, but nothing of any importance. This was going nowhere.

Ralph sighed and started back towards where he'd left Pam and Bill. When he rejoined them, he found that Pam had spread out a large beach towel and sat reclined on it. And he spotted Bill attempting a conversation with one of the lifeguards.

"Anything?" Pam asked.

Ralph shook his head. "Nothing. I think while Bill's busy I'll go grab my board and head out."

Pam nodded. "Okay, hon. Just be careful!"

"I will." Ralph leaned down and gave her a quick kiss before jogging back toward the stairs.

------------

Ralph stepped out into the water, put the board down, then sat on it. He waited a moment, adjusting to the feeling and his positioning on the board. He was thankful for remembering to do some stretching first, before getting into the water.

Ralph began to paddle out, moving one arm in the water, then the other. He did this for approximately thirty feet before reaching a wave. He gripped the rails of the board, then slid the board through his legs and straightening out until he was lying on the board. He began to paddle again as the wave started to pick him up. As the board began to rise, Ralph concentrated on preparing to stand. He straightened his arms, then brought his legs up under his body, planting his feet on the board, his left foot forward in a natural footing. He snapped up into a crouching position and allowed a brief smile, before standing completely.

Ralph rode through the wave with no problems... then he remembered he was wearing the jammies. He moved the lie on the board again, shaking his head. He had to try without the jammies on. And that's when he decided that on the day of the competition, he definitely would not be wearing the jammies.

------------