Chapter 70: A Trip To The Beach
Nebula sighed dreamily as she started out at the ocean and imagined Rad chasing her through the water and how they would share a kiss at sunset. "Nebula?" Ko called as he stopped sweeping and she snapped out of her trance. "Huh? Oh! Sorry" she said and she went back to putting up some decorations on the shack. "You okay?" he asked and she nodded happily. A small crab then scuttled over and Ko gave it a thumbs up once he finished sweeping. He then went inside and Nebula followed once she finished putting up the decorations. She happily pranced past the shoppers and smiled when she saw Rad with one of the customers. "Hi honey" she called. "Hey babe!" he called back. He then went back to telling the customer about a product and she put down the now empty box in a back area behind Dendy. "Thanks again for helping us out" she said. "It is no problem at all" Dendy responded.
"Sounds like we've all been working pretty hard here at the cabana" she heard Enid say and her face lit up when she knew what she was alluding to. "I say we could all use a break. Sounds like beach time to me" with that being said, Nebula smiled widely at how she would get to spend time at the beach with her boyfriend and friends. "Beach Time! she heard Ko say excitedly and Rad immediately grabbed her and carried her to the water. Rad placed her down in the water and practically ripped off the translucent blue over skirt that Nebula had over her swimsuit. "Easy there. Someone sure is excited" she said with a laugh as Rad levitated the over skirt into the cabana and they all began to swim and splash each other. "Hang on, before we do anything else" Nebula said as she levitated her beach bag over to her and took out a bottle of sunscreen. The trio nodded and they went back to the shore got out their sunscreen.
Nebula then put some on her hand and began to rub it on Rad's back and shoulders. "Thanks babe! You know you didn't have to" he said. "Oh believe me honey, I wanted to" she responded and Rad went red. "Uh oh. Looks like you're starting to burn" she said when she noticed his face was red. She then went to in front of him and took his face in her hands and began to put sunscreen on his face. "We don't want you to burn now do we?" she said and when she was done, she kissed his lips quickly and she sat on a towel and began to put on her own sunscreen. Rad narrowed his eyes and he smirked when he got an idea. He then went behind Nebula and took her bottle of sunscreen from her. "Hey! Rad! What are you-" before she could finish, he began to slowly put her sunscreen on her legs. She stared at him with her mouth agape and he smirked at her as he worked his way up. He then leaned his head in and lightly blew on her ear. "We wouldn't want you to burn now do we?" he asked teasingly and he then pulled away and wiped the sunscreen off his hands using a towel.
They then went to go make sand castles ad sand sculptures. "Hey Rad, Nebula! Look at my castle!" Ko said excitedly. "What? Darn it! How come yours is so much better than ours?" Rad asked as he was levitating himself while he was makes a sand sculpture of himself and Nebula was making one of her fawning over his sand sculpture. "It looks great Ko" she praised. She then went back to her sand sculpture. "I feel like it's missing something" she mused as she admired her work. Nebula then looked at her phone and saw the time. "Alright! Lunch time!" she said happily. She then levitated Rad and Ko to where Enid was setting up their lunch where they saw Colewort and Potato not to far from them.
"Colewort! Potato! It's really good to see you two. Do you want to join us?" Nebula asked and they nodded. Colewort was suntanning while Potato talked with Ko as they ate. "Hey Rad~ Say ah" Nebula said as she held out a piece of fruit. Rad went red and he hesitantly opened his mouth and she fed him the fruit. "Please tell me that you got that Ko" she said. The boy nodded an handed Nebula her phone. She happily played the video and hugged him. "You're the best!" she praised. "Hey Rad, do you wanna go fly kites with me after lunch?" Ko asked. "Sure thing little buddy!" he responded and the two males quickly finished their lunch and went to the shore to fly their kites. "You can go Enid. I'll clean up" Nebula offered. "You sure?" Enid asked and Nebula nodded. The girl then happily took off to go float in the ocean. Nebula finished cleaning up and she watched Rad with Ko. As she tucked a strand of hair behind her pointed ear, she couldn't help but think of what would her life would be like if she and Rad ever got married and started a family. "He would be an awesome dad" she mused as she watched Rad show Ko some tricks with his kite.
Nebula then saw an advertisement for bike and skate rentals and she immediately told her friends. "That does sound like fun" Enid said and with that, Enid was riding a bike while Rad and Nebula roller skated after them on a trail. They came to a small clearing so they slowed down to enjoy the scenery. Nebula got done taking a picture and when she was putting her phone in her pocket, she felt Rad gently grab her hand. She smiled and she entwined their fingers. "This is nice" she said as they skated along the trail. "Yeah it is" he agreed.
They then went back to the beach when they were done and Enid went to a secluded part of the beach for some alone time to do some spiritual training. Ko went into the ocean to swim with a float and Nebula went to go collect seashells. "Cannonball!" she heard Rad yell and she smiled and shook her head. "What a goofball" she said with a laugh. She then examined another seashell and put it in her bag. "Wow! A conch shell!" she said in awe and she held it up to her ear. She smiled and put in her bag. "Awh these ones are so cute" she said as she examined a group of small shells with intricate designs on them.
"Those are called Tessellate nerite" she heard Dendy explain. "Hey Dendy" she greeted. "Greetings. Would you mind if I joined you?" she asked and Nebula nodded. "Only of you tell me more about these shells" she said. "I'm surprised that you want to know more. Most people find knowledge of seashells quite trivial" Dendy said and Nebula shrugged. "What can I say, I like learning new things" she said. Nebula and Dendy then began to collect seashells and Dendy would tell Nebula about the shells that they collected. Nebula then let her take whatever shells that she wanted. "I hope you don't mind me keeping the Lions Paw shells" Nebula said and Dendy shook her head. "Of course not! I enjoyed collecting shells with you. Thank you for letting me accompany you" she said and with that said, she walked off.
"Greetings Lakewood Land lovers" she heard Raymond say. "Prepare to meet your aquatic annihilation!" Shannon said She looked over to see Raymond, Darrell, Mikayla, and Shannon on a surfboard riding in on a wave. "Oh no" she said to herself as she levitated her over skirt over to her and put it on. The wave then sent Ko, Rad, and Enid face first back to the shore. "What do you Boxmore Barnacle heads want?" Nebula asked venomously. "What are you doing at the beach? Raymond's not even wearing a swimsuit!" Rad said as Nebula levitated them onto their feet. Raymond then tore away at his chest to reveal a pink swimsuit bottom. "You beach buffoons need to hang ten on out of here. Except for you Nebula"he flirted. Nebula face palmed and pinched the bridge of her nose. "Yeah! Cause you're currently trespassing on the site of Boxmore's newest landfill" Shannon said as she put a sign in the stand that said 'Trashmore' and Nebula lifted it out of the ground and threw it. "So say aloha to your precious beach!" Darrell jeered. "Say hello to our precious beach?" Rad questioned and Nebula put a hand on his back. "Babe, aloha means hello and goodbye" she explained and Darrell began to kick sand at him. "Hey!" they heard Mr. Gar yell. They turned their heads to see him and Carol slowly running towards them. Nebula took out her phone and filmed them. "No kicking sand around this bay" he ordered. "Not on our watch" he said seriously as he took off his sunglasses. "I feel like he's referencing a movie" Nebula commented in awe. Darrell then kicked sang into Mr. Gar's eyes and he yowled in pain. Carol then picked him up and ran into a medical cabana. "Great work Darrell! Without those pesky lifeguards, there's no one to stop us from taking over this entire beach!" Shannon praised. "Actually there is. Us! Or did you forget all the time that we whooped your butts!" Nebula said. "Yeah! This beach is here for everyone to enjoy!" Ko said. "Get ready for a total wipe out" Enid said. "We challenge you to beach battle!" Rad declared.
"Round One! It's volleyball time! Spike it up buddies!" Crinkly Wrinkly said as he came out of nowhere holding a sign that said 'Round One' and Nebula stared at him in confusion. During the game, Nebula and Mikayla had to stay on the side and Nebula had the robotic feline record the game while she took the pictures. Nebula cheered for her friends and taunted the Boxmore robots. "Brother! Finish this!" Shannon said as she turned her head to Raymond. He nodded and tossed the ball into the air. He then hit the ball and Enid was able to use her forearms to launch it into the air and Rad hoisted Ko into the air for him to spike the ball. The robots tried to scramble to catch it, but the ball landed on the ground on their side. While they fought, Enid high-fived Ko and Nebula was hugging Rad and congratulating them.
"Round two! Time to limbo! How low can you go?" Crinkly Wrinkly said as he came out of nowhere again and was holding a sign that said 'Round Two' and he limboed under the pole. "Ha! We just have to walk under a stick? Let me handle this" Rad said confidentially. When he tried to limbo under the pole, his upper body got stuck. "No! Curse these muscles of mine!" he said and Nebula helped him get unstuck as Raymond laughed. Nebula then moved the pole to the next level down and led Rad to sit down on the sand as Raymond went to go under the pole. His body went under and she noticed Rad looking worried. "At least this means that you have more muscle than him" she comforted as she put a hand on his back. She then burst into laughter when Raymond's nose wouldn't go under the pole and he fell onto the ground. Crinkly Wrinkly then moved the pole lower and Enid tried to go under the pole. She sneezed and she ended up turning herself into a log. Crinkly Wrinkly moved the pole lower again and when Darrell tried to go under it, his inner tube got stuck and he began to flail around. The bar was moved even lower and Enid turned to Ko. "Alright Ko, you're the only one small enough to get under there" Enid said. "Yeah, not even the Boxbots can limbo that hard. It'll be an automatic win!" Rad said. Ko was able to go under the pole at first, but the tips of his hair hit the pole and caused it to fall. Ko began to cry and Rad crouched down and began to rub his head. "Awh, don't cry buddy" he comforted. "Yeah! At least you made it farther than anyone else!" Nebula praised. "Yeah! That means that it's a draw. We're still up by one!" Enid said. "Ahem" Shannon said as Darrell and Raymond removed her head and rolled it under the pole. "That's cheating!" Nebula yelled as the robots celebrated.
"Okay daddy-o's, time for round three! The ultimate beach band battle! It all comes down to this! It's gonna be coolsville!" Crinkly Wrinkly said as he came out of nowhere yet again and was holding a sign that said 'Round Three' and Nebula started at him as she wondered why he was in a black sweater, sunglasses, and a beret. On one of the stages was Rad with a drum, Enid with a set of bongos, and Ko with a ukulele while Nebula had a dulcimer. On the other stage was Raymond with a bass guitar, Shannon on a set of drums, Darrell with a tambourine, and Mikayla had her tail wrapped around a maraca. A crowd began to gather and cheer for them.
Just as they were going to begin playing, a large wave came in. "Egad!" Raymond said. "A giant wave?!" they all said and the wave washed over everyone and everything. "Beach time is going to be over for good! Where will we go to slack off from slacking off?" Enid questioned. "Does anyone else hear the wave roaring?" Nebula asked. "Guys! If we want to defeat this gnarly wave then we're gonna have to put our differences aside and work together" Ko said. Everyone had their own reactions of disbelief as they stared at him. "Brother, sisters, this disgusting little urchin is right! Teamwork is the only way that would best this beast!" Raymond declared as he held out a hand. "Ugh fine! But only if we get to keep kicking your bodega butts" Shannon said as she and Darrell put their hands on top of Raymond's hand. "Rad, Nebula, Enid? Pwease" Ko begged sweetly. "Fine! The sooner we get this over with, the sooner Rad and I can have our romantic alone time" Nebula said as she put her hand on top of Raymond's hand. Ko turned to Enid and she sighed. 'Alright, I guess we're in too" she said as she put her hand on top of Darrell's hand. "Only so we can kick your butts" Rad said as he put his hand on top of Raymond's and Nebula's hands. Ko smiled and he put his on top of everyone's hands. "Cowabunga" Raymond said as he moved the sunglasses from his head onto his face. "You know what! I'm not even going to question where those came from" Nebula said as she held her hands up defeatedly. "Wait! How are we going to fight a giant wave?" Ko asked.
"It won't be like one of our other regular Bodega brawls. I know that wave, that's King Wavezilla! The perfect wave! Once when I was doing my sports research, I went scouring the planet for the gnarliest waves. Our path's crossed. I gave it all I had, but even I was not enough. If we want to beat this wave, we'll have to truly shred!" he declared and they noticed that there was only four surfboards nearby. Raymond looked to Nebula and she immediately scooped Mikayla in her arms. "If we have to pair up with you guys, I get her!" she declared. They all looked to Rad and he shrugged. Ko was paired with Darrell and Ko was in the front of him. Rad was paired with Raymond and he was stuck behind the robot. Enid was paired with Shannon and she was behind the robot. Meanwhile, Nebula was in the middle of the surfboard with Mikayla laying contently on the front. "Hey Raymond, if any harm comes to my man, I will tear you limb for limb and destroy your circuits. Capiche?" she threatened. Raymond gulped and nodded his head. "Yes ma'am" he said, clearly scared. "She's scary" Raymond commented to Rad. "And that's one of the many reasons why I love her" Rad responded proudly as they all paddled and King Wavezilla angrily noticed them. "You know Mikayla, you were always my favorite" Nebula said and Mikayla let out a small grunt in response.
Nebula heard the whizzing of saws and she noticed that Shannon had turned her hands into saw blades and she sliced King Wavezilla in half. Only for him to connect himself back together and wash away Enid and Shannon. Darrell laughed as he began blasting lasers at King Wavezilla. This angered him more and he washed Ko and Darrell away. Mikayla let out a small noise and Nebula shook her head. "I can't. If I do, I might freeze everything in the water and it will take forever to thaw because I don't know how to undo it!" Nebula responded. "Avenge me!" Nebula called as the wave washed them up. "It's all up to you Rad!" she called. She sighed in relief when she saw Raymond use his rockets to surf on the wave. She held her breath and before they all knew it, they were all back on the beach and the surfboards were broken. "What am I missing?!" Raymond asked angrily. "Maybe we should sacrifice something to appease the wave" Shannon suggested as she looked over to Rad and Ko. "Good idea" Nebula said and she levitated Shannon into the air. "Hey! Just what do you think you're doing?! Put me down! Now!" she yelled. "Why? It was your idea to sacrifice someone" Nebula responded. "That won't be necessary!" Enid said as she crossed her arms and looked at Nebula angrily. She let out a groan and she harshly dropped Shannon. "Well it want's something!" she said. Ko got up from the sand and looked over to his sand castle. "That's it!" he said. He then went over and scooped up some water from his moat into a bucket. "Ko? What are you doing?" Nebula asked. "I know what it wants!" he yelled as he ran to the raging waves.
"King Wavezilla!" Ko called and the wave roared. "I know you're not an evil wave. You're just an angry wave! Angry because you've lost your baby!" Ko said as he held up the bucket. The wave then reached out to Ko and he threw the water at the wave. "Goodbye, Wavezilla and baby Wavezilla!" Ko called as he waved to the Wavezillas that were headed towards the setting sun. A crowd then gathered and they began to cheer. As Ko spoke, Nebula began to form a plan for what time she and Rad had left together on the beach. The Boxmore robots began to praise Ko and Raymond held out a hand. When Ko took his hand, he began to go on about how when they got back to the plaza how they could get some ice cream and be friends. He was cut off when the wind blew and the Boxmore robots were turned to dust. "Looks like all the saltwater rusted them away from the inside. Sorry little guy. Wasn't meant to be" Enid said. "Yeah Ko. It wasn't meant to be. It's time to party! Look, I brought sparklers" Rad said happily as he held out a lit sparkler. Ko perked right up as Nebula gently took the sparkler from Rad and handed it to Ko. "And I brought watermelons for us to smash and enjoy" she said as she held out a hammer and a watermelon. Everyone then gathered around a fire and Enid joined some people who were dancing, Ko was making shapes with the sparkler, Nebula was roasting marshmallows and making s'mores with Dendy and Potato, and Rad was telling work out stories to Gertie and Ginger. Ko the ran with the sparkler out to Mr. Gar and Carol who were sitting by the water. After Nebula had her s'more, she went over to Rad and dragged him to go dance with her and the others. He let out a laugh as they danced as the sun finally set.
This was one of the funnest chapters to write!
Sorry for the late upload. My family and I have been so busy moving