The next morning Kimber woke up early. The sun was just rising over the palm trees that lined her street. She went to walk over to the bathroom but ended up tripping over Cooper. The old dog just looked at her before licking her bare feet, causing her to laugh "Good morning to you too Coops.

She got up and scratched behind his ear before going to the bathroom. Being the weekend she wanted to freshen up and go out. her favorite place was the park. She would have a blast riding her motorcycle up and down the long parking lot. The kids playing on the playground would probably want to check out the bike. There was also a lake she could cool off in. 'The news man on the radio said it was gonna be 90°' She quickly got dressed and ran down the stairs to get breakfast.

When she ran down she almost slammed into her father, who was in his work clothes. "I didn't even hear you leave this morning"

Jason rubbed his face and sipped his coffee "Well I didn't want to wake you up." He sat in his recliner "So where are you going?"

"The park" She went to the fridge and grabbed a yogurt cup and a small bottle of orange juice. As she was scarfing down her cup her father got a good look at her outfit. She was wearing a pair of black cotton shorts that came about an inch or so above the knee. As a top she wore a thick, white, tank top underneath a thin red jumper that zipped up.

"Will there be boys at the park?"

Kimber looked at him for a moment before looking down at her juice "Well, there's a lake, and its really hot. So I guess there will"

Jason stood and walked over, placing a bagel in the toaster. "Well, be careful anyway. Don't do anything I wouldn't do if I were a 17 year old girl"

Kim laughed "I won't. You know I'm always careful"

After breakfast Kimber dawned her riding jacket and helmet before driving to the park. since the lake was on the outskirts of town she had about a half an hour ride ahead of her. She weaved between cars and stuck to the limited shade on the side of the road. Being in the leather jacket was giving her major sweat stains. Turning left she finally made it to the park, and like she thought: it was hot. She quickly sped through the lot and parked underneath a tree beside the playground. She draped her jacket over the back and placed her helmet on top of it. Seeing a bunch of mothers and their children around made her certain that no one would steal it. She made sure to stash the key in her jumper before walking over to talk to a few mothers. her long hair was put up in a high ponytail which just brushed past her shoulders.

Across the way she could see a large blue hummer park, letting out about 6 men. They all looked like they belonged on the football team. 'They're probably here to hang out at the lake' and just like that the men ran towards the cool oasis at the bottom of the hill. She was just about to walk over to enjoy the water herself when a little girl pulled on her hand.

The little redhead was wearing a pink tutu and a white t-shirt. Her blue eyes beamed up at her "Jay!"

She beamed and picked up the tot "Well isn't it my favorite girl!" She started tickling her tummy "And how is little Nat?"

Nat laughed, kicking and squealing as her babysitter tickled her tummy "Stoooop!"

Kimber laughed and stopped just as Natalie's mother walked over "Hello Miss Robin" Nat was almost an exact copy of her mother, besides the eyes. She was wearing the same colors as her daughter; black running shorts with a pink stripe and a white t-shirt with a pink jumper tied around her waist "Do you want me to babysit again?"

The older woman smiled "Would you? I have to go out of town next weekend and my mother is going on a trip to New York. It wouldn't hurt if Natalie stayed with you for a few days, would it?"

Kim smiled "I don't mind. Besides I think she and Cooper would get along nicely"

The two talked as Nat bounced on Kimber's knee. Soon the tot grew tired of the dry heat and begged her mommy to let her swim "Honey I'm sorry but I don't have my swim suit"

Nat pouted, small tears streaking down her face. Kim smiled "Well I wouldn't mind. I was actually going to go down there and wade by the beach"

Nat's eyes widened and so did her smile "Pwease mommy pwease!" She jumped up and down, begging as the women looked at each other. Her mother finally caved "Alright, but take off your tutu first" She grinned and started carefully taking it off. It was one of the only things she had left of her father. He was killed in an unfortunate accident on a ship in the middle of the pacific.

Though her father was gone she still shared that same things he loved. She was a big fan of the water and eating burgers, hated the smell of burnt fish, and was terrified of bats even when it was just a picture on the TV.

As soon as she took off the tutu the two booked it for the lake. Kim scooped up Nat as they ran across the parking lot and down the hill. Once they got back into the lake she dropped Nat into the water, making the little girl laugh. The cool water was refreshing on their mild sun tans, and soon to be burns.

The lake was lined with large oak trees. On the far end there was a wall of rocks and boulders where the turtles usually sat while everyone played on the beach. The shore wasn't as packed as she thought it was, but the dock in the middle of the lake was. The dock was about 15 feet long and 10 feet wide. it had two diving boards on one end and a tire swing on the other. Someone had brought a small slide over so people could slide down it and into the lake. On the beach there was something similar to that, but it was currently closed due to the bottom being rusty.

Nat splashed Kim by kicking the water with her foot. She laughed and ran away, Kim running right behind her kicking up water. She could people staring at them, but she didn't mind. Nat stopped to splash her again but ended up getting a huge wave of water to the face. She was soaked from head to toe, making her cry. Kimber knelt in front of her and took her hands

"Nat. I'm sorry. I didn't mean to kick it so high" The tot continued to whimper, even when Kimber hugged her and picked her up "Here, how about we just play in the sand while you dry up, then we can play in the water again."

She nodded and Kim let her down onto the damp sand. it felt good between their toes. Nat sat down and started making a small sand castle with her hands. Kim started digging around it to make a moat.

The two girls smiled as they built a small kingdom with sand walls and shell people. The biggest shell 'King Shelly' sat on top of the bigger castle Kim had made. When she wasn't watching, Nat had ran off and came back with a feather, probably from a sea gull, and stuck it beside him as a flag. "So what are we going to call this place?"

Nat put her hand to her chin making her 'thinking face' "Shell-lantice"

Kim beamed "That's a perfect Idea. How about we cup some water and fill the moat?" She nodded and the two made their way to the water. The first two trips were successful, but when they turned around the third time a football had destroyed the kingdom. Soon the owner came running over, not noticing the two and smirked. He picked up his ball and kicked what remained, sending King Shelly back into the lake.

Not skipping a beat Nat started to cry. Kim quickly picked her up and glared at the man who was staring at them. She mouthed 'asshole' to him before walking through the beach with Nat in her hands. As she marched across the parking lot she noticed the mild sunburn on Nat's arms. 'I guess all that time we took building that sand castle really got us burnt'

She found her way to the small black ford Focus and opened the back door. Miss Robin, who was sitting in the driver's seat, looked back at them "What happened?" At that moment Kim was using her jumper to dry off Nat's legs and feet along with knocking off sand that stuck to her legs.

"I wish I took a picture, but Nat and I made a sand castle and it was almost done. We were in the water getting some to fill the moat when some guys football landed on one side of the castle. When he came and got it he kicked the rest"

The mother frowned "Well that's mean. Did you recognize him?"

She rolled her eyes "Yes, but I don't know him, know him. He's just some kid on the football team."

Kimber took off her jumper and lied it over Nat to use as a blanket "You don't have to do that Kim, she can just wait till we get home"

"No. It's my pleasure. Just make sure it's clean when you bring it over next weekend"

She nodded and Kim hugged Nat goodbye before taking her key out of the jumper and into her shorts pocket, then shutting the door and letting them drive home. Wet, and covered with sand, Kim went back to the beach to rest in the water.

There was the dock but there also was a small shack filled with old inflatables. Underneath all of them was a mat that you lied on. She grabbed the flat blue mat and waded into the water, going to a shaded spot. Since she was wearing the jumper she didn't get sunburnt, but she didn't want to risk it.

As she rested on the mat she stared up at the oak tree. She sighed as bees flew by. A toad croaked from atop the bank. Squirrels jumped from branch to branch. She relaxed, letting the quietness of her little spot take over as she took a nap.

The next thing she remembered was water. She quickly swam to the surface and glared at the men around her who were laughing. obviously she had been part of a practical joke. one of the few girls slapped one on the arm "She could have drowned Brent!"

He smirked "Look babe, she's fine"

Kim frowned and tried to climb up the bank, struggling. Once she was out she checked her pockets. The key was gone. She glared at the group "You assholes made me lose my key!"

The girl glared at her boyfriend "Well?"

"Well what?"

"Find her key"

"What? She shouldn't have had it with her!"

She frowned and took a deep breath diving under the water. Kim jumped back in and tried to find it herself They both came up for air and went back down again, they both came up a second time "Is this it?" The girl held up the black bulky key

Kim smiled and took it from her "Yah"

One of the guys eyed it "What kind of car does THAT go to?"

She smirked "My motorcycle"

A few laughed "You ride a motorcycle? Since when?"

She didn't answer and once again got out of the water. She was soaked to the bone and didn't want to drive home, but it was either a cold, wet 30 minute drive or a hot 1 hour walk. She sighed and walked back to her bike, putting on her jacket and helmet. They warmed her body, so did the bike. She smiled as the bike warmed her legs. She leaned forward and soaked up the warmth. As time passed from when she parked the sun rested on the bike while she napped, making the bike a natural heater. The helmet continued to sit on the back of the bike as Kimber lied on it. Letting out a sigh she sat up, put on her helmet and headed home.