Author's Note: So... I just kind of stopped writing this, huh? Well, that was my bad. The stoke to write just kind of comes and goes, you know? Well, anyway, I'm trying to continue this thing. I can't promise I'll never go on a hiatus again, but for now, we've got a few more chapters coming. So if anyone's still interested, here's chapter nine!

Chapter Nine

Out of Commission

Dawn patrol was going great. Fin, Broseph, Emma and I were all at the beach, before any of the kooks or tourists showed up. You might be wondering why we were at the regular old beach, and not The Office. Too much of a good thing, dude (or dudette.) Anyway, Fin was keeping Emma busy, teaching her how to nose ride. Broseph and I were standing on the beach, looking out at the waves and the half-risen sun.

"Fin's actually a really good teacher," I said. "Maybe she should have gotten the surf instructor job." Broseph shook his head.

"Nah, bro," he said. "If Reef didn't get that job, he wouldn't be here, and we wouldn't have a new bro." I shrugged and nodded. Just then, Reef showed up. He looked terrible. "Dude, what's up? You look rough."

"Bummer had me hall sitting till two A.M. last night," Reef said with a groan. He rubbed sleep out of his eyes. "What'd I miss?"

"Emma's really getting the hang of nose riding," I said. Just then, the red head girl ran up, all excited.

"Did you see me?" she asked, her voice high pitched. "Fin taught me to cross-step. Isn't she the best?" Reef rolled his eyes. Just then Fin rolled onto shore, picked up her board, and walked over.

"Way to drag your butt out of bed," she said to Reef. "Tough day at the beach yesterday?"

"As a matter of fact, yes, it was," said Reef. "Teaching kooks and tourists how to surf is harder than it looks." It was Fin's turn to roll her eyes.

"Oh yeah," she said sarcastically. "Surf instructor is right up there with Alaskan crab fisherman on the tough jobs scale." I chuckled. "I could do your job in my sleep, wake up, and still kick your butt on the waves."

"You talk about my butt a lot," Reef said with a smile. "I think you like it." Broseph looked from Fin to Reef's butt, and then back to Fin.

"It's a good butt," he said with a shrug.

"Whatever!" Fin said. "I could not care less about your stinky butt."

"Bet you look at it," Reef said, picking up his board and heading for the waves. "Here I go! Excellent butt-watching opportunity." As he ran, Fin dared a slight glance. "Ha! Caught ya!" Reef exclaimed. Fin turned red, and Reef began paddling out. The sun was rising, and though there were no tourists surfing, a few were out on kayaks or catamarans. The sun was getting higher in the sky, and a wave was steadily building. Reef paddled for it, popped up, and began his ride. He got some speed going, and then executed a darn near perfect aerial. From the shore, Broseph, Emma and I cheered, while Fin rolled her eyes once more. Reef was on his way down, when the wave suddenly cut out. He was free falling… straight towards a tourist on a catamaran!

"Reef!" I shouted, reaching out, though I knew there was no way I could help. Reef crashed into the catamaran, sending splinters of wood flying everywhere. We all cringed.

"That's gonna leave a mark," said Broseph. Reef came up from under the water, grabbed his board, and started paddling for us. We ran to the shoreline, making sure he was alright.

"Reef!" called Emma. "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine," he assured us, paddling to shore. "Did you see that air? Or were some of you too busy checking out my hind quarters?" Just then he stepped on land, and let loose a howl of pain. "OW! I'm hurt! I'm hurt!"

"What is it, dude?" I asked, concerned.

"My toe!" Reef moaned. "It's bent the wrong way. Don't look… it's hideous…" I looked. It was, in fact, bent up at an odd angle. I cringed, and Broseph got on his knee to examine it. He gripped it gently, and Reef howled again.

"That's definitely broken, yo," Broseph said.

"I'm crippled!" Reef called out. "Half a man! Bros, do you know what this means?" Broseph and I exchanged worried but confused looks, and shrugged. "I can no longer hang ten. I can only hang… nine!"

"Look dude," I said, getting my phone. "I'll call Kahuna, we'll get you on the Whale Bus, and someone will have that looked at." Reef nodded, put his foot down, and yelled in pain.

"I don't think I can walk on it," he said. Broseph and I exchanged another look, and grabbed Reef. I got under his arms, and Broseph carried his legs, putting them over his shoulders. We began walking towards the hotel, and I pulled out my phone.

"Hey, Kahuna?" I asked when he answered. "We're gonna need you to drive the Whale Bus somewhere…"

XxXxX

I knocked on the door of one of the rooms. "Room service!" I called. The door opened, revealing a hot girl. I wheeled the cart in, and raised an eyebrow suggestively. "Hey Betty. You eating this all alone?" Just then, a rather large man came into view from the balcony. He gave me the evil eye, and I quickly shoved the cart at the woman, shut the door, and ran to the elevator.

When I arrived at the lobby, I walked over to Johnny. "Yo, Johnny front-desk, what's up?" We high fived. "Pro tip; never hit on a guest without checking if they have a huge boyfriend first." He chuckled. "Reef back yet?"

"No," he said with a sigh. "I've been covering for him with Bummer all morning, but I think he's starting to catch on. The guests are starting to line up at the surf shack, and no one's there." Just then, Fin walked over.

"Hey guys," she said. "Did Reef get back from the ER yet?" Johnny and I both shook our heads. Broseph and I had gotten Reef to the Whale Bus, and Kahuna had brought him to the ER at Sunset Beach. He'd been gone ever since.

"Hey front desk guy!" Bummer called, walking up. He looked steamed. "There's a lineup of people at the shack who actually want to learn how to surf. Which would be great… if we had an instructor! Where's Reef?" Speak of the devil. In walks Reef—well, no actually. In "crutches" Reef, two crutches under his arm, and a cast on his leg. I sniggered a bit; it was so overkill. "Okay, tell me this is one of your little staff jokes." Bummer said.

"All this for a baby toe?" Fin asked, laughing heartily.

"The doctor said I should take it easy for at least a week," Reef said. "Which means… I get a week off! I have a note." He held up a signed slip of paper, and Bummer rolled his eyes.

"Great," he said. "This means I have to find another surf instructor."

"I'll do it!" Fin said, jumping at the chance to work the job she came here to do in the first place.

"Don't you already have a job here?" asked Bummer.

"Yes," said Fin. "But I'm bad at cleaning toilets, and I'm the east coast surfing champion." I put my hands on Fin's shoulders from behind, and shook her gently.

"She'll be perfect," I assured Bummer. "Just this morning she was teaching Emma to cross step." Bummer raised an eyebrow, unfamiliar with what that was. How this guy got to be the manager of a surfer themed hotel, I'll never know. "It's a surf thing." I said with a nod.

"Okay, you're up," he said to Fin. "You're on sick leave until your toe heals." He said to Reef. Both of them smiled and pumped their fists, throwing in a 'yes!' "Your first lesson starts in ten minutes. Don't make me regret this." And he walked away. Fin suddenly didn't look so excited.

"I'm gonna catch up on my Z's!" Reef said, limping out of the lobby. "Have fun working, Fin! Haha!" Fin still looked a bit freaked.

"You'll do fine," I assured her, resting an elbow on her shoulder. "This was the job you came here for, remember? Now go get 'em!" I pushed her forward slightly. She walked towards the change rooms.

"Thanks Nate," she called. "Wish me luck."

"Good luck!" Johnny and I called after her. I turned to Johnny. "So… how're things with you?" He shrugged.

"Can't complain," he said. "Office sesh after work?"

"Any time, bro," I said. "I'll get tell the others." I began to walk back to the DR (where I was technically supposed to be right now) when Johnny called after me.

"Make sure to tell Emma!" he said. I raised an eyebrow.

"Yeah dude," I said, turning my neck to see him. "That was implied when I said "the others."" He nodded, turning slightly red. Everyone knew that Johnny had a mad crush on Emma. Well, everyone except Emma that is. Normally I was cool with this, but recently I started feeling… I don't know… Not jealous, because she's not with Johnny. Just, uh, confused I guess. Did I like her? Was I willing to mess up the friendship? No, I wasn't. Not yet, anyway. I pushed these thoughts from my mind as I walked back into the DR, and continued to work my shift.

XxXxX

This day had been worse than usual. Demanding guests, an extremely ticked off Kelly, and a second meeting with Boyfriend McBig-Arms from before. As the day wore on, and customers filed out, Lo, Emma and I were slowing down as well. Emma and I set a table together, then sat down with Lo, who was looking rather bummed.

"Hey," I said, trying to cheer everyone up. "Johnny and me are going to shred at The Office later. You Betties in or what?" They offered weak smiles and nodded. Just then we heard the sound of crutches, and the clunk of a cast on a hard wood floor. We looked to the entrance to find Reef limping in, a smiled on his face. He sat at the same table with us.

"So…?" he asked nonchalantly, as if it wasn't weird that he was hobbling around when he was supposed to be chilling at the staff lodge. "How's the ship treating you?"

"If this was a real ship, I'd have drowned myself by now," Lo offered, and walked away to set more tables.

"Dark," I mumbled, then turned my attention back to Reef. "Dude, what're you doing here anyway? Shouldn't you be lying on the couch, watching reruns of Baywatch or something?" Reef waved a hand.

"Nah!" he said. "I figured the hotel would be in pretty bad shape without me around." Reef tried to prop his casted leg up on another chair, but bumped the table in the process, sending several glasses of water toppling over.

"Aw man!" I groaned. "Dude, I just put those there." He winced.

"Sorry, sorry," he said. "Don't worry, I'll clean it up." He grabbed the nearest napkin, which Emma had just folded delicately into the shape of a bird (hotel policy or something,) and proceeded to wipe up the spill.

"No, not my bird napkins!" Emma said with a sigh. "It took me half an hour to fold those." Reef looked positively bummed.

"Dude," I said slowly. "Look, the three of us'll hang after our shifts, 'kay?" I knew this meant giving up an Office sesh, since Reef couldn't surf, but it was worth it to help my bummed out bro. I knew Emma would be cool with it too. "But for now… I don't know, go chill at the staff house or something. Keep off that foot." Reef sighed.

"You're right," he said. "Heh, what am I even doing here. Working is so lame. I've got a week off!" He was trying to hide his boredom and how neglected he was feeling. Hiding it badly. I felt sorry for him, but there's nothing I could do about it. He started hobbling off. "See you guys later. I should go check on Fin anyway." When he was gone I exchanged a look of glumness with Emma, who returned it. Then we set about resetting the tables before the next wave of tourists showed up.

XxXxX

Broseph and I paddled in from a morning of surfing the next day. Johnny had an early shift, and the girls were so bushed we didn't feel like waking them. Reef was still in that cast, and was getting sick of walking the stairs, so yesterday Broseph and I had needed to set up a hammock for him on the porch.

Walking back towards the hotel and the staff house, I brought up our crippled friend. "I feel bad for Reef," I told Broseph. "No job, no waves, no beach Betties. Dude's got it rough." Broseph shrugged, his long yellow board under his arm.

"Dude, feel sorry for us," he said. "Bummer's gonna have us doing—" Just then he stopped. Stopped talking, walking… maybe even breathing. His eyes were fixed at a spot near the hotel. I looked to where his gaze was, and froze in the same position. The Whale Bus was letting off a huge group of… of…

"Tropical Tan swimsuit models," I said under my breath. "Duuuuude…" The Tropical Tan Girls had a reputation of being the hottest of all the swimsuit models for a sunscreen brand. And… yep, they were. Without saying a word, Broseph and I both ran over as fast as we could. We walked in front of the line of babes heading into the hotel.

"Uh…" Broseph tried, realizing we had come up with nothing to say. "Um… what's up model girls?" A few of them giggled.

"Staying at the hotel?" I asked. A few nodded. "Well, I'm Nate, and I'll be your waiter. This is Broseph." Broseph had lapsed into silence again, staring dumbly at the bikini clad hotties. "He's a bellhop."

"Yeah, cool," said the model in front, a blonde. Man, she even sounded hot! "Where's the surf instructor? We need lessons for a photo shoot we're doing at the end of the week."

"Uh…" I said, kind of at a loss for words at the hotness of these girls. "Yeah, he's… I mean, she's still waking up. We'll tell her… you guys need… yeah… Come on Broseph." The fluffy-haired teen snapped out of it, and the two of us turned back towards the staff house. As soon as we were out of the model's line of sight, we set out in a sprint for the porch.

When we arrived, everyone aside from Johnny was already outside. "Fin! Fin!" Broseph shouted. We arrived at the wooden steps, panting slightly. "A bus full of Tropical Tan models just pulled up!"

"And they need surf lessons!" I filled in. From his spot on the hammock, Reef's head popped straight up.

"Swim suit models?" he asked incredulously. "Swim suit models who need surf lessons?" He attempted to get out of the hammock, but fell on his face. "Wait, Fin, you'll need help with all those models!"

"I think I can handle it," said Fin, walking off.

"I have to see this," said Lo.

"I'm so there!" I said, and Broseph smiled wide. As the two of us began to leave the porch, we felt something grab our ankles. We looked back, confused, and found Reef, on his stomach, clutching our ankles.

"No!" he said, grabbing our legs tighter. "You don't understand. My entire life has led up to the day when I'm supposed to teach Tropical Tan models to surf! You have to help me!" I nodded, and Broseph grabbed Reef's outstretched hand, hoisting him up.

"We will help you, dude," Broseph said.

"Thank you, my brothers," Reef said seriously. "Thank you!" And we made our way to the beach.

XxXxX

Oh man. If you've never seen Tropical Tan girls applying sun tan lotion… you should check that out. Broseph, Reef, Johnny and I were standing, mouths agape, staring at these things of beauty. I realized Fin was here, talking to Reef, when I heard her say to us, "And you guys are…"

"Helping." Replied Johnny, Broseph and I simultaneously.

"Uh huh," Fin said, not sounding convinced. "None of this has anything to do with the swimsuit models, does it?" We all instinctually reacted, giving cries of "no way" and acting hurt that she would suggest such a thing. But we quickly gave this rouse up, and went back to staring, heads tilted, at the gorgeous girls. "Right… Excuse me, I have to go help the models put on sunscreen." Our eyes widened at just the thought of it. Fin walked away casually.

"She has the best job in the world!" said Johnny. Broseph and I nodded in agreement.

"She has my job!" Reef corrected. "And I'm getting it back! Come on!" Reef began hobbling towards a nice, open spot on the sand. "I will surf again!" We shrugged, and followed. I carried Reef's board along, and dropped it at the sand at his feet. Slowly, he stepped on, dropping the crutches.

"Okay bro, let's see what you've got," said Broseph, licking on an ice cream cone he'd gotten from the snack bar before we came. Reef attempted to stand, but quickly fell flat on his face.

"See now, this is just painful," Johnny said. "It's like watching a three legged dog try to fetch a Frisbee." Just then, the Tropical Tan girls strutted by, heading for the water. Johnny, Broseph and I automatically started flexing and posing.

"Why?" Reef shouted. "Why this week? How cruel can you get, world?"

"I gotta get to work man," Johnny said, starting to walk off. "I'm sorry bro."

"There will be other models," Broseph tried. I wasn't so sure that was true. Reef sighed. After a moment, I looked out at the water. The waves were great today. I felt bad leaving Reef, but those waves were tasty, and the girls… you get the picture. I stood.

"I'm going in," I said. "Look at those things!"

"The girls or the waves?" Broseph asked. "Ah, doesn't matter. I'm coming with you either way.

"You would abandon me for some hot girls and awesome waves?" Reef asked us. We exchanged a look.

"Wouldn't you?" asked Broseph.

"Yes…" Reef said with a sigh. I shrugged.

"Later, man," I said. Broseph and I headed out for the waves. We got in the water, paddled out, and I got on the first wave that came to me. It was nothing special, but I knew I was gonna show off for the models. I started with some nose riding, then quickly went for an aerial. I ended with a cutback that took my straight out of the wave. I rode the momentum over to Broseph.

"Dude, don't you have to work right now man?" He asked me. It was true, I was supposed to be in the DR right now. I'd already missed most of the shift already, and… come on. Tropical. Tan. Swimsuit models.

"I'm not missing this," I said. "Besides, we got our strikes erased after the whole Mr. Stevens thing with El Duderino, remember? So the way I see it, even if I get a strike, I still got two more chances."

"Can't argue with that," Broseph said. "Let's shred!" He went after a building wave, while I bobbed in place on my board. Out of the corner of my eye I saw a magenta board with a tan girl on it. I turned, and saw Emma paddling out, towards the models. I quickly paddled over, until we were side by side.

"Yo Emma," I said. "What's up?"

"Saving Reef's job," she said, and began paddling faster. I was confused, and stopped paddling to just bob in place.

"What do you mean?" I asked. I looked back to where Reef had been sitting, and found he was now up, cast off, hobbling towards the water. How he'd gotten it off, I was unsure. He got in the water, and started paddling out. I paddled near him. "Dude, what're you doing? You can't surf on that foot, you'll make it worse."

"I'm doing it… for the… models…" he said through gritted teeth. He started to try and stand, but on only one foot he quickly lost balance, and fell into the water. He came back up, spitting out water. He got back on his board as Fin paddled over. He looked downtrodden, as he addressed her. "I can't do it. I gave it my best shot, but you're the better man."

"That's true," Fin said.

"Not… not really," I interjected. "What with you being a chick and all."

"That's not the point," Fin said. "Right now, I have to help you get your job back. Bummer is this close to giving me your job permanently. So unless you wanna go home to the ice cream parlor, you've got to get up on a wave, right now!"

"But my toe—"

"Really, really hurts, I know," Fin interrupted. "But you have to suck it up and catch just one amazing ride in, okay?" Reef put on a look of determination.

"Okay," he agreed. "One sick, off the hook ride coming up!" He, Fin and I began paddling over to where the waves were building. We were joined by Broseph. Reef looked back to us for a moment, and we all gave him nods of encouragement. A wave started building, and he went for it. And, lo and behold, he managed a popup.

"Go for it bro!" Broseph shouted, and I hooted in encouragement. Reef got up further, and as the wave built higher and higher, he managed a sick 360.

"Not bad for a nine-toed doofus," Fin noted.

"He's a legend!" Broseph said. I nodded. Reef did a kick flip (the Zoltan Torkos version, not the real thing, but so far, that was impossible). (Mini author's note: If you don't get that, Google it.) He rode the wave all the way back to shore, where the Tropical Tan girls were standing, cheering him on.

"Lucky kook," I muttered to Broseph, who chuckled. The three of us paddled in after him, coming up on shore. A few of the models had their arms around Reef's chest.

"No love for the surf god's two best bros?" I asked. The models looked to Fin (for some reason) who nodded. Two models ran over, one wrapping her arms around Broseph, and one wrapping her arms around me.

"It's been a good morning, dude," Broseph said. Bummer, Emma and Johnny walked over, and the models quickly moved away. "Not cool." Said Broseph.

"I won't be needing the rest of my sick leave, sir," Reef informed Bummer. "I can start instructing hotties immediately."

"Oh, we won't be needing you anymore," Bummer said. "You're fired." Our eyes popped wide open.

"But I can surf again!" protested Reef.

"We have anew surf instructor," Bummer said, gesturing to Fin. All eyes fell on her. With a sigh, she shook her head.

"No you don't," she corrected. "I quit. Reef was right. Teaching kooks and tourists is pretty… bleak. I'll just go back to housekeeping." Wow. That was really big of her. She had wanted this job all along, and now that she'd gotten it, she was willing to give it up for a friend. Girl had some balls… metaphorically speaking.

"Suit yourself," said Bummer. "Oh… wait… You're position's already been filled. Oh well, have a safe trip home." Bummer began walking away. Our eyes still wide, we began following Bummer, listening to Fin protest. We got to the pool, where Bummer turned around to explain something. Just then, Fin shoved him into the pool, and a humungous bag of garbage crashed right where he had just been standing. He resurfaced, sputtering for air.

"Whoa," I said. "Mr. Baumer, she just, like, saved your life man. Which means… you owe her…" Bummer sighed.

"Alright…" he said at last. "She can have her job back."

"Yeah!" exclaimed Emma. Broseph and I clapped Fin on the back. Bummer got out of the water to dry off, and stormed away. After the initial cheering, the excitement waned, and we eventually stood in silence.

"Uh…" I tried. "Celebratory Office sesh?" The others exchanged a look, and with a collective nod, we all exclaimed.

"To The Office!" And we ran off to surf away the rest of the day.