Chapter 18

"Okay, lets try this," Brea says repositioning the board. We've taken a long drive to the beach and he's teaching me how to ride the waves with a board. "Here, place your hands on it like this, and then up you go," he says lifting my bottom up so my stomach and breasts are resting on the board.

"Now paddle up to the wave, when it comes just ride over it," he says and I do as I'm told. I plunk my arms back into the water and paddle my way to the wave, approaching it and then approach it. I don't do well I guess because instead of going over it like I'm apparently supposed to it pulls me backwards toward the beach. I frown in my failed attempt and look back at Brea, who is grinning at me.

"What?" I ask, he gives me a sheepish smile and just shakes his head.

"Nothing," he says, helping me off the board and then repositioning me. "Okay let's try it together this time, this time try and get yourself up on the board without falling and I'll get on mine. Then we'll paddle in together okay?"

"Okay," I nod and get on the board with no issues. He is already on before I can get myself placed. He waits for me to be in position then he nods for me to follow him. I follow slightly behind and pull up to him when we get close enough to a wave.

"Okay, this one is getting ready, so we're gonna go on my count. In 3...2...1... go. I push off and paddle as fast as I can to keep up with him. He looks at the wave, then to me, then back at the wave again. Making sure that I'm with him. He grabs my hand when we get to the peak of the wave and before I can blink we're going down the other side. It's quick and thrilling and I get a better glimpse of the open ocean. It's so wide, I can't believe such a vast body of water exists. I wonder what sort of creatures inhabit it. I've never even heard of a beach before, let alone been to one, but now that Brea has taken me here I can see that there is so much more to the world than trying to survive, trying to stay alive. No matter how much I moved around and traveled to a different town when things got too risky I never saw much of anything exciting other than city streets and a few trees. That's all I thought there was. There is such a huge population that asphalt is all you really see and when you get to the end of the outskirts of the city, another one just begins in a few miles. Now I can see that there is so much more to the world than city streets and endless asphalt, there is still at least one beautiful place in this world, and it gives me hope.

"How was that?" Brea asks. I nod my head unable to contain my smile. I'm grinning from ear to ear and I don't know why.

"Okay," he chuckles. "Now the trick is getting back over. Every wave that we go over pushes us further out into the ocean, we don't want that."

"Why not, it's beautiful!" I exclaim.

"It is, but it's very deep, try standing on your feet with your head above the water."

I do as I'm told and roll off my board and try and touch, there is no surface for my feet to hit, at least not immediately. I'm sure there is a bottom eventually, I can't feel it though. "See what I mean? And it gets deeper the further you go out, it's miles deep down there. It's so deep that sunlight doesn't even shine down through some places. Not to mention it's salt water, you can't drink it. There's also too many creatures out there that could hurt you."

"Like what kind of creatures?" I ask intrigued. I never knew of anything living in water other than mold.

"There are sharks and whales and jellyfish that sting. There's giant squid, swordfish, all kinds of things with stingers and sharp teeth that need food too, and they are carnivorous, so they may attack and eat you, maybe not a jellyfish, but a shark definietly would and so would a lot of other things."

"Then why are we in the water if it's so dangerous?" I ask, wide eyed with fear. How could he lead me to a place with such danger and beauty at the same time.

"Because it's fun and there's rarely ever an attack. I mean there's always the chance that something will happen, but not a whole lot comes into the shore this close. The jellyfish do sometimes, and they sting, but the chance of you getting stung are miniscule at best."

I am still afraid since he has told me of all the things in the water, but if he thinks it will be okay, then I guess it will. I need to enjoy myself. There isn't a while lot of time to do so, and this is one of the more pleasant experiences that I find awe inspiring.

Brea looks at me for an answer of some sort, so I just nod my head and allow for him to help me back onto my board, even though I have demonstrated that I didn't need help, he still assists me.

"Okay ready? We're going to do the same thing we just did, excpet now we're just trying to get over to the other side towards the beach," he says over the waves.

"Okay," I answer him and wait for his count. The ocean spray is in my face, the wind sprinkling goosebumps on my skin from being out of the partially warm water.

"3!" I paddle as fast as I can to keep up to him, making it over the other side of the waves and crashing into the water. My face plunges under, and I am disoriented for a second. How it happened I don't know, but I can feel the waves pulling me back towards the ocean, out into the sea, but we're over the wave, I can touch, but before I can even put my feet to the sand Brea's hand is wrapped around my arm so tight it hurts, he pulls me up to the surface and I gasp for air. I haven't been under for long, but the suprise of my fall has left me breathless.

Before I can even comprehend anything further, Brea is dragging me to the shore, hanging onto our boards he helps me into the very shallow water where even a small child could stand if there were any here.

The beach is filled with all men, some have women attending them, some couples, very few, have children. I'm suprised to even see them here. I didn't know what they did with children. Are there some decent men out there that actually want their children? Even if they're girls? I hope there are at least some girls that have a better life than what I have, what others have.

"Adley? Are you okay?" Brea asks. His eyes search mine for pain or any other negative emotion. I'm still coughing up sea water, it's salty, very salty, but I nod my head yes as I continue to cough and cough. Brea's hand is resting on my back, for what I don't know. Maybe just to offer support. He pats my back as I finish coughing and get my breathing under control.

"I'm fine," I say once I've cought my breath.

"I just wanted to make sure," Brea replies. "It's always scary when you go under water unexpectnatly, especially when your watching someone else go in."

"Yeah, but I'm fine," I say. "I'm alive, no need to try and revive me."

"I know that now, but you never know what might have happened. You could have drowned."

"I doubt it, we were over to the other side, it's not as deep, I mean it still is but -"

"But nothing, you could have been pulled back out, you could have drowned. I don't know if you've forgotten already how strong the current is, but it could easily pull you out to sea again."

"I know it could have but it didn't. I was fine. There's no need to get worked up. I don't need medical attention. I didn't drown, I just swallowed some water down the wrong tube that's all. Yes it could have been worse, but didn't you already take that risk when you brought me here?"

He sits there a minute and ponders what I'm saying, then just nods his head in agreement. Of course, if te ocean is such a dangerous place then he's taking a risk bringing me here, but that's the fun in all of it. That's the experience of life, a little danger with all the excitment. Your'e never truly safe. We're all at risk for something, some are just more at risk than others.

And they're the one's that have more fun.