A New Hope (Thunder Point #8)(65)

Frank pushed off, Landon close behind him, and they paddled out into the bay. Frank, on his knees, raised his sail and it sat for a moment, then a small gust took it and he stood tentatively, turning the sail into the wind and he was off, skidding across the bay. The girls screeched and whooped happily.

Charlie stood up to watch from Cooper’s deck.

Landon was struggling to get up, to adjust his sail, and in he went. He got himself back on the board, tried again, went into the ocean again. Every time he got dunked the girls howled with laughter. On his fourth try he got up and the cheers were wild. He turned his sail into the wind and blew across the bay. Where he fell again and everyone laughed.

Spencer came outside; Mikhail wandered down the beach. Spencer’s son and daughter were at the water’s edge, waving and splashing with their feet. The girls with the paddleboards pushed off the shore and paddled out into the water just to get a closer view. Landon and Frank were gliding all around the bay, leaning into turns, leaning away, shifting their sails into the wind. For a little while they sailed in tandem, like twins.

God, that must feel good, Charlie thought.

Cooper was beside him. “Go on down there, Charlie,” he said.

Charlie was on his way instantly. Then he stopped. “I should take my backpack and laptop to my mom’s car or something...”

“Forget it—I’ll put your backpack and Frank’s behind the bar where it won’t get overheated or...lost.”

“Thanks,” he said, racing down the stairs to watch.

Watching Frank and Landon out there was amazing, and made Charlie long for things he had no business longing for. Impossible things—like an active life filled with people like these crazy people. He looked over his shoulder once and noticed that his mom had Mrs. Banks out on the deck, watching.

As interesting as what happened out on the water was, what was happening on the beach was even cooler. More and more people were walking down the beach to watch. Sarah Cooper came down in a wet suit and demanded her time on Landon’s board and that woman knew what she was doing—she got way out on the bay and that sail was putty in her hands. She was whipping it all over the place, leaping out of the water a few times. As if watching a circus performance, the voices in the crowd rose in excitement.

One of the guys Charlie had seen around town, a guy named Al, was down there with a couple of his sons, grumbling that another new sport was going to cost him while the boys begged to try it. Pretty soon there were six paddleboards on the water, some of them sitting idle to watch the windsurfing, some paddling around the inner bay while the surfers were flying around the outer bay. The sheriff’s deputy drove his cruiser out on the beach; there were a few folks there in all-terrain vehicles like Rhinos and RZRs.

The windsurfer boards changed passengers— everyone wanted a turn. Sarah Cooper turned from surfer into instructor along with Frank, and the girls finally got their turn. Then Troy and Spencer had a chance; Troy didn’t embarrass himself too badly but Spencer was great entertainment. A group of cyclists rode onto the beach from the town and stood watching for a while. There were ten of them. They looked like serious cyclists, their gear expensive, their team patches flashy. They looked like such studs to Charlie—legs like tree trunks, leather gloves, fancy helmets and Ray-Bans. Those bikes—they were amazing, sleek, mega-expensive cycles. These were either long-distance riders or racers. He decided to read about it later.

The beach grew crowded, Cooper’s was full, hours flew by. Charlie wondered if half the town had shut their businesses down to see what was going on.

“Want to go out on the paddleboard?” Landon said to Charlie.

“Huh? Yeah, can we?”

“You a good swimmer?”

He didn’t swim at all, as a matter of fact. “Not that good,” he said, shaking his head.

“That’s okay—we’ll get a jacket. And we won’t go out too far. Your mom say it was okay?”

“Sure,” he lied.

“Lose the shoes and socks,” Landon said. Then he jogged off to the beach level under the bar where they stored kayaks, boards and equipment. He jogged back with a jacket for Charlie, helped him suit up. “Sorry I don’t have a wet suit that’ll fit you. My advice? Don’t fall in. And don’t lose your glasses, okay?”

“Gotcha,” he said.

Landon pushed out the board just a little bit, got Charlie kneeling in the right spot then got on his knees behind Charlie, then up to a standing position. “You good?” he asked.

“Good!” Charlie said.

It wasn’t a wild ride by any means, but it was exhilarating. He watched the windsurfers—now it was Ashley and Frank, and Ashley was struggling to stay on the upside of the water. He saw the beach full of people as he glided by. Troy was talking with the cyclists, checking out their bikes. Eve, Landon’s girlfriend, paddled out to glide alongside Landon and she had Austin, Spencer’s boy, sitting on her board. Austin wore a life jacket, as well, and Charlie decided right then and there, he was somehow going to learn to swim. He wasn’t sure how, but he was going to.

“Can I stand up?” he asked Landon.

“I don’t know, can you?” Landon asked.

“I think I can. I’ll be careful.”

“Don’t fall in. That water’s cold.”

“I’m not planning to,” Charlie said. And he got to his feet awkwardly, standing against Landon for balance.