Drowning

Despite the sun’s lingering presence, stars had begun to emerge in the light sky. Their shine was faintly visible, but soon they would be illuminating the heavens. Normally, early July would range from mildly warm to sizzling temperatures, except it was currently chillier than past days. It was normal to have one or two days that were cooler than the rest, yet the residents of Maplewood never got used to it. One day could be for wearing shorts and noodle strap tops, while the next could be hoodies and long sleeves.

Out of all the places in town, the beach was the perfect place to watch the sunset since it was free of buildings and had a clear view of the sun reflecting upon the body of water. Like many friends that stopped by to watch the sunset, Yvi and her friends were among them. Coming prepared, the group of five had settled on a spot not too far away from the water, yet not close enough where the waves would reach them. The umbrellas Neovaii had planted earlier onto the sand had begun to tilt sideways, making the shade that covered the group disappear. She took the time to reposition them as the others focused on their sandcastle building competition.

Cless and Yvi had teamed up against Cartoon and Vanessa to determine which duo would be the victorious one. Both pairs had two of the most competitive members of the group on opposing teams, creating intensity as they strived to be the best. Yvi aimed for larger territory while Cartoon went for greater height. Thanks to Cless’s quick building skills, and Yvi’s determination, their castle was complete. Yvi attempted to attack and raid the other’s castle, but Neovaii intervened and stopped her before she could cause any damage. On the other hand, Cartoon and Vanessa had not finished yet. Cartoon had insisted on adding a final touch to their “work of art” as he called it; their final touch was a small flag he had found near the shore where a toddler had been previously playing. All that was left was to drill the flag onto their highest tower, which was a risky task.

Cartoon’s feline tail moved left to right as he deeply concentrated on the spot he would settle his flag down. Lifting his trembling hand, the bottom of the flag made contact with the sand except in the wrong place. Half of the tower’s structure crumbled down, merging with the smaller towers.

“NOOOOOO!” Cartoon wailed. “I WAS SO CLOSE!!” He buried his face in his palms, unaware he was still holding the flag.

Neovaii jumped, causing the umbrella she was holding to fall. She frowned, glancing at her friend. “Cartoon, what the heck?”

Yvi and Cless looked at each other with smug grins before bursting into laughter.

Vanessa observed the scene in front of her. She was not the type to crack up at someone’s demise, but a giggle made its way to her. She tried comforting Cartoon, saying things like, “It’s okay,” and “not everything was ruined, it was only the top tower.” Those words, however, didn’t help when the opposing team was laughing their heads off.

“That was HILARIOUS!” Exclaimed Yvi in the midst of tears. “Don’t worry Cartoon, you guys weren’t going to win either way. You didn’t stand a chance when we, the best duo, teamed up.” She high fived Cless, grinning back at Cartoon and Vanessa.

“I don’t think that’s going to make things any better,” Replied Neovaii, taking a seat by Yvi. She glanced up at the sky, which hinted a slight shade of ember. With a cheerful expression, she announced, “Hey guys, I think the sun’s about to set really soon! Not gonna lie, but I wish we had snacks right about now.” Yvi’s laughter came to an end as she glanced in the same direction as Neovaii and then back.

“You know, you’re right! Don’t worry guys, I’ll go and get us some.” She stood up, brushing sand off her dark denim shorts and legs. She made sure to pull down her loose turtleneck sweater as well before taking a quick stretch. Sitting down for a while had made her ache for movement. She listened as her friends told her what they wanted and then marched away to the snack stand a couple of feet away from where the group was.

Cless had cupped his hands, yelling out, “Oh yeah, don’t forget the gummy bears!”

“I won’t!” Responded Yvi, her voice trailing off the further she strayed from him.

Cless watched as she marched off. He smiled and resumed teasing Cartoon about his castle.