CHAPTER 10
At that moment, the nose of the board struck the wave hard. Nick braced for impact. He felt the hit in his arms, and his legs wavered. The entire board and rig flew into the air. The world spun upside down as he waited for the crash.
Nick knew what would happen. His mouth and nose would fill with water. The sea would smack against his skin.
And Eric and Meiko would laugh at him.
Nick closed his eyes, bracing for the impact. He tried to move his body so that the board would stay even.
When he opened them, the world was right-side up. The board slapped down on the water, and he was still sailing out.
“Whoa,” Nick gasped.
He leaned back and turned the board around, cutting into another wave. Readjusting his rig, he rode it back toward the beach.
He splashed past Eric, who had wiped out in the wave. Eric treaded water next to his board. His mouth hung open as Nick slid by. “How did you do that?” Eric asked.
“Do what?” Nick said. He shrugged and closed in on the beach. There, people clapped and ran toward him.
Meiko was jumping up and down. “My star student!” she yelled, waving the camera above her head. When Nick hopped off the board, she gave him a hug. “That was incredible!” Meiko shrieked.
“I don’t even know what happened,” Nick admitted. “I thought I was going to bite it.”
Meiko pushed some buttons on the camera to display the pictures she’d taken. “Look at this,” she said, showing Nick one of the photos.
In the photo, Nick was flipping over.
“I did a forward loop?” Nick cried.
He couldn’t believe it. But there it was, in digital color.
* * *
Back at the hotel room, Nick put the last of his clothes in the suitcase. He’d gotten Meiko’s e-mail address and promised to write.
She also made him promise he’d keep windsurfing, even if it was on the lakes back home.
As Nick zipped his suitcase closed, Eric came in from the hallway.
“Hey, bro,” Eric said. “Got something for you.”
Eric threw a framed picture on the bed. It was the photo of Nick on his windsurfing board, flipped upside down in mid-air.
It was like an action shot from a movie. Nick couldn’t help but smile.
“Thanks, Eric,” Nick said.
“Yeah, well, I’m proud of you,” Eric said, nodding. “You stuck with it, and look what happened. You’re like a legend around here now.”
Nah, Nick thought. I’m just not a quitter. Not anymore.
