Stephanie and I lay out on the dock in our bathing suits, enjoying the way it rocked every time a boat came by. It was hot and the sun beat down on us. Stephanie rubbed suntan lotion on her legs, and the smell floated over. I loved that smell of summer.
Every so often I’d dive in the water to cool off. “Come on in!” I said to Stephanie, swimming up to the floating dock. “The fish that bite you are really small, and it barely hurts at all!” I loved teasing Stephanie.
“Fish bite you?” Stephanie’s jaw dropped.
“Yeah, sometimes little ones will see a mole or a freckle and think it’s food and swim up and bite it. Grandpa Roberts says they try to bite his nipples.”
“I’m never getting in!”
“Okay, I’m just kidding.”
“Diana! Are you kidding or not?” Stephanie stood up and put her hands on her hips. She was wearing a pink and white striped bikini that her mom had just given her. More guilt-offerings from her mom.
“It doesn’t hurt,” I said. “I swear.”
“Are there any snakes?”
“Only one or two,” I said, with a grin.
“Just stop, Diana!”
Finally Stephanie got so hot that she decided she had to come in, and she kind of tiptoed down the wooden stairs that led into the water. When she stepped onto the lake’s muddy bottom, she let out a squeal.
“Diana! It’s muddy!”
“What did you think, that it was concrete under there?”
“It’s all squishy in between my toes.” She made a face, and swam deeper and started to tread water. She stayed in the water for probably thirty seconds, a minute tops, and then climbed out.
I dove a few times, opening my eyes under water. Two little fish with black dots just behind their eyes floated up to me curiously, then darted away into the watery shadows. I turned a couple of flips under water, which I love to do. Then I pulled myself up on the floating dock, letting the water stream off me and darken the gray wood surface.
The geese had adjusted to us being there. Occasionally they talked to each other, a soft honking. I tried honking at them to see if they’d honk back at me.
“It would be so cool if the geese hatched while we’re here,” I told Stephanie. “Did you see Fly Away Home? That’s one of my favorite movies. The baby geese hatched while a girl was watching and they imprinted on her and followed her around in a line.”
“Oh, yeah, they thought she was their mother?”
“Uh-huh, and then she learned to fly that glider plane that looked like a goose, and they followed her down the coast to the place where they were supposed to migrate.”
“That was a great movie,” Stephanie said.
“Hey, I’m going to text Noah and see if he can come over,” I said, wrapping my towel around me. “Grandma and Grandpa Roberts won’t mind.”
“I think you have the hots for him,” Stephanie said.
“I do not! We’re just friends!”
“Ha. You know that I don’t think you should invite him,” Stephanie said.
“Why not? You’re always so worried about stuff, Steph.”
“All I know is, every single time I’ve gone along with one of your ideas, I’ve gotten in trouble!”
I started laughing. “I have gotten you in trouble a lot. Sorry!” I added, in a voice that I know didn’t sound sorry at all. I didn’t care what Stephanie said. I texted Noah.
Hey, we r at the lake at my grandparents’ house. Want to come up and go tubing?
He answered right away.
Sure. Got a wakeboard?
Just a kneeboard and skis. Bring one. When R U coming?
Not sure. Tomorrow?
I texted back and gave him directions. Stephanie narrowed her eyes at me as I was texting.
“You just invited Noah, didn’t you?”
I sat up straighter. “Yep.”
“You are unbelievable!” she said. “It doesn’t matter what I say, you’re just going to do whatever you want.”
“Yep.” I lay on my towel and closed my eyes, letting the warm sun dry the lake water from my skin. Stephanie would just have to deal with Noah, that’s all.
A few minutes later, Grandpa Roberts came down to the dock carrying a tray with slices of watermelon on it. “Hey, girls, how about some watermelon? Grandma cut some up just for you.”
We sat on the wooden bench and ate the sweet cold watermelon, letting the pink juice drip on the dock. The sun dropped lower in the washed blue sky and we listened to the waves lapping against the pilings.
“Look, the boat traffic has calmed down,” said Grandpa. “Ready to kneeboard, Diana?”
“Sure!” I said.
“Stephanie, are you ready to learn?” Grandpa Roberts asked.
Stephanie studied her feet. “No.”
“Oh, come on! You know you want to be able to do it!” Grandpa leaned over and squeezed Stephanie’s knee. Stephanie flinched.
I helped Grandpa take the cover off the ski boat. Then we went up to the house and from the storage porch retrieved the skis, the kneeboard, the ski vests, and the tow line, and brought them down and loaded them into the boat.
I knew Stephanie was scared, but I also knew that she would be proud of herself if she learned how to do it, so I didn’t try to talk Grandpa out of making her. The blue Wellcraft started up with a putter, then a roar as Grandpa turned the key, and I hopped in.
“Come on, Stephanie!” I called over the sound of the engine. Gas from the boat had created coin-sized rainbow slicks of oil on the surface of the water behind us. Reluctantly, she climbed in, holding onto the windshield, and then curling up in one of the seats in the back.
Grandpa headed out to the middle of the cove, and then cut the engine.
“Hop in the water, Miss Diana,” he said.
“Okay!” My heart raced. I put on the ski vest, then tossed the knee board into the water and dove after it. Out in the center of the cove the water was a deeper green, and felt cooler. I floated, holding onto the board, and then Grandpa tossed me the tow rope with the handle. Grabbing the handle, I lay on my stomach on the board. It had been awhile since I’d been knee boarding, and I might be a little rusty, but it was like riding a bike. You didn’t forget how. And I wanted to show off for Stephanie.
“Straightening up,” he called, and gave the boat a little gas to pull the line taut.
“Ready?”
“Ready!” I gave him the thumbs up signal.
He hit the motor and the boat leaped forward, pulling me up out of the water. Pressure tightened my shoulder muscles. As soon as I felt stable, I folded my knees up underneath me so I was kneeling on the board, and pulled the strap tight over the tops of my thighs. Grandpa looked back, gave me the thumbs up. I was skimming on top of the water, whizzing past the docks, flying through the air!
“Yee-haw!” I stayed directly behind the boat for a little while, then leaned right and jumped the wake and landed in the smooth water outside the wake. After riding along beside the boat for a little while, I swung back to the left, and jumped both wakes. Let myself swing all the way up beside the left side of the boat.
The wind rushed by and I skimmed the gleaming surface of the water and the air was filled with the roar of the boat. I grinned my biggest grin at Stephanie, who was turned around watching me. Grandpa gave a lasso movement of his arm above his head, letting me know he was going to turn around, and I let the action of the turning boat swing me wide and I jumped both wakes again.
I leaned back and enjoyed the scenery as it flashed by. Houses and docks, groves of sun-dappled trees, the grassy shoreline. Then I did my best trick: I put the handle behind my back and twirled around, doing a 360, stopping to kneeboard backwards for a few seconds. Then I twirled around the other way. What a rush!
After five trips up and down the cove, I was out of breath and my shoulders and knees were shaking. I gave Grandpa the finger across the neck motion to tell him I was going to drop the line. Leaning back, I threw the rope high in the air, and felt myself sink down into the water.
Grandpa drove the boat around to pick me up, and I clambered up the ladder on the back of the boat.
“Whew!” I collapsed, shaking, water streaming everywhere, into the back seat and wrapped myself in a towel. “My muscles feel like jelly!” I saw Stephanie’s face, though, and I knew I’d impressed her.
“That was some good knee boarding!” Grandpa said. “Great job!” He pointed at Stephanie. “Now it’s your turn, big girl! Let’s go. No time like the present.”
I looked over at Stephanie and her face was white as a sheet.