She swallows hard, still looking at me like she’s fighting some invisible war in her head.
And then—
“Cannonball!”
Max barrels into the waves with zero warning, smacking the water so hard it sprays in every direction. A freezing wave crashes over us.
“Max!” Aurora shrieks, clutching her hair as if that’ll save it from the salt water. He only laughs louder, disappearing under the surf before popping back up with that ridiculous grin plastered on his face.
Aurora glares, but two seconds later she’s diving in after him, her squeal echoing across the beach.
Steven, who’s been lounging under the umbrella with his book, finally sighs. Without even marking his page, he mutters, “You’re all lunatics,” and trudges toward the water anyway.
Nova’s already doubled over laughing, her hair bouncing even though they’re damp. She nearly slips in the wet sand but catches herself, then grabs my wrist with surprising strength.
“Come on, Cooper! You’re not escaping this,” she says, tugging me upright.
“Nova—” I start, but she’s already dragging me forward, laughing so hard she can barely breathe.
We charge into the surf, splashes flying everywhere as Max dunks Aurora under the waves, only to get smacked in the face when she pops back up. Steven mutters threats under his breath,but he’s smiling—barely—when Nova sends a tidal wave his way with one perfectly aimed kick.
“Hey!” Steven sputters, swiping salt water from his face.
“You love it!” Nova cackles, darting behind me like I’m her shield.
“Coward!” Steven calls, but he’s grinning as Aurora joins in to splash him from behind.
Soon it’s all chaos—Aurora shrieking as Max tries to hoist her over his shoulder, Steven pretending to drown dramatically, Nova launching herself at me with both hands and sending us both under. I resurface choking on seawater and laughter, brushing my hair out of my eyes, only to get another wave right in the face courtesy of Nova.
“You started it!” I yell, flinging water back at her.
“You deserved it!” she shoots back between giggles.
“Traitor!”
Aurora’s laughter rings out as she nearly slips off Max’s back. “This is insane!”
“Correction,” Steven says, “you’reinsane. I’m the only sane one here.”
That lasts exactly three seconds before Max splashes him again, and Steven finally snaps, lunging at him with a battle cry that makes all of us collapse in laughter.
By now, the five of us are a mess—salt water, tangled hair, aching sides from laughing too hard. The sun is dipping lower, turning the waves gold around us, but none of us care. We’re too busy being kids again.
And honestly? I wouldn’t trade this for anything.
CHAPTER TWENTY-NINE
Nova Marshall
PAST (2017)
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"Life can be challenging and sad ...
but music is the easy part."
St. Vincent
