“Okay, I will. I was pretty close, huh?” I say, feeling comforted now.
His smile widens. “Yes, you were! We’ve got to give you another run.”
He helps me set up once again. This time he hardly even needs to adjust my form for me.I’ve so got this.I give Mr. Martin the thumbs up, and the boat pulls forward again. This time, I let the boat get me most of the way there and then push up just a little with my legs. I get up, but I feel some resistance as I try to shift my weight to my dominant leg. Next thing I know, I’m swallowedby water again.
I come up gasping for air. Rebecca is cheering for me again. “I’m so proud of you, bestie!”
I laugh and swat my hand at her. She’s being ridiculous. This is no amazing feat.
Andrew reaches out to pull me back closer to our starting point again and give me more pointers. “You’re a natural! I told you Rebecca is just a bad teacher.” He winks. “What happened this time?”
“I couldn’t get the board turned.”
“Okay, just try rotating your left foot back instead of shifting your full weight around. I have a good feeling about this next one.” I don’t think he’s stopped smiling since my first run.
We start again. I let the boat pull me most of the way. Once I’m up, I lean on my heel a little to rotate my left foot back, and I’m doing it.Oh my gosh! I’m doing it!I look up at the boat in wide-eyed bewilderment as I skate across the water. Rebecca is whooping and hollering at me. I hear Andrew shouting from his spot in the water, “Go, Em!” I turn to see him, a goofy grin on my face, and I wipe out.
I went for two more runs. My first of the two being my longest. I have to admit, Andrew was right. I am proud of myself for doing this. Not only do my Oreos and milk taste sweeter today, but now Rebecca and Andrew are both super proud of me, and Andrew owes me a trip to the bookstore with some ice cream.
The sun hangs low, on the verge of setting but not quite to the point where the sky is changing colors. Rebecca, Andrew, and I sit on the dock wrapped in towels. Rebecca animatedly exclaims, “You should’ve seen yourself, Emma! You looked like a total badass out there!”
I humbly laugh. “Andrew was pretty helpful.” My eyes meethis for a moment. To Rebecca, I say, “I came through on my promise, so now you can stop bothering me about it.”
“No no no no no!” she insists. “You just proved to me that I need to help bring you out of your shell so you can reach your full potential. The possibilities are endless now! I have to start brainstorming what else we can get you to try.”
I shrink back. “Rebecca, I love you, but I think I need some time to recover from the new thing Ijusttried. My body is still stiff from the beating I took from the water.”
“I love you too, which is why I’m pushing you to be your very best self.” She grins big. Throwing her arms around me, she says, “I’m just so proud of you.”
Behind her, Andrew calmly adds, “Me too.”
I can’t help but be slightly angry at myself for allowing his approval to hold so much weight, but it does. His words bring me to life.
I regain my composure. “Speaking of promises, when are we going to the bookstore? I have so many books on my wish list.”
“Well, when do you want to go?”
“Right now.”
Andrew looks up at the sky as the orangey hues begin to paint the horizon. “The store is definitely closed by now. How about tomorrow?”
“Done.”
CHAPTER 10
Summer 15
As we pull up to the bookstore, Andrew and Mrs. Martin get out of the car, Mrs. Martin moving to the driver’s seat. I unbuckle and slip out of the back seat, meeting Andrew in front of the store. “All right, kiddos, I’ll be back in a couple of hours. Does that work?” Mrs. Martin chimes.
Andrew’s face droops with a frown. “We aren’t kiddos, Mom. I just drove us here.”
She just chuckles at his frustration and drives off. I turn to take in the bookstore in all its glory. “This is it, huh?”
He nods, wearily watching me and waiting for my approval. I lead us in, practically shaking with excitement. For how much I love reading, I rarely get to go book shopping. There’s a Barnes & Noble in the mall near my house that I’ll occasionally poke around in while my mom makes a return, but twenty minutes in a bookstore is not even remotely enough time.
I take in the store with awe. It has a very cozy vibe with a fire crackling in one of the corners, even though it’s eighty degrees outside. Each of the shelves are labeled clearly, and I can see the books are organized alphabetically by author, a hugeplus for my organized self. There’s a seating area in the center that looks like someone’s living room, including coffee tables and comfy chairs. It is very inviting, inspiring people to just sit and read or chat about books.
“I love it.”
