Page 121 of We Are Just Us

Kieran smiled. “I do. You looked mortified.”

“I was. But also...” Rory paused, choosing his words carefully. “It got me thinking. There’s this surf competition that happens every year right before Labor Day. The classic down at Beacon’s. The one I used to compete in.”

“And you’re thinking about entering again?”

“Yeah.” He paused, his eyes tracking the road ahead. “I haven’t done it since Britt died. But lately I’ve been thinking maybe I should sign up.”

Kieran was quiet for a second. “Then you should.”

“You think?”

“I think you already know you want to. You’re just looking for me to swoon over how good you are.”

“I don’t know if I’m still any good.”

“You’re better than good. I’ve seen you surf.”

“You’ve seen me casually. And you were too busy eating sand to pay attention.”

Kieran laughed. “Fair. But even from my horizontal position in the ocean, I could tell you knew what you were doing.”

They slowed at a red light, and Rory glanced over at him. “You should sign up too.”

“What?”

“The competition. They have a beginner division.”

“No fucking way.”

“Why not?”

“Because I’ve stood up on a surfboard for approximately three seconds before falling off and nearly drowning.”

“You didn’t almost drown.”

“I inhaled an entire ocean’s worth of saltwater.”

“That’s an exaggeration.”

“It’s really not. And you know it.”

The light turned green and Rory accelerated, still grinning. “Come on. It would be fun.”

“For you to watch me humiliate myself publicly in front of an audience? Probably.”

“I’m serious. You could take a few more lessons. Practice. By September you’d be decent.”

“Decent is a strong word.”

“Functional then.”

Kieran shook his head. “Some of us are meant to be spectators.”

Rory laughed. “Okay, fine. But you’ll come and watch?”

“Obviously. I need to see if Vera was right about the whole Kelly Slater thing.”

“She wasn’t.”