A Rose by the Shore

I stared at the man in front of me with a perplexed look. As hard as I tried scanning through my brain for some recognition, nothing turned up. I’ve never seen him before— in a GQ magazine, maybe— but never in real life.

I shook my head, “I really don’t know—“

He placed his palm up to stop me, “nevermind, forget it. I know better than to press.”

Okay? Now I was confused, but I wasn’t about to press him on why he shouldn’t be pressing. I just wanted to get back to my exploration before having to head back home.

I could tell Lincoln was about to say something when suddenly he was interrupted by a ringing sound coming from his pocket. He took out his cell, looked at the screen and then excused himself. As he walked away for a little privacy, I took that as the chance to book it the other direction.

I honestly didn’t know where I was going, but I ended up on the beach. There were a ton of people sprawled out in the sand, soaking in the shady sun, and children in floaties building sand castles around them. As I continued down the shoreline, I spotted red, yellow, blue and lime green kayaks stacked on top of each other on the side of a grass hut across the way and immediately felt a pull.

In the hut, there were a lot of equipment like life vests, wet suits, snorkeling goggles, normal swimming goggles, fins, and even a first aid kit pushed back in a corner of a shelf. I saw a sign that said kayaks were to be rented for ten dollars and couldn’t wait to get my hands on one.

I waited around for someone to take my money, but after five minutes, I got impatient. I shoved the ten dollars under the ‘tips’ cup on the counter and proceeded to grab a life jacket from one of the racks. I tossed my sandals into the kayak and folded the hem of my capri’s up even more as I stepped into the warm water. I pushed the red boat out further into the reef and finally jumped in, causing minor splashing.

I began paddling around the island, stopping here and there to gaze at colorful sea creatures and beautiful coral. At one point, I even took off my life vest to use as a pillow as I laid back to take in the scenery of the golden paradise. I was completely adrift in the bliss and never wanted to leave.

As I continued to venture off, I completely forgot about the time and sat straight up. “Balls,” I grumbled as I began reluctantly taking a u-turn. I hadn't realized how far I actually went out because all I saw around me were gigantic rocks and a whole lot of water.

Continuing to paddle back, I noticed whatever little there was left of the sun before was now completely concealed behind clouds. Then there came a rumble from the shrouds in the sky and the tides angrily swayed the kayak. I tried steadying myself by gripping the sides, but it did nothing. I began paddling faster and faster back to shore, but the convulsing ocean didn’t yield to this sailor.

“Oh, hell,” I grumbled to myself. Water splashed all around me and I felt as if I weren’t moving forward at all. Another cry came from the sky and my heart began racing. I so desperately wanted to get to land that my obliques screamed in pain as I kept moving the oar in and out of the water like a machine. But as hard as I worked, I wasn’t changing location. Heavy drops of rain came crashing down and I knew I was done for—I was never going to make it back in time.

Fierce currents rammed into the kayak again and I completely lost control. I tipped over and submerged under water, practically swallowing enough liquid to fill a fish tank I floated to the top, hoping to find the kayak and life vest near by, but they had drifted in opposite directions that I had to pick which to go after. I tried swimming to grab the life vest, but was only pushed back to the rocks.

The combined sound of rain, deafening thunder, crashing waves and my frantic splashing didn’t help me think clearly at all. What was I to do?

I screamed in pain as the current rammed my body into the large, rusted stone, sending my left shoulder into it first. I gripped my shoulder with my right hand while my left barely held onto the small ridges of the rock. I coughed up more ocean water as it kept coming into my mouth and I knew I couldn’t stay there forever. I looked around for something and ended up spotting a small ledge on the rock I was under. It didn’t look too far up, but I knew better to trust my inner scale. It seemed nearly impossible to get to, but the stone itself had small edges I could use to try to climb, so I had to try.

Despite the piercing agony I felt in my arm, I pushed through it and reached high for the wrinkle in the rock. I barely lifted myself up, but luckily my foot caught grip. I steadily inched higher and higher to the point where my calves were almost out of the water, but I was still far from being done.

I was exhausted and I wanted to cry—I wanted my father. I wanted to see his face and hear his voice to tell me to keep pushing, but all I heard was the shrill laugh of the storm.

“C’mon, Quinn, you can do this,” I groaned through gritted teeth. As I began reaching again, my right foot slid from under me, getting cut open by the sharp edges and I completely lost orientation.

I fell into the ocean again, but this time I did not resurface and slowly felt myself being engulfed by the paradise I felt so reluctant to leave.

—-

I felt compressions on my chest and heard Lincoln’s voice coursing though my head.

“Quinn, Quinn, c’mon, wake up!”

I coughed up water and my whole body shook in the release. I was pulled up from the sand into a solid chest and I couldn’t help but enjoy the warmth. He released me from the hug, but still kept his hands on me. I coughed some more as he brushed away wet, dark strands of hair from my face.

“Look at me, Quinn,” Lincoln ordered as he ran a hand through his own hair. Rain was still falling, but we were under a tree with sheltering leaves.

I looked into his eyes that were now as gray as the clouds above us and he looked relieved to see me somewhat tuned in.

“T-thank you,” I managed to croak out.

He completely ignored my gratitude and went straight to scolding. “What the hell were you thinking? Didn’t anyone tell you there was a storm coming and it wasn’t safe to be out kayaking? That was completely reckless, seriously, Quinn, you could have died!”

“I’m-I’m- I’m sorry, I didn’t know. There wasn’t anyone there and I— I just got impatient and I— look, I paid for the rental!”

“I don’t care about your money, Quinn, I care about your safety!”

The sky roared again and more rain fell. Lincoln groaned and got up, bringing me with him. I squealed as he tugged on my bad arm and he quickly apologized. “Damn, you’re a lot more banged up than I thought— c’mon, get on my back.” He turned around, bent his knees, and braced himself for my weight.

“N-no, it’s okay, I can walk— “ I looked down to my bleeding foot, “kind of.”

“Quinn,” he growled.

“I don’t want to be anymore trouble.”

He peered over his shoulder and his look pierced through my soul with his silver eyes. “I just saved you from drowning in the middle of a raging storm, I think we’re passed ‘trouble.’” He stood up straight and turned around. “It’s either you get on my back or I am throwing you over my shoulder while spanking you all the way home.”

—-

I sat on the edge of Lincoln’s bed in his bathrobe as I waited for him to return. His room was spacious and decorated in a modern style with monochromatic colors. It was tidy and no hair was out of place. His room was the complete opposite of mine and it made me feel quite childish. I noticed that there weren’t any pictures of him and his family at all, but there was one large painting on a plain wall that stood out against the black, white, gray and blues of his room. It was of three koi fish swimming in a pond swirling in lavish green, blue, pink, yellow, and red hues. It was breathtaking and a wonderful break from all the simplistic shades.

I heard knocking on the door and Lincoln stepped in with folded clothes in one hand and a first aid kit with a hair dryer laced through his other fingers in the other. He was completely dry—despite his damp hair— and also completely shirtless. I trailed down his body and couldn’t help but stare at his chiseled stature— his arms, his pecks, his core, that defined, dangerous ‘v’ on his lower abdomen— ah shit.

“Take a picture, it will last longer.”

I snapped out of it and watched Lincoln place the items on his wooden dresser. “I wasn’t staring,” I scowled.

He dragged a chair to sit in front of me while placing my right foot in his lap. His head was tilted down to inspect my cut, but he looked up at me through his envious lashes and jested, “I didn’t say you were, but I guess now I know now.”

He smirked and I looked away to hide my pinkish cheeks. I fidgeted as he cleaned blood and winced when he wiped the cut with hydrogen peroxide. He carefully wrapped my foot and gently placed my leg down. He tossed the garbage into a bin across the room and then proceeded to dump two pills into my hand. “These babies work fast and hopefully you won’t feel as much pain.” I thanked him, took the pills into my mouth and swallowed after chugging half a bottle of water.

He got up from the chair and walked over to his closet, pulling out a white t-shirt. Before he placed it over his head, I noticed a five lettered name across his left peck in small, capitalized print.

“Jovan,” I said out loud, not actually meaning to.

He smoothed down his tee and walked over to his dresser, plugging in the dryer. He turned it on and to my surprise, he was blowing drying my hair. His fingers delicately ruffled through my long, wavy strands and made sure to get every corner. I protested against it, but he said my arms needed a rest. I wanted to press and tell him I was capable, but his touch felt kind of nice, so I didn’t.

After the both of us fell silent for a moment, he suddenly spoke.

“He was my best friend.”I tilted my head to look up at him, but the dryer blew hair in my face. He brushed it away and continued, “he was actually like a brother to me.”

Instinctively, I reached up with my right hand and placed it on his that was holding the blow dryer. “I’m sorry.” It didn’t take a genius to realize Jovan was no longer alive, but I was curious as to why. “Can I ask what happened?”

He pried his hand away and unplugged the hair tool, staying silent. I watched him tidy up the equiptment and wondered what he was thinking. I couldn’t figure him out at all. One moment I thought he was an annoying clown, then the next, a selfless hero, and now he was… I didn’t even know. I’ve never had so many mixed feelings about a person I’ve literally just met not even a day ago before.

“It’s better if you didn’t know, but we’ll just leave it as that I’m the reason he’s dead.”

I held my breath at his last statement. The room felt colder after he said it and everything seemed so tense. I swallowed hard and didn’t know what to think. Lincoln was the reason his best friend was dead. I didn’t know what to make of it, but I respected his decision not to tell me.

“And I’m sorry for being a brat to you earlier… I was just annoyed that you— but now you— we’re even.”

His back was towards me and when he turned around, his expression was different and the heavy weight in the room lifted. “It’s cool, I get it. My friend got a new sports car and he got a little out of hand.”

Damn, so it wasn’t even him who was driving. I felt like a total asshole. “Oh, and can I borrow your phone to call my dad? My cellphone is kind of sea bound right now.”

“I already called him to let him know what happened and that you’re all right.”

“Why are you being so generous to me?”

He shrugged, “reasons.”

“What kind of reasons?”

“Wouldn’t you like to know.”

“Well, I do, that’s why I’m asking.”

His lip curved up into a smirk and slightly shook his head. He grabbed the folded clothes that were sitting on the dresser and handed them to me. “You can put these on and meet me downstairs for dinner.”

He was about to walk out the door when, “Unless your arms hurt too much and you want me to help you get dressed.”

I raised a dark brow and shot back with, “Mmm, tempting, but I got out of my wet clothes fine before the pain killers and I’ll do fine now that I’ve had them.”

Lincoln looked at me humorously and stepped out the door frame, “How tempting, indeed.” And then he shut the door behind him, leaving me to myself.