summertime - mid90s

the beach.

Olivia was at Ryders house when they heard Fuckshit honking his horn outside, letting them know he was there to pick them up. It was predicted that it would be one of the hottest days of summer and they had all decided to get to the beach to enjoy the weather. 

"Come on! Squeeze, there's not enough room!" She told Fourthgrade, Stevie and Ruben as she tried to get in the backseat.

"Hurry up! The beach babes are waiting for me!" Fuckshit said impatiently, looking back at them.

She threw her bag down by Ryders feet and sat down on his lap. There just wasn't enough room for her to sit next to them and she just wanted them to get going.

"Let's go!" She shut the door behind her and Fuckshit sped away down the street. She tried her best not to put all her weight on his lap but then he wrapped his arms around her waist and pulled her closer. Butterflies appeared in her stomach but she just kept looking out the car window as if it was nothing.

The drive to the beach went by quickly and as soon as they had parked she climbed off him and opened the door. Everyone grabbed their things and they went to look for a good spot to put their towels down. It didn't take long until Fuckshit had thrown off his t-shirt and was ready for the water.

"Last one in is a loser!" He yelled, pushing Ray away so he could get ahead. Ray and Ruben chased after him while Stevie struggled to get his shirt off as fast as the rest but eventually he caught up with them.

"You're not going?" Ryder asked, looking over at her.

"Not yet." She shook her head and started pulling her dress over her head. When it was off and she had thrown it in the sand, she saw his eyes on her. She wanted to think that he was looking at her because he liked what he saw but again, she had to push those thoughts away. Olivia took his camera from him and started rolling.

"You filming me right now?" He asked. She thought it was funny how unsure he became when a camera was pointed his way for once.

"Are you going after them?" She asked, looking into the camera.

"No, I have to work on my tan." He replied jokingly and she chuckled. Most of the boys had t-shirt tans after all the skating outside so they could use some more sun. She turned and filmed out against the shore and zoomed to make the boys appear in the distance. After a few seconds she shut it off and handed it back to him.

Ryder took his shirt off but Olivia refused to look at him, instead laying down and closing her eyes. For a moment she just listened to the ambience around them. The waves splashing, kids laughing and music playing in the distance.

"Do you remember our old treehouse?" He suddenly asked her.

"Of course I do. Haven't been there in years though..."

"Me neither. I wanna go back, see if it's still there." 

"Then we'll go later." She thought it could be nice to go back there and relive some memories. They had been so proud of that treehouse and they were there everyday until... they weren't.

Their beach day went by quickly, Fuckshit bought them all food and they had just enjoyed the sunshine . After a few hours they decided it was enough and they all got back into Fuckshits car which felt more like a sauna than anything. Fuckshit dropped her and Fourthgrade off and then sped off again.

"So, the treehouse? Are we going?" 

"Yeah, just let me put up my towel and then we go." She replied and he nodded. 

They went to their seprete houses to leave their stuff. Olivia put up her towel and bikini in the bathroom and then went back to her room. She knew she had a bottle of wine stashed in her dresser, which could be a nice end to the night. With the bottle in her bag she got outside, where he was already waiting for her. The treehouse wasn't far away, just by the end of a forest area behind their neighborhood. 

"Look, there it is!" She yelled out excitedly. Only a few planks were missing but otherwise it looked just as they had left it. Ryder was quick to climb the small ladder and get up to the house. It creaked as he moved inside.

"Get up here Liv!"

"Yeah yeah, don't rush me!" With how long it had been since she last climbed up, she was afraid that the whole thing would fall apart underneath her feet. When she got to the top step he held out his hand for her to grab and he pulled her up. 

"Wow, I forgot that the view was this good." She looked out through one of the windows and she could almost see her house.

"Right? We've truly missed out." He sat down by the window, also admiring the view they had in front of them. 

She looked around and it didn't seem like many people had been there throughout the years. some graffiti and a few beer bottles but that was all. When she was looking around, she was searching for something she hoped would still be there. And it was.

"Look!" She pointed at the plank where he had carved in their names. It said Ryder and Olivia, BFF's. It made her smile widen further. She had borrowed her dads pocketknife but had given it to Ryder to do the job. He moved closer and let his fingertips run over the writing.

"Still true to this day." He said and looked back at her.

"I have something with me... So we can celebrate our treehouse still being here. And us still being here..." She turned to open her bag and get the bottle out.

"Always prepared huh?" She nodded and unscrewed the top before taking a sip. Olivia passed him the bottle and went to sit down by the window. When they had gotten towards the end of the bottle, he finally had some courage to talk about Amber. 

"So..."

"So, what?" 

"I called Amber a few days ago. We met up and... yesterday she spent the night." His words almost made her jaw drop.

"What? When was she there?"

"After Motors I met up with her by the bus stop."

"Oh okay..." She took a sip of the wine.

"Was that why I couldn't come over earlier this morning?" She questioned, still not looking at him.

"Yeah... We were getting breakfast and then I wanted to walk her back." Olivia knew it wasn't fair but she felt somewhat betrayed by him. Why hadn't he said anything to her? Weren't they supposed to be best friends?

"So you two dating now?" 

"I don't know..." He replied, still being vague about it. He wasn't trying to be but he just didn't know. As everyone knew, he hadn't dated much and he didn't know where things were going. Olivia nodded and took the last sip of wine left in the bottle before putting it to the side.

"I just want you to be happy." Olivia said, which was the most honest thing she had said. Even though it would hurt, it would be worth it. He deserved the world and she wanted him to have it all.

"I know you do..." He replied, placing his hand on top of hers softly. She looked up at him and a soft smile took place on her lips. 

"I better get going soon..." Ryder said, watching out over the view once more.

"I might stick around here for a little while before I go."

"You sure?" 

She looked up at him and nodded. 

"Alright, call me if there's anything."

"Yeah, see you tomorrow."

"See you."

Again the tree creaked as he made his way down to the ground. He waved goodbye and then he disappeared out of sight underneath the treetops. She sat there for a while longer, just thinking. She had gotten better at hearing about Amber without wanting to run away but it was hard. She just needed to move on.