Stairways | A Surviving Summer FanFiction

Part 42 - Getting Ready

If Shorehaven won Boadriders, you wouldn't know.

It's been three days since your argument with Poppy, and you've barely left your room, ignoring the flood of text messages from Ari, and even a few from Summer. Things are going to be different now.

"Hey." you hear your brother's voice enter the room and look up from your phone. "Let's go out." he says bluntly.

"No thanks." you reply, reaching to shut the door from your bed, but he slaps your hand away.

"C'mon. Me and some of the others are going to check out Stairway." Marlon throws you a jacket from your cupboard. "And we need to check it's pumping if we want to be on track to go out there this weekend."

How could you forget? The dreaded fact that you and your brother are going to surf one of the most notorious breaks around has been weighing heavily on your conscience for the past few months, the planned time for the...excursion slowly creeping closer each day.

"Not getting cold feet, are you?" he says, almost like he read your mind.

"Of course not. I just...don't want to run into anyone." you say, although that's not the only reason you don't want to go out there - you don't want to see even a glimpse of what you're facing in a few days.

"Oh, right. Because you went absolutely mad at Poppy the other day." he jokes.

"That's harsh. She's the one who started the whole thing. Just because she has a crush on Ari." you reply.

"Have you spoken to Ari?" Marlon says after a pause.

"No. I'm done with them all." you say determinedly, and you mean it.

You definitely mean it.

"You can't mean that." your brother counters, even though he's the traitor. He's the one who's planning to leave Shorehaven for a group of egotistical, self-obsessed, second-rate surfers.

"Why not?" you reply.

"Because they're your friends! Bodhi didn't do anything, did she? Or Summer? Or even Ari?"

"No, but..."

"But what? So what if Poppy was angry. You can't just leave for no reason!"

You quickly slip on some shoes and throw on the jacket Marlon passed to you, ready to leave. "You did."

_________________________

As you get to the end of the road before the trek down to Stairway, you notice a few people already there: Griff, Ahmed and another one of their friends.

"Look who it is!" Griff exclaims when he sees you both. "You coming too, Y/n?"

"Just to have a look." you say, unaware what exactly Marlon has told them about your plans. "Apparently it's looking pretty good for this weekend."

"Yeah, just have to wait for the low pressure system to move off." Griff replies as the group of you start walking through the trees in the direction of Stairway. There's nearly no beach at Stairway, so the only way to get to the waves is the large piece of hard rock thrust into the ocean - where Ari jumped last year. And the only way to reach that is by walking a little way off road through a wooded area; it's a pretty well-known area for locals, but not many people go down there. The only time they do is around this time of the year, when Stairway is pumping, and sets of waves at least 8 feet each time come rolling in.

Just when you catch a glimpse of the sea, you see another figure coming in the opposite direction - coming back from Stairway.

"Back for round two, Gibson!?" Griff exclaims.

"Nah, just checking it out." he replies quickly, obviously trying to escape the Anchor Coves without getting into any sort of trouble with them.

Ari suddenly seems to notice you and Marlon in the group, and turns to your brother. "Hey." he says, not in an unfriendly tone, but one which suggests he isn't best pleased to see you both with the Anchor Coves.

"They wanted to see where Stairway was, so..." Marlon is quick to defend himself, but Ari knows why he's there really, and why you are too.

"So, Anchor Cove let you in." he says, ignoring the more pressing topic.

"Not yet...they're still deciding," he motions towards the sea. "Is it working?"

"Not yet. Soon though, maybe after that low pressure system moves off." Ari replies.

"Oi, Gibson," Griff calls. "Last year when Marlon piked, did you get cooked doing the jump, or out at the reef break?"

"The reef, but I don't really remember." Ari replies, and Marlon is quick to move the conversation on.

"Chill bro, let's keep it going."

"You should come back at the weekend. See how it's meant to be done." Griff taunts, and you feel a sudden wave of anxiety. Griff and his friends are surfing Stairway too? Did Marlon tell them about your pact, or was this their idea too?

As the boys continue down the path to Stairway, Ari gently grabs your arm as you're about to go past, leading you to the edge of the trees.

"Hey, what's going on with you? Why aren't you answering my texts?" he asks in a low tone.

"Don't you remember what happened the other day? Poppy just has some sort of problem with me."

"Maybe that's your own fault." he says, with little hesitation.

"What?" Your eyebrows raise in disbelief. "She's the one who decided to go crazy at me."

"Maybe, part of what she said...is true?" he offers, but you're quick to counter.

"She outed us."

"C'mon, Y/n, half the people there already knew, as much as you don't want to admit it. And she's right about all the secrets! You always seem to be hiding something, and I'm...I'm fed up with it!"

"Oh yeah? What secrets?"

"Well what the hell are you doing here right now? Fancy Stairway as a new sunbathing spot? I don't think so."

"You're one to talk about secrets, Ari. When are you going to tell your parents about your anxiety?" you say, knowing it's a low blow, but Ari has no right to lecture you about Stairway if he can't even take care of himself properly.

He stutters, unsure what to say, before apparently finding the words. The wrong words.

"What the hell has happened to you?" he asks slowly.

"I just realised I'm fed up with people getting involved in my life," you reply. "It's annoying."

"Oh yeah? Was it a mistake for me to get involved in your life?" Ari crosses his arms, and you hope to God that this isn't it for your relationship.

"I never said that." you say quickly.

"Yeah, well that's what it sounded like."

"I just hated it. Having to explain myself to everyone. Why can't I catch a ride with Griff when I need a lift? Why can't I date you? Why can't I surf Stairway if I want to?"

"Because we care about you!" he's nearly yelling now. "We can't let you get hurt!" he swallows. "I can't let you get hurt."

"Yeah well, maybe you care about me but nobody else in Shorehaven does. So screw them."

Ari lets out an exasperated sigh, placing his hands in his pockets in defeat. "You sound like Marlon," he says, turning away and heading home.