Caught Inside

Chapter Twelve

"Do you not know that in a race all the runners run, but only one receives the prize? So run that you may obtain it." – 1 Corinthians 9:24

Saturday morning found the gang standing on the beach in their wetsuits, digging their feet deeper into the cold sand. They were carefully studying the waves trickling through the Point, the site of the competition between Ventura and Pacific High School. For the first time in two weeks, Cole was finally competing, and he couldn't be more nervous. Though the guys' shortboard final was less than an hour away, he pulled his wetsuit down to his waist and slipped on a sweatshirt instead. The overcast skies and looming fog were definitely not helping the chilly temperature.

"Water, anyone?" Jake asked, breaking the gang's silence.

"I'll go with you," Koa said.

The guys headed back to a strip of ice chests that contained water for the Ventura High surf team. Meanwhile, the Anderson twins edged into the conversation between Alana and Maya. "What's this about a contact from Roxy?" Blaine asked curiously.

"You won't believe it," Alana exclaimed. "Trevor advised me to put out a public email, so I did. Not even three days later, someone from Roxy contacted me."

Cole's eyebrows shot up. "No way."

Maya nodded excitedly. "If she does well in this competition, they're going to send a scout to the next one to talk about a potential sponsorship!"

"No kidding! You always surf well, so that sponsorship has to be guaranteed," Blaine said.

Alana shook her head. "I need to place first or second today, and do the same thing in the next competition too. Then they will consider sponsoring me."

"It sounds like they're already considering it," Cole pointed out.

"I just can't believe this," Alana said. "What if I mess this up? What if I end up in fourth today, and I don't even place next week?"

"Don't think like that," Cole said. "You're the best surfer at our school. You could bring us to the NSSA Championships this year if you keep winning!"

Alana frowned at the reminder of the Championships. Ventura High hadn't made it last year, and she knew Coach Kerr wanted to change that.

"You can win this," Maya said. "Just surf like you always do. Don't worry about next week's comp."

Suddenly, Coach Kerr's voice rose above the chatter as he boomed, "Guys in the shortboard final! You're on in thirty minutes!"

"The odds are totally in your favor," Alana noted. Blaine, Cole, and another teammate from Ventura High were in the final against one surfer from Pacific High. Ventura had to win.

"I call dibs on first place," Blaine announced.

"No way! I'm taking home that trophy," Cole said. "You can fight over second as much as you want."

Alana laughed and placed her hands on her hips. "As long as one of you wins," she said, "I'll be happy."

But Cole was determined to place first. Twenty-five minutes later, he found himself standing on the shore, shortboard under his arm and toes in the sand. He jumped up and down on the balls of his feet to keep his energy flowing. On his right were Blaine and their teammate Adam, and on his left was a short and stocky surfer from Pacific High. Cole hadn't surfed any heats against him yet, so he was curious to find out what this surfer's strengths were.