Tides

Chapter 37 - Unexpected Visitor

SKYE

What is happening that Kay is so desperate for us to call?

"It's a message from Kay, asking to call him. Capital letters, many exclamation marks," Dax looks around the room.

"What are you waiting for? Call him! I want to hear what is going on," River sits on the bed. Maggie changes places with me and lifts his bed to make him more comfortable.

Dax dials Kay's number and activates the speaker on his phone, and we move closer to it. He answers the call but all we hear is reggae music and background noise.

"DAX! LET ME MOVE TO THE BACK OF THE BEACH AND AWAY FROM THE DAMN MUSIC!" Kay yells to compete with the sound.

We hear rustling sounds, and the noise lessens.

"Okay, I'm here. How is River doing?"

"I'm alive. Do you have any news?" River asks and I give Luna a knowing look.

"Excellent, bro! I have news, but first, did you see the videos Dad sent? He thought they might cheer you up."

"We did. Did Dylan really do a 360?" I ask.

"He did! It wasn't as elegant as what you or Dax would have done, but he landed safely and could keep on riding. I'm so damn proud of him. Look at what he achieved in a short time!"

"Any preliminary scores?" Dad asks.

"Yeah, and at the moment... WE ARE AT THE TOP!" he almost yells on the phone.

We look at each other with surprise in our eyes. We beat Oceancrush, which is nearly impossible, but we are also above other two teams. Luna moves next to Dax and holds a pad and pen ready to write the scores.

"Skye and Anthony got the same score, an 8.7. The combined from Dax and Dylan got an 8.3, and I also got an 8.7 while Corey got 8.6! Dudes, that is an average of 8.56! Can you believe it? Oceancrush is at 5.76. Crush must be so pissed," he almost giggles.

"Is that good?" River asks me while everybody else says good bye to Kay.

"That is more than good. It's amazing! Anthony and Corey are professional surfers, and we got the same or better scores than they did."

"Why do they have a low score then? It was five something, right?"

"Well, you probably heard about what happened with Ryan at the Oceancrush party. This morning, their third team member got fired on the spot. He was drunk, and that is against the rules. The Reef is a treacherous spot even when you are sober. We lost Dax's wife and got hurt there. They couldn't arrange a substitute on time."

"I want to learn more about all of this. I find it fascinating! The party planning and the tent preparations were the most fun I've had in a while. I wish I could have stayed longer yesterday, but I had to go to my treatment. Not that it helped much," River says with sadness while looking at the machine next to him.

"You need to promise us you will take good care of yourself after the surgery. We need you around. Who will model the Kalani clothes?" I wink at him, making him laugh.

I went to visit River during his treatment last week, and we spent plenty of time together at the Kalani party. Whenever I look at him, it's like looking at myself in the mirror, just a different hairstyle. River is a warm human being, and the longer you know him, the more you like him. I hope the surgery works. I want him to be around us for a long time.

"It was a nice experience. When they told me I would model, I was hesitant. Once I was dressed, I liked the clothes plenty. It's something I can definitely wear every day. Joan is talented, and you must be proud of her."