Bondi Blues | Bondi Rescue

Part 25

It had been a few days since the incident had unfolded, and a lot of the boys had shown their concern through actions, which was fine with me. I just wanted to forget the whole incident had happened. I knew a few of the boys were waiting for the right time to talk to me, but I was fine with staying up in the Tower with Bisho for a couple of days, as Hoppo had ordered.

I was still training, but Jamie realized that twice a day was good enough, plus a workout at the beach during my lunch break. A couple of the boys had joined in on my training sessions, which definitely made it more enjoyable. I had just finished a good run on the sand with Reidy and Bisho, and now I was in the Tower with Hoppo until Bisho came back.

"How are you doing, Charlie?" Hoppo asked me gently, not wanting to intrude. I knew he was concerned about me, but he also wanted me back out on the beach. I had nothing but respect for Hoppo - he was my boss, after all - but I hadn't gotten to know him in a personal sense yet.

I replied, "I'm alright, Hop. A lot better than before... Just had never run into a person that vile before, especially down here." He sat next to me and said, "Neither have I Charlie, and I've been here for a while... I'm not sure if you want to know how the police proceedings went, but if you want to know, I can tell you."

I felt like closure might be good for me, so I nodded for Hoppo to continue. He said, "He's locked up in Sydney, they found him guilty." I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding in, and Hop said, "Does that help?" I replied, "Yeah... Gives a bit of closure."

Hoppo reminded me, "Just remember, you know Bondi, and you know people here aren't like that. We've got you." I looked over at my boss and said, "Thanks, Hop. I really appreciate it."

*

A couple of days later and I was back on the beach, patrolling North Bondi with Whippet. As we sat in the buggy, Whippet asked me, "Are you ready for the lifeguard challenge next week?" I blanked, and Whip must have seen the panic in my face, as I had forgotten about the challenge with everything that had happened over the past few weeks.

"You forgot, didn't you?" He asked, smirking. I nodded nervously, and Whip smiled devilishly, adding, "Did you forget about your bet with me and Chappo?" I muttered an obscenity under my breath, and Whippet began laughing.

"Tell you what," Whippet began, and I listened. "Let's go for a paddle after the shift is over, and we'll go for a swim tomorrow. I know you can run that 3km to Bronte like nobody else on this team, but it's the board paddle and the ocean swim that will get ya."

I did a doubletake at Whippet and replied, "But we have the next night out of beers riding on this, why would you want to help me?" Whippet laughed and said, "We have more than just the next night of beers riding on this, but I'm still pretty confident I can beat you, mate."

Before we knew it, the end of our shift came, and we still had a couple of hours of daylight to practice. Whippet and I grabbed rescue boards, and Box heckled us, saying, "Some last-minute training before you both lose?" I quickly whipped back and replied, "Or you'll have the first female winner - about time you boys are put in your places."

I heard a bunch of the boys sneer and egg me on at my comment to Box, and I headed out with Whippet to train. The surf had gotten a bit bigger since there was a southerly swell coming in, and I would be lying if I had said I wasn't a bit nervous. Whip and I paddled out, and he must have seen the nerves on my face.

"Oye, Charlie? You alright?" He asked with genuine concern, and I replied, "This southerly is sick Whip. Like, I've never seen waves this big." We began trying to jump over the waves, and it was brutal. After what felt like hours, we finally got out the back, and Whippet and I began board paddling a few kilometers out. We stuck together, and I could see a couple of the guys had stuck behind at the Tower to make sure we were okay.