02 The Moon And The Tide - Marina's Tales (20 page)

I thought about my crowded room, “Lots.”

“They’d look really cool in here. I’ll put up
as many as you can bring.”

“OK,” I smiled, looking around at all the
empty wall space.

“Can you bring them by tomorrow?”

“Sure,” I said.

“Great! I’ll be here to get them put up. Now
let’s go listen to Megan,” he smiled, “If Brian says she’s good I
know I’m in for a treat.”

We sat together at one of the tables and
Megan took a stool on the stage with her guitar. She drew a deep
breath and launched into one of her original songs. She sang every
bit as beautifully as she always did and I relaxed, no longer
nervous for her. After she finished Bill and I applauded and he
went over to talk to Megan about her schedule. I flashed her an “I
told you so” grin.

Bill wanted her to come in and perform on
Saturdays for a small salary and tips, and she was thrilled. We
loaded into the car, relieved and happy.

“I knew he’d like your paintings,” she said,
“They’re perfect for a beach town.”

“Well, I knew he’d like your music! Wait
until we tell Cruz– he’s gonna go nuts dressing you!”

The next day I sorted through my paintings
with a critical eye. I picked ten of my favorites and stacked them
into the back of the convertible, grateful for the clear weather. I
drove north to Santa Cruz along the water, scanning the shore for
waves. Pulling up at the coffee shop, I found a parking spot right
in front. Bill came out and helped me unload the canvases.

“Nice ride!” he looked surprised as he
checked out Evie’s car, “Don’t these cars have to be custom
ordered?”

“I don’t know,” I said, “It’s my aunt’s.”

“She must really trust you!” he said, looking
back at it.

“I guess so.”

Bill helped me hang the paintings and we
stood back to admire the effect. The bright splashes of color
really dressed up the formerly drab room, and I could tell that
Bill was satisfied.

“They look cool. It was my lucky day when
Brian called about Megan,” he said with a smile.

“Thanks,” I said happily, “I’m glad you like
them.”

“How do you want to handle sales?” he
asked.

“Sales?” I had never really considered
it.

“Aren’t they for sale?” he asked,
surprised.

“I guess so, how much should I ask for?” I
wondered out loud.

“I’d start high if I were you. These are
really great.” He went to the bar and handed me a pad of paper,
“Make an inventory and list your prices, you can always change them
later.”

I sat down, chewing my lip. I thought about
all the expensive art at the galleries Evie took me to and decided
since I was a student they should be considerably less. I jotted
down some numbers and handed them to Bill, thanking him and heading
out into the sunshine.

I walked down a few storefronts to the surf
shop and went inside. A cute boy with white blond hair greeted me
with a smile from his seat behind the counter. The smell of the new
wetsuits reminded me of the first time I tried mine on. I flipped
through the racks, lost in thoughts of surfing. There was a wall
display of various shapes and sizes of surfboards; I closed my eyes
and imagined what it would be like to ride each one. When I opened
them back up I saw a couple of guys watching me curiously.

Everywhere I turned there were posters of
surfers on massive blue waves. Looking at them made my throat
constrict; I was overcome with the intense urge to be in the ocean.
I recognized Kimo in one of the pictures and smiled. An image of
the day surfing at the point flashed into my mind, and I remembered
the huge wall of water with a surge of desire that sent me reeling.
I turned blindly to leave, running straight into a solid wall of
man blocking the door.

“Well,” he said with a sneer in his voice,
“If it ain’t the little pissed off surfer girl.” I looked up into a
familiar pair of cruel eyes. It was the big jerk who had harassed
me the day I’d surfed at the point. He stood in my path, blocking
my way with a challenge in his eyes. I could tell that he wanted me
to cower, to be afraid; I wasn’t about to give him the
satisfaction. I had no respect at all for bullies, and I wanted him
to know it.

“You think you’re scary, don’t you?” I said
with a contemptuous smile. He looked at me with renewed hatred and
I could see the rage boiling behind his eyes. I knew if we weren’t
in public he’d do something about it.

“You rich girls in your daddy’s car think
you’re
so much better
than everyone else,” his voice was low
and menacing.

“In your case it’s not too much of a
challenge,” I quipped, watching his eyes bulge as his jaw clenched
and his face reddened.

When a couple of people jostled in I took
advantage of the distraction, slipping by him and disappearing out
the door. I raced to the Mercedes, jumping in and driving off
quickly. I could see him watching from the sidewalk, shaking with
cold anger, fists clenched in impotent rage.

Driving home, troubling thoughts of the
strange angry confrontation were replaced with images of walls of
blue green water. Being in the surf shop had triggered a powerful
craving in me. Voices in my mind whispered persuasively, convincing
me that it would be alright, one time would be okay... I could make
sure I ate. I would be careful. Why should I deny myself one of the
great pleasures of life? No one needed to know anything… it was
nobody’s business but mine.

I arrived home, creeping past Cruz’s door and
snagging my gear. I snuck back out and snatched my surfboard. There
was no stopping me now as I raced down to the beach. There were
surfers in the water but they weren’t paying attention to me. I
dressed and concealed my bag under some driftwood, plunging into
the cold briny water and paddling out as hard and as fast as I
could.

“Hey!” A voice called out. I stopped and
looked behind me to see Mike trailing me out to sea. “Where the
heck are you going?” he yelled after me.

“I’m just swimming.”

He pulled closer, “You shouldn’t go out this
far. There’s like, sharks out here... and currents.” He seemed
genuinely concerned.

“I’m fine, I just want to be alone,” I said
pleadingly. This was aggravating. I was so close to getting what I
wanted– what I craved. Lorelei would never come out until I got rid
of him. “Just go surf
...
I’ll come closer... okay?”

He hesitated, and I pretended to turn back,
angling away from him. When I saw him start to paddle back to shore
I sat up on my board. I saw some fins break the water off in the
distance. Dolphins! I called out to them, hoping they could hear me
from this far away. They swam over to my side swiftly, and surfaced
as they had before, looking me in the eye.

“
Can you take me away from the surfers? I
want to find Lorelei.
” They smiled at me and offered me their
dorsal fins to take hold of. I saw Mike’s open mouthed stare over
my shoulder as the pair towed me out to open sea too swiftly for
anyone to follow. Anyone human. I knew it was probably a stupid
move but I was frantic– past all reason and desperate to be
surfing.

When we got far enough away I thanked the
dolphins and called out for Lorelei. For a while I thought she
wouldn’t appear, and I fought back tears. After a few minutes she
finally exploded into view, her exuberant smile convincing me I’d
made the right choice.

“
Marina! I missed you!
” She looked at
me, wide eyes sparkling with delight, “
How have you stayed away
so long? Don’t you want to go wave riding anymore?
”

“
Yes!
” I cried, “
Take me to some
big waves!
”

“
I knew it! I knew you could not
stop!
”

She laughed and the sound was beautiful–
music to my ears. I put my head down and held on tight as she took
hold of my board. A wave of sweet relief washed over me as I closed
my eyes and let Lorelei take me to where the waves were big enough
to play on.

When I looked up we were approaching rocky
cliffs like ones we had surfed before. Huge waves were crashing
right onto them. I was shaking a little as I studied them, my heart
racing. When I settled on a wave and rode it into shore I was very
nearly dashed onto the rocks. Lorelei appeared to pluck me away at
the last possible moment, taking me by the waist, my board trailing
behind by the leash.

“
See,
” she said, giggling with glee,
“
You won’t hit the rocks because I won’t let you!
”

Overcome with relief, I ignored the little
doubt that lingered in the back of my mind. The surfing was
magnificent, and I attacked wave after wave until my legs shook
with fatigue and my vision started to blur.

“
I’m too tired,
” I panted, “
Time
for me to go back
.”

“
Won’t it be nice when you don’t have to
go?
” asked Lorelei.

I was surprised she would say that; I thought
she understood I’d been firm about my decision.

“
I live on land,
” I said sternly,
“
I breathe air... I will always have to go back
.”

She smiled mischievously, flipping her tail
up out of the water. “
I know,
” she said in a musical tone
that wasn’t entirely serious. I felt a little cold shiver at the
base of my spine. She believed that I would join her in the sea
eventually. Clearly, she was aware surfing was becoming impossible
for me to resist. Was she trying to make it worse, or was she
simply giving me what I wanted? I dropped down to lie on my board,
exhausted, letting go of all my worries as Lorelei towed me
back.

It was late in the day, and I was relieved to
see no one was still out surfing. I wearily hiked to my bag and sat
with my head in my hands to rest for the climb up the stairs.
Feeling better after a few minutes, I dressed and gathered my
things. The dry sand was hard to walk through and I was nearly
spent when I stopped at the bottom of the stairs.

Surfboard under my arm, I trudged up slowly,
head down. When I got to the first landing I looked up directly
into the faces of Shayla and Mike. They were sitting on the bench,
watching me with accusing eyes. I set my board down and leaned
against the railing with a sigh.

“You made it back,” said Mike, with a
disapproving shake of his dreads. “Where do you go?”

“Yeah,” said Shayla, “And why do you have to
lie about everything?”

I dropped my head. It would be so easy to
tell them the truth; I longed to spit it out and be done with it.
Then I imagined their faces. They might think I was crazy, or not
believe me. They would want to see Lorelei and put her at risk, or
they might run around telling everyone.

“It’s nothing,” I said in a defeated voice,
“I just like to be out there alone.”

“I saw the dolphins,” said Mike.

Shayla nodded, “Animals act totally weird
around you.”

“I know,” I admitted, “They seem to be drawn
to me... but I don’t know why.” I had to lie, there was no other
way, “That’s why I want to be left alone… people just think it’s
weird,” I added, “People like Long.”

“What a trip!” said Mike, “It’s like you can
talk to them or something!”

“I wouldn’t go quite that far,” I said with
what I hoped was a convincing roll of my eyes.

“Does Ethan know?” asked Shayla.

I looked her in the eyes and spoke the truth,
“He thinks something bad is going to happen.” I turned to face
Mike, “Please don’t tell anyone.”

“OK,” he said. I looked back at Shayla
expectantly.

“Sure,” Shayla nodded, and stood up to get
her board, “You want to walk with us?”

“Yeah,” I said with a weak smile. Bone tired
but satisfied, I hiked up the remaining stairs feeling optimistic.
I had delivered a somewhat plausible explanation to Shayla and Mike
and
gotten in a day of hard surfing with Lorelei. Nothing
bad had happened and no one needed to know, I thought smugly. I was
managing it just fine.

We got up to Abby’s just as Ethan pulled up
after his day at the farmer’s market. He got out with a smile when
he saw the three of us with our boards.

“How was it today?” he asked me. He thought I
was out surfing with Shayla and Mike.

“Good,” I said, returning his smile, and let
him.

The next week at school crawled by like time
was standing still. One bright spot in my day was art class, for
even though I no longer shared it with Ethan it was one of the few
places I could relax and unwind. Every new assignment was an
opportunity to escape from reality, a chance to lose myself in the
creative process and forget the gnawing urge to surf that kept
intensifying in me. The atmosphere in class was comforting, and Mr.
Briggs was always encouraging. Art class became my sanctuary, a
refuge from the grinding boredom I suffered the rest of the
day.

Ethan was the best medicine to soothe my
anxiety; when he was near me I felt peaceful and grounded. Our
mutual birthday was coming up on Sunday and he promised to take me
to a new place to surf. He’d work at Lue’s farm on Saturday, and
have Long fill in for him at the Sunday market. The prospect of
spending time alone with him was the light at the end of the tunnel
of my week. I sat in class, playing with my aquamarine necklace,
eagerly anticipating an entire day of surfing, just me and
Ethan.

Cruz and I planned to be there for Megan’s
inaugural performance on Saturday; he had been busy all week
putting together the perfect performance wardrobe for her. We were
getting dressed for the big event when I got a phone call from
Bill.

“Hey Marina, are you coming with Megan
tonight?” he asked.

“Yes,” I said, “Why?”

“Do you have any more paintings you can
bring?” he asked.