Chapter 3

'I mean I'm going into senior year this year,' Marina says.

'I want to start senior year with stories of an awesome summer.

A good tan, a summer romance, and no more virginity.'

Peter chokes on his smoothie.

Nova and I burst into laughter, and I pat Peter on the back.

I let my hand linger on his bare skin for a little longer than necessary.

'You are way too young to lose your virginity!' Peter says when he's recovered.

'I'm sixteen,' Marina says.

'How old were you?'

'I'm not telling you that,' Peter says defensively, which makes Nova and me laugh harder.

'You're too young,' Peter says firmly, over the sound of our laughter.

'I'm not too young, you just think I'm way younger than I am because I'm your little sister,' Marina says, frowning.

'Maybe you wouldn't think I was so young and innocent if I lost my virginity!'

Peter groans.

'I don't want to talk about this with you.

Penny, Nova, you've got to talk her out of this.'

'I'm not talking her out of this,' I say, shrugging.

'I was fifteen when I lost my virginity.'

Peter almost chokes again, and then gives me a dirty look.

I smile mischievously at him.

Peter sucks smoothie loudly through his straw.

'I don't want to have a conversation about any of your virginities at eight in the morning.

I'm going to go hang out with Ada.'

'Careful, Peter!' I call after him.

'If you spend too much time with your girlfriend you might lose your virginity one day too!'

Nova and Marina laugh.

Peter and I are both early risers, while his girlfriend tends to sleep very late, so it becomes habit for Peter and me to meet early in the morning to surf.

I barely see his girlfriend.

He seems to only hang out with me in the morning hours before she wakes up, and I rarely see either of them after midday.

But on Saturday some of the local guys extend an invitation for all of us to go to the first beach party of the summer.

On Saturday morning the surf isn't that great but it's still incredibly busy because it's the weekend, so Peter and I go for a jog.

It's hot already at six am, and we're both sweating hard when we round the corner of the point on our return.

We can see the red and yellow flags that indicate the surf area just in front of our houses.

'Race ya!' I yell at him, and start sprinting along the hard wet sand.

He's caught on the softer sand, where it's harder to run, but once he gets down to my level he overtakes me.

I speed up, dodging little kids with boogie boards and a sandcastle being eroded by the tide.

Eventually I'm tied with him, and at the very last moment I put on a final burst of speed, just beating him past the first flag.

I dive onto the sand, rolling onto my back and laughing.

He lands beside me, spraying white sand over me.

'I win,' I pant.

'Only just,' he says.

He sits up on his elbows and looks at me.

'You're still incredibly fit, Penny.

I'm impressed.'

'Hey, I didn't spend my whole time in Nimbus eating chocolate éclairs and croissants,' I say.

'Well tell me about it,' he says.

'Where did you work?

Did you make friends?

You haven't told me anything.'

I sigh, leaning back into the sand and squinting up at the bright sky.

'Let's swim,' I say.

He pulls off his shirt and leaves it on the sand and we walk into the water.

I allow myself to walk a step behind him, so I can watch his back as he walks.

He has broad shoulders and his back is smooth, tan and muscular.

There are plenty of kids swimming, but we dodge around them and swim out past the breakers, where the waves are smooth.

I sink under the water, holding my breath, and then emerge with clean wet hair, free of sand.

'So tell me about it,' Peter says.

He has droplets of water sitting on his dark lashes.

When he blinks they disperse.

'I worked on an olive farm in the south of Nimbus for a while, until I really improved my Nimbuse.

Then I moved to Rivertown and got a job in a newsagent.

Then I got a job waiting tables, and for a while I was doing both, saving heaps of money, going out on weekends with my roommates and some other people I met who spoke Uxmalish.

Oh, and two Tundarian guys who were great.

A bunch of us did a trip to Jovar and Hyrule, and then Drasnia, Jardin, Orenda.

And then when I got back to Rivertown they didn't have work for me at the newsagent, so I found another job in a café.

Oh and then I moved to Cyrene, but I just lived in backpacker's hostels for a month or so, did a bit of exploring, but by then my money was gone and I came home.'

'Did you love it?' he asks me.

'Of course,' I say.

'So what do you want to do now?'

There's a gap in the conversation as a large wave comes through and we both have to dive under it.

'I don't know,' I tell him when I come up out of the water.

I wipe my eyes and open them to find him closer than I expected in front of me.

I notice him lick his lips, probably because they are dry from the salt water.

I'm floating now, but he's still standing on a sand bank.

After a wave I can touch the ground, but then I kick off from the sand to get over the next one.

'But you went over to Nimbus to figure out what you wanted to do with your life,' he says.

'That's what your sister said.'

'Yeah, but I still don't know,' I say.

'I thought if I was alone for a while and travelled and got life experience I'd figure out who I am and what I'm supposed to do.

But I'm still just as clueless and really poor.'

Peter smiles.

'Well you've got all of this summer to keep thinking, right?'

'Yeah, and then I have to start doing something with my life,' I say.

'I can't live off Mum forever.'

'I can help you figure something out,' Peter says.

'You can?'

'Yeah,' he says.

A big wave comes, but Peter is getting ready to go over it.

He grabs my hand and pulls me over it too.

The white lip of the wave washes around my neck.

I love jumping through the large waves.

I love the movement of the water, being carried by the rise and fall.

I love the sheer strength of the water, but predicting how it moves and moving with it.

Nova told me it's similar to riding a horse.

The first time you get on a horse it's uncomfortable and scary, but as soon as you figure out the rhythm of the horse and start to move with it, rather than against it, you feel powerful.

That's what I feel in the surf.

'You have some ideas about what I'm going to do with my life?' I ask him, when we're over the wave.

He drops my hand and stretches his arms wide, treading water now that it's deeper.

'I'm sure I can think of something,' he tells me.

'Come on, are you hungry?

Let's get some food.'

'Nova will probably want to go to the juice bar,' I say.

'I don't even know if that girl who works there is gay,' Peter says.

'How can Nova tell?'

'All twins have magical gifts,' I say, smirking.

'Hers is the ability to recognise sexuality.

Mine is the ability to surf.'

Peter laughs.

'Well you pulled the short straw, because you're not that great at surfing.'

I splash water at him.

He ducks under the surface, tackling me around the waist and pulling me down.

When we both come up for air, a wave hits when we're not expecting it, and we both get dumped further to shore.

I can touch the sand here at least, and I stand up, blowing salt water out of my nose and pulling hair out of my face.

'Rude!' I say, when I can finally see.

He laughs, and we both swim back to shore.

Nova, Marina and I spend Saturday afternoon tanning, and Marina points out the local boys she likes when they come down to the beach.

They've brought a ball and they start kicking it around.

From our spot on a sand dune we watch them.

I notice Marina adjust her bikinis.

'That one's Bruce,' Marina tells me, pointing to a cute young guy.

He's skinny and tall, with spiky blonde hair.

'He's cute as hell,' Nova says, placing her sunglasses on her head so she can get a better look at the boy.

'Have you spoken to him yet?'

'No,' Marina says.

'But I was hoping I could talk to him tonight.

You know, if I'm a bit drunk maybe I'll have the courage.'

'And who's supplying you these drinks?' I ask.

'Because I'm pretty sure Peter isn't buying you alcohol.'

Marina gives me a worried look, and I laugh.

'Don't worry, kid, I'll buy you drinks.

Only a few, though.'

'Thanks, Penny,' Marina says.