Moonglass

bathing suit. I needed to clear my head.
    Ashley turned and looked up at me, giggles gone. “Anna! You’re gonna, like, die out there or something, and then it’ll be this big tragedy, and then I’ll miss you—”
    “Come on, Ryan. We’re waiting!” James yelled.
    “Relax, Ash. I can handle myself.” My voice came out flat, and I flashed on James’s story. “I’m like a mermaid.” Everyone stood on the beach facing the water, and I was glad, because the only thing James was wearing was his straw cowboy hat and a whistle around his neck. He lifted the whistle to his lips and blew. The four rookies I had seen at the fire, plus two more who had probably been hiding, dropped their boxers, and everyone ran out into the water.
    It was a sloppy mess at first, naked white butts and all. I was surprised at how uncoordinated I felt when I first dove in, and I hoped that being in the water would clear the champagne haze in my head. I dove under and opened my eyes to nothing but fuzzy black. I forced myself to concentrate on the coolness, which was enough to sober me up a bit but not to keep me from thinking of here. Here. A cottage girl. When I came up through the glassy surface, I was in the middle of the group of shiny heads. I treaded water for a second, trying to pick out Tyler.
    “Hey.” He swam up from the side. “You okay out here?” He was close enough for me to see the water droplets on his face.
    “Yeah. I’m fine. I’m my father’s daughter, remember.” I said it with such bite, Tyler seemed puzzled. I couldn’t even begin to describe how I felt about my dad at the moment. Instead I pulled myself forward in the water, and Tyler went with me.
    I turned to him and tried to brighten my tone. “So, you had to do this last year?”
    “Yep.” He nodded, went under, and then resurfaced a few feet in front of me. “It’s a long way down from up there. Longer if you get the landing wrong. You gonna jump?”
    I turned over onto my back and kicked. “Tradition is tradition, right?”
    “All right, then. Let’s go.”
    At this we both settled into an easy freestyle stroke and pulled ahead of the group. As we neared the rock, it grew tall er, the face of it steeper. I concentrated on swimming and willed myself to have the guts to follow through on the jump. When we got to the base, Tyler and I treaded water and looked straight up. I had to tilt my head way back to see the top of the rock. The surge of a wave pushed us gently into it, and I kicked back off with the ball s of my feet.
    Tyler turned to me. “Okay. The next surge that comes through, ride it and use it to get up onto that little l edge.” He pointed to the faint outline a few feet above us. “That’s the best place to start.” I nodded, and just as I did, I felt the water pull away from the rock. “Okay,” he said. “Get ready…. Now.” The water surged back up to the face of the rock, and I went with it, surprised at how high it brought me. I reached for the l edge and grazed it with my fingers, but slipped back down with the water. Tyler grabbed on and pulled himself up, just as the rest of the guys caught up.
    I wasn’t gonna miss it a second time, in front of everybody. When the next wave rose under me, I gave one strong kick and propeled myself up to the l edge, then clamped down hard with my fingertips.
    James hooted. “Yeah! Looks like it runs in the family! Go, girl.” My arms shook as I pulled myself up, and I was happy that I didn’t need the hand Tyler had extended down to help me. I popped up next to him on the l edge and brushed my hands off on the backs of my legs.
    He nodded. “Not bad.” I felt his eyes on me for a long moment, and I held them until he looked away, to the top of the rock. “It’s not too bad to get up there.
    It’s more of a slant than straight up and down, and there’s plenty of spots to grab on the way up. Just don’t look back once you’ve started. And let me know if you need any help. The first point is just up here. You can jump that one if you don’t want to go all the way up.”
    “No. I’m going from the top. And I’m gonna jump first.” I surprised myself with this, but I figured whatever I said I’d have to back up once I got up there.
    “All right, then. Let’s go.”
    I followed his lead and pulled myself up the side of the rock. Beneath us, the other guards were timing the swell to get up to the first l edge. Hoots and hollers broke through the murmurs below as