The Forgotten Ones

I slammed it shut just as Nicole’s friend Rachel pulled into the driveway in her tiny red coupe. She was dressed just like Nicole, only in turquoise, and her curly dark hair was twisted up in an artfully messy bun.
    “Hey, girly,” she greeted Nicole, not even looking at me. She raised a perfectly shaped brow as she held up her beach tote.
    “You’ll drive, right, Allison?” Rachel said airily as she tossed her bag into my backseat.
    I clenched my teeth. “You bet!”
    Jeff pulled his Jeep in behind Rachel’s car, and her attention was quickly diverted to sticking her chest out for maximum cleavage exposure.”Hey, boys!” she lilted to the three guys in the Jeep.
    Nicole caught me as I rolled my eyes. “We’re gonna have an awesome day,” she stated. “So, don’t be a grouch!” She playfully stuck her tongue out and hopped in the car.

    I inhaled the salty ocean air, and the lingering scent of suntan lotion filled my nose. The sun was searing my legs, and it was time for a break in the shade. My skin burned easily and although I had sunscreen on, I was already looking a little pink. I put my bookmark between the pages and attempted to brush some of the sand off of my legs as I stood. Lifting my arms, I stretched before retreating to the chair under my umbrella.
    Down at the water, I could see Rachel with her arms wrapped around her middle, the wind whipping strands of dark hair into her face. She kept jumping and shrieking when Sean or Ethan stumbled on their boogie boards and splashed her. Ethan caught my gaze and motioned for me to come join them. I laughed as a wave collapsed on top of him and shook my head.
    Settling into my spot, I took off my sunglasses and closed my eyes, listening to the sound of the gulls. I sighed contentedly. This wasn’t so bad.
    A loud cawing interrupted my tranquil moment. I pried open an eye and looked at the kids building a sand castle next to our spot. There was a crow standing a few feet away, facing my direction. Weird. I’d never seen a crow at the beach before. Maybe there was a beached seal nearby.
    I started to open my book up, but the hairs along the back of my neck stood up, and a funny feeling came over me, like I was being watched. I glanced around, and this time, the crow locked eyes with me. Something about its beady eyes made me shudder, and I turned away quickly.
    On my other side, Nicole was just about done burying Jeff in the sand. All that was visible was his spiky brown hair and his Red Sox visor.
    “Just stay still for one more second, Jeff. I’ve got to get a picture,” Nicole begged as she grabbed her camera from her towel. She clicked a few times before the sand started to crack and crumble around him.
    “That’s it, let me out of here!” Jeff shouted. The sand broke apart around him, and he climbed out. Nicole yelped in surprise as he took off chasing her down to the water.
    “Come swim with us, Al!” Nicole yelled over her shoulder as she ran.
    I shook my head with a smile. “I’m good,” I called out before reopening my book.
    A few minutes later, I heard a quiet thud as Ethan dropped down to his knees on the blanket by my feet. He dug around the cooler and pulled out a soda.
    “Aren’t you having fun?” he asked breathlessly between gulps.
    “As a matter of fact, I am,” I replied, gesturing to the umbrella and my book.
    “Yeah? Whatcha reading?”
    I felt a blush rise on my cheeks as I held the book out for him to see. I was reading Gone With The Wind . Again.
    Ethan started laughing, nearly choking on his soda. “I imagined you up here reading The Guide to Modern Physics . I would’ve never guessed you were reading a romance novel!” He stretched himself out on the blanket and closed his eyes to the sun, his lips curved up in that mocking little smile. His dark hair was slicked back with water, and he was perfectly tanned. I couldn’t help noticing that his lashes were a thick, dark fringe. I forced myself to look away.
    When I glanced back at him—I couldn’t help it—Rachel had snuck onto the blanket and gestured to me with her finger to her lips. She flopped down onto her stomach and began running a piece of ice that had fallen out of the cooler along Ethan’s chest, causing him to shout in surprise.
    “You’re going down!” he yelled before hauling Rachel up over his shoulder and running down to toss her, squealing, into the ocean.
    I looked down to the water, wondering how Sean felt about Rachel’s