This was inspired while I was laying on the beach half an hour from where our boys were playing a show. I hate the ending but hey, I'm not perfect (GASP--really?? Yes, really.) =P
Enjoy!!!
A Thing For Lifeguards
Jenny took a deep breath and scaled the lifeguard stand. It was a burning hot day, over ninety degrees even in the early morning, the sun glaring down full force on the strip of beach bordering Lake Eerie. It was a perfect day for going to the beach, which meant Jenny had a lot of work to do. She slathered on her sunscreen and checked for her whistle and rescue gear.
Three hours and once break went by and she was back on the stand. The morning had been uneventful, no injuries or rescues, and the sand had cleared a little now that the morning rush was over. Doing a routine visual scan of the beach and water, she took note of a family arriving a little ways to her right. A middle aged couple holding hands, a massive black man, and four boys--well, three young men and a boy. It wasn't until one of the older boys laughed and playfully pushed another that she did a double take and gasped. Was that--were they--was she seeing what she thought she was? She knew of the Jonas Brothers--who didn't?--and knew they had played the arena near her house the night before. She was a fan of the few songs of theirs she'd heard, but never thought she would actually see them in person. Scanning the rest of the beach for safety, she then returned to scrutinizing the family. She drew in a soft breath as all three boys and their little brother stripped their shirts and headed for the water. It was definitely them. She'd leave them alone, she decided. It wasn't often they would get down time, she was sure, and bugging them for attention would just be annoying.
All that changed, however, when a splash and cry of alarm caught her attention. Far out in the lake, she saw a froth of white--someone struggling. Already halfway off the stand, whistle to her lips, she saw one of the boys on the beach--paler than the others, with curly, dark hair--running towards the water calling, "Frankie!"
She blew the whistle and sprinted down the sand into the water. The chill shocked her body, but her training kicked in and she cut through the cold, clear water with powerful strokes. It felt like eternity before she reached the boy flailing in the water, but it was only a few short moments. She hooked her arm around him as she had been taught and hauled him back to shore. When she dragged him onto the sand, she bent over him, ready to perform rescue breathing... but the little boy was breathing. He was gasping, actually, and crying violently. "Are you okay, hon?"
He hiccupped and shivered, nodding. "I think so." Gulping back his tears, he mumbled, "Thanks."
She breathed a sigh of relief. He was remarkably put together. This was the first rescue she had to perform, and she hadn't expected it to be this simple after all the horror stories she'd heard. Just then, several bodies hurtled down the beach and slid to a halt in the sand beside the little boy. "Frankie, are you okay? What happened?"
A dark haired woman knelt next to him, pulled him into her arms, and said shakily, "Franklin Nathaniel Jonas, don't you ever do that to me again." Obviously rattled, the boy huddled against his mom and sobbed.
Jenny was watching them, quietly checking him over to make sure he was okay, when she felt a tap on her shoulder. She turned to see the three older boys looking at her, faces flushed and eyes wide with concern for their brother. The oldest one, whose name she knew was Kevin, said quickly, "Thank you. So much. I don't--I don't even know what to say."
She smiled and shook her head. "It's my job."
"But it's our brother," said the baby-faced one, whose name she didn't quite remember. "To us, it's different." To get their minds off the near-tragedy and to release the adrenaline running through her body, she aske
"Of course," she said, understanding. To get their minds off the near-tragedy and to release the adrenaline running through her body, she asked, "Now--which one of you is Joe, and which one is... Rick? Nick?"
"Joe," the shaggy haired boy with the chiseled cheekbones said, hugging her quickly. "And this is Nick." He gestured at the baby faced kid who, Jenny noticed as he hugged her, had a muscular build that didn't match his young face.
"I'm Kevin," the older one said, and Jenny nodded.
"That one, I knew." She accepted is hug and said apologetically, "Excuse me, I have to talk to Frankie for a minute--for paperwork." She turned to the little boy, sitting in his mother's arms. "Hey, bud. What happened out there?"
He sniffed. "There was a big shark and it scared me, but I tried to swim away and I went under the water and I couldn't take a breath."
"A shark, Frank-man?" Kevin asked doubtfully.
"Yeah, a shark!"
Jenny smiled good naturedly. "We don't actually have sharks in this lake, but maybe you saw a big fish. It scared you and you panicked, huh?" He nodded. "Okay, well, if you're okay, I should get back on the stand and look for any more shark attacks." She smiled and ruffled his hair, accepting Mrs. Jonas' gratefulness.
Jenny noticed Frankie staying close to the shore--probably by his mother's command--for the rest of the time. When her next break came along, she was replaced by another lifeguard and headed up the beach to the guard house. Almost there, she heard someone say, "Hey! Hey, wait up!" Turning, she saw Joe and Nick jogging up the beach towards her. She waited until they caught up to her. As Joe came to a halt, he said, "Wow, a name would be good. 'Hey you' isn't cool."
"Jenny," she said, laughing.
"Jenny," Joe said. "So, Jenny, I noticed earlier that you knew Kevin and not us two."
"Yeah," she said, blushing a little, "I guess I have a think for guitarists."
"Huh," Joe said. "Interesting. Because Kevin has a thing for lifeguards." Nick shot him a look and he amended, "Well... one lifeguard."
Jenny blushed bright red. "Um..."
"So we were wondering is you wanted to hang out with us on your break."
"No offense, but if he's the one with the thing for me... why is he down there?" She glanced down the beach to where Kevin was building a sand castle with Frankie.
Nick broke in, "Kevin's too romantic for his own good. He thinks he needs a complex plan for wooing a girl the second after he meets her. Has to be Mr. Smooth." He shrugged. "I say go with the awkwardness and just ask. We're helping him out."
"Okay."
"Okay as in you get it or okay as in you'll hang with us?"
"Yes," she answered playfully. :Let me grab my lunch from the guard house." She rejoined them in a few moments and strolled down the beach. When they came near the sand castle Kevin and Frankie were working on, Jenny noticed Kevin's concentration on the detailed decorations. He was using a sharp rock to carve out window shapes in the side, tongue caught between his lips in absent habit.
Frankie looked up and shouted, "Hey, it's the girl who saved me!" He furrowed his brow. "Aren't you supposed to be saving other kids?"
Kevin, whose head had snapped up at Frankie's shout, jumped to his feet and corrected, "No, Frankie, she's fine." He smiled. "Hey."
"Hey." There was a short, awkward silence before she commented, "Nice castle. Looks homey."
Kevin grinned, "I'd invite you in, but..."
"Your parent's aren't home?"
He laughed, cheeks tinged pink, and the ice was broken. They slipped into easy, playful conversation, and Jenny noticed that Joe and Nick conveniently disappeared. She knelt and helped Kevin and Frankie with the moat on the castle. She tried not to watch Kevin as he worked, his damp curls laying against his forehead, the freckles on his cheeks standing out from the sun. He bit his lip as he concentrated and she felt her breathing constrict. After that, she couldn't help it; she looked up at him constantly.
She began to notice that she was often met with bright hazel eyes staring back at her. They both dropped their gazes instantly when that happened. As they built a stone walkway leading to the sand fortress, they reached for the same rock and their hands bumped. She withdrew instantly, suddenly shy, but his hand appeared in her vision, rock in his palm. "Here. Go ahead." She slowly took it from his palm, his skin warm beneath her touch. "Thanks."
"Welcome," he breathed, fingers curling over his palm.
Once the castle was finished, they talked for a few minutes before Jenny had to go back on duty. "How long until your next break?"
"I get off in an hour."
He took a deep breath. "Do you have anything to do after work?"
She grinned as she took the first step up the ladder. "Hang with you, if that's what you're looking for."
"Read my mind." He smiled up at her. "Sand castle, one hour."
As she sat scanning the beach, her attention kept being drawn back to Kevin, swimming or laying on the beach. His curls gleamed in the sun and the skin of his bare chest seemed to glow from the warmth of the rays. He was simply beautiful--and potentially risky to other people on the beach. The lifeguard was having a hard time paying attention.
Finally, her replacement came out and she dismounted the stand quickly. She thought about sneaking up on Kevin, but he was already looking at her when she headed his direction. He ginned and waved, beckoning. When she got to where he sat on his towel, she flopped down on the sand next to him and lay back, eyes closed, sighing. "Finally off work," she groaned. "My eyes are exhausted."
"Well, you look great," he offered, and she felt something plop onto her stomach.
Peeking her eyes open, she squinted at her stomach. He was pouring handfuls of sand onto her stomach. "What are you doing?"
He shrugged. "Burying you. The sand's cool, it'll feel good."
She laughed and lay her hands next to her. "Knock yourself out." For the next hour, he alternated packing sand over her and laughing and talking with her. A mild breeze gusted over her face and blew strands of hair over her eyes. She whined, hands pinned under a wall of sand, and he looked up at her. When he saw her predicament, he chuckled. "Need some help?"
She blinked. "That would be nice."
He leaned over her and brushed the hair away from her face with gentle strokes of callused fingers. "There," he said huskily, "Better?"
"Mhm." He returned to packing sand over her. Finally, he finished, and she was thoroughly encased in the sand, completely immobile, except her head. She laughed. "I haven't done this in years."
"Neither have I. It's fun."
"Yes it is. When are you going to let me out?"
He shrugged. "Who knows?" He stretched and yawned, and Jenny couldn't take her eyes off him as his muscles flexed in his stretch. "I kind of like it."
"Why?" She asked in amusement.
He lay down beside her and rolled over, arms braced on either side of her head. "So I can do this." He lowered his head and touched his lips to hers. When he drew back, leaving both of them trembling, he smiled.
"You know," Jenny whispered, "I didn't need to be trapped in the sand to let you kiss me."
"No?" He asked softly.
"No."
He pushed the sand from her hands, hands stroking up her arms as he cleared the cover off her. Then he covered her mouth with his again and this time, her hands, still covered with sand, gripped his bare shoulders, warm from the sun. After a few moments, he broke away and sighed. "Uh... not that I would ever want my brother to almost drown again..."
She hooked her arms around his neck and murmured, "How can I convince you to finish digging me out of here?"
He rolled his eyes up and to the side in thought. "Let me consider that one."
