9: The Crashing Tide

[ K A R A ] I had never had an interest in extreme sports before, but I must admit, watching Ryder surf was really sexy. Ryder had another surf match today, so Peter, my mom, and I went down to the beach to support him. He did great out there, something about him making the finals, and everyone was really excited for him, including me. Wait. Did I just become a Ryder groupie? Oh God, no. When Ryder returned ashore and he found us, all three of us jumped and waved excitedly at him. He came over and I ran towards him in excitement, wanting to give him a hug. "Congratulations..." I said with open arms, but he just dodged me, as if he didn't want to be touched. And so, I moved my hand around into a high five and gave him an awkward high five instead. What was that all about? “Ryder, you were amazing out there!” my mom beamed. "Let's go celebrate, the four of us, as a family. How 'bout we go take the boat out and have a nice meal together?" Peter added, smiling from ear to ear. Peter was ob