"Here I was thinking you were an all-knowing genius," I remarked sarcastically. Alastair and I were perched on our boards, left in peace as Logan and Noah paddled out to catch a wave which was hurdling quickly towards them. I'd be lying if I said I didn't cross my fingers beneath the water in the hopes of Logan being half drowned like I was.

"Well, maybe I underestimated how strong his tough-guy demeanor is to crack," he shrugged. His hair was slicked out of his face and his jaw bone was prominent. Surfing kind of suited him.

"So deal's off?" I asked hopefully.

"Would you really want it to be?" he asked in return.

I didn't answer, partly because I was aware of the tiny voice inside of me insisting this plan was going to be good for me, which I didn't exactly want to admit to him, and partly because there was a really good wave coming up and if I caught it now there was a chance I could run Logan over in the process.

It didn't take me long to pick up the art of surfing again. I hadn't realised how much I'd missed the feeling of gliding through the water, and the waves weren't big enough to be intimidating. But, as much as I was enjoying it, it was getting late. The last time I had seen the time on Noah's waterproof watch there was only an hour until my shift at the ice-creamery.

Riding the wave in as far as I could to the shallows, I paddled back into the shore. I figured Alastair could find his way back okay, and the gorillas would probably help him. When I was unlinking my ankle strap I noticed him successfully catching a wave, and couldn't help clapping from the shore. It had taken him some time, but he'd managed to stand up here and there, which was pretty impressive.

He spotted my figure and came to join me, panting slightly as water dripped off of his body. "Thought you were getting away that easily, did you?"

"Of course not, but I have a job. Some people have to work, you know?"

"Ah," he realised. "Do you want a lift?"

"You have a car?" This surprised me, considering he was here on holidays. But then I remembered the size of his house and decided it would be completely reasonable for the Sullivans to have some fancy car just for when they travelled here. In fact, they probably had a few of them. "You know its only like, just down to the esplanade."

"Well, it's gotta beat walking."

Unable to think of any reasonable excuse to reject his offer, I told him to pick me up at my house in twenty minutes. It was enough time to get home, rinse the salt off of my body and change into an outfit for work, which today involved a polka dot sky blue dress that Maisie had given me last year. As he'd assured, Alastair was perfectly on time as I stepped outside to leave.

"This afternoon was fun," he told me from the drivers seat as I climbed into his Mercedes. Somehow, it didn't surprise me that he drove something so posh.

"It was," I agreed. Then I took another look at him. "Oh, Jesus, you are so sunburnt!"

Alastair's face was tinged pink, his nose and cheeks particularly red. And I could see that the burn didn't stop there, the red traveled down his chest and probably further than the white v-neck shirt he was wearing revealed.

He shrugged, "It was going to happen sometime. You know, Englishman holidaying in Australia at the peak of Summer."

"Well it wouldn't happen if you'd thought to put on sunscreen."

"I would have, but I didn't get the chance to stop home. And I hardly expected that you would have helped rub it in for me." He smirked, taking his eyes off of the road momentarily to give me a wry look.

I blushed and looked out of the passenger side window. Why did he have to paint the image of my hands running over his body into my mind?

"But really, we should do that again some time. It was fun. Even Noah and Logan are fun."

I narrow my eyes at him, feeling betrayed that he'd found them fun. Annoyingly, the three of them had gotten along great. Maybe it was a guy thing, but they were able to exchange friendly banter and joke around. Logan and Noah were particularly fascinated by Alastair's soccer knowledge, and Alastair was equally as fascinated by the Australian version of football.

"It was fun," I agreed. "Maybe not the Noah and Logan part, but it was good to surf."

"You know, I think him laughing at you rather than saving you only proves he likes you even more," Alastair mused.

"Alastair, I think you could twist any scenario into him liking me. I just don't think it's going to happen."

"You're giving up already?" He asked doubtfully.

"Well, you did say the deal was off if he didn't help me and-"

"I was joking, I don't think its enough evidence to call it off. Don't you? This guy just has trust issues because you two are so bipolar with each other. Give it time for him to show his feelings."

"Like I said, I think you're delusional, and you can't read him as well as you claim."

"We'll just have to wait and see, right?"

We were already pulling up around the corner from Cherry-On-Top. I sighed, I was working with Mallory today, which meant training her. She had so much energy it exhausted me.

"See you tonight, thanks for the lift," I told him. We exchanged a smile and his eyes never left me until we were out of view. Something about that made me feel intimidated.

After my shift I walked back home to change and say goodbye to Dad for the evening. Unusually though, he'd already left, which I was aware of by his absent Land-cruiser and the brief note on the counter. I figured there was no reason to think much of it, and changed into comfortable clothing, consisting of another bikini, denim shorts and a lacy black singlet which I think was Maisie's. I also made a sandwich to take with me for the walk back to the jetty.

By six thirty I was almost there. I'd bypassed Maisie's house, figuring that because I was running late she and Daniel would have already left. My suspicions were confirmed when I passed a few trees that were blocking my vision and saw the little group by the jetty. After a quick scan I noticed most of the locals were there already, and notably Lottie, who was perched on the arm of Noah's deck chair as she spoke animatedly, her hands gesturing wildly.

"Valerie!" Maisie's voice barely echoed to where I was standing at the top of the steps on top of the sand dune. She had seen me and was unlocking herself from Daniel's grip to take the stairs two at a time to greet me.

"Hey Maiz," I said warmly. I liked that she always made a huge effort for me, even if it involved running up steep steps.

"Val, jeez you're looking a bit red. What have you been doing today? I haven't seen you!"

I looked at my shoulders which were grazed red, like Alastair's body. I might not have English skin, but even still, I should have applied sunscreen. "I went surfing."

She seemed surprised by this, "Oh, seriously? You haven't surfed in ages."

"Well, that's because you haven't gone with me."

"And let me guess, you had plenty of motivation today," she said slyly. We walked down the steps and slowly towards the group. "You sure have been spending lots of time with Alastair."

"What's that supposed to mean?"

"I'm worried you'll forget about me, you guys need to keep me updated on the progress. It sucks being behind with it all. Especially when you're my best friend."

Maybe I wasn't the only one who suffered friendship jealousy. I could understand her feeling left out, and mentally vowed to include her next time something new happened. Not that that was likely, so far Alastair's planning wasn't working out well at all. I thought back to the original reason I'd agreed. At least he wasn't pestering me for a date, I guess.

Weirdly, as if someone had read my mind, Logan stood up as we approached. I didn't think much of it, until he walked over to me with an apple cider in hand.

"Here," he said, offering the bottle. He was wearing the same board shorts as earlier and his dirty blonde hair was textured with salt.

"What's this for?" I take the bottle suspiciously.

"Well, you said you were testing my chivalry. I have to maintain my gentleman-ship."

I tried to stop my jaw from dropping in surprise. Was he flirting with me? "Well, good job."

"Where's your English friend?"

I look around me and confirmed that Alastair wasn't here yet. "I'm not sure."

Logan gave me a smug look as he swigged a beer bottle. "Gotta say, it was pretty amusing seeing you two out there today. It's a shame the swell wasn't as high as it usually is."

"What, then you'd really get to see me drown?"

"Hey, we wouldn't have let you guys drown. We know what we're doing out there."

His need to cockily show his dominance was bothering me and I was beginning to search for a way out of the conversation. Really, I didn't know how everyone found us so compatible. He drove me crazy.

"But really," he said suddenly as I began to turn away. "I don't know why you stopped surfing. You're a natural at it."

I narrowed my eyes. Was this how it felt the other night, when I was acting unusually friendly to him? I was so conflicted as to whether he was making a joke or genuinely complimenting me. My response to either could result in chaos. So I just played along with the usual sarcastic remarks that we were good at.

"I guess I couldn't outshine you out there, it would damage your confidence."

"Always so thoughtful, Vally." He gave me one of his golden-boy smiles that typically always got him his way.

Taking this as a way to exit the conversation, I took my drink to go and greet Zoe and Lottie.

"Does he have to do that, does he know how much his tousled hair gets to me?"

I'd interrupted their conversation. Zoe was talking in a hushed voice as she fanned her neck, flustered.

"Babe, deep breaths. Just go over and talk to him," Lottie suggested. She saw my approach and her eyes lit up. "Valerie knows him well, why don't you ask Val?"

Zoe smiled in embarrassment, "It's silly."

"Nonsense," I smiled. The thought of someone else having more boy drama than me made me believe that maybe the world hadn't completely tipped upside down. "Who are you talking about?"

"Logan," she said bluntly. She shielded her glossed lips with her hands as if she'd just said a bad word.

Zoe was similar to Maisie in a way that she crushed on guys hard. The difference was, Zoe acted on it, and I was pretty sure she'd dated every boy in Sandy Cove at least once. Including Logan, in seventh grade. Maybe her cycle was about to repeat itself.

Still, the admission surprised me a little, because I was supposed to be the one dating Logan, according to Alastair's plan. That wouldn't be made easy if Zoe was on the scene. She was beautiful, she had an Asian complexion and her long black hair always perfected, her body slim and short and her lips full. And her and Logan certainly had history, that didn't involve sitting firmly in the friendzone like mine.

I remembered that they were waiting for some kind of response from me, and giving away my supposed feelings would not help my case.

"Oh," I stammered. "How long have you, uh, liked him?"

"Since last weekend, when he walked me home after the storm," she explained.

I thought back to the night, I'd thought that she was flirting with Alastair, but perhaps she really was just being welcoming.

"What happened? Did he kiss you?" Lottie pressed.

"Well, not exactly," Zoe pouted. "But he definitely wanted to, he was leaning in a lot."

"Why didn't you?" Lottie asked.

"Because I was confused and overwhelmed, like, he acted really interested and then just looked bored."

I was watching their exchange with an expression I imagined to be similar to a victim watching their friends being murdered in a horror movie. Half because I was just generally uncomfortable in these situations of girl talk, and half because I didn't know how I was supposed to react. Should I tell her I liked Logan? Or would that be betraying her because I'm supposed to be trying to like Logan, and I don't actually like him yet? How did I get myself into such a confusing situation?

What was most confusing, and the most difficult to admit to myself, was the tug I felt at my chest with the mention of Logan wanting to kiss Zoe. I needed a subject change, something that wouldn't put me in this weird conflicting position.

"So, um, where's Alastair tonight?"

Zoe and Lottie gave me a knowing look that suggested that maybe it wasn't the safest question to ask.

"He had to Skype with someone important from home," Lottie shrugged. "I'm surprised he didn't tell you, you guys seem pretty close."

"I guess," I said nonchalantly. But my mind was skeptical, he hadn't mentioned anything about contacting anyone tonight, in fact he'd been keen on coming along. I wondered who this important person must be, who was worth skipping tonight over.

"Hey girls, we're going to jump off of the jetty, want to come?"

Noah, in all of his enthusiastic personality, was bouncing on the back of his heels as everyone else looked at him attentively. It was nearing sunset, an orange glow was cast over the beach. It was warm enough that swimming wouldn't be uncomfortable, and bright enough that it wouldn't be dangerous.

"Let's do it," Lottie said. "I've never jumped from a jetty before."

We left our belongings in a pile on the shore, travelling back up the steps and onto the old wooden jetty. Because it wasn't stormy, it was a little busier than last time, but not enough to prevent us from jumping. I couldn't help looking around every now and again, expecting Alastair to strut over at any moment and greet everyone in his easy way of confidence. But he didn't.

We stood in a line, observing the murky depths below us. The sea breeze tossed my hair behind my shoulders and made goosebumps erupt on my arms. We were a few hundred metres from the shore, almost at the end of the jetty. It was the best place to jump because there was a large gap in the rails, and the water was a safe depth below. But finding the courage to step off and fall down through the three or so metres of air below? That was the hard part.

It's a raw and physical version of trying something new, I mused. The little jump from the jetty was like anything different; you had to think about it for a while, and when it came to doing it you experience that little speck of doubt. If you've never done it before, how do you know it will be okay? If you can't see the bottom, how do you know that there's enough water there to catch you? You only really know if you take the plunge.

Deep in my thought, I missed the cue for us to jump. I saw the figures beside me hit the water, a few screams of adrenaline echoing through the foamy splash of the water.

"A little scared, Vally?"

A few metres away, Logan hadn't jumped either. He'd been observing me carefully.

"I was just thinking," I said. I didn't exactly have a better explanation.

"Sure you were. Want a hand?"

I was astonished as he stepped over and held his hand out to me, palm up. His blue eyes almost questioned me. Like the drink thing the other night, this was a test. He was testing me, trying to decide whether he could trust me. I could tell by the expression in his face, which was so much like mine before. Alastair would be proud.

Because I took his hand and jumped.