The Making of…

Chapter 34

The Dog Days Are Over

I ran into the cool water until it was up to my knees and then took a running dive in, swimming a few feet underwater before popping up and drawing in a breath of air. My hair was slicked back against my head until it reached the water at my shoulders, where it fanned out around me in a wavy brunette cloud. My board shorts ballooned out around my legs as I swam backwards a little until my feet could no longer touch the golden sand beneath me and then I treaded water, waiting for Raven to catch up. She swam to my side, her hair looking even darker due to the fact it was soaked. “Want to swim out to the guys?” I asked, nodding towards where they were floating around on their surfboards. Obviously they’d realised that no waves were coming, and seemed totally absorbed in trying to knock each other off their boards. I smirked as I swam quickly and silently towards them, ducking underwater at the last moment and swimming towards the nearest board – Orlando’s. Once I was positioned under it I placed my hands on it and kicked upwards, flipping the board and depositing it’s passenger into the water.

“Hiya.” I grinned cheerfully as Orlando rose to the surface with a startled gasp.

“You are so dead, Forest.” He muttered menacingly as I yelped in mock-terror and swam in the opposite direction. I grabbed his board and hauled myself onto it, wrapping my legs around it and clinging on as he approached. “Get off.” He demanded with a scowl as I shook my head.

“Request denied.” I smirked as he shook the board until I couldn’t cling on anymore and was dumped head-first into the sea. Raven and I swam around for a bit, splashing the guys and trying to claim a board for ourselves (unsuccessfully). Then the guys suggested that we paddle over to an outcrop of rocks that jutted out into the sea that was high enough to jump off. I swam after them at a leisurely pace, whilst Raven challenged the others to a race and sped ahead. I glanced back to the beach and spotted Viggo watching me and I waved. He looked a little lonely over there with only an asleep six-pack-mermaid Sean for company, I tried to persuade him to swim out, using hand movements, but he either couldn’t understand what I was trying to say, or just didn’t feel like swimming, as he shook his head and waved me off. I sighed and followed the others as they climbed up onto the rocks. I hauled myself up after them as they decided on where to jump off. They picked a sort of rocky shelf that was about three metres above the sea level, and dropped away sharply, so there were no rocks to hit on the way down.

“Me first!” Elijah declared, stretching his arms above his head as I wrung out my wet hair. “Behold my badass back-flipping skills!” He boasted, and proceeded to back-flip off the rocks, landing with a large splash in the water. Orlando and Dom followed in pretty much the same fashion and I stepped up. As I was untrained in the field of ‘Badass Back-Flipping’, I opted for the ‘Badass Cannonball’ approach – it never fails. I leapt off the rock and curled into a ball with a shriek as I hit the water.

“Nice.” Dom commented with a hint of sarcasm as I resurfaced.

“Psh.” I mumbled into the water as Raven, Karl and Billy followed us and we climbed back up to repeat the process again. Eventually, I became bored of jumping and swam back towards the beach. I walked up the sand towards Viggo and smiled. He put down his book as I approached him and dropped down onto my knees in front of him, the dry sand sticking to my damp legs uncomfortably as my hair hung in straggling tendrils around my face.

“Did you get cold?” He asked curiously as I shook my head.

“No, I thought you looked lonely over here by yourself.” I shrugged, “C’mon Vig, come swimming! It’s fun!” He smiled at me and nodded to Sean’s sandy form.

“I have to keep him company.” He said as I rolled my eyes.

“Vig…” I whined - only I drew the word out so it had two syllables, for a considerably more annoying effect. “Please?” He only raised an eyebrow at me as I exhaled heavily and scrambled to my feet, walking off without a word. I made my way over to where the Astin family where sitting, both parents were building sandcastles with Ali. “Hey,” I smiled, “Can I borrow this?” I asked, pointing to a pick flowery bucket that was lying in the sand. “I’ll bring it back right away.” I promised.

“Sure.” Sean laughed as I grinned and picked it up.

“Thanks!” I called, running down to the sea and scooping up a bucketful of water, and carrying it carefully back to Viggo, who was engrossed in his book again. I plucked it out of his hands and held it at arms length behind me, whilst pouring the bucket of water over his head with the other hand. I smirked with satisfaction as I carefully tossed the bucket back to its owners, and Viggo looked up at me, hair dripping, t-shirt soaked, and for a minute I felt bad, until he grinned.

“You’re dead Kira.” He growled, lunging for me as I jumped backwards and tossed the book onto his towel before dashing towards the shoreline. I could feel him hot on my heels as I skirted families and people sunbathing in an attempt to escape. “Get back here Ki!” He yelled as I made a final sprint for the sea.

“Not on your life!” I cried, running into the water until it was up to my waist, and then I turned to see him standing up to his knees, hands on hips.

“Don’t make me come out there and get you.” He muttered, raising an eyebrow.

“I’d like to see you try.” I challenged with a smirk as he walked towards me. I took a step back, and another, and another, and then shrieked as I was grabbed from behind.

“Got her!” Orlando cried victoriously as he secured my wrists and pinned them behind my back.

“What?” I cried and Viggo stooped and grabbed my ankles. They both lifted me between them and began swinging me back and forth.

“One…” Orlando sang.

“Wait!” I squeaked, struggling against them.

“Two…” Viggo smirked.

“I’m sorry!” I wailed helplessly.

“Three!” They both cried, swinging me and releasing my limbs. I soared through the air for a brief moment, and then crashed ungracefully into the water. The salty water stung my eyes as I madly thrashed my arms and legs around, trying to locate the surface. My foot connected with the sandy seabed and I kicked upwards, bursting out of the water with a gasp.

“Jerks!” I screamed breathlessly at Viggo and Orlando as they doubled over in fits of laughter. I grumbled to myself as I swam back into the shallows where they were standing. I walked over to them and pushed Orlando over whilst he was off guard, smirking as he tumbled into the water. It turned back to Viggo and was greeted by a wave of water splashing me in the face. “Thanks.” I muttered sarcastically, wiping the droplets out of my eyes as he grinned and Orlando swam off to rejoin the others. I looked up the beach and spotted Raven laughing at Sean who had just woken up. She grabbed his hand as he stood and dragged him down to the sea. We all played around in the water for a while longer, before we started to get a little cold. I padded up the beach once people started heading up to dry off, snatching up my towel from where it lay on the ground, wrapping it tightly around my shoulders and sitting down beside Vig. Despite the warm sunshine, I was getting pretty cold now that I wasn’t running around anymore. I was tempted to put my clothes back on over the top of my bikini, but I knew they’d only get wet and I’d get colder. I dried my straggly hair and then sat on my towel, shivering a little as I stared out at the sea. Suddenly, I felt something dry and slightly warm get dropped onto my shoulders. I stared in surprise at Viggo’s pale blue shirt, and then looked up at him as he smiled at me.

“Thanks.” I murmured gratefully, slipping my arms into the too-long sleeves and rolling up the cuffs.

“No problem.” He smiled, turning to watch Dom and Elijah tossing a Frisbee around, whilst Billy and Karl argued over who was best at rugby, Scotland or New Zealand. After I had dried off, I pulled my denim shorts back on and started mindlessly digging in the sand.

“Hey, let’s build a bonfire!” Orlando suggested excitedly as I glanced up.

“Is that even legal here?” I asked sceptically as he shrugged.

“Dunno…” He mumbled vaguely as he roped the others in on his idea. Raven and I were charged with digging the hole whilst the ‘manly-men’ went of to collect the firewood. They returned with armfuls of dried driftwood, all except for Billy, who was dragging a massive log along behind him and looking immensely proud of himself.

“Nice haul Boyd.” I smirked, sitting back, leaning on my hands which I placed behind me.

“Thanks.” He grinned as he dumped the log in the hole we’d made and the others started making a structure of wood so they could light it. By the time they had a decent blaze going, the beach had almost cleared of people and the sun was beginning to get low in the sky. I stared in fascination at the flames as they changed from reds and oranges to green and blues as the salty driftwood burnt. Billy and Dom produced a cooler filled with drinks and started passing them around as I buried my feet in the warm sand near the fire. After about half an hour (and a couple of drinks) I was persuaded to get my guitar out. I blasted out a couple of songs that everyone knew so I wouldn’t have to sing on my own. I took a small break, and everyone started to talk amongst themselves whilst I mindlessly adjusted the tuning of my guitar until it was at a higher pitch. I strummed a few chords absentmindedly, knowing that nobody was paying much attention to me. After a few seconds, I realised I was playing the chords of one of my favourite songs. My subconscious seems to know what it wants…

“Happiness hit her, like a train on a track…” I sang softly to myself, my fingers sliding up and down the metallic strings whilst my other hand strummed vigorously.

“Coming towards her, stuck still no turning back.” Raven answered with the next line as I looked up and grinned, I hadn’t realised that people were listening to me. Her reply encouraged me to continue.

“She hid around corners and she hid under beds, she killed it with kisses and from it she fled.” I smiled as someone – possibly Elijah – starting clapping the rhythm of the song. “With every bubble she sank in her drink, and washed it away down the kitchen sink… The dog days are over, the dog days are done, the horses are comin’ so you better run!”

“Run fast for your mother run fast for your father!” The circle of people crowed around the fire burst into song – like in a cheesy musical, only a hundred times more fun. “Run for your children, for you sisters and your brothers! Leave all your love and your lovin’ behind, you can’t carry it with you if you wanna survive!” I grinned as we sang on; surprised that so many people knew the song. I cast a glance around the circle and smiled, spotting Sean with his arm around Raven; Billy, Dom, Elijah and Orlando swaying their arms back and forth like idiots; The Astin family all huddled together, smiling; Karl chucking another piece of driftwood onto the fire and sending up a shower of sparks and beside me; Viggo. He turned and cast me a smile that made a blush rise to my cheeks. I looked back down, pretending to concentrate on playing, when in reality I could play the song with my eyes shut and my hands tied behind my back… Well, maybe not with my hands tied behind my back… That would be impossible. I smiled as I finished the song and a few people cheered and clapped. I passed my guitar round the circle to Billy and he started playing as I yawned and uncrossed my legs as they started to cramp. Despite the warm fire, I was beginning to get cold beneath Viggo’s thin shirt. I shuffled a little closer to the fire, and therefore ended up brushing shoulders with Viggo. Out of the corner of my eye I saw him smile down at me and I smiled back, leaning my head on his shoulder and secretly stealing his body heat.

“You’re freezing.” He commented, brushing his warm fingers across my cool cheek. They instantly heated as I blushed and he put an arm around my shoulders, pulling me closer. I glanced out at the sea, where the last sliver of fiery orange sunlight was just peeking over the dark horizon. I watched as it slipped away and then turned back to the circle. We probably wouldn’t be staying on the beach for much longer, as we all had filming in the morning. I yawned involuntarily and nestled my head into Viggo’s shoulder. “Are you falling asleep?” He asked quietly and I shook my head slightly.

“No…” I lied, closing my eyes. There was something about Viggo… Something that made me relax whenever I was close to him.

“You have an uncanny ability to fall asleep anywhere.” He commented, giving my shoulders a squeeze.

“Shouldn’t we be heading on soon guys?” Elijah asked, “I need to be in makeup from 5am tomorrow!”

“Same.” Coursed the other ‘Hobbits’.

“It’s six for us.” Orlando told them smugly.

“That’s because you don’t have to wear bloody rubber feet, Elf Boy!” Dom replied as I lifted my head and Viggo stood up, pulling me with him.

“Come on Sleeping Beauty.” He smiled, “Back to the bus.”

“Can I sleep there?” I mumbled as he handed me my guitar back and picked up my backpack.

“Yeah.” He laughed, slipping his arm around my waist as he guided me back to the car park. I leant on him sleepily as he hauled the door open and practically lifted me in to the bus, pulling me over to a seat where I instantly flopped down and he sat beside me, allowing me to lean on him again.

“How do you manage to get so sleepy?” He asked.

“I exhaust myself.” I replied simply as he laughed and slipped his arm around my shoulders, holding me to him in a way that was comforting when I was too tired to fully take in what was going on around me. “Will you wake me up when we get there?” I asked dozily.

“Of course.” He smiled.

“Thanks Vig…” I mumbled through a yawn, closing my eyes and nestling against him as my conscious thoughts slipped away.