South Beach

by Aimee Friedman

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  myself, I guess, because they're showing all these guys on a beach having a great time."

  "Why don't you twist the knife a little deeper, Tyler?" Alexa sighed. "I get it. I suck."

  "Let me finish," Tyler said. "Then they start showing this insane bikini contest. And then I see Holly Jacobson up there! Random, right? And I'm remembering how you once told me you and Holly used to be good friends, and then ... " He shrugged, as if he still couldn't believe it. "Then I see you. Up on the stage with Holly. I thought I was dreaming."

  "You saw the bikini contest?" Alexa cried. She was surprised by the coincidence, but also thrilled by the fact she'd actually been on TV She'd always secretly suspected she might become famous one day. "I didn't think anybody I know saw it! I mean, I did ask my dad to TiVo it but--"

  "Yeah," Tyler said. "I called him as soon as I saw it. He told me everything. That you'd gone down to South Beach with Holly. Where you were staying. All that."

  I'm going to kill my father, Alexa thought. She'd described the location of the Flamingo to him when she had called him after the bikini contest on Monday afternoon. He'd told Alexa to enjoy herself, and that he'd see her on Friday. Alexa had never suspected he would betray her by giving all the details to Tyler. And couldn't he have even called Alexa to let her know

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  Tyler was on his way down? Alexa could picture her dad, chain-smoking on the phone while flipping through the latest issue of ARTnews and half-listening as Tyler rambled on. He'd probably found Tyler's phone call romantic, and had been happy to play the part of Cupid.

  "I got tickets online. The only available flight to Miami arrived at ten tonight," Tyler finished with another shrug. "So here I am."

  "How was the flight?" Alexa asked, remembering that Tyler had never flown before.

  "Whatever." Tyler shrugged, but Alexa knew him well enough to know what that meant: He'd been completely terrified. She thought of Holly, and smiled to herself.

  A tense silence settled over the room as Alexa and Tyler studied each other. Alexa remained on Holly's bed while Tyler stood by the dresser, and Alexa was acutely aware of the gulf between them. She was reminded of their last encounter, back in her bedroom on that gloomy Thursday afternoon. Had it really been less than a week? So much had changed between then and now.

  As if he were thinking the same thing, Tyler said, "You seem kind of different."

  "How so?" Alexa asked, tugging on her braid and feeling mildly self-conscious.

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  "Just..." He angled his head. "More laid-back or something."

  "Oh," Alexa said. She looked at Tyler, trying to surmise if he seemed different in any way Tyler was so handsome that, sometimes, if Alexa hadn't seen him for a while, his classic good looks were almost startling. She'd forgotten how chiseled his features were. In spite of herself, Alexa couldn't help but feel flattered that Tyler had rushed down from New Jersey expressly to see her. To try and win her back.

  "Anyway," Tyler said, clearing his throat. "We need to talk." He folded his arms across his chest and looked at Alexa somberly. "I came down here because -- "

  "I know," Alexa cut him off gently. "You don't have to explain. I'm blown away that you made this big trip for me, Tyler, but..." She shook her head. "We can't get back together." She lowered her lashes, hoping Tyler would take the rejection fairly well. She couldn't believe she had turned down two boys over the course of one night. That had to be some kind of record, albeit one that was very different from the record she'd set in Cannes.

  Tyler shook his head. "That's not why I'm here, Alexa," he said.

  Alexa blinked in surprise. "It's not?"

  Tyler's golden-brown eyes were thoughtful. "Well,

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  when I first decided to fly to Miami, it was because I wanted to get back with you. I thought I'd pick up a bottle of wine, and roses, and tell you all the reasons we should be together."

  Alexa pouted. Why hadn't he brought her wine and roses? She was a total sucker for sappy gestures.

  "But..." Tyler continued. "Then I started thinking about things a lot on the plane. And I guess I actually came down here because I wanted a better answer."

  "A better answer for what?" Alexa asked nervously.

  "For why you dropped me so suddenly," Tyler said. "Like you'd made this split-second decision that I wasn't good enough for you."

  Alexa remembered Holly's words from the night before: When you decided to drop me... Alexa's throat tightened.

  "Tyler, the last thing I ever wanted was to hurt you," she began, her voice shaking. Oh, God. She couldn't be about to cry again.

  "I was more confused than hurt," Tyler said, drumming his lingers on the dresser behind him. "I spent the past five days trying to figure out what the hell happened in your bedroom, but I couldn't. So I thought I'd go to the source." His smile was tinged with sadness again.

  Alexa thought back to last Thursday, and how she'd closed the door on Tyler. Shame flooded

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  through her. Then, she'd been so pleased with how she'd gotten rid of Tyler. Now, she felt terrible.

  "I was so callous," Alexa finally spoke, her vision blurred with unshed tears. "I handled the situation all wrong."

  Tyler crossed his arms over his chest again. "Well, you certainly did take me by surprise," he admitted, addressing the carpet.

  Alexa sniffled. "I'd been thinking of ending things for a while, but I always put off saying something to you. There was never anything specific you did wrong." She gave Tyler a teary smile. "I know it's such a cliché, but it's wasn't you. It was -- "

  Tyler groaned. "Alexa. Come on."

  Alexa shook her head. She had to set this straight. "Tyler, you are ..." She groped for the right word. "Awesome," she said with another smile. "Really. You're thoughtful and considerate and, well, you're not bad to look at." Tyler colored slightly. Alexa tried to laugh but she was too close to tears.

  "But I didn't appreciate your good qualities," she continued. "I was always hung up on how we weren't right for each other. How different we were." The lump in her throat that had lingered since her conversation with Diego grew larger. Alexa felt as if everything was hitting her at once: Tyler. Diego. Holly. Even her father, so wrapped up in his work back home

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  that he hadn't thought to warn her that Tyler was coming. And Alexa thought of her mother, who was so consumed by her fashionable New York existence that she didn't even know Alexa had gone to South Beach in the first place. All the pain Alexa had worked so hard to bottle up threatened to overflow. She didn't think she'd be able to hold back her tears this time.

  Tyler nodded. "When I was with you, I always felt as if I couldn't... measure up. I couldn't give you what you wanted." He regarded her seriously "We are so different, Alexa. I think I realize that now."

  "I just don't think we were ever destined to be together," Alexa whispered to him. Then, hot salty tears coursed down her cheeks and she began to sob, burying her face in her hands. "And when I told you that you'd find a better girl for you, II meant it...."

  Tyler immediately walked over to the bed and sat beside Alexa, wrapping his arm around her shoulder.

  "Shhh," he murmured. "Don't cry, Alexa. I can't stand seeing you this upset."

  "Really?" Alexa sobbed, looking up at him. "You don't hate me?"

  Tyler reached into his back pocket and pulled out a folded tissue. He handed it to Alexa and she blew her nose. "I was good and pissed at you," he said. "I deleted all the pictures of you from my cell phone, and I wrote you this e-mail full of swear words that I

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  never even sent. But I don't think I could ever hate you, Alexa." Gently; he pressed his lips to her cheek.

  Through her tears, Alexa thought about how cute it was that Tyler had used the phrase "swear words." Only Tyler.... It was so reassuring to have a pair of masculine arms around her, and so comforting to smell Tyler's fresh, soapy scent that Alexa forgot all a
bout her taking-a-break-from-boys plan. Tyler being here was bizarre, but at the same time, familiar. Easy Alexa didn't think twice before she turned her face and put her mouth on Tyler's.

  She felt him hesitate, and start to draw back, but then he returned her kiss. Alexa leaned back on the bed, drawing Tyler along with her until they were both lying down. Alexa arched her back, pressing up close to Tyler. Kissing him wasn't as electric as kissing Diego, but, God, he felt so good. She realized with a smile that, this time, her father wasn't downstairs; Tyler would let her take this as far as she liked.

  But before Alexa reached down to tug off Tyler's sweatshirt, she realized how wrong their sleeping together would be. It would confuse everything between them. And it would mess up Alexa's state of mind even more.

  Alexa broke off their kiss, turning her head away. Tyler paused, studying her face, then he pulled back. They both sat up and faced each other sheepishly.

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  "We shouldn't," Alexa said.

  Tyler nodded. "Yeah," he said after a minute. "That would be a bad plan. I mean, you're pretty hard to resist, Alexa. But I need to move on."

  "Are you going back to Oakridge tonight?" Alexa asked, blotting her cheeks with her tissue. The way he said move on had sounded sort of literal.

  "I don't think so," Tyler said. "My flight back isn't until Saturday. And the guy downstairs told me there are lots of vacancies here. He's gonna put me in a single upstairs."

  "Of course there are lots of vacancies," Alexa said, giggling. "This place is a total dive."

  Tyler laughed. "I didn't even notice. Seems cool to me."

  It felt good to be laughing and talking with Tyler, Alexa thought. He gathered his bags, and they agreed to meet for brunch sometime during the week. Maybe I'll do the impossible and actually be friends with an ex, Alexa thought incredulously as she hugged Tyler good-bye. That would be a first.

  But as Alexa closed her door and confronted her empty room, her feeling of contentment vanished. Seeing Tyler had been so surreal that now she was dying to share the news with someone. She thought of picking up her cell to call Portia, but then Alexa realized whom she really wanted to talk to: Holly. Telling

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  Holly would be so much fun she would get all big-eyed, and would be hilariously freaked by the fact that Alexa and Tyler had almost gotten busy on her bed. But even if Holly walked into the room that minute, Alexa knew she still couldn't bring herself to confide in her. After last night, things were bound to feel awkward between them, and as much as Alexa hated to admit it, she was much too proud to apologize yet.

  Alexa returned to her nails with a sigh. She did have to acknowledge that Holly's reaction made more sense now that Alexa had heard the backstory from Diego. At the thought of him, Alexa felt her chest seize up. Her encounter with Tyler had somehow only enhanced her longing for Diego.

  After Alexa finished her nails, she went to bed, but, again, she was too on edge to sleep. She stared up at the ceiling for hours, watching the patterns cast by passing headlights. She was considering turning on the light and finishing her copy of Confessions of a Shopaholic when a knock on the door made her jump. It couldn't be Tyler again; he was too polite to disturb anyone at three in the morning. Hesitantly, Alexa opened the door and found herself staring at Holly, who looked pissed, soaking wet, and possibly drunk, in an over-the-top pink-and-silver outfit.

  "Are you okay?" Alexa asked. She knew she and

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  Holly weren't supposed to be speaking, but she was too curious to keep quiet.

  For a second, Holly's expression softened, and she looked as if she wanted to tell Alexa a hundred different things. Alexa bit her lip, hoping Holly would be the one to break the ice. She knew that if Holly spoke first, she'd readily reciprocate.

  But the moment passed. Holly's face closed again. "What do you care?" she asked Alexa. Then Holly stormed past her and pulled her duffle bag from beneath her bed, digging around for a towel.

  Alexa shrugged and shut the door. She got back into bed, pretending to sleep as Holly dried off, changed, and collapsed into her bed. Neither girl let on how much she wanted to talk to the other. Instead, they remained silent, their unspoken words hovering in the muggy room all night.

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  CHAPTER THIRTEEN

  Payback

  Holly and Alexa still didn't speak the next morning, skirting around each other in silence as they got dressed for the beach. Holly dropped in on Kaitlin and Daisy to pick up the tote she'd left in their room yesterday, and then emerged just as Alexa was locking the door to Number 7 behind her. The two girls tramped down the stairs, with Alexa in the lead, each one careful to keep a few feet away from the other. As they cut through the lobby, Holly -- worried about seeing Aaron -- put on a burst of speed and tried to overtake Alexa, who was also speeding up since she was a little anxious about running into Tyler.

  Outside the Flamingo, Holly pulled ahead of Alexa, then crossed the street. Alexa followed suit, but her spirits fell when she saw Holly turn onto a particular

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  beach. That was right where Alexa had planned to sunbathe today. She wasn't about to change her plans, though. Alexa stomped onto the beach, and saw Holly laying out her towel in the perfect spot -- close enough to the shore to feel the ocean's light spray, but with the sun directly overhead.

  How dare she? Alexa thought.

  She marched over and defiantly laid her towel directly beside Holly. Then she plunked down her tote, sat on the towel, and began squirting sunscreen onto her calves and arms, glaring at Holly, who was doing the same.

  Both girls finished applying sunscreen, then silently stretched out on their backs and pointed their faces toward the sun.

  Very slowly, Holly turned her head to look at Alexa, and saw that Alexa was looking back at her. At the same instant, she and Alexa both reached up and took off their sunglasses. Holly could see Alexa's mouth twitching, and Holly felt her own laugh bubbling inside her. It was ridiculous how they were each pretending to be alone while spending their morning together.

  In unison, the girls burst out laughing.

  Holly sat up on her towel, clutching her belly Alexa was sitting up, too, her shoulders shaking with silent laughter.

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  "I'm gonna pee my pants!" Alexa threatened, getting to her feet.

  "Do you always have to pee when we're on the beach?" Holly asked with a snort.

  Alexa flung her hair back, trying in vain to keep a straight face. "Well, maybe we can sneak into a hotel and you can pretend to be somebody's niece."

  "Ooh, where did you get that idea?" Holly grinned.

  Suddenly, they both became aware that they were behaving as if nothing had changed over the past two days. They grew silent, Alexa poking at the sand with her big toe, and Holly staring out at a cruise liner gliding across the horizon.

  "Okay, this is ludicrous," Alexa spoke finally. "I'm absolutely sick of not talking to you."

  "Oh, God. I am so glad you said that!" Holly confessed. She stood, and regarded Alexa sheepishly. Then, the girls threw their arms around each other.

  "I've missed you, you freak," Alexa admitted, squeezing Holly tight, and feeling choked up. What was with her crying jags lately? She was on an emotional roller coaster.

  "I've missed you, too," Holly said as she hugged Alexa tightly.

  Holly was startled by how true her admission was; though she'd been mad at Alexa -- and was maybe still a little mad at her -- Holly had really felt her

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  friend's absence yesterday. It was almost as if going wild last night had been Holly's way of channeling Alexa. At the fuzzy memory of her drunken escapades, Holly shook her head and pulled away. "And I have so much to tell you," she added with a smile.

  "Me, too!" Alexa exclaimed. "You wouldn't believe what's happened -- "

  "You go first." Holly waved her hand at Alexa.

  "No, you." Alexa grinned. Then, she thoroughly surprised Holly by crossing
her big blue eyes. And the silly gesture still reduced Holly to laughter -- just as it had when the girls were little.

  They sat down on their towels, facing each other. Neither Alexa nor Holly was quite ready to offer any actual apologies yet, but they were both relieved to be speaking -- and joking -- again.

  Holly reached for her sunglasses. Standing and sitting so quickly had given her a head rush. "I need these puppies," she told Alexa as she slipped on the shades. "I think I'm a little hung over."

  "Holly Jacobson!" Alexa cried in mock horror. "What did you do last night?" She scooted closer to Holly, eager for an explanation.

  Breathlessly, Holly divulged the details she could recall from her surreal experience at Yacht, and her skeevy moment with Aaron in the pool.

  "That sleaze, " Alexa said of Aaron when Holly had

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  finished. She shuddered. "Ugh. Didn't I say he wanted you from the beginning?"

  Holly nodded, hugging her Neutrogena-slick knees to her chest. "You did. I guess I should listen to you when it comes to boys."

  At the mention of boys, the girls fell silent again, each one thinking of -- but not bringing up -- the boy who had come between them.

  "So, speaking of boys," Alexa said, struggling for a semi-smooth segue. "Guess who showed up unannounced at the Flamingo last night? Tyler."

  "Tyler... Davis?" Holly asked, surprised but relieved that they weren't steering near Diego. Yet.

  "Yup. My ex," Alexa said, rolling her eyes. Holly frowned sympathetically and Alexa added, "It's fine, though. We kind of got... closure on our relationship."