Sunrise

by Melissa J Morgan

  “No,” Cassie admitted to Tori. “I can’t talk to him. It’s too weird.”

  “Because you’re madly in love with him,” Tori said.

  Of course, the other girls in the pinao bunk overheard and soon they were all crowded around Cassie, wanting to know who she loved madly, and did he love her, too, and were they gonna get married (squeals, shudders, boos, hisses), and had they kissed yet, and on and on and on. Soon, the whole thing became a blast of loud gibberish and the Hau’oli Lava tour guide came by and told them to shush.

  “I am not in love with him!” Cassie protested after the tour guide left.

  “But you like him,” Tori insisted.

  “No,” Cassie said. Then, “I don’t know.”

  “Who?” someone said. Entering the tube was another group, the headlights on their helmets turned up so high it was almost blinding. Danica was behind one set of lights, Sierra behind another.

  “Who do you like?” Sierra repeated.

  “Nobody,” Cassie said.

  “Uh-huh,” Sierra said in a loud voice, as if she knew the answer already. She turned to Tori. “So your boyfriend’s cute.”

  Tori smiled blissfully. “Yeah, have you seen him?”

  “Down the tubes thatta way. What’s his name again?”

  While this conversation was going on, Cassie and Danica lowered their headlights and met eyes. “How are you doing?” Cassie said quietly. She was still feeling awful for Danica.

  “I’m fine. Why wouldn’t I be?” Danica said, eyes narrowing.

  “I don’t know, I was just asking.”

  “Don’t feel sorry for me, I’m fine,” Danica said.

  Cassie didn’t want to move and accidentally step on Danica’s foot—so she stood up against the wall, waiting until Danica finally lost interest and left.

  When Danica, Sierra, and the campers headed for another tunnel, Tori turned to Cassie with big eyes. “What was that about?”

  “What?”

  “You know what! Acting like some groupie in front of Danica. Who is she, Nicole Richie?”

  “No, I just—” Cassie looked around. The pinao girls were exploring deep in the bend of a lava tube where she couldn’t see them. She’d hate to be the C.I.T. who lost a camper, thanks to her own personal drama. “Maybe we shouldn’t talk about this now,” she said. “Besides, someone might hear.”

  Just as she said these words Cassie caught sight of Simona. She stood alone in a nearby lava tunnel, appearing to study the cracks and fissures in the walls. Simona was either very, very interested in old rocks, or she was wandering around checking up on her C.I.T.s. In fact, if Simona came any closer, she’d be able to hear what Cassie and Tori were saying. She’d be able to hear everything.

  That’s when Cassie had the idea.

  “Just tell me what’s up,” Tori was saying. “The Cassie I know would not kiss Danica’s butt for no reason. You’re scaring me right now. You’re scaring me more than the idea of this volcano exploding while we’re in it. Spill.”

  Cassie felt like maybe fate had tunneled down into the volcano to save her. The truth is, she didn’t want to surf in the expo. She didn’t want to surf at all! Didn’t anyone get that?

  “It’s my fault,” Cassie spilled, raising her voice. She spoke loud enough so that anyone nearby could hear. “Danica got in trouble, even though sneaking out to Lani Kohola was all my idea.”

  “What-ever,” Tori said.

  “And you got in trouble, too,” Cassie continued. “And that’s my fault. No one seems to think I had anything to do with it, but you know Danica can’t compete in the expo because of this, right? Because of me.” There. She’d said it. Any second now Simona would mosey on over and . . .

  Tori kept talking. Her back was to Simona and she had no idea. “You are, like, totally self-centered if you think this is all about you. And I’m not mad at you, so don’t even go there. I snuck out on my own time.”

  Cassie shook her head. She wanted the focus back on Danica, not Tori. She couldn’t let her cousin get in even more trouble! “But Danica really wanted to be in that surf contest. Like, really wanted it. If she can’t compete, then I shouldn’t get to either. I should tell the counselors. Or Simona. It’s not fair.”

  “Cass, you’re crazy,” Tori said. “You can’t tell, I won’t let you!” In her excitement she whipped around and that’s when she saw Simona. The expression on her face changed in a flash—from serious and concerned to wide-eyed and maybe a little scared. The tinged red light of the lava tubes didn’t help the effect.

  “I think the damage is already done, Tori,” Simona said. Standing before them, she seemed even more imposing than usual, so tall she completely blocked the way out of the tunnel.

  “Uh, um, uh-oh,” Tori mumbled.

  “Hi, Simona,” Cassie said quietly. Now that it was out, she could barely talk.

  Simona patted Cassie’s shoulder with a heavy hand. “You, me, and Danica,” she said. “We’ll talk about this later, back at camp.” Then she headed off, disappearing into a dark tube.

  Cassie found her voice. “She’s never going to let me surf now,” she said.

  Tori took a long moment, studying Cassie like they were in a court of law. “You saw her there, didn’t you?” Cassie didn’t answer so Tori continued. “This is what you wanted the whole time, isn’t it? You wanted something to happen so you wouldn’t have to compete.” She didn’t seem angry, just sad.

  Cassie shrugged. Instead of answering, she tugged on Tori’s arm. “C’mon,” she said. “Let’s just get out of this volcano.”

  When Cassie and her group emerged from the lava tunnels, she caught sight of Danica leaning up against the outer cave wall. She wasn’t alone, but her usual hangers-on, Sasha and Sierra, weren’t with her. Micah was. Cassie tried her best not to notice Danica whispering something into Micah’s ear, or Micah letting her. She tried not to notice how Danica had her mouth out, her eyes closed, as if about to kiss him. She especially tried not to notice whether Micah kissed back or not—so she turned her back on the whole scene and just stood there a moment, feeling like a tool.

  How could I have thought for one second that he’d asked me on a date?!

  Obviously he liked Danica. Obviously.

  Tori came up and rested her chin on Cassie’s shoulder. She just hugged her for a long moment. “That sucks,” she said. Cassie knew she meant Micah and Danica. “I guess they’re getting back together,” she added quietly.

  “Yeah,” Cassie said. “I don’t care.”

  “Okay,” Tori said.

  “Really,” Cassie tried to insist. “I said I don’t care.”

  “And I said okay,” Tori said.

  Cassie hugged Tori back. She cared, oh how she cared. She cared so much that she didn’t know if she could move from where she stood, not for many minutes, not ever again. Seeing Danica and Micah together like that hurt in a way she’d never felt before. If she’d known that letting herself like a boy could turn itself into this, she wouldn’t have allowed it to happen. She would never have looked at him. She would never have gone on that walk with him. She would never have talked to him or taken that drive with him or . . . anything. She would never have let him even enter her thoughts.

  Then again, when it came to Micah, she suspected she wouldn’t have been able to stop herself had she tried.

  Micah stood with Danica outside the caverns. She’d led him over to the wall, wanting to talk, to tell him something or other, but he didn’t even know what because as soon as he’d leaned in to hear it, she’d pulled his face close for a kiss.

  He’d pulled back in shock—he wasn’t expecting it, is all.

  And now they were fighting over it. Just like old times.

  “You like her, don’t you?” Danica said, eyes blazing in the direction of one of the Camp Ohana vans.

  “Who?” Micah said, playing dumb. (He could see Cassie climbing into the van with her cousin out of the corner of his eye.) “Seriously, Danica,
what’s your deal? First you break up with me then you try to kiss me. What am I supposed to think?”

  Danica huffed out a huge sigh. “I had a moment of weakness. I must’ve gotten lightheaded from the lava tunnels, obviously. Forget this ever happened.” She pulled far away from him. Then she put up a hand to wave. “Hey, Ben!” she called.

  Ben waved back.

  “You don’t like Ben,” Micah said in a low voice. Then he had a moment of doubt. “Do you?”

  “Why?” Danica said with a smile. “Jealous much?”

  Micah was about to deny that accusation, of course—he wasn’t jealous. No way, no how, not a cent. And yet. Maybe he didn’t know how he’d feel if she got together with someone else this summer.

  Still, before he could come up with a suitable response, Haydee, one of the surf counselors, came bounding up. She grabbed Danica and pulled her into a hug. “You might be back on!” she cried.

  “Back on what?” Danica said.

  “Back in the contest this weekend. I was just talking to Simona, and she said she might let you compete after all!”

  “Oh. My. God!” Danica cried. She leaped into Haydee’s arms, almost knocking the poor thing into the cave wall.

  Haydee picked herself up, laughing. “Don’t get too excited too soon. Simona said she’s thinking about it—she said she’ll meet with you tomorrow morning to discuss. But let me tell you: I put in a good word for you, and it’s looking promising, I won’t lie!”

  “You did? You put in a good word for me?” Danica said. “Thank you so much!”

  “Now, I can’t take all the credit. Don’t just thank me. Thank Cassie, too.”

  “Cassie?” Danica said in a dull voice.

  She looked just as confused as Micah was.

  “Just talk to Simona. And then if all goes well, meet me tomorrow for practice. Danica, you could win this contest!” Haydee said. And she was off. And Danica was left staring at the van that Cassie was in, a searing-cold look on her face.

  “What did Cassie do?” Micah asked.

  She wouldn’t answer him, just shook her head. “I can’t believe her,” she said.

  Nine

  It was Tuesday at 8:59 A.M. and Danica was standing with Cassie outside Simona’s office. This time, she took care to wear an actual pair of shorts instead of a bikini. She swore she still had scars left over from Simona’s wicker couch.

  Cassie hadn’t said more than two words since they’d arrived to wait for their 9:00 A.M. appointment and Danica was sick of it. The problem with having enemies is that they don’t like talking to you. Everyone always wants to talk to me, Danica thought. And Cassie is not going to be the exception.

  Danica turned to Cassie, just as Cassie was turning to her.

  “So—” they both said at the same time.

  “Oh sorry,” Cassie said.

  “You talk,” Danica said. “What were you going to say?” She was ready to see the real side of Cassie, the Cassie that had made it pro and won contests and intimidated other surfers and was supposed to be so good, though Danica hadn’t been witness to it. Where was that girl?

  “I wanted to ask you a question,” Cassie said.

  “Then ask it.”

  Now that they were alone, Danica expected Cassie to throw down. To step up. To say something like, If you’re back in the surf contest, you’d better bring it. Danica could picture this whole transaction so vividly: like another sequel to Bring It On but soaked in saltwater, Danica in the Kirsten Dunst/ Hayden Panettiere role, obviously.

  Except there was no bringing much of anything, because Cassie just said, “Are you and Micah back together?”

  “Excuse me?” Danica said, caught off guard.

  That’s when Simona opened her office door. “Come in, C.I.T.s,” she said.

  Danica stepped in first, glad she didn’t have to answer Cassie’s question.

  Simona sat them both down and started talking. “Haydee really pleaded your case, Danica. Apparently she thinks it’s very important that you take part in the expo this weekend. What do you think about that?”

  “I want to surf in the contest,” Danica burst out. “I really want to.” She didn’t care how pathetic she might look begging like this in front of Cassie—it was the honest truth.

  “I know you do,” Simona said. “You’ll be surfing against local Kona surfers and also campers from the Hilo Surfgirl camp across the island, did you know that?”

  “Does that mean I’m back in the contest?”

  “I didn’t say that . . . yet. I just want you to understand that Camp Ohana needs to have its best face on for the expo. Our reputation is on the line. This contest is what determines who will compete in the inter-camp contest in Oahu and—”

  Danica shot up in her chair, letting out a yelp before Simona could even finish. “I knew it!” she cried. “I knew the winners at the expo would get to go to Oahu! That’s the top secret prize, isn’t it?”

  “Hush,” Simona said, motioning for Danica to sit down. Danica did, trying to keep calm. Of note was the fact that Cassie had not uttered a single word about this exciting bit of news. She was just sitting there, staring at the wall. Odd, Danica thought.

  “All this leaves me in a quandary,” Simona continued, throwing up her hands. “And then of course there’s the Cassie factor.”

  Danica snapped out of her excitement. “What about Cassie?”

  “I can’t punish only you, Danica, if there was another C.I.T. involved in sneaking off the property,” Simona said. Her eyes settled on Cassie. “Cassie has admitted to it, haven’t you, Cassie?”

  Cassie nodded almost eagerly. What was her deal?

  “And we can’t imagine the surf contest without you in it, Cassie,” Simona said. She turned to Danica, as if in an afterthought. “Without the both of you.”

  Oh. It’s not that she needs me to surf, Danica realized, her stomach sinking. It’s that she needs Cassie. Everyone just assumes Cassie will be the one to win.

  Simona announced her decision: Danica would be allowed to compete in the surf contest this weekend after all, and Cassie would still be allowed to compete, too. But that didn’t mean they were free from punishment. They were assigned to kitchen duty for the rest of the week. And they were both on warning. Next time, they could be kicked out.

  “Wait, so I’m really still in the contest?” Cassie shot out before Simona could finish her sentence.

  Danica looked at her in surprise. Did she—could it be?—sound disappointed?

  “Yes, that’s what I said,” Simona said. “You expected to lose your spot, didn’t you?”

  “Yeah,” Cassie said, staring at her hands. “I didn’t think you’d let me surf. Because of . . . of what I did.”

  “Well, you got lucky today then, didn’t you?”

  Cassie mumbled something indecipherable, so Simona repeated herself. “Didn’t you?”

  Cassie finally looked up. “I guess so,” she said. That’s when it became clear to Danica: The girl was freaked out. Call it a shark, call it a fear of going up against Danica, whatever—she was scared to surf. She wanted an out, and she didn’t get it.

  Danica expected to be happy to have this information, but she wasn’t. She didn’t know why she wasn’t. She put the knowledge aside and turned to Simona.

  “Thank you, Simona,” Danica said. “I really appreciate this second chance. You know all I wanted to do this weekend was compete.”

  “You’re welcome, Danica,” Simona said.

  “Yeah, thanks, Simona,” Cassie mumbled.

  Outside Simona’s office, the two girls walked back to the beach with a tense silence between them.

  Cassie was the one to break it. “Kitchen duty, huh? How bad could it be?”

  “Bad,” Danica said. “Very bad. But it’s worth it.” Then she couldn’t help but add, “I’m pumped for Saturday, aren’t you?”

  “Uh-huh,” Cassie said unconvincingly. She was a terrible liar. “I’m glad you get to compe
te. Everyone should be able to.”

  “Yeah, but don’t think it’s going to be easy. I might just knock you out of the water.”

  Cassie shrugged. “You might,” was all she said.

  It really was no fun competing against someone who didn’t want to be there. But Danica wasn’t going to complain. She was obviously about to win it all. And, from the look on Cassie’s face, the so-called pro surfer knew it, too.

  I should have just admitted the truth, Cassie was thinking the next morning. Because, yes: Tori had been right. Tori was always right. Give Tori a medal for always knowing everything. Cassie had said all those things down in the lava tunnels on purpose . . . hoping Simona would hear. Only, it had sort of backfired.

  Clearly, Cassie had expected to be banned from the contest. She’d wanted to be off the hook, for it to be no fault of her own that she couldn’t surf on Saturday. Then the conquering-her-fears hokey milestone of the summer could wait until next week, or the week after. She could stretch it out over the whole summer. Maybe by August she’d be ready to hop back on the board. Maybe then.

  Simona had called her lucky. Cassie felt just the opposite.

  Fact is, Saturday was quickly approaching and if she didn’t want to make a total fool of herself in front of everyone at camp then she had to deal with this right now.

  That’s why she was up so early in the morning.

  It was time. She could do this.

  She stood waist deep in the water, her yellow board floating idly at her side. She just stood there.

  I can do this, she repeated to herself.

  And the board at her side didn’t say a word. For a second, she almost wished she would run into Micah. He usually surfed this spot early mornings, didn’t he? So where was he today? Really, she had no idea because it wasn’t like they’d said two words to each other since the horror show over the weekend.