Page 35 of That Last Summer

“I was distracted, I was thinking about things and a jellyfish stung me, and then the jet skis—”

“You were distracted? Fuck that, Priscila! You can’t be distracted in there and you know it!” he says, pointing at the sea. “I told you a thousand times!”

“I know and I’m sorry, I—”

“Have you ever listened to me? A single fucking time in your life?”

“I’m sorry, I—”

“Alex, enough! She’s scared. I don’t think she needs one of your lectures right now.”

I’m surprised to hear my sister-in-law defending me, and with that kind of authority no less. It’d be the first time in all these years. Until now, only toads and snakes came out of her mouth when she addressed me. I guess it must be my near-death experience. Something huge like this would soften anyone. I look up at her and she seems sincere. She’s studying me with a sad expression as she strokes River’s back up and down, trying to calm him. And I think it’s working. It’s strange—these two spend their entire lives arguing, fighting each other. But they’re always together.

“I don’t give a shit about your excuses,” Alex carries on, lashing out mercilessly at me, ignoring Catalina’s warning. “Not interested. Just don’t come back to my beach if you’re not going to do it responsibly.”

“Alex,” my brother says.

“She’s all yours now,” Alex hisses with icy disdain, pointing at me disinterestedly.

“Alex. Alex, wait—” My brother gets up to go after him.

“And please, someone take care of those stings!” Alex yells before he disappears down the beach.

“Alex!” River calls again. Then he meets my gaze. “I just wanted to thank him for what he’s done.”

“Relax,” I say with a weak smile. “It’s okay, River. I know you two are friends.”

“He’s scared, Pris. That’s why he yelled at you like that. Don’t be mad at him.”

“Okay.” It’s a sheer miracle I’m keeping the tears at bay.

“Easy now, Pris, it’s over.” River hugs me and pats my back as he tries to comfort me.

“Priscila?” my best friend asks me then. “Are you all right?”

“Yeah.”

Jaime tries to get closer, but another lifeguard—a colleague of Alex’s, I guess—pushes him aside to look at my wounds.

“Let me check those stings.”

When he touches me I swallow a howl of pain. This is neither my first jellyfish sting nor even the hundredth, but it’s been a while since the last time and I didn’t remember how it felt.

“Wow, it was one of the huge ones,” the lifeguard says kindly. “I’m Raúl, by the way.”

“I don’t even know how he saw you,” River’s still talking about Alex. “We were talking on the shore and suddenly he was running and diving into the water. I didn’t see anything. I almost had a fucking heart attack when I saw him coming back with you in his arms.”

We remain silent while this guy, Raúl, heals my stings. I sigh, forcing the air out slowly. Alex, altering my emotions again. This thing between us is going from bad to worse. So I make a decision, or rather I assume an attitude: I’m going to stay here the thirteen weeks, then go back to my incomplete but perfect life in Boston. Period. And I’m not going to get lost on the way.

Ten minutes later, Raúl finishes his task.

“Well, there you go. You handled that so well. Not a single complaint.”

“She’s well-seasoned when it comes to jellyfish stings,” River says.

You bet I am.

When Raúl leaves, Jaime hugs me tightly.

“Fuck, you scared the shit out of me. I’m still shaking. Thank goodness we came to spend a peaceful, quiet day at the beach of tranquility where never a jellyfish appears...”

Pris, you took ten years off me! For God’s sake, don’t you dare to scare me like this again! And forget about dressing me up, huh? Not as a surfer, not as anything. You’re giving me the heebie-jeebies.

Pristy the Squirrel: A hard day at the beach.