His eyes widened as he rose, twisting so he was facing me. “You are? Why?”
Dad let out a deep snore, so I scooted over until I was closer to him. “Jellyfish and sharks,” I admitted, feeling silly.
“Really?” he asked.
I nodded as I bit my lower lip. “Yeah. My mom says I don’t need to be worried about sharks and just that I need to keep my eyes out, but it still scares me. I’ve only put my feet in the water so far. I haven’t even been able to go into the water completely.”
“I’m scared of sharks, too,” he whispered in return.
I choked on a gasp, my eyes widening. “You are?”
“Yeah. My dad made me watch Jaws and it scared the crap out of me. I haven’t gone in the water since.”
I laughed and poked his shoulder. “I thought you weren’t scared of anything.”
He shrugged and then yawned before lying back down. “Just sharks. But if you want, maybe we can face our fears and go in the water together.”
I snuggled up in my sleeping bag and looked over at him. “You’d do that for me?”
Jeremy smiled. “I’d do anything for you, Sierra.”
That was the last thing either of us said before we fell asleep, but I knew I’d do anything for Jeremy, too. I hoped he knew it.
The next morning, we got Jenna and Lexi to beg our moms to take us to the beach. Fortunately, they said yes, so they packed a picnic lunch and we all went to play. The girls started building a sand castle, and our moms were talking about some book they’d both been reading.
Jeremy seemed as nervous as I felt. When I scanned the water and saw no signs of predators, I knew I had to force myself to do this. It was now or never, and the last thing I wanted was to act like a chicken in front of him. At the same time, though, I didn't want to force him to face his fears if he wasn't ready.
“Are you sure about this, Jeremy? I know you’re scared of sharks, too, and that’s okay. I won’t be mad at you if you want to stay here.”
He chewed on his bottom lip for a moment while his eyes surveyed the water, becoming alert and focused when they returned to mine. His jaw set with determination as he grabbed my hand, curling our fingers around each other.
“Where you go, I go,” he said with a confidence I wasn’t feeling.
“Are you sure?” I asked, a twinge of nervousness swirling in my belly.
He nodded again. “Positive. Now, let’s do this before I chicken out.”
I laughed, and as we started strolling to the shore, the tide surged and rushed over our toes. The emerald water was warm, just like a bathtub.
We held hands for the next hour as we played in the surf. Tiny fish nipped at our toes, causing me to squeal and Jeremy to laugh. As the minutes passed, I completely forgot about my fears and enjoyed my spending time with my new best friend.
Until I saw the fin.
The slippery, gray object bobbed up and down in the water not too far away from us. I screeched and jumped up onto Jeremy’s back as the fear settled in. Even at eight, Jeremy was already a few inches taller than I was, and he had no problem carrying me around. I loved it, even if I wasn’t sure why.
“I think I saw a shark!” I shrieked in his ear, which caused him to wince. Without hesitation, I wrapped my legs around his waist and he ran with me in a piggyback position.
As soon as we were out of the water, he turned us around so we could gaze out at the gulf. Both of us were breathing heavily, and I was elated to be back on the shore. I didn’t mind facing my fears, but a girl could only be so brave, no matter how much she trusted the boy holding her hand.
“Where, Sierra?” he asked, trying to catch his breath.
I shielded my eyes from the sun and pointed in the fin’s direction. Sure enough, it rose again, and I braced my hands on his shoulders, my fingers digging into his warm skin. But he didn’t freak out along with me. Instead, his shoulders started shaking from laughter. I frowned and tilted my head to see his face.
Yep, he was laughing at me.
I slid off his back and placed my hands on my hips. “What’s so funny, mister?”
“I… That’s… Oh my gosh…” he said between fits of giggles. He even had the nerve to double over, clutching his stomach as if it hurt from laughing too hard.
I wrinkled my brow, my irritation growing the longer he carried on.
“Sierra, that’s not a shark. That’s a dolphin!”
My cheeks warmed and probably reddened from blushing. “Oh,” I said. “I knew that.”
When his laughter died down, he smiled at me. “It’s okay, Sierra. Better safe than sorry, ya know?”
I adored how easily he went from laughing at me to trying to make me feel better for having been such a chicken.
“True,” I agreed. “And hey, we just spent a lot of time in the water, too! It was fun, don’t you think?”
“It was fun,” he echoed. “Maybe we can do it again soon.”
“I know you were scared. And I was scared, too, but I’m glad we faced our fears together. Thanks for doing this, Jeremy. I don’t think I could have done it without you here with me,” I admitted.
“I told you. Where you go, I go,” he said.
“Always?” I asked.
He grabbed my hand, squeezing tight. “Always, Sierra. You’re my best friend.”
I squeezed back. “You’ll always be my best friend, Copper,” I told him, thinking of my favorite Disney movie.
He tilted his head and narrowed his eyes at me. “Hey, why do you get to be Tod? I want to be the fox!” he exclaimed, pretending to be offended.
A smile crossed my lips as I studied his features. “Because your hair. And your eyes,” I admitted, hoping I didn’t sound too much like a girl. “It’s the shade of brown. It’s copper, like a penny. So you’re Copper.”
His head remained half-cocked as he mulled it over. I emitted a sigh of relief when he smiled.
“Oh, okay. That makes sense. And, just so you know, you’re mine, too, Tod.”
Warmth seeped into my bones as if the rays of the sun were penetrating my skin and settling in. Except it wasn’t the sun. It was Jeremy.
I spat on my hand and held it out, just like we’d done the day we’d met. “We’ll always be friends forever?”
He didn’t even hesitate. He hawked a big one in his hand and slapped his palm to mine. “Yeah. Forever.”
Neither of us knew it at the time, but it truly was the beginning of a beautiful friendship. A lifelong one.
The foundation of our futures was laid out right there, and we had no clue that the coming years would only strengthen our bond. Little did we know how much we’d come to rely on that strength in our future. We'd need each other more than we'd ever know, and it still it might not be enough. Only time could tell.
1998
NEITHER ONE OF US made an effort to walk inside the expansive brick building before us. Students were milling about, chattering with their friends, even though most of them had spent the summer together on the beach. A buzz of both excitement and discontent filled the air. Excitement of a new school year; discontent for the same reason. Most of us were still in beach mode. Still, nerves attacked my belly. This was finally it.
High school.
Jeremy shoulder-checked me, nearly knocking me off-balance. I gave him a mock scowl, but he laughed as he brushed the messy hair out of his eyes. I reached over and did it for him, my fingers not missing how soft it felt beneath my fingertips. I swallowed hard and tried to forget that thought. Over the summer, I’d started noticing Jeremy in a different light, and I wasn’t sure how I felt about it. He’d gone through a growth spurt and decided he wanted to make the football team, so he’d trained hard. In just a few months’ time, he had gone from my tall, lanky, goofy best friend to a taller, muscular, hot guy.