Class Clown (The Thornback Society #4)

21. Chapter 21

Chapter 21

Ruby’s Truth: You should never row your canoe toward the screaming!

“In theory, canoeing should be relaxing,” Meredith said as she dipped one of her hands in the deep blue reservoir water the next day, causing ripples to flow behind the canoe. Her face was shaded by the big black floppy hat she’d worn, but I could easily imagine her cynical expression. “Yet, I spend so much time assuming we’re going to capsize that I don’t enjoy it much.”

Aryn and I laughed and shared an amused look from behind our sunglasses. “We went on an entire river rafting trip and you didn’t seem nervous,” I reminded, referring to our river adventure the summer before that had ended in Lizzie reunited with her first long-lost love.

“Rafts are hard to capsize. They’re designed to maintain equilibrium. Plus, we had an experienced guide at the helm. Canoes are pointy and tippy, and don’t seem to know where their center of gravity is. And we’re in charge – a bunch of amateurs,” Meredith replied.

“You’re wearing a life jacket,” Aryn pointed out.

Meredith tugged at it. “I know. Plus, it’s not like I haven’t made a contingency plan about how to get rescued.”

I grinned. “The reservoir is pretty small. I think we could swim back to shore.”

Meredith continued. “The way I see it, Ruby would get the giggles which would immobilize her. She’d float and laugh here for a bit, which could result in the risk of hypothermia, so, I’d have to tow her to safety. Aryn would naturally slip into athletic mode and Michael Phelps it straight to shore, forgetting that we’re all supposed to survive together.”

Aryn nodded and pushed the oars deep into the water to keep us moving. “Fair.”

“Do you think you could actually tow me, Mer?” I asked.

She shrugged. “Super-human strength has been known to happen during life threatening situations.”

“And you think that a canoe in a tiny mountain lake is a threat?” I asked.

She nodded. “I think the most important point is that I love you enough to try to tow you across it.”

I laid back into the rear corner of the canoe and tilted my face to the sun. “You’re right, and I’m touched by the willingness. Now that I know you have a survival plan, I’m going to take a nap.”

Aryn cleared her throat and opened her mouth to say something when a strange, high-pitched, sort of wobbling scream came from the forested side of the reservoir. I sat up and all three of us turned to look that direction. More cries joined in and we looked to each other to see if one of us understood what was happening.

“Is that some kid having a meltdown?” Meredith asked.

As elementary school staff we’d had a lot of experience with the strange sounds kids could make, but this didn’t sound human and I said so.

“Sounds like animals.”

Aryn picked up the oars and got us moving in that direction. “I want to see what’s going on.”

“You never row toward the screaming!” Meredith argued, pushing back the brim of her hat to see better.

“Then you’d never have any fun,” Aryn replied with a smirk.

We got closer and closer, but even though the screaming grew louder and more ferocious, it took us a while to spot what was going on. Aryn stopped us close to the shore, but still in deep enough water to keep us from grounding, and tucked the oars into the canoe.

A few seconds later, a rounded ball of black and brown fur came flying out of the tree line followed by two more, all of them screeching up a storm. They were going at it, screaming and biting, and fighting for all they were worth.

“Looks like a racoon love triangle to me,” I said with a grin. “Someone got busted. ”

“It was a berry deal gone bad,” Aryn joined in. “Sam there promised to deliver the best fruit in the forest, but he tried to trick Jerry into buying a cheaper product.”

The three animals separated and rose to their hind legs, arms wide, watching each other and occasionally making some noise.

“It’s adorable,” I whispered on a laugh.

“It’s rabies on legs,” Meredith stated.

As the three stood watching each other, a few more raccoons joined in, still on all-fours, forming a sort of rough circle around the action.

“We’re in the middle of a turf war,” Aryn said.

The new racoons also began to make noises, and the original three fell back onto their front feet and dove into the fray once more. I had no idea what they’d be warring over, but it was both amusing and frightening to watch. Someone – or thing? – was going to get hurt.

Charged with animal safety, I stood in the canoe and grabbed one of the oars, leaning forward to slap the water as I yelled.

“Hey, hey, stop it right now,” I cried.

The animals scattered into the forest and as I was turning to smile triumphantly at my co-canoers, the canoe tilted violently and the three of us spilled out the side as it capsized. I held onto the oar like my life depended on it, because they were expensive to lose, and when I broke the surface I could hear Meredith and Aryn spluttering.

“I knew it!” Meredith called. “I knew this would happen.”

Luckily, the water wasn’t that deep where we’d tipped over and I was able to stand. Aryn, even taller than me, was too. But Meredith, who was several inches shorter than both of us, appeared to be bobbing with the ripples we’d caused. Her black hat, now soaking wet, was flopping down over her eyes and she kept fighting to push it back.

She tugged it off her head and swiped her black hair out of her face, scowling at me. “What was that all about?”

“I was saving lives,” I replied, walking over to where Aryn was pushing at the canoe to get it righted. “As the resident nurse on staff I am not prepared to handle veterinary needs. I had to break it up.”

“They know you now,” Aryn teased me. “They’ll be sending some henchman to your cabin to rough you up. ”

I laughed and when Aryn counted to three, I helped her flip the canoe over. Meredith swam to where we were and we held it steady for her to climb in.

“Getting back into a watercraft is worse than when you use the bathroom at the swimming pool and have to pull your wet, shrunken suit back on to your cold, damp body,” she groaned as she pulled herself up. “Top three reasons not to capsize.”

“But, hey, nobody drowned or had to get towed to shore today.” I gave a little cheer as Aryn helped me heave up into the canoe. It required some wiggling and grunting, and I didn’t appreciate some of my softer body parts trying to mold to the canoe, but I made it. “Hooray.”

Aryn, of course, gracefully pulled up and into the canoe like she’d had a trampoline to jump off of.

“Athletic people,” I scoffed and she grinned.

Meredith shivered and hugged her arms to her sides, her bright red swimwear clinging to her small frame. “Row us back to shore, Aryn. I’m done for the day.”

“Where’s your sense of adventure?” I teased.

“At the bottom of this lake,” she replied.

Aryn had us across the reservoir before too long. Meredith stayed quiet, but I hummed some camp songs while we moved peacefully across the water. When we reached the canoe dock, Nico was standing there holding our towels.

“He’s a keeper,” Aryn said under her breath to me.

I didn’t reply, and didn’t even try to stop the swoon rising up in my chest at his thoughtful gesture. He was full of those. Where had he learned to be this way? Or was it simply his nature to be a care-giver? It was something I could relate to, as it had been that very thing that had led me to nursing.

He leaned down and held onto the canoe to stabilize it as I helped Aryn tie it to the dock. He then held out a hand to all of us, making it easier to climb out and up onto the wooden platform.

“What happened out there?” he asked as he backed up to make room for us near him.

“We had to break up a raccoon gang fight,” I answered as I worked to get out of my life jacket.

“Ruby stood up in the canoe, which is against all canoeing rules, and then she leaned over and used the oar to slap the water. No regard for safety protocols.” Meredith grumped as she threw her life jacket back into the canoe and reached for her towel.

“I care about the interpersonal relationships of woodland creatures,” I responded regally, tossing my life jacket and taking my towel from Nico.

“Raccoon gang fights?” he questioned, his expression amused.

Aryn nodded and reached for her towel with a thank you. “It got pretty intense, but Ruby showed them who was boss.”

“She did, huh?” Nico looked at me and smiled.

I smiled back.

“Don’t be surprised if the gang shows up at your cabin to challenge her for leadership of the group. They’ve gotten a good look at her now,” Aryn said with a grin. “With the way she slapped the water, they probably assume she’s in league with the beavers. Rumor has it, they’ve been at war for years.”

Nico laughed, which had me laughing too.

Meredith’s lips tugged up. “Stupid nature gangs.”

I leaned toward Nico and stage-whispered, “She had a plan to save my life if the canoe tipped over, but it didn’t work out that way and now she’s mad.”

Nico looked to Meredith who shrugged. “I’m cynical enough to expect disaster, and prepared enough to go in with a plan.”

Nico nodded. “I like that. What was your plan?”

To my surprise, Meredith gestured for him to follow her up the dock and onto the sand, where they found some free beach chairs and sat side-by-side. Aryn and I took up residence on our towels nearby and allowed the sun to warm us up as we laid down.

“I didn’t think Nico knew how to sit on the beach,” I commented when we were settled. “He’s usually pacing around, watching for danger, and ready to jump in at any second.”

Aryn made a humming noise. “That might be a good thing for someone like you.”

“What does that mean?”

“I mean, you are also ready to jump in at any second, but it’s into the danger,” she giggled and tapped my shoulder. “Be honest.”

“Again, I’ve never seen him simply sit on the beach like that.”

She closed her eyes and stretched her legs out until they were hanging off the end of her green paisley towel. “Is he uptight? ”

“Not uptight, no, but not relaxed. More like vigilant. I’ve never been vigilant a day in my life,” I joked.

“I know. That’s probably why you have such a problem with breaking all watercraft protocols.”

At that both of us got the giggles, and it felt amazing to lay on the sand, with the mountain sun beating down on us, and give over to laughter.

Friday arrived too soon, and it was time for Aryn and Meredith to head back to Utah. They were leaving early, due to the long drive, and I helped them lug their things to Aryn’s car while the sun was still rising in the sky.

We’d had the best time together and I was so grateful they’d come.

We loaded Aryn’s trunk and then they surprised me by not jumping straight into the car, but by walking with me to the camp fire area and sitting down on the log benches, facing me.

“Is this about me hiding fake snakes in your bed last night?” I asked.

Meredith shook her head. “But that doesn’t mean you should rest easy yourself.”

“Payback is no walk in the park,” Aryn agreed.

Meredith slapped her hands against her knees. “This is about Nico and how you have our blessing to let the feelings between you flow.”

Surprised, my eyes grew big and I looked to Aryn. “That was, almost romantic.”

Aryn grinned. “She is in a relationship, you know. I think she actually has feelings.”

“I have a lot of feelings. I just keep most of them to myself, which is refreshing in this world of oversharing,” Meredith huffed.

I smiled. “Does this mean I can start expecting you to . . .”

Meredith held up a hand. “Don’t even finish that sentence, because the answer is no. Brooks gets any of the nice feelings I have in my heart, and it’s a limited supply.”

Aryn and I laughed.

“Anyhow,” Meredith called us back to the task at hand, “I may not be lovey-dovey, but I am logical and observant, and Nico is genuine in his feelings for you. I don’t see a risk there. ”

Nerves tickled up the back of my throat, and rather than respond, I looked to Aryn.

She nodded. “It’s true, Rubes. He’s really, really sweet. We watched him serve you so many times, dozens of little things you may not have even noticed.”

“Like what?” I pushed out over the dryness in my mouth.

“Like, bringing you a towel at the lake, giving you his cookie at lunch, making you hot tea at night, and then washing the mug after you drink it. He takes really short showers, and mentioned trying to save you hot water because you don’t like it cold,” Aryn said warmly.

“Don’t forget that on that really cold night he warmed up a heat pad to put inside your comforter before you got into bed,” Meredith added. “He’s really into you.”

“He told me that after the summer is over, he’ll be looking for work and he’s thinking about going to college,” Meredith said. “Both of those things could happen in Utah. Near you. We do live like five minutes away from a state university.”

Shocked that he’d confided so much in Meredith, my eyebrows shot up. “I can’t ask him to uproot his life.”

“Sure you could,” Meredith replied. “We talked and I think he’d be open to it.”

I blinked at her. “You talked to him about moving to Utah to be with me?”

She shook her head and made a face. “I’m not a total dummy. I didn’t hit him with it straight. I grilled him about his future plans and he said he was open to exploring new areas and applying to a few different colleges.”

“Why were you grilling him?”

Meredith kicked my shin lightly. “Because that’s what friends do when they see a guy being all goo-goo for one of their besties. We aren’t going to let him think you’re a lone antelope on the plains, open to being plucked by the first lion to come around. It’s both information gathering, and warning.”

Aryn nodded. “It’s true. I grilled him as well. He’s been warned. Though, I liked what I heard and put away my sword.”

“Was he okay with you chatting him up that way?” I asked, mystified. I’d never had my friends grill a guy before. Probably because no other guy had ever been worth grilling. The thought made my heart sink a little. How sad that I’d only spent time with non-grillworthy dudes. “Did he grill you back?”

They both nodded. “He had a few questions of his own, but for the most part it was about him,” Aryn answered.

“Okay,” I breathed.

“So,” Meredith stood abruptly, “to sum up. Nico is cool and we approve. We have a long drive ahead of us, so we’re leaving.”

With that, she marched to the car.

Aryn and I giggled as we stood. Aryn grabbed me and pulled me in for a tight hug.

“I loved being here this week, Rubes.”

I hugged her back just as tight. “I’m so glad you came.”

“I hope the rest of the summer is something worth calling home about,” she winked playfully as she released me.

I bit my lip and nodded.

I was hoping the same thing.