Gone Surfing

Heading out the door grabbing all the last minutes necessities, my beach bag, my board wax and most importantly our surfboards. We rush to the car not wanting the miss any time in the water. Hannah, Sam’s older sister gets in the driver's seat and I hop in shotgun. Sam shoots me a dirty glance jokingly and then smiles. He puts our surf boards on the roof rack and gets in the back seat. Hannah starts the car and we are ready to start our adventure.
About a week ago Sam had called me and blurted into the phone that he had found a great little surf spot and it was a secluded cove. It was an awfully good idea. We planned that we would go that next Saturday and his older sister Hannah offered to drive us, not knowing how else we were to get there we happily said yes.
Hannah’s phone is connected to her radio by bluetooth and as soon as the music starts playing it is up all the way and as loud as an airhorn.
She hands me her phone and says, “You are in charge of the music now.”
I like the song that is playing currently so I let it be and look at her playlist to look for the next song. As I am looking I see the song It Girl by Jason Derulo and I play that song next.
I roll down my window and Sam and Hannah follow suit and in a second all of the windows are down. With all that wind my hair is as wild as Medusa’s. As I wait to go surfing the anticipation was killing me. 
It was late June and as hot as the sun, with beach goers everywhere. Sam and I needed to prepare for the Junior Billabong Surfing Competition and the only beach near his house was to crowded to walk. Whenever we tried to go there we couldn't even make it to the water with our surf boards. We would just go to another beach but the only problem is that, the beach behind his house was the only beach close enough of reasonable walking distance with boards. We talked on the phone about how Sam had found a great little secluded cove.
Sam and I had been best friends ever since we met, it was friendship at first sight our parents say. His older sister was at my house studying with my older sister Marlee, and Hannah had been babysitting him at the time so she brought him along. Hannah and Marlee had been in seventh grade and were working on science homework, now they are both seniors in high school. Sam and I are in ninth grade now at the same school as our older sisters and have multiple classes together.
When we were in seventh grade Sam and I were introduced to surfing and we both picked it up like riding a bike. My parents in disbelief came to watch us one day and even they said it was like we were born to do it. Within the next couple months, days full of surfing session after surfing session, I was sponsored by multiple  companies including “Surf Dome” and “Rip Curl” and most of them thought I could stand a chance in the Junior Billabong (JB) Championships. Although in order to be in the championships it is required that you can check off these three things, you have to be at least fourteen years old, have sponsors that are willing to pay for the traveling bills and you have to have at the minimum amount six other wins, in national championships. Luckily for me I had all of the requirements filled except one and that was the age requirement. I was thirteen at the time and I was turning fourteen in two months. After I turned fourteen I could apply for the JB championships. The next time the competition would be held in June of 2014 and with it being so close I had trained as hard as I could and you better believe I was in the water more than I was asleep.
“Hey, could you turn down the music for a second please?” Sam asked loudly over the music from the backseat.
“I guess,” I glumly reply as I turn down the music just quietly enough to hear Sam without him having to yell over it.
“Thank you,” he starts “now we are getting close to the turn. It is just around the corner.”
“Okay, cool. Would you just tell me when to turn please?” Hannah asked as she turned up the music a little bit.
In a couple of seconds the turn approached and Sam spoke up seconds too late.
“The turn is right here,” Sam blurted out.
Hannah made a shape left turn and just barely made it without swerving off the road, she yelled at Sam “Geez, thanks for telling me when to turn.”
“Sorry, I was looking at my phone and then I looked up and we were at the turn.” Sam said apologetically.
Once we were on the road Hannah did not need anymore direction from Sam, it was a straight road with no turns until the end, which forked off into two roads. One way was a gravel road and one was a dirt trail which had a small almost parking area off to the right of it.
Hannah turned back to Sam for direction, he pointed to the dirt trail and motioned to the small parking area, but never spoke.
“Listen, Sam I am sorry for snapping but we almost drove off the road,” Hannah uttered to Sam as she parked in the dirt. “You guys are cleaning my car when we get home.”
“It’s fine. I thought you might say that,” Sam chuckled.
We all shuffled out of the car and grabbed our bags and boards. Hannah is not a surfer so she brought along a speaker, some suntan lotion and of course her phone to occupy herself while we surfed. I grab my beach bag and my towel and my swim suit.
“Good thing I changed into my swimsuit at the house. There is no place to change here” Hannah muttered under her breath.
Sam spoke, “It’s the nature and hardly anyone knows about this place, of course there is no changing room.”
Once we had everything we needed we headed down the trail. It was about three feet wide and surrounded by trees as tall as skyscrapers, it was quite a parade getting down there with all that we had.  Sam had pointed out that it might not be the easiest hike down there but after we were down there we would have a blast. As we arrived at the trailhead, Hannah and I gave each other a look of Sam’s insanity. The trail was basically straight down, and there wasn't even steps. Sam started down the trail and Hannah went after him, I went on carefully after her, not wanting to drop my board or my brand new board wax.
It took us a couple minutes to get down the trail, but like Sam said it was beautiful down there. A beautiful beach surrounded with a hillside covered in lilies and chrysanthemums that left me breathless and the utmost gorgeous palm trees on the beach. I take in the scent of salt water in the summer and I am in heaven. I live for these kind of beaches. The instant we are all on the beautiful white sand of Tutle Cove we lay our towels flat and start to wax the boards.
Hannah sets up her wireless speaker and starts to blare her music. She lathers herself in suntan lotion and starts to lay down but says, “Have fun but don’t get hurt a month before your competition.”
“Sounds good to me,” Sam yelled as he took off for the water.
“I might come and join you after a while, my leg has been hurting lately. I am not sure why.” I inform Hannah.
“Alright, take it easy,” Hannah began, “ Like I said before I don’t want you guys getting hurt. Don’t hesitate to come over here and chill for a while if it starts to get worse.”
As I ran to the water trying to catch up to Sam, the sun glaring down on us, my leg hurt so bad I felt like it was broken, and the running wasn’t helping. When I made it out to Sam who was already paddling out past the shore, the water was completely calm.
“So much for big great waves today.” I muttered.
“You just aren’t patient enough,” Sam spoke harshly.
“Hey I was told there would be good waves and right now I don't see any.” Just as I said that the water slowly started to ripple and sure enough there were waves  coming I could tell by the way that the water was moving.
Sam took the first wave he saw without even asking if I wanted it, which he normally does. I watch as he paddles out to it and as soon as it started to curl he grasps on the side of the board and stands up. He always does that just before he rides any wave.
I turn on my back, drifting in the water as I wait for another wave. I trail my fingers in the water as I float. It is rather warm water for being a pacific cove. I look up to the hill side that we climbed down about a half an hour ago and I am in paradise. Warm water surrounded by beautiful white sand and amazingly photogenic palm trees and lovely flowers spotted along the hillside. We could be in Hawaii. I am jerked back to reality when I hear Sam calling my name.
“Hailey, Hailey. You have to come out here and catch some waves with me, I have never seen them this big in such a little cove before.” Sam exclaimed as he waded toward me.
“Alright, okay. I will be right there,” I say flipping back over to my stomach.
As I make my way out to Sam, my leg starts to feel better now that I was relaxing. I couldn't wait to ride some waves. As Sam and I wade in the water waiting for another wave to form, I saw one in the distance and I start to paddle out ther.
“You’ll never make it in time, that wave it going to curl as soon as you get out there and then you would have missed it. I better take it for you.” Sam points out as he races past me.
“You want to bet?” I ask Sam as I blaze past him on my board. I could get there in time if you would stop bothering me about it.”
Racing to get to that wave first my arms are starting to feel like jello. I make it to the wave first and Sam slaps the water in defeat. I approach the wave just as it starts to curl and I can not believe I am getting to surf this wave it is at least twenty feet and my biggest wave out of any competition was only thirteen feet. I grab the side of my board and stand up just in time. I hear Hannah cheering on the shore as I ride the wave and I also hear Sam cheering too. I take a moment to pose for a picture for Hannah. A split second later my entire world changes. I feel my feet slip off my board and the water engulfs me. My leash on my ankle falls off and at that moment I know I am entirely screwed.
I feel myself get caught in the undertow, which is the most dangerous part about surfing. As I get swirled around and tossed in the water, screaming in pain as I smash my knee on some long growing coral, now I definitely think my leg is broken. I am under water for only a short while yet it feels like an eternity. Finally I surfaced. I faintly hear Sam calling me but as the water above my crashes it is too loud to hear above clearly.
Everything's a blur, there is water in my ears and in my eyes and it is very hard to see. I can see a blur that sort of looks like my surfboard, I slowly swim toward it. After I climb onto my board I rub the water out of my eyes. I look at my leg and it is already black and blue. Sam paddles toward me and holds onto my board. I can faintly hear him say something, but my ears are still filled with water. I shake my head to get the water out and finally I can hear better. I hear Hannah shrieking on the shore and I can hear what Sam is saying.
“Are you okay?” He asks looking at my leg. “Oh my goodness we have to get you to the hospital immed-” he starts, “Oh crap, wave!!” he yells pulling me onto his board. he paddled as fast as he can to the shore to get us away from that wave.
Crack! I hear this noise behind us and I know without looking back it is my board.
Whoosh. The waves fell behind us.
“Sorry about your surfboard, I just wanted to get us out of there before that wave crashed on top of us.” I lay limply off his board to exhausted to move.
“It’s fine..” I manage to reply.

I wake up in a hospital bed with a cast completely covering my left leg. I have no idea on how I got here, after I heard my board crack I blacked out and I don’t remember a thing.
“Hello Hailey, you had quite a crash in the ocean there.” I look over, a doctor is walking in my room. “I am glad to see that you are awake.”
I am too, I think to myself. “Do you think I will be able to compete in my surfing competition next month?” I immediately ask.
“I don’t think you will,” the Doctor starts, “You are very hurt and you need to rest. Well I guess curiosity killed the cat.”
“Surfing and resting same difference right?”

When he says they all I can think about is how my surfing career is over. This is the biggest competition of my life and I just ruined it all, because I was stupid enough to pose for a picture while I was surfing a wave.

On the wave that was supposed to be mine, I watch him grabs the side of his board and stands up in the biggest wave I have ever seen. Even though I couldn't compete in the Junior Billabong Surfing Championships all of my sponsors and my coaches thought it would be a good idea to go and watch. I am here being jealous as ever as I watch Sam fill in my spot. My leg is in its third cast which is supposed to be my last. I cannot wait until I get this thing off and I can get back in the water. I sit here on the sand thinking what it would be like if it was me on that wave instead of Sam. I now know that it is never a good idea to pose for a silly picture when you are riding the biggest wave out of competition without any immediate help in case you crash, which I did all of the above.