Beach Babes (Chapter 1)

"Cannonballs!" yelled Lizzie, waving her arms around and gyrating.

She ran towards the pool until she made it to the edge. There, she jumped in the air and hugged her knees. Then down she went into the water, making a great splash. She swam to the top, flipping her wet, dark hair back.

"Can you do a flip into the water?" asked Skye.

"I don't know," said Lizzie. "I never tried."

"Then try."

"Okay." Lizzie made her way to the underwater steps.

"Walk out of the pool like you're Phoebe Cates."

Lizzie laughed and rolled her eyes. She walked up the steps and walked back to the side of the pool. Then she backed up to give herself space.

"I call this the dippy-flippy-flip," Lizzie declared, water dripping from her cherry red bikini.

She made a ninety-degrees turn and threw herself into a cartwheel. Then her cartwheel transformed into a few backflips. At last, she flips into the air, doing a numerous amount of somersaults before diving into the water.

Debra cheered, applauding for her friend. Lizzie rose to the surface of the water, gasping for air.

"That was spectacular," commented Skye.

"Super duper spectacular," Debra agreed.

"Maddie, did you see that?" shouted Skye.

"Yep," Madeline shouted back. She was sitting in the Jacuzzi, which was not in contact with the pool. Her arms were resting on the surface, her eyes covered in pitch black sunglasses.

"Why don't you come in? You're isolating yourself."

"You guys should come in here."

"Nuh-uh," shouted Lizzie. "You can't flip in a Jacuzzi."

"Suit yourself."

"Just come over here, you lone wolf," ordered Skye.

"Je ne veux pas aller a la piscine."

"Yeah, shut up. Andrea, did you see that?"

Andrea was on a lawnchair, resting on her stomach, baking in the sun. She was in a cheetah-printed two-piece. She was also still and unresponsive and it was hard to tell if she was awake since she had on sunglasses, too.

"Andrea!"

"What?" Andrea asked.

"Are you asleep?"

"No."

"Then why didn't you answer me the first time?"

"Because I slay."

Skye chuckled. "Yeah, right. Get in the pool. You're frying like an egg."

"I like eggs."

"So can anyone of you do a backflip?" Lizzie asked Skye and Debra.

"No, my ankles won't allow it," answered Skye.

"I can do a few tricks myself," shared Debra.

"I guess they come in handy when you're mermaid-ing around, huh?"

"That reminds me," started Lizzie. "How is your job as a mermaid?"

"It's so much fun," replied Debra. "The kids love me."

"And do the kids actually believe you're a mermaid? Because you're not a real mermaid... are you?"

"No, I'm not, Lizzie. But hey, if kids believe in Santa Claus, kids can believe in mermaids despite the fiction."

"Santa Claus is not real?"

Skye covered Lizzie's ears. "Shh, Debra," she said. "You're upsetting Lizzie."

"Oops," Debra murmured, shrugging.

Skye smiled before taking her hands off Lizzie's head.

"Anyway, it's a wonderful job and I think I'm gonna keep it until I go to college."

"The things parents pay for just so their kid can have an abnormal pool party," said Skye before shaking her head.

Madeline walked towards the pool, taking off her glasses.

"Oh, look who decided to join us."

"I don't have to join you," said Madeline, putting her hands on her hips.

"But you do 'cause we're your only friends. So where is everybody?"

"You're my only friends, remember?"

"I mean, the people who live in the condos who are allowed at the pool. Where are they?"

"Oh, everyone's at the beach. Pools are so last year."

"It's a pool."

"Pools can be trends. Anyway, beaches are, like, the hottest things right now."

Skye pushed herself to the edge and lifted herself up before becoming face-to-face with Madeline. "Then I want to go to the beach," she said, water trickling down her yellow and black one-piece.

"Yeah, the beach is so relaxing," said Debra. "I could collect seashells."

"Yeah, and sand is good for exfoliating the skin," added Lizzie. "True story."

"Looks like we all want to go to the beach," said Skye, putting her fists on her hips.

"No way," said Madeline. "There are no Jacuzzis at the beach, okay? Besides, Andrea doesn't want to go."

"You didn't ask her. Andrea?"

She didn't respond.

"Andrea!"

"What?" Andrea responded.

"You're sleeping again."

"No, I'm not."

"Listen, do you want to go to the beach?"

Andrea sat up. "¿Que?"

"According to Madeline, pools are dead and everyone is at the beach."

"Why do you want to be where everyone else is?" Andrea rested her glasses on top of her head.

"I don't. I just like it when people get jellyfishes on their legs so they can get peed on."

"That sounds like a Skye answer." Andrea walked towards Madeline and Andrea. "But who cares if no one is at the pool? We still have lifeguards. Like him." Andrea looked up at the cute lifeguard who was sitting on the tall chair. "Hey," she said, waving at him.

The lifeguard smiled and waved back.

"You have a boyfriend," Debra reminded.

"And my boyfriend's not a lifeguard," Andrea said.

"Do you want to go to the beach or not?" asked Skye.

"Hmm... I guess I can go. There's probably more sun at the beach then there is here. Too many walls."

"Great. So I guess we're going to the beach."

"You don't make the decisions," said Madeline. "I make the decisions."

"Do you?"

"Yeah."

Skye pushed Madeline, making her fall into the pool. She threw her glasses into the air and Skye caught them for her as she made a splash.

Madeline ascended to the top, wiping her eyes and gasping. Her once dry, luscious, fair curls were now dark and stringy ringlets. "You messed up my hair!" she screamed.

"Oh, please," said Skye, crossing her arms. "It's gonna look how it did once it dries."

Madeline raised her eyebrows. "That is so true."