by Maci Grant
As they started the card game, Blu’s mind returned to thoughts about the sandcastle contest. Since it would take place on the sand behind the Beach Bum, she knew that there was a good chance of running into AJ. The bartender was someone she’d recently met, and though she wasn’t really interested in romance, his presence had a strange impact on her. No matter how she tried to shake it, he seemed quite familiar to her.
“Blu, do you have this one?” Marley waved a card in front of Blu’s face.
Blu blinked and laughed. “Sorry, sweetie. I don’t have it. Go fish!”
“Oh!” Marley sighed with all the drama that a four-year-old could muster and reached into the pool of cards in the middle of the table.
“Don’t worry, maybe you’ll get what you want.” Blu smiled.
“I did, I did. I win!” Marley hopped up and down as she waved the card through the air.
“Good job! Now it’s time to go get those teeth brushed!”
Chapter 2
Blu plodded through the evening routine with the kids.
Just as she’d gotten them settled into bed, Rachel arrived home from her dinner out with friends. She joined Blu in Marley’s bedroom.
“Oh, don’t you look tuckered out?” Rachel smiled as she leaned down and planted a kiss on Marley’s forehead. “Good night. I love you. Make sure you have good dreams.”
“I will, Mommy. I’m going to dream about sandcastles!”
“Lovely!”
“We’re entering a sandcastle competition,” Blu explained as they left Marley’s room.
Rachel stuck her head into Joey’s room. “I see that flashlight, young man!”
Blu covered her mouth to hide a laugh. Since the start of summer Joey had decided that he had to read a comic book before bed every night.
“Aw, mom!” Joey whined.
“Joey, we have to get up early, remember?” Blu called out.
“Alright.”
She heard the flashlight hit the floor.
“I love that he’s so into those comic books.” Rachel closed the door to his room. “Sometimes I think kids are smarter than us grown-ups. They know how to enjoy their time.”
“Did you have a nice time at dinner?”
“What’s nice about expensive drinks and stuffy conversation?” Rachel shrugged. “I guess it’s enjoyable once in a while, but only just once in a while, if you know what I mean.” She glanced at Blu. “Sometimes I wonder if anyone ever has a real conversation any more.”
Blu smiled as she met her employer’s eyes. “I’m sure they do now and then.”
“I’d like more now than then.”
“I know what you mean.” Blu grinned. “I hope that you had some fun though.”
“The food was good.” Rachel nodded and pulled off her heels. “So tell me more about this contest. Is it tomorrow?”
“We’re going to enter the beginner’s class. I think the competition is at the end of the week on Saturday morning.”
“Oh, perfect. Marshall should be here for that.”
“Great!” Blu glanced at her watch. “I’d better get to bed too or I’m not going to be very chipper in the morning.”
“That seems impossible, Blu.”
Blu glanced over at her. “What does?”
“You being anything but chipper. You always seem so happy.”
Blu was a bit surprised by the wistful tone in Rachel’s voice. “I guess I am—no complaints.” Blu smiled.
“Don’t ever lose that, Blu. One day you’re annoyed, and the next day you don’t know how the world got so gray.” She sighed and wandered off down the hall.
Blu stared after her for some time. It was hard to see Rachel having such a tough time. She’d noticed her employer’s moods getting darker. At first she’d written it off to the shift from the school year into summer, but the more time that passed the worse it seemed to get. She made a promise to herself that she would try to sit down with Rachel and have a real conversation with her about it. She tried not to get too personal with her employers, but she also wasn’t going to turn a blind eye to what looked like depression.
As she brushed her teeth and combed her hair she thought about what might be bothering Rachel. Her husband Marshall’s new position at work demanded a lot more travel, and though Rachel had a passion for a few things, her main focus was on charity work and being the wife of a wealthy businessman. She had to be available at a moment’s notice for dinner with clients, for trips to different states and even countries. To most, her life might seem wonderful, but Blu knew that it wasn’t without its stress.
She sprawled out on her bed with a sense of determination to make the next day a memorable one. Maybe Saturday would be the perfect day for the entire family to reconnect.
When Blu woke up the next morning, it was not to her alarm, or to the sun poking its way through the curtains. She awoke to two children who stood impatiently in front of her bed.
“I think she’s awake,” Joey whispered to Marley.
“Is she snoring?” Marley squinted at Blu. “If she’s snoring, she’s sleeping.”
“I’m not snoring.” Blu raised an eyebrow and grinned at both of them. “I guess you want an early start this morning, hm?”
“I can’t wait!” Joey grinned.
“Well, you’ll have to wait long enough to eat some oatmeal, okay?” Blu pulled herself out of bed. “Why don’t you two go ahead and get dressed so we’ll be ready to go when breakfast is over.”
“Alright!” Joey grabbed Marley’s hand. “Let’s go, Marley. The faster we get ready, the faster we’ll be at the beach!”
Blu smiled to herself. It was easy for the beach to get old as a summer activity for the kids, but the idea of being in the contest had rejuvenated their passion for the sand and the waves.
As she dressed and then prepared breakfast, her thoughts turned to who she might run into on the beach. It would be early in the morning so the chances of seeing AJ were slim, but she was pretty sure that Maddie would be there.
Once the kids had eaten their breakfast, the three headed out for the class. When they arrived the other students attending the class were arriving as well.
“Morning, Blu.” Maddie plodded up behind them. “I mean, this is really early. What were they thinking?”
“You think this is early? Joey and Marley were in my room by six this morning!”
“Oh boy.” Maddie laughed. “I guess they’re excited.”
“Yes, they are.”
“I’m excited to read my new book.” Maddie held up a paperback.
“Oh, is it good?”
“So far so good. Let’s just say that I’m willing to find out if it gets better.”
Chapter 3
There was an assortment of chairs set out for people to choose from. Maddie took up residence on one closest to the water and popped open her book. She clearly had no interest in participating in the class.
Joey and Marley, on the other hand, were quite excited to dig right in. They started plowing shovels and pails into the sand before the instructor had even walked over.
“Careful now, don’t get sand in your brother’s eyes.” Blu folded her arms and rested back on her heels as she watched the two children play. It was interesting to her to see how much enthusiasm they had for a simple activity.
A woman walked over to the group. She wore a whistle around her neck and had her black hair piled up high on the top of her head in a ponytail wrapped into a bun.
“Good morning, junior builders. I’m so glad that you’re all here.”
Blu smiled at her. She seemed friendly enough and nearly as enthusiastic as the kids (along with a handful of adults) who awaited instruction.
“We’re going to go ahead and get started. So if everyone can just look up here at me for a minute, I want to tell you a little bit about myself. My name is Sunny and I’m employed by the Castles Contest Group. So wherever the contest goes, I go too.” She smiled brightly. “I’ve been doing
this for a few years now and I’d like to explain the rules to you.
“Now, one of the best parts of the competition is our juniors group. Many of the people in our juniors groups are children. Some are adults that are beginners. We have a few rules for the juniors group. The first and most important rule is to be respectful of one another’s creations. It can be very tempting when you see a big pile of sand to want to stomp all through it, but please don’t do that. Everyone works very hard on their castles, and no one wants them to be destroyed.
“On the last day of the contest after the winners have been selected we have a stomping party. Then, and only then, everyone will get a chance to plow down the castles. But until then, it’s important to stay out of each other’s areas.
“If you want to work in teams, that’s fine. Some of our more experienced competitors take this contest very seriously and you’ll notice a few of them setting up now for the contest tomorrow. It’s very important that you don’t enter their roped-off areas, as they are part of the expert group, and their castles are very delicate. Okay?” She looked among the faces of all of the members of the class.
“Now if you would like to discuss your ideas, that’s fine, but remember no one has any bad ideas. Also, it’s best that we not create anything that is too offensive. Before you enter the contest you will submit your ideas for approval. Once you have approval, you can start building at six in the morning. You can have the entire week to work on your castle. So if you build one and change your mind, you can always start over.
“Keep in mind that the experts in the competition do not have this option. They can work in their areas and prepare supplies but may not start building until the morning of the contest. If you have any questions I’m always here and ready to answer. The most important rule is to have fun!”
Joey cheered. “I can’t wait! I’m going to make a pirate’s castle!”
“Don’t be dumb, pirates have boats!” Marley stuck out her tongue. “Only princesses have castles. I’m going to make a princess castle!”
“Pirates can have castles too!”
“Remember, kids, no idea is a bad idea!” Sunny smiled.
“See!” Joy put his hands on his hips.
“Just watch out for the areas that the experts are working in, please.” Sunny pointed toward three sections on the beach.
Blu looked over in the direction that Sunny pointed. There were three people setting up in different areas of the sand. Each one had their own roped-off section.
One man was on his hands and knees in the sand. He had a strange comb as long as a ruler. He pulled it through the sand with slow deliberate movements.
In the next section, a woman sat in a yoga pose with sand coating her from knees to folded feet. She had her eyes closed and looked very serene.
The third competitor was dressed in a very strange robe. It was long enough to drag across the sand and it was formed of multiple colors that reminded Blu of the sunset. On top of his head was a cone shaped hat. A bright purple feather stuck out of the top of his hat. He was odd, to say the least, but seemed to be very passionate about what he was doing.
Blu was relieved that she only had to deal with the juniors and not the experts.
As the instructor walked the beginners through the process of dampening sand, stacking blocks, and even tips on building moats, Blu found it impossible to look away from the experts. The thing she noticed the most was that they didn’t speak to one another. In fact, they didn’t even look at each other. They might as well have been on completely different beaches. All of their focus was on the sand and what they would build.
In her entire life Blu had never considered what it might be like to build a sandcastle for a living. She assumed that if the experts took the contest so seriously, the prize must be quite large. She pulled a chair closer to where Joey and Marley practiced making sand bricks and sat down to watch. But her attention kept drifting back to the man who combed the sand.
Chapter 4
“Kirk is very passionate.”
Sunny’s voice made Blu jump. She hadn’t noticed when the woman walked up. “Oh?”
“Yes. He’s worked in every contest I’ve ever been to, since I was just a kid. He creates amazing sculptures, but he is very difficult to work with.”
“What about the others?” Blu glanced over at the woman who’d been in the yoga pose and who was now sprawled out across the sand with her face turned up to the sun.
“Bianca.” Sunny grinned. “She’s new to the contest. She’s been doing it for about two years. She’s an environmental activist and uses it as a tool to illustrate the plight of sea animals. One year she decorated her sculpture with all kinds of garbage. Some if it even smelled.”
“Ugh. Not so pleasant.”
“No, but she does have a point. At least she’s trying to make a difference—unlike Yale.” Sunny gestured toward the third contestant. “I’m not sure what he’s trying to do.”
“Yale?”
“I don’t think that’s his real name, but that’s what he uses on the contest papers. I’d say he’s been in about five contests and each one is stranger than the last. One time he had some strange music playing, and he had a portable spotlight as well as a strobe light. You can imagine how that worked on a sunny beach.” She rolled her eyes. “But he makes quite an effort, and I do have to say that every single time his sculpture is a surprise.”
“Well, then, I’m looking forward to seeing it.”
“Get here early. The beach gets very crowded for the experts’ contest. I wish I could say all of the fans come for all of the castles, but these three have followers that travel the country to see them in action.”
“Wow.” Blu shook her head. “I didn’t know that it was that big of a deal.”
“It is to them.” Sunny shrugged. “I guess that’s all that matters.”
After Sunny walked off, Blu watched Yale open a plastic container. Inside was an assortment of feathers dyed bright orange, pink, dark purple, and sky blue. As she lost herself in thought about what the feathers might be used for, she neglected her child-watching duties.
“Don’t, Joey! That’s my sand!” Marley reached for her brother’s foot as he tried to run away.
Joey lost his balance and fell forward into the sand.
Blu jumped up to see if he was hurt. Before she could reach him, Kirk shouted at the tops of his lungs.
“Away from my sand! This is the only warning that you’ll get! Understand? You kids need to stay out of my area!”
“Sorry, I fell!” Joey jumped up and backed away from the furious man.
Blu wrapped an arm around Joey. “He didn’t mean to. It was an accident.”
“He needs to be more careful! This isn’t a game. This is my life!”
Blu could feel Joey tremble against her. Her protective nature threatened to spill over in the form of angry words, but she reminded herself that she had to set a good example for the kids.
“I’m very sorry that he disturbed you, sir. I’ll make sure that they play a little farther away.”
“You do that.” He turned back to his sand.
“I’m sorry, Blu.” Joey sniffled.
“It’s alright, honey. Some people just take things more seriously than others. Just do your best to stay away from his area. Marley, no tripping your brother.”
Marley nodded and dug her shovel into the sand again. As she tried to make a big pile of sand, some of it was flung off her shovel. It landed in little piles inside the roped-off area that belonged to Kirk.
“No! No! No!” Kirk shouted. His face was beet red as he turned to look at Marley.
Blu stepped between them. “Calm down, it’s just a little sand. What is it really going to hurt?”
“I’m preparing my sand for the contest. It takes me days to get the balance perfect. Every drop of ungroomed sand that invades my perfect canvas forces me to start all over again.”
“Kirk, they’re just kids.” Yale wave
d a feather at him. “Stop worrying so much. You’re going to lose anyway.”
“You shut your mouth. Yale!”
“Stop it, please!” Bianca put her hands over her ears. “I can’t work in this chaos and disharmony! Now I’ll have to start all over again to cleanse the energy of my area!”
“Maybe you should work on cleansing yourself first, or at least put your arms down!” Kirk snarled.
“Oh, my.” Blu grabbed Joey’s hand. “Let’s go get a snow cone, kids!”
“But we’re building!” Marley stamped a flip-flop.
“Marley, we’re going to come back tomorrow, but I think it’s best if we leave right now.”
Blu bit into the tip of her tongue to keep from saying more than that. The last thing that she wanted to do was get into an argument in front of the kids. She tended to be mild-mannered, but when it came to protecting small children she could be quite vicious.
She hurried the children away from the beach and toward the parking lot beside the Beach Bum.
Chapter 5
Blu was so annoyed that she kept her eyes on the ground beneath her feet. When she heard a car door slam shut, she jumped and looked up to see AJ beside his jeep.
“Morning, kids. Having fun?” AJ smiled at Joey and Marley.
Marley shook her head and pointed at Blu.
AJ frowned. “Blu? What’s wrong?”
“I don’t want to talk about it.” Blu tightened her grip on Joey’s hand and tried to brush past AJ.
“Wait a minute.”
Blu tensed when she felt AJ’s touch on her arm. As quick as he touched her, he pulled his hand back. “Something happened? What’s the problem?”
“There’s a mean guy on the beach!” Joey muttered.
“A mean guy? Who?” AJ narrowed his eyes. “Is someone bothering you three?”
“It’s nothing like that, AJ.” Blu avoided looking at him. “It’s one of the expert competitors. He’s just a bit picky about his sand. He was yelling at a few of the kids, Joey and Marley included.”
