"I should have known," Todd replied, tapping his spoon against his milk carton.
"I'm really sorry," Elizabeth said. "But it will all be over soon."
Todd hesitated for a moment and then said, "If I didn't know you better, Liz, I'd almost guess you were seeing another guy."
Elizabeth's heart seemed to stop. "Why do you say that?" she asked. "I'd never do that to you."
"Then who was that guy who dropped you off down the street on Saturday, when I came to pick you up for dinner?" Todd asked.
"Oh, him!" Elizabeth said, laughing nervously. "He's one of my research partners."
"Then why did you have him stop at the other end of the street?" Todd asked, fiddling with his straw. "And why did you go up the neighbor's walk?"
What have I gotten myself into, Elizabeth wondered. "Listen, Todd!" Elizabeth said desperately. "I know things may seem a little weird right now. But I just know everything will be better after the presentation!"
"Let me tell you," he said, crossing his arms, a sullen took on his face, "this better be one special presentation."
"I think it will be," she said. "At least I hope it will be."
Todd looked searchingly at Elizabeth, then shook his head. "I hope it will be, too," he said, rising to his feet. "I've got to finish up a few problems before math, so I guess I'll see you later."
Elizabeth said goodbye and watched Todd saunter out of the cafeteria. She hated hurting Todd more than anything in the world. But after keeping her real project a secret for so long, she didn't want to ruin the surprise now. She only hoped that making him wait wouldn't end up ruining their relationship.
Just then, she saw Jessica approaching with Lila and Amy at her side.
"Hey, Liz," Jessica said, sitting down. "What's new with you?"
Elizabeth shrugged. "Not much."
"I hardly see you anymore, what with that project of yours," Jessica said.
"Did you find a way to get seaweed off the beaches yet?" Lila asked. "I hate swimming with that stuff—it's so slimy and gross."
"No, that's not exactly what I'm working on," Elizabeth said, laughing.
"Well, I'm sure it's just fascinating, whatever it is," Amy said, rolling her eyes.
"You'll see," Elizabeth promised. "Actually, Jess, I'm glad you came over here. I've been meaning to talk to you about something."
"Uh-oh," Jessica said. "Sounds like I'm in trouble."
"I heard about what you've been doing to Caroline at the Unique Boutique," Elizabeth said. "And I think it's terrible."
The three girls started giggling.
"I mean it, Jess," Elizabeth continued. She looked at the other girls. "I think you all should give her a break."
''But Caroline made the mistake of crossing Jessica Wakefield," Amy commented and laughed.
"I've seen you do stuff like this dozens of times before, Jess," Elizabeth said. "And you always end up getting in trouble."
"That's a chance I'm willing to take," Jessica answered. "Besides, I've got Caroline right where I want her."
"You sure do," Lila and Amy chimed at once.
"So let me worry about Caroline," Jessica added, lifting her eyebrows playfully. "And you just worry about your project!"
Smiling, Elizabeth watched the three girls rush out of the cafeteria.
Turtle eggs and seaweed? she thought, standing up. Do they ever have a surprise coming to them!
"Liz, listen to me," Sean began, following Elizabeth across the sand the next day. "Are you sure you want to surf today? I mean, you don't have to prove anything to me."
"I know that," Elizabeth replied firmly, dropping her board in the sand and kneeling down to wax it. "But maybe I have to prove something to myself."
"You know, Liz," Sean began, "I don't care about that competition. The only thing I care about is you and your safety."
"That's very sweet of you, Sean," Elizabeth replied, applying the last touches of wax to her bright purple board. "But I think I'd like to surf, anyway."
Elizabeth was putting on a very brave front, but she was trembling inside. In fact, she couldn't remember a time when she had been so nervous. She could hardly believe she was about to get back into the water—just three days after she had nearly drowned.
Her stomach was twisting and turning, and the palms of her hands were sweaty. She even shivered with cold a few times, even though the bright mid-afternoon sun was shining right on her.
"Just be careful," Sean said, looking deep into her eyes. "I don't know what I'd do if anything happened to you."
Elizabeth didn't like it when Sean acted so serious about her, but the look in his eyes was so genuine and sweet that Elizabeth couldn't bring herself to tell him to back off.
"Look at the ocean, Sean," Elizabeth said. "It's a perfect day for surfing."
There was no doubt about that. The sky was clear, the sun was warm, and the sea looked calm and steady. There were lots of kids from Big Mesa hanging out and talking on the beach, and quite a few surfers were out taking advantage of the beautiful day and better-than-average waves.
Just then Laurie MacNeil came strolling down from the clubhouse, wearing a skimpy bikini.
"Hi, Liz," she said. "I heard about your accident, and I just wanted to say how glad I am that you're OK."
"Thanks, Laurie," Elizabeth said.
"And you're so brave to get right back out there," Laurie continued. "But I guess I'd feel safe, too, with Sean watching me."
"He is a great teacher." Elizabeth gave Sean a smile.
"You guys are making me blush," Sean said. "But don't let that stop you!"
"Hey, Laurie, did I see you surfing a couple of weeks ago?" Elizabeth asked. "It was pretty late in the afternoon, but I could have sworn it was you."
"Are you kidding?" Sean interrupted. "When I see Laurie surfing, then I'll know something strange is up." He laughed good-naturedly.
"What do you mean?" Laurie asked, setting her hands playfully on her hips.
"You've just never shown an ounce of interest in doing any surfing, that's all," Sean answered.
"Well, I guess I saw someone who just looked like you," Elizabeth said to Laurie.
"It must have been someone else," Laurie said as she turned to walk away. "Good luck in the surfing competition, Liz."
"Thanks. Will you be watching?" Elizabeth asked.
"Definitely," Laurie replied. "See you guys later!" She ran off to join some friends on the beach.
"Laurie is really nice," Elizabeth commented after the girl had disappeared. "And she's so pretty."
"She did look kind of good," Sean admitted.
"I guess not everybody wants to be as daring and adventurous as we are!" Elizabeth said as she marched into the water with her surfboard under her arm.
"Hey, remember to stay to the back of the board and crouch down low when you're pulling out," Sean called out. "That's what the judges look for."
"All right!" Elizabeth cried.
But her confidence started to fade as she waded deeper into the water. And her stomach started churning even more as she began to paddle out across the powerful waves. She could feel her heart thumping in her chest.
But she did have a point to prove to herself. She had started this whole surfing thing to be more daring and unpredictable. And this was going to be the ultimate test.
Elizabeth caught sight of the perfect wave. It swelled up gently—it was powerful, but not too wild. She turned her board toward the shore and waited to feel the lift of the wave. She tried to stay calm, so she wouldn't make some big mistake and end up wiping out.
She felt the wave lift her board, and then she turned the board to the left and felt it dip down. The surfboard began to slide along the wave, but as hard as Elizabeth tried, she couldn't stand up. Her legs were literally paralyzed with fear. In fact, nothing at all seemed to work! She was telling her legs and arms to move, but they were ignoring her. What if she crashed into the water and was still unable to move?
&n
bsp; But then, a second later, like magic, she rose to her feet. The surfboard was gliding along perfectly. All of her confidence rushed back in a giant wave. She even let out a loud "Yahoo!" as she sped along. She had done it!
Elizabeth rode the wave perfectly. When the wave began to break on shore, she leaned back on the board, crouched down, and neatly pulled out of the wave. Sean was clapping and whistling wildly on the beach; then he waved his arms and smiled.
When Elizabeth walked out of the ocean, Sean ran over and gave her a big hug. "Well," he said proudly, "there's no doubt now that you're ready for the competition!"
"You know what?" Elizabeth responded, feeling exhilarated. "I think you're right!"
"You did a great job today, Liz. Maybe we should celebrate your comeback," Sean said. "Let's go to the beach café, and I'll buy you anything you want."
Sean and Elizabeth had just gotten to the clubhouse that afternoon, after an hour and a half of hard practice.
"That's very nice of you, Sean," she began, "but I really have other things I should do."
"Oh," Sean responded glumly.
Why does he have to look so brokenhearted? Elizabeth thought. "Well . . . maybe one soda wouldn't hurt," she said and grinned at him.
"Great!" Sean exclaimed, his face brightening immediately. He turned around and called, "Hey, Sammy? Would you mind closing up for me tonight? Something's just come up."
"Sure thing," Sammy said and gave Sean a wink, which made Elizabeth uncomfortable.
Without another word, Sean led Elizabeth across the sand to the Moon Beach Café. He ordered a hamburger, fries, and a malt, and Elizabeth ordered a soda. They sat down outside under a yellow umbrella.
"I want to propose a toast," Sean began, lifting his vanilla malt. "To a very brave surfer—and a beautiful girl."
Elizabeth blushed. "Thanks, Sean," she mumbled. And then—just to change the subject as quickly as possible—she added, "You know, I've been thinking of doing an article on surfing for our school newspaper."
"Oh, really?" Sean said.
Elizabeth nodded. "I thought I could write about everything you've taught me. I think everyone who doesn't surf would be interested in the different moves in surfing and the equipment, like your Simmons board, and the fact that it's worth so much money."
"That sounds like a great idea!" Sean exclaimed. "And that reminds me—I have an offer to make to you."
"Oh, really . . ." Elizabeth said hesitantly.
"Yeah. I'd like you to use my Simmons in the competition."
"Sean!" Elizabeth gasped. "I couldn't. It's your prize possession!"
"I've thought about it, and you're the only one I would ever let use it," Sean answered. He reached across the table and took Elizabeth's hand. "In these last couple of days, I really feel like something's been happening between us."
"But the board's worth thousands of dollars," Elizabeth protested, pulling her hand away. "And what if I lose it or break it—or even so much as scratch it?"
"Then it'll have been scratched for a good cause," Sean said. "So that's the end of the discussion. It's one of the best boards ever made, and I want you to use it!"
She felt strange about agreeing, especially after Sean had taken her hand. But she just couldn't bring herself to say no to him. He seemed so eager for her to do well in the competition, and she knew it wasn't just because of the bet.
The truth was, Elizabeth couldn't quite figure out how to deal with Sean's feelings for her. He knew she had a boyfriend, but that didn't seem to make much of a difference to him. Was he ever going to give up? she wondered.
Ten
"I guess I have to go, since you're my sister," Jessica said, rolling her eyes. "But I can think of about a million more interesting things to do on a Saturday afternoon."
It was Wednesday, and Elizabeth was walking through the cafeteria, inviting people to her presentation at the Moon Beach Marine Biology Center.
"And, Lila and Amy, you guys are invited, too," Elizabeth added. "I know it sounds kind of dull, but I think you might end up being surprised."
"I'll have to check my schedule," Lila said, lifting her nose. "I may have something planned for Saturday afternoon."
"I may have something planned, too," Amy added, clearing her throat.
"Oh, no, you don't," Jessica remarked, shaking her finger at her friends. "If I have to go to some boring presentation, then you guys have to come along, too!"
"But we've been helping you with everything these days," Lila said, pouting. "And look at the thanks we get. Without us, you would have been kicked out of the Unique Boutique long ago."
"Speaking of the Unique Boutique, Jess," Elizabeth began, "I really hope you're not planning to go back—"
"Stop right there, Liz," Jessica interrupted, holding up her hand. "I'm going to suffer enough with this marine biology thing—I don't need a lecture, too!"
"OK, OK," Elizabeth said with a laugh. She stole a potato chip from Jessica's bag and then turned to walk away.
She found Todd sitting with Winston Egbert at a table in the corner.
"Hi, Todd. Hi, Win," she said, swinging down into the chair beside him. "I just wanted to remind you guys that you're both invited to my marine biology presentation on Saturday."
"Can't wait," Winston said. "I'll be sure to bring a pillow and an alarm clock."
"I should be able to make it," Todd said distantly. "Unless something comes up."
"Oh, Todd," Elizabeth cried, "you have to be there! It won't be any fun at all without you."
"Fun?" Todd said glumly. "We haven't had any fun together for weeks."
"Please, Todd!" Elizabeth pleaded. "Promise me you'll be there."
As Todd stood up to leave, he gave Elizabeth a searching glance. "OK, I'll be there," he said. Then he turned and left the cafeteria.
Elizabeth continued making the rounds, inviting people to Moon Beach, but she was afraid she would start crying at any minute. Todd had never seemed so distant. She had a feeling she was losing Todd, and all because of a stupid dare she had given herself! No one had made her do it, after all.
Finally she spotted Enid, and her heart lifted a little. At least she had her best friend to talk to! In fact, Elizabeth thought as she hurried over to Enid's table, I feel like telling Enid everything, I've got to get all this off my chest—even if it does ruin the surprise.
"Enid, I'm so happy to see you," Elizabeth said, dropping into a chair beside her friend.
"Liz, what's wrong?" Enid asked. "You look upset."
"Enid, it seems like everything's going wrong lately," Elizabeth said. "And mostly it has to do with this big project that I've been keeping secret from everybody."
"Oh, the marine biology thing," Enid said with a little yawn. Even she seemed to think that a marine biology project was a bore.
"Yes. The marine biology thing—or what I've been calling the marine biology thing."
Enid regarded her friend. "What do you mean? Aren't you actually doing a special project?"
Elizabeth hesitated.
"Didn't you invite me up to the Moon Beach Marine Biology Center on Saturday, to watch some kind of big presentation?" Enid asked.
"Of course," Elizabeth exclaimed, taking a deep breath to collect herself. "But it's more complicated than that. You see, I've been sick and tired of everybody thinking I'm boring and unadventurous. So a little while ago I decided to do something different, and I—"
"Hey, guys" Caroline Pearce said. She sat down at the table. "What's new?"
"Oh, not much, I guess," Elizabeth said wearily. She could tell by the glimmer in Caroline's eyes that she had something juicy to tell them.
"Well, work at the Unique Boutique is going really well for me," Caroline gushed, to Elizabeth's surprise. "Of course, my boss is a real nightmare. She's constantly telling me, 'The customer always comes first.' Can you believe it? I mean, most of the customers we get in there should come last, in my opinion."
Elizabeth knew Caroline was
referring to Jessica, but she decided to keep silent.
"I haven't been to see the store yet," Enid said innocently.
"Oh, then you'd better hurry up," Caroline answered. She cleared her throat and added, "I mean, you'd better hurry up because a lot of really cute outfits are going to be taken off the racks soon, to make room for next season's clothes. But everything in the store is just fabulous."
"It sounds as though you really like working there, Caroline," Enid remarked.
"It's not a bad place to work," Caroline replied. "But there is one really interesting thing. There's a new salesgirl starting work next week who bears a really weird resemblance to someone we all once knew. And I'll bet someone in the Wakefield family would be very interested to see her."
"What are you talking about, Caroline?" Elizabeth asked.
"Oh, sorry, guys!" Caroline exclaimed, rising from her chair and checking her watch. "Gotta run! See you soon!"
"But, Caroline—" Enid protested as Caroline hurried out of the cafeteria.
"What do you think that was all about?" she said, turning to Elizabeth.
"Who knows! I'm not going to worry about it, though."
"You're probably right, Liz," Enid said as the bell rang. Both girls stood up and headed out to the busy corridor. "But tell me what you were going to say earlier, about being boring and all that."
"Oh, that," Elizabeth answered with a wave of her hand. "Nothing important. Just promise me you'll be at my presentation on Saturday."
"I wouldn't miss it!" Enid answered with a smile.
The next time Jessica decided to terrorize the Unique Boutique happened to be that very afternoon, even though neither Amy nor Lila would come along.
As soon as Jessica opened the door, Caroline Pearce rushed over to her with a sweet smile.
"Hello, Jessica," she said politely. "How may I help you this afternoon?"
Jessica had to admit she was a little confused by this sudden burst of good manners. What had happened to the old Caroline, who tried to avoid waiting on Jessica as if she had the plague? But Jessica wasn't going to be fooled by whatever Caroline was up to. She would proceed with her scheme exactly as planned.
The New Elizabeth (Sweet Valley High Book 63) Page 7
