The summer sun was rising as Luke stood on the cove looking towards the ocean next to his cousin Sam. Even with the bearer of the new day coming up from behind them instead of coming from the sea, the landscape was still breathtaking to Luke. The waves looked bigger, the water looked bluer, the sand was finer than the other beach Luke was at. Even with the beach being what Luke would consider paradise, this felt more like home than the other one. With how much Luke felt at one with the place, he did not even pay attention to the group of about 15 kids in the corner of his sight.

The sun once again was making the same promise of a new day, and a new start to Luke. This time both of the vows were going to be kept. There was going to be a new and better era in Luke’s life. This period will be filled with positive personal growth, people surrounded by people who were as supportive of him as he was of them. Luke was looking forward to these promising desires becoming a fact all those tomorrows which will be better than the day before. Somehow having the start of the new day behind him instead of in front of the boy completed the covenant.

Sam just stood there with his cousin. Those two shared so much in common. Finding peace and contentment among the waves and seagulls was a big one. Just embracing the silence, being in the moment and enjoying it together, put a little bit of a bigger smile on Sam’s face. This moment would make the bond between them stronger and also help him to better understand why Luke was his mom’s favorite nephew. Luke was a kindred spirit of both him and her.

Sam wanted to come here not only to have his cousin greet the sun, there were also a group of people he wanted him to meet. These people were also like the sun, for they will brighten up Luke’s days here. They were the kids who hung out here, the Cove Crew.

This cove was where Sam spent many of his summer and weekend days and nights while in high school as part of the Cove Crew. This group has been around for over 50 years. The group is so old that some of the members are third generation in the Cove Crew. Many kids have come and gone, but the self-made clan stayed strong. The reason was that the crew was about being there for each other.

After soaking in the moment and feeling at one with the area Sam motioned for Luke to follow him. They went towards that group of kids. As they were walking and coming closer to their destination, four of the kids, two boys and two girls, in that group started to walk towards them. Luke started to tense up, he felt that these kids were going to tell them to leave. That those kids would find anyway to put him down so he would not belong. Them being what they were a welcoming party never occurred to Luke.

The boy in the front was the leader and when they started to get closer his arms and eyes opened up. Luke’s sponsor to joining the Cove Crew did the same. Right then Luke knew these kids were friends not foes. Sam and the boy embraced.

The leader said “Sam, is that the east coast kid you told us about.”
Sam “Yeah his name is Luke.”

The boy went to Luke with an embrace “Luke, I am Silk.

I am sorry about forgetting your name. Sam told us about you and you hitting that McTwist stuck with us more than your name. Dude that trick is hard.”

Then one of the girls came up “Silk that trick is more than hard, hitting that is impressive.”

That girl was just making sure Luke hitting the McTwist was not downplayed for the sake of Silk seeming cooler than he is. Everyone who knew the girl knew she would speak up. Saying what was on her mind was what she did. Her nickname was Shy Girl and it was an ironic one.

After making sure the record was straight Shy Girl then welcomed Luke into the fold with a hug “I am Shy Girl, call me Shy. I guess we will be calling you Luke.”

The next to join in the greeting was Greg K. “Shy, only just now you were calling him Eck.”

Luke joined with the one-word question Eck. Why would anyone call him Eck was beyond him. Right away he was thinking the worse about Eck. It must be local slang for an outsider, or tag along. Greg K knew Luke was nervous. “Yeah Luke, Shy kept on calling you Eck instead of East Coast Kid when we were talking about you. She thinks it is a nickname.”

A nickname, Luke never had a nickname. A nickname meant people really accepted you. That your connection to them was strong, stronger that just normal friends. His feelings about the Cove Crew was now higher than the waters at high tide. They were so welcoming to him before they even knew him. “I like it.”

Greg was about to say he liked it also before welcoming Eck into the group, when the fourth member of the welcoming committee said “I like it to. Eck fits you. I am Lil.”

Lil was short for little surfer. She was the second-best surfer in the crew. The only one who was better than her was Silk. The only reason Silk was better than her, was he had two more years of experience on the board. Even with his nickname coming from how smooth he was on the waves, even Silk knew one day Lil would surpass him. Silk was looking forward to passing the torch to her. That was what the Cove Crew was about, enjoying life and making each other better.

Lil stating she liked Eck made Shy Girl look at her and almost do what was her name sake and say really what she thought. This was not to call her friend out, but to understand Lil’s opinion changing quicker than a cheetah. That was a quick change, until 15 minutes ago Lil liking the name Eck would have been a lie. Shy Girl ended up saying nothing, the look on her friend’s face was enough explanation. Lil liked Eck.
The change in liking came from when Lil saw Luke from afar, she took an instant liking to what she saw. If Luke liked Eck then she would because that was what Luke would want to be called. Yeah Sam’s cousin was cute with his curly hair, blue eyes and slim muscular body and that did help. What caught Lil’s eye was how Luke was admiring the beach. She could tell that just being in the presence of the sand, sun, open sky and waves was a spiritual experience for Luke. Lil wanted to go up there right then and join in and embrace the wonders of what the beach was with that stranger so they would know each other without words.

Lil did the welcoming embrace and hers was the longest. The newly crowned Eck did not mind. In fact to him the embrace could last all day and it would not have been too long. The hug was like the beach, felt like home. The hug also made the new kid of the group feel a close connection to Lil. To him this hug was not two strangers becoming friends, but two friends finding and meeting each other.

Even when the hug ended those two were still holding each other. The embrace was mostly spiritual, but there was a physical manifestation to it also. Their hands forgot the embrace was over and kept a hold of each other. Greg K almost called Eck over to make sure that their greeting was done properly, then he saw Eck’s and Lil’s hands not wanting to break the connection. The physical embrace was not important to Greg so he gave an emotional one. “Come on Eck, come meet the rest of the crew.”

Sam was happy to see Eck was taking to the group like a fish to the water. He said “Yeah go over there. I am going to get my board. Eck if you like you can give it a try.”

“I would love that.”

Lil said “I will love giving you some tips.”

As Sam went to get his board everyone else started to walk towards where the rest of Cove Crew was. The boy now known as Eck would be welcomed with open arms. There was no doubt to Eck or anyone else he was a crewmember. They accepted people right away, that was what made the Cove Crew so tight. Plus, they all saw the strong connection he already had with Lil. Within the Cove Crew, if someone was dear to one of them then that person was dear to all of them.

*********************

A madras is a hot curry sauce. The heat in this sauce is a complex one which comes from different spices. The layering of the hot spices along the balancing effects of the other spices is what makes madras curry dishes delicious. The heat is not heat for the sake of heat. The sauce was not used by insecure men to prove they can handle it, but by people who wanted a pleasant experience of eating something with complexity to how it tastes.

Not only is the taste complex in the madras, but the process of making the sauce is also so. Some of the spices are dried, others are fresh. Some of the spices need to be crushed, others left whole. Different spices need to be added at different times, and the spices need to be added in a precise order at the right time. For someone to say that they just whipped up this sauce, is being as truthful as a lady who dressed in her best little black dress makes the comment of “oh this ole thing? It is nothing,” to the compliment she received from who she was trying to impress.

Ramesh was going to try to use the excuse that he just whipped up a batch of madras as why he stopped by the Zahn’s house. He knew how much Fred and the rest of the family loved that curry sauce and maybe getting a nice surprise would distract them from looking for a reason behind this unexpected visit. The visit might have been as unexpected as a helping hand from a stranger when a person needs one, but it was also as needed as that helping hand.

Ramesh had to know how Luke was doing. It was not until a couple of weeks ago that he found out the real reason why Luke was not hanging out with his son Matt anymore. Luke was such a close friend and Ramesh did find it odd that those two did not hang out, but bought the reasoning Matt gave him. That Matt was so focused on science. There was no reason not to see this as drifting apart instead of what it was, a falling out. Even with the little bickering he saw between Matt and Luke, he just assumed it was just teenagers being teenagers. Friends do drift apart when they become teenagers because their interests and hobbies change.

Now with the real reason Luke and Matt not being friends anymore along with what Tom did with the gift coming to light, Ramesh was worried about Luke. He knew what it was like to be an outsider. He grew up as the only kid of Indian descent in his neighborhood. He was never really in the inner circle, anyways reminded he was an outsider. Sometimes on purpose, like some jerk joking about Ramesh's family's religion by saying the hamburger he was eating was Ramesh’s aunt. Sometimes by accident, when someone would mention how weird the name Ramesh was when first meeting him.

Fred was out front tending to the flower bed in front of the living room window when he heard Ramesh call out to him “Hey there Fred, how have you been?”

This was a pleasant surprise. Fred and Ramesh hadn’t had one on one time since their kid were no longer friends. With liking Ram, Fred did not questioned the visit. It would be nice to catch up with him. “Great, how about yourself? What brings you here?”

“Doing good and was in the mood to make some madras. I know how much you like it, so I figure I will give you some.”

“Thanks. I will be using this tonight. So how is Shanthi?”

“She is fine and has asked why you and Luke have not been to the bike park.”

Ramesh got quiet. He hated doing the dancing around the issue, it made feel like his tongue was replaced with two left feet. The words were code not their true meaning. He should have been more upfront.

A smile came to Fred’s face hearing his son’s name. The father missed Luke but was happy. Fred’s son was thriving better than the well-maintained flower bed in front of his house. Getting away from Lori and his mom has been so good to Luke’s personal growth. It has only been a month, but in that month, Luke sounded like a different person. His voice was stronger and his choice of words were more optimistic.

“There is a great reason. Luke is spending the summer in California with family.”

“Fred you know that I was mad at my son when I found out the extent of what happened between them. Matt messed up. That gift was so wrong. He should not have treated his friend that way.”

“Ram, calm down. That gift was not your son doing. Renee’s boyfriend switched tags. I know Matt and Renee, they would have never done something that mean. Your son fell in with the wrong crowd. The sad part is my daughter is part of that group”

Ram came clean about the visit. He did not want the talk to become about making him feel good about his son. “Matt was wrong to even be in that position that people thought he would do that. Anyways, I came here to make sure that Luke was doing good and it just hurts that he is not.”

“Ram, my son is. I am so happy for him. It hurts that he is not here right now, but he is getting better. Plus, when he comes back, he will not have to deal with any of Lori’s friends anymore.”

“Going to send Luke to a private school.”

“No, we are going to move. He needs a new start and living here will not give it to him.”

Ram felt as guilty “Fred, I don’t know what to say. I think I am going to get going.

“You could say the neighborhood is not going to be the same without you Fred.”

Fred wanted to spend time with his friend. It was going to be good to catch with Ram. Plus, he did not want their little conversation to end on a down note.

“How about I go get us some beer and we sit in the back? We can talk about ours kids and catch up. You know, Luke is learning to surf. I never thought my son would end up being a beach boy for a summer. But he is, and he is happy.”

Ramesh said “That sounds great, Matt is really excelling in chemistry. He is doing a science summer camp down at CMU. He also is not hanging out with Lori and her crew. Renee and that Mike Patton also are not.”

*************

Lori was wishing that it was last summer. Being punished last summer was a cakewalk compared to this summer. Last summer the punishment was more of a facade to appease her dad. Her mom was lenient enough to make the price of making Luke a total outcast worth paying. Her spirits would be uplifted every time she saw that Luke was as miserable as a person with a toothache. Lori might not be having a good time, but that was only because she was not allowed to. Luke could have a good time and was not. That means once punishment was over, life would be how it should be, hers better than Luke’s.

This summer is different. Her mom was not turning a blind eye for Lori. The lockdown was all the time. The Brat Princess could not do anything without the permission of her strict dad. Her dad was denying most of her requests. She could not even have Luke around to see that his predicament was worse than hers. Even thinking of his brother was a reminder life was not how it should be.

Luke being in such an awesome place made it worse. People told her California was where dreams were made and she did not doubt it. As she was in her nightmare, her brother was living the life on the West Coast. He was hanging out on the beach with surfers. Lori watched many movies and tv shows with surfers in them and the surfers were always the cool kids. Lori should be in the spotlight with the cool kids not that dork of a brother she had.

The only thing Lori had to look forward to was going to The David Project. This non-profit worked with bullied teens. This was the only time she felt free from the watchful eye of her dad. This was the only place where she could freely interact with other kids her age without worrying about anything getting back to her dad.

Giving time to the David project not only freed her from being watched over by others, it freed her from herself. When Lori went to the event hall which the David Project used for their weekly get togethers, the Brat Princess never came along. Lori did not have the expectations from her mom to be the spotlight, she was free to finally be herself.

Helping to set up and break down for the meeting was how Lori started to break down who she was as a spoiled attention seeking girl and started to set up meeting her potential of being a good person. This process was like paint drying, slow and hardly noticeable to people not paying attention. The progress was small and undetected even to Lori. At first, she wanted to perform a good job in setting up, so the little the other volunteers could say to her father would be good. Then it went to her wanting to have pride in her work until it became that she wanted to make sure that those kids who had this place as a haven got the best. Even with resisting and not believing in her dad’s actions, Lori was becoming a better person.

****************

Matt was relaxing with Renee in her backyard pool, when he told his best friend about Luke. They were just enjoying the weightlessness of sitting in the floating pool chairs when those words became the weight of the world to Renee. After hearing the news Renee disrupted the nice vibes of enjoying the great weather as she delivered a mini rant to show her displeasure “He is not coming back, not coming back. That can’t be, Matt. That cannot be. I need to see Luke again. All three of us were so close. We spent every weekend together. This cannot be.

“Luke does not need to start again. He has us. We messed up and we were working on getting our friendship back. Us three together can give Luke the new start he needs. This is not fair. We need to make this right and can’t.”

To Renee, Luke getting this new start and new life was the worst thing which could happen. There was no need for Luke to start over. Not living in his hometown was not fair to Luke. Not being close to his friends was not fair to Luke. Things could be made right and she wanted to. The girl did not get a chance to make things right. In her eyes people deserve to be able to correct their mistakes until they get it right. This comes from Renee having no quit in her. Her strength came from her not giving up. Now even with the will to make life how it should be, Renee was powerless to do so.

Matt got out of his floating pool chair and swam over to Renee. The distance was only 10 feet but waddling in the water towards her would take too much time. Matt had a need to be next to his friend right away. “Renee we are making this right. We might not see Luke again, but we will still make this right. We will be worthy of being Luke’s friends even if he never knows it. He wants the best for us and us being our best is the only thing we can do.

“I know it hurts, but Luke getting a new start is what is best for him. We want what is best for him.”

“Yes Matt, but dammit I miss him. I always thought that there would be time for us to get back on the same page.

“I care for him so much and he will never know that. Luke will always think back about us as just two more people who picked on him.”

Hearing about Luke not knowing their true feelings prompted Matt’s to face his true feeling about Renee. He liked her. It was not just that he liked her, Matt like her like her. The only thing which was holding Matt back until this moment was how unsure he was about girls. The boy had only kissed one girl, Lori, in his life and that kiss was a lie. Having his feelings being used to hurt his friends, made Matt unsure of them and also of others. He was confident in reading the signs he got from girls. That led to doubt and doubt is a huge red light for a person to take action on.

Those words became a green light for Matt to act on the feelings he felt for Renee. The day that they clean up after the party together, Renee mentioned how she should have shared her first kiss with someone like Matt. This might not be a first kiss, but this kiss will be more real than any kiss Tom ever gave Renee. Tom liked Renee as a person, but he was more into her for her looks. Matt could care less how Renee looked. Yes, he found her as beautiful as Lakshmi, The Hindu Goddess of Beauty, but that was not what drove his affection for her.

Matt leaned in to kiss Renee. He felt that it was now or never. There might have never been another chance for him to open up to her like this. If Matt was right, Renee would know the kiss was coming from the fact that her friend did not want her not to know how much he cared for her.

Renee leaned in towards Matt so their lips would meet quicker. She also cared for Matt and when he showed her his true feelings, she wanted to become closer with him. Even if nothing came from this kiss, Renee was making sure that Matt knew how much she cared for him. How much she trusted him. If Matt thought this kiss was a good idea, then Renee would try it. Matt would never harm her.

The kiss was as good of an idea as being honest with oneself. These two would never say that they shared their first kiss with each other, but deep down when being honest they both felt that they shared their first real kiss with each other. This kiss had caring and kindness powering it. The kisses they shared before was about the other person getting what they wanted. Tom wanted Renee as his girlfriend and Lori wanted to cause pain to Luke.

After the kiss, Matt put his hand on Renee’s face. Looking deeply into her eyes he said. “We messed up by not showing Luke how much we cared for him. I was not going to make that mistake with you when you factor in that I care for you. I want you by my side. I just had to show you that. It would have felt wrong just saying it.”

As she put her hand on Matt’s face, Renee returned the gaze into his eyes. “I want you by my side also. We make each other better. I want to be better and I want you to be better.”

******************

Movie theaters are the most private public spaces. Those massive complexes are designed to hold many people, yet have each small group’s entire time there being separate from the rest of the public. The most obvious way comes from the design to enhance the movie watching experience. The screens are dark with more than enough sitting. The lobby area is also designed for no interaction. There is sensory overload to ensure the moviegoer is lost in the moment. The bright lights drawing their attention to the concession stands. The movie posters blasted all over the walls. Some of the all-time great to get the patron in the right mindset to have a good time. Being reminded of a good time helps people be in the right place to have a good time. The rest of upcoming features the theater will have. Plant a seed in their mind that they have to come back soon.

How private is this public space was the reason why Lori and Blake would always go to a movie on their dates. Ever since Tom’s prank of switching the gift tag, Lori was barely able to ever just hang out with her friends. Her dad was strict in raising her. He knew that Lori still needed to have some freedom, but at the same time he supervised her more than a normal teenager.

Blake also would never stay at Lori’s house when Fred came home. Just being around Mr. Zahn made Blake feel uneasy. The young boy knew that his girlfriend’s dad liked him as much as a housecat likes the rain. Another reason was the open disdain Fred showed Blake when calling Lori’s boyfriend out on who he was. Blake knew the reason was his actions and they were wrong. Lying to himself was easier than facing the truth and working on becoming a better person, so he much rather stay away from anyone who reminded him of who he really was.

Those two went to many movies but never really saw one. They spent the time in the back row of the screen and did what any teenage couple did in private, made out. Those two not only explored each other bodies, but also how they liked others to explore their bodies. Even with the private area being in public they both learned how far they were willing to go. This knowledge did not come from action, but desire.

Blake wanted more than just hot and heavy make out sessions and Lori did not. She was not ready and being only in a semi private area made it so she did not have to give in to any pressure. Being able to ease into her sexual experiences ended up giving Lori true anonymity over her body. Not feeling forced, made her understand that someone would stay with her for who she was, not what she did in the bedroom for them.

Alice was always the one who picked up Blake and Lori to drive the young lovebirds home from the date. Fred knew he made Blake as comfortable as a grandson wearing a bad sweater to show his grandparents he was grateful for their gift. He might not like Lori’s choice of boyfriend, but he was going to be supportive of her. Chasing Blake away would only do more damage to his relationship with Lori and make his daughter even more resistant to what he was trying to instill in her.

Lori’s mom loved picking her daughter up from those dates. Alice saw this time as mother-daughter bonding together. Plus, she knew that Lori would not open up to Fred as much as she did to her. Most teenage girls weren’t going to have an in-depth conversation about relationships with their fathers. Alice knew these conversations needed to be had. That if Lori could be open about what was going with Blake that she could get the support from her mom to make the right decision. Alice acted like a ship captain and steered Lori's decision to wait to become more sexually active. Taking this course was easy. The flow and the wind from Lori was already heading towards the destination of waiting until she was totally ready.

Lastly, Alice liked having this time alone so she could reassure Lori that they were not moving. Lori was dreading losing all of her friends and having to start over at a new school. These talks made Lori see her worries as insignificant as she found her brother. She knew that even with her Queen not being able to protect her from being under the strict rule of Luke’s Lord Protector that she would not lie to her. Lori took comfort that at least when away from her dad she would always have her court close to her.

******************

Luke’s life was just like California, bright, energetic and filled with countless possibilities. The sun seemed to always shine and just made the colors all around more vivid. The great weather made it so people were always outside on the move. Finally, having the beach two blocks away from his Aunt’s home, plus LA being a tourist destination made it so Luke had choices of what to do. Even with being able to go to tourist traps like Disney Land or do a tour of a Hollywood studio, Luke's choice was almost always the same one, he would pick going down to the beach.

Even with the choice being the same place there was always so much to do at the cove. There was surfing or just being in the ocean. Then if Luke was in the mood to stay on the beach, there was catching frisbee or football, playing volleyball, or just soaking the warm sunrays and being around his fellow members of the crew. There was one important thing all of these options had, him being with his friends. This was when Luke would be Eck.

The options did not end there. Eck and Lil would sometimes just take a walk on the pathway which skirted the beach to being alone or to make it down to the boardwalk. The boardwalk had rides, food stands, games of chance, sideshows by street performers, and souvenir shops. It was a permanent carnival filled with regulars, locals, tourists and the workers. Most of the workers there were carneys. After all who else would be working at a carnival?

The carnies had a different way of dividing who was at the boardwalk. Insiders and outsiders. Of course the other workers were all insiders, but some of the regulars also made it into that inner circle. The kids of the Cove Crew did. This was because of the overlap between the carney’s and Cove Crew’s code and of taking care of their own, being united and not to take advantage of the young and the weak.

The outsiders were divided into two main groups, marks and non-marks. A mark was someone who they could make easy money out of. Marks usually had one of two traits, vanity or carelessness. They also had something which made the carney not feel bad about taking their money, a huge surplus of money. This was important to the carney, they did not want to take away from people who needed the money. That went against their code of not taking advantage of the young and weak. Also, it would be bad business. A good mark was one which never found out they were one and had a good time spending their money. A good mark was the rich kid using his mommy and daddy’s money trying too hard to impress his girl by winning her that stuffed animal. Another example of a good mark was a couple from out of the country who wanted to spend all their money so they did not have to exchange it. The grandparents with their grandkids were also someone who was more than happy to overspend to have a good time.

These walks towards the land of barkers and flashing lights was Eck’s favorite thing to do when not being in the waves. This was when Eck and Lil got to really know each other. Even with still calling each other by their nicknames, this was when Eck was Luke and Lil was Mary. They shared their dreams during this time. Eck knew he wanted to work with IT. This field to him was about connection and communication. The boy holding Lil’s hand wanted nothing more than to help make better connections and be able to communicate better. Lil wanted to be a pilot. She wanted it because of the freedom of flight. She also loved the ability to connect to faraway places so quickly.

As Luke was gaining his footing on who he was, he was also gaining his footing on the surfboard. Going to the beach to greet the sun gave the perfect chance to practice. That was a perk of being in the dawn patrol. For Luke, it also helped that one of the other members of the dawn patrol in the Cove Crew was Lil. She wanted as much time as she could have with the waves to herself.

This time helped Luke go from a Barney, a new surfer, who jaked a lot, got in the way of an experienced surfer, to surfer quickly. Within a week, Eck was good on the stick. The balance from riding his skateboard helped him make the learning curve not as steep as the waves he was learning on. Plus the support of the Cove Crew added to his confidence to keep on keeping on striving to be the best he could.

Lil did not mind taking some time away from her surfing to help because teaching the barney also meant it was spending time with Eck. Even if the newbie was not her boyfriend she would still enjoy mentoring him. Helping others to become better surfers was how she could payback those who did the same with her. Teaching the new people at the Cove was what made the crew so tight. Lastly, it made sure that they did not fall into localism, looking down at others who were not part of the group. Helping right away made sure others were part of the group right away if they wanted.

Lil was happy that Eck was not one of the Shobies, one who bought the board, gear and clothing as only an accessory to try to fit in. If that boy was not true to himself her initial connection and attraction to him would have faded as quick as a breaking wave, Eck’s goal from being sketchy on the board to being sick on the stick just added to her feeling for him. Then, if sharing a love to surf was not the reason. Eck wanting to be his best was. Lil’s goal was to be a pilot, she needed to aim for her best. That was the only way she would get accepted to the pilot program in the Navy.

A week into Eck coming down to be part of the dawn patrol, only him and Lil reported for duty. It was a Saturday morning and the older kids had a little bit of too much fun the night before. Those two being at the cove alone also led to a huge advance in Luke’s skill, there was no wait for a wave. He also could choose the best waves with good tubes to ride.

This time also led to a huge advance in Eck’s and Lil relationship. They shared their first kiss. Luke was able to make it out of being in the green room, inside the tube and ride the wave out until it crashed. The feeling of finishing the ride without wiping out was blissful. To him it was yet another sign that the new day and new start was here. He escaped the closing walls of the green room to the light of day. Right away Eck gratefully looked at Lil.

Lil was proud of Eck and herself. Eck was modest, it takes a good person to know that they did not acomplished their goal on their own. He also did not have that typical male ego. So many guys she met would not admit that she was a better surfer than them. They would not take her advice. Her giving the tip, training and teaching Eck made her feel good about herself. She was making sure that The Cove Crew stuck together. That they will have a united front of being there for one another.

Eck made his way to his mentor and friend. He was only going to hug her. He wanted to feel that close to her again. Maybe by holding each other, how he felt at that moment would pass onto her. When he got to her the plan changed. Eck hugged Lil as tight as a board on a wave when doing the cutback move and spun her around. The spin gave them a feeling of euphoria, some of that came from being lightheaded and the rest was from their touch.

Then when Eck put down Lil he kissed her. That kiss made both of their cheeks as red as the skin of someone who wiped out. The blood rushed so strongly to their cheeks they swore it was from some foam when it hit the skin. After the kiss they just held each other. Those two became just one silhouette against the orange red sky background from the rising sun.