Page 4 of Snow Good to Lose
Amari
“Hiyah.” I released a jab into Caden’s chest, retreated, and circled to my left. My face remained blank, but pain radiated up my arm from the impact.
“That’s my girl.” He rubbed the spot on his left peck and braced for the next one. “But, yelling ‘hiyah’ prior to delivering the punch is counterproductive to your goal. You’re warning your opponent.”
“My opponents aren’t that smart.” I circled to the right. “And, they don’t speak English.”
His scowl had morphed into a smirk, we were almost done.
“If you’re not going to take this seriously, we might as well stop now.” He threw up his hand while bracing for my next blow.
“Fine.” I threw up my hands in similar fashion and turned my back on him.
“Mari.” Frustration filled his voice.
I planted my left foot, swung my right leg back, and connected to his upper thigh.
“Hiyah,” I whispered.
“Fuck.” His eyes narrowed. He rubbed his thigh and looked up at me. There was no scowl, no frown. The fire in his eyes threatened to scorch me hotter than the late afternoon sun. I took off down the shoreline. I made it a few feet before Caden caught me and slung me over his shoulder.
“Put me down.” I pounded on his back and flailed my legs. He ran into the surf. A minute later I careened through the air, arms flailing. The ocean came at me fast. I had enough time to hold my breath before being submerged.
My feet found the bottom, and I pushed off and barreled into Caden’s legs to pull him down with me.No such luck.
He gripped me around the waist and tossed me into the surf again. When I regained my barrings, I swam back toward shore.
Swimming turned into a crawl as the sand dug into my knees. Caden splashed behind me. I peeked back. His hands reached out as the waves retreated from the shore.
His fingertips grazed my left ankle. I dug into the sand and kicked back with my right foot.I grazed something else.
“Ugh.”
I flipped onto my back.
“Fuck, Mari.” Caden grabbed his junk and rolled onto his side. “Why ...”
The wave returned and washed over his head. He sputtered and coughed as he tried to get back on his knees.
“Caden.” I crawled to his side and held his head. He pulled himself through the sand with one hand and protected his family jewels with the other. Once safe from the water, he collapsed on his back. His chest rose and fell. His eyes remained closed.
I placed my hand on his chest and kneeled next to him.
“You okay?” I asked.
He peaked at me through one eye but didn’t answer me.
“You told me to never give up.” I tapped my fingers on his bare chest. “Fight until you arrive or until I’m dead.”
He placed his hands over mine to stop my strumming.
I leaned over and kissed his cheek.
“I guess this means we're—” My world flipped and I ended up underneath him.
“That’s right. You’re not dead, so why did you give up?” He shook his head. Water pellets sprayed my face. “You never listen to me.”
I struggled against him and pushed at his chest. He captured my wrist and pinned them above my head. The sand irritated my back.
