Chapter 23: Beach Blanket Crash

The first summer of their relationship was, for Sophia and Warren, all in all, idyllic.

They worked. They went to the beach. They went to parties. Warren, under Nick's tutelage, started lifting weights-and Sophia even started a bit, also. Warren had a noticeable improvement in two months-on and off the ice. They skated. They hung out together, at the mall, at one of their houses, wherever. They made love as much as possible. Warren got Sophie hooked on the computer, and she met a lot of his internet friends. Even Peg Kelleher came to better grips with their relationship-she worried about them having sex, but she had to agree that their relationship was much, much more than that-and that it appeared incredibly solid, especially for their ages. Watching them spend hours at a time at her house-watching TV, playing on the computer, playing chess, just talking, sometimes they'd even be cuddled together reading separate books-all of this had convinced Peg that the relationship was by no means just hormonal. That came as a great relief.

It was all coming to an end, however, as Labor Day weekend was fast dawning. It was the Thursday before Labor Day, and Warren called Sophie on the phone. Caller ID let her know who it was.

"Well, good evening, Snugglebear. You read my mind-I was just about to call you."

"Great minds think alike, Pookie. Listen, I've got a question. Do you mind some company at the beach tomorrow?"

"Great minds do think alike, dear heart, because I was going to call to ask you the exact same question. Who did you have in mind?"

"Crash. You?"

"I'd love to have Crash come with. Might get him out of his funk. I was thinking of Jessie."

"Jessie does the beach?"

"Occasionally."

"Great! Bring her along. Your mom is dropping off and mine is picking up, right? Crash will meet us there, he actually lives closer."

"Then it's all settled. Jessie and Crash, eh? This might be combustible!"

"You ain't fixing me up with no Preppy, guys!" Jessie said accusingly in the car the next morning.

Warren laughed. "Nobody was fixing anyone up with anybody, She-Devil. This is purely a coincidence. Crash called me, I mentioned we were going to the beach, and he asked to come along. He got dumped two months ago and is in a funk. It'll do him some good to gaze at beach bunnies for a day. When I called Sophia to clear it with her, she told me that you had asked to come, also. Pure coincidence."

"Well. All right."

"Besides which," Sophia said with a giggle, "at least you two can commiserate about having best friends who are in this sickeningly sweet lovey-dovey relationship."

"Why, does he give you guys the same kind of shit I do?" asked Jessie.

"Very similar," smiled Warren.

"Hmmm. I like him already."

"Where to, guys?" Ellen Kovach interjected, driving.

"Right up ahead, Mom," said Sophia. "In front of the ice cream stand, there."

"Yup, there's Crash."

They got out of the car, grabbing their towels and stuff. Warren said hi to Crash and handled quick introductions: "Jessica Reidel, aka Jessie; Jason Kowalski, aka Crash."

"Nice to meet you," Crash said, shaking Jessie's hand. "Another set up, Warren?" Crash asked with a smile.

"I've been assured, no. Mere coincidence." Jess told him.

"OK, if you say so. I got dumped a couple months ago, and Romeo and Juliet here have been trying to fix me up with every female they can drag out of the mall or something."

Jessie laughed. "You got it easy. I've been without boyfriend for almost a year. I think Sophia's tried to fix me up with the entire St. Michael's Prep football team."

"I can relate. They keep trying to spread those True Love Vibes they got all around. It's disgusting, I tell you."

"Uh huh. Well, at least I'll have someone to roll my eyes at when they start kissing."

"I will be happy to oblige. We'll even have sand to throw at them."

"And water to dump on them if they get too disgustingly cozy."

Warren and Sophia had to stifle smiles at all this.

They grabbed a good spot, and outerclothes started to come off. Sophia was down to her swimsuit as Warren took his shirt off.

"My God, Prep Boy," Jessie gasped. "What the hell happened to you? You've actually got pecs!"

"That's my Studmuffin," quipped Sophia. "All summer in the weight room."

"WOW." Jessie was amazed. "I may have to change your nickname from Prep Boy to Prep Stud. Two months, and you did this?"

"Well, I had help," Warren smiled. "Nickie set me a hell of a program. It's really worked out. I raved about him so much to some of the staff that they hired him as a part-time trainer."

"Great! Nickie loves that stuff," Jessie commented.

"Yeah, he's great," said Warren. "He immediately grasped what I was going for, and set up a great routine. And he's always there with me, encouraging and stuff."

"Well, it has worked," said Jessie. "Help out on the ice, too?"

"Immensely," smiled Sophia.

"Great." Meanwhile, Crash was taking off his shirt. Jess glanced over, and turned an appreciative eye at him. "Hmmmmm. What have we here?"

Crash just laughed. "I've been lifting weights a lot longer than Warren has."

"Well I certainly like the view."

"The view from my end is pretty damn good, too," Crash said. Jessie was wearing her black one-piece, which accentuated her long, lean frame and seemingly endless legs. Jessie was tall, 5'10", and slim without being skinny-not as buxom as Sophia, but all the curves in all the right places.

"Well then, big boy, would you mind spreading some of this suntan lotion on the view?"

"Surrrrre."

"Watch out, Crash," Warren teased. "She bites."

"I claw, too," put in Jessie. "So, I'd be real careful with the application of that lotion."

"If I miss, you'll bite and claw me?" Jessie nodded. "Oh, look at that! I missed!" Crash said with a wink. Jessie just stared up at him in disbelief-then broke out laughing.

Sophia was lying on her stomach, tanning her back. Jess and Crash were spread out on a towel, sunning. Warren was reading a book.

"Hey, War."

"Soph?"

"You're being checked out."

"Huh?"

"Those two blondes over there."

Warren looked around casually, and let his eyes wander to where Sophia was looking. There were, indeed, two lovely blond girls seemingly checking out Warren. That was confirmed when one of them winked at him. Sophie laughed, while Warren blushed.

"See? You're even hotter than before, Studmuffin. She even winked at you!"

"Jesus Christ, Sophia," Jessie interjected. "Why don't you just send him over there to fuck her? We can take pictures so you'll have proof of what a stud he is."

Crash cracked up. It was the first of many times. They spent all day swapping one-liners.

"There's a bathing suit in distress," Crash quipped about a woman wearing a too-small suit.

"Gravity's such a powerful force, innit?" Jessie agreed.

"Look," Crash pointed. "Hi, I've got four kids under the age of six, and I'm going to bring them for a nice, relaxing day at the beach! And if I'm lucky, my blood pressure will only quadruple!"

"She's probably dearly hoping for at least one accidental drowning." Jessie offered.

"Look at them," Jessie pointed to a guy and girl in a clinch. "He's actually got his hand down her bikini top... They make War and Soph look positively discreet."

"Well, Warren doesn't have to go looking that hard. He reaches up, and there they are. Look at her-I think I have bigger tits." He realized what he had just said, and thought that Jessie might be offended, but she just cracked up.

"Speaking of guys with their hands all over a girl's body, put some more lotion on this one?"

"Sure. You want I should let my hand slip in your front? I certainly wouldn't have to go on a search mission."

"You just remember the claws, buddy."

"Haven't forgotten them for a second," Crash grinned.

Sophia and Warren decided to get up and go for a swim. Crash and Jessie declined, so Sophie and Warren head off, hand-in-hand.

"Oooh, look," quipped Crash, "they're holding hands. Pass me the Pepto."

"Pass me a blindfold. Or a shotgun, whichever," agreed Jess. Then she sighed. "I really shouldn't be so bad. I love both of them, I think they know that, and I think what they have is great. But I can never let a sarcastic comment pass, especially when I feel like a fifth wheel around them."

"I'm never much at letting a good one-liner go by myself, so I can relate. And I'm particularly vulnerable to the fifth wheel thing, myself-but Warren's been through that, with me and Ally before he met Sophia, so I owe him."

"It can be tough, when your best friend is in such a serious relationship, and you're not. I don't see her enough, and I definitely don't have her to myself enough. Now, Warren's really good with that kind of stuff-you need a night out with Jessie, then you go have one-and that helps. But they want to spend time together, and I certainly can't blame them. Don't get me wrong-I love Warren absolutely to death. He's been so good to Sophia. But the whole fifth wheel thing is there."

"Don't I know it. Especially since I did not expect to spend this summer alone."

"What happened?"

"A new guy."

"Ouch."

"Ouch is right. I'm the jokester, the quipster. So I got dumped by my girlfriend of a year for another guy. Like water off the back of a duck, right? Just keep joking, Crash. NOT."

"Crash-what did Warren say your real name is?"