Summer: A Salty Snow Warms The Hidden; Soul PT. 1/4

I yawned as I was laying down in my bed, staring up at the ceiling as the sun gently illuminated my room.

It had been about two weeks since Lachesis and her friends came over, and I had spent most of time sleeping, both inside and outside the house. If it was outside, I would do it underneath a tree in my backyard. I mostly slept inside though.

I groaned as I picked up my phone. Only 10 in the morning, huh? I set my phone down and shuffled out of my bed, brushing my teeth and washing my face before shuffling to the living room. I collapsed onto the couch and turned the T.V. on, yawning as I turned on a show that Hiro suggested I should watch.

It was a show about stopping evil by dating it or something, and I got to what Hiro called the classic beach episode before my phone rang.

Ah, speak of the devil, it's him. I answered the phone with a simple greeting. "Hello."

"Hey, you're at home, right?"

I paused the show before sitting up straight. "Yeah, why do ask?"

"Didn't Lachesis tell you? Ugh, whatever, it's fine. According to our club president, we're due for a visit to the beach."

I looked at the television, and a small smile came over me. Funny coincidence, huh? "Okay, when is it?"

"… Right now."

Huh? I couldn't help but briefly stare at my phone before responding. "So by right now, you mean…"

"We're already here."

Damn it, that was annoying. "Well, have fun without me."

"Like hell I'm about to let that happen. If you leave now, you can get here in about an hour or two."

"But he's there, isn't he?"

"Nope, he's not."

"… Fine, I'll call you when I get close."

"Alright, see you later then Depra."

"Yeah, bye Hiro." He hung up, and I sighed before scratching my long, unkempt hair. Damn it, has the bus left already? I got up and started to get changed. I packed a beach towel I had bought but never used from long ago and brought a change of clothes along with some flip-flops.

I ran outside just as the bus was leaving, zooming around the corner.

"Agh, damn it!" I yelled out before pursing my lips. Now what? I gazed back at the empty house, wondering if it would be better to stay inside after all.

"Yeah, that may be for the best after all," I muttered as I made my way back inside. I guess my beach escapades will never happen…

I was just about to lay back down on the couch before remembering something important. "Ah, my clothes."

I shuffled my way downstairs and into the laundry room, where I had started the washer last night. I put the now damp clothes into the dryer before yawning again.

Well, spending the day in the house like this isn't so bad, I thought as I shuffled my way past my old bike. I looked at a second too long, and an idea popped into my head.

"Damn it Depra, you just had to look, didn't you?" I grumbled to myself as I inspected my old mode of transportation. The tires were surprisingly not flat, and all the parts seemed to be in a decent enough condition for another escapade. I didn't have a helmet or anything like that, but it should be fine.

I wheeled out the bicycle to the front door before grabbing my bag. Damn it, do I really care that much? I thought about the members of our dandy club, and how the ass wouldn't be there to spoil it.

And without so much as a second thought, I clicked up the stand, and I zoomed away, going as fast as I possibly could. Although completely out of shape, I kept on pushing.

"Damn it! Why the hell does it have to be so far away!" I half-panted, half-yelled out. I had to go around the outskirts of the city to get there, since it's a lot easier going around than in a straight line, since there aren't that many stop lights.

This better be damn worth it…

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"Hello, Hiro?"

"Oh, it's Depra. Whoa, why do you sound like that? Give me a minute guys!"

"Don't worry about it. Where the hell are you?"

"Have you passed the convenience store yet? Well, once you get there, you just go straight ahead towards the sea, and you should see us."

I skidded to a stop in front of said store, barely able to catch my breath. "All right, I'll see you in about 30 seconds." I hung up and peddled even harder, having to go over a giant sand dune before being able to see the sea.

And right as I reached the top, the sand crumbled out from beneath me, and I tumbled down towards the beach, the bike tumbling down after me.

I skidded to a stop, the hot sun glaring down at me as if punishing me for pushing myself too hard. I groaned, and a shadow blocked out the sun for me.

"Uh, what the fuck happened to you?"

I glanced up at my shadow, and wearing blue swimming trunks, with dark brown skin glistening with sweat, along with hair that was cut drastically low, it was my best friend, Hiro.

"Water…" was all I managed to say, and he knelt down in front of me, already carrying three of them.

"You know, I wasn't expecting you to bike here," he said, scowling as he handed me a bottle of water.

I managed to sit up and gulped the water down faster than I had ever done before. I motioned for another one, and he handed one to me, and I drank that one a little bit slower.

"Ah, that's much better," I muttered as I wiped the sweat off my forehead. "I missed the bus, so I actually wasn't planning on coming, until I saw my old bike downstairs anyway."

"I see… Guess I made you too motivated, huh?" he said, scratching his cheek, looking slightly embarrassed. And, as usual, he had his normal necklace around his neck, that showcased an intricate silver key, the handle looking as if it was made from spare gears or clocks.

"How long did it take me anyway?"

"About an hour. Honestly, I'm rather impressed that you managed to get here that fast. Although, your bike's seen better days though…"

I turned around to find the wreck that was my bike, half of it buried under the sand, the chain having snapped in two from the fall.

"Guess I'm walking home then," I muttered, sad at the current state of my bike.

"Hello! I see he's finally arrived, hasn't he?"

I turned back to see both the student council president and the president of our club, a girl who we called Prez. She was wearing a light-brown two-piece swimsuit that suited her rather well. She was also really hot too, but her weirdness far outstripped her attractiveness for most guys.

"A passionate bike ride to meet with the one you love, wanting to be in his warm embrace; you guys are so close, aren't you!?"

That comment got her legs swept by Hiro, causing her to fall into the sand.

"We both know that it's not like that, so cut the crap already."

"Hey, but it could be true!"

"Like hell it could! Now hurry up and get going already!"

Prez pouted before sticking her tongue out at Hiro. "You're so mean Hiro! Do you like acting like that?" He simply rolled his eyes in response before turning back towards me.

"By the way Hiro, is your sister here today?"

He nodded, a small smile appearing on his face. "Yep, but she's with her own friends today. She's over there." He gazed over to his right, where in the distance were a couple of girls playing volleyball.

"She really has grown so much…" Hiro said, a complicated expression on his face. One filled with happiness and with worry, but neither having to do with one another.

"I see, so the one he actually likes is the forbidden type of love then," Prez commented, still nearby. Hiro swung around to kick her, but she dodged it as she ran away giggling, with an angry Hiro close behind.

"Those two still act the same, don't they?" I turned around to see Caelus, wearing swim trunks adorned with clouds and a blue sky. He had sandy blonde hair and light blue eyes; his skin having tanned from being outside.

"It's been a while, hasn't it Depra?" he asked, offering me a hand. I grabbed it and was pulled up to my feet.

"Thanks. You are right though; it has been a while." I said, brushing off the sand off my body.

"You know, we didn't know if we would see you again after what happened during the last school year."

I felt white hot pain envelop me, and I clenched my fist tightly. "Please don't."

"All right then, I know better than that," Caelus said, raising his hands up innocently. "It's part of why we planned it so he wouldn't be here, you know?"

I felt the pain go away, and I relaxed as I heard those words. "So, Hiro wasn't lying? The ass actually isn't here?"

"Nope, he went off somewhere with his family yesterday, and won't be back until a week from tomorrow."

"Good, let him stay there for as long as he needs too," I growled, and Caelus only chuckled.

"Come on, let's get to our umbrella. I'm sure everybody else will want to know you made it okay."

We walked to a pair of umbrellas' that I can only assumed belonged to us, and laying underneath one was another member of our club.

"Oh, it's Depra! How's it going?" A cute voice called out to me, and a small girl in a pink one-piece swimsuit came running towards me, a big smile on her face.

"Hey Pinkie, it's been a while," I said, giving her a small smile.

She stopped in front of me, her pink hair swishing to a stop. "I heard you biked here. That's amazing, you know that? Especially since you're completely out of shape."

"No need to remind the guy Pinkie," Caelus said, glaring at her.

"It's fine. Where's the other two?"

"Oh, Hera's out building sandcastles, and Lachesis isn't here yet. She'll be here later today she said."

I see, she probably wanted to come here with me, I thought, and a miserable feeling started to take over before I was suddenly slapped on the back.

"You're not allowed to get down today. We won't let you." I turned around to find Hiro, who seemed to have stopped fighting with Prez.

"… Thanks."

He gave me a grin and a thumbs up. "No problem. Now come on, there's fun to be had. You too Pinkie, you haven't done anything since we've gotten here."

"Shut up Hiro! I don't wanna hang around you!"

"This crap again? Listen, I know we got into a classic anime scene together, but I apologized, didn't I?"

"He's right Pinkie, he did. Quite profusely too."

She crossed her arms with a "Hmph! I'll forgive him if he gets me something to drink!"

"Yeah, yeah, whatever. What do you guys all want?" He asked, going towards his bag to grab his wallet.

"Lemon lime Gatorade!" Heracles yelled out from behind him.

"Water for me," I said.

"I'll also take the same as Depra," Caelus said.

"Ooh, I want cherry coke!" Prez said, clenching her hands in excitement.

"And what do you want Pinkie?" Hiro asked, pocketing his debit card.

"3 Strawberry Fanta's for me!" She said, her lips pursed.

"Oi, you said one drink, not three."

"Deal with it!" She yelled back out, and he just rolled his eyes and started to walk away to the nearby convenience store.

"Glad to see we all get along!" Caelus said happily.

"If you consider that getting along, then you're wrong Mr. Pervert," Pinkie said, staring at Hiro's back as he walked away.

"Hey, just because I appreciate the intricacies of the opposite sex doesn't make me a pervert. Although, I would prefer if this were a nude beach, but this is fine once in a while too."

"You make it sound like you've been to them before," I said, chuckling nervously. Honestly, I couldn't tell with him if he was being serious or not.

I suddenly felt two soft hands grab one of my own. "Hey, let's go play in ocean already Depra! Come on, let's all go!" Prez said, starting to drag me towards the glistening blue sea.

I nodded and allowed myself to be dragged, while Prez also started to drag Heracles as well.

"You too big guy! We're going to have so much fun!"

"My sandcastle," Hera said, watching it get engulfed by the waves. "I worked hard on that too…"

We stopped as soon as the water engulfed our feet.

"So, what exactly do we do?" I asked, curious at how this worked.

"What, have you never been to the beach before?" Prez asked, looking shocked.

"Nope, never."

"I haven't either," Hera said.

"I see…" She turned away from us and started to think. "Hey Cae, bring them out!"

"This early!? Are you sure!?"

She turned back around, and she had a giant grin on her face. "Of course! Let the Seventh Hidden Club's Water Fight take place!"