Riptide by Kathryn Nolan

Author:Kathryn Nolan [Nolan, Kathryn]
Language: eng
Format: epub
Published: 2017-04-03T18:30:00+00:00

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I inhaled the ocean, exhaled the waves. Inhale. Exhale. I used to do this all the time when I was younger, contemplating surfing a giant wave that could definitely get me killed.

My dad and I were sitting on my front porch, feet propped up on the railing, watching the water. It’d been easy to forget, during the debate, that my parents’ future also potentially hung in the balance. That I was fighting against something they needed. Now, my mom’s praise stung, and I sat uneasily next to my dad. I wasn’t sure what to think.

“They’re gonna win, right?” I finally asked. Maybe it’d be easier if they did.

He shrugged. “I don’t know, Finn. You put up a pretty good fight up there.” He paused. “Avery did too. She’s as smart in person as she is on TV.”

“She’s really smart, even though I think she doubts herself. But it’s pretty obvious to me that she can do anything she puts her mind to.” I took a sip. “She’s also really independent. Did you know she put herself through college and grad school all by herself?”

Dad looked at me, a bemused grin on his face. “No, son, I didn’t know any of those things about Avery. How do you know them?”

I took another sip of beer, stalling. “We shared a joint together at that reggae bar off of Collins Drive.”

He half-spit out his beer. “Well...all right then. Kind of a Romeo and Juliet thing you got going on?”

“Hardly,” I said. “I also don’t...you know, do things with women. Avery and I are just good—” I stumbled over that word again. “Good colleagues. To be honest, we see and interact with each other once a day, every day. I know we’re supposed to be enemies but…”

“Life’s not really like that,” he finished. I inhaled the ocean, exhaled the waves. I was feeling amped up and edgy. “You know, and absolutely no pressure here, but you could always do a thing with a woman. A partner. If you wanted to. Just because your mom and I live in the commune now doesn’t mean we’re against that. We’re still married.”

I smirked. “Marriage is a contract between the Patriarchy and the capitalist machine. A business relationship that demeans women.” I paused. “That’s a direct quote from mom. She told me that when I was sixteen years old.”

My dad’s laugh echoed across the sand. “Well, your mom is right. Except our marriage isn’t like that at all.”

“You two have the best marriage.” I’d always admired it. Held it to a pedestal that loomed high above other relationships.

My dad shook his head. “We have an honest marriage. Doesn’t mean it’s not hard. And the women you’ve dated before, well, they just don’t seem to challenge you very much, Finn.”

“Or at all,” I said. “They’re beautiful and fun and... they like surfing, I guess.”

“Life is more than surfing.”

I pretended to fall out of my chair, making him laugh again. “‘There is nothing more important than surfing.’ That’s a direct quote from you.

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