“Because for all these years I’ve been a bit of a loser.”

“Q . . .”

He holds up his hands. “It’s cool, man. I’m good with it. I know who I am. Who I was. And it’s okay.” He turns his head, his eyes aimed at the rapidly emptying parking lot.

Autumn nods. “Q, none of us know who we are. We’re all works in progress.”

He doesn’t answer.

I jump back in. “So, man, are you gonna text her back or you playing hard to get?”

He meets my eyes. “What should I say?”

Autumn grins. “Maybe start by answering her question.”

He wags his finger at her. “Oh, you’re good, Autumn.” He taps the screen for a bit.

And then a moment later, Brianna hits him back:

let’s hit up the beach!! but ciara’s making me drop her home first.

Oh, and she wants me to tell you if I don’t check in with her every fifteen minutes she’s gonna send her Navy Seal brother after you! Okay, bye! Cya soon!

“You guys down, right?” Q asks.

Except all I can think is: I’m kinda getting tired of the beach. And I especially don’t wanna be anywhere near water. I want to say: Q, if you knew what happened the other night, you wouldn’t want to, either.

But the look on Q’s face.

How could I crush him—the guy who just confessed he’s trying to put himself out there?

“You kidding me? I got you, bro,” I say.

And then we’re in the car, crawling down the shore road, our headlights illuminating the lake’s edge. It’s after dusk, so technically this part of the beach is closed, but Q’s face is pure determination. Brianna waves at us, leaning against their car when we pull up.

“You sure you’re feeling okay?”

Q turns the car off. Takes a deep breath. “Physically, I feel normal.”

“That’s what I like to hear. Listen, it’s okay to be nervous, but you got this, man. Remember, she hit you up.”

Q nods. “You right, you right.” He pulls the mirror down, does a quick once-over, then a breath check. Satisfied, he daps me up and then we’re walking toward them.

Brianna’s all dimples by the time Q closes the distance, and then they’re walking off toward the water, leaving me and Autumn alone.

Autumn motions toward the shore. “You wanna help me find some sea glass?”

“Ha. You’re looking at the reigning sea-glass-collecting champ.”

She rolls her eyes and starts across the sand.

After we’ve collected a small fortune in sea glass, and Q and Bri have returned, the four of us roll up our jeans, discard our socks and shoes, and race toward the water.