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out. My movements, short and jerky, had me looking like a monkey bobbing for bananas as I struggled, holding my breath.
    “You can’t hold it forever. Take a breath. That’s what this tube’s for.”
    I put my face back in and drew a quick breath. Gasping, panicking, and flailing, I jerked my head out again. I yanked the tube from my mouth, coughing and heaving, my hands groping—sliding over my face—clearing the water away. “That’s horrible. I don’t like it…don’t like it.”
    “For the love…you’re fine. You’ll get used to it. Quit being a baby.”
    That’s it. No one’s calling me a baby .
    I dipped my head again, taking one breath, then another. My confidence began to boost and I smiled inside—to myself. Maybe I was getting the hang of it.
    I became braver. We swam out to deeper water.
    “I think you’re getting it. There’s some cool fish over here.” Mandy pointed off to an area on the right. “This’ll get anywhere from ten to fifteen feet. Just keep calm, and watch for me. I don’t want you to get too far away.”
    “Ha, you know that ain’t gonna happen. I’m not getting eaten by any fish.” I stuck the tube back into my mouth.
    Mandy rolled her eyes, and we both poked our faces into the water, beginning to swim again. I got this…nothing to it. Proud of the quick way I caught on to this snorkeling thing, I swam on, taking deep easy breaths, my ego inflating my lungs. What had I been so afraid of?
    But my elation ended as quickly as it came. A gush of salt water rushed into my nose and mouth—plunged down my throat. I shot up, gasping and coughing, ripping the tube back out of my mouth, fighting to breathe—to live.
    I gulped…once, twice…heaved…then gulped again. “I hate this!” Smashing my fist to my chest, I tamed the cough and caught my breath. “I think I’m drowning! What happened? I thought I was doing everything right.” Ready to vomit, I coughed up rivers of water and heaved again.
    Mandy’s face became pained, worried, but only for an instant. Her face now struggled to hold back a laugh. “Oh, ya weenie. Ya just got a wave over your tube. You’ll live.” At least she had enough class to smuggle away a smile. “Blow out next time.”
    “Got so involved, I forgot. At least I did it.” I shrugged and rolled my eyes, wishing we were done.
    For another hour we snorkeled, then decided to head back to our chairs. We scurried—running on our toes to get out of the hot sand—when a movement in the swath of trees to the east startled me. My breath caught, and my hand flew to my heart. My gaze swept to the grove, catching a glimpse of men in long black cloaks. There looked to be about eight of them, their heads shrouded in black hoods, but they soon slunk away to the trees and vanished before I could see their faces.
    A shock of coldness zipped through me, making the hair on my arms stand on end. “Did you see that?” I pulled on Mandy’s arm and stiffened my neck to avoid burying my head into her shoulder. “What were they?”
    “What was what?”
    “Strange people…scary people. Are you sure this beach is safe?”
    She broke into a sinister, you’ve-got-to-be-kidding-me laugh and her head balked, turning to look at me. “You’re delusional. This beach is harmless.”
    I shivered, my shoulders tight, brushing it off—maybe the snorkeling had gotten to me. We planted our butts into our lounge chairs, and I pushed it out of my mind.
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    L ater that night , I sat in my room and pulled my pink daisy stationary from my suitcase.
    Day One: May Twenty-Ninth,
    My first day on the beach. Met Mandy’s fiancé Matt, and we hit it off right away. He’s so right for that girl, although at times, I wonder about Mandy and her motives. Almost drowned snorkeling, which made me hallucinate, but all in all, it was a good day.
    Sophia Bandell
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    T he next morning , the three of us paraded our way back to the beach. I reached to wipe the sweat away from the skin