As summer neared, your and your friend group’s motivation to go to school rapidly declined. Today they had—without much convincing—gotten you to skip yet another school day to go swimming together.

You meet at the usual spot, a secluded part of the Phoenix Drop River underneath an abandoned train bridge. You and Zenix managed to somehow turn up together just before Sasha and Gene had gotten there, and you decided to get in the water first.

Peeling off your tank top and shorts, you reveal the bathing suit that you wore underneath. It accentuated your curves and showed off the stretch marks that ran across your skin. Before you go to jump in, you notice Zenix’s poorly hidden stare and the red tint across his cheekbones out of the corner of your eye.