It was a breezy afternoon at Redondo Beach, and the sun was just right—warm but not scorching, with waves rolling in slow and steady. Jake and his sister Gaby had set up camp under a big striped umbrella, towels laid out, cooler packed, and their Bluetooth speaker playing chill music as seagulls circled above.

Gaby was in full beach mode: messy bun, sunglasses on, wearing a tan crop top over her black swimsuit, flipping through her book with one hand while sipping from her iced drink with the other. Jake, on the other hand, was glued to his phone, laying belly-down on his towel and scrolling endlessly.

“Okay, seriously?” Gaby suddenly said, snatching Jake’s phone right out of his hands.

“Hey—HEY!” he shouted, sitting up.

“Nope. You’ve been on this thing all day. Go touch sand or something,” she said, standing up and holding the phone over her head like a prize.

“I am touching sand! Technically.”

“Go build a sandcastle. Or dig a hole. I don’t care. Just be a child. Be productive. No buts.”

Jake narrowed his eyes. “You did not just say be a child.”

“I said what I said,” Gaby smirked, dropping his phone into her beach bag and turning back to her spot.

Grumbling, Jake stood up and stomped off a few feet, pretending to start digging with his hands like a 5-year-old. But his mind was already plotting.

A few minutes later, while Gaby was deep into her book and humming to herself, Jake casually crept over to her bag, unzipped the side pocket, and slipped his phone back into his hands. Operation Payback initiated.

He tiptoed back to his towel like a cartoon villain, opened his camera, and snapped the first photo of her mid-sip with her cheeks puffed out like a chipmunk. Then another with her eyes half-closed in the sun. And then one when she did a dramatic yawn, stretching like a cat.

When Gaby finally looked up, she noticed Jake’s mischievous grin and his phone aimed right at her. “What are you doing?”

“Oh, nothing,” Jake said sweetly. “Just getting content for my new photo dump.”

Gaby sat up fast. “Jake—don’t even think about it.”

“Too late,” he laughed, scrolling dramatically. “Ooooh, this one’s going on the front page. Caption: ‘Caught Gaby in her natural beach goblin form.’”

“JAKE!”

She lunged at him but he darted up, cackling, running down the beach as Gaby chased after him, both of them kicking up sand. “You’re dead when I catch you!” she yelled.