“Very.” He let himself fall back so that he went underwater. When he came out, his hair was slicked back. “Want to get dry?”

“Sure.”

We went over to our packs, removed our towels, and found a dry spot of ground a little way off from the group, but still in the “safe zone” Alika had instructed us to remain in.

I took my journal from my pack and lay on my stomach, allowing the sun to dry my suit and warm my skin. I opened the ...