Chapter 13: The competition (Part 3)

Nova's POV

We step back onto the sand. Everyone shuts again and looks at me. I sigh and look at Isabella with a raised eyebrow.

She comes to me and hands me the patches. "You can't keep doing this to yourself," she says quietly.

"I can't punch everyone who calls me the perfect girl next door, okay? I need to hold it back," I smirk.

She chuckles quietly and takes my hand and looks at it. "Not the worst," she says.

I nod, "You would know."

Me and Nick walk to the Honey Badgers. I know that mom doesn't want to pressure me into talking and neither does everyone else, so we just sit down there.

"What did they tell you?" Em asks, earning a hit from Seth. "What?" she asks.

I chuckle a little. I love her for just being a kid and not caring whenever someone tells her not to ask anything.

"They um.. Blackmailed me," I say, opening the patch.

"Into doing what?" Andy asks.

"Not competing," I say.

"Hell no," I hear Jordan's voice in my ear. I feel him and Chic both squatting behind me.

"If you're planning on screaming directly into my ear, please don't," I say. Chic smirks and covers my ears.

"Oh wow," I chuckle and push his hands away.

I give Nick the patches and my hand. He sighs and takes it. He opens them and starts patching it together.

"So.. What were they blackmailing you with? Because if it was something bad, I'm gonna kick their ass," Chic says.

I sigh and look at Nick. He nods a little and we both keep looking at my hand as he patches it up.

"Everyone will know about the two of us dating for tomorrow, so-" he looks up at the Honey Badgers, "If any of you hear someone planning to go after Nova or something, you need to tell us and do something," Nick says.

They all sigh in unison. "These girls know how to blackmail," Andy says, making me smirk.

"And what about if some Northsiders will come and put the bar on fire?" Oscar asks.

"Right?" I ask and look at Nick, "See. He believes that a Northsider can do something. I'm not going to compete," I say.

He sighs. "Fucking hell!" Jordan screams into my ear, making me cover it.

Jordan and Chic and Harvey and Rory and Gage and Seth and Bruce all get up.

"Which ones?" Bruce asks.

"Bruce-" I start.

"Which. Ones?" he asks.

"Ginger and Tina. They're in red and purple I guess," I say.

They all look around and see them. They run towards them. I look down and start playing with my bracelet.

"Hey," Nick says and raises my head up. I look at him. "You're gonna go out there and kick their asses in surfing. And then later we'll figure something out, okay?" he asks.

I gulp and look back down. He sighs.

"Nova," my mom says, but I keep looking down, "He's gonna be safe."

I look up at her with a tear, "He won't," I say. "Just a few days ago, I believed that you hated the Honey Badgers. And I was sure that if you'd know that my boyfriend is one, you'll basically kill him."

They all chuckle at that. "No really, she told me my whole life that I can't communicate with Honey Badgers. Hell she didn’t even want for us to go on the Southside... That plan failed," I smirk.

"What? Novella," she says.

I smile at her big, "You really think, that I haven't been there?" I ask.

"I believed that, yes," she says.

"Seeing what she and the boys are like, I'm sure they've been there many times," Andy smirks at my mom.

I nod with a smile, "One of the best ramps are there. You cannot possibly think that we haven't been on the best skateboarding ramp in Hillwood," I say.

She sighs, "And what if something would've happened to you?" she asks kinda madly.

I look back at Nicholas. He is smirking now, waiting for an answer. "Like what?" I ask.

"Like, someone would've attacked you," mom says.

I look at the Honey Badgers, they seem serious, which means that people actually do attack each other on the southside.

"A few have. But we didn't take those boxing classes for nothing, right?" I smirk at mom.

She seems shocked, "Are you kidding me? Tell me that you're kidding," she says.

"I'm kidding," I smirk.

She breathes out in relief, seeing mad, but then chuckles. "You're unbelievable," she says.

"Back to the point, I'm not going out there," I say.

"You are," Andy says. I look at him. "Seriously, no one is gonna touch my son or you," he says.

"You should come to the bar," Simon, Gage’s dad says.

"Wait, what? No," I say.

They laugh at me. "What, scared or something?" Emerald smirks.

"Not ALL the Honey Badgers are like you guys. Some still hate my mom. And most will probably hate me," I say.

Nick nods, "True, but who cares? It's not like they can do anything to you two," he says.

"Why not?" I ask.

He shrugs, "She's the queen," he says and looks at my mom, "And maybe you'll be one. One day," he smirks, placing the last patch onto my palm.

I feel blood in my cheeks. I must blush so hard right now. Nick looks up at me and chuckles.

"Cutie," he says and kisses my cheek, what probably is red. The others laugh at me.

I feel someone touching my back. I look behind me and it's Jordan's leg as they are sitting back down.

"So?" I ask.

He chuckles, "They will probably still do it, but we spread around the word that they blackmailed you into losing, so even if you lose and not on purpose, people will think it was because of a blackmail," he says.

I raise my eyebrows and laugh, "You guys are idiots."

They all chuckle and sit back down too, "When one of them gets a wave, I'm sure the commentator will comment about it. And about the slapping," Chic says.

"I slapped her first," I say.

"Exactly, cause they were blackmailing you," Jor says.

"I slapped her cause she called me a fat bitch, but yeah the blackmailing thing too," I say.

They get furious again and the two of them want to get up, but I grab their hands, "Leave it, they're not worth it," I say.

They both sigh and sit back down. I roll my eyes, "Fine," I say. They smile big and get up and keep going towards them again.

Nick chuckles at me. I kiss his cheek, "Thank you," I say and get up.

"We have any of that vax left?" I ask.

"Yeah, there," Nick says and points on a place. I smile and go there.

*Time pass, 30 minutes*

"10 minutes until the finale!" we hear.

I sigh and look at the guys. Chic and Jordan and Nick all are sitting in front of me, every Honey Badger and friend is looking at us.

"Hey, don't even think about not giving the best you got," Nick says.

I chuckle, "I'm not," I say. He smiles and sighs.

"Here's the deal, Nove," Chic starts. "The waves are disappearing."

I look at the sea and sigh, looking back at them.

"But still, don't forget what we said, do not take any wave you got. You just exhaust yourself with it," Jordan says.

I frown, "How am I supposed to even get better waves with this ocean?" I ask.

They look at Nick with a smile and he talks to me. "Do your thing. You have the power of feeling the wave before it's even there. If you feel a great wave, go for it, even of the others don't see it," he says.

I smile a little, "And if I don't?"

They all seem to think about it. "Fine, ride some small ones too," Jordan says. "Though it's exhausting," he says, thinking about it.

"You guys are exhausting, not the waves. I do how I feel, okay?" I ask.

They sigh. I chuckle and get up, "But thank you."

They roll their eyes with smirks. "Wow. That was almost in unison," I tell them, leaving everyone laughing.

I walk to my board and attach it to myself and take it under my arm. This time they all tell me good luck and you got this and things like that.

I hug my bros and then Nick. "Hey. What if I don't win?" I ask him quietly.

He smiles, "Then you're gonna lose in honor," he says. I smile and kiss him.

"I love you. Kill it out there."

"Thanks," I chuckle, "And I love you too," I say and peck his lips again.

I take a deep breath and go into the water and paddle towards the other 5 girls. This time here is 6 of us... Red, orange, purple, black, white, and me: blue.

"So what are you gonna do? Listen to your daddies or to us?" Ginger smirks, thinking I get mad.

"Daddies," I say with a smile, leaving them in shock, that I used that word.

I chuckle at their faces. We hear the siren, but none of us moves. We see a small wave. Everyone starts paddling towards it, but I start slowly going closer to them, not even trying to catch it.

Ginger catches it and does some skills, ending up getting a 7. There are coming waves. Not big ones, but not too bad either. I start paddling.

*Time pass, 18 minutes*

"With 2 minutes left, there are no waves. Even our red contestant, Hinger Hailey can't seem to blackmail some out," I hear, making me chuckle and her get mad and look at me.

I paddle forward a little and sit there. The other girls don't see a point in this. They think it's over. I know it's not.

I let my toes feel the water. I feel something coming. And I know where it should be coming. A little left. I start paddling towards it.

"Contestant blue, Novella Willson starts moving. But for what? There is nothing out there. I wonder what she sees," I hear the commentator.

I sit on place again and wait for it.

"1 minute remaining!" I hear.

"30 seconds!"

I see the wave starting forming. I smile so big and wait until it's more here.

"There it is!" I hear and I also hear girls coming closer. But there's no point. I already almost catch it.

"That's a big one. And our blue contestant is shredding the perfect waves! That girl is a true wave magnet, feeling the wave before it was even there!" I hear while I'm showing my skills. Everyone is cheering for me.

When I finally jump off of my board, I'm already on the shore. And the whistle comes. Everyone starts cheering and I come on the water with a big smile.

"And our judges have decided to give a NINE POINT SEVEN (9.7) to the 'Wave magnet' for this wave! WOW! Talk about mastering a wave like this... The other girls are still out there waiting for a ride back on the shore!" I hear.

My eyes go wide, "What?" I ask myself in shock. 9.7?

I get out of the water and drop the board in shock. Nick hugs me and picks me up immediately. I wrap my legs around him, not caring about anyone else.

"How?" I chuckle in shock.

"You were AMAZING," he tells me.

I spoon his face and press my lips against his demandingly. He kisses me back and then kisses my nose and lets go of me.

I jump off of him and then I'm in Chic's and Jordan's arms. "Are you kidding me? 9.7? It's the best score of the day!" Jordan yells at me.

I laugh as he hugs me, lifting me up and shaking me, so my legs are swaying left and right.

He kisses my cheek and places me down, "I'm SO proud of you," he says.

And then I have to hug everyone else as well.

*Time pass*

"And the fist place, our very own wave magnet with the final score of 19.1, Novella Willson!" I hear.

I chuckle and get up there. They hand me the trophy and something else. I look at it in confusion. Chic didn't get that. I didn't know, what that is right now, but I'll ask my brothers later.

They do the pictures and then I get off of the podium and hand the card to Chic.

"What is this?" I ask.

He looks at it and shrugs. "Where did you get that?"

"I don't know, they gave it to me with the trophy," I say.

Jordan takes it away from Chic and looks at it. "Give me your trophy," he says.

I give it to him and he smirks, looking at the down of it. He shows it to me.

"Endless Starbucks," I read and my eyes start sparkling.

"You got to be kidding me," I say with big eyes and a smile.

"Can I have this?" Jordan asks, holding the card up.

"No," I say with a big grin and reach my hand forward. He puts it onto my palm.

"I'm coming with you," he says.

I giggle and look at the card. "Wow," I say.

"Hey, you wanna go to Starbucks tomorrow?" Nick smirks.

I laugh, "You're idiots," I say and hand the things to my mom. "I'm gonna go and see my sponsor now," I smile big.

"Why am I jealous of my little sister?" I hear Chic asking.

"Cause she rocks and you don't," Nick says and then I hear laughter and a smash.

Mr. Malcolm comes to me. "You are amazing," he says.

I laugh, "Thanks," I say.

"Come with me," he says.

I follow him somewhere. "So how did you see that wave?" he asks.

I shrug, "I didn't see it. It wasn't there. Sometimes I feel it coming, and I wouldn't trust myself, but my brothers have helped me to develop that, so I usually just take a risk and go for it."

"And this is your first competition?" he asks.

"Yeah, my mom didn't really want for me to compete, but we got her to agree and now I think she's gonna let me continue," I chuckle.

He laughs and we reach a little place. Like a little hut but here are so many surfboards.

"I've seen you here before. Surfing with your brothers. I've always admired how they've helped you," he says.

I smile at that and look around me. "Can I look around?" I ask.

"Yes, sure," he says.

I slide my fingers over the surfboard he is currently making. It's so smooth.

I walk to some of his trophies. He is a surfer as well. Now I know where I've heard that name... He also has trophies for making boards. And I see pictures of some models in his bathing suit company bathing suits. I wish I was that beautiful.

I see a beautiful light blue surfboard. I walk to it and slide my fingers over it. So smooth. I rest my forehead against it and smell it. New.

"Would you like that?" he asks.

I look at him, "I'm sorry. What?"

He smirks, "Would you like that surfboard?" he asks and comes next to me.

"As in," I ask in shock, "For me?"

"Yes," he chuckles, "I've seen your style. This shape should be the best for you," he says.

"Ye-yeah," I say in shock, "I-"

He chuckles at me. "Look, I have 3 like this, brand new," he says and takes them all out. "I was planning on telling you that you can choose one, but I think you already did," he smirks.

"Wait. Are you serious?" I ask in shock.

He laughs at me, "Most girls would ask if they can get more than one," he says.

"No, what? This is perfect," I say with a big smile and look at the baby blue surfboard.

"Well, then it's yours," he says.

"Just like that?" I chuckle in shock.

"You're going to Regionals now. All I ask is for you to mention the people doing interviews with you, that you're sponsored by me," he says and hands me his business card. I look at it with a big smile.

"Wow. You're- You own that company?" I ask, pointing on the name. "I love your bathing suits," I say.

He chuckles, "Yes. I have to talk to your parents about this first actually, but I was searching for models, who would do a shot while surfing and on the beach with a surfboard. But then I thought that a real surfer would be better for that," he says.

I hug him and he is in shock for a second, but then hugs me back. "You'd like to do that? You'd get to keep all the wetsuits and bathing suits and boardshorts-"

"Yes. God yes," I say.

He laughs at me, "I like that you're still you, not fake," he says. I smile at that.

He lifts the blue surfboard down and points on the ropes, "Which leash you'd like?" she asks.

I look at them closer. I take a normal black one, which seems good and hand it to him. He smiles and attaches it to my board.

"Here you go," he says and hands me the board. I take it.

"Thank you so much," I say with a big smile.

She nods, "You're still staying here, right?" he asks.

I nod, "One of my brothers hasn't started competing yet," I say.

"Okay, I'll come and talk to your mol later," he says.

I nod, "Thank you," I say again.

"You're welcome," he chuckles.

I smile and walk out of the hut and towards everyone. Nick is the first one who sees me. His eyes go wide and he starts smiling so big, seeing the board.

"What is this?" he asks as I reach them.

"My new board," I smile.

His eyes grow even wider and he pulls me into a hug. "Can I look at that?" he asks.

I chuckle and give it to him. "WOW," he says, seeing the mark.

"The man who was talking to me before is the owner," I say.

"Isn't that the same company that does the bathing suits and stuff?" Chic asks in shock.

"Yep, and you know what? Mom?" I ask.

She already sighs, making us laugh. "He wants for me to model in the wetsuits and bathing suits and everything. And later I can keep all of them," I say.

She's smiling, but she sighs, "I need to think about it, okay?"

"What is there to think about? It's a huge opportunity," Andy says. I smile.

"Okay, think about it. He's coming to talk to you later and probably needs for us to sign something," I say.

She nods with a smile. I look at my brothers and Nick.

"Wow. This is made for you," Jordan says.

I nod, "He has seen us surfing here. And he had 3 with this shape, but this-" I point at the board, "-is perfect," I say.

Chic hugs me, "Wow. And what does he want for it?" he asks.

"He said that when I win regionals and they want to do interviews, I should mention that he is sponsoring me," I say, "Plus the modeling."

"Wow. That is so cool," Nick says, handing me the board back.

I smile and peck his lips.