Ripped - Cassia Leo Page 0,52
to the stockroom closed, I can still hear her laughing as she says, “Keep your eyes closed or I’ll shank you.”
I open the door and peek my head out of the room. Lena locks eyes with me and nods, giving me the all clear to come out. I take my place behind the checkout counter at the back of the shop.
Yuri grins as Lena leads him past a rack of board shorts. “This better be good, ’cause you’re giving me nervous gas. It’s just you and me here, right? ’Cause I really need to rip one.”
I press my lips together and cover my mouth so he can’t hear me laughing.
Lena rolls her eyes as she leads him toward the counter. “Yeah, it’s just you and me. Let ’er rip.”
Yuri lets out a loud fart, much louder than anything I could have expected. And I can’t hold it in anymore.
I cackle loudly, coughing through my hysterics as Yuri opens his eyes. “Jesus fucking Christ,” I choke out through the laughter and the smell. “I think the walls shook with that one.”
Lena shakes her head in shame, but Yuri isn’t laughing. He’s standing on the other side of the checkout counter stock still, staring at the wall behind me. He doesn’t say a word as I take a moment to catch my breath, my gaze following the same direction as his.
Up on the wall, under the Rip Curl sign Andy gave Lena on the championship tour last year, is a six-foot-two-inch-long hollow-core surfboard shaped from paulownia wood. The glassy resin finish still has its original mirror shine. I switched to an epoxy board pretty quickly when I was learning to surf. The wood is just a tad less flexible and forgiving than the epoxy boards. But my mom had the foresight to keep my first surfboard in a protective case in our garage until I moved in with Lindsay and asked for it back. It’s been hanging in my workshop ever since.
“Are you fucking kidding me?” Yuri whispers, his eyes still fixed on the board.
“Not at all,” I reply with a huge smile. “It’s yours, if you still want it.”
He finally looks at me, his eyes pleading. “This better not be a joke, or I swear to God I’ll rip another one.”
“Dude, no need to make threats,” I say, holding up my hands. “The board is yours.”
His eyes widen as he breaks into a cheesy grin. “Are you fucking kidding me? Woo!” he hollers, pumping his fist as he leaps into the air, accidentally kicking a display of energy drinks. He rounds the counter and throws his arms around me. “I love you, man.”
I laugh as I pat his back. “Love you too, bro.”
When he lets me go, his eyes are red and watery as he turns his Quiksilver baseball cap backward so he has an unobstructed view of the board.
“I wouldn’t have won that title if you hadn’t shown up with my girls,” I say, swallowing the lump in my throat. “Fuck. I wouldn’t be half the surfer I am if you hadn’t been by my side tearing it up all these years. I know this ain’t much, but it’s the fucking least I can do.”
He presses his fingers into the corners of his eyes as he shakes his head. “Fuck me. If you tell anyone you saw me cry, I’ll kick your ass.”
“You’re five-nine. I’ve got five inches on you. I think I can take you.”
“Dude, I’m Japanese and I’m lactose intolerant. All I have to do is eat some pizza and drop some payback for Hiroshima on your ass. Boom!”
I shake my head in mock disappointment. “Too soon, man. Too soon.” He laughs as I pat him on the back and head for the exit. “Enjoy the board,” I call out. “I gotta pick up Lindsay at the hospital. She’s being discharged in a couple of hours.”
“Tell Baby Yuri his uncle said hi,” he shouts back.
I try not to speed on my way to the hospital, but it’s hard when I can’t fucking wait to see my boys again. And no, I haven’t named either of them Yuri. Actually, we haven’t named them at all yet. We’ve tossed around potential names, mostly the same ones we were contemplating while Lindsay was still pregnant, but none of them feel right yet.
I park Lindsay’s SUV in the lot at New Hanover Regional Medical Center and make my way back to the Mother/Baby Unit, where I’ve spent the past two nights sleeping