Free Under the Surface by Katrina Penaflor Page B

friend wandering
about in the kitchen.”
    Ren smirks at me. “Sorry dad, I
can barely get a handle on this girl. She’s always trying to start some
trouble.” He gives his dad a hug.
    “It’s
alright, son. No harm done. Now what are you kids doing here so late?”
    “We’re going
to the beach. Emmy got off work late, and I had the idea to come down here for
a fire.”
    “You couldn’t
sleep and come in the morning?”
    “Nope, that’ s no fun. ”
    “To be young
and full of energy. How long do you plan on staying? The weather is supposed to
be good tomorrow, I can make us dinner or a late lunch if you plan on sticking
around. I have most of the day off.”
    “Emmy sort of
wanted to head back tonight. She was worried you wouldn’t want her to stay the
night.”
    Ren’s dad
turns to me, “You guys should stay here tonight. Even though the drive isn’t
far, you’re too tired to go back at the break of dawn. It’s technically Friday
now. Ren do you have class today?”
    “Yeah, but
I’ll skip it.”
    “I didn’t
hear that. Emilie stay here tonight. We have a guest room you can sleep in.”
    He’s right.
We shouldn’t be driving this late.
    “Thank you,
Mr. Warren, and again I’m sorry I woke you up.”
    “Please don’t
worry about it. I’m glad to have the company. Emilie it was nice meeting you,
and I’ll see you guys at a more appropriate hour.”
    “Night,
Pops.”
    “Don’t call
me that it makes me feel old.”
    “Why do you
think I do it?” Ren gives his dad one more hug before he
retreats back upstairs.
    “I got the
stuff,” Ren points to the bags on the counter.
    I’m just
staring at the place Ren’ s dad was standing. I still can ’t believe he
wasn’t mad. I woke him up in the middle of the night and all he did was welcome
me into his home.
    “Hey, Emmy,
you okay?”
    “Huh?”
    “You’re
acting weird. If you really don’t want to sleep here we can go back, but we
should probably do it now.”
    “No, it’s not
that. It’s nothing, really. Let’s go make the fire.”
    He looks
unconvinced by my answer. “Are you sure?”
    I don ’t want to tell him that
his dad’s nice behavior is why I’m off. It’s not a normal reaction for a person
to be thrown off by generosity. It’s just something I’m not used to. Especially
from a parent, and especially from a dad.
    “It’s
nothing. We’ll sleep here tonight. That was nice of your dad to offer.”
    He stares at
me for another moment. “Alright. Did you get the stuff for s’mores?”
    “I got the
graham crackers, but I couldn’t find the chocolate or marshmallows. And I also
forget the beer.”
    “Huh, my dad
must have moved them. They’re probably in the pantry. And we can pass on the
beer. It’ll probably just put me to sleep.”
    He opens a
door to the right of the kitchen. “Bingo. Got the goods.”
    Ren pulls out
a large bag of marshmallows and has two bars of fancy looking chocolate. “The
good stuff,” he says while handing the items to me.
    I inspect
“the goods.” “Who makes s’mores with gourmet chocolate?” I ask. It seems like
such a luxury.
    “I know, a
little over the top, but my dad is a chef. He takes all the food in the house
seriously. I buy the cheap stuff when I’m shopping, but when he buys the
groceries he just can’t help himself.”
    I examine the
bars of chocolate. Both are covered in gold foil and the flavors are raspberry
almond, and the other is coconut salted caramel. I open the caramel one and
break off a piece.
    The chocolate
is slightly salty with a crunch from the coconut. It’s smooth and delicious and
completely perfect. “I’m going to have to keep these for myself. There is no
way I’m sharing.”
    “Excuse me
but this is my house, under my roof. A line you used earlier. The
chocolate is mine to give to you if I choose. ”
    Oh he better
be joking. I hand him one of the bars but keep one to myself.
    “Let’s go
start the fire now. Grab the wood,