Free Chosen by Sarah Swan

to make sure I was following.  I was right on his heels.  My stomach had started to knot itself in hunger.
    We turned the corner, and right there, just in front of me, stood a freshly-stocked vending machine.  I doubted I had ever seen a more beautiful sight.  I ran up to it, not caring that Chris saw my eagerness.  I was hungry .
    Reaching into my pocket hastily, I pulled out my wallet.  And to my horror, I saw that I had absolutely no dollar bills in it. 
    “Do you have any money?” I asked Chris cheekily.  He frowned at me, but took out his own wallet and handed me a few dollar bills.  I fed them into the machine quickly, and selected the two largest bags of chips they had available.
    “Thanks so much,” I said as I reached down to grab my makeshift lunch.  Ripping one of the bags open, I stuffed a handful of chips into my mouth.  They were delicious, and I swallowed them with great satisfaction.
    “Really hungry, huh?”  Chris quipped.
    I nodded.  “Like I said, I haven’t eaten all day.” 
    He laughed.  “You know, I’ve never seen anyone attack a bag of chips with such fervor.”
    “I didn’t eat most of yesterday, either,” I admitted.  Now that the food was settling comfortably in my stomach, I could finally think about other things.  “I don’t know if you have anything else to do, but I’ve got the entire rest of the day to hang out, if you want.”
    “Yeah, that sounds good,” Chris said.
    “Great.  I remember you said you could show me around campus…?”
    “Oh yeah,” he recalled. “Is that what you want to do?”
    “Being inside on a day like this seems like a sin.”
    “Good point.  What do you want to see first?”
    I shrugged, and reached into the bag of chips before realizing it was empty.  Opening the other one, I grabbed another handful.  “Whatever you think I need to know about.  I’m pretty much down to explore the whole island.”
    Chris tapped his lips thoughtfully.  “Well, you’ve already been to the main yard, and there’s really nothing interesting going on there right now.  That’s where all our classes are, so you’ll get plenty of time to look around once school starts, anyway.  As for anything else you might find interesting… Hmm.  I don’t know.  To be honest, the island is kind of dull.”
    “Is there an athletic facility?” I asked.  “A pool, maybe?”
    “Uh… oh!  There’s a great little beach hidden away along the coast.  Of course, there’s also the bigger beach that everybody goes to when the weather’s like this.  Not many know about the other one.  But I don’t know if that’s something you’d be interested in, though.”
    “Are you kidding?  I love the outdoors.  What are we waiting for?  Let’s get over there!”
     
    Ten minutes later, I was walking along a beautiful sandy beach, holding a shoe in either hand.  The tiny sand pebbles, warmed by the sun, felt absolutely luxurious between my toes.
    “So this is the main beach,” Chris explained.  “Everyone tends to hang out here during the day while the weather’s good.  Kids do their homework, or play catch, or anything at all.  You’ll see tomorrow.  When everyone else shows up, this place will be completely packed.  But not many people venture past the rocks.”  He pointed ahead, where the sand abruptly shifted into large, well-worn boulders.  The water lapped around them, and little waves crashed into the sides.  “And past there,” he said, climbing up onto the first boulder and offering a hand to help me up, “is where you really want to go.”
    I followed him as he showed the way along the boulders.  Some of the rocks slanted unevenly, while others were still slippery from high tide.  Some were spaced so far apart that we had to jump to get across.  Chris moved with the  surefootedness of someone who’d done this many times before, while I had to focus on simply staying up.  Once, a large wave came out of absolutely