Chapter 261 - Ocean - Traveling Part 1

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Ocean

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When I woke up Wednesday morning, I was feeling a lot better. I was calm and happy. I wasn't even jittery with excitement or anything like that. I was acting like it was just another day. I mean, I did pack the rest of my things and made sure that I had all the chargers and small things that I would need for while I was away. And I brought my stuff down so that it was ready to be loaded up and taken to the school with us. 

We were all going to be riding in one of the more roomy vehicles that were in the garage. This way we could take all of our stuff with us and not have to worry about space. And after school, we were going to be taking that car to the airport and parking it there so that we didn't have to worry about how to get home on Monday. We would just be able to pile back into the car and head home.

"Ha ha. It looked like Makai was able to get you to calm down after all. That's good. We don't need you being a nervous wreck before we leave."

"Ha ha, that's so funny, Ryan. I don't know how you come up with all this comedic gold of yours." My voice was so flat that it was really easy to tell that I was being sarcastic. He knew, they all knew, and all three of them laughed at me more than Ryan had laughed at himself.

"Still, I'm glad your calmed down. We were all really worried about you." Ryan showed me that he wasn't just a joking idiot. He also cared about his friends too.

"I know. And thank you. I don't even know what was wrong with me. I've been to competitions before, and I have been just fine at them all. I don't know why this time is any different.

"I don't know, man. Still, I'm glad that you're better."

The morning passed easily with all of us talking about what we wanted to do on our two free days before we left. Granted, we weren't going to have much time on Monday, but there was still some time if we were crafty. And of course, Makai used to live in that area so he would be able to get us where we wanted to go with no problem.

When we got to school, Coach Dickson was busy finalizing everything for the trip so he just popped in a movie and let us all relax. I was pretty sure that was how his whole day was going to go.

What shocked me though, was that most of the other teachers took the same approach for the day. Apparently, almost every teacher in the entire school had prepared movies for their students. And they even coordinated so that no one had to sit through the same movie twice. And in some cases, the movies followed the groups of students that were in the same class like me and Makai. We were able to watch them through to the end. Those that were not in that group with us, were in another classroom and they watched a different movie. It was the strangest day of school I had ever had. And it all culminated in a surprise assembly at the end of the day.

The principal had gathered everyone together to wish us all luck and recognize all of our hard work.

"Can I have your attention please." The principal called out to everyone. "We have some very important people here today that I want us all to recognize." He was pointing at the coach as he spoke. "First is the coach of our swim teams. Richard Dickson, the man that had helped to bring about all of these opportunities for our talented swimmers. Please, Richard, come say a few words." The principal call Coach to the stage and the students in the bleachers started to applaud for him.

"No. No. None of that applause should be for me. I am not the one that has done anything here. All I do is yell at these kids and tell them what to do. They are the one that do all of the hard work. They are the ones that put in all of the effort and get all of the results. If you're going to applaud for anyone, it needs to be for the swimmers that have been asked back for this competition. Katie, Alexis, Cassie and Whitney for the girls and Ocean, Makai, Ben and Ryan for the boy's team. We also have Ocean and Makai who finished in first and second place for the individuals so they will be competing for that as well. And Katie, who came in fourth place in the individuals last time has been asked back because one of the other swimmers is no longer eligible to swim. Along with them, we are taking a few of the others that were close enough to the top in case there is a last minute substitution. Those extra swimmers will be Charlie, Toby, Jenell and Faith. These twelve students have worked hard to be where they are and they all deserve that applause that you were giving me. So, come on, all of you. Come up here and let me present you to the crowd." Coach was beckoning the twelve of us to come stand next to him. We were sitting aside because we were told to be ready. "Come on. Ocean Shores. Makai Rivers. Benton Kennedy. Ryan Johnson. Katie Matthews. Cassie Berger. Alexis Hunt. Whitney Little. Jenell Hodges. Faith Hansen. Toby Green. And Charles Kay."

As we were called, we all went up to the coach and stood awkwardly. There was nearly constant applause with each name that was called, and that made it feel weird. I wasn't a celebrity, but I kind of felt like one right now. This was all kind of overwhelming but also a little cool. I didn't really want to be in front of them all like this but having everyone be happy and cheering for me was good too. I was sort of torn between the two. 

The cheering went on for a long time and then there was some well wishes from the teachers and the principal. The teacher said they had planned on having nothing but review for the time that we were gone so that we didn't miss much. And that if there were new assignments, we would be given extra time when we got back. I can't believe that this happened, but it was quite amazing in my opinion. They were looking out for us even while we were gone. That made me and everyone else feel very appreciated.

After the assembly, the whole school went back to their classrooms. Well, everyone except for me and the other swimmers that were leaving. We were all dismissed early so that we could get to the airport and have plenty of time to settle into our flight.

Hmm, I wonder what they were all going to think when they found out that Makai and his parents upgraded all of our tickets to first class and was giving us all the royal treatment for this trip? I bet they are all going to flip out, and I couldn't wait to see that happen.

All of us filed out of the school. Several of the swimmers had parents that were there to pick them up and take them to the airport. Others were riding with the coach. And then there were the four of us that were going together in our vehicle. If there had been anyone else needing a ride, we could have taken them with us as well. However, there didn't seem to be any, so it was just us.

We were all leaving from LAX. That meant that we needed to drive into the city and that was a long enough drive. I mean, it was just over an hour or so, but it was long enough. That was why I was happy that we were all dismissed early. We were supposed to board our flight around five thirty this evening, but that would have been hard if we didn't get out of school until two thirty in the afternoon. That little bit of extra time was a massive help.

Not to mention that we were all wanting to grab some lunch in the airport as we waited for out flight. It would be good for us not to be hungry on the flight because there technically was no meal service. Well, being first class there was some food provided but who knew how edible it would be. No, it would be best if we all just ate before we left for Orlando.

An hour and a half drive to the airport, made longer due to traffic, and then about an hour to get checked in and through security. By the time that we were all in the terminal and could get some food, I was starving. We settled on Panda Express because it was fast and still decent food.

We talked a lot while we ate. Mostly about the competition and what we thought might happen during it. We seniors talked about what we were going to do after graduation and that was where Ben and Ryan officially announced to the others that they were going to UCLA along with us. That made things a lot better for us. It would make our plan a lot easier to put into place.

After we ate we went to the gate and waited until it was time to check in.. It had already been a long day, but for some reason I was really happy about that.