Katie walked a few steps over to her towel to put down the newborn baby Jake.
“There’s gotta be diapers around here somewhere,” thought the 27-year-old woman as she rummaged through her beach bag.
Unnoticed by her or anyone else at the nearby group, a misty purple energy leaked from the damaged ring and surrounded the newborn as an amniotic sack appeared around him. The energy enveloped the sack, which rapidly grew smaller and smaller until it melted into a puddle, and the nothingness.
“What the hell was I just looking for?” Katie thought to herself. For the life of her, she couldn’t remember. So she walked back over to the group.
Claudia in the meantime had gone to her car to grab a pair of scissors she kept for an emergency. The 19-year-old was cutting the middle section out of her bathing suit. “I don’t know why we just didn’t wear bikinis,” she said to one of the other girls.
19-year-old Mary Elyse, meanwhile, was watching the kids, while using her one arm to hold up the top part of her one-piece, which was made for a far more matronly woman than the slender teen.
The kids seemed to be having fun. 9-year-old Bobby was back on his Kindle playing his game while 8-year-old Jimmy watched, tossing a Frisbee he had found to himself. The three little girls were standing off to themselves, giggling.
“I dare you to kiss Bobby, Kellie!” 8-year-old Susie said.
“OK!” said 8-year-old Kellie. She thought Bobby was really cute.
“Don’t kiss Bobby! He’s got cooties!” said Andie. Secretly, the little brunette girl was jealous that the older Kellie might kiss Bobby.
“Oh, you don’t know nuthin’,” Susie said. “You’re only gonna turn 7 next week. That’s not a big as us.” Neither Susie nor Andie understood the irony of the “big” birthday remark.
“I’m gonna do it,” Kellie said.
She walked right up to Bobby, whose head was buried in the Kindle. He was struggling with the game – how did he get to such a hard level?
“Hi Bobby,” the 8-year-old said. Bobby, now also 8, ignored the honey-haired girl for his game.
Kellie grabbed the Kindle out of Bobby’s hands and kissed him right on the lips. He was shocked. So was Jimmy.
“Eww, a girl kissed you!” 7-year-old Jimmy shouted as Kellie scampered off back to the other girls.
“Eww, you kissed a boy!” 7-year-old Susie exclaimed.
“You dared me to!” the 8-year-old replied.
“Did not!” Susie shouted. “You’re gonna gets cooties.”
“Am not!” Kellie said to the younger girl.
“Kellie, wanna build a castle with me?” asked the barely 6-year-old Andie, who had a shovel in her hand.
“No, that’s for babies,” said Kellie. She was getting annoyed by these younger kids.
“Here, we’ll build a castle with you, Andie,” said 17-year-old Mary Elyse. “Won’t we Tricia?”
“Sure!” the busty teen, now clad only in her over-sized beach wrap, responded.
“Yay!” said the 5-year-old. “You’re pretty like mommies! Are you models?”
The red-haired teen blushed. “Aren’t you sweet?”
The group had fun for a little while, but they knew it was getting late, and soon they would have to go. It was an hour before the beach closed.
“Mary Elyse, thank you for helping me out with the kids today,” 28-year-old Katie said to the pretty, red-headed teen. “I’m glad your friends were able to join us to help as well.
“It’s no problem, Miss O’Toole,” Mary Elyse said, unconsciously scratching at a zit on her 16-year-old face. “Kellie is such a cutie and these other kids are a breeze. I’m sorry you had to get roped into babysitting on your day off.”
“Dig Mawy Eweese, dig!” shouted 4-year-old Andie, as her shoulder slipped through the neck hole of her oversized shirt. “I wanna castle!”
“Hi mommy!” said 7-year-old Kellie to her mother. 5-year-old Susie, also in a large shirt was standing next to her. “We’re not going home soon are we? I’m having fun!”
“The beach closes in an hour, sweetie, so we’re going to go then,” Katie replied.
“Dumb game!” came the shout from Bobby, as he threw his Kindle to the ground.
“Bobby, that’s not nice!” Katie yelled. “Claudia can you help me with him?”
“In a minute!” the skinny 15-year-old shouted, as her friend Nancy spotted her in a backflip.
“I’ll go, Ms. O’Toole,” Mary Elyse said. She got up to console the sullen 5-year-old in the adult bathing suit, while nearby, 4-year-old Jimmy and Susie were spinning in circles.
“Mommy, don’t babysit these little kids again,” said 7-year-old Kellie. “They’re dumb.”
Meanwhile, the ominous glow returned to Katie’s damaged ring.