That's Where We Wanna Go

It’s really weird.

I may have only known Ken and Marie for a semester, but, even with that short time, I felt like I had a good grasp of their personalities. In fact, I don’t think there was a time when these two weren't being competitive over something. I wouldn’t even be surprised if I was told they were competing against their own selves when there’s no one else around.

Yet, here we are at the beach where there are many opportunities to play around and, somehow, neither of them seem that interested in competing with anyone. There are also plenty of potential opponents that would be willing to play with them as most of my classmates have come and want to get to know one or both members of the pair.

Well, it was still mid-afternoon on the first of a two-day outing so there will still probably be more opportunities for them to make a competition out of something. But, I still found it strange that they haven’t done so at least once until now, especially since there was no lack of fun activities they could have made a bet on.

I could understand they refrained when we were traveling in the morning. We came here at the beach with three minivans plus one SUV - all borrowed by different people from their respective relatives, and one of the drivers was Ken. The two had set a boundary for that as they didn’t want to cause an accident because he wasn’t fully concentrating on the road.

Not to mention, he was on point leading the way as Naomi, who was the key to get where we wanted to be, was one of the passengers in the car he was driving. If he gets in an accident, the trip would be instantly ruined because the place we were going to stay at is owned by her family.

Anyway, once we had arrived at our destination, Ken and Marie only seemed to have played around normally. No scores, no tallies, no winners and definitely no losers; just good old clean fun with no strings attached.

It wasn’t like the place was a public beach where they could potentially bother other people trying to enjoy a summer getaway. In fact, it wasn’t just a vacation home that we were generously lent to, it had a private beach as well. It wasn’t crowded. Not to mention, the only people around wouldn’t be bothered by what Ken and Marie would do as all of them are their underclassmen that’s completely infatuated with this overly competitive couple.

Speaking of which, the vacation home is quite a godsend. It quickly resolved the long-standing debate that our class had on where we were going for the trip as it convinced almost everyone it’s the best pick as lodging will be free of charge. It’s really easy to convince people when you tell them they can spend less money as they only have to contribute to food and gas.

Furthermore, the beach house was a very nice place. It was quite large as there were eight bedrooms, which is enough for all twenty-five of us to split into without being crammed like sardines. There were plenty of amenities inside like a function room, game room, a music studio and a mini-theater as well. There was a basketball court, a tennis court, and a badminton court on the side, plus a pool and a Jacuzzi at the beachfront. On the beach, there were even spaces for beach volleyball and beach soccer.

Frankly speaking, rather than a vacation home, it felt more like a small private luxury resort.

I already knew Naomi was a rich girl, but that was the moment I truly began to wonder how deep her family’s pockets were. However, that really should be none of my concern.

Anyway, all these rooms for activities, yet neither Ken nor Marie doesn’t seem like they’re trying to compete against each other, or at least against someone else.

During the morning, well, most of us were playing by the water so there probably weren’t many opportunities to start a competition. They probably could have competed on who could swim faster, but that didn’t materialize.

After that, once everyone got tired of playing in the water, Ken was invited to play basketball with the boys. Some of the girls went to watch them including Marie and me. I wasn’t sure what kind of match we were about to see, but I wasn’t expecting their play would be so casual. Ken as well didn’t seem like he was putting one hundred percent effort in the game, to my confusion.

Somewhere in the middle, some of the girls must have gotten bored watching the boys play so they invited Marie to play badminton in the neighboring court. Marie asked me to come, too, so I went with them.

There were six of us so it was proposed we do a doubles match so more of us can play at one time.

While playing, Marie, like Ken, wasn’t giving it one hundred percent either. Although, after getting my turn, it made sense not to put so much effort since it was hard to play while wearing flip-flops with wet feet. But, I wasn’t sure if that was the entire reason Marie didn’t give it her all.

When the time came to prepare for lunch, I thought the pair would start something. This one, I was anticipating and had prepared countermeasures after I found out they contributed to the shopping, but, somehow, the two seemed disinterested in having another cook-off and making everyone here sample their cooking.

Well, Marie didn’t seem interested in taking up cooking duties, but Ken was more than game to fire up the grill for a barbecue.

I tried convincing him to leave it to the others instead, but, with much conviction, he said to me “Barbecue is a man’s passion!”

He was going to do the barbecue no matter what I said.

I didn’t expect to stop him with words, though. I already prepared myself mentally beforehand to keep watch and prevent him from getting too creative with the food.

However, that got me banned from coming close to both the outdoor grill and the kitchen.

On reflection, I may probably have gone a little bit overboard. I sort of hovered over Ken’s every move, which made him uncomfortable.

He explicitly told me that, but I continued to do so anyway. He hadn’t done much else for me to stop either.

What really caused me to be banned was when I thought he was putting a little too much soy sauce on the marinade. A past trauma kicked in, which made me grab his arm to stop him from putting any more. But, he resisted so there was a bit of struggle between us that eventually led to the two of us getting bathed by soy sauce.

I wasn’t expelled immediately, though. I helped clean up first. But, after that, everyone that was helping out prepare the food has told me to leave.

I tried pleading my case, but it fell on deaf ears. They weren’t budging on my banishment. At that point, I just stopped caring if the food turned unsavory because of Ken.

I would be proven wrong later, however. Not only was Ken able to prepare food properly, they were delicious as well. They were just the right amount of savoriness and saltiness, unlike what I had imagined earlier when he was working with the marinade.

Furthermore, it wasn’t Ken that I should have kept an eye on; it should have been Marie.

Once everything was served and we were ready to eat, she somehow snuck in a sauce she made herself. I think Ken would have kept it away from everyone if he knew, but he and I hadn’t noticed it until one of the boys ran towards a faucet and started chugging water wholesale.

Needless to say, it was extremely spicy. A “Marie special”, if you would.

I sympathize with the victim, but I was just glad it wasn't me this time.

The sauce had to be separated and cordoned off so no one else could fall victim to its dangers.

But, anyway, that act of hers was more because she wanted a condiment that suits her tastes rather than trying to compete with Ken. If it was, then she would have made some dishes as well.

After lunch, everyone was taking it easy including Ken and Marie. I found the two of them relaxing by the beach under a large umbrella. I thought they might be up to something, maybe playing a word game or another activity that doesn’t require much movement, but I just found Marie reading a book while Ken took a nap.

Seeing them being passive like that, they seemed like normal lovers instead of the impression I had of them being more like rivals or playmates at the least. It made me wonder why they were doing all those games, but Marie motioned for me to stay quiet so I wouldn’t disturb Ken’s sleep. I was unable to pose the question.

So, now, back to the present.

Ken woke up after half an hour. The first thing the two did was build a sand castle and somehow they’ve been at it for ten, maybe fifteen minutes now. I thought, this time, they were competing, but it looked more like a cooperative effort. They weren’t trying to one-up somebody else either as nobody else was building sand castles.

I asked them to make sure if they didn’t just have some different kind of rule.

They said they were trying to see if they could make a sand castle that can withstand the waves. However, once they said that, a relatively large wave hit it and, surely enough, the side that faced the sea crumbled.

I guess, technically, they were having a competition, although against mother nature, which was a first for me to witness. They were also losing. They kept at it, regardless. But, it really felt more like they were just playing around.

I joined them as well, having nothing else I wanted to do at the moment. I wouldn’t call it fun and the waves constantly destroying the wall we keep trying to rebuild is frustrating, but it’s strangely therapeutic.

I also took the opportunity to ask the two that one question I had earlier - why do they always seem to be playing some sort of match?

Marie was the first to answer. She said, “It’s to settle a bet.”

“What kind of bet?”

“The winner gets to decide on how many kids we have when we get married.”

I thought she was joking, but there was no hint of humor in her voice.

“Are you serious?”

“I am”, she replied.

I looked at Ken to see if they were playing me or something.

He nodded and, in confirmation, said, “It’s true.”

I wasn’t sure on how to react so I just awkwardly laughed it off.

Then, without being asked, they started giving an explanation on why they’re doing it.

“You see, I only want one or two, but this guy says he wants to have an entire soccer team”, Marie said. “Eleven kids!”

“That’s because I love Marie so much that I want to make that many children with her”, Ken said, giving his side of the story.

Marie seems to have been affected by that sudden declaration of love as her face turned a bit red.

I was affected as well. My heart throbbed, not in a way that I fell in love with him, but rather like getting that feeling of watching something romantic happening from a show, as that curveball was too damn sweet!

But, that didn’t mean Marie would start fawning over Ken. In fact, her reaction that followed was the opposite.

“Love can only get us so far”, she said to Ken antagonistically.

Without context, that sounded like it was a line for a breakup.

“I already told you I’m willing to work very hard to support that many kids”, Ken replied.

“Hard work has its limits, too, and eleven kids is way beyond that!”

“If there’s love, we can make it work.”

“Stop using love as the reason! I already told you, it can only go so far. It isn’t limitless either!”

“Then, does that mean you’ll eventually fall out of love with me?”

Marie hesitated to answer for a moment, but, eventually, she said, “Of course not, stupid!”

She was still blushing after that curveball. She started getting redder during this time.

“I’ll love you forever”, she said, visibly very embarrassed. “Don’t make me say it when I've told you that plenty of times before!”

Meanwhile, here I am witnessing it while suffering secondhand embarrassment, but I can’t take my eyes off the show.

“What I mean is I just fear there won’t be enough love for everyone if we made a family that big!” she then said, continuing with the argument.

The two continued their debate that they forgot about the sand castle which had all but crumbled due to the waves hitting it. I started to see why they eventually settled on making a bet out of it as neither budged on the topic.

Although it doesn’t seem like a fight that could lead to an actual breakup, their argument was still getting a bit heated that it started becoming awkward seeing it. It kind of felt like my fault as well as my question led to the situation so I felt I had to stop them as well.

“Then, is that the reason why you two haven’t been too competitive today?” I asked to change topics.

“What do you mean?” Kat responded with a question of her own.

I relayed my observations about the two earlier today. I then commented, “I thought you two were naturally competitive and give it your all regardless of who you’re up against.”

To which they answered, in unison, “It’s only natural I’d want to give it my all when I’m with the person I love.”

Now, the two of them made my heart skip a beat. I thought they were too cool delivering that line.

After recovering a bit, I asked, “So, what’s the score?”

However, the two looked at each other quizzically trying to find the answer to my question.

Ken then answered, “We don’t know.”

“Huh?” I said, confused. “You don’t know? Why don’t you know?”

“You see, Kat”, Marie started her reply, sounding serious. “We’ve had so many matches, we already lost count.”

“Then, how do you know who’s winning?”

“Oh, don’t worry”, Ken assured me. “We still know whether one of us is leading and by how much or if we’re tied.”

“Currently, we’re tied”, Marie continued.

I didn’t know whether they really were serious about their bet which could ultimately decide their future considering how sloppy they kept score.

Nevertheless, I still had plenty of other questions for the two like how long they have been doing it and when they will decide that their game is over. However, the answers to those would have to wait.

Apparently, the private resort also had its own PA system. I found that out when we were interrupted by Naomi’s booming voice which could be heard at the entire beach as she called for everyone’s attention.

“Everyone, gather at the beach volleyball court!” she stated loudly over the speakers.

She repeated the announcement four more times without explaining why we were being called there.

The three of us were already nearby, but we figured we shouldn’t delay answering the summons. We were probably only around fifty meters away so it was a short walk anyway. Not to mention, Naomi was already there sitting on top of the referee’s high chair. It would have been awkward to walk away from her when she’s already seen us.

When we got closer, I noticed she had a microphone in hand. It seems that she made the announcement from where she was, which explains why she was already there when we looked at the direction of the court.

“Hi, Naomi”, I greeted her as I approached the referee chair. “Why did you call us here?”

“Well, just wait and see”, she said from her vantage point. “I’ll announce it once everyone is here.”

It took a little short of ten minutes and a couple more announcements for everyone on this trip to gather. In the meantime, I just quietly stood beside the high chair as Marie and Ken, who were beside me, were busy mingling with the other people.

Once everybody was accounted for, Naomi began her announcement. As her opener, she said, “Everyone, I called all of you here to finally settle the debate of what we should do as a group for tonight.”

I wasn’t aware there was an ongoing debate on that, or that there was a plan for a group activity for tonight. Then again, we were a fairly large group. Plenty of things can happen without my knowing since other people still think and act for themselves when I’m not looking.

“We’ll decide it by beach volleyball!” she declared as she grabbed a net containing a couple of volleyballs that was hanging on the opposite side of the chair and showed it for everyone to see.

“The winning pair can decide what we’ll do later tonight”, Naomi continued. “Fireworks, a test of courage, or we can stay indoors and watch a movie or turn the function room into a dance hall; whichever you fancy, I can organize it.”

“However, I may not be able to prepare for it if we take too long so hurry up and pair yourselves so we can finish before the sun sets”, she stated, which everybody else quickly complied to.

Meanwhile, I was wondering why we couldn't just settle it through vote, but I didn't want to be a killjoy so I didn't voice it out.

It was obvious to everyone that Ken and Marie would be pairing up so the crowd that gathered around them left the two alone to form their own pairs.

“Now that I think about it, we haven’t had a match all day”, I heard Marie say to Ken.

“You’re right”, he replied. “What do you have in mind?”

“The one who scores the most kills at the end is the winner.”

“You’re on.”

So, their latest game was decided quickly. They then moved somewhere with a bit more space where they could talk without anyone hearing them, probably to prepare their strategy and decide on hand signals based on their body language.

At the same time, I was forced into being the referee.

There were twenty-five of us so it was obvious someone would be left out. I thought it would be Naomi considering she was the one organizing things, but she wanted to join in as well. I was kind of hoping the odd one out would be me, but I didn't expect I would be asked to be the referee.

“You were on the volleyball team during high school, weren’t you?” she asked me as she handed me a whistle. “You’re the one who knows the rules best so you be the referee.”

I was, in fact, on the volleyball team during high school. However, there were some slight differences between beach and indoor volleyball, which I’m not fully privy to so I wasn’t confident that I was the right person for the job. Not only that, but I’m pretty sure I haven’t told her I used to be a volleyball player so I was confused on whether to ask how she knew that or protest my arbitrarily assigned role. Before I could do either, she was already walking towards the other side of the court to her partner for the tournament.

Then again, I didn’t have any particular preference with regards to the group activity so I didn’t mind that I wasn’t competing in this impromptu tournament. Also, if what Naomi said about me being the most familiar to the rules is true, then I could afford letting some minor violations go whether I identify them as one under the rules or not.

Anyway, the competition started and the level is what you’d expect from amateurs. I was eagerly anticipating Ken and Marie’s turn, however. I thought, considering they’re now playing with each other and they had some stake in the game, they’d be fully motivated and give it their all.

Well, they were fully motivated, but, apparently, the sport wasn’t their strong suit. They promptly lost their first match after making so many personal errors, scoring only seven points in two sets, which were shortened to only run up to ten points each.

Marie didn’t seem to mind as she won their own little match, scoring two kills to Ken’s zero.

As for the tournament, the winning pair, Naomi and her partner whose name I fail to remember despite being my classmate, decided on a large fireworks display and a scary movie to be played in the mini-theater respectively.