We arrived at the beach in the late afternoon, when the sun was lower and the heat wasn’t as intense. The sand was warm under my feet, and the sound of the waves drowned out everything else. The air smelled like salt and sunscreen, and for the first time all week, I felt like I could actually breathe.

We set our towels down and sat for a while, watching the water move in and out. When we finally went in, the ocean was freezing at first, but after a few minutes it felt refreshing. Kids were running along the shore, seagulls hovered nearby, and someone in the distance was playing music softly enough that it blended into the sound of the waves.

As the sun started to set, the sky turned orange and pink, and the beach slowly grew quieter. People packed up their things, and the wind cooled the air. We were about to leave when someone nearby started clapping. There were multiple people doing crazy flips and jumping over people. We gathered around and they picked me to jump over, so I closed my eyes and when I opened them he was stading right in front of me.