"One thousand dollars!" Freddie cheered, waving the giant novelty check as they walked through the turnstiles of Splash World. "Ramen is on me, guys! And rent! And electricity! We are officially lower-middle class for at least two weeks!"

It was a perfect day. The sun was hot, the chlorine smelled like summer, and for the first time in weeks, Freddie felt like things were going to be okay.

They met by the lockers to change. Freddie waited by the towel rental stand, trying to look casual.

Selena emerged first. She was wearing the purple bikini they had bought with the winnings. It was simple, but on her, it looked like magazine cover material. It showed off her athletic build and the faint tan she had started to acquire since leaving the digital world.

Freddie had to physically remind himself to breathe. "Wow. You look... great."
Selena, however, looked confused. She looked down at her bikini top, then tugged at the bottom string.

"Freddie," she said, her brow furrowed. "I require an explanation of the social algorithm."

"Uh, what do you mean?"

"This armor set," she gestured to the bikini. "It covers approximately 4% less surface area than the lace undergarments I attempted to wear at the college. Yet, nobody is calling the police. Why is this 'bikini' acceptable, but the 'bra and thong' resulted in a threat of incarceration?"

Freddie rubbed the back of his neck, his face turning pink. "It’s... context, Selena. It’s a material thing. This is for water. The other stuff is for... private."

Selena tilted her head. "So, if I am near a body of water, nudity parameters are relaxed? Does this mean if I carry a water bottle, I can remove—"

"No!" Freddie shouted, waving his hands frantically. "No removing anything! God, I thought we fixed this problem already!"
Selena shrugged. "Your world’s code is incredibly inconsistent."

Robin followed, wearing oversized designer sunglasses and a black two-piece, looking like a celebrity trying to avoid paparazzi. She smirked at Freddie’s flushed face. "Close your mouth, baby brother. You’re catching flies."

Then came Avery.

Avery stepped out of the changing room, and the group went silent. She was wearing a black-and-white striped, full-body bathing suit that covered her from ankles to wrists. It looked exactly like something Wednesday Addams would wear to a funeral at sea. To top it off, her nose was coated in a thick, white layer of zinc oxide.

"Avery," Robin said, lifting her sunglasses. "You look like you're about to haunt a Victorian lighthouse."

"The sun is a deadly laser, Robin," Avery said solemnly, adjusting her swimming goggles. "I am surviving. Leave me be."

The group secured lounge chairs near the deep end. As Robin and Selena applied sunscreen, three shadows fell over them.
"Well, hello there," a voice purred.

It was Chad. Again. He and the boys were prowling the pool deck, looking for "baddies." He hadn't seen their faces yet, just the figures from behind.

"You ladies look like you could use some expert lotion appliers," Trevor said, leaning in with a slimy grin.

Selena turned around, holding a bottle of SPF 50. "Hello. Are you prepared for the fluid dynamics?"

Chad’s smile vanished. Trevor choked on his own spit. Kyle actually took a step back and slipped on a wet tile.

"Oh god," Chad whispered. "It’s the Karate Girl."

"I... uh..." Trevor looked around frantically. He pointed at a confused lifeguard in the distance. "I was talking to him! Hey man! Nice... whistle!"

"Abort! Abort!" Kyle hissed.

They speed-walked away so fast they looked like synchronized swimmers on land, disappearing into the crowd near the snack bar.

"Before we engage with the water physics," Selena announced, pointing at a colorful stand nearby. "I wish to consume the frozen dairy fuel."

Freddie bought everyone ice cream cones. He handed Selena a bright blue one—Blue Raspberry, naturally.

"It is cold," Selena observed, sniffing it.

"It’s ice cream," Freddie said, licking his chocolate cone. "You have to eat it slo—"
CHOMP.

Selena didn't lick it. She bit off half the scoop in one go, swallowing it instantly.
Three seconds passed.

Selena’s eyes widened. She dropped the rest of the cone. She grabbed her head with both hands, stumbling backward.

"SYSTEM ERROR!" she screamed, squeezing her temples. "CRANIAL FREEZE DETECTED! MY CPU IS ICING OVER! FREDDIE, AM I DYING?"

"It’s a brain freeze!" Freddie laughed, guiding her to a chair. "It happens when you eat cold stuff too fast. It’ll pass in a second."

Selena groaned, one eye twitching. "First the hot noodles burn my sensors, now the cold cream freezes my processor. Why is all food in this dimension a trap?"

Once the headache subsided, the horn blew. The Mega Wave.

"Come on!" Selena shouted, grabbing Freddie’s hand, her energy instantly restored. "I wish to experience the turbulence!"

They swam out to the deep end. The water began to swell. People were screaming with delight, bobbing up and down.

Selena was laughing, treading water beside Freddie. "Freddie! Look at the amplitude! It is—"

She stopped.

Her mouth was open in a laugh, but no sound came out. Her eyes went wide and vacant.

Freddie was smiling, looking at the approaching wave. "Yeah, it’s huge! Get ready!"

He didn't notice immediately.
Selena began to sink. Her limbs stopped moving. She drifted under the surface, her hair fanning out like a halo.

"Selena?" Freddie wiped water from his eyes. "Selena!"

He dove under. He saw her suspended in the water, sinking like a stone. He grabbed her arm to pull her up.
His hand went through her bicep.

Freddie gasped, inhaling a mouthful of water. He stared in horror. Selena’s arm was flickering—turning into a blue wireframe mesh, then completely invisible, revealing the blue pool tiles behind it, then snapping back to solid skin.

He grabbed her again, finding purchase on her waist, and kicked hard, breaking the surface.

He dragged her toward the wall, her body heavy and unresponsive.

"Mommy! Mommy!" A little boy in floaties pointed a chubby finger at them. "That lady’s arm! It disappeared! It turned into robot lines!"

The mother, tired and adjusting her swimsuit strap, didn't even look. "Put your goggles back on, Tyler. You’ve been playing too many video games. Stop making up stories."

"But Mom—!"

Freddie hauled Selena onto the concrete lip of the pool. The crowd was cheering for the next wave, oblivious to the drama in the corner.

But Robin saw. She was sitting on the edge nearby. She stood up, knocking over her drink. "Freddie?"

And Avery, sitting way back on her lounge chair like a gargoyle, saw it through her binoculars. She stood up so fast her chair tipped over.

Selena lay on the concrete, coughing water. She looked up at Freddie, terrified. Her face glitched—her left eye turning into static for a second before stabilizing.

"Freddie..." she rasped, her voice sounding like a skipping CD. "Sys... tem... fail... ure..."

"I got you," Freddie whispered, his hands shaking violently as he covered her glitching shoulder with a towel. "I got you."

He looked up to see Robin and Avery sprinting toward them, pure terror on their faces. The fun was over.