The humidity is always the first thing that comes with stepping onto the pool deck. It’s like walking into a blanket from the dryer that only went for half a cycle. Kendra adjusts to it easily, though. It’s familiar, just like the soft scent of chlorine that permeates the air warm air. After the first couple minutes of her shift, she stops noticing it. Shrugging the strap of her swimsuit back into place, she casually surveys the pool deck as she walks to get a rescue tube from the supply bin. She’s not on the stand yet for another few minutes, but it’s become habit after the number of shifts she’s spent on the deck’s teal tiles. The kiddy pool is roped off and empty, the usual polite signs asking people to keep their kids out of it while it’s hazardously full of chlorine. Somebody probably had a potty accident. Kendra crinkles her nose, glad she avoided that situation, turning her gaze to the bigger, L shaped pool. …show more content…
Only one lap lane is set aside. The other six lanes are devoted to free space, though the diving well and the deep end stay separated off. Not that there’s much point, since most people are either too scared, or too sensible to venture into the chance that deep water brings. Mostly it’s the ballsy kids and the pros who end up out there. Either they’re competent enough to feel comfortable with the fifty-fifty chance of a lifeguard’s aid, should they need it, or they’re cocky enough to think themselves above. It’s the cocky ones that a lot of lifeguards turn a blind eye to. Natural selection at its finest, in her