All Wet
By Ayesha Haqqiqa
Jack McCoy stripped off his shirt, and then his jeans. He carefully put them in his locker, and then changed into his swimming trunks. They were baggy, because he hated the tight-fitting kind. Girls always seemed to stare at him when he wore the regulation trunks required by the St. Michael’s Swim Team. It didn’t put him off his game, because he always won first prize, but that was more out of fear of displeasing his father than in winning any girl’s admiration.
But all that was behind him now. He had graduated valedictorian of his class of 1963, and was spending his summer earning money for college. He’d gotten a scholarship to the University of Chicago, but it wouldn’t pay for room and board, and Jack longed to leave home. So he’d signed up as a swim instructor at the Y. He’d teach beginners and life saving, and would earn the princely sum of three bucks an hour. He figured that by the end of the summer he’d have enough money saved back to be able to share an apartment with his best friend, George, who was also going to the U of C. Lucky George. His family was rich, and he was going to spend his summer cruising around in his Mercury, picking up girls. Fat chance Jack would have in the romance department.
But Jack pushed those thoughts out of his head as he donned the whistle and took his towel out to the pool. He’d decided it would be a good idea to warm up a bit before his students came, and so he dove in and swam a few laps. Invigorated, he pulled himself from the pool and toweled off. When the chlorine was out of his eyes, he realized there was a small group of girls standing near him.
“May I help you?” He was polite; he needed the job, and wasn’t going to blow it by speaking rudely.
“Yes,” one girl giggled. “We’re your class.”
“But my class is for beginners,” Jack objected. “You all must be fourteen at the least!”
“Well, that doesn’t mean we know how to swim,” a petite, dark-haired beauty said coyly. She looked up at Jack and smiled.
“I know you,” he said. “You’re—Mary? No, Marie. Marie from honors class at St. Michael’s!”
“Yeah, glad you remembered me,” she said shyly. “When I heard you were teaching a class of beginners, well, I thought, it was time for me to get over my fear of the water. I have to take swimming next year in PE, and I’d like to pass it. That’s all I need to graduate, you see.”
“I see,” Jack said. He remembered her now. Marie Navaloni. She was only a year younger than Jack, and very quick and smart, especially during debates. He’d only seen her in school uniform, which didn’t do justice to the curves that were accentuated by her bathing suit. “I see,” Jack repeated, staring down at her.
“Uh, Jack, don’t you think you’d better start class?” Marie asked. “After all, most of us are scared of water, and it took all our courage to even come out here!”
“You’re right,” Jack said, taking a deep breath. “Ok, then. How many of you feel comfortable standing in the water? You’re not sure? How about if I help you in?” He led the girls to the shallow end of the pool, where there were steps going into the water. “Just take my hand, I won’t let you slip—“ Slowly, one by one, he guided them down into the pool. Some clung to him in terror, but must just held his hand tightly. If the girls were this skittish, the class would be a long and difficult one.
They lined up against the side of the pool, some clinging to it for dear life, the rest standing stiff, as if at attention.
“The first thing you need to do is to relax in the water,” Jack said. “Hang onto the side rail and sort of let your body float upwards. Nothing is going to happen to you, because you are hanging on, right?” He watched as slowly, cautiously, the girls let their bodies float upwards. Then, suddenly, Marie’s hand slipped, and she was foundering in the water. Jack was right there, placing his hands under her. “Relax, relax,” he said soothingly. “See how easy it is to float?” He looked into her eyes, and smiled. She smiled back. He stepped away, and she looked at him in alarm. “No problem, Marie, you’re floating, and all by yourself! Just stay relaxed! That’s it!”
Suddenly, three more girls lost their grip, and Jack had a time of it, steadying them, but soon they were all floating on their backs, and the others as well. Jack noticed, however, that he had to keep his eyes on them constantly; if he paid too much attention to one, another would founder, and he’d have to rush to her side. Luckily, there were only nine girls, and by the end of the class, they were all floating on their own.
“Great work!” Jack told them as they toweled off.
“Don’t we get a reward?” one of them, a cute redhead, asked coyly.
Jack quit drying his hair and looked at her. “How about this? I’ll do a dive for you. That’s something you’ll be able to do by the end of the class.”
“Better than nothing, I guess,” he heard Marie mutter, but he shrugged it off, because the other girls seemed eager to watch him.
He went to the lower board and dove into the water, to the applause of the girls. He swam over to them, grinning. “Tomorrow, I show you how to float on your stomachs, and then we do a dog paddle,” he said.
“Woof, woof” a plump blonde said, as the girls laughed and left.
Jack sat by the side of the pool. He hadn’t realized how strenuous teaching beginners could be. But the next class was life saving class, which meant he would be dealing with experienced swimmers like himself. He was looking forward to teaching some boys and girls, but to his surprise, his students were all of the female persuasion.
“Hi,” a tanned, long-legged beauty told him. “I’m Nicole, and I want to learn all your techniques.”
“Just basic life-saving,” Jack said, looking at her skimpy suit and blushing slightly. He looked at the group. “How good are you at swimming? To perform a rescue, you have to be strong. So let’s start out by swimming a few laps. I’ll time you.”
“Meet me at the finish line,” Nicole said as she dived into the pool. The girls seemed avid competitors, and Jack was amazed at their speed and stamina.
“Looks like you have been working out,” he told them appreciatively.
“At St. Anthony’s all year,” Nicole said. “I’m the captain of the girl’s swim team there. In fact, this is the whole team. We saw you compete a couple of times, and when we learned you were teaching life saving, we decided to take the class.”
“Thanks,” Jack said. As he looked at them, he remembered a few of the faces from some of his meets. “Well, since you’ve proved your stamina in swimming, what say we learn a little bit about artificial respiration?”
The girls eagerly leaped from the pool and gathered around the bench where Jack was laying out a towel. “The key to artificial respiration is to make sure you have the victim properly positioned,” he said. “Turn his head and make sure any water is out of his mouth. You need to put your face down close to his to check for breathing—aw, this isn’t going to work unless I have a volunteer.” Immediately, all hands were raised, and he chose a brunette to come forward and lay on the bench. He showed them how to check for breathing, turn the head, and give breaths. “Now, partner up and practice on one another,” he said. “When you think you have it, come over to the bench. I’ll be the victim, and you can show me what you’ve learned.”
It was funny. Most of partners went to work, but some came to him right away. And he sent them back to practice, because they just couldn’t quite get it right. And that seemed to be a problem with the whole class, even those who had practiced a while. They always forgot something. They’d forget to turn his head, or check for breathing—but they always remembered the part about putting their lips on his…
Finally, at the end of the class, they had all managed to get the idea. “We’ll practice this more tomorrow,” Jack said wearily, getting up from the bench. He dove into the water and swam a couple of laps to ease the aching muscles in his back; the bench was narrow and sharp. Tomorrow, he’d lie on the floor, he told himself. He got out of the pool and headed for the lockers, smiling at his students, who had lingered to wish him goodbye.
Yep, this job might not be easy, but he’d earn the money for the apartment, Jack thought as he showered and put his street clothes on. Lucky George, taking it easy and spending the whole summer hitting on girls! Why couldn’t he be so lucky, Jack thought to himself. Oh well, maybe someday…