The Beach Is Magic

The secluded cove of Tānetanga Beach was looking a bit more lively nowadays. The once under-the-radar spot had gained a new wave of admirers recently, thanks to the wonders of social media. Its unspoiled sands, and mysterious workings were drawing in people from all over, and singing its praises. Which is why Jordan just had to drag his best bud Lamar away from their tour group while they were in the area.

"Even if they notice we're missing, they're not going to wait for us, you know," Lamar moaned as they pushed through the overgrown foliage that lined the wanderer's path to the cove. "They're gonna leave us stranded at this dumb beach with no way back to the hotel. My mom's gonna kill me if we're not on that bus..."

"We have a whole hour before we have to worry about that, "Jordan reasoned, trying to sound reassuring. "Trust me, It's going to be worth the detour."

"Right, because TikTok says the beach is magic," Lamar grumbled. "How do you know they're not fakes? Do you ever see anyone changing?"

"Well, no... But why would they make it up? And practically every single account that talks about it gets deleted! You should really check out r/Tānetanga, you'll-"

"Nuh-uh! I ain't checking out no Reddit about some conspiracy theory!" Lamar complained, trying to stand his ground, but Jordan didn't wait. With a roll of his eyes, he bounded after his friend as the beach came into full view. There are several men spread out around the cove, taking in the sun, wading in the waves. "Woah, those guys are naked," Lamar noticed, turning to avert his eyes from the sight. "This is some nudie beach! No wonder those TikToks are being deleted. We should definitely not be here..."

"Relax, it's all part of the magic! You'll see." Jordan dumped his bag on the sand, and stripped down to a pair of speedos that could have been mistaken for tighty whities. "You said you wanted adventure. It's better than some stuffy architecture tour, right?"

Lamar stared dumbfounded at his friend, not even dignifying that with a response. Jordan merely shrugged and bounded towards the ocean, leaving him alone. He looked around, noticing a few men looking in his direction, expectantly. He felt a shiver up his spine. Realising how much he didn't want to be left alone, he threw his shirt aside and begrudgingly followed his friend up to the ocean. His feet tingled underneath the warm sand in a not entirely pleasant way. That tingling only increased as they waded into the ice-cold, blue waters. He gave Jordan a pat on the shoulder, then asked, "Okay. So what happens now?"

Affirmation

Loud pop music pumped through the packed streets of Roselake, doing its best to be heard over the crowds of people decked out in their loudest outfits. Pride was in full swing, gripping the usually laid-back town in its glittery grip for its annual weekend festival. Everywhere you looked was glamor, and color. Which made it easy to miss the short man wearing a bulky, black hoodie in the middle of summer. Not that Logan wanted to draw any kind of attention to himself. He kept his head down, sticking to the backstreets, and weaving through the throngs of people cheering on the drag act up on stage. Finally, he ducked around a corner towards the shopping plaza. About a dozen stalls were set up selling handcrafted merch, and providing help and advice for anyone interested. Still, he stuck to the covers until he finally stepped into the air-conditioned paradise that was his destination; Costume Plaza.

Almost immediately, Logan was caught off-guard by how quiet it was. Especially compared to the noise outside. He was expecting dozens of people looking for something to wear. In fact, he didn't see another customer at all. The only other person inside was a bored employee with his feet propped up on the counter, head in a book.

Logan gulped, thinking of leaving entirely. But he had to hold his ground. This was his only opportunity, all he had to do was ask... He shuffled up to the counter, and waited for the guy to notice him. He was a homely lad, with longish hair and a patchy beard. He had no name tag, but there was an ace flag sticker stuck to his shirt pocket. Logan found himself unconsciously scratching his own, beardless cheeks. He sighed, and finally gathered his courage. "Excuse me," he blurted, his voice catching in his throat at the last minute. He really hated being the center of attention, especially in current times. The quicker he could get through this interaction, the better. "Are you still open?"

"Mhm?" The guy looked up from his book, disgruntled by the interruption. "Of course we are."

"Uhm, sorry..." Logan gulped, embarrassed by the minor issue. "It's just so quiet. I thought you'd be jam-packed today, what with Pride and all."

"Anyone who needed a costume for Pride bought theirs in advance."

"Oh, right. Of course. Silly me..." Logan chuckled nervously. The man cocked an eyebrow, questioning whether he should get back to his book, until Logan dug his phone out from his pocket. He scrambled with his apps, saying aloud, "uh, I received this weird email the other day, and, you know, wanted to know more details...? Aha!" He found the email in his saved folders, and flipped his phone round to the employee.

The man took his phone, and mumble-read the contents to himself, before handing it back with a nod. "Right, the Pride Promo. I suppose they're targeting that stuff, huh. Feels like an invasion of privacy to me. But what do I know..."

"Cookies, and trackers, I guess... Heh..."