"Owww!"

Zach hissed in sharp pain, jumping back onto the boardwalk and kicking his stinging foot against the wood. It might have been a while since he'd been to the beach, but he had done it before, and he was sure that he didn't remember the sand ever getting this hot. Sure, the sun had been beating down bright and hot without pause since it rose in the early morning, but still, this couldn't be normal!

If he'd thought ahead a little bit and worn sandals instead of socks and sneakers, he probably would have never even had to notice. He hadn't, though, and so now he was standing on the boardwalk looking out across the beach at the tiny figures of Brianna and Genie as they searched for a place by the water to set up their blanket. Even at this distance, they looked absolutely breathtaking in their swimsuits, even for someone who'd seen them in one hundred percent less. Also visible at this distance were the climate appropriate flip-flops on both pairs of feet.

Zach chewed his lip. He would have been out on the boardwalk before they were if he hadn't taken a bunch of extra time to worry over himself in the changing hut's bathroom mirror. He wouldn't have been too bothered over his chubby belly and lack of muscles on their own, even if this beach's generally fitter regulars made him conscious of how much he really needed to start a gym routine. What had him really nervous was the bright purple speedos that his body seemed ready to tear free of at any moment. Zach knew these were supposed to fit snug, but he also knew - beyond any reasonable doubt - that Brianna had picked a size smaller than his. The way they held his fat butt upward was almost more embarrassing than if he went out there buck ass naked. The outline of his cock clearly bulging at the front was even worse. Like, "possibly bordering on literal indecent exposure" worse, especially if he was going to spend the afternoon with Brianna and Genie frolicking around in their bikinis.

So, he'd spent several good minutes adjusting and pulling at the taut nylon until it looked as close to dignified as he thought he could get it. And now he was stuck trying to figure out how to catch up with the girls, and he couldn't even really blame it on Brianna since the main problem - the lack of footwear - was one hundred percent on him.

I can dash over to them, right? Zach gauged the distance from himself to where they were setting up, and then the locations of the large beach parasols whose shadows marked islands of cooler sand. I'm not actually going to burn myself. It'll hurt, but nothing I can't deal with, yeah? Heck, it's not even going to be the most painful thing to happen to me since I met them.

Fixing his hat and adjusting his glasses, Zach psyched himself up, ran through his flight path one more time in his mind, and then dashed out onto the golden sand.

"Ahhh! Owww ow ow ow ow ow ow ow..."

He leaped from tiptoe to tiptoe, sacrificing one foot after the other to pull the previous one away from harm. It was like tap-dancing on a hot, sandy stovetop, and the parasol he was running toward had somehow moved much further away. He kept his teeth clenched together, determined to keep himself moving forward as quickly as possible without risking his balance on the rippling dunes; if dashing across the sand was this painful, he didn't even want to think about faceplanting into it! The parasol was getting closer, but not fast enough. Grimacing even harder, wondering if he was actually burning his skin by doing this, Zach broke into an outright run, or the closest thing one can do to running using only one's tiptoes. A couple of other beachgoers winced in sympathetic pain, or just surprise, as he bounced passed them. In the background, he heard the lifeguard whistle at someone to get out of the water or something. To Zach, these things were all immaterial; he just needed to get off the sandy stovetop!

There were people in the shade of the parasol - he'd ask to borrow somebodies' flip-flops before moving on to catch up with Brianna and Genie. Yes, it would be embarrassing, but he was sure he could manage it if he offered to buy them an ice cream or something.

Ice cream. Oh god yes, ice would feel good right now. Even just water. Anything cold. Almost to the parasol, almost to the parasol, just six or seven more leaps.