14

All I knew for sure was that I didn't feel great about eating lunch while sitting in monkey water. There was some sort of big sports game on the TV, and everyone at the bar seemed really into it. But somehow Manny ended up with the remote control, and he changed the channel to a show for little kids. Everyone wanted Manny to change the channel BACK, but when Manny wants to watch one of his shows, trust me, there's nothing ANYONE can do about it.

The people at the bar were ready to RIOT, so Mom scooped Manny up and we got out of there before I even finished my burger. Rodrick went back to the Teen Zone, and Mom and Dad took Manny to the suite so he could take a nap.

I really didn't want to go back to the room and risk running into that SPIDER again, so I decided to spend the rest of the afternoon in the arcade. I had to make the coins I'd collected in the Treasure Dive last two and a half hours. But there were some kids in the arcade who could've lasted for DAYS in there without spending all of their money. When it started to get dark, I figured I should head back to the room. But I ran into Mom, Dad, and Manny on the footpath halfway between the arcade and our building.

Mom said we were all gonna go down to a bonfire on the beach, and after that, we were gonna watch the turtle hatching. But first we needed to find RODRICK. This time we ALL went into the Teen Zone to look for him. By now it was pretty dark, though, so it wasn't easy to spot him. But when we DID, I don't think he was too thrilled to see us. On the way to the beach, Mom told Rodrick this was a FAMILY vacation, and it wasn't the time or place for "teenage romance."

Rodrick said this thing with the girl was SERIOUS and they planned to spend as much time as they could together. I was kind of surprised, because I thought Rodrick would be turned off by the whole idea of romance after spending a few days at the resort. Who knows? Maybe one day he'll be back to this place with HIS family. We got down to the beach, where a bunch of families had gathered around a bonfire. But the experience wasn't fun because of the BUGS. At first it was the gnats, which flew in our eyes and mouths.

Then it was the sand fleas, which bit our ankles. And then it was the MOSQUITOES, which were the size of hummingbirds. Whoever came up with the idea of calling this place "paradise" must've had a good sense of humor. Back home, human beings are at the top of the food chain. But at Isla de Corales, everything eats PEOPLE.