Oh hey there, I exist.

I've actually had this lame chapter written for a while but up until now I've been too lazy to put it into edit.

Please don't hate me, I still love you, I promise. I'm thinking of my readers all the time. I'm working on stuff. I swear. Please bear with me. If you're still with me at this point, you are truly amazing.

Enjoy, I'll see you soon.

xoxo -ml

Chapter 2

The following morning, Bubbles awoke far too early to the sound of a lawnmower, or was that a tractor?

As she hopped up out of bed to find out, Pepper jolted awake from her once-comfortable spot on the edge of the bed, jumping down to the floor. Bubbles' long, pale blue nightgown billowed around her ankles as she shuffled over to the window. With a tug, she managed to wrench open the window and poke her head out just in time to see a pair of very strong, very large, very sweaty and very shirtless young men ride by on a tractor (yes, a tractor) in the distance. The air smelled of grass and summer, the breeze lightly tousling the stray strands of Bubbles' long blonde pleat, which she'd carefully constructed before bed the night before. She inhaled the scent deep into her lungs until she could feel the summer air inside every pore of her being.

Suddenly, she remembered where she was. No parental supervision, no uptight, sticky rules for one whole week! Although she was plenty excited, she was just as well frightened for the days to come. They say a week in the country can change a person. She certainly hoped nothing here could cause such drastic change. She knew her father would never approve of any change that didn't involve becoming more like her sister, Blossom.

Eager to begin the day, she nearly skipped out of her nightgown and into a pair of white high-wasted shorts with a blue-and-white floral print tank top. If her father found out that she'd packed so many of the outfits Buttercup had bought her on her trip to Cancun last summer, he would have had a heart attack. He didn't really approve of his youngest daughter going around in short shorts and tank tops, but hey, it was summer, and Down South it was a lot warmer than in chilly, bipolar Illinois. She matched her outfit with a pair of plain blue flip-flops as well as a white flower in her now-loose hair and, with Pepper at her heels, headed down the hall to the kitchen, which she found to be completely empty.

With a frown, Bubbles ventured to the fridge on impulse to look for something to eat when her eyes caught on a bright yellow slip of paper that was stuck to the door. She peeled it away and read the message scrawled in her grandfather's short, jagged script.

Good morning, Flower, there's breakfast on the counter. Come out to the stables when you're finished—I want you to meet the boys! -Papa

She smiled at the nickname her grandfather had given her: Flower. She liked it. How had he known she liked flowers? She wasn't exactly sure how she felt about going out to the stables, though. For surely that meant dirt and dust and something not-so-nice.

She shoved the note into her shorts pocket and pressed her fingertips to her lips as she eyed the fruit salad he'd left out for her on the counter. It wasn't the least bit warm, so she concluded that he had only left a few moments ago. She dug a fork out of the drawer under the sink (it had taken a few tries to locate the right one) and eagerly chomped into a strawberry that just screamed 'delicious'. She leaned against the counter and tossed a few grapes down to Pepper, who yelped appreciatively.

As soon as she'd finished emptying the bowl—it had been a long drive with no supper—she heard a whistle down the hall and her grandfather waltzed in, looking cheerful as ever. His outfit was the same as it had been the day before, nearly identical save for the fact that today, he sported a red button-up rather than blue. There were tiny beads of sweat collecting on his forehead and he used the dry dish towel to wipe them away. His eyes lit up when he spotted her at the sink, washing away the juice from her empty bowl.

"There ya are, sweetie," he said, kissing her on the forehead and retrieving a large water bottle from the freezer. "I was jus' comin' to getchya. How'd ya like breakfast?"

"It was really yummy, thanks Papa," she responded with a smile.

Clement downed half of the bottle in his hands in one gulp and grinned widely. "Y'ready to meet the boys, then?" he asked her with an eyebrow raised.

Bubbles' lungs leapt into her throat. She wasn't really sure if she was ready. After all, her father had told her not to get too comfortable with the farm boys, because they were bad news. However, it was slightly satisfying to defy her father in such a careful, minuscule way. Then again, it would be quite dirty, she knew, wherever they were going, and Pepper wasn't due for a grooming for another three weeks…

She decided she couldn't be rude to her host, though, and smiled through her teeth. "Indeed, I'd love to meet the gentlemen."

Never had she felt so stupid in all her life than when her grandfather laughed and asked why she spoke so funny. Her face flushed bright pink and she hiccupped.

"Ya talk just like yer daddy," he added with a chuckle. "So uptight and fancy. Why dontchya give it a rest for a lil' while? T'least for this week. We'll see which way ya prefer talkin' by the end of yer stay here."

She had no response to this. She wasn't sure she liked the way her grandfather talked sometimes, but she knew one thing for sure: it sure as heck was better than talking like she had a stick up her bum. Perhaps he was right; maybe she should try adapting to the farm's language. It could be good for her. At least for a little while.

"I'm sure I'll be around you folk enough to pick it up in no time," she told Clement, a testing look in her eye. He winked and his eyes sparkled.

"Let's get out to the stables then, shall we darlin'?"

Bubbles nodded. Sure, she could pick up their southern slang in no time. She just wondered whether it really was a good idea.

Pepper couldn't seem to keep her nose out of anything. She sniffed at every corner of the stables, her eyes searching the horses in the pasture excitedly. It took all of Bubbles' strength to yank her puppy away from the shrubs that bordered the picket fence along the pasture before she gave up and unhooked Pepper's leash, allowing her to scamper along the tall grass happily.

Kyle and Mack, the stable boys, were two tall, muscled boys of about nineteen with shaggy dark hair and bright emerald eyes. The only difference between the twins was the length of their hair. Mack's he kept long and tied with an elastic on the back of his head; Kyle's was short and spiky not unlike that of Bubbles' brother-in-law. She had only just met them, but already Bubbles could tell that these two were troublemakers. Her grandfather shot casual warning glances in Bubbles' direction as she spoke to the twins. Kyle slyly insulted his brother's 'stupid' hair while Mack edged in a few harsh words about Kyle's girlfriend.

Bubbles left the stables in giggles with Clement's eyes rolled towards the sky. "I wouldn' get inta any mischief wit' the likes o' them if'n ya know what's good fer ya," he advised her, only half serious. Of course, she nodded in agreement, but she was secretly imagining all the silly antics she would love to get into with those boys now that her father was nowhere around to dictate it.

It was strange, having all this freedom. Like Pepper only moments ago, Bubbles felt as though her father had finally given up and unhooked her leash, allowing her to scamper all over without a care. Really, she could do about anything. It really was a wonder Clement was even her father's father. They were nothing alike at all. While her father would have snapped and held her shoulders back from the "dangerous" boys, Clement smiled and led her around the farm with a sort of childlike excitement and pride.

Darien and Wilder were huge, scruffy men who drove the cattle. Pepper got along quite well with their two fluffy sheepdogs, Scarlet and Jo. As the dogs played in the long grass, Darien and Wilder introduced themselves.

"If ya ever find yerself lost or bored or an'thin, jus' have a gander at these damn cows. They sure is a sight't behold."

Wilder's words clung to the inside of Bubbles' brain like flies to fly paper. Her eyes glued to the cows in question, she could tell what he meant. It was easy to see how some could go a whole day just watching the cows graze and not get bored. Occasionally the bovines would interact with each other, snorting or swishing their tails. And the babies were, of course, adorable enough to coo at.

"We're expecting a calf within the next coupl'a days, wait'll she births her, she'll be a sight," Darien explained with a glint in his eye. "If yer here fer it, I'll even let ya name 'em."

Bubbles' eyes went wide. "The calf?"

"Sure, youc'n prob'ly come up with a better name than we can that's fer cert."

Clement laughed and put his arm around Bubbles' shoulder. "We'll see, but in the meantime let's head o'er ta the farmhouse n' see'f we can't catch a neck o' those boys."

The pair waved goodbye to Darien and Wilder, and Pepper took one last sniff at Scarlet and Jo, and the three were on their way. They didn't get far before they ran into a young man with shaggy brown hair and a torn up pair of overalls.

"Bubbles, this here is Harley."

Harley's grey eyes barely peeked out between the hairs in his face and he nodded. "Hello," he muttered. He broke eye contact a split second before Bubbles could say a word and shuffled away. Her eyes turned in question to her grandfather, who sighed.

"He don't really care for the city folk much, 'course his 'rents is the same way's yer daddy. Guess that'd be why he came all the way out here; fer some peace'n quiet, I'd reckon."

Bubbles nodded slowly, not really understanding but willing to accept her grandfather's explanation for now, because they were quickly approaching the back of the farmhouse, the area which Bubbles had seen in the view outside her bedroom window. A man operated a tractor in the distance, and she could almost see a jet black head of hair underneath the hat he wore.

There was only one boy left for her to "meet", though her grandfather was unaware that she had already been introduced to Boomer the night before. She didn't say anything though, because she secretly wanted to hear what her grandfather had to say about the young boy.

Clement rapped twice on the side of a small shed next to the farmhouse. A loud crash was heard from just behind the door, and a yelp. Bubbles fought back a grin as her grandfather rolled his eyes.

"You okay in there, kiddo?" Clement called into the shed. There was no response, but a few seconds later the door to the shed swung open, revealing a messy-haired Boomer. He wore a shirt today, his bright red sleeves rolled up to the elbows. His jeans were held up by a worn-looking belt with an obnoxiously large buckle. He kicked the dirt at his feet with a single boot and nodded. His eyes found Bubbles' and locked onto her gaze. "Righ' then, well, this's my granddaughter, Bubbles." Boomer nodded again but said nothing, still not breaking eye contact with Bubbles. A light blush tickled her cheeks and her eyes flickered to Clement. "I reckon you've a'ready met?"

Boomer's smile grew and he finally looked away from Bubbles' face to meet his boss's eyes. "Sure have, we met last night. It's great to meet ya again, Bubbles. I'd love to show ya'round the rest of th' fields, give yer grandpa a bit'a rest."

Clement looked taken aback. "Rest? Me? Shucks, Boom, yer yappin' bout the wrong feller. I'm as nimble as a jackrabbit."

"Surely ya'are, sir, but that bein' said ya might not have the best mem'ry of us, I reckon." Bubbles saw Boomer's eyebrows play on his forehead and his eyes flickered to hers for a second.

Clement looked taken aback. "What're ya pullin' at there, feller?"

Did Boomer just wink at her? "Weeeeellll," he drawled, his tongue briefly sneaking out from between his grinning lips, "Ya did hap' t'mention ye'd be watchin' t'make sure Kyle and Mack didn't end up racin' the tractors again."

Simultaneously, Boomer nodded his head in the direction of the field and Clement whirled around to look. As if on cue, two tractors whirred by at about fifteen miles per hour past the shed door.

"Oi!" Clement yelled, taking off and chasing after the second tractor (operated by Kyle) as the twins laughed and called to one another.

Boomer laughed. Bubbles didn't take her eyes off the spinning tractor wheels. They were spraying dirt and grass and other things. She jumped back three or four feet, nearly slamming into Boomer and the shed door.

Boomer caught the girl by the elbow and the small of her back as she fell onto him. He held her for a split second before she regained her balance and brushed off the front of her shirt, even though there wasn't anything on it.

"Y'all right?" he chuckled. The space on the top of her cheekbones flushed a faint pink. She was blushing. She was embarrassed. He thought it was funny.

"Yes, I'm fine." She took a small, careful step away from him, as if he might be dangerous. As if he might try to touch her again. Her hand clutched her elbow where he'd held her a moment before. She probably didn't think he noticed, but he did. He always noticed. Especially things like that.

"Righ' then, watch yer step there. I dunno if'n ya city folk are f'miliar with grass, but it can be kinda hard t'walk on." He smirked, testing her, though he could almost read her response before she relayed it.

"I know what grass is, Boomer," she said with a playful grin. He knew she'd respond like that. Just like that. That's how they always responded.

"Well then," Boomer said, clicking his heels together. "I hope ya know what horses are, 'cuz yer about t'meet some."

"Of course."

She grinned again. He liked to see her lips pull away from her teeth like that. She was cute. He liked her, he decided. He knew she'd like him too. Boomer could always tell by the way the girls grinned, those secretive little smiles as if they had something to hide, or a secret to tell. He could already tell he was going to have her, he'd already gained her trust enough to tempt her away. He'd been in this type of situation a countless number of times, and he knew exactly what to expect. Typical big city girl takes a trip to the wild country for a few days. She had the typical wide, curious eyes, the very same polite, flirty giggle and grin that most girls had. She didn't realize it, but by being this incredibly typical, remarkably cliche girl, she was practically offering up an invitation to him.

On the other side of things, Boomer knew exactly what to expect in terms of his own self-worth. He knew what girls thought of him and he knew that the way he treated them was considered "flirty". But he didn't really care. As arrogant as some girls considered him to be, he knew each and every one of them secretly loved the special treatment. They lapped it up like kittens and milk. When it came right down to it, Boomer knew exactly how to win this girl over, and it wouldn't be hard. Based on the small amount of information he'd actually been given by Clement, she wasn't used to being out in the open, all exposed like this. Her father seemed like a pretty uptight guy, and he didn't seem like the kind of father who would let Bubbles just do whatever she wanted. She'd probably never even stayed out after dark. Boomer's mouth turned up into a smirk at the thought. Turning this good girl bad was going to be a lot of fun.

If you're a faithful reader, let me know you're still with me by leaving a review!

If you're new around here, tell me what you think and leave a review!

Also, if you like this story, you should check out some of my other stories by visiting my profile.

Have a good day n.n