Elizabeth laughed as she fell, landing on her knees and falling forward into the soft sand, sinking into it as Paul laughed alongside her. He was keeping his balance perfectly and while he was sodden, his many layers heavy and completely soaked through, it didn't seem to affect him in the slightest. He was still wearing his boots but the added weight did nothing to hinder his movements.

As a wave washed over Elizabeth's neck, he offered her his hand, "come on, clumsy-"

"-you pushed me!" she protested, hauling herself up with his offered arm.

"Did I?"

"Yes!"

"That wasn't a push" he insisted, his whole face as bright and animated as she had ever seen.

"Oh, no?"

"Nuh-huh"

"Sure felt like a push" she grinned at him and released his arm as she found her footing once more, tugging her wet sweater away from her neck a little.

"Not a push" he promised, "…just a mere slip of the finger!"

And with that, he pushed his index finger into her left shoulder, propelling her painlessly but effectively right back onto her bottom and into the water. She was submerged once again, sinking beneath the shallow surf for just a second.

Paul's relentless laugh met her ears as she spluttered and coughed her way to her knees.

It was so exciting and strange to experience his strength, he could push her with the smallest poke, support her fully with just a finger and then throw her around again with all the ease in the world. She'd been picked up and dunked and tripped and lifted and he had exerted absolutely no effort whatsoever when doing it all.

He was so controlled, so precise in his actions that it wasn't scary, not even for a second.

It was thrilling and she trusted him fully, wild though he was.

"Oh my-"

"-God!" they finished in unison, Paul laughing as he once more offered her his hand.

She allowed him to haul her to her feet once again, grimacing as her matted and wet hair stuck to her cheek. She didn't know how long they had been in the water, play fighting – well, Paul was play fighting, she was just straight up losing – and laughing, but she did know that she'd come out of it a lot worse for wear than he had.

"Ok…" she laughed, tugging at the collar of her sweater again. It was clinging to her like a second skin and it was uncomfortable, "…I call it. You win"

"Win what?" he asked her seriously.

As they made eye contact, she snorted a laugh and the two descended into giggles once again.

"You're an idiot…" she told him fondly.

"Yup" he agreed, reaching out and helping her right her hair.

"I don't think I'd change you for the world, Paul"

He grinned at her, spurred into mercy by her sincere words, "honored to hear it. Come on, girl…"

He slung his sodden arm over her shoulder and together, drenched from head to toe and dripping water, they walked out of the sea, up the short distance to the roaring fire and the two figures sat beside it.

"...even if we could enter the ocean comfortably…I still don't get the appeal..." Marko told them both in greeting, shaking his head with an amused grin as he watched Elizabeth wring out her sweater as best she could, "you look like a drowning victim"

Paul made a raspberry sound in the air, slipping off his tux and working at the laces of his boots, "nah, drowning victims are way more blue, you know that..."

As she glanced at Paul, a quick little double take at his words, David drawled, "agreed. You wouldn't catch me doing that…"

"Hi, David" Elizabeth nodded, catching her breath a little as she glanced over at him.

He inclined his head in response and she couldn't help the little grin that formed on her face. He was so cool, he hadn't even said hello. The subtle inclination of his head was all she was getting from him. Of course, she had known that he'd arrived but she'd been busy in the water at the time. She'd turned her head upon seeing his approach and Paul had promptly dunked her.

He was sat on a decently wide chunk of wood, looking quite regal with his open legs and commanding face. She considered him for a second before breathlessly saying, "…I believe you"

As Paul and Marko chuckled at her sass, David smiled.

It wasn't a smirk, it wasn't a scoff but a real smile. Fleeting, but real.

"Um, where did Dwayne go?" she asked the group at large, not wanting to give David the chance to reply to her retort. She hadn't actually intended to joke with him, and certainly not as his expense. She still found him intimidating but it did feel good to see his smile and her comment had all but slipped off her tongue.

Maybe she was actually getting comfortable around him?

"To get the lady a towel" Paul announced in a terrible English accent, finally kicking off his boots and dropping to the sand next to Marko.

He had shed his jacket and boots but was still wearing his wet, white trousers and a torn, black tank.

"How do you know?" she asked, wringing out her sweater again, "you were with me the whole time"

"I know everything" he replied, flicking his head downwards and shaking it every which way.

Marko closed his eyes, droplets of water coating the side of his body thanks to Paul's actions.

The energetic blonde seemed oblivious to the shower he had just given his brother. He flicked his head back up, his hair making a wonderfully satisfying slapping sound as it met his back once more, "that's the good thing about your boning one of us, Lizzie. Your stoic dude can get to your place and back in a fucking flash-" he clicked his fingers together before snatching up a beer, cracking it open and shaking his head again, much like a wet dog would.

He had endless energy and she laughed at him, loving how contagious he was.

Just being around him, she felt endlessly happy herself.

"Yeah...thanks for that" Marko said dryly, slowly and pointedly wiping the side of his face.

Elizabeth bit her lip and started to wring out her hair much like she had done with her sweater.

"Anytime dude, anytime" Paul said grandly, "I wonder if Dwayne's gonna get me a towel?"

"Not a chance"

Elizabeth looked over, her small grin at Paul and Marko's effortless chat erupting into a beaming smile as she saw Dwayne. He'd just appeared, seemingly out of thin air and it thrilled her to see him. She knew it would always thrill her to see him.

"Awwwww!" Marko and Paul cooed together, a united team once more, spurred on by her reaction.

He ignored them both and moved past them, extending his arm and wrapping one of Grandpa's new, fluffy white towels around her shoulders. She kept her hair scooped up high and, as looked over her sodden form, he tugged the towel close to her neck.

"Thank you"

He nodded and she released her hair, letting it fall on the dry towel rather than her wet sweater. It was nice to have a bit of a dry barricade and he nodded at her thanks.

"Here-" he seriously, draping another towel on the sand before the fire.

"You'll dry faster if you take off your clothes" Paul told her, propelling a snort of laughter from Marko and a deep chuckle from David.

"No, no. I think I'm good, thank you" she replied delicately.

"Want me to rub you down?"

"No" Dwayne replied on her behalf and Paul grinned.

Biting her lip, she bent down and used her hands to wipe as much sand off her feet as she could. She found Paul's joking nature, the way he teased Dwayne to be funny. She found their relationship endearing and, as she lowered herself down onto the towel, she shook her head fondly.

She was so at home around them.

"Now that's service" Paul said wistfully, "...two towels, the subtle brush of his hand against your shoulders...what have I got to do to get a something to dry myself off with?"

Elizabeth paused, having once more started to rub at her hair with the towel covering her upper body.

She gave Paul a pointed look and he grinned.

"Oh...right..." he replied, smiling devilishly, wiggling his eyebrows. He took a heavy, self-sacrificial breath and wet his lips in a very pronounced way, moving to the zipper of his trousers.

Marko and David laughed heartily, and Elizabeth herself couldn't contain her giggles.

As Dwayne moved to sit near David, he grinned, "not a chance in hell..."

The energetic blonde feigned offense as he moved his hands away from his trousers, "I've said it before and I'll said it again, I'm a mother fucking catch"

He was met with silence.

"Lizzie said she wouldn't change me for the world" Paul defended, prompted by the silence.

Marko snorted.

"-Lizzie?!"

She smiled at Paul and told the group, "I did"

"You're too nice" David said neutrally, taking a sip of beer.

"Too patient" Marko added, nudging Paul with his elbow.

"Yeah she is" Paul laughed, he raised his beer and said in a small toast, "my good girl, Lizzie!"

She rolled her eyes as he took a swig of his drink, smiling happily at his antics. He definitely made the world a brighter place. Rubbing her hair once more, enjoying the warmth of the fire, she glanced over at Dwayne. For a moment, she saw that there was a flicker of something dancing across his features but, as fast as she had noticed it, it had disappeared, replaced once more by his handsome and cool smile.

"So did you drown the smoke, too, Casanova?" Marko queried and she turned to face him, drawn away from Dwayne, "or just Liz?"

"Oh yee of little faith..." Paul intoned, shifting in the sand and pulling a plastic baggie from the back pocket of his trousers, "I'd never drown my girl and I'd definitely never drown the weed"

Tilting her head, noting how she didn't get a definitely but the drugs did, she once more grinned at his antics.

"Good to know" David said, raising his beer in celebration of the smoke that was soon to come.

Tapping the can of her own beer, Elizabeth cracked it open as Marko began to roll. As the hiss of escaped gas met her ears, she stretched out before the fire, reaching her hand up towards the pizza.

The party had well and truly started and it was hours later when Marko stood and threw the empty pizza box onto the fire that their party began to end. By that point, all five of them were a little drunk and a little stoned and they watched as it slowly turned black, as the cardboard slowly curled in on itself before disintegrating into the dying flames.

The night was still quiet, still comfortable and she found that she loved their company.

She couldn't remember a happier time.

"That was good pizza" Paul said with a thankful nod.

"You say that about every pizza" Dwayne replied.

"Don't"

Elizabeth stifled her giggle at the blonde's petulance and Marko lowered himself to the sand beside her.

"So could you feel Dwayne tonight, too?"

"Hmm?" she asked, tearing her eyes away from the flames.

Marko laughed, "fuck, your eyes are super red, Liz"

"Drink some water before bed, yeah?" Paul advised, still watching the slowly dying fire.

"OK" she agreed, blinking a little.

"So?" David repeated, "did you feel Dwayne tonight, too?"

"Umm..yeah?" she shrugged scratching her head a little. Her hair and clothes were bone dry and the weed left her feeling quite relaxed. She was sure that her eyes were red but she didn't feel stoned. She just felt good, "I could feel him"

"Could you feel when I was close tonight?" Marko asked, "Or David?"

They all knew she'd been totally taken off guard by Paul's arrival.

"No" she said honestly, "but when you came I was thinking about..." she glanced over at Dwayne, "...I was focused on, you know?"

"Riding Fabio's dick?"

"You have long hair, too-" Dwayne retorted, just as Elizabeth blushed, "Paul!"

He laughed and winked at her, totally ignoring Dwayne, probably knowing that it would annoy him all the more, "call a spade a spade, girl"

"A spade is a spade" she said, still blushing, "but.."

"...awww you're so innocent!" through Paul's words, she didn't miss the way Dwayne's face changed for a moment, "you were thinking about getting down and dirty with our boy over here, let's be honest-"

"-hey, who's Fabio?" Marko asked, interrupting Paul.

"He's on those romance novel covers now" Paul said, sighing a little and Elizabeth grinned once more. She knew teasing Dwayne wasn't as fun for him if not everyone got the joke.

"Want to get this back on track?"

They all looked over at David and Elizabeth coughed, "yes. No, I couldn't feel you guys tonight, not like the other day"

It was early morning and she was a little disorientated from the weed, time was kind of difficult to establish.

"...I wonder if you can hide from us?" Paul asked and from the way David's eyebrows raised, Elizabeth could tell that he was a little intrigued by Paul's comment.

"What do you mean?" she asked.

"Well...you could feel Dwayne and yesterday you said you could kind of feel Marko, too, right?" she nodded, not bothering to confirm that David or perhaps even Dwayne had told them about it, "so maybe you have like, a burgeoning mate or pack bond or something?"

Marko, David and Dwayne all nodded at Paul's words and Elizabeth shrugged, "I dunno...don't build this up, maybe it's nothing?"

"But maybe it's something! If you actually try, give it all you've got. Hide from us and see.."

"What? Now?"

Paul laughed, "nah. Tomorrow night, girl. Hide from us. Hide from Dwayne. Try your best to keep yourself hidden, to not let us find you and we'll see if it actually works, if you do have a skill or whatever"

"I don't think I can hide from you?" she said, shaking her head, "I think it's totally impossible if I'm honest?"

She smiled over at Dwayne and he grinned at her. She'd had absolutely no power against him when he'd hunted her. It seemed like an impossibility to keep herself hidden from him. Even if she could hide from the others, to hide from him? She didn't think it could be done.

"So if we find you, we all hang out. If Dwayne finds you...well" David shrugged, "isn't that a win for you anyway?"

Grinning, Elizabeth laughed, "you guys want...you basically want to play hide and seek?"

As Dwayne nodded in encouragement, she laughed again. His approval was all she needed, "OK. Fine...I'm in" she looked at them, "but no scaring me"

"Of course" Marko said.

"Wouldn't dream of it" Paul grinned, his words ridiculously innocent.

Once again, David merely inclined his head.

"Well! That's that!" Paul said happily, slapping his hands on his thighs and hauling himself to his feet, "Liz, it's been a pleasure-"

She laughed at his sudden dismissal, "-and I'll see you tomorrow"

"...looking forward to it?" she said, standing as everybody else did, too.

"Let's put his mate stuff to the test!"

A/N: Paul's planning something haha.