Author's note: Oh crap, I'm really sorry people for not updating sooner. REALLY! It's just that my parents have been called into court for their divorce and I'm supposed to give some stupid testimony and I was really upset about that… so yeah…

Thank you for so many heartening comments, I love you guys for them! There are some people who wanted to know if I'm continuing with 'Chloe's Tale'… I'll try but I'm kinda stumped as to where the story is going. Sorry, give me some opinions please!

Anyway, here's the next chapter, sorry for taking up so much space.

Chapter 11: What's biting your ass?

Rory stared open-mouthed at the guy next to her, her eyes wide open, the blood slowly draining from her face until it was pasty. She opened her mouth to say something, closed it again because she thought it was unsuitable, and repeated the process, thus making her look like a fish out of water.

Tristan sighed, and ruffled his already messy blond hair. His lips thinned as he spoke his thoughts out loud. "I don't mind what your answer is, Mary. We'll always be friends, no matter what."

Rory glanced at him, and she giggled. She actually giggled, but she stopped after she saw his confused expression. "You just made my mind up for me, silly," were the only words she managed to get out before she collapsed in hysterics again.

Tristan glanced at the heavens, wandering how on earth he got stuck with this insane girl. "Which is?" he prompted, his heart beating real fast.

Rory stopped laughing (again) and smiled at him. "Of course I will."

Tristan breathed a sigh of relief, and leaned back, his arm cushioning his head. "Do you know something, I'm really glad that you didn't say no." He flashed a disarming grin at her and a quick wink. "You would have been the first to ever say no to the multi-talented, extremely gorgeous, and freakishly sensuous Tristan Janlen Dugrey."

Rory gave him a mighty punch in the arm. "Get off your high chair, Tristan. It doesn't suit you."

Tristan burst out laughing as he felt the almost non-existent pain that her punch brought him. "You punch like a girl."

Rory rolled her eyes. "I am a girl, you doofus."

Tristan shook his head. "I'm not a doofus, I am a multi-talented ---"

Rory broke him off by snaking her arm around his neck and clapping her lips over his, effectively silencing him. What was meant to be quick and fast turned out to be long and slow. When they broke off from the impromptu make-out session a few seconds later, both were breathing heavily.

"That, that was - wow - where - how --- " muttered Tristan.

Rory smirked at him, her cheeks flushed, and she said something that was uncharacteristically Rory-like. "It's not every day you see Tristan Dugrey speechless."

Tristan glanced down at her pouty lips that had turned itself into his smirk, and retaliated with one of his own. "It would if I get something like that every single day." He paused, thinking about it carefully. "Preferably more than once a day though, that is, if you don't mind obliging…"

Rory shook her head exasperatedly as she tried not to laugh. Tristan will always be Tristan. She glanced around her surroundings, and saw that the sun was almost setting. "Oh crap, Tris. We've got to get out of this forest before nightfall."

Tristan stood up, and pulled Rory up with him. "Yeah, you're right. C'mon, let's go."

An hour later

"We've been going around in circles," whined Rory as she trudged behind Tristan.

Tristan sighed. "No we haven't."

Rory pointed at a fallen log that lay on their right. "That's the same log that we passed fifteen minutes ago.

"No it isn't."

"Yes it is."

"No it isn't."

"You need glasses, Tristan."

"It's you who need glasses, Mary."

"Go away!"

"You first!"

"I don't want to!"

"We're lost," said Rory, stating the obvious, although reluctant to believe in it.

"Can you just stop complaining?" said Tristan nastily before he could stop himself.

Rory's mouth straightened itself automatically, and she turned away from him. Tristan mentally slapped himself for saying something like that, especially when he knew that she must be going out of her mind in worry.

He placed his hands on her shoulders, and rotated her around. Her eyes were cast on the floor, suddenly taking an interest in the leaves that made a crunch sound when you stepped on them. "I'm sorry, Mary, really. I'm a little touchy, because I can't seem to get us out of this forest, and with you only dressed in that" - his eyes raked over her camp shirt and some fairly short shorts - "it'd be a little cold when night falls."

Rory nodded at him, and met his gaze. "I'm sorry too, I didn't mean to be like that. It's just that I'm ---"

"Worried," finished Tristan off.

Rory nodded again. "Yeah."

"Hang on, I gotta find something." Tristan fumbled around in his pockets, looking for the box of matches he was sure was in there somewhere. Finally, after a while, he triumphantly brandished a box of matches.

Rory glanced at it, then burst out laughing, forgetting that she was supposed to not get along with Tristan. "What normal person carries along a box of matches with them?"

Tristan shrugged apologetically and smiled winsomely at her. "One of my campers was fooling around with it, so I confiscated it and placed it in my pocket. Must've forgotten to take it out."

"I'm glad," smiled Rory.

"Help me gather some dry wood," said he to Rory. "Don't go too far."

Rory saluted him mockingly. "Yes, sir."

He bent down, and began placing rocks in a circle so as to stop the fire from getting out of control. Rory unceremoniously dumped the pile of sticks she had managed to gather, and sat down on the ground, watching him as he dumped a few other dry leaves into their crude fire making stuff. Tristan glanced at her sitting down there, rubbing her hands up and down her time-old arms in a gesture to stay warm. He took off his jacket and handed it to her without a word, which reminded him of something.

"Hey, Mary, remember that jacket I leant you when you were sitting on the swing?"

Rory nodded, remembering the wonderfully warm jacket that had Tristan's scent all over it.

"You never gave it back," he added.

Rory blushed, as she remembered what she had done with it. She hand folded it under her pillow as if it was a token from Elvis as it was a gesture of warmth. Tristan glanced at her flushed complexion and smiled knowingly.

"Never mind, you can keep it." He paused to blow a little on the small fire. "But you better give me that one back."

Rory smiled at him as she put on the jacket. "Thanks."

Meanwhile, on the other side of the camp, a girl who had a knack of giving long and boring speeches and a tendency of talking to her own self was pacing around the canteen floor nervously. Finally, Jess, who couldn't stand it anymore, stood up and went over to the girl. He leaned against a pillar casually observing her frantic movements.

"What's biting your ass, Gellar?" he asked.

Paris looked up at the person whom the voice came from, momentarily off-track. Then, her old self came back. "Nothing's biting my ass, Mariano."

Jess shook his head wryly. "I'd prefer it if you call me Jess."

"Only if you call me Paris," shot back the girl.

Jess shrugged. "You're on."

Silence overcame them for a while. "So, why exactly are you grounding the floor into mere dust?"

Paris put up her hands, feeling rather frustrated. "Have you seen Rory? Or Tristan, for that matter?"

Jess laughed softly under his breath, cursing Tristan for the effect he had on girls. He didn't know Paris still liked Tristan that way though, and he sure as hell didn't know why that bothered him. "Probably making out somewhere." He paused. "What's the matter, are you jeolous?"

Paris grimaced. "Got over that a long time ago." Jess instantly felt as though a huge weight had been taken off him. "I haven't seen Rory or Tristan since she went off to see him, and that was-" she glanced at her watch. "Two hours ago!"

"Oh fuck," said Jess, catching on to why Paris was in this state. "Have you said anything to Linda?"

"No, it could just be a false alarm."

Jess strode forward, grabbed her arm and walked off to the General Cabin, where Linda and Andrew resided. He flung the door open, catching both Linda and Andrew in surprise. They were doing their dishes: Linda washing, and Andrew drying in harmony that derived from years of being together.

Andrew glanced at them, confusion written all over his face. "Jess? Paris? What are you doing here?"

Paris paused to take a breath. "I think Rory and Tristan are missing."

Shocked looks came from both of the married pair, and Paris hurriedly continued. "I've looked all over the campus, knocked on all of the outhouses, in all of the cabins, and they're nowhere to be found! Nowhere!"

tO bE cONTINUED…

Please review, it'll make me feel much more better and I MIGHT write the next chapter if people are encouraging enough. * grin * But you don't have to review if you don't want to… * sigh * Okay?