Although they could have spent the whole day at the cabin before they headed back to Hillridge, Mr. and Mrs. McGuire decided that they'd rather head back early and have all day to unpack and unwind at home before heading to work the next day. The night before, when the Gordon's were asleep, the two couples had decided that they did not yet want to go back to Hillridge, so they'd devised a plan, which they put into effect that morning at breakfast. They knew that Mr. and Mrs. Gordon would never let the kids stay at the cabin alone for a few more days, so they had to trick them into it.
As they were trying to get as early a start as possible, Mrs. Gordon had not prepared a fancy breakfast this morning. Everyone quietly munched their cold cereal and waited for Gordo to bring up their staying. Lizzie could tell that Gordo was feeling bad about tricking his parents, but she really wanted to stay. She kicked him under the table and gave him a meaningful look.
"Um, Mom, Dad, can the four of us stay a few days extra? It's not like we have to go to work in the morning," Gordo asked.
Gasping at the suggestion Mrs. Gordon said, "Certainly not, I will not have young men and women sleeping under my roof unsupervised,"
"Your mother is absolutely right," Mrs. Gordon said, not completely convincingly.
The four teens grumbled over the response and Gordo asked, "Well, then can we just stay a few hours more and go swimming and stuff one last time. We don't need to be back to Hillridge early; we'll leave in a few hours and be home this evening."
"I don't know," Mrs. Gordon said warily.
"Come on, we're all responsible, nothing is going to happen," Gordo chided.
"He's right Roberta," Mr. Gordon said, "Let's let the kids stay, they can play for a few more hours, lock up and head home. We'll see them later tonight."
Everyone, including Mr. Gordon looked hopefully at Mrs. Gordon who finally said, "Alright. But everyone better behave."
Gordo and Brad helped Mr. Gordon load the Explorer and Miranda and Lizzie chased Mrs. Gordon out of the kitchen, they insisted on finishing the dishes this morning. The faster they got Mr. and Mrs. Gordon on the road, the better. Once Mrs. Gordon was satisfied that everything was in order, she and Mr. Gordon climbed in the Explorer and waved goodbye.
"What should we do first?" Miranda asked as soon as they were out of sight.
"Swim?" Gordo suggested.
They went upstairs to change. As they changed, Lizzie told Miranda about the island. Gordo and Lizzie had agreed that if this plan to be alone at the cabin worked they would tell Brad and Miranda about the island.
"So, what have the two of you been doing at your island?" Miranda asked suggestively.
"We just go there to be alone and talk," Lizzie said.
"Whatever," Miranda countered.
"We do," Lizzie protested, but added, "We're also naked most of the time."
"Really!" Miranda said, "So, now you have seen IT."
Both girls chuckled a little and Lizzie said, "Yes."
"And," Miranda prompted her.
"Let's just say that seeing it makes it harder to want to wait," Lizzie said.
"Have you touched it?" Miranda asked.
"No," Lizzie said.
"Has he touched you?" Miranda asked.
"Just in the northern regions," Lizzie said.
"What was it like?" Miranda asked.
"Honestly, it was wonderful, I never wanted to stop," Lizzie said.
Miranda and Lizzie probably could have talked on this subject for hours, but a knock on the door interrupted them. "Ready?" Gordo called. The girls grabbed their towels and met them in the hallway. When they got down to the lake, Brad and Miranda took off on the Jet Ski, while Gordo and Lizzie settled themselves in the chairs at the end of the dock.
Brad and Miranda didn't talk much as they raced out in the direction they'd been instructed to go to find the island. Miranda wrapped her arms around Brad's waist and closed her eyes. She thought about the things she and Lizzie had been discussing a few minutes before and how she felt about those same issues concerning Brad and herself.
When they reached the island they marveled over how isolated it was as they waded into the beach and tied up the Jet Ski. They sat down side by side in the sand with their feet in the water.
"What were you and Lizzie talking about?" Brad asked.
"How do you know we were talking about anything?" Miranda asked.
"I could hear your voices through the wall, but I couldn't make out what you were talking about," Brad responded, "If it's none of my business, that is fine. I was just curious."
"We were just talking about the physical nature of Gordo and Lizzie's relationship," Miranda said.
"Oh," Brad said simply in response.
"You know, I suspect that they sent us out to this island so that we could be alone if we wanted to take the next step, physically," Miranda said.
"How do you feel about that?" Brad asked.
"Well, part of me is excited, but there is a bigger part of me that knows I'm not ready," Miranda said honestly.
"I'm not ready either. I've just had my very first kiss this summer. While there is part of me too that is excited to experience more, I know that I want to take things slow," Brad said.
"I'm glad we agree on this. For a little while I felt like we were strange because we weren't keeping up with Gordo and Lizzie. But then I reminded myself that they have been friends for years. They already have a trust and honesty between them. All they had left to discover of each when they became a couple was the physical side of their relationship. You and I are still getting to know one another in some ways and I'd rather be completely sure of myself and us as a couple when we make that next step." Miranda said.
"Let's agree that we will not push the other to go further than they are comfortable with and that we both have to agree when we think the time is right," Brad suggested.
"I agree," Miranda said.
"We can still do the things we've been doing thus far, right?" Brad asked.
In response, Miranda leaned in and kissed him deeply on the lips.
"I thought so," Brad said smiling as he leaned back in for more.
Back on the dock Gordo and Lizzie were also talking about the conversation she and Miranda had. Gordo never understood how girls felt the need to discuss everything with one another. He didn't see how it was any of Miranda's business if Lizzie had seen IT or not.
"I'm sorry, I don't see why it's a big deal that Miranda and I talk about these things," Lizzie said defensively.
"I'm not mad. I just feel dumb because you know she is telling everything you talked about to Brad," Gordo said.
"You don't know that," Lizzie said back, "Even if she is, why does it matter?"
"I just feel self-conscious. We haven't been dating much longer than them and we're so much more physical and they know that. I just don't want them to think that neither of us have any self control." Gordo said.
"I'm sure that's not how they see it," Lizzie said, "We're just expressing our love for one another."
"I guess. But from now on, let's try to cool it down a little bit. At least in front of them," Gordo said.
"Ok," Lizzie agreed.
"We'd better go inside and make our phone calls before it gets too much later," Gordo said.
They talked through their cover story one last time and Gordo dialed the number for his house. When his father picked up he explained that Lizzie's car was dead and they'd have to spend the night at the cabin. They'd called every mechanic shop in the area, but no one was open on Sunday. They'd have someone come out and look at the car the next morning to see what the problem was. They declined Mr. Gordon's offer to drive up and bring them home and to have Lizzie's car towed; they didn't mind waiting until the morning to have it fixed. Mrs. Gordon was still not happy about the idea of young men and women staying at her cabin unsupervised, but on the plus side she was glad they were stranded at the cabin and not on the highway somewhere. After promising that everyone would behave, Mr. Gordon said he would call the McGuire's and the Sanchez's to fill them in on the situation.
When they hung up the phone they smiled at each other, they'd done it. They'd bought themselves at least one more night at the cabin, alone.