Whoa, could it be that I have nothing to say…? o.O

-Charlie's POV-

I hate you.

I feel myself wince as the words punch out. Suddenly the once painful, burning sensation on my cheek dulls in comparison. She said she hates me, and there wasn't even a hint of teasing in her voice. Not a single hint.

That look in her eyes…betrayal, anger, jealousy? I don't get it. I mean, come on, she doesn't like me. Yes, sure, I may secretly worship the ground she walks on and all that jazz, but she doesn't have any interest in me. Heck, she even pushed me away when we were drunk.

Yes, I know the swimsuit comment was below the belt, but that wasn't even what made her mad. She got mad about Krista. Why the heck would she care about Krista? Afterall, she has Mr. Perfect Hair Perfect Skin Perfect Hawaiian Surfer Boy the Sleaze. Why would she care what I do or who I hang out with? No doubt he will be showing her all the "beautiful sites" of Hawaii tonight, so even if I didn't say that, she would've never known the difference. Why care if I'm there when she can swoon over his Hawaiian come-ons? Ooh, you speak Hawaiian! Take me now! She's a smart girl. Surely she knows he does this to every gorgeous tourist that shows up. Seriously. He's got "date rape tourist trap" written all over him. In big, bold letters. Underlined. Italicized. All caps, too.

I'm still not jealous. I just can't believe Connie would fall for that, and then freak out about Krista. I mean, seriously, I don't even actually have anything planned with her. Sure, I was flirting shamelessly with her, and I probably could plan something with her tonight pretty easily as she seems to like me well enough, but still. I would likely end up stressing myself into a frenzy wondering if Connie was off Surfer Boy. Not that I would be jealous.

Okay, fine, so fibbing and telling Connie I had plans with Krista tonight when I actually don't may not have been the smartest and most bright move, but it was the first thing that came to mind! I can't help it! I am a naturally jealous and spiteful person, and seeing her flirt with Surfer Boy is really ticking me off. She knows it's ticking me off!

But she just looked so…hurt…and angry. I don't even know what it is. I don't think she's ever looked at me like that before, and I just can't figure it out. Sure, I was kind of being a jerk about it, but why it even bothered her is just beyond me right now.

I look over to where Elisha was standing and notice that some random stranger has taken her place. She probably went after Connie when she ran out.

I wince again as I remember her exit and newfound hatred for me. Gently rubbing my cheek, I turn back around to see Krista looking at me with concern and eyeing my hand-covered cheek.

"You alright?" she asks.

I make a face and rub my cheek a little more. "Yeah, I'm fine."

"Was that your girlfriend?" she asks.

I shake my head. I wish, but fate is far too cruel for that. She would just as soon poison me right now. "No."

She looks me up and down with pursed lips. "Alright. What about these?" she asks, holding up the two orders of ice cream.

I frown and look at them. "I guess I should go ahead and pay for them," I say, pulling out my wallet and placing a ten-dollar bill on the counter.

"You planning on eating them both?" she asks.

I shake my head. "Nah. I'll probably have to toss them because I doubt I'll be able to catch Cons and Elisha anyway."

"Wanna split them? I just got off for the day," she asks with a little grin, tilting her head and raising her eyebrow.

I look up at her with a shrug, all desire to flirt with her suddenly starting to flee. "Sure."

"It's on me," she says with a wink, pushing the ten dollars back at me.

Oh, well, if she insists, then I'm not going to throw away ten dollars for nothing. "Alright."

She takes off her apron and walks around to sit next to me at the counter, handing Connie's ice cream cone to me. I make a slight face. "Thanks."

"You're welcome. So what happened, babe? You seem kind of bummed all of a sudden," she says, flicking her hair over her shoulder.

I shrug a little. "Well, my best friend just slapped me across my face and told me she hates me. Kind of put a damper on the moment."

"Bummer," she says, looking at me. "Well, there's a bonfire party going on tonight. Wanna join me? Maybe it'll get your mind off of Little Miss Drama Queen," she says with a wink.

I twist my mouth a little. Who knows, maybe it will be fun. Besides, if I go back to the hotel, I will be questioned as to where Connie is (if anyone's around), and there's a very strong chance I will end up wondering where Connie is and what she's doing, driving myself crazy until I ultimately claw my eyes out.

Which would be kind of bad.

"Umm, sure," I say with a shrug. "I suppose it couldn't hurt."

She grins. "Awesome."

And a party, it most definitely is.

By the time we got here, people were already everywhere. The sun has barely set, and there's a huge bonfire surrounded by a scantily clad mix of Hawaiians and tourists. No telling how long it's been going on, but based on the loud, drunken laughter, it's been long enough for the alcohol to take full effect.

Krista seizes me hand and practically drags me over to the punch table. "Want some?" she asks.

"Sure, I'll have a cup," I say as she hands me the (likely spiked) cup of punch. I rotate the cup, watching the red substance swirl before I take a slightly cautious drink, fully remembering last night's alcohol-induced misadventures. I don't want to take any chances, so I will keep my punch intake to a minimum.

She takes one for herself and takes a drink. "Come on, gorgeous. Let's mingle."

I eventually loosen up a little, making an intense effort to push Connie and her words to the back of my mind. As long as I don't think about the fact that Connie and Seth are probably off touring…

Okay, new thought.

My, that is an interesting interpretation of dancing. Or…

Okay, new thought.

…..What's that over there…?

Err, never mind. I definitely don't want to know. I'm bad at this game.

When I focus again, I see Krista about two inches from my faces, smiling drunkenly. "Hi," she say, bursting into giggles.

I blink, my eyes slightly crossing as I try to focus on her. "Hey."

"Let's dance," she says, grabbing my hand and pulling me over to the others. The heat of the bonfire coupled with summer air made me wonder what was being smoked when the decision to have a BONFIRE in the summer was made. I'm burning up, and I'm in shorts and a wife beater. Though the mass of swimsuits around me makes me feel kind of overdressed.

And of course, the word 'dance' is pretty loosely defined. Especially when dealing with a whole bunch of drunk people.

Suddenly my gaze is caught by a small, separated group off to the side. Most of them are downing drinks like there's no tomorrow. Then I see what looks like…wait…Connie? What? And Seth?

Before my mind has a chance to come up with a snarky internal monologue about it, I realize exactly what it is that I see.

And it kind of gave me that occasional protective, slightly homicidal maniac feeling that I get sometimes.

I break away from the crowd, blocking out the clashing sounds around me as I walk up to the group, my lips pursed tightly with determination.

Connie was in the middle of the group with Seth drunkenly looking her up and down much in the same way that a…well…drunk guy openly and lustily ogles a gorgeous teenage girl in a very revealing bikini and shorts.

And I'm too angry to even comment that I of course didn't notice this bikini/shorts business at all.

The second he lays his hand on her and I see the slight flash of fear in her eyes, I walk over and shove him back, just enough to get him away from Connie. He stumbles back, unable to steady himself due to the alcohol in his system. When he lands on the ground with a dull thud, then rest of the group focuses their attention on me.

"Charlie?" Connie says, whipping her attention to me with a mix of what seems to be confusion, surprise, and hints of relief.

Noticing how vastly outnumbered I am, I place a hand on Connie's back and attempt to lead her out of the group, ignoring the jolting spark that tremored from my hand up my arm. Five drunk guys against me and Connie…not good odds, as far as we go.

I feel a tight grip on my arm as something jerks me back around, connecting a fist with my face. I stumble back a little, narrowing avoiding knocking into Connie.

My hand immediately flies to my face, covering the cheekbone that will soon be a lovely blackish purple color, I'm sure.

I feel the acute desire to smash Seth's face in rise in my stomach again. The drunken flush of his skin even contributes to the 'seeing red' factor.

"Charlie."

I turn to look at Connie and remember my original mission. Bashing Seth's face in will just have to wait.

We pass Krista on the way out, but Connie and I are set in our path, and she's too drunk to realize I'm leaving anyway.

The entire walk back to the hotel is in silence. I have no idea what she's thinking or feeling, and it's difficult to judge her silences sometimes. I don't know if she's mad at me…but the relieved look when I got her out of there wasn't mistaken.

I drop her off at her door, watching her go in and standing for a moment. I eventually walk into my side of the suite and walk across the room to the couch, collapsing into the cushions.

Alex walks out of the bathroom and Taylor glances up from his place on the bed. I swear, do they ever leave this room? Seriously. I mean, sure, it's late, but shouldn't they be off doing fun Hawaiian things?

"Hey man, what happened to your face?" Taylor asks.

"Yeah, your cheek and the skin around your eye are kinda turning funny colors," Alex says as he plops down on his bed.

I look up at them for a second before shaking my head and rolling onto my back to look at the ceiling. Quickly losing interest, they stand up and walk to the door. "We're heading out for awhile. Wanna come?"

"Nah," I reply. "I think I've had enough 'out' time for today."

"Suit yourself," Alex says as they walk out, closing the door behind themselves.

I study the ceiling for awhile, wondering what Connie is thinking. Whether she's upset. Whether or not she saw Krista. How crazy it is that I even happened to see her out of all those people and all that commotion.

Suddenly the door connecting the rooms of our suite creaks open. When I glance over, I see Connie peek and see me. She walks the rest of the way in and closes the door behind herself.

Without a word, she sits on the end of Alex's bed. She sits there hesitantly for a minute before grabbing the remote and turning on the TV, starting to watch it.

And despite the glow from the TV, I watch her.

antiIRONY- I know right, hehe. We thrive on such things. Glad to see you're enjoying the story. ;)

Hockey-girl90- Thanks:pats Charlie: Yes, he was just jealous and he got himself in trouble. Heh.

Tiff- Hee, they have just gotten themselves into quite the bind, now haven't they? Poor them. :pets them: 'Tis a mystery:)

Me (You!) (Hehe…) – Lol, thanks. Seth is bad! Bad! XD :giggles: I'm very glad you were amused and enjoyed the chapter.

SweetNJuicyX0- Hehehe, they are both very jealous people. :P Thanks a ton. ;)

Duckys- You will have to see:) Hee, I'm glad you are enjoying the story.

Blonde-brain- Hee hee, they are jealous little silly-heads. :)

Sarah- Glad you liked it:) The guy's name is actually Seth, but Charlie just said a random name, hehe. Glad you liked it!

Banksiesbabe99- Hee hee hee, yep, he definitely got her jealous, that's for sure. XD Thanks as always, love:)

Agel15- I'm so very glad that you are enjoying it. :) Meme and I try to keep the C/C stories circulating the fandom, hehe. Poor Charlie got slapped, and poor Connie is very angry, heh.

Punkteacher- :giggles: I very much agree. Charlie is quite the flirt. XD

Immortalgod- Glad you like it:)