"Do I want to know what you packed?" Gia asked, stifling a laugh as Jake dragged in his completely full duffle bag. Gia noticed his backpack was also full to the brim.

"Gia, we'll be gone a month. I just packed a month's worth of necessities." Gia gave him a look.

"Does 'necessities' include your Xbox?" She asked. Jake sighed.

"Yeah. Sometimes when I'm on vacation, I just can't sleep at night. Playing games helps with that." He summed up. Gia cocked her head.

"Did you forget you have me?" She asked. Jake chuckled and planted a kiss on her cheek.

"Never in a million years." He told her, and Gia smiled wider than ever.

"As long as you brought…"

"Black Ops II, Battlefront II and Minecraft?" Jake asked, pulling out the games. "Check, check and double check." He smiled.

"Good" Gia laughed.

Jake set his stuff down next to him, and sat down at the bar-top next to his girlfriend and, after giving her another quick kiss, called Earnie over.

"Ah, how are my finest customers doing this morning?" Earnie asked the young couple.

"Very well, thank you." Jake asked. "How have things been over here?" Earnie chuckled.

"Summer just started, so you can imagine it's been pretty busy. You should consider yourselves lucky; You got here before the stampede." Jake and Gia giggled.

"Then we better order before we get trampled." Gia laughed. "I'll have a blueberry-creme milkshake." Gia ordered.

"And for you?" Earnie asked Jake.

"I'll just have a medium cup of mint chip" Jake ordered.

"No toppings?" Earnie asked.

"Nah. I like it plain" Jake said. Earnie laughed, and proceeded to fill out the order. No longer that five minutes later, Jake and Gia were halfway done with their Froyos, in which Jake had paid for, as promised. "So, what made you choose Clearwater?" Jake asked.

"Supposedly it's the most beautiful beach in florida. Plus, it's its own little area" Gia answered.

"There is a Dunkin nearby, right?" Jake asked. Gia laughed, again. She new Jake couldn't do much without his prefered DD coffee. Since monster fighting no longer was something they could do after defeating the Armada, it no longer gave him energy, so he relied on caffeine.

"Yes, there is. I looked specifically for that." Gia said, finishing her milkshake with a loud SLURP. Getting up, she threw out her empty cup, and picked up Jake's backpack.

"I can get that" Jake said, but Gia refused.

"You have enough to struggle with your duffle bag alone. I'll carry your backpack." Jake knew Gia wouldn't change her mind, so he allowed her to carry his backpack. After saying goodbye to Earnie, the two made their way, rather slowly, towards Gia's.

-

While walking back home with Jake, Gia still couldn't contain her excitement for the four weeks to come. She'd been wanting to spend quality time with her friends, and some alone time with Jake, and now it seemed that would happen. Ever since the end of the Armada, Gia missed being a ranger. She never told anyone, of course, due to the fact that if she did, she wouldn't know how to make it not sound like she wanted the Earth to be under constant threat of attack. She just missed feeling...special. She knew if Jake ever heard her say that, he would make sure she would never say that again, and that's what she liked about him: He made her feel special. Rounding the corner of the street, her house came in sight and, looking behind her, she saw Jake a couple feet behind. "I told you it's too much weight" she said, frowning a bit.

"I'm fine" Jake huffed. "Though that hill took a lot out of me" Gia smirked.

"Usually you're fine with hills. Then again, you usually don't walk uphill with a hundred-pound barbell on your back" she teased.

"Ha ha" Jake responded, taking his duffle bag off his shoulders and carrying it by his side. As they approached Gia's house, her parents came out, looking ready to go out. Seeing Jake and his "barbell", as Gia called it, her father smiled.

"Well, you're getting a good workout in, I see" he said to Jake. Jake dropped the bag and sighed.

"I had no idea clothing weighed so much" he said between breaths. Gia's father let out a laugh.

"Anyway, Gia, your mother and I are heading to the store to grab some things for the trip. You two okay with pizza tonight?" He asked the two teens.

"Sounds good." Gia confirmed

"You wouldn't mind grabbing a forklift or something while you're out, would you?" Jake asked, receiving a playful nudge from Gia.

"We'll see about that." Gia's father laughed. "No guarantees, though". From behind them, Gia's mom honked the car horn, indicating she was ready to go, and wanted to get going. Sighing, Gia's father got in the car, but before they took off, he called out to the two teens.

"Don't have too much fun, you two!" Gia and Jake instantly turned red as the car pulled out of the driveway and drove away. Gia groaned as she put her hand to her head.

"Why does he have to torment me like this?" She sighed. Jake only smiled.

"I'm just glad he likes me". Gia perked up and stared him down. Sensing he made a mistake, Jake slowly backed away.

"I mean...like as in...like, ya know...approves of me…" Jake stammered as Gia crept closer.

"I know." She said, her voice dangerously calm. "I just feel like tackling you for fun. No hard feelings." Jake sighed. Gia loved to tackle him whenever she got the chance. It was a blessing and a curse of dating a tough, energetic girl like Gia. Before he can even contemplate anything else, Gia slammed into him, knocking him completely on his back, as well as knocking his wind from him, and Gia landed on top of him.

"Are you sure you don't play a sport?" Jake asked, catching his breath. "You'd be a seriously good defensive lineman". Gia shook her head.

"I don't like sports too much, except watching you play soccer." She smiled, getting off him, and helped him up. She brushed some grass and dirt off his back and shoulders, and picked up his backpack. "Let's hed in. You can leave your duffle out here, my parents will pick it up." She said, walking up to the front door, with Jake in tow.