Chapter 6: Who to Keep Close and Who to Avoid

For the rest of the day, the group lounged on the beach. The sun was hot, almost unbearably so at times, but the water was cool and kept them from overheating. After initially going in the water, the girls headed back to the shore and rested on their towels while the boys continued to splash around. Derek had repeatedly joked about dunking Spencer underwater until Aaron swam underneath Derek and knocked his feet out from under him. Spencer nearly fell over from laughing so hard.

Every once in a while, the boys would retreat to where the girls sat. Spencer and Aaron spread out their own towels, but Derek plopped down cross-legged on the end of Penelope's. She had shot him a dirty look for a second before delicately placing her feet in his lap.

The day was a constant cycle of coming in and out of the water. They stayed there even as the sky began to darken and the crowd began to thin. By that time, they were all relaxing on their towels, watching the colors in the sky change.

"You know…" JJ said after a while, not moving from her position. "It's getting late."

"And your point is?" Derek asked, having decided to spread out his own towel about halfway through the day.

"I guess it was more of an observation," JJ said. "I don't really have a point."

"I have one for you," Emily said, sitting up a bit. She ran her fingers through the grains of sand beside her. "Food."

Derek perked up. "My favorite word. What about it?"

"Don't you think we should get some?"

Almost as soon as Emily said the words, her stomach growled. She blushed while everyone else burst out laughing. A seagull a few feet away leapt up in the air and flew away.

"Yeah, yeah, it's hilarious," Emily muttered, kicking Derek. "But that only serves my point. We should go get something to eat."

"I'm up for that," Aaron said. Everyone nodded in agreement, Derek still guffawing a bit.

"Excellent," Emily said. She stood up and gathered her things, her friends copying her movements. They made their way back to their hotel, walking slowly to eke out a few more moments on the beach.

Aaron noticed Emily was walking behind everyone else, so he slowed down so she could catch up to him. Once they were next to each other, he laced their fingers together and gave a squeeze.

"Everything okay?" he asked.

Emily smiled at him. "Everything is perfect. I just can't believe we're here, and we're all together again."

"I know," Aaron replied with a look at their friends up ahead. "It's like a dream, really."

They walked in silence for a few moments. Emily studied her boyfriend carefully.

"Is everything okay with you?"

Aaron glanced at her. "Yeah. Why wouldn't it be?"

Emily shrugged. "I don't know. You tend to do this thing where you walk around worrying about literally everything when you're supposed to be relaxing and enjoying yourself."

"What? I do not," Aaron said. Emily gave him a pointed look.

"Don't lie to me, Aaron Hotchner. You worry about everything, and you think you need to do everything. You think you're, like, Superman, or something."

Aaron made a scoffing noise. "Okay, that one's a lie. Everything else may be true, but I definitely do not think I'm Superman."

"Aha!" Emily cried, pointing an accusing finger at him. "So you admit the other points are true?"

They turned up the path leading directly to their hotel. Despite it still being relatively light out, the streetlamps had been turned on, casting a warm glow over them as they walked.

"Fine," Aaron said. "I suppose that what you said is a little bit true."

"What was that?"

"I'm not repeating it."

Emily sighed and swung their linked hands back and forth. "I go to school with you, Aaron, I see how stressed you get, and things have been really tough for you lately." She looked over at him, nudging his shoulder with hers. "I just worry about you. Is this trip helping?"

Aaron didn't respond for a moment, simply choosing to look ahead to their friends. JJ, Derek, and Penelope had broken out into song, and they were trying to get Spencer to join in. Aaron smiled.

"It is. Really." He looked at Emily. "Thank you."

"For what? This trip wasn't all me, you know that."

He shook his head. "No, I do. I'm thanking you for worrying about me. Caring about me."

Emily's heart skipped a beat. She stopped walking, Aaron following suit as they were still holding hands. Tugging him close, Emily leaned up and pressed her lips to his.

"I love you," she whispered when they parted. Aaron caressed her cheek and kissed her once more, a quick peck.

"I love you, too." They smiled at each other, both content to just look at each other in the dying light of the day.

"Hey, lovebirds!" Derek yelled from the door of their hotel. "I'm hungry, get a move on!"

"Oh, now he thinks of food," Emily muttered. Aaron laughed and dragged her forward. They hurried the rest of the way, trying not to blush at the knowing looks on their friends' faces as they got closer.

"Hey," Emily murmured before they got too close. Aaron raised an eyebrow in question. "For what it's worth, you're Superman to me."

Aaron's smile was enough to light the entire beach.

"I'm gonna explode!" Derek moaned, hobbling over to the elevator. Everyone else immediately took a step back, leaving him by himself. Once he realized he was alone, he spun around quickly, which only made him moan louder.

The group had found a restaurant a short walk away from the hotel and ate there. Everyone had their fill, but Derek had surpassed that, as usual, and was now suffering the consequences.

"Sorry, Chocolate God," Penelope said through her giggles. "Can't risk getting puke on my new dress." She gestured to the floral print dress she wore and gave an apologetic shrug.

"Yeah, I just got this shirt," JJ said, playing with the hem of her new pale blue blouse.

"I just don't like vomit," Emily said. Spencer and Aaron nodded in agreement. Derek rolled his eyes and leaned against the wall.

"It's an expression, and you know it."

"Of course we do," Spencer said. "People can't actually explode from too much food. If anything, they just-"

"I really don't need to know the science behind that," Penelope interrupted, holding up a hand. Spencer shut his mouth.

"I never thought I would say this," Derek said. "But I really missed Pretty Boy's factoids."

"Me, too," Penelope admitted.

"Three," Emily said. Aaron simply nodded.

JJ rested her head on Spencer's shoulder. He wrapped an arm around her waist.

"You already know I missed everything about you," she told him quietly. Spencer ducked his head, a happy smile on his face. He kissed the top of her head, and she hummed happily.

"Man, I am wiped," Derek announced, turning back to the elevators. "I could sleep for a hundred years." He made a fake snoring noise as if to emphasize his point.

"Before you do that," Aaron said. "We need to figure out who gets what bed tonight."

"What?" Derek looked at him. "Why?"

"Because it's not fair you get a bed to yourself two nights in a row," Spencer said. Derek pouted.

"I suppose that's true."

"The girls are switching every night," Aaron said, gesturing to the ladies. "We should too."

Derek glanced over at the girls, who were smiling sweetly at him. He stuck his tongue out at Emily and JJ and blew a kiss to Penelope.

"Thanks so much for telling them about that, really."

"Our pleasure," Emily chirped.

Derek shook his head. He started to reach for the elevator call button, but was stopped by a voice calling for their attention.

"Hey, guys!" Ashley Seaver was headed their way, a bright smile on her face. Everyone chorused their greetings. "How was your first day here?"

"Wonderful," JJ said, lifting her head off Spencer. He kept his arm around her waist.

"Perfect!" Penelope declared. "It's actually paradise down here."

"It's great," Aaron confirmed with a nod. Ashley beamed.

"That's excellent, I'm so glad to hear it." Her expression turned serious, and she pushed her hair behind her ear. "Now, there's something I need to discuss with you guys that I forgot to cover last night."

Aaron glanced at his friends. "What's up?"

Ashley clasped her hands together. "It's resort policy that if any guest causes any kind of property damage, or causes too much of a disturbance, they will be removed from the premises."

Everyone exchanged a look. That would certainly put a damper on their trip, and if they let anything like that happen, their parents would never get over it.

"Understood," Aaron said. "We won't do anything like that, promise."

Ashley smiled again, all traces of seriousness gone. "Oh, I'm sure you won't! I just needed to tell you." She waved towards the elevators. "I'll let you go. Have a nice night!"

Everyone said goodbye, and Derek jabbed the call button. A moment later, the elevator's doors slid open, and they all piled inside. Once the doors shut, Penelope leaned heavily on Derek.

"Carry me to the room?" she asked. Derek chuckled.

"Oh, now you want to get close to me?"

"Okay, who wants to sleep alone tonight?" Emily asked, coming out of the bathroom in her pajamas. JJ and Penelope were already dressed for bed and were sitting cross-legged on the couch. "I slept alone last night, so you guys get to duke it out."

JJ shrugged. "Pen, you can if you want."

"Are you sure?"

"Yeah, go for it. I'm pretty sure Emily's cured of any cooties by now."

Emily snatched a pillow off one of the beds and smacked JJ with it. Penelope laughed and jumped onto the other bed, snuggling down on top of the blankets. She let out a luxurious sigh.

"This is so wonderful."

Emily looked over at her and giggled at the blissed-out expression on Penelope's face. "It's pretty great, I'll admit."

JJ fanned herself. "And hot."

Emily hit her again with the pillow, this time lighter than before. "Welcome to Florida."

Penelope sat up. "No, she's right, it's absurdly hot."

"I can get us some ice," Emily volunteered. She walked back into the bathroom and grabbed an empty ice bucket from the counter. Making sure she had her room key, she left the room in search of the ice machine she spotted earlier, JJ and Penelope's shouts of "thank you" following her as she exited.

As she walked, Emily felt a slow smile spread across her face. She hadn't smiled this much in a day in a very long time. Yes, Yale was great and everything she had ever dreamt of, but it was a lot of work. While she loved the challenge, she'd also had many nights where she questioned whether or not she truly belonged there, or if she had what it took to make it through. She couldn't count the number of nights she sat on her bed and cried, the piles of work overwhelming her.

And it was only freshman year.

But after every assignment and test, she felt a crushing sense of pride. She'd made it through. And she always would, so long as she kept her head up and kept her focus. And that was exactly what she intended to do.

That didn't make the school year any easier, however, and she would be forever grateful for her mother for making this trip possible. Being reunited with her friends was just what she needed to recharge her batteries and feel better about herself.

And being with everyone again was amazing. Even if she hadn't gotten off to the best start with all of them, they were the best people in her life. She loved each of them with every ounce of her heart, and she wouldn't change a single thing about her time with them. They were her family.

The ice machine was located at the end of the hallway, in a cramped alcove that also housed a vending machine. Stepping up to it, Emily filled the bucket with ice, hissing a little as a few stray pieces hit her hand. Once it was filled with a respectable amount, she straightened and prepared to leave.

As soon as she turned around, her body collided with another. She held the bucket tight against her chest to avoid dropping it.

"Oh my gosh, I'm so sorry!" she cried. "I didn't realize…" Her voice trailed off once she saw who it was. "Oh. It's you."

The boy from the beach, Ian, stood before her, infuriating smirk back in place. Emily's skin crawled at the sight, and she involuntarily tensed at the sight.

"We meet again," Ian said, smirk growing. "Emily, right?"

"If I say no, will you leave me alone?"

Ian held his hands up in a placating gesture. "Look, I think we got off on the wrong foot. I didn't mean to offend you or anything today. I sometimes speak before thinking my words through."

Emily relaxed, but only marginally. "It's fine. But I should still get back to my room." She held up the ice bucket. "Roommates are in need of some ice chips."

Ian nodded. "I understand. I'll let you go, but maybe tomorrow I can show you around the area? Take you out to lunch?"

He gave her a smile that Emily figured was supposed to be charming, only it failed miserably. Side-stepping around him, she shook her head.

"I'm sorry, but I'm here with my friends. We've been away at different colleges for eight months, we'd like to spend some time together."

"So in a few days, then?"

Emily gritted her teeth. Take a freaking hint.

"I also have a boyfriend," she said firmly, not missing the way his eyes narrowed. "And he's here with me. And I love him very much." She smiled falsely. "Bye, Ian."

She turned on her heel and walked as fast as she could without outright running. She could feel Ian's eyes on her, which only made her want to walk faster. She didn't stop until the door to her room was shut tight behind her.

Note to self, she thought, leaning her head against the door. Avoid Ian Doyle at all costs.

A/N: I'm very, very sorry about the long wait once again. I've just started my freshman year of college, and it's still taking some adjusting. However, things have settled quite a bit, so I'm optimistic about being able to get these chapters out sooner to you. I'm not making any promises though, because clearly I've thought this before and haven't delivered.

I do apologize for all the long waits, but I'm trying my best. Your patience means the world to me, as does your support. Thank you for sticking with this story, if you have.