Reefside was not a huge town, but it did have a very lively downtown area. Shane was not clear on the attraction, but apparently "quaint" was quite a draw in this neck of the woods. It was established very early on in their spontaneous walking tour of the town that Tori was on point and he and Dustin were merely sheep to be led around. Personally, Shane found nothing interesting about dried flowers, smelly candles or hand-made jewelry, but Tori felt the need to inspect every item she came across. It didn't help that the shopkeepers, wishing to draw in the tourist trade for the weekend, had tables set up for display outside nearly every store. On the plus side, they didn't have to actually go inside the stores which made it a little easier to move Tori along from one shop to another. All Dustin had to do was to move slightly ahead and call out, "Hey Tor, what do you think of this?" and they moved on.

Luckily, there were enough stores with things that would interest Shane and Dustin to prevent them from wanting to shoot themselves in the head. And, Tori was a good judge of when they'd just about had enough. She called a halt outside of a Dairy Queen where they'd picked up some sodas.

"I think we've hit most of the sites in town," she stated as she pushed her hair out of her face and over her shoulder. "What do you guys say about heading down to the beach?"

"Sounds good." Dustin agreed enthusiastically.

"Let's go." answered Shane.

"Which way's the beach?" Dustin inquired looking around.

Tori, having thought ahead, had planned their walking tour to move them in the direction of the beach. She chuckled indulgently – the two of them would never get anywhere without her. "It's this way."

She looped her arm casually through Dustin's and turned him around. Shane fell into step on Dustin's left. They walked for a few minutes in companionable silence.

The downtown district gradually gave way to a small neighborhood. The homes were well tended and the lawns manicured. Decorations favoring starfish, seashells and dolphins gave the first clues of proximity to the beach. A gust of wind brought the smell of sea and sand to the trio.

Shane was the first to break the silence. "Hey uh, Dustin? I've been wondering about something you said this morning."

"Was it before or after I was actually conscious? You know how I am in the morning, dude."

Shane chuckled. "It was when we were eating. You said you missed us." Tori could feel Dustin tense next to her. "What was that about? You see us every day."

Shane looked over to see Dustin's expression.

Dustin glanced sideways at Shane and took a deep breath. He let it out slowly and stopped walking. Tori and Shane stopped slightly ahead and turned so they could both see him. Dustin ran a hand through his already unruly hair. "It's like…" he held out his hands and looked at Tori; she had seemed to pick up on his vibe at breakfast. "I know I see you guys all the time, but it's different. I miss this…I miss us. When's the last time we really hung out like this?"

It wasn't coming out right, what he wanted to say. "Hanging out" was not what Dustin missed. What he missed was the presence of his friends in a more immediate way. Tori and Shane were more important to him than he'd ever be able to express. Even now, the words were not nearly enough, and Shane looked like he was on the verge of freaking out.

Shane shifted his weight. He knew what Dustin was saying, but as a guy it felt a little weird to him to actually say it. It skirted too close to the "I love you-you love me" touchy-feely relationship conversation. Those conversations were hard enough to have with a girl, but with a girl AND a guy? At the same time?

"I know what you mean, Dustin." Tori nodded at him then looked guiltily at the sidewalk. "I've been so wrapped up in my own…stuff…I've sort of lost track of you guys." She looked up imploringly. "I never meant to do that. You're both so important to me." She reached out to touch both of them on their arms. "I mean, just look at what you've done for me this weekend."

Shane shifted uncomfortably again. Pretty soon he'd have to participate in this conversation. Oh hell, if I can't tell these two people how I feel about them, who can I tell? Might as well jump in with both feet.

"You know I love you guys, right?" Shane ventured. Dustin looked stunned and Tori's hand flew to her mouth. Were those tears gathering in her eyes?

Score for being the first one to use the "L" word. Shane congratulated himself. He reached out to his right to grasp Dustin's shoulder, and slid his arm so Tori was now holding his hand.

Dustin looked so relieved that it was almost funny. He grinned at Shane as he reached out to pull Tori closer for a hug. "You love us, huh? Not as much as we love you."

Tori pulled Shane close enough so she could slide her arm around his waist. Shane in turn placed his arm across Dustin's shoulders as Dustin slid his arm around his back. They stood there for a moment – in perfect balance – in perfect harmony with each other and the world.

It lasted until a honking horn and a yell of "Get a room!" broke the mood. Laughing they broke apart and began walking again, this time Tori took the middle position with her arms linked with Dustin and Shane. Tori felt a lightness in her step that she hadn't realized had been missing until she got it back. She resolved not to lose it again.

The beach was crowded, but the three Ninjas threaded their way through the crowd easily. The sodas they'd picked up at DQ were long gone, and they'd resupplied at a stand on the beach. They paid very little attention to the surfers in the water; their attention was more focused on one another. It was a little strange, having these very serious conversations surrounded by so many people, but they moved along in their own little bubble. Unconsciously they grouped themselves so that the speaker was in the center of the group, and the other two listened intently from the side.

At the moment, Tori and Shane were focused on Dustin. He was talking about missing his dad; something they both knew weighed heavily on him, but had little idea how much. The three were so focused that they never saw disaster hurling toward them. The yell of "GOTCHA!" grabbed Shane's attention, but he had no time to react before a boy in blue was thrown into him. Shane, attempting to catch the boy, lost his balance and fell into Dustin. Like a domino he fell into Tori. Tori had enough time and space to leap away before the tangle of boys hit the sand. She was not however able to retain her grip on her very large grape soda. A helpful hand helped to steady her, but the soda was a lost cause.

Tori watched as the soda flew in slow motion into the air. It flipped bottom over top and remained intact until the impact with Dustin's head caused the plastic lid to separate from the cup. Grape soda splashed like a purple wave over the knot of boys sprawled on the sand. A collective yell rose from the group as they tried to take cover. Then everyone froze in a moment of stunned silence.