A/N: Justin and Alex discuss their future together; the Grandmas band together to prepare for Kaylee's arrival in town. More turmoil at camp ensues and the girls draw closer together.

The remnants of his dessert were quickly forgotten as Justin placed his fork down on his plate and stared into the eyes of his boyfriend; he should have realized this was going to happen. Alex was a conventional sort of person who believed in a lot of the same things he did – home, responsibility, and stability. The two of them had been seeing each other exclusively for a couple of years now, and unlike Brian, this man was a firm believer in monogamy and settling down. When Alex had unexpectedly suggested they take a trip to Canada, then, he should have figured out there was more to it than just an opportunity to see a renowned art museum. Even if he did agree to marry him, though, did he really think that he would just up and marry him right now?

"Alex," he struggled to say as the other man slowly caressed his palm and gazed up into his eyes hopefully. "I… I don't know what to say." His thoughts were in a dizzy whirl; he really did care for Alex – he was a kind, decent man and he knew the man loved him. But was it enough?

"It's very simple, Justin. Make me a happy man and say yes." Alex bit his lip anxiously as he waited for what seemed like an eternity for Justin's response; he adored this man and knew with his beauty, passion, and intelligence he could have a pick of any man he wanted. But Justin had chosen to be with him for the past two years; that must account for something. His proposal was a natural progression of their relationship and he knew Justin believed in marriage just like he did; the subject had come up from time to time during the course of their conversations and Justin had indicated he wished for all the trappings of a home, including marriage. So why was he sensing reluctance on his boyfriend's part? Was it because he had been burned before? To his consternation Justin had always been rather tight-lipped about what had happened with his ex; it made him both curious but also hesitant at the same time in his wish to know exactly what had happened, but he did know one thing: Justin must have been deeply hurt by whatever had occurred to make him so skittish. How could he convince him that he would never hurt him the way this other man had? What more could he do than put his heart on the line?

Justin took a deep breath and let it out, his emotions warring inside him. He loved Alex for how reliable he was, how he could depend on his support for his art shows – the man never failed to show up for a single one in all the times they had been together. He was without a doubt one of his staunchest supporters of his work and was the kind of man you could always count on to be there when you needed him. He laughed at his jokes, enjoyed a lot of the same passions that he did, and he was romantic and well-established in his field. He felt secure and comfortable when he was with him, and with Alex there were no unexpected quirks in his personality, no bumps in the road that he couldn't foresee and handle. But was predictable and reliable enough? Did he love Alex, the man, or the things that he symbolized? "Alex… This is a surprise," he finally weakly managed to utter.

Alex sighed softly; that was not exactly the fervent, positive response he had been hoping for. "Justin… This couldn't have been that big of a surprise," he gently chided him as he squeezed his hand slightly, causing the blond to swallow hard. "You know how I feel about you." The question is, though… How do you feel about ME? "I can't see me spending the rest of my life with anyone but you."

Justin gazed down into his dark-blue eyes; the other man's wish for what he desired being broadcast loud and clear. Why couldn't it be that simple? For just a brief moment, he thought back several years ago to when another man had proposed marriage to him; at first, he had thought the whole idea had been ludicrous. Brian Kinney didn't do romance and he certainly didn't do marriage, either; he had simply been spooked over that horrific bombing. But the second time – when he had in typical Brian Kinney fashion gone out and bought a fucking mansion to prove his point, in addition to putting his loft and the club up for sale – he had gotten his attention that time. The man 'who didn't do romance' had gone out and bought a house 'for his prince.' Even now, at the mere memory of those unexpected words from his ex-partner's lips, he could clearly remember how he had practically melted right then and there, his insides doing a flip-flop at the sound. But right now, with another man's proposal, he merely felt torn.

He sighed softly. "Alex… Even if I did agree to marry you, surely you're not suggesting we do it while we're up here in Canada?"

Alex pulled Justin to his feet and placed his hands on the blond's upper arms. "Would that be so bad, Justin?" he asked softly; that was precisely what he had had in mind. He had researched the marriage laws thoroughly before they had left and had determined to his delight that all they needed were two forms of identification and a personal appearance at one of the Justices of the Peace at City Hall; Canada had no residency or blood work requirements. If Justin wanted a more elaborate ceremony, though, he was fully prepared to follow through on whatever type of nuptials he preferred. "All we basically need to do is show up. You tell me what kind of ceremony you want and I'll see that you get it."

Justin gently extricated himself from his boyfriend's arms and turned his back to walk over toward the window overlooking downtown Windsor; he folded his arms across his chest and gazed down at the thousands of twinkling lights below, lost deep in thought. How did things get so complicated? He turned around to observe Alex standing where he had left him; he felt the pangs of remorse and guilt washing over him, but he wasn't about to impulsively jump into such a long-term commitment. He had learned the hard way what could happen when you put your heart – and your faith – on the line. And besides, there was a lot more at stake here now. "Alex, even if I did agree to marry you, I couldn't do it now."

Alex sighed, disappointed. "Why not if that's what we both want? It IS what we both want, isn't it, Justin? I still haven't heard either a yes or a no to my original question yet."

Justin worried his lower lip with his upper teeth. "It's not that simple, Alex; it's not just you and me here. I have Kaylee to consider, too."

"What about Kaylee?"

Justin stared at him in disbelief; he could hear the slightly sharp tone to Alex's voice, clearly indicating he wasn't happy with his response. Well, that was too bad; his daughter had to come first, and any man he married would have to respect that. Didn't Alex realize that? Shouldn't he have? "Alex, if I did agree to marry you, I would have to discuss it with Kaylee first. We're a package deal. She would have to be happy with my decision, too, and she's not even here to talk about it with me. There's no way I could marry you now and then go back to Chicago with that kind of news. What if she didn't want me to get married?"

Alex huffed out a breath of aggravation now, not even trying to disguise his displeasure. His idea of arranging a private, romantic dinner with his lover in preparation for his marriage proposal wasn't going the way he had hoped. "Justin, who's the adult here? I'm not asking Kaylee to marry me; I'm asking YOU. She's the child and you're the father; she should abide by whatever decision you feel is the right one." He could see Justin bristling at his statement and hastened to smooth over his rather caustic remark. "Justin," he began softly, "I know how much you love your daughter and I respect you for that. But she's way too young to realize what's best for her; it's up to you as the parent to determine that."

He slowly walked up to the blond and placed his hand under his chin; Justin kept his arms firmly crossed over his chest as his lover gently but firmly forced his chin upward to look him in the eyes. "I know you're only looking out for your daughter's best interests, my love, but somewhere in there you need to look out for yourself, too. You deserve to be happy, Justin; don't you think that's what Kaylee would want, too?"

Justin slowly lifted his gaze to stare into Alex's face; it was one he had studied countless times over the past couple of years and he knew it well. He also knew that Alex was a masterful communicator and quite adept at manipulating his words to their greatest advantage when the need warranted it. It was times like this when he wondered how sincere they were, especially when it came to his daughter. His boyfriend was polite and cordial enough around Kaylee but not overly so; just how much did Alex care about his daughter's happiness, too? Was he being sincere when he spoke positively about his daughter or merely saying whatever he thought Justin wanted to hear to get what he wanted?

Alex curled his hand lightly around Justin's cheek as the blond told him, "Alex, I can't do anything without talking to Kaylee first, and she can't even be reached by phone right now while she's at camp. Besides, I would want to discuss this with her personally, not by long distance. Surely you can understand that."

Alex dropped his hand to his side, clearly frustrated by the disappointing response. "Justin…" he pleaded softly. He had hoped once they were alone together that he could persuade his boyfriend to see reason and realize how important it was to make an official commitment to each other - what he saw as the logical progression to their long-term relationship.

Justin sighed, however, before he had a chance to continue, uncomfortable with the way their conversation was heading. "Alex, I do care about you…" He began tentatively.

"But…," Alex prompted a little curtly, hating it when someone began a conversation with those dreaded words. "What's your decision, Justin?"

"Don't push me, Alex," he answered sharply as he brushed his right hand through his hair in agitation, suddenly feeling trapped. "I just need some time to think about it and to discuss it with Kaylee; I don't think that's too much to ask, is it?"

Grasping at a slight glimmer of optimism but realizing he was not going to get what he wanted – at least not in the near future, Alex responded softly, "Does that mean you're at least not turning me down?"

"Yeah, I guess that's what it means," Justin finally decided to Alex's relief. Feeling a bit regretful over his abrupt tone earlier, he added a little softer, "Look, I'm sorry if I'm being a little too blunt here, Alex. But this all came as a surprise to me, despite what you think. You know how much I love my daughter; I just need some time to think it over and talk to her about it. Maybe while I do, though, you need to consider whether you're really prepared to take on a ready-made family yourself."

Justin's mouth twisted up in one corner wryly. "It's not easy raising a daughter, you know, especially one that's about to go through puberty; trust me." Many a night Justin had lain in bed, worrying over anything and everything when it came to Kaylee; would she have the proper female influence to discuss 'girly' things that she didn't feel comfortable discussing with him? Would his sensitive daughter be able to handle the inevitable cliques that always seemed to be created when you entered junior high school and find acceptance by the students there? Would she be able to avoid all the dangerous traps that were prevalent among her peers such as drug abuse, alcohol, and cigarettes? He had fortunately kicked those habits that Brian had bestowed upon him a long time ago – he had never really liked smoking, taking drugs, or getting drunk out of his mind anyway; he basically just went along with it because Brian did at the time and he wanted to fit in. And her college education; it was so fucking expensive now to send a child to college, and he wanted Kaylee to have every advantage possible, including additional schooling if that was what she wanted. Would he be able to afford to send her when the time came? He was quite comfortable financially by now, due in part to his success in the art world and some wise investments he had made along the way, but would it be enough? He knew only too well how much worry and sleepless nights one little girl could cause – was his lover prepared for all that?

"There's a lot more to raising a child – especially a girl – than I think you realize, Alex; are you sure you're ready for that responsibility? Because if we DO marry, you would have to make a commitment to being involved in HER life, too. Are you prepared to do that?"

Alex considered that question; WAS he prepared to take on the responsibility of a sometimes moody, fashion-driven little girl who seemed more concerned about her appearance at times than anything else and who at best was cool toward him in her father's presence? He didn't know the first thing about being a father, nor had he ever really wanted to. But he DID want Justin – he loved him too much to let him go, and if it meant playing the role of the doting stepfather in exchange for the opportunity, he would just have to bite his tongue and deal with it. "Yes," he told his lover firmly, hoping his words sounded truthful. "I can do it, Justin… With your help. And as disappointed as I am, I'm willing to wait for now. Will you give me that chance?"

Justin brushed his hands idly over the back of the couch for several seconds, deep in thought, the soft sounds of a Kenny G jazz song the only sound in the room. Finally, he took a deep breath and lifted his gaze to look into Alex's eyes and nodded; he supposed he owed his boyfriend that much, and perhaps in time he would come to the conclusion that marrying Alex was the right thing to do. "Yeah… I will. But I'm not promising anything, Alex, you DO understand that?"

Alex sighed, not quite happy about Justin's noncommittal answer but finding a bit of solace that he hadn't been turned down outright. He walked over to place his hands on either side of Justin's neck, feeling the rapid pulse underneath his fingers as his lover's arms slid tentatively around his waist in response. Encouraged somewhat, he leaned down to capture Justin's lips in a soft kiss; as he pulled back slightly, he whispered against his mouth, "Yeah, I understand… But be warned, Justin Taylor, I'm going to be very persistent about this, just like I always am when I want something this badly."

Justin pulled back to gaze into Alex's determined eyes and nodded, his face warming under the serious, intense look. "Okay, then, just so we're on the same page here." He looked over at their dinner, long forgotten, deciding to change the subject before things got too complicated. "Now if you don't mind, if I recall correctly I think I had part of my dessert left over."

The tense moment broken, Alex grinned slightly in relief as he shook his head in amusement over Justin's typical concern about his food. Releasing Justin from his embrace, he placed his hand around the slender waist. "Spoken like a true chocaholic; good thing for you, bread pudding doesn't go bad very easily. Why don't you finish the rest of your dessert and then we can take a walk around town?" He figured any opportunity to be alone with Justin and talk, perhaps in a less structured setting, would move his goal that much closer to reality.

Justin nodded in agreement as the two men wandered back over to their neglected final course, one man pondering what his ultimate decision should be and the other one hoping he wouldn't have to wait too long to get the answer that he wanted.

Liberty Diner – Same Time

Debbie glanced up and beamed as the diner's newest patron walked in. "Betty… I'm taking my break now, okay?" As the other woman nodded, she hurried over to Jennifer, who smiled warmly at her friend in return.

"Debbie," she greeted her a little breathlessly as she rushed up and gave the other woman a quick hug. "I'm sorry I'm running late; I had a closing that ran longer than expected."

Debbie popped a large bubble with her gum as she shook her head and pulled back to look into her friend's eyes. "No problem," she answered with a smile, barely able to hold in her excitement over what she needed to discuss with the other woman. She steered Jennifer with a hand on her elbow toward a booth near the back of the room where they could have more privacy, even though at this late, post-dinner hour the diner was fairly empty. She didn't want to take any chances, however, as she slid in the booth's seat across from Jennifer. "Want some coffee or tea? Soda?"

Jennifer shook her head. "Maybe just some water; if I have caffeine now, I'll be up all night long."

"Hey, Betty!" Debbie shouted over toward the counter. "Can we get a couple of waters?" A few seconds later, the other waitress placed the two waters down on the table as Jennifer eyed her friend curiously, waiting for her to speak. Normally when Debbie needed to talk to her about something, they either did it in the solitude of each other's homes or over the phone. For some reason, however, when her friend had called her earlier today, she had insisted they meet here at the diner as soon as possible, as if she had something urgent to discuss.

She noticed Debbie hesitating now, remaining inexplicably quiet until the other waitress had left. Waiting impatiently for Debbie to speak, the redhead finally opened her mouth to divulge the reason for their hastily-scheduled meeting.

"I got a very interesting call this morning," she began mysteriously.

Jennifer raised her eyebrows. "You did?"

Debbie nodded. "Yeah, I sure did; from Katie. Or should I say... Katie AND Kaylee." She stared into her friend's eyes, noticing them widening almost imperceptibly until her face flushed slightly in understanding; it was almost unnoticeable but just enough for Debbie to pick up on it immediately. "Seems both girls wound up going to the same camp up in Michigan and just happened to run into each other there; what a stupendous coincidence, wouldn't you say? Oh, by the way... You wouldn't by any stretch of the imagination already know something about that, would you?" Debbie remembered Brian mentioning to her one day whose idea it had been to send Katie to camp and it hadn't taken long after her conversation with both girls earlier to put two and two together. She had to hand it to Jennifer, though; the only question she had with the idea was wondering why she hadn't thought about doing something just like it earlier.

Her suspicions were confirmed when she heard Jennifer gasp in amazement and say excitedly,"It worked!" She was unable to keep a smile from appearing on her face as she promptly gave herself away.

"Ah, hah!" Debbie crowed, her eyes blazing as she waggled a red-lacquered fingernail at her friend. "I KNEW you were behind this! Jen, what were you thinking?" she chided her loudly, her tone serious; she quickly lowered her voice as she noticed some of the patrons looking their way curiously. She suddenly grinned, however, as her expression changed to one of amusement. "And why didn't I think of something like that myself? I must be slipping..."

Jennifer let out a huge whoosh of relief. "I was afraid you were really mad at me there for a few seconds," she admitted. "To tell you the truth, I was pretty terrified the whole thing would blow up in my face, but I had to do it. I'm tired of these girls being apart and those two stubborn men being apart, too." She shook her head at the irony. "Knowing what I thought about Brian at the beginning, I can't believe I'm saying this, especially after what he did to Justin, but those two still belong together, Debbie. And it's time someone did something about it."

"Are you sure you know what you're doing?" Debbie asked her from across the table, glad Jennifer had taken the initative but still concerned about the possible ramifications. "You know about the court order…"

"Fuck the court order," Jennifer retorted brusquely to her surprise; she was fed up with having to tiptoe around the judge's decision to keep her two granddaughters separated. "It's not right to keep two sisters – two twins – apart from each other. Justin and Brian may have had to agree to it as part of their separation, but I didn't. And if the two girls just happened to go to camp at the same place and just happened to find each other, well then…" She shrugged innocently.

Debbie grinned at her. "…Then it was meant to be, wasn't it?"

"Damn straight it was," Jennifer growled. Her eyes sparkled at her friend as she eagerly asked, "So tell me what the girls had to say to you."

Debbie leaned across the table. "Well, I talked to Katie first and then Kaylee. Although I didn't know at the time that it WAS Kaylee. They sound SO identical on the phone!"

Jennifer smiled. "I know – and wait until you see them together! If it wasn't for their hair, you wouldn't be able to tell them apart."

Debbie grinned from ear to ear. "Well, we're about to test that theory."

Jennifer frowned. "What do you mean?"

"They called me because they needed a favor."

"What kind of favor?"

"Well," Debbie said quietly, "it seems our granddaughters have the same idea that YOU do; they not only want to be together now that they know about each other, but they want their fathers back together, too. And they want you and me to help them make that happen."

Jennifer beamed. "Debbie, that's wonderful!" She cried out enthusiastically. This was more than she had hoped for. Her main goal had been to at least have the girls meet and hopefully bond. It appears that was going so well that they wanted their fathers back together, too. "That's what I've been wanting, too! This is great! What do they want us to do to help?"

"Now hold on a minute, Jen," Debbie warned, causing Justin's mother's face to sober. "It's not going to be that easy; Sunshine was really hurt by what Brian did to him." Debbie knew all the sordid details of how Brian had gone back on his promise to Justin to be faithful only to him; she knew how much the young man she loved as a son had counted on Brian to always be honest with him and not make empty promises, and his breaking of that promise had hurt him deeply according to Jennifer. Surely she hadn't forgotten that. Was it irrevocable, though? She also knew that Brian was hurting as well; HAD been hurting ever since they had separated. You just didn't love someone the way that Brian had given his heart to Justin without being in pain, regardless of him being the cause of it. Could they find a way to work through their difficulties and count on their abiding love to reunite them somehow, along with a couple of determined daughters they both loved deeply?

Jennifer sighed as reality reared its ugly head. She knew all too well how hurt her son had been by what Brian had done. "I know," she admitted. "For a long time afterward, he wouldn't talk about what had happened. And even now, he won't even say Brian's name out loud as if it's too painful to utter. I'm not even sure he's told Alex what happened between them." She covered her mouth briefly with one slender hand. "Oh, my God! Alex! That's a whole OTHER problem. What about him?"

Debbie's eyes flashed. "What about him?" Justin's boyfriend was certainly no Brian Kinney, at least not in Justin's eyes… Was he?

"Debbie, he's Justin's boyfriend and has been for the past two years! We can't just dismiss him totally. Maybe Justin feels more toward him than I realize; that's a pretty long time to be together exclusively."

Debbie huffed out an exasperated breath. "Come on, Jennifer! Do you really think that – what was he – architect? Do you really think some architect can compete with Brian in your son's eyes?"

Jennifer wrung her hands in front of her on top of the table as she gazed over thoughtfully at her friend. "I don't know," she answered honestly. "I know my son well, though, and I know deep down he still loves Brian. And I know he dearly misses being in Katie's life. But Brian really hurt him, in the only real way that he could hurt him; by breaking a promise to him. It's going to take a lot to get them back together, despite what they both might still feel for each other and what we all want for both them and the two girls." She recalled what Debbie had said earlier. "About this 'favor.' Just what do they want you – us – to do? We can't make Brian and Justin get back together."

"No," Debbie told her with a smile. "But we can help the girls give them a little push, though." She leaned over closer to Jennifer and said confidentially, "They want to switch places when it's time to come home from camp."

"What?" Jennifer cried out in shock, unmindful of the stares they were receiving. "Are you kidding me? That won't work!"

"Why not?" Debbie asked, her blue eyes boring into her friend's. "Even YOU said if the hair was the same, they'd look exactly alike. Well, that's about to happen, if it hasn't already. By the time you get the chance to see them together, you won't be able to tell them apart."

Jennifer's eyes widened as she nervously played with the straw in her water glass, still unable to believe what she was hearing; she knew Kaylee wasn't some one-dimensional, shallow little girl - she had a lot of interests and ambitions in her life - but she also knew how concerned she always was about her appearance, and her hair had always been her crowning glory. "Kaylee's agreed to get her hair cut off? You're kidding, right? She would no more cut off her hair than one of her fingers!"

"Well, get out the new rule book, Grandma, because that's exactly what she's agreed to do," Debbie informed her.

"I don't believe it," she murmured in amazement. "Kaylee loves her hair long. Every time Justin even hints at getting it trimmed slightly, she has a major adolescent tantrum and Justin has to back down."

Debbie smiled at her pensively. "Well, apparently she loves her other father more than she does her vanity, because according to Katie that's exactly what she's agreed to do. By the time you see Kaylee masquerading as Katie, she will have her hair cut just like her sister's."

"This is incredible, Debbie!" Jennifer replied, her heartbeat picking up at the thought that not only had she succeeded in getting the two girls back together, but apparently they were determined to get to know their other father and perhaps do something to reunite them. There was an inherent danger in that, however. "Debbie… What if the girls switch places and their entire plan backfires? I'm assuming they're doing this in hopes of forcing their two fathers to meet."

Debbie nodded. "Yeah – the way I look at it, they'll have to meet – they can't just hold onto each other's daughter forever, and you know the girls are going to have to confess eventually. That's the impression I got from Katie, too; they want to switch places so they can get to know their other father better, but their ultimate hope is that their fathers will come to their senses and realize they still love each other, that they've never stopped loving each other and that they'll decide they want to be together again; one, big happy family." She peered into her friend's eyes with concern as she observed Jennifer's silence. "You don't really think Justin could actually be in love with this Alex guy, do you?"

Jennifer bit her lip for a few seconds contemplatively before shaking her head firmly. "No… I think Justin respects him and cares about him, but does he love him the way that he loved… Loves Brian? No, I don't believe that; whenever I go to Chicago to visit Justin and he happens to be there, I've noticed he never looks at Alex or talks about him to me like he did with Brian. Justin was really hurt by what Brian did to him, don't get me wrong, but I don't think for a minute he ever fell out of love with him."

Debbie nodded in agreement and smiled. "I was hoping you'd say that." She sighed at the memory of Justin spending so much time with her at the diner and at her home; those had been such delightful times, even when things were difficult, and she treasured them. "I miss seeing and talking to Justin a lot, Jennifer; I love him like a son, too, but I don't have to tell YOU that. And I want to get to know my other granddaughter again, too." Merely finally getting the chance to talk to Kaylee on the phone had only cemented her feelings about missing the other granddaughter she had never really gotten to know, and she was determined to help them in any way that she could. She was thrilled beyond words to get the chance to finally see Kaylee again and learn more about the young woman she had become during her absence.

Jennifer nodded sadly. "I know, Debbie, and he knows how you feel about him; it's hurt him a lot not to be able to keep in contact with you, too. He's missed all his old friends terribly, and it's been hard on him having to shut off all contact with you and everyone else. He just thought under the circumstances it would be better with Brian and Katie both still in Pittsburgh and so entrenched in their friends' lives here to avoid contact with pretty much everyone except for me and Daphne. There's been so much hurt to go around for everyone."

"You're fucking right there's been," Debbie growled. "He's not the only one that's been hurting all this time. That's why we have to give the girls' plan a chance, Jen; YOU were the one who put this in motion for them to begin with – now give them a chance to make it work. Who knows? Maybe a couple of stubborn boys will have their lives turned back around for the better, because I happen to believe those two belong together. That whole family belongs together."

Jennifer lifted her gaze to look into Debbie's determined face as the redhead added, "They've got a lot of questions that need to be answered by their fathers, though. They were asking me all sorts of things that I didn't feel comfortable answering myself; that should be up to Justin and Brian. But they deserve to be told what happened and to be reassured that none of this was their fault. They're wondering why their fathers split up in the first place and why they were never told about each other. Those are some really huge questions for a couple of innocent little girls to carry around on their shoulders."

Jennifer's face betrayed her worry over their plan; when she had broached Daphne with her idea of hopefully bringing the girls together, she hadn't fully considered what all the consequences might be. It wasn't going to be a simple matter of the two bonding and living happily ever after with their fathers; it would take a lot more than that, including a willingness for both men to admit their love for each other and an ability for both of them to push aside their stubborn pride and move beyond the hurt that had been caused.

"You're right, Debbie," she told her friend at last. "There's going to be some hard questions that have to be answered. But both girls are very mature for their age; I think they can handle the truth. It's time they're told the truth. And it's time my son and Brian face up to the consequences of what they did to tear those two girls apart." She let out an anxious breath. "Now tell me what our part in this is going to be."

Debbie nodded. "Here's what they have in mind…."

Camp Pineland – Late Evening

Kaylee cried out as she was unceremoniously dumped from her twin bed onto the hardwood floor. Fully awake now, she glared up at her tormentor. "What was THAT for?"

She rubbed her now short-haired blond head where it had hit the hard surface; her initial anger at the other girl's actions, however, dissolved into apprehension when she observed the look of fury on her bunkmate's face. She had gone to bed earlier after enduring an impromptu haircut at the hands of her sister, hoping that by being asleep when Sandra had returned she wouldn't be disturbed; unfortunately, she had turned out to be wrong.

"My canoe sprang a leak today," Sandra informed her, her eyes flashing as she crossed her arms over her chest defiantly. "The camp counselor said someone had deliberately drilled a hole into it to make it sink. And I think YOU had something to do with it."

"I did NOT, Sandra, I swear!" Kaylee cried out as she stared, fearful and wide-eyed, at the larger girl looming over her. "I wasn't anywhere near the lake today, and I don't know anything about using a drill."

The larger girl snorted and kicked her slightly with her sneakered foot in the side as Kaylee scurried back slightly to avert it. "You think I'm just going to take your word for it, Blondie? You'd like nothing better than to cause trouble for me, wouldn't you?" Sandra had come from a poor family on the outskirts of Milwaukee; her family had scrimped for every penny they could to enroll her in the camp. They thought they would be helping to 'enrich' her life by sending her here, but the fact was she hated it. She hated all the pretense, she hated all the snobbery, and she hated being laughed at like she was earlier today. And this blond fashionista staring up at her with her designer pajamas, neatly-manicured nails, and new short hairdo that she somehow managed to obtain out here in the midst of nowhere merely accentuated the difference to her between the haves and the have nots and infuriated her even more.

"Well, I don't believe you!" she snarled down at her. "If you didn't personally do it, you must have had someone who did! And if I find out that you DID, you won't be able to sit down for a week! I can't stand the fucking sight of you! Get out of MY cabin before I THROWyou out on your prissy little ass!"

"But…"

"You've got ten seconds to get all your stuff, Miss High and Mighty!" The other girl continued to rant, not giving Kaylee a chance to rebut her accusation. "This is MY cabin from now on!" Kaylee watched as the other girl yanked open the drawers to her dresser and began to throw all her belongings onto the wooden floor. "Now pick up your designer shit and get out of HERE!" she roared, her face red with rage.

Kaylee unsteadily rose to her feet, careful not to get too close to the other girl, and hurriedly reached for her suitcase with shaking hands to begin stuffing her clothing and other items inside, not mindful at the moment as to how wrinkled they might get. For once she was more concerned with making a hasty retreat before things escalated with her bunkmate. As she placed the last of her belongings into the suitcase and quickly zipped it shut, she had just a couple of seconds to grab her makeup bag before the other girl began to approach her. Not bothering to look behind her to see if she was leaving anything behind or to determine if the other girl was about to make good on her threat, she had just enough time to hurriedly pull open the cabin door and rush out before she heard it slam violently behind her with a litany of cursing audible through the open window.

Trembling from her close encounter with the camp bully, she stood there, unsure what to do. Biting her lip, she felt the sting of tears in her eyes and angrily wiped them away. "Stop being such a big baby," she berated herself. But she had to admit – in the inky darkness of the new-moon night, she was scared. She was in a place that was unfamiliar to her, terrified and alone. No, that wasn't quite right; she wasn't totally alone, she told herself with a sniff; not any more.

Walking down the pathway toward Cabin #12, she noticed to her extreme relief the soft glow of a light coming from the room. Quietly approaching the structure, she stepped up onto the small, square-sized landing and knocked on the door. A few seconds later, the door opened.

"Kaylee!" Katie cried out in alarm, knowing her sister had left about an hour earlier to go to bed; she noticed immediately the look of fear on her sister's face and the suitcase in her hand. She tugged on her arm to pull her into the room. "What happened?" she asked as she led Kaylee over to her bed to sit; Christina, her roommate, was sitting cross-legged on the opposite bed, staring at her curiously.

"It's okay," Katie assured her as she glanced over at Christina warily. "She knows all about you – and Sandra. This has something to do with her, doesn't it?"

Kaylee swallowed hard and nodded. "I was sleeping," she stammered out, her heart still pounding from her encounter. "And she yanked the covers off, grabbed my legs and threw me off the bed! She thinks I was the one who caused her canoe to sink! She said there was a hole drilled into it, and she thinks either I did it or I told someone else to!" She felt Katie's hand squeezing hers as she tearfully admitted, "I was so scared, Katie! Her face was all red and blotchy like she was going to explode any minute! She even kicked me a little with her foot while I was lying on the floor!"

"What!" both girls cried out angrily in unison, their shock clearly displayed on their faces.

Katie was livid; her face reddened and her eyes narrowed in fury. "She kicked you? That, that... Asshole!" She began to rise determinedly from her bed. "Well, I'm going over there right now and kick her big, fat ASS."

"No, Katie!" Kaylee beseeched her as she grabbed her sister's wrist tightly, her eyes wide with fright. "Please don't go over there! You'll only make it worse! Give her time to simmer down. Please!" she begged, afraid her sister would wind up getting seriously hurt if she followed through on her vow for revenge.

"But she can't get away with that!" Katie retorted, her blue eyes flashing in rage over her sister's mistreatment; inside she was feeling mixed emotions of both anger and guilt over her being the cause of her sister being tormented and accused of something she had nothing to do with; it seems her stunt with the canoe had wider consequences than she had realized. "Who does she think she IS?" She snapped indignantly.

She stood there, her body rigid and stiff, as she gazed down into her sister's terrified eyes; eyes that were fearful over her wellbeing. She was torn between giving Sandra the bully a taste of her own medicine and bowing to her sister's desperate plea. She peered into her sister's eyes, so identical to her own, before finally she let out a breath of resignation and slowly sat back down, hearing her sister let out a sigh of relief in response.

"She's not going to get away with this," she told her sister as Christina nodded silently in support. "She can't just throw you out of your own cabin! What a jerk! What is she even DOING here?"

Kaylee licked her lips, her mouth suddenly dry. "I don't know," she whispered painfully, her eyes still glistening with tears over her predicament. "What am I going to do now? I can't go back there."

"No, you can't," Katie agreed firmly. "You're going to stay here in OUR cabin tonight; we can bunk together." She looked over at Christina, who nodded and smiled back at her congenially.

Thank goodness SOMEONE has a decent roommate, Kaylee decided. "Are you sure?" she asked them, still feeling out of place and just a little shaken up over her close encounter in her own cabin.

"Of course we're sure, Kaylee!" her sister retorted as if that was the most ridiculous question in the world. "Don't be silly! We'll handle King Kong tomorrow." Count on it, she thought to herself. No one messes with my sister and gets away with it… She smirked to herself; her long conversations with her brother Gus over pranks he used to pull on senseless idiots at his own school may just come in handy here at camp, also. In fact, an inspiration suddenly hit her, one that would require immediate action while a certain other camper - and the camp counselors - were fast asleep...

Katie glanced over at the small travel clock she kept next to her bed, noting it was past 11:00. "We'd better get to bed," she advised the others. "They'll be coming around in no time for the lights out check, and the last thing we want to do is have to explain why there're three of us in here." That was a flagrant violation of camp policy, even though her sister had ample reason for being here. There would be plenty of time later afterward, however, to bestow proper justice on what Sandra was doing to Kaylee and provide her with her own special brand of a wake-up call. She reached over to pull the covers back at the head of the bed. Standing up, she told her sister, "Come on – let's get to sleep. Try not to worry about anything – everything's going to work out just fine, you'll see."

Her sister eyed her skeptically, but she decided Katie was right; she certainly wasn't going back to her own cabin, and there was nothing that could be done tonight. Exhausted, she nodded her agreement, then, as she stood up to allow Katie to pull the sheets back further in the bed. Walking over to slide under the cool sheets, she scooted over against the far wall to allow her sister room to join her.

"Good night, Christina," Katie told her roommate as she turned the small knob on the dresser lamp to bathe the cabin in blackness. "Thanks," she added softly, grateful that she at least had a decent, understanding roommate, unlike her sister's.

"Anytime," she heard her friend say as she sat down on the edge of the bed and slid in beside her sister. She turned on her side to face her and whisper, "It's going to be okay, Kaylee; we've got each other now." She felt her sister reach over and squeeze her shoulder briefly in response. "Good night," she whispered to her. I'll take care of everything...

"Good night, Katie," her sister responded as with a soft sigh, she closed her eyes. Secure in the knowledge that for now at least she was safe from further wrath, Kaylee was soon asleep, her sister's nearby slow, regular breathing softly caressing her face in reassurance as silence permeated their quarters.

A/N: I want to thank my friend Gloria for her help on being a beta for this chapter - thanks, my friend!:)