a/n- Thank you anon and CommanderHawke667 for your reviews. I'm happy that you're enjoying the story so far. And to answer your question CommanderHawke667, I'm not sure yet. I have a giant white board filled with tons of ideas right next to me. In big bold writing is whether to go Elysium or Torfan, both have their pros and cons. Maybe once I get to know Raegan more I can make the better decision. On another note, there should be a poll on my profile asking about Bodie. If you can't find it, let me know. -brittsis
"Happy birthday dear Raegan, happy birthday to you!" The chorus ended as Raegan blew out the fourteen candles that circled the small cake. It was decorated with simple greens and yellows, Raegan's favorite colors. Her name was scrolled along the top as well as the number fourteen. It was the same cake she'd gotten since she was five and expressed her dislike for all things pink. It felt good to have normal.
Her family cheered as her mother sliced the cake and handed out the slices. Ayden came over and hooked his arm around her neck. Grinning he locked her in a hold and rubbed his knuckles against her skull as she squirmed. "My baby sister is getting old," he joked. "Next thing we know we'll have to beat the boys back with a bat."
Tyron laughed, "This is Raegan you're talking about Ayden. I mean look at her!"
Rae was wearing old army camouflage pants that were tucked into black boots, a black tank, and a black ball cap that covered her burgundy hair. Emerald eyes shone bright as she fought against Ayden's grip trying to get at her other brother. Tyron and Glavin laughed while Ayden struggled to keep hold.
"I think Tryon's right brother. Besides, Rae can hold her own against any unwanted advances." Galvin grabbed some cake and moved closer. "Oh calm down sister," he grinned and pulled back his hand. "And have some cake!"
He had smeared the cake all over her face as her brothers and father laughed. Rae finally pulled loose after throwing a punch or two into Ayden's gut. He was doubled over in pain and laughter as she danced back and put her hands up. Icing dropped from her face, which only caused another bout of laughter all around.
"Oh yeah, real funny." Rae glared at each of them as she reached for a towel to clean her face.
"Here Rae," Bodie pulled the cloth from her fingers and began to clean her face. Rae sputtered for a moment before her entire face flushed. No, she couldn't have the cute blush that colored her cheeks. Instead her entire face, neck, and ears turned a bright red making her resemble a ripe tomato. This had only caused more teasing from her bothers which made the flush worse.
"I…. I'll be right back." Rae fled the scene, running for the rest room. Could the day get any worse? Things had looked up for a brief moment when she got home. Ayden had come home a week early for her birthday and she had missed him terribly, until now. At least her other brother, Brandon, wasn't here. He was always the worst when it came to the teasing.
Rae crouched low against the side of the shed, her rifle cradled lighting in her hands. She peaked around the corner quickly only to find no one was around. Leaning against the building the questioned her next move. She could hunt down the other team one by one, slowly bringing down their numbers or she could assault the enemy base and rescue some of her team mates. Her hand rested on the water bottle at her hip, happy to find it was still mostly full. The rules were simple. Twenty members on each team. Red versus blue. You got hit, you went down and was left out in the field or brought back to the enemy base for safe keeping. If a member of your team found you, either on the field or in the base, and "healed" you wounds by washing away the paint you could rejoin the fight. But each member only had one bottle of water at the beginning of the battle. You could requisition a bottle from an enemy after defeating them but you couldn't refill yours. The battlefield was the Shepard's land, all five acres of it. The game lasted as long as one member of either team was left "alive" or until the leader of either team surrendered.
A twig broke behind her and Rae spun around, finger on the trigger. She stopped at the last minute as Bodie stepped from the shadows, red scarf tied around his left leg to show his allegiance. Rae had her scarf tied around her hips like a belt. "Any news?" He whispered as he leaned against the wall beside her.
"No," Rae shook her head before peeking around the corner again. "I got a few blues but left them where they fell. Haven't seen any of our team for twenty minutes or so."
"Same. Do you think they were all caught?"
Rae pursed her lips as she ran through her teams roster. Galvin was too good a soldier and probably holed up somewhere painting people as they walked past. The Magee brothers wouldn't go down with a fight and since nothing exploded yet, they were still out and at large. Little Sydney was also one to watch out for. She was quite and quick, preferring a knife over the rifle. That was four, not including them, that Rae was for certain that was left uncaptured. But the others? "I guess we could go check. You still have your water?"
Bodie grinned and showed her three water bottles that were strapped to his hip. Rae couldn't help but return the smile. "Let's go then."
The two were made their way across the orchid. Ducking from tree to tree they reached the other side without incident and found the enemy's base bright and a buzz with activity. The blues had commandeered and old tree house Rae's brothers had built as kids. It was about twenty feet from the ground and had few access points. They could climb the ladder at the base of the tree, zip line in from one of the other trees, or cross a small rope bridge that was twenty feet above the fort. Little people new of entrance and even fewer brave enough to tempt it. The bridge connected about thirty feet back to a tree that was difficult to climb, it was their only choice.
"Hey guys whatcha doing?" Sydney asked, causing both Bodie and Rae to jump out of their skins. The small girl had snuck up on them without either of them noticing.
"God damn it Syd," Rae cursed and she scanned the area. "How long have you been there?"
"Since the shed," Sydney chuckled and twirled her paint knife in her hand.
"Of course," Bodie grumbled. "Want to help take the base?" Sydney nodded, causing her blonde pig tails to bounce.
"Okay this is how we're going to do this." Rae grabbed a stick and drew a rough diagram in the ground.
"Have I told you how much I hate this bridge?" Bodie cursed as he slowly made his way across. Rae chuckled in front of him and turned back to give him a friendly smile. They were almost across but Bodie was concentrating to hard on his footing to notice the difference. His knuckles were white as he gripped the guide lines. They were safe as her parents insisted on holsters being installed and used at all times, but that was little assurance to the boy. He grumbled and cursed until their boots hit the small wood landing on the other side. Now all they needed to do was climb twenty feet down the tree then drop through the trap door in the roof into the middle of the fort.
"You made it just fine. Now quiet until we're inside." Rae rechecked her shoulder strap, making sure her rifle hadn't come loose, before starting down the ladder. Bodie glared at her momentarily before following behind her. They slowly stepped onto the roof, trying not to alert the occupants inside. Grabbing a penlight from her pocket, Rae turned it on and off twice quickly to signal Sydney. When she received the same, Rae pulled the trap door open and turned to Bodie. A few quick hand signals later, the two dropped into the room and quickly shot the two guards before they could sound the alarm.
Rae could faintly hear the zip line outside as Sydney raced toward the fort, providing the distraction they needed outside. She grabbed the water from the guards and started to rescue the thirteen people sitting inside. Once everyone was rescued, Rae whistled to grab their attention. "Bodie and I are going out first and will clear the way. You guys follow behind up. We're going to the one zip line that leads out of here. Use your rifles, belts, scarves, what ever you have and get out of here. One will go down, count to ten, then another follow until everyone's out. Scatter! Don't stay together."
It was about two in the morning when the gong sounded, announcing the end of the game. Everyone returned back to the Shepard's house to find that the blue team had lost when Galvin had hit Ayden in the chest. The red team cheered, congratulations were made, and the jokes started. Siblings and friends laughed as they headed home, plans for a rematch being made for when finals were done in two months. Soon it was only Rae and Bodie left outside as her brothers and parents had retired inside. They sat on the porch chuckling softly as they recounted the night.
"Larry's face when you turned that corner and shot him right in the chest was hilarious!" Bodie chuckled and reenacted Larry's reaction.
Rae smiled, "It was a great night. There's only one thing that can make it better."
Bodie raised a brow, "And what is that?"
This is what she'd been waiting for all day. Gathering her courage, she leaned in and kissed him hard on the lips. Bodie had grown stiff and Rae pulled back unsure. Convinced she jumped from the porch, muttered an apology, and ran away. She only got a few steps when Bodie caught up for her and grabbed her wrist. Pulling her back, he threaded his fingers through her short hair before kissing her back.