This really wasn't supposed to be put on hold, but… I've had terrible computer/Word problems! I've finally gotten ahold of Office again, so I can finally continue writing. Thank you so much for your patience – I certainly haven't been patient these past few weeks.

Thank you very much for your reviews on the last chapter MikariStar, Icefeather, imagine believe, and CAPJHMPAgirl! To answer a question: no, Hamilton is totally not a pervert in the game. Well, he says a few things about his son that are kind of funny if you're a girl character, but he's definitely not the terrible monster I've made him. The reason I did so was because I thought it would be funny considering his innocent, light-hearted personality in-game. So it's just me being mean. xD

Okay, enough of the chit chat and onto a super long chapter! (Or two or three – I'll attempt to pull one of my rapid updating sprees to make up for all of the lost time.)

The Fall Picnic

Vaughn slammed the car door as hard as he could in an immature expression of his annoyance. He pulled the collar of his shirt forward and stalked through the parking lot with his head hung low.

"Hey, wait up!" Denny called, running around the bumper. He stopped short when he noticed the trunk was slightly open and tried pressing down on it.

Without looking, Vaughn recognized the creaking sound and said: "Come on; it's just stuck like that."

"Oh," Denny wrinkled his nose as he inspected the rust stains. He shrugged, catching up to his irate friend. "Hope you don't have any bodies in there!"

Vaughn rolled his eyes and continued walking with his hands in his jean pockets. The red flannel was a welcome, casual change from his everyday work attire, but he couldn't get comfortable. Just knowing what was up ahead was not only anxiety inducing, but it would also no doubt be incredibly boring.

Denny's hands were behind his head as he walked, fingers lost in his curly hair. "Guess I should thank you for letting me come."

"This is supposed to be for company employees only… and family members," Vaughn said. He was thankful that families were rare here. Just knowing these people was enough, but packs of them?

Denny gasped in mock horror. "But… but you're like a brother to me!"

"You better hope that counts if you want the free food," he snorted.

The pair exited the lines of cars and found themselves before a sunny park. The fall foliage glinted in the early afternoon rays of warm sunshine, and cast away leaves dotted the shores of the rather muddy looking lake. A few, thin-boarded fishing docks could be found stretching over the water.

Vaughn's ever-observant eyes found an excess of periwinkle underneath a ruddy pavilion up the hill. Though there were a few people jogging and going about their business in the little county park, most of the commotion was coming from his co-workers. And only one of them wore that much blue. The nerves he was expecting shook him as he turned his attention back to Denny with a threatening glare. "You better not screw this up for me."

"What? With the weepy girl?" Denny teased, his arms falling to his sides.

Vaughn grunted, looking away from him.

Seeing the seriousness in Vaughn's face made Denny shove his hands in his green jacket's pockets. "Okay, okay, I won't say a word! As long as you actually do something about your little stalker crush this time."

Before Vaughn could protest, a familiar brunette was making long strides to meet the pair on the path. "Hey, Vaughn! Who's your friend?"

"Molly," Vaughn nodded in greeting. He elbowed Denny in the side to get rid of the appraising look he was giving her. "This is Denny. He's here for the food."

"Hello!" Denny quickly stepped forward, holding out his hand. "My good buddy Vaughn neglects to tell you I'm getting over a break-up. But I'm sure you can help me with that."

"Oh, I've heard loads about you," Molly smiled, crossing her arms. She made her own cocky appraisal, shamelessly looking Denny up and down as he did to her. "You fish at the aquarium you work at, right?"

"That was one time!" Denny blurted, looking quickly to Vaughn incredulously.

Vaughn didn't hide the smile, shaking his head.

Her footsteps were so quiet, no one but Molly had heard her arrive. "Hello, Vaughn."

Eyes wide, Vaughn looked up to see a bashful Candace waving at him. She held a paper plate covered mostly in fruits, and her wispy hair was piled onto her head in a messy bun. The tweed skirt was familiar, but the white blouse was new. Wait, did he actually know her wardrobe that well? Maybe he was a bit of a stalker…

In all of his observations and worries, Vaughn had neglected to answer. A loud 'ahem' from Molly snapped him back into his shoes. "Oh, hey, Candace. You… um… how are you?"

Denny and Molly were mentally slapping Vaughn's social skills silly. But Candace graciously smiled bright. "I'm well, th-thank you! Um… uh, Gill's making everyone sign in for some reason… I think you'd better if you don't want to get him too mad."

Vaughn was about to protest that he wouldn't love anything more than to piss off Gill, but he remembered just in time what his temper accomplished last time. He sighed and said: "Where?"

"It's right up there, in um," Candace swirled around, pointing up the hill at the tables of food, "in the pavilion."

"Candace, why don't you just go ahead and show him where asshat's clipboard is?" Molly suggested sweetly, getting a chuckle out of Denny. "You know how absent-minded he is."

"That's a great idea!" Denny agreed, not bothering to introduce himself. "And I'll just stay here with Molly and get to know more about her."

"Don't touch me," Molly stated, marching back up the hill.

Denny winked at Vaughn and chased after her to keep up. Vaughn groaned in frustration until he realized that his obnoxious friend and his partner-in-crime co-worker had set him up with the mousy girl still beside him. He looked down at her, considering she was so much shorter, and attempted a smile. "Well, lead the way."

"R-right!" Candace squeaked, her clogs moving her forward through the grass. It seemed she wasn't completely with it either in his presence, which pleased him.

They walked side by side without saying anything, looking at the passing ground beneath their feet and the near cloudless sky above. Vaughn was the first to start conversation. "Strawberries?"

Candace was confused until she looked down at her plate. "Oh! Um… yes! I like them… and they're al-almost out of season, so…"

Yeah, bad topic. Vaughn scolded his own ineptitude and trekked forward. He needed to say something… something not boring. Or stupid. Which meant avoiding all topics pertaining to everything buzzing through his flustered mind.

"Hey, Vaughn!" The voice was unmistakably Allen's.

Vaughn turned his head to see none other than the faux redhead leaning against one of the splintery pillars of the open building. He was holding a Smirnoff ice and looking desperately suave as per usual. Even given the opportunity, Allen never seemed to dress casual. Though he looked like a sore thumb in his suit jacket, he was the best dressed sore thumb in the park. And that's all he ever cared about.

Their steps eventually met up with Allen's spot where he beckoned his head inside. "That your boyfriend?"

Vaughn quickly searched, spotting Denny still talking off Molly's ear near the drink coolers. "What? No!"

"Well, it's family only," Allen shrugged. "Was gonna say he was cute. Don't get so uppity."

Vaughn rolled his eyes again, already tired of the action. And already he had lost a moment alone with Candace…

"Allen! Allen!" Right on cue, Allen's puppy dog Rod came running up. Wearing – of all things – an orange puffer vest. He spotted Vaughn and Candace and smiled impossibly wide. "Oh, hi Vaughn! Candace!"

"H-hello…" Candace mumbled.

Vaughn grunted.

"Allen!" Rod continued to bounce excitedly. With all of the fall leaves around, his ginger hair seemed to blend into the background. "Luke and Tina are starting a game of Frisbee down by the lake! I need a partner – wanna play? Please? Please?"

How appropriate for him, Vaughn thought to himself.

"Is Mr. Hamilton organizing games again?" Candace piped up.

"Oh, yeah, he asked me to ask you, too, Candace!" Rod nodded enthusiastically. "He's determined to keep us all active and fit! What a great boss!"

Only Allen and Vaughn seemed to realize what the pervy old man was up to. Allen gave Rod a tired sigh. "Very well! But what will Candace do without a partner?"

"I-I'll do it," Vaughn forced himself back into the conversation, hesitating only slightly. His hand-eye coordination wasn't exactly anything to be proud of. But how could he let the opportunity slip by?

"Great!" Rod smiled. "Let's get going then!"

"S-sign in, Vaughn?" Candace asked, pointing to a clipboard on one of the picnic tables.

Vaughn shrugged. "I'll meet you down there."

She timidly smiled and nodded, turning to follow Allen's saunter and Rod's dance to the lake shore. Vaughn went to the clipboard and picked up the pen, reading the white sheet fluttering in the slight breeze.

This is to verify that only members of the Persuasive Papers company and the family members of which have attended the organized event on this Saturday, September the—

For heaven's sake… Vaughn scribbled down a name and dropped the pen.

"But they're starting a game down there! I wanna go, too!" Louis whined.

Vaughn turned to see Louis struggling to carry a crockpot of some kind. It appeared to be very heavy. Gill was tapping his foot impatiently, giving out orders. "No! Not until this spread is organized!"

"In alphabetical order?!"

"As the chairman assigned to the food tables, I expect you to get it right," Gill huffed, arms crossed smugly.

Louis whined again, setting the clunky cookery on the checkered table cloth. "There! Am I done now?"

"This isn't properly alphabetized!" Gill shouted, pointing at the glaring flaw.

"How? Burgers go in the front because it's a—"

"An H!" Gill corrected before Louis could finish. "Hamburgers. To the middle with this platter!"

"Aw…" Louis' shoulders sagged, looking longingly down at his co-workers at the lake.

"March!" Gill ordered like a drill sergeant, sending Louis running.

As Vaughn was thinking how glad he was he never signed up for any outside-the-office volunteer work (in fact, no one but poor Louis had) and how much he would like to shove Gill's face into the potato salad, Molly's bouncy brown hair blocked his vision. "Hello? Earth to Vaughn? Getting food or what?"

"Yeah, this stuff is great!" Denny said clearly before he shoved a whole burger – or rather, hamburger – into his mouth. "Mwif ma dershend!"

"I didn't know you were learning German!" Molly sarcastically quipped at his inability to talk with food in his mouth. "Why's everyone gathering at the lake?"

"Frisbee," Vaughn said.

"Sounds like fun," Molly replied with equal sarcasm as her last comment. "I guess I'll just take a walk around the lake—"

"I'll go, too!" Denny volunteered, swallowing at long last.

"Don't try anything; I've had a long week," Molly warned, heading off in the direction of the footpath.

Denny grabbed another hot dog, lucky enough to go unnoticed by Gill so far who was still preoccupied with filling Louis' day with ridiculous tasks. He gave Vaughn a shocked look. "Damn, she is so cute."

"What?"

"Molly, you inconsiderate jerk. Thanks for not telling me how great her legs are, you inconsiderate jerk. She is just the ticket I needed – everything Lanna's not!" Denny ruffled Vaughn's hair and quickly ran off after her.

Vaughn attempted to rub his hair back into place, but since it didn't have a place, he mussed it up worse. He watched in a mixture of confusion and amusement as his friends met in step. It was a strange match and completely unexpected, but it wasn't terrible. But because Denny's relationship with Lanna was always off and on, he knew nothing would come of it. Vaughn finally noticed the shorts she was wearing, guessing Gill had already talked to her about not meeting the dress code in length. He supposed Molly's legs were rather nice.

But he had kept Candace waiting far too long. He sped walked down the hill, attempting to look calm and collected. Candace was wringing her hands, listening to someone speech-making at the head of the group.

Vaughn stopped beside her, slightly out of breath. "Did I miss anything?"

Candace jumped at his appearance, but she shook her head and smiled. "No. Just Mr. Hamilton instructing us on how to play. But we have to warm up first or something…"

"—and if the Frisbee is dropped, you have to pick it up like so, or it's minus points," Hamilton was bullshitting, as he demonstrated how to bend over. Rod was about to practice, but Allen grabbed his shirt collar and shook his head.

"Alright!" Hamilton clapped at the close. He was wearing a T-shirt and gym shorts like he was a Phys. Ed. teacher. "Line up in two rows for warm ups! Alternate so you're facing your partner at a diagonal!"

No one exactly knew why they were warming up for a simple game of tossing a Frisbee around, but no one was about to suggest otherwise and get fired over it. They took their places in the grass, struggling with forming a somewhat even zigzag.

Seeing everyone partnered up, Vaughn wondered just for a moment where on Earth Dan was when he spotted the smart man in a row boat in the middle of the lake, illegally fishing. He looked across from him and found Candace looking a little nervous but excited. Spotting him staring at her, she gave him a small wave.

Vaughn shook his head, watching the Frisbee start with Luke chucking it at Tina. She missed and ran for it laughing.

Just… don't throw it like a wimp. Anything would be better than that.

With a flourish, Tina spun the disc to Rod who caught it with ease.

You'll never live it down if it doesn't even reach her. Focus on getting it there. She probably won't be able to catch it, so aim a little high, even.

Rod passed it quickly to Allen who struggled and caught it awkwardly. He quickly recovered and locked eyes with Vaughn. He smirked.

Here it comes!

Vaughn didn't have time to think much before the Frisbee spun his way and landed easily enough in his left hand. Straight-faced despite his anxiousness, Vaughn lined up the Frisbee in his right hand and looked to Candace. She was frowning expectantly in concentration.

Get it there, get it there – don't screw this up…!

True to his mark, the Frisbee buzzed through the air. Vaughn didn't blink.

CRACK!

Candace didn't have a chance to blink either before she staggered, sunk to her knees, and then face planted in the grass.

"OH MY GOD!" Tina screamed, snatching up her camera from around her neck. Luke jogged to her side and covered up the lens with his hand.

The first at her side was Allen followed by Vaughn who needed to get the cement out of his feet first from the shock. Allen was awkward and unsure of what to do, so Vaughn was the first to help her to a sitting position. Luckily, she was awake, blinking her bleary eyes slowly and swaying.

"Hey, nice throw, Vaughn," Allen congratulated with a sneer.

"That could've taken out a bear!" Luke exclaimed, now holding Tina's camera out of reach above his head as she jumped for it.

So much for never living this down.

"Candace, are you okay?" Rod was the first to ask.

"J-Just… d-dizzy…" Candace slurred, holding a hand to her red forehead. Through the gaps in her fingers, Vaughn could see it was already turning purple. It was going to be a nasty bruise.

"AH, SHE'S BLEEDING!" Tina shrieked again, pointing an accusing finger.

Candace looked down at the palm of her hand – where sure enough – was a line of blood. A small cut from the cheap plastic of the Frisbee disc was at the center of her bruise. But one look at her hand had Candace falling backwards in a dead faint.

Vaughn did one thing right and caught her before she fell. Turning red from further embarrassment, Vaughn managed a quick: "Help!"

Rod and Luke each took an arm, and they lifted Candace to her feet. She slumped pathetically against Vaughn's shoulder, marking his sleeve with a drop of blood.

"I've got her!" Hamilton cooed, holding out his arms as he came forward through the group.

"No," Allen, Vaughn, Rod, Luke, and Tina said in unison. They were almost positive Candace had somehow managed to say it as well.

Crest fallen, Hamilton sagged his shoulders, but he perked up almost immediately. "Just a little shock is all! She'll be fine once we get her up to the pavilion for a little rest. Just a light injury, everybody, nothing to worry about!"

As if his ears were fine-tuned for disorder, Gill came dashing down the hill in his plaid knickerbockers carrying the clip board. Out of breath and over-heated in his sweater vest (he couldn't dress down either, except Allen trounced his style in comparison), Gill panted as he held up his clipboard. "Alright, who signed in as Kim Kardashian?" He paused, looking over the scene with new worry. "What's happened? Who's responsible?"

"Don't short-circuit, it was my fault," Vaughn snapped, lifting Candace as best he could. He noticed with some chagrin that her nice, new blouse had grass stains. "She fainted at the sight of her own forehead."

"How is that even—?"

"MOVE!" Vaughn ordered and pulled Candace's feet off the ground bridal style and hiked past Gill.

"Man, I'd hate to tick off Vaughn like that just after he made a fool of himself," Allen clicked his tongue at Gill. "I wouldn't be surprised if you find some sandwiches in your desk."

"I knew it!" Gill snapped his fingers, but there was lingering fear in his eyes.

"But isn't it just so romantic~?" Tina squealed, snapping a picture with her reclaimed camera. No one noticed how Vaughn staggered from the comment, almost dropping Candace and declaring himself Worst Love Interest of the Year.

"Sorry, man."

Vaughn sighed, watching from a safe distance where Molly was simultaneously sympathizing with a now conscious Candace and swatting away a doting Louis full of worry. Molly had chewed him out, yelling about how Candace can't stand the sight of blood, and Vaughn needed to be more careful with a delicate flower like her, and she'd slug him later. He looked down at the lake where everyone had gone back to playing Frisbee, thinking about how Candace's blood might still be on that weapon they were carelessly flinging around.

"Hey, I know!" Denny encouraged on the bench beside him. "Maybe she doesn't remember!"

"It's not that kind of head injury…" Vaughn grumbled.

"Like you would know…" Denny shrugged, still optimistic. He kicked a rock across the path. "Hey, you want something to eat?"

"No," Vaughn stood.

Denny followed suit. "Where you going? You're my ride, man, and I'm still hungry."

"Then get some food. I'm going for a walk," he stated, starting in the opposite direction on the same footpath Denny and Molly had taken earlier.

"Okay… I'll be sure to apologize for you again! Since, you know, Molly says you're not allowed in a certain radius—"

Vaughn growled dangerously, sending Denny running from him back to the pavilion. He sighed, wishing his temper wasn't as poor as his hand-eye coordination. And what he would say to Candace whenever Molly permitted him near her again. If that would ever happen.

Vaughn stared down at his black cowboy boots as he started out on the loop. He was glad Allen hadn't commented on them. They were his favorite shoes. He'd wear them around the office if he knew Gill wouldn't stare at his feet and twitch about the dress code all day. Those boots held quite a few miles. He couldn't imagine the places their last wearer had been. And look at where he was. In a dinky park about twenty minutes out of the smog. A place where the government was forced to give people a taste of nature. A fenced in, controlled suburb. And this was the farthest Vaughn had driven in months.

For some reason, the slam of a car door got his attention. Perhaps it reminded him of his own tirade earlier that day. Before he ruined his chances with Candace after maiming her. Vaughn stopped his tired stroll and turned around.

Silver hair flying in the wind in tousled waves, the one person had had actually forgotten about that day was quickly approaching. Wearing skinny jeans, tall boots, a red long-sleeved shirt, and a trendy scarf, Alice pushed the dark sunglasses up her nose as she tramped through the grass. She was also wearing a deep scowl. But what surprised him more was when she plowed right by him and kept going along the path.

"Alice?" He ventured. Confused, Vaughn jogged ahead and hurried alongside her. "You're late."

She decided to ignore him, but she slowed her pace. She huffed in irritation.

"You didn't sign in."

She couldn't help but snort at that. "What?"

"Who else?"

"Gill," Alice agreed. "I guess I should be surprised we haven't been doing that for years."

Vaughn nodded, but he doubted she saw it. They passed an awkward teenage couple going in the opposite direction staring at their feet, and Vaughn realized they probably looked just about as ridiculous powering down the path. The lake being a small one, they had already circled around and came around the other side where their fellow co-workers were still playing Frisbee. Their pace slowed considerably and came to a stop.

He decided to try his luck. "Did you happen to hear—?"

"That you decked Candace?" Alice filled in, shrugging. "Yeah, I got a text from Tina. Actually, with all of her details, it wound up being three."

Vaughn sighed and walked out onto the nearest fishing dock, stopping at the end and looking into the dark, glassy surface. He watched the weeds sway in the mud around what looked like a piece of a plastic milk crate.

Alice huffed again, tapping her foot. Vaughn turned in confusion. She was still wearing the sunglasses even though the sun had clouded over considerably. A chilly breeze picked up, blocking her face with her hair. "What are you doing?"

"Making up my mind," she said.

Vaughn's eyes trailed to her hand where she was gripping a manila envelope. "What's that?"

"Guess you made it for me," Alice decided. She met him at the end of the dock, holding out the envelope to him. "Here."

Vaughn stared at it under his nose, more confused than ever. A tinge of annoyance speckled his: "Why? What is it?"

Irritably, Alice ripped off her sunglasses, revealing very noticeable dark circles under her eyes. "I stayed up all night editing your stupid brochure, so just take it already!"

Without giving it a second thought, Vaughn grabbed the envelope from her. He quickly opened it and slid the thick stack of papers out, riffling through them and skimming for details.

"All you need to do is put it in print, which shouldn't be hard if you have a template set up. But because I knew you wouldn't, there's a flash drive in the bottom that has one. You're welcome."

Vaughn blinked, prodding the back of his teeth with his tongue. When he looked back up at Alice, she had her arms crossed tightly over her chest, the sunglasses now tangled in her hair.

"I know you're all upset over your girlfriend, but you can't just shut everyone else out," she said after a long pause. "I worked hard on that for you, so I expect some kind of thank you."

Did she just… demand a thank you? Vaughn wanted to laugh. This was the best thing that had happened to him all day, and it was the nicest gift he had received since the shoes on his feet. He would even dare to say he liked this grumpy, exhausted version of Alice. She wasn't full of bullshit, and she was ordering him around like she owned the place. And the way she was avoiding eye contact was… cute.

Vaughn genuinely smiled. "Um… I… I don't know what to say, Al-ALICE!"

She turned sharply, but she wasn't in time for the warning. The Frisbee set out to ruin Vaughn's life hit Alice square in the back and surprised her so bad that she pitched forward. Straight into the shallow, muddy water.

"OH MY GOD!" Tina's scream echoed throughout the entire park. Luke was already fighting for her camera.

Alice came up screaming profanities once she had spit out the cold, dirty lake water. Rod was already there, apologizing like he was on his death bed. Allen remarked how it was a shame that the Frisbee was out of reach in the middle of the lake, so they couldn't play anymore.

Vaughn had dropped the brochure on the deck and reached out his arms for Alice. Blinded by her wet hair and the mud, Alice wiped her face clean on her elbows and wrists before noticing him kneeling there to help her. Coughing and sputtering still, Alice grabbed onto Vaughn's forearms. Vaughn pulled with all his strength, lifting her completely out of the water.

Alice squealed in surprise before landing on her feet back onto the deck beside him. "Shit, you're strong! I mean…" she flung her hair back and pulled the sopping scarf from around her neck, adjusting her outfit and shivering. She never finished her sentence.

"Alice, I am so sorry! I'll do your job for a month! I'll clean your car with my toothbrush! I'll tattoo an apology to my chest! Please don't hate me!" Rod was all but sobbing.

"You okay?" Vaughn asked.

Alice pushed away from Vaughn, uncomfortable with their closeness for a change, and she turned her attention to her attacker. Alice pointed her finger sharply at Rod, furiously thinking of all of the things she could say, the death wishes she could promise, the senator father she had and the police officer mother she could sick on him. But she stopped herself. Alice smoothed out her shirt, shaking her head. Saying nothing was her best option. She stiffly walked past Rod and straight for her car, silencing an insistent Gill and his sign in sheet with a hand in his face.

Vaughn watched her go, suddenly remembering the envelope too late. He stooped and picked it up, dusting it off. It appeared to have gone miraculously undamaged.

Molly was panting after her run, laughter spilling out. "Did you see that?! MTV couldn't have planned that better! Vaughn?"

He quickly looked up. She seemed confused he wasn't laughing, too. Molly frowned in concern. "Vaughn? You okay?"

Vaughn nodded, gripping the envelope tighter. "Yeah. How's Candace?"

Molly shrugged. "She's gonna live. I wouldn't worry too much… I'm sorry I made you feel worse by being so over-protective of her. She's just… my best friend, you know?"

"Thanks," Vaughn accepted her apology. "I get it."

"Hey, Alice, where are you going?" Hamilton called, holding a watermelon over his head. Alice's car door slammed even louder than when she first arrived. The engine ignited as Hamilton ridiculously ran after her. "Wait! We haven't started the eating contest!"

The tires squealed as Alice peeled out of the parking lot at a neck-breaking pace. Hamilton stopped halfway across the field, realizing it was futile to chase her down. He shouted out to Dan on the lake. "Hey, there, Dan! You can't refuse watermelon~!"

Dan looked around to be sure he was indeed the only one named Dan. "Really? That's insensitive!" He called back.

"Oh, come on! I bought this for you!" Hamilton whined, the watermelon sagging dangerously above his head. "You're the only one who can eat this much watermelon! It's in your genes!"

The only reply he got that time was the middle finger.

Hamilton awkwardly turned to the rest of his staff, lugging the heavy watermelon up under his arm. He gave Dan a thumbs up. "Okay, then! Uh… let's just go crack this bad boy open, huh?"