The afternoon was a lot of fun for everyone. Theresa had provided a barbecue and some cool beers. She was a rather discreet presence. Everyone had spent the afternoon bathing in the water, sunbathing, chatting about various things, often the boys made fun of each other and played jokes with each other.

They were tired but happy about the trip and being together at the time.

In the evening they wore heavier clothes, Donna complained that she could not carry the suitcases she had packed because she had forgotten all the sweaters, Ray lent her one of his own.

He was very sweet to her all afternoon, it seemed that he was not upset that she had chosen to share the room with Valerie and not with him.

Brandon and David lit the bonfire and they sat all around to relax a bit before going to sleep.

"I loved campsites as a child," Brandon said as he stroked Kelly's arm nestled on him.

"Brandon was a boyscout, unbelievable wasn't it? " replied Brenda and Dylan laughed while playing with her hair"I always liked camping too but I couldn't stand the boyscouts... oh except you Brandon of course"

Everyone laughed, even Brandon.

"Believe it or not, I was a girlscout too," Valerie said.

"No, that's not true," Clare laughed.

'I swear!' Valerie put a hand on her heart 'and we were always playing a game'

"The bottle game?" Steve asked and Clare glared at him.

"That too..." Valerie cleared her voice " but most of all we were playing the game of truth"

"Would that be?"

"Each of us had anonymous questions written by the others, we extracted one and had to answer according to the truth, as the questions were anonymous they were very specific and very particular"

"I don't want to play," Dylan said.

Brenda broke away from his embrace "for what reason? What secrets do you have?"

"That's exactly why I didn't want to play, but since you insist ...I play, I have a good question for you and I hope you'll take it out," Dylan said with an amused and defiant look.

The fire was crackling in front of them. Their hats were taken. Each wrote questions and the questions were put in the hat paired with each of them.

"Start who pulls the lowest card from the deck of cards"

Donna drew the lowest.

"It seems that Donna will be the first," Valerie said.

Donna was evidently embarrassed but had no idea of the questions she would be asked and had no skeletons in her closet.

She took her hat and saw the nine leaflets folded.

She pulled out one.

"Will you ever make love to Ray?"

Donna blushed immediately.

She could feel the look of Ray studying her. She wondered if he had written the question.

"That kind of questions too?" Asked Donna who was trying to avoid the answer. Valerie nodded

"I don't want to make love before marriage and it's something I want to accomplish," Donna said.

Ray sighed slightly.

"We're sorry Ray ..." Steve said in a low voice and Clare laughed.

Next question.

It was Kelly's turn. Kelly chose one of the slips in her hat and handed it to Valerie who read aloud.

"Did the summer you stole Dylan ever think of how much you would have hurt Brenda?"

Kelly felt Brandon's body stiffen and couldn't look Brenda in the face. That question could only have been asked by Valerie, or maybe Clare, she wasn't sure.

"No. I didn't think about it," she replied, then she was keen to point out, "but there isn't a day when I don't regret what happened."

Brenda looked at her but said nothing while Dylan showed signs of nervousness.

Kelly went back to curl up in Brandon's arms, she hoped she wouldn't find the rigidity he had just before, she couldn't stand it. He put his hands around her and she relaxed.

It was Clare's turn.

"I really want to hear..." said Steve.

"I have no problem" Clare replied, took her hat and chose her ticket.

She chuckled when he opened it.

"Do you still have feelings for Brandon?"

Brandon opened his eyes wide. He was strongly embarrassed, maybe he didn't like this game of skeletons in the closet either, Dylan was right.

Clare took some seconds.

"Yes," Clare replied, looking at Brandon.

"Oh my god" Kelly said holding his hand to his mouth "this is absolutely absurd"

"Great," Steve said upset.

"It doesn't mean I love him," Clare pointed out, but Steve doesn't listen to her anymore.

"I think we should end this game," Dylan snorted

"I agree," Brandon said.

"Eh no.. we answered. It's up to you too" Clare protested "Brandon it's up to you"

Brandon took the piece of paper and handed it to Valerie.

"Do you think you're Kelly's second choice just because she can't be with Dylan?"

'What?' Kelly was annoyed by that question "but who the hell wrote such a thing."

"That's a question that should be amog Kelly's," he said.

"You're kidding I hope," Kelly replied as she turned quickly.

It was amazing how that game was putting discrediting and unbalancing the situation.

However, those who had already answered insisted that the others should also be sincere.

"Then you have to pull out another one," Ray said mischievously.

Brandon couldn't stand to escape the challenges.

"What really happened with Emily?"

Kelly closed her eyes, the thing was really crossing the line.

Brandon stopped Kelly's body movement "we said goodbye, a kiss and nothing else happened" he said "all things that Kelly and I have already dealt with."

Brandon's eyes were firm. He was telling the truth, everything that had happened that night, or that he thought he felt had burned out quickly in the following days.

It was Valerie's turn.

Valerie had no problem with that game. Her most intimate secrets couldn't even be imaginable for the meanest question.

She fixed her hair by passing a hand and took her question.

She read and then swallowed hard.

Since she doesn't speak, Clare took it out of her hands and read it out loud.

"Have you slept with Daniel?"

Brenda snapped to Valerie.

Shit. Someone knew. But who? David. He had gone to her that morning and maybe he had seen Daniel leave the room or the hotel.

"Valerie?" Asked Brenda angrily.

"Yes," Valerie replied.

"Beautiful friend Valerie," Kelly said in a low voice.

"Seriously Kelly?" Valerie replied by looking at Kelly in a bad way.

Kelly shut up but felt Brandon's grip less solid than the previous minutes.

"You're really a bitch," Brenda said

"I'm wrong or you slept with Dylan and you just left Daniel"

"And this is an excuse to sleep with him the same evening?"

"Why does it make you so angry," Dylan said, bringing his mouth close to Brenda's ear.

She immediately subsided. She didn't want Dylan to think it was a problem but it was actually a problem.

Dylan it's your turn.

"I don't want to play"

"You have to play" Brenda told him furiously

He sighed.

He chose one of the questions and Valerie read.

"Are you aware that by holding Brenda here in Los Angeles you're ruining her career and life?"

Dylan wrinkled his forehead.

"I'm leaving" Dylan said.

Dylan didn't answer the question and stood up.

"The game is over," Brandon said as he got up at the same time.

Valerie pulled out a mischievous little smile because this game always led to the same result, discovering secrets, digging deep into people.

"Brenda, can I talk to you?" She asked Brenda.

"No," Brenda replied, getting out of Valerie's grip.

Ray had a lot of fun, he was right, they were just a bunch of spoiled guys with a lot of problems.

"Dylan, wait for me," Brenda said as she ran after him.

"Is that what I'm doing Brenda? Am I ruining your life?"

"No of course not...staying here is my choice..."

"Really? So tell me why it infuriates you that Valerie slept eith Daniel, do you still love him?"

"Hey..." Brenda replied "you have no right to ask me these questions"

"Ahh here we go Brenda... let's go back to talking about the triangle and how much of an asshole I was"

"Yes" Brenda had fiery eyes "you were a perfect asshole, I left just not to see you"

Brenda immediately regretted what she had said and the words had come out to her the way they shouldn't have.

"I didn't want to say that," Brenda said in a lower voice.

"Too late," Dylan replied, who quickly walked away to their room.

Dylan opened the door and then Brenda came in.

"I'm ruining your life Brenda?"

"How do you ask me something like that."

"It's not an answer"

"No," she replied.

"So why do I feel that you wrote that question?"

"I didn't write it"

"There's something you don't tell me, I feel it and you don't even answer Daniel"

"But how can you be the angry one, to manipulate anything against me every time," Brenda replied in tears, "if it's not my fault and my father's or my family's fault, tell me Dylan, when is it your fault? If you want to know I loved Daniel, but not as you think... but he saved me, he saved me in every way a person can be saved."

"So why don't you go back to him?" Asked Dylan who had lost all chance to think.-

Brenda looked at him with tears in her eyes.

"because i love you more stupid asshole"

Then she turned around and ran out of the room.

"Brenda.. wait," Dylan shouted, trying to catch up with her.

Kelly and Brandon saw Brenda pass by.

"Hei" Brandon tried to stop her but his sister was faster and slipped into his hands, soon after they saw Dylan pass by.

"A horrendous evening," Kelly said in a low voice.

Brandon didn't answer and kept his eyes down.

He opened the door to the room and went to the bathroom.

Kelly undressed and got ready for the night. When Brandon came out he slipped into bed without saying a word.

"Are you going to never talk to me again?"

Brandon turned around and asked her what he didn't really want to ask her "are you with me because you can't be with Dylan?"

The eyes were in the eyes.

"How can you ask me something like that?" Kelly replied evidently angry.

"I don't know," he said, closing his eyes and running a hand through his hair.

"Do you want to talk about Emily then?"

Brandon shook his head "We're not going to address this topic again, I thought it was buried"

"Maybe it's not"

"Don't do it Kelly, don't reopen it again, I made a mistake"

"Yes I know," Kelly replied, "and you remember that you said I was like a sister to you and as soon as I realized that you were starting to look at me with different eyes, I left Dylan for you. I took a plane for you. And I could have taken Dylan back if I wanted to, but I came to you. Now tell me, are you the second choice?"

Brandon didn't answer.

"Great," Kelly said getting out the bed and the room

Room n.4

"I have to go look for Brenda," Valerie said.

"I can't believe you slept with Daniel"

"Please don't preach to me, what do you want to know about when you feel alone"

Donna looked down.

They heard a knock on the door.

Valerie went to open.

Kelly was in front of them.

"Can I sleep here at yours?"

'Problems in heaven?' Asked Valerie with a grin of satisfaction.

"Go to hell Valerie," Kelly said as she entered the room.

'What happened?' Asked Donna.

"I had a fight with Brandon, I don't want to sleep with him, can I stay here?"

"Of course," Donna replied.

"Was it because of the game of truth?"

"An idiotic game," Kelly said.

"Maybe," Valerie replied, "but it looks like it pulled out a lot of skeletons in the closet."

"Brandon is not a second choice" Kelly had inflamed eyes "Dylan is. I know what it feels like to think I'm someone's second choice, the sense of insecurity, but I took a fucking plane for him, not even knowing how he would react and despite all my insecurities, yet I went to him, and Dylan was here, this is not a second choice."

"Okay," Valerie said, raising her hands

Kelly didn't take her eyes off her "was it you who wrote that question?"

"No but she/he was definitely a smart person"

"Stop it Valerie," said Donna.

"Yes, I'll stop, anyway I have to go talk to Brenda"

"There isn't, she must have had a fight with Dylan and I saw her running outside, and then Dylan running after her," Kelly said.

At that moment they knocked on the door.

"Maybe it's her," Kelly said without thinking and instead they found Clare furious.

"Fantastic," Donna said.

"Steve is an idiot"

Valerie laughed "didn't take it well that you said you still had feelings for Brandon?"

Kelly turned around and looked at Clare.

"It was the game of truth," Clare replied, "and I told the truth, but from here to try to get him to bed it goes a whole world in between and I don't think you can preach to me Valerie."

"Honestly," Valerie replied, "no one is a saint here," she said looking at Kelly.

" why you keep staring at me" Kelly asked.

"Sorry, you scold Brandon for kissing Emily, why didn't you kiss Dylan when he was with Brenda?"

Kelly looked down 'this story will never end'

"No, never," Valerie said as she walked into the bathroom.

Room 2

Brandon heard a knock on the door, he thought Kelly was back. He didn't want to fight with her, it was all he didn't want after the difficult period they had just gone through, he was particularly disappointed when he found Steve in front of him.

"Steve..."

"Brandon..."

"What are you doing here..."

"I know so much that Kelly also left you alone, the walls are made of paper here... "

Brandon grinned "even Clare went to the girls' room and you don't want to sleep alone?"

"I just wanted to talk a little bit" Steve was unusually serious.

Brandon opened the door and let him in.

Steve took a few steps inside the room and immediately noticed Kelly's underwear outfit on the bed.

Brandon noticed and took it on the fly and put it back in her suitcase.

"Dated night for you too..." sighed Steve.

"Eh"

Steve took a few seconds for himself "I really like Clare" said Steve "I know sometimes she's too pedantic, but she manages to keep me entertained ...and sex...ohh sex."

Brandon interrupted him "please spare me the details, I don't want to imagine you having sex with her"

"Okay" said Steve "she said she still has feelings for you"

"Steve..."

"No wait let me finish..."

"Promise me that nothing will ever happen between the two of you, because I couldn't stand it...when I found out Kelly was with Mckay for me it was so hard, I didn't like how he treated her and I suffered in silence, but when I found out you were with Kelly it was a hard blow for me anyway, but I saw that she loved you and I only want the best for Kelly and then I learned to accept it. I couldn't entrust her to anyone else. For Clare I wouldn't stand it."

"Did you fall in love with Steve?"

Steve looked down then looked up at Brandon "yes, I think so"

"You should tell her," Brandon said.

Steve shrugged "I still have feelings for Kelly too and I think it will always be like that, but that doesn't mean I love her in that sense, maybe Clare is right"

Brandon put a hand around his shoulders.

"Nothing will ever happen between me and Clare" said Brandon "I would never do such a thing to you"

Steve looked at him "I never thought you were Kelly's second choice, with Dylan I knew it was wrong, that sooner or later they would break up, I was always afraid of you instead"

'Afraid?'

"That you were the right one for her. Her choice forever."

Brandon didn't answer.

"A terrifying evening" Steve said

"A hell" Brandon laughed

Room 5

"A ruined night for everyone," Ray said, looking at David who was moving nervously instead.

"Is it for Valerie that you're nervous?"

"I'm not nervous"

"Are you in love with her by any chance?"

"Valerie is too hard for me," David replied.

"Yes I guess that's true"

David sat on the bed "I don't know if I could ever be with a girl like her, she even asked me"

'Seriously?'

"Yes"

'When?'

"The night before s he slept with Daniel"

Ray thought about it for a moment, if only David had known that she was sleeping with him too.

"Maybe you should let her go," Ray said.

"Maybe," David replied.

"Did you know she was with Daniel? Did you ask the question?" Asked Ray.

"No" David shook his head "I didn't know, but evidently someone else did"

It was Ray who had seen them in the evening as Daniel and Valerie left together. He had written that question and didn't even know why, maybe to hurt Valerie, because David would get mad at her, to take that mischievous look away, because he didn't want to drag himself into her room to have sex anymore. He didn't know either because ..

Brenda kept running into the woods next to the hotel.

"Jesus Brenda stop!"

It was dark and Dylan could only hear the sound of her moving but he could no longer see her.

"Go away Dylan"

"No..."

Suddenly he heard a cry of Brenda and a sound of branches, leaves.

"Brenda!!!" Dylan ran in that direction and didn't notice the difference in height under his feet, the same one Brenda had fallen into.

Dylan fell. The branches scratched him and he couldn't stop the run.

When he got to the bottom he noticed that he had slipped three or four meters. He tried to get up.

"Dylan!" Brenda's voice was close to him. He looked for her in the dark.

When he reached her they were both bleeding.

"We fell into something, a hole something," Brenda said in terror.

Dylan held her close to himself.

"Can you get up?" He asked her.

"No, I hurt my ankle," Brenda said.

"Okay... don't worry"

"Where are we?"

"I don't know..." said Dylan "I think we're in an animal trap, it looks like a hole.

Dylan got up, tried to climb but failed almost immediately, the soil came off under his hands.

"I'm scared," Brenda said.

He hugged her tightly and looked up. You could see the starry sky.

It was cold, it was dark.

"Now they're coming to look for us," Dylan said, kissing Brenda on the forehead and trying to warm her up but he knew he was lying, maybe they wouldn't notice their absence until the next morning.

They had to survive one night, outside, in the winter. Dylan tried to hold on to Brenda and then looked back at the clear sky that winter night.