"Well, this is it. Durkillesburg," Mae muttered quietly as they rolled off the highway.

"You okay?" Trent asked.

"Yeah. A little more nervous now...we did get a hotel reservation, right?" Mae replied.

"Yes," Ann said. "Three rooms on the top floor of a local Hilton. One for Gregg and Angus, one for everyone else, and one in case someone wants some privacy. Also, it's got a hot-tub."

"Oh thank God," Bea said. "Would love another soak."

"Yeah," Trent agreed. "Okay, where am I going?"

"At this stoplight up here, hitch a right and just go for awhile," Bea replied, playing navigator as she studied her phone's GPS.

Trent took the turn and headed on into the twilight. They drove along the edge of the city, between a sparse outskirt and a large treeline. The atmosphere in the jeep had remained jovial for most of the trip, but as they actually came on approach to Durkillesburg, it had dampened noticeably. He glanced in the rearview to make sure Angus was still following, confirmed it, and then noticed Mae looking out her window, towards the city, with something like dread.

He glanced in that direction. The only thing he saw of any real note was a big, neon sign bearing the name of the city. After a moment, he decided not to say anything about it. She seemed not to want to talk about her feelings about the city, not yet. He tried to envision what it would have been like for her, being here, alone. When he'd uprooted what he laughably called his life and taken it all to Possum Springs, there had been a vague sense of fear, but mostly he'd just felt good about getting away from his old life.

But what would it be like if you actually liked your life?

What if he had to, for some reason, pick up and move a state away from his current life? That would be terrifying and miserable. Enough that he'd start to freak the fuck out. Granted, he had the idea that their lives now were significantly better and generally happier than Mae's life had been when she was eighteen, but still, it was all she knew, and though her and her parents had a rocky relationship, there had to be comfort there, living in her attic.

She'd had to just pack up and go to some strange city and live with a stranger in a strange place and go to classes that she probably didn't give a shit about. And there was so much unspoken, or in her case spoken, pressure to make it work, because her parents had gone to such lengths to ensure that she got to college.

The more he thought about it, the more he concluded it was no wonder she'd lost her shit. And that wasn't even taking into account the dead shapes.

He put it out of his head. He was just making himself miserable on Mae's behalf, and if she was going to be miserable tonight, she was going to need his help.

"All right, start slowing down a little, there's a road up ahead that heads into the forest, about a quarter mile," Bea said.

"Check," Trent replied.

After a moment, he saw and made the turn, making sure to hit his blinker early to give Angus plenty of warning.

"Now?" he asked once they were on the road.

"Go until it runs out, about another mile," Bea said, putting her phone away. "And then we'll be there."

Before he knew it, they were there, the road terminating in a big dirt parking space. What he saw in the fading light was pretty similar to the other times they'd been out in the woods, though it was a bit fancier. Beyond the tables and chairs and large bonfire, there were a pair of shelters, a small bathroom structure, and a playground. So it was an actual park they were hanging out at. Trent parked and killed the engine.

"We ready?" he asked.

"Yeah," Mae replied, "let's do this."

They got out. Angus had pulled up beside them, and he and Gregg and Claire got out as well. They all seemed in good spirits, though clearly Claire was doing the best. Probably because she wasn't fully aware of Mae's past with this place, and she still didn't know that Trent had lost his shit earlier in the week.

"I've never been to one of these, like...happy," she murmured, looking around.

"I know that feeling," Bea said. "Just don't forget to watch out for yourself."

"I won't, and I've got so many friends to watch out for me now!" Claire replied. "Also...why are we here? I mean, I know we're here to party, but, I also know we're here for some specific reason, but honestly I've been so selfishly wrapped up in my own life recently that I just...can't hold onto extra thoughts."

"It's not selfish, you're happy, that's good," Trent replied.

"We're here to get me laid, maybe," Mae said.

"Oh, right! Yeah. The bombshell. Do you see her?"

"Not yet…" Mae murmured, looking around. There were close to thirty people around, mostly gathered in the general vicinity of the bonfire. A few were hanging out in the shelters, some along the perimeter of the clearing. "But I can't see everyone clearly."

"Okay. Do you mind if I wander off? With Ann?" Claire asked.

"No, that's fine," Mae replied.

"Let me know if you need anything, both of you," Ann said as Claire began leading her away.

"We will," Trent promised.

"I'm gonna try to find Jen, she said she's supposed to be here," Gregg said.

"Really?" Trent asked. He hadn't known that.

Gregg frowned an awkward frown and pointed at him. "Don't fuck my cousin at this party."

Mae laughed loudly. "My boyfriend fucked your cousin!"

"Shut up, Mae!"

"And she loved it!" Mae cried.

"Argh, Mae! You're such a jerk, come here!"

"Come at me, bro!" Mae shouted.

Gregg ran at her and actually tackled her. Mae laughed as they went down to the ground and began wrestling around.

"You can't beat me!" she declared.

Angus laughed as he came to stand beside Trent and Bea. "They're always like this at parties now."

"Improvement?" Trent asked.

"...yes," Angus replied, reaching up and adjusting his glasses. "We've all spent enough time being sad. Gregg was always telling me I should lighten up, and I was always telling him he should be more responsible, and somewhere along the way...I realized I was expecting more from him than he was from me. He's done a lot to grow up. But at a certain point...it becomes corrosive, I think."

"It does," Bea muttered.

"I was having a similar conversation with Mae not too long ago," Trent said.

"She's come so far. In truth, we didn't know each other all that well before she came back from...well, here," he said, looking around for a moment. "I...didn't fully like what I saw as I got to know her. There was definitely some tension there, and that sucks. I'm sure she's told you about our night at Donut Wolf?"

"She has," Trent replied.

He sighed. "I regret it, especially when it became more obvious that she really didn't know what she was doing. She really didn't realize she was being a third wheel, and also it was kind of Gregg's fault for inviting her to begin with...it was an ugly night and I've apologized to her for it since, but I still feel bad about it."

"From what I understand, all four of you were going through, and/or had gone through, some serious shit, even discounting the, you know, crazier aspects of that time. It was stressful for everyone, and stress is kind of antithetical to being reasonable and polite," Trent said.

"I suppose so," Angus murmured.

"You're way too understanding and reasonable," Bea said. "Honestly, I feel like there'd be some real tension between us if you'd been there that night I had torn into Mae when I was giving her a ride home."

Trent shifted uncomfortably. "I can't say for sure," he admitted. "But I know we aren't perfect, and we never will be. You regret it, you apologized for it, you haven't done it again. That matters more."

"You sure about that?" she asked. "Some things cause permanent damage."

"Yes, they do," Angus murmured. "But...while I don't think anyone is entitled to forgiveness, in my experience, it does make a genuine difference if they're seeking it authentically."

"Four...five...I win! Told you!" Mae yelled.

Gregg let out an exasperated sound and flopped beneath Mae, who was pinning him down very effectively. "Bullshit! It's a ten count!"

Mae laughed. "I can hold you down for another five seconds if it'll make you feel any better, loser face! Admit defeat!"

"Fine! I admit defeat," Gregg said. "Jerkface."

Mae laughed again, getting up off of him. She brushed herself off. "You got dirt all on my clothes!"

"Oh no, did I? Did I mess up your pretty princess clothes?" Gregg asked, grinning broadly.

"You're headed the right way for another pinning," Mae growled.

"Oh Mae, you used to be so tough, but now you've got a boyfriend and you're basically married!" Gregg laughed loudly, kicking his feet in the air.

"I just wrestled your dumbass down and pinned you! I'm tough as shit!" Mae growled. She grunted and continued brushing herself off. "Whatever, I need to find Jackie."

"Too late, Jackie found you, and-oh shit," Trent said.

"What?" Mae asked, looking around. "Oh. Oh man."

Jackie and the Bombshell herself were walking over, and Trent could see precisely why Mae had been so mesmerized and obsessed.

If he had caught this woman's attention, he'd have gone to fairly great lengths to try and find her again.

She was a bit taller than Mae, a bear with brown fur and bright, light blue eyes. Her hair was dyed down the middle an electric blue close to the color of her eyes, making them pop even more than they already did. To heighten the effect even more, her eyes were ringed with dark makeup. She had clearly gone for a goth look tonight, as she was wearing a black jacket that was unzipped to show a tight black tanktop that was showing off a lot of her large breasts, tight black jeans, and black boots. Her lower lip was pierced and she had a tattoo of a dagger on her neck.

"Hey, it's the tough girl," Molly said. She had a really nice voice, smooth, like her demeanor. She was very calm, her smile easy. "Is this your boyfriend?" she asked.

"Uh, no. Um. Uh." Mae scrambled to feet. "This is my best friend. He's gay." Mae reached out and gripped Trent's hoodie, giving it a little tug. "This is my boyfriend! And my girlfriend is, uh, somewhere nearby right now. And this is my best friend, Bea! And this is my other best friend, Angus! And this is my friend friend, Jackie!"

Molly laughed. "I've met Jackie."

Mae laughed awkwardly, her hand falling from Trent's hoodie. He had the idea that she hadn't even really realized she grabbed him. "Right. Yeah. You came over with her. Mmm. Hi."

Molly laughed again. "Hi. I hear you've been looking for me."

"Yeah...sorry if that's weird, I just, uh, I never got your name! And we were having a good time! And then I had to run across rooftops in the rain!"

"It's okay. I was hoping to be found. You wanna go for a walk, have a little talk?" she asked. "If that's cool with your boyfriend and girlfriend?"

Mae shifted and laughed awkwardly. "Oh...yeah. They-they're, uh, cool with it. Yeah, I want to do that." She looked at Trent. "Uh, yeah?" she asked.

He tried to keep his smile off his face. "Yeah, go on, Mae."

"Don't forget to breathe, Mae," Bea said.

"Shut up!" she hissed, then stepped closer to Molly. "Uh, I'm ready."

"Cool. See you around everyone," she said.

They all responded to her, and watched her and Mae walk away, towards the bonfire.

"So...you threatened?" Jackie asked when they were out of earshot.

"No," Trent replied.

Jackie turned and regarded him from behind her glasses. "Are you on, like, PCP or something? Because that is the single most attractive person I've ever seen in my life, dude. And she's obviously into Mae."

"Mae and I love each other. I feel like, if it really came down to it, she'd choose me and Ann. I mean, think about it: how many relationships get fucked up because the person who cheats is just looking for sex? A lot of them. Mae can get sex from Molly, if Molly is offering it. She doesn't need to cheat to do it. And, I mean, hell, if Molly is into Mae that much, and is cool being poly, it's not like bringing her into the relationship is off the table," Trent replied.

"That's...a surprisingly good point," Jackie murmured. "What if she joins the relationship, and Mae becomes more into her than you or Ann?"

He sighed. "I don't know, I don't have all the answers. I think there's some things that you just won't know until you actually face it. Which sucks and is scary. But that means that all you have to rely on is yourself, and the people you love and trust. And I think it would take some getting used to for all of us, but we'd make it work. And if we couldn't, we'd figure that out."

"Jeez, you really trust Mae and Bea and Ann," Jackie said. "Not that I think they're untrustworthy. Just...it's kinda crazy to me. But I recognize that I'm a deeply mistrusting person."

"I can't believe you just called Mae trustworthy," Bea said.

Jackie snorted. "I said she wasn't untrustworthy."

"Oh BS, we know what you meant."

Jackie sighed heavily. "Whatever...I hope it works out. Honestly you all are, like, a fucking beacon of hope in a sea of goddamned wretched misery."

"You all right?" Trent asked. "You seem...extra grumpy."

"Eh, I just...earlier today I was on a chattrbox channel that I've been part of for a few weeks now. It's for a game I really like. I got into a huge fight because someone started spewing some transphobic bullshit and ultimately most everyone else sided with the jerk, so I left."

"Shit, I'm sorry, that fucking sucks," Bea said.

"Yeah, goddamn," Trent muttered.

"It's whatever," Jackie replied. "I'm not thinking about it. I'm at a party. I'm here to party."

"Exactly," Gregg said. "Let's party! I want a drink!"

"There's a few coolers and a keg at that shelter over there," Jackie said, pointing. "Actually I'll go with you, introduce you to some people."

"Sounds good, later!" Gregg said.

He and Angus followed Jackie towards the shelter.

"What do you wanna do?" Bea asked, now just the two of them at the edge of the parking lot.

"Watch Mae for a bit," Trent replied, looking at the two women. They were standing back from the bonfire, off on their own.

"You trust her?" Bea asked.

"Yeah, it's not that. It's more just...I'm recognizing that my, uh, senses have been thrown off by how distractingly attractive she is. I guess mostly I wanna make sure Mae doesn't panic and run off into the woods or something," he replied.

"Fair...you really think she's that hot?"

"Oh come on, Bea. You're straight as fuck and you were practically drooling over her. She is, one hundred percent, a bombshell. Especially now that she's gone goth. Good lord."

"Hmm. Maybe I should be a little worried," Bea murmured.

He glanced at her. "Oh come on, really?" He paused. "Sorry, that was insensitive."

"No, it wasn't an unreasonable response," she said. "I'm mostly joking. But it feels a little weird. I'm not sure it's possible for most people, and I do fall in this category, to see someone that intimidatingly attractive of my own gender, and not be kind of jealous and worried."

"That's fair," Trent replied. "I can't deny that I would feel different if it was Mae going off to try and hook up with a perfect ten dude...should I not try to hook up with her?"

"I can't really try to deny you from that," Bea said. "It wouldn't be fair. And...I guess if I'm being really honest with myself, why would it be a problem? It's not like she'd take you from me."

"Yeah, and honestly, I probably wouldn't worry about it. Given the amount of attention she gets, I doubt she'd be into me, not when she can probably easily get, like, male models and pro athletes if she really wanted to."

"Oh come on, you have no idea what turns her on. I mean, shit, she's attracted to Mae." Bea paused, the winced. "Jesus Christ that came out so fucking mean."

"I get what you were saying. I've always been attracted to Mae, but I've recognized that she's not conventionally attractive. Neither am I. Neither is Ann. We all admit that about ourselves. Really, you're the odd one out there."

"You think I'm that conventionally attractive?" Bea asked.

"Hell yes. Especially when you are all gothed out," he murmured, reaching out and running a hand down her tail.

She gasped and let out a little awkward sound. "Trent!"

"What?"

"You know what!" she snapped, blushing intensely.

He laughed. "I love your tail."

She sighed heavily. "You're a prick sometimes, you know that?"

"Oh I had no idea, I've never heard that before, Bea."

They both returned their attention to Mae and Molly. Mae seemed more relaxed now.

"I think she's going to be okay," Trent said after a moment.

"Trent!" a familiar voice said behind them.

They both turned around, surprised, and he saw Jen running at him.

"What the fuck-oof!" he grunted as she leaped at him.

"Catch me!" she cried.

He caught her, barely, and ended up holding her in his arms. She draped her own arms around his neck, locking her hands together behind it, and smiled up at him.

"Hi," she said. "I missed you."

"I missed you too, Jen," he replied, then shifted her weight a little bit. "That was irresponsible."

"I'm tired of being responsible. I've been responsible for months now. I want to have fun, and you are a lot of fun, I've found." She looked at Bea. "Am I infringing?"

"No, no, by all means. I get him all the time. You never get to see him," she replied. "Also, if you're curious, Gregg's over there."

"Ooh! Take me to him! Carry me!" Jen demanded.

"God, you're getting like Mae," he muttered as he started walking over to the shelter.

"Maybe Mae has a few things figured out," Jen replied.

"Gregg's gonna be annoyed if I walk up with you like this," Trent said.

"Good! He's got years of payback coming. God, the amount he annoyed the shit out of me when we were growin' up! Or embarrassed me! That's a big one. He spilled a cup a water all over my dress once and it looked like I'd pissed myself and he did it on purpose!"

"You sure about that?" Bea asked.

"Yes! We were arguing a few years later and he admitted it. Just like the damn ants in my cup!"

"Jeez, Gregg had a mean streak," Bea muttered.

"He did! Fucker! Now it's coming back on him."

"He's not a bad guy," Trent said.

"No, he isn't, he's just a dipshit. I'll admit he's much less of a dipshit nowadays, but I like to reach out and smack him, metaphorically speaking, every now and then, to remind him to keep his dipshit days behind him."

Trent laughed. "He specifically told me not to fuck you at this party."

Jen laughed wildly and kicked her legs. "That's fuckin' hilarious."

"Oh, hey, Jen," Angus said as they walked up.

"Jen's here? Cool!" Gregg said, turning around. "Jen-ew, stop!" he groaned.

Jen kissed Trent on the mouth as soon as Gregg began to look at them. She burst out laughing after a moment.

"Gross!" Gregg groaned.

"Serves you right for pouring that water on my dress eight years ago!" Jen replied.

"I said that was a-"

"No you didn't! You admitted you did it on purpose!"

"Oh...right." Gregg giggled.

"Gregg, you are like, chaos incarnate, you know that?" Trent asked.

"Hell yeah!" Gregg replied.

"Take this, jerk!" Jen snapped, and then kissed Trent again, more deeply, shoving her tongue into his mouth. He couldn't help but kiss her back, she was an excellent kisser and really damn hot.

"Ew, stop!" Gregg groaned. "Why are you still doing it!?" he cried a moment later.

Jen finally broke the kiss, laughing, and got out of Trent's arms. "Justice served! I'm getting something to drink."

"Sorry," Trent said awkwardly, "it's just...she's really hot and good at kissing."

Gregg stuck his tongue out. "Whatever!"

"You're just mad because Mae beat you at wrestling," Bea said.

"Psh! I don't have to take this! Come on, Cap'n!"

Angus laughed softly. "Later guys. Good to see you, Jen."

"You too, Angus!" she replied, popping open a can. Trent saw that it was Fiascola when she walked back over to him. "So, uh, you packing?" she asked.

"Packing what?" he replied.

"You know, a little that good toke toke," she replied.

He laughed. "Oh. Uh. Yeah."

"What's say we three go hang out in the woods over there and puff puff puff?" she asked.

"Uh, yeah, all right," Trent replied. "Bea?"

"Sure," Bea said.

"What have you been up to? How have you been?" Trent asked as they made for the trees.

"College shit, and fine. Busy as fuck. Stressed, but whatever, that's my normal. I got a lot of energy and I gotta burn it up. Looking forward to being done with college, though."

"When do you graduate?" Bea asked.

"This fall," Jen said.

"I thought you've only been going for three years," Trent said.

"Yeah, roughly. I got enough extra credits in high school and took on a big enough course load that I'm managing to wrap up early. Then I'm gonna go wherever the work takes me. I wanna hit Oregon eventually."

"It is a nice place," Trent said. They got beyond the trees and, after making sure they were alone, he pulled out his weed pipe and lit it up. He took a puff on it, then passed it to Jen.

"Thanks." She took a puff and passed it to Bea. "I guess I'd be willing to go just about anywhere in America. Maybe not Alaska. But maybe...it's fucking beautiful up there if Bob Ross paintings are anything to go by. That's the problem, every state has its own intense beauty, and I'd live there even if it was a shit place to live, at least for a little while. At least to try it."

"Makes sense," Bea said.

"What about y'all, what are your aspirations?"

"We wanna hit Bright Harbor at some point in the next year or two, or longer. I guess we haven't discussed a serious timeline," Trent said.

"Yeah, and me and Trent are gonna get married after we move, and I wanna go to college out there-" Bea said.

Jen started coughing and almost dropped the pipe. "Seriously?! Married!?"

Bea laughed. "Yep. I mean I can't marry Ann or Mae. I mean, I guess I could but I don't love them like I love Trent."

"Oh man, that's so awesome! Can I go!?"

"Of course, Jen."

She grinned broadly, then lost it. "Mmm...that makes what I was gonna ask for next, like, super awkward."

"What? If it's sex stuff, I don't care. It's not like the fact that we're gonna get married changes anything," Bea said.

"Well...okay then. Trent, uh...wanna trade oral?" she asked.

He looked at her, a little surprised. "Here?"

"Yeah!" She looked at Bea. "Will you film it?"

"Yeah. I think there's enough light," Bea replied. "If you're cool with it, babe?"

"Yeah, sure," he replied. He took another puff on the pipe, then passed it to Bea, then stepped up to Jen, who had her back to a tree. She grinned up at him as he looked down at her. "Can we make out some more first? That was really nice."

She laughed, surprisingly a little self-consciously. "Duh."

He pressed his lips to hers and she let out a little moan, kissing him back with an intense passion. He started pulling her shirt up before too long, feeling her tongue creeping back into his mouth, and was happy to find her not wearing a bra. He groped her as they kissed, feeling her soft orange fur, her amazingly fantastic breasts.

After a moment, he pulled back. "Okay," he said, panting a little, "let's do this. But you gotta keep quiet."

"Duh," she repeated, grinning broadly. "I can control myself."

"Good."

He got down on his knees. He found that she was wearing sweats and as he pulled them down, saw she had no panties on.

"You planned for this," he said, looking at her exposed pussy now.

"Uh-huh, guilty as charged," Jen replied. "Honestly I prolly won't take that long. I'm, like, real horny right now."

"I guess we'll see," he replied.

"What're you doin'?" she asked as he got one of her shoes off.

"You gotta put one leg up on my shoulder, you're too short to do this right," he replied, pulling her foot out of her pant leg and then resting it up on his shoulder.

"Oh, right."

"Remember, quiet. Bea, try to keep watch."

"Yeah, yeah, we're good. Now eat that pussy," Bea replied.

He laughed, then leaned in and got to work. To her credit, Jen did a good job keeping quiet. As he got his tongue up in between the taut lips of her vagina and began to massage her clit, she let out a muffled squeal and reached down and gripped his head. He kept his balance, feeling her tensing repeatedly around him as he ate her, and admittedly relished in the sounds she was making. It was obvious she was having a difficult time.

He could hear Bea breathing more heavily now.

True to her word, Jen orgasmed within a few minutes. He had to grip her bare hips tightly to keep her upright as she put her hands over her mouth and struggled to keep herself silent. She moaned loudly, body twitching as she orgasmed, and her sounds got louder as he slipped a finger up inside of her. She thrashed hard enough that he had to stop and go back to gripping her hips. When she was finished, he sat back, putting her leg down, and looked up at her.

She was panting and grinning. "That was fucking amazing."

"So hot," Bea murmured.

"And now," she said, pulling her pants back up, "I will totally repay the favor."

"I would appreciate it," he said. "Bea, would you be willing to help her? If you're cool with that, Jen?"

"Uh...yeah, actually. I'm cool with that," Jen said.

"Yeah," Bea said. "But you gotta make me orgasm like three times tonight when we get to the hotel."

"Deal," he replied.

Jen finished getting her shoe back on and Trent took the phone, which was still recording, from Bea. As he took Jen's spot leaning against the tree, Jen got down on her knees and adjusted her shirt so that her breasts were out all the way. Bea did the same thing as she knelt beside her. Both of them grinned up at him as Bea unzipped his pants.

"Holy shit, this is amazing," he whispered, watching them through the phone he was filming them with.

"Yes, aren't you a lucky boy?" Jen replied, pulling his erection out. "Let's make sure it doesn't get cold," she murmured.

"Can't have that," Bea said.

They both leaned in and began licking up his shaft. He groaned, shuddering hard, especially when their tongues made contact with his head.

"That's...oh that's really good," he whispered.

"Is it now?" Bea asked. She licked over his head several times, her tongue coming into contact with Jen's at least once, and then she slipped his cock into her mouth and started bobbing her head.

Jen giggled softly. "I never thought I'd be doing this with you."

"Mmm-hmm," Bea agreed, the sound muffled.

She took his cock all the way to the back of her throat, held it there, then took it out of her mouth and passed it to Jen, who started sucking him off, bobbing her head.

"You both look so fucking hot doing that," he muttered.

"Who would you like to bust your nut in?" Bea asked.

"Honestly? Jen."

"You down for that?" Bea asked.

Jen sucked him for a moment longer, then took his dick out of her mouth and passed it back to Bea. "Yeah, I could take a shot in the mouth. I like you a lot. Just tell me when."

"Noted. Probably won't be long. This is fucking insane how hot this is," he replied.

Bea laughed and took her turn sucking his dick.

Sure enough, as he watched her slip her lips up and down and then pass him back to Jen, he began letting off after about twenty more seconds of her giving him head. He managed a strained warning and then it was coming out of him and he was cumming hard in her mouth. She kept sucking, eliciting a groan from him.

"Shh," Bea murmured, and she took the phone from him and switched to a side view of him draining his nuts into Jen's mouth. "That's right, suck him dry…" she said softly.

"Ah, fuck, Jen," he groaned as she reached up and cradled his balls in her warm, soft hand. She kept sucking until he had nothing left, then took him out of her mouth and began putting him away.

"There," she murmured.

As soon as she finished, he zipped his pants back up and fixed them.

"So hot," Bea said, ending the recording. "Mae and Ann are really gonna want to see that."

"Do me a favor and don't tell Gregg about this," Trent said.

Jen sighed theatrically and grabbed her soda from where she'd set it on a nearby rock. "Fine, I suppose I will have to bear this burden in silence for his sake."

Bea snorted. "Yeah, right. Such a burden."

"There's teasing, and then there's gross," Trent said.

"Yeah, yeah. I don't really wanna tell him anyway. What's say we get back to the party?"

"Good idea," Trent replied.

They all finished getting their clothes rearranged and began to head back to the party.