8:00AM, June 3rd, 2015

Riley woke up early that morning hearing her alarm on her phone going off, she looked at her phone seeing that it was eight o'clock in the morning, she quickly got out of her bed. She looked at herself in the mirror on the other side of her room and started to comb her hair to make sure that it was at least very neat looking. She always looked forward to the trip she had started when she was finally able to drive and get her drivers license. The young girl looked down at her phone, and she remembered a boy named Mathew in her class who had heard about her annual trip up to the lake and asked to go. Of course she didn't mind inviting someone else to join them, so she sent him a text that the meeting location will be at the high school and to be there by ten she also sent a text to all of her friends that were all going as well.

She quickly got out of her night gown to put on a pair of jean shorts as well as a black t-shirt, the night before she had already packed up her bathing suit as well as some clothes to last a few days up at their usual camp site. Riley quickly grabbed her bags and headed down the stairs. She could already smell her father making some breakfast for her. Riley made it to the kitchen, gave her dad a loving hug and smiled at him. "Good morning dad." Riley said as she went to take a seat at the table. She looked outside the window seeing the big RV that she had rented out for the next few days. "Good morning, did you sleep well? Ready for your little trip?" He asked as he went to put a plate for his daughter and set it down in front of her.

"Yes I am thank you." Riley said as she started cutting into the sausage and scrambled eggs, she always enjoyed her fathers cooking. A few minutes later Rileys mother walked down the stairs and gave her daughter and husband a loving kiss, already wearing a pair of blue scrubs for her shift at work. "Have a safe trip, I'll see you when you get back." Riley's mother said, she nodded and gave her parents one last hug and started to head out of the house, she reached over and grabbed the keys to the RV. She opened the door and got inside before putting the keys into the ignition and starting the giant vehicle.

Riley made a quick stop at her friend Krista's place finding that her friend was already waiting for her. Riley smiled as she quickly got into the RV carrying a large backpack as well as some drinks for them and their friends. "Took you long enough Riley I was waiting for an hour." Kirsta said jokingly and smirked at her friend taking a seat in the passenger seat. "Then you would have to hike yourself all the way to the lake." She joked back. The drive to the school was very short due to the town being so small, and they were there within five minutes. Riley and Krista both climbed out of the RV and stood beside it to wait for their friends.

Cassandra was awake early, as was her habit. She had her aunts favorite cup of tea made, ready for her aunt, as well as breakfast. Last night, she had made up meals for her aunt for lunch and dinner, figuring she could manage breakfast, and left them named in the fridge. Her aunt would have scoffed and rolled her eyes at that, yet Cassandra knew she valued that. Her Aunt wasn't as robust as she had been, even a handful of years ago. Old age had just seemed to come on her, despite her being only 62 years old. She had been her mothers sister, and her mother would have been 42 if she were still alive. A large cap, and yet, her aunt had taken her in when her parents died.

Cassandra doubted she would be here, without her aunt. As her Aunt came shuffling down the hall, Cassandra set the tea cup and breakfast plate on the table, adding the news paper. She gave her aunt a kiss on the cheek, and said "Remember to eat. I'll be heading off now, are you sure you'll be okay?"

She got the customary grumble and "Yes, yes, I'll be fine. GO on, have fun with your friends" Cassandra smiled, and gave her a hug, running up the stairs and grabbed backpack, with changes of clothes, as well as other small bits and pieces. the campus and pocket knife that had been her fathers being one. It was probably foolish to take them, but she wanted to.

She hesitated, and then grabbed her guitar. If anyone objected, she could always bring it back home. Sling it over her back, and putting one strap of her backpack over her shoulder, she started out the house, waving goodbye to her aunt, and jogging down the street. She wasn't too far from the school, and Cassandra was looking forward to this, so it took no time at all to arrive there.

She could see the RV, Riley and Krista, and she gave a call, a wave and slowed to a walk, coming up to them with a smile. "Hey!" She said brightly, her smile wide and cheerful.

David woke up, as usual he was hungover. No hungover isn't the word for what he felt. He felt like some guy had taken a hammer to his head and kicked his balls. He diddnt feel like getting up, he diddnt feel he would ever get up. He rolled over to see the clock... Early. He still had time to rest up before the trip, it was a stupid trip any-who. He hauled himself out of his small bed and too his feet. Checking his small window he could see the sun coming down from the trees, and it burns. He recoiled back shutting the blinds as he did so. "Well I best be off" he got his clothes together, and by that he just threw together some clothes off the floor and bundled them into his bag.

Grabbing the hold'll he raced down the stairs towards the street. Uncle Davidson was out, as usual. He grabbed a box of cereal and chugged the lot as he went out the door into the high-street. As usual at this time it was like a ghost town. None of the store fronts were open and all you could see were pigeons along the ground. He grabbed his bicycle and started peddling to the school. The only thing he had on him was an assortment of clothes, some cigarettes and a mobile phone "I hate these people" he laughed as he haired down the hill. Unfortunately the breaks are old and he couldn't stop, the sparks as the break-pads grind the wheel to no avail. The wheel was buckling as he arrived at the RV and coming to a abrupt stop in a bush. Looking up at the two girls "A little help here?"

"Gopro or canon, gopro or canon?" The girl shakes her head. In front of her, Ruby had her suitcase and her bag for her camera and it's setup, including a mini tripod and a mini monopod. In the doorway, her mother rolls her eyes as she watches her daughter realizing that she could fit both cameras inside of the camera bag. She knocks on the door, and lays down a plate of toast and a glass of milk on Ruby's desk, then walks downstairs. Ruby smiles and digs into her breakfast, and then slings her camera bag over her shoulder and drags her suitcase downstairs.

Her father was sitting in the kitchen, reading the newspaper with a half eaten piece of bacon in front of him. Ruby's mother was also there, laying her already finished plate on the counter to be cleaned later. She walks to her daughter and gives her a big hug, the latter gigging into the hug. "Have a good time, okay, sweetie," her mother says, which Ruby nods to. "Don't be bad," Her father says with a wink. It takes Ruby a moment to realize what he was getting at. "Dad! What the heck! No!" She says loudly, her face red as he laughs. "Have fun," he chuckles, before being squeezed into a hug. A minute later, Ruby was out of the door.

Ruby arrived at the school in five minutes, and was greeted by the sight of several people already there. Of course, she knew that Riley and Krista would already be there with the RV, but she also saw Cassandra there, as well as David, who had crashed into a bush. "Oh come on, David, you big, strong man. Can't you help yourself out of that bush?" Ruby jokes, walking over to Riley and Krista, dragging her suitcase behind her. "Hi!" She says cheerfully.

Ryan lay, still sleeping in his bed despite the trip he was soon to go on with his friends. He had told himself he'd wake up early that day for the sake of the trip, but forgot to set his alarm clock. As he lay there, barely snoring, his dad came quietly into the room. The teacher and father, wanting to teach his son a lesson about being on time, decided to stress Ryan out plenty today, at least... for now. He changed the time on the alarm clock to a couple hours later, setting the alarm to go off in a minute and quickly left.

With a sudden jolt, Ryan almost jumped out of his bed, "Oh crap, I set the alarm too late!" He slammed his hand onto the top of the clock and rushed to get clothes on, forgoing the packing he would need to do as he rushed down the stairs. "See ya dad, I'm heading to the trip! Don't have time to pack anything, so could you drop by the place with my stuff?" He shouted as he grabbed a breakfast bar and started opening the door. "You're not late, go back up there and pack. Next time set your alarm, or I might not wake you up."

Ryan finished his breakfast bar before packing together clothing and other basic necessities for the trip. "Sometimes I really hate how you teach lessons..." Ryan said as he walked down the stairs. "I can't do anything like this during school days, otherwise I'll get in trouble with your mom for letting you miss school." Ryan sighed, almost wishing that the lesson had been taught during school instead so he wouldn't have been as stressed out about it. Sure, he may have forgotten his pencil, but one day's grades wouldn't hurt him too much, whereas missing the trip would be missing out on something particularly fun. "Yeah, yeah... You know where I'll be, so if you need me at all... Also, you know when I'll be back, so see ya, and tell mom I said bye as well."

Ryan sighed as he sat down in his car, closing his eyes for a moment to recollect himself a bit. While he wasn't quite late yet, he wasn't exactly early, so he had to rush a bit with packing his clothing, meaning he didn't have enough time to stop and relax after the trick his dad had pulled on him. "I'm so gonna get him back for that some day..." He said with a smirk before beginning to pull out of the driveway. Only a couple minutes later he saw the RV awaiting as he drove in, parking his car and getting out.

He walked closer to the group, as his parked vehicle had to be in a designated parking area, lest it get towed before his mom had the chance to come get it and drive it back home. "Guess we know how much you love bushes now." Ryan smirked, noting the biker that was apparently incapable of getting out of the bush. Ryan was sure that it was due to the awkward way the landing may have put the biker in, or possibly just the bush itself making it hard to get the right stance to get back up, but no matter the case, Ryan didn't want to leave him there, no matter how much he might joke about it later. He reached his hand out as an offer of aid, making sure that he was close enough that David would be able to grab hold of his hand to actually accept the aid if he wished.

The clock read 5:00 AM as it's alarm had buzzed off. Scout had awoken with a bright smile knowing today was going to be a great day. With eagerness he quickly rushed through his morning routine. First he made his older sister and father a wonderful breakfast. It included two large pillowy pancakes caked in whipped cream and drowned in maple syrup and on top of both of them were strawberries and chocolate chips. Having run out of ingredients he made himself some toast without butter that was slightly burnt. Next he fed his two kittens who had been meowing at him for since they noticed he was awake.

It came time to pack and Scout's suitcase was overstuffed. It contained 5 sets of clothes, 2 hats, 3 cans of bug spray, 2 bottles of sunblock, 2 sleeping bags, 10 different bags of candy, 2 boxes of matches, 2 of everything else needed for a camping trip. He had also brought medical supplies. He always made sure to be prepared for others. If someone else were to forget to bring something he'd be there for them to give them a spare. He could barley carry his suitcase but managed to drag it all the way to the school, this is why he made it to the group at 8:00 instead of his 7:00 goal.

When he arrived he saw that some of his friends were already there. He noticed David was stuck in a bush but seeing as Ryan was already helping him he went ahead to greet the girls. "Good morning Ruby," he said with a kind smile. "Hi Cassandra, Hello Krista. Riley this is so exiting! If you need any help just ask. Actually does anyone want me to load their bags for them?"

The morning had been undoubtedly a successful one for Aaron. He had woken just after six am and after a short shower he had collected his mountain bike from the garage and headed off into the rising sun. It was a common occurrence for him, especially during the summer. The beauty of the landscape around him would just never cease to amaze and inspire. He liked the way the sun came through the trees and the fact that the wildlife was either rousing from a night of sleep or heading away to slumber so they could keep up their nocturnal ways. Along the trail he stopped at his usual places and took a stop beside one of the hillsides to eat a quick breakfast. He could see the sun growing higher in the sky, given that it had risen over an hour ago and he could just tell it was going to turn out to be a reasonable day which was grand, given that they were heading off on the scheduled trip.

He had packed two days ago, setting aside all the clothes he wanted and making sure that he didn’t delve into them. He had made sure he had all the essentials to ensure that the stress would be minimal come the day they were supposed to leave. The ride home seemed shorter and he stopped to talk to a friend of his mothers who was out walking her dog. By the time he got home it couldn’t have been any later than half past seven. As usual his parents were awake and moving around the kitchen. His father was already dressed in his uniform and was nursing a mug of coffee with ‘Top dad’ scrawled across the front is messy handwriting. It had been his birthday present from Madeline, Aaron’s little sister and the youngest of the Clinton-Hauk family. “Welcome back,” His mother greeted warmly as he set his small rucksack on the side and walked forward to collect the slice of toast she was offering. “Could you go and get Mollie up? Kieran and Maddie are about but Mollie has decided she wants to sleep in and she just gets grumpy when anyone but you goes in there this early. Especially as you’re going away as well,” She requested sweetly and Aaron heard his father laugh and mutter something about a special touch.

“I’ll see what I can do. Just hope this place doesn’t fall apart without me,” Aaron told them both before grinning and disappearing up to the second floor of the three story home. Half an hour later, all three of his siblings were dressed and polishing off their breakfast at the kitchen table. His father had just collected up his keys and headed out to begin his shift. He’d passed on a few words to Aaron about safety but he knew that Aaron was a smart kid and wouldn’t get himself too far into any messes. Especially as his father was part of the law enforcement around here and he’d have to answer to him if anything got really bad. Minutes ticked by and Aaron made a point of dragging his bag downstairs and checking it, just so he knew that when the time came he wouldn’t have to fret about having forgotten anything.

He didn't know the exact time that he set off from his home but he knew he arrived at roughly the correct time as he spotted the RV before he spotted anyone he knew. His bag was hefted up onto his back and he had decided to slip a cap onto his head to save from any pressing sun wanting to get into his eyes, despite the fact it was early. He spotted the girls first and cooly, he offered them all a smile and a slow wave before he dumped his bag down on the floor before them. “Mornin’,” He greeted before he became aware of the little scene going on nearby with Ryan trying to assist David out of the bush. The wheels of his bicycle were still spinning. “And to think, this is the guy we expect to create all the action,” He laughed as he wandered across, spotting Scout wandering nearby and he took a moment to offer him a hello before he proceeded to try and detangle the spokes of the bike from the branches and leaves, knowing that David could get himself personally out of his own mess.

Leaf-filtered light shone through the open blinds, harsh and glaring against Kaden's face while his vision of the world was black. Covered by slammed shut doors of unconsciousness. He began to stir. Scrunching his eyes, finding himself on the ground of some cold tile floor that most definitely was not the floor of his home. Hazy. Lights off. Just a dull grayness and beaming orange light. Kaden groaned from the thousand needles stabbing into his head. He rolled over to his side, bumping into another body. Covered by a blanket, his hand underneath feeling her bare skin. Her hair a tangled mess of blonde tresses. Looking messed up as he was. The lightness of sleep began to take over for a moment before he sprung up looking to the clock.

9:00 AM. Kaden stood up and frantically searched for his clothes. Throwing on a pair of beaten and torn shorts and the t-shirt he was wearing the other night. Stained with alcohol at this point. He looked around and remembered where he was. An apartment not too too far from his house. The college girl passed out on the floor. Not much time, but Kaden grabbed a pillow and placed it underneath her head. Pouring a glass of water next and putting it on the table next to her while also leaving a note. He could do more, but time was not on his side. The trip to the lake was one of the few joys he could take in every year.

When he returned home, things were more or less the same. Small two bedroom home. His father was passed out on the couch with scattered beer cans everywhere. Kaden was sure he'd get a yelling or more if he woke him up. Maybe even have him do chores. He stopped bothering with telling his father what his plans were a long time ago. Kaden showered with speed. Jumping out, throwing on a new pair of shorts and a tight-fitting black t-shirt. He grabbed a bag and packed some spare clothes, soap, then he grabbed his fishing rod and some bait. A beat-up version of The Great Gatsby tossed in between two handles of liquor his father would miss, but didn't need. Whisky for the men. Tequila for the ladies. Was that it? Kaden perked up at a sudden memory. He reached into his pillow case to pull out rolling papers. A bag of weed, and another bag that he told his dad was just salt.

Now everything was covered. Bag on his back. Simple enough and a fishing rod in his hand. Luckily enough for him the school wasn't far and he had about twenty minutes to get there. Ten would be enough. Kaden strolled out the door and walked out with the sun on his face. Halfway he wished he had found some sunglasses. Maybe taken a painkiller or chugged down water. Too far now. And these were his core group of friends. The one's he had known for the most time at Red Lake. He couldn't hold them up or not make an appearance. He caught sight of the RV and walked on over. Glancing to see Ryan helping David out of the bush. Then over to the girls, Scout and Aaron. The red-eyed, lack of sleep look apparent. Scruff on his chin. Kaden was the mess of a guy who the fangirls loved straight out of a teenage drama on the CW. Sleepily he spoke.

"Mornin'."

Cassandrs looked about as David crashed into the bush. "You know, you really should get that looked at. You can't always rely on bushes to break your fall" she said with amusement, going to go and help him when Ryan appeared, saying hello and went to help David himself.

Cassandra smiled "hello!" She said brightly, looking over at Kaden "you look like a mess." She chuckled, "but it's a good mess" as scout appear, Cassandra smiled once more. "Hey there!" The boy was just adorable, and she shook her head at his offer of help with their bags. "I'm good. Just got my pack and guitar" she said brightly "not heavy at all!" She said with a laugh, just enjoying herself. There wasn't much she enjoyed more than bein with her friends.

For Cassandra didn't have much joy in her life besides her friends and her music. She did well at school, but didn't partocularly enjoy it. Except for the friends. She just couldn't help smiling and being happy with them. "well crashing his bike like that was pretty actiony" she said to Aaron, amusement in her tone.

She bounced up and down on the spot, incredible happy and full of energy, just wanting to get going and have fun.

"Oh you brought your guitar? I can't wait to hear you play!" Scout said with eagerness. Scout set his large suitcase down and unzipped it. He rummaged through its contents in search for two things: A box of bandages and an energy drink. He approached David and handed him the box. "Here you are friend!" Scout started to blush from being near the Ryan and David. He became shy and held onto his elbow avoiding eye contact.

Scout had fallen in love with all the men in their group of friends but knowing none of them would ever even consider him as anything more gave him the incentive to stay away from the boys. It was hard because of how attractive each boy was to him. Aaron's gentle nature, Ryan was the strong silent type, David was dangerous, and Kaden was a bad boy. Scout snapped out of his lustful thoughts of his friends and went over to Kaden.

"H-hi Kaden, I got you this." He showed him the energy drink. "I figured you'd be like this so I bought it on the way." Scout held it out to him blushing and and slightly shaking. He didn't only have a crush on Kaden, he also had a fear of him. This was because they were opposites. Scout was a morally right kind person while Kaden was anything but. He figured Kaden had always hated him.

Why is this so strange? Griffith leaned against the kitchen counter. Wisps of steam wafting over from the bathroom, all but dispersed. His eggs, coated in garlic and onion, fried an arm’s length to his left. [i]Oh, yes. No morning run today.[i] He reached out and lazily flipped the eggs, stifling a yawn. I can’t very well go running and make it on time. Normally, the short run would get his blood pumping, and help him wake up—showers never helped with that for some reason—but he couldn’t manage a normal run without being late today.

His parents had left him alone, going off on their own weekend trip, leaving the house quiet. Not that he minded, for all the noise he made, quiet was one of his favorite things. It helped him relax a little. He opened the toaster-oven and pulled out two sliced of toasted bread, covered in cheese. With a smile, he scooped the eggs onto the toast, one apiece. Fork in hand, he ate.

---

Griffith’s bag was where he left it, leaning against the far-side wall of his room. He had packed the night before, knowing that he wouldn’t have time this morning. With a single motion he swung it onto his back. Then his sleeping bag fell off. With a muttered curse, he strapped the wayward sack back onto his bag, and tried again. Nothing fell off this time. Taking a swig from his canteen, a grin began to spread across his face. Water was probably the heaviest thing in his bag, but he didn’t want to risk anyone getting dehydrated. And he didn’t trust the lake water. Not after last time

That poor hydrangea.

Refilling his canteen in the kitchen, he began hopping from one foot to the other. This would be a strange sight to some, but those who knew him well would recognize it. He made a final sweep of the house, making sure nothing was left one, and exited, locking the door behind him. Keys stowed away, his little ritual dance blended into a run. Towards the school, of course. It wasn’t as long as his usual morning run, but his usual run didn’t come with any weight on his back. It was satisfying enough.

He saw the RV before any person, though they soon followed. Once he could actually make them out, he saw the girls, Scout doing something gentlemanly, Aaron messing about with a bike, and Ryan and Cassandra over by a bush. “Hello Everyone!” It was then that Griffith saw David in the bush. At this sight, he began to laugh. “You alright over there?”

Matt kicked himself in the head again for running late. When he had gotten the text from Riley, he wanted to get packed up right away. As he was packing though, he had gotten a call from home. Julia... he thought to himself again, sitting in the passenger seat of his grandfathers truck as they made their way towards the school. Grandfather knew how precarious and volatile the situation between Matt and his ex was, so he backed off and let them have their talk. For once, their talk was civil, mostly going through the motions on how life was on their opposing ends of the country. When the conversation ended, Matt looked at the clock and realized it was almost 9:30. He threw the rest of his stuff in his backpack and he jumped in the car. Grandpa Vaughn, thankfully, didn't ask about their talk, instead trying to get Matt's mind focused on the trip.

"I see you didn't grab the .22." he started. Matt shook his head. "I thought about it, but I thought teenagers, booze and small caliber firearms wouldn't mix well." Grandpa laughed. "That's probably true. Just try and keep a level head and if you need an emergency ride, don't hesitate to call me.

After a short drive, the truck pulled up to the school and Matt hoped out, giving Grandpa a thumbs up. The truck pulled away and Matt turned around to see Riley, along with a few others he didn't recognize right away. "Hi, I'm Matt." he introduced himself, before noticing one of the girls had a camera bag over her shoulder. "Nice camera. Is that a Canon?"

Ruby watched as everyone arrived, and greeted them as they did. She took note that she was the youngest one to have arrived so far, and it looked like she would be the youngest one on the trip, at sixteen years old. At least they are friends, Ruby thought to herself. Almost on cue, someone whom she didn't really know, named Matt apparently, introduced himself, and then took note of her camera. She smiled at Matt, before nodding as she turned to face him.

"Yes, it is," Ruby says cheerfully, smile turning wider. "I have a gopro in there, too, plus a mini monopod and a mini tripod." Now that she was getting a better look at him, she realizes that she had seen him in school a fair amount, and sort of recognizes the handsome boy. She flutters her eyes lightly at him unintentionally. She opens her camera bag to reveal all of what was inside of it, the gopro, the Canon, the mono and tri pods. "I should have enough space on their SD cards to last the whole trip, plus I brought a battery kit, in case." She nods to the big battery in the corner of the camera bag, a small cable coming out of it for charging devices.

Riley and Krista were busy setting up some of their luggage into the outside storage compartments where they had stored their camping equipment, the RV. Krista turned around hearing a familiar voice was Cassandra she quickly ran over and gave her friend a hug, she was always happy to have their friends coming on their little trip up to the lake for five days before everyone else went out to go on their own vacations over the summer. "Hey Cassie it's really good to see you!" Riley said as she finished putting one more bag into the compartment and went over to hug Cassandra as well.

Then the next person who came was David hearing him crashing his bike into one of the bushes near the school sidewalk and giggled softly hearing him asking for some help. "You really do need a new bike man someday that death trap will kill ya." Riley said like flies to a light another of her friends came over to see Ruby dragging her suitcase with her Krista quickly went over to help out her friend and smirked at Ruby. "Welcome to the party!" Krista said with a smile as she went to put Ruby's suitcase into another compartment, just to make room for everyone inside the RV. Riley smiled as she watched Ryan's car came into the parking lot and watched as he helped David out of the bush, shortly after that came Scout seeing him carrying some of his things Riley always thought of him as a sweet kind of guy he was also very cute like a little brother which she sort of saw him as since she was a single child.

"I think we got it Scout, you can put your stuff in there if you want or you can put it in the RV, cant wait to get this trip started as well!" Krista said happily. Aaron then stopped over to help David and Ryan to untangle the bike in the hedges of the bush Riley waved and smiled at them. Riley saw Kaden coming over and smiled though she could easily see his eyes were bloodshot most likely either from the lack of sleep or something else. "Good morning bedhead." Riley said jokingly and smiled as she watched Scout offering Kaden an energy drink, another reason why Riley liked him for being so nice and shy around the other boys made Riley and Krista smile.

"Hey Griff!" Krista said upon hearing his voice as he came over to them Riley waved at him to and smiled. "Good morning." Riley said, and then came Mathew the guy who approached her a few days ago before the end of the school year it wasn't big news around the school about Riley's annual trip though no one else but her friends were asked to join but she was glad to meet someone new. "Hey there Matt welcome to the crew." Riley said motioning towards Krista. "This is Riley you already know, the camera girl is Ruby, then theres Scout over there, Cassandra, Ryan and the bush lover David over there, and the bedhead right here is Kaden, over there is Aaron, I do believe there is one more joining us to." Krista said as she pointed to everyone who was in the parking lot. "We just need Rhea and I believe we can get going, i'm sure she is sleeping in or something." Riley joked.

Rhea woke up early, her bags were packed and she had about thirty minutes before her alarm would go off. She lazily threw off the many layers of blankets she had covering her body, and jumped up out of bed.
She stripped and pranced over to her shower, turning it on so the hot water made the room steamy. She ran her fingers through her hair, more tired than she had been when she woke up.

She got out of the shower and towel dried her hair. She started to walk around, applying chapstick and combing her hair. She put on her clothes and smiled, soon enough she was ready. She walked through her family's house silently and found her dad sitting silently at the head of their table. "Hey dad. How are you?" She asked, opening the door of the pantry and digging around until she found some granola bars. She pulled one out and chewed on it, not as hungry as she thought she was.

"Rhea, are you ready to go? I'm about to leave for work, so I can drop you off. Or you can take the car, but then you'd have to drive alone. I don't want to leave the car at the school." Her father said, smiling up at her and eating his small breakfast. Rhea considered her options, and smiled back at her father. "You can drive me dad, that'd be awesome." She finsihed up her granola bar and rushed off to her room. She found her backpack and dumped it out, then she tossed a couple of necessities in it. Then she grabbed her suitcase and started to walk out to the car. "Dad! I'll be at the car!" Her father yelled back a reply, and she walked to the car.

Rhea's father came to the car a couple of minutes later. His job was in the next town over, at a busy company that paid well. He always managed to have time for Rhea though, his only child. He drove for a couple of minutes, and soon they were at the school. She took her things out of the back of the car, and waved her father goodbye. Then she turned and headed towards her friends.

Most of them had already gotten there, but she didn't mind. She liked it when the whole group was there. Before talking to to others, she set her bags aside. "I can't wait to get going you know?" She smiled and talked to all of them, although she didn't know some of them. They were all nice looking, but their features sort of blended. She could make out the difference between a girl and a boy, but they were about the same. No one caught her eye, because the features they had almost matched. Some of them had nicer appearances and personalities, so she talked to them first. She looked at the two with the cameras, the boy had nice, angular features and blonde hair. The girl had bright blue eyes that made Rhea smile. They stood out together, and Rhea was glad they did. "Hey. Nice cameras!"

"Well, Thank god the bush was here" Bushes hurt, they always hurt. Especially when the gardeners take there job too seriously and get rid off any leaves that could of made it less painful. The bike had flown across the car-park and stopped at the wheel arches of the RV. Looking around he could see lots of faces talking about him in the bush, new people and how excited they are. He sighed at this, all his street cred was going to go from king to scout. He took the hands that were offering a helping hand (The puns!) and hauled himself up.

Looking around he saw that, well lets be honest not much was happing. He took a cigarette out and lit it. with the lit cigarette hanging out his mouth he looked around "Anyone who laughs about the bush or mocks me in the bush" he took the cigarette out his mouth and smiled "May not wake up tomorrow" putting it back in "Understood?"

As Riley and Krista hugged her, Cassandra hugged them back. She loved them both, and had been a little embarrassed to admit to herself, in that first burst of puberty and sexuality-and that had been a really confusing time, right up until her Aunt had set her down, and Cassandra still remembered her words [i][b]Cassandra, you've been so much better since you found the music in you, but you've been so...annoying lately, and I've tried to be patience, but, my dear you could take years to figure this out by yourself. You like the girls as well as the boys. There's nothing wrong with that. You just have to be happy.[/i] Of course her Aunt would be the one to see it. To Cassandra, it had been like...a box opening in side her, understanding filling her.

Since then, Cassandra had merely been exploring that. Sometimes she still got confused, at times, attracted to both genders at the same time, it was hard to think, oh yeah, I like her a lot or he's so sweet, or who she liked enough to risk asking out. Not that she had ever done that. As Scout asked about her guitar, sshe nodded and smiled, "Yeah, been playing since I was seven. I'll happily play for you all"

She watched as Scout went over to the guys, energy drink and bandages in hand. The boy was just so adorable, that Cassandra wanted to hug him. She smiled, looking around as others joined them. She began to wonder if there would be room in the RV, but figured they would make do. When David was free, and seemed to make a threatening little speech, Cassandra gave a laugh.

"Oh, please, Davey, if you couldn't avoid a push, I doubt you could put someone to sleep for good" She said, with amusement tinging her tone, "And I can't make any promises. You flailing around there as your bike hit...that was just too funny!" She laughed, loudly

He looked at Cassandra. Well, there goes any chance of people not noticing he looked like a mess. "Is there such a thing as a good mess?" Kaden asked her, the smallest hint of a smirk on his face.

Looked like the whole crew was there. Kaden brushed a hand through his hair and scratched the back of his head as his curious eyes wandered around at everyone. Some of them he didn't know. One or two. He smirked when David was in the bush, and getting out of the bush. "You sure about that buddy? You might be out cold if you keep up like this." Kaden ragged on him. David was the one here that reminded him most of himself. Two of them with everyone else on a trip to the lake with no parents. Crazy things were guaranteed to happen. They just didn't know what sort of trouble yet. At the moment, all Kaden could think about was how much he wished he could have coffee. And the throbbing in his head.

That's when an angel in the form of Scout came over to offer him an energy drink. Stuttering around him like he always did. Blushing too. Kaden wondered how Scout was so good with the ladies, but shy around the guys. He never figured he was gay or anything. Not that he would have minded. Not his place to ask regardless. "Shit, it hasn't been a minute and already the good guy shows up." Kaden looked at Scout. "Who said I wanted an energy drink." He made his face straight as possible until he started to laugh. Just messing with Scout. He took the energy drink. "Thanks. You know me too well Scout. Am I getting that predictable?" He pat Scout on the back and went over to Krista and Riley. "Yeah, yeah. Bed head is here. You two are so…" Kaden yawned, making their nickname more accurate while he unscrewed the cap of the drink. "So funny." Kaden took a large gulp of the drink.

He didn't have much stuff so he quickly went into the RV and dumped his bag and fishing pole near one of the walls. Shortly after Kaden returned outside. When Riley and Krista introduced Matt to the group, Kaden just gave him a sleepy wave. New meat to the group. Guess that meant he'd have to get him black out drunk. Kaden gave the same sleepy acknowledgement to most people. He figured for most of the ride he'd just pass out.

"Looks like everyone's 'ere so let's get on the road, yeah? That lake is callin' our name."

Ryan nodded to David as he helped him up, then smirked as he tried to threaten them all. "Just make sure you look out for the bush on the way to silencing us." He looked around at everyone around the RV, giving a partial wave to each. He was sure he could have said hello, but since they all already seemed to have said their greetings as well as started to hang out, a wave seemed more suitable to the situation.

As Ryan walked over to the RV, he lifted up his bag, and pushed it into one of the RV's outer storage compartments that weren't full. He glanced to one of the bags and saw a fishing rod, "I knew I forgot something... I should have brought a fishing rod..." He frowned, sighed, and stepped away from the vehicle. "Whatever, not going home just for a fishing rod." He looked through everyone else there, "Anyone else bring marshmallows? Sounded like a good idea, so I got some yesterday." He pointed a thumb back towards his bag that, inside, contained a small bag of marshmallows, which was probably enough for one or two nights of roasting, he guessed.

He stood there looking around again. They were still laughing, and that was fine. If Kaden brought the stuff he would have the last laugh. He walked over to his bike and examined it, it was fine, the chain was broken but it was fine. he picked up the bike and lugged it into the back of the RV. Taking a long puff from the cigarette and looked at Kaden. Kaden was a man quite like him. Not exactly like him, but close. He had lost a mother, he had a father who for all intensive purposes couldn't give a damn and he liked the bottle. Looking back on it he was surprised they went best friends. Me the guy verging on drop out, an him standing on the edge of being the same, they have alot to talk about. But first they should talk plans.

Looking up from his bike and to Kaden he made a movement to get his attention. Indicting his head to the new kid he made a drinking sign with his hand as if he is drinking a glass of water. Then he put his head back signalling passing out. What he was trying to say is that they should get him absolutely crap-faced so that he cant rember the night and see how far he will go. Its an old tradition to new meat, and a tradition to see how fun they are. Its mean but its funny if its their first drink. First timers are the best.