Ryder's POV

I laughed harder, slinging my arm around a stumbling Oliver as we walked down the dark, deserted beach. It was three in the morning and most of the hotel guests were either in their rooms, at the bar or by the pool. At the moment, we were the only two at the beach. Oliver and I had decided to go down to the hotel's bar and test out his fake ID. After a month of Oliver's nagging, I had finally relented and helped him get a fake ID that didn't look like it had been made by a five year old.

We'd stayed in the bar for most of the night, getting drunk, but had decided to go down to the beach around three. We were both pretty hammered and could hardly walk, and I was pretty sure I'd fallen on my ass about three times already.

"So when he finds out she has gonorrhea, he completely flips out and he..." Oliver slurred, his words barely understandable, trying not to laugh. When he stayed silent for too long, I glanced at him through hazy eyes.

"So? What happened?" At this point, I had no idea what I was saying or what we were even talking about, I just felt like laughing. So I did. I burst out laughing.

Oliver glanced at me, tears gathered in his eyes. "Are you laughing at me because I'm fat?" he asked, his bottom lip trembling.

I shook my head vigorously, making myself dizzy. Grabbing onto my forehead, I closed my eyes. When I finally felt like I wasn't about to fall over, I opened them to find a twirling Oliver. "Dude, why is the world spinning?" I asked him, slurring most of my words, my brows knitting in concern.

"I'm a princess, a pretty princess." I doubled over in laughter. When I fell over onto my butt, my laughter quickly died. Scowling at the ground, I slapped my hand onto the damp sand.

"Ouch! You fucking sand! You will be my bitch!" I exclaimed, raising a finger into the air, indignantly.

"Dude, let's go before the goblin eats us," Oliver said as he stopped twirling and I nodded with wide eyes. Trying to get up, I pushed my legs off the ground, only to roll right back down on the ground.

"Help! The sand wants to swallow me!" I cried out, flailing my arms. Oliver gasped and stumbled-ran towards me. He grabbed my arms, only to trip on his own two feet and land in a heap beside me. "Oh no! The tables have turned! The sand is making me it's bitch!"

"Oh no, we're doomed! We're doomed! This is the end! I want my mom to have my Pokemon card collection, and as for my dad...fuck him, I hate him," he exclaimed, his voice shaky. "I want you to know, I lofe you, man."

I turned to him, and nodded. "I lofe you too."

"As much as I don't want to interrupt your little moment, I feel compelled to do so," I heard someone say from above us. Lifting my eyes, I grinned.

"Casey!" She laughed and waved hesitantly as she stood over us with two water bottles in her hands.

"I'm gonna head to bed," Oliver stated, seeming to sober up. I nodded and watched as he struggled to get up. Casey offered a hand and soon he was on his two feet and stumbling towards the hotel, but not before stopping next to her and loudly saying, "Be careful with that sand, it's going around making people their bitch." Casey patted him softly on the back with a nod.

Slumping down to sit cross-legged on the sand, next to me, she handed me a water bottle and I took it gratefully. I gulped down half of the bottle and squeezed my eyes shut as I felt some of the alcohol begin to wear off. "What are you doing up so late?" I asked her curiously.

"The pillows in the hotel are really soft," My eyebrows lowered as I glanced at her questioningly. That was supposed to be a good thing, "I like 'em hard."

I chuckled. "That's what she said."

She rolled her eyes with a sigh and turned towards me. "Why are you up?"

"Try and guess," I replied with a grin.

"You and Oliver decided to get hammered?" I gasped.

"What gave it away? Is it my breath?" I asked her with wide eyes. "Smell it," I demanded as I blew my breath in her face. She cringed and pushed me away softly.

"Oh, it was definitely your breath," she answered, wrinkling her nose in disgust. I shrugged and slowly pushed her shoulder until she was laying on her back. She gave me a questioning look and I responded by turning around and lowering myself until my head was resting on her stomach. "Why, help yourself, why don't you."

I chuckled, staring up at the starry sky. The hotel we were staying at was a little away from the city, so the stars were not out-shined by the city lights. It was gorgeous the way the stars seemed to shine bright like diamonds against the dark blue mantle that was the sky.

"What does Caypug mean?" I asked her, my mind suddenly flashing to the scene between her and Makayla. I felt her sigh underneath me and I turned my head to stare up at her over her breast. Her eyes lowered towards me and she gave me a weak smile.

"It's a long story." She looked away from me. When I poked her side, her eyes fell on me once again and I grinned.

"In case you haven't noticed, I really don't have anything better to do," I pointed out and she laughed.

Sighing, she glanced down at me thoughtfully. She stared at me for a full minute, hesitant, before seeming to make up her mind. "I used to be fat," I snorted in disbelief and she smiled, "I was, I swear. I was the fattest kid in the third grade. Makayla, unfortunately, was one of my classmates and my biggest nemesis. She made my life a living hell. One day, one our classmates brought his pug to school for show and tell. Makayla decided that the pug was my long-lost twin, therefore, coming up with Caypug. After that it just stuck, so yeah..."

"Wow, that girl sucks," I replied and I felt her shake with laughter.

"Yeah, I guess so," she answered quietly. I sat up and turned around to face her. Her head turned to me and she stared at me questioningly.

"Have you been avoiding me?" This question had been burning a hole in my brain for the last twenty minutes now. I hadn't seen or spoken to her for three days, since that night on the beach when she walked away from me without a word. I hadn't meant to offend her with what I'd said, I was only joking, partly. I did like it when she blushed, not that I would ever tell her that.

She leaned up, resting on her elbows and glanced away from me, her eyes lowering. "No...why?" I almost snorted. Casey was probably the worst liar I'd ever met.

"Casey, I haven't spoken to you for three days...did you have a sex dream about me? Is that it?" I grinned and she laughed, sitting up and pushing my shoulder softly. "Because if you did, it's okay, I don't mind."

"I'm sure you don't." She shook her head, a blush tainting her cheeks. She glanced at me out of the corner of her eyes and I smirked. Sighing, she decided to turn to me. "I haven't been avoiding you, I was just spending time with Nissa, that's all." I arched an eyebrow and bit back what I wanted to say and instead settled for a tiny shrug.

"So...what did Makayla mean by murder?" I asked hesitantly, changing the subject as I stared out at the dark water. The only sound heard for a minute, was the crashing off the waves on the shore.

I heard her sigh wearily, "We had a pet rabbit—the class, I mean...We had a pet rabbit—Pesto," I gave her a 'the fuck?' face and she laughed, shaking her head, "our teacher wasn't very good with pet names." I nodded. "Like I was saying—Pesto was our pet rabbit. One day, Makayla decided that it would be funny to let the rabbit out of the cage to roam freely around the classroom, and blame it on me. The rabbit decided to have some fun of it's own and jumped out the window...only to be ran over by a truck. Makayla, of course, cried it was my fault, and even though everyone in the class knew it wasn't true, no one stood up to the almighty Makayla. Ever since then, she's called me a murderer."

I raised an eyebrow suspiciously. I knew there was more to what Makayla had said, but I didn't push; everyone was entitled to their secrets. I sure as hell had mine and I definitely was not sharing, so I couldn't expect her to share.

"Why wouldn't anyone stand up to her?" I asked with genuine curiosity. I mean, if the chick was small now, I couldn't begin to imagine how small she was as a child.

"Makayla was one of the richest kids in school. Her dad was very powerful—she made sure no one forgot that," Casey shrugged and I nodded understandingly.

"Why did she hate you so much, though?"

I watched her bite down on her lip, the wheels churning in her head. I could tell she was pondering whether to answer that question and it made me even more curious. "You know that car you love so much?" I nodded, "My dad was the biggest stockholder of the company that manufactures Aston Martins." I stared at her with wide eyes. Was she serious? "Her dad owned half of what my dad owned. He tried for years to get my dad to sell him half; even things out—like his grandfather and father had tried with my great-grandfather and grandfather; every time ending with no success. The hatred kind of went from generation to generation. I guess you could say that the Stratfords and Dashwoods have always hated each other."

"Those Dashwoods sound like a bunch of assholes," I told her and she smiled, her eyes twinkling in the dark. She seemed happier tonight. Almost as if the sadness I'd seen a few days ago had never been there.

"Not all of them are. Austin is pretty cool," she shrugged and my brow furrowed in confusion. Austin was a Dashwood?

"Austin is a Dashwood?" I voiced my thoughts and she turned to me, raising an eyebrow disapprovingly.

"Aren't you and him friends?" she asked, cocking her head to the side.

"Yeah, but I didn't know he was a Dashwood." I shrugged and she chuckled under her breath. I glanced up at the sky. It was still dark out, but the sun would start to rise in about an hour. I was shocked to find that I didn't want the night to end. I liked talking to Casey, she wasn't boring or annoying like most girls I knew. "Tell me you got back at Makayla for the rabbit incident..."

She laughed, her eyes wandering off. "There was this sandbox in the playground. Makayla loved that sandbox—wouldn't let any of the other kids play in it. It was the perfect throne for the queen bee. We had about five different spiders in our science lab. While I love any type of animals, Makayla hates anything that crawls. I asked to go to the bathroom five minutes before recess, grabbed the spiders, set them loose in her sandbox and waited. When she saw them, she started screaming and crying. But...by the time the teachers came to check what was wrong, I had already grabbed the spiders and placed them back."

"While she ended up in the principal's office with a call to her parents, I never got caught. She knew it had been me and she hated the fact that she couldn't prove it. That was way better than watching her screech like the little bitch she was." I laughed as I pictured a young Casey. I never thought she would be so sneaky.

"I think I would have liked you as a kid," I told her and she smiled, her eyes flashing with sadness. The same sadness that had been there before. I didn't like that. I didn't like that sadness. I wanted it to leave and never come back. "Let's go for a swim." I jumped up excitedly, looking for a way to distract her and make that sadness go away. Casey stared up at me like I was crazy as I reached down a hand to help her up. Shaking her head she backed away from me, her eyes on the dark water.

"Are you nuts?" she managed to get out, her voice coming out squeaky.

"Why not? C'mon, it will be fun, I promise. Plus, it's spontaneous, and you're spontaneous now, remember?" I lifted an eyebrow expectantly and she squinted her eyes, glancing at me and then at the beach. Placing her small hand in my much-larger one, she pulled herself up, with my help.

"I don't have my bathing suit on..." she trailed off as I began to pull my clothes off. Her eyes widened further with each piece of clothing that hit the sand. "Wha—what are you d-doing?" My eyes traveled towards her.

"Taking my clothes off, sweetheart, what does it look like I'm doing?" I answered in a 'duh' tone and her face morphed into a glare.

"I know what you're doing...I mean, why are you taking your clothes off?" she asked, gesturing to my discarded clothes. I watched as emotions flashed over her face as she clearly battled with herself. Trying not to smirk, I stared as she scowled, glanced away and then glanced back at me. Her eyes started from my feet, slowly rising up my calves, boxer-clad legs, naked torso, chest and finally resting on my lips. They stayed there for a minute, before flicking up to my eyes. She blushed furiously when her eyes met my blue ones. That single look was enough to make me hard. That one look of pure innocence was enough to make me want to take her right there on the beach. Shaking my head to clear those thoughts out of my mind, I turned to the water.

"So...are we going to do this, or what?" I asked and after a moment's hesitation, I saw her nod out of my peripheral vision. It would be fun. It would take her mind off of whatever that was making her sad.

My head snapped around when I heard the distinct sound of clothing hitting the sand. I stood there, my mouth ajar, eyes wide as they zeroed in on her chest. There stood Casey in nothing but a black, lacey bra and a matching set of underwear. My eyes took her in and I almost groaned. This had not been a good idea. How on earth would I be able to keep my hands to myself when she was standing there looking sexy as fuck? Fuck me, I was in deep shit.

"Do you need more time to check me out? I know. I'm a lot to take in," she repeated the same words I'd uttered to her our freshman year, when I'd given her a ride home, in a low voice that was supposed to be mine. I grinned, fighting back a laugh.

"I sound nothing like that," I told her, indignant and she scoffed, crossing her arms under her chest, immediately uncrossing them when my eyes traveled down there. When would she learn?

"Yes you do," she spoke up and I teared my eyes away from her chest to roll my eyes. Was she kidding? I did no sound like that.

"No, I don't," I argued, crossing my arms over my chest, taking a step towards her, an idea popping into my head.

"Yes, you do," she scoffed.

I took one more step towards her. "No, I don't."

"Yes, you do." Another step.

"No, I don't," I replied goading her on. If this was going to work, I needed her to be distracted.

"Yes. You. Do." She growled, growing impatient and I almost pumped my fist in the air triumphantly. That was exactly how I wanted her. Taking the last step I needed to take, I crouched down, wrapped my arms around her legs and threw her over my shoulder. She screamed as I straightened out and began to walk towards the water.

"Ryder!" she screeched, twisting her body in my arms and I laughed. "You better not drop me." I snorted at that. It was actually unbelievable how light she really was. She kicked her legs defiantly and I tightened my grip around them to keep them still. I felt her growl and I grinned. Grabbing the waistband off my boxers, she hoisted herself up, when she started to slip. As I walked to the water, she rested her elbows on my back, her bones digging into my flesh. I could sense her pout and I bit back a smile.

Finally reaching the water, I tried not to curse as it touched my toes. It was cold as fuck, but I wasn't backing out now. I kept on walking until the water was almost to my waist and Casey's feet were now dipping in it. She screeched and jerked her feet out of the water.

"No! Do not drop me in that water! Ryder, that water is freezing—I change my mind, I don't want to do this!" I laughed and began to lower her off of my shoulder, but she began to wiggle and twist in my arms, fighting with all of her might to not go in the water. Too bad I was stronger than her. With one swift movement, she was off my shoulder and submerging into the water. I swam away from her, before she emerged from the water. She would be looking for revenge and I needed to be far away. I heard her sputter behind me once she broke the surface as the water rippled with my strokes. "I am going to kill you."

I tried not to laugh. Her voice was dangerously calm and I knew nothing good could come out of me laughing. Turning my body around, I threaded my fingers through the water, keeping myself afloat. "You weren't going to get in the water if I didn't give you a push," I tried to reason with her. She scowled as she swam towards me, her hair completely soaked, loose strands sticking to the sides of her face.

"I can't believe you threw me in, even though I said not to," she complained, finally reaching me, she reached her hand out and dunked me into the water. I had seen that coming, but I knew she wouldn't give up until I let her have her revenge, so I decided to get it over with.

I felt my head go under as the water completely engulfed me, everything growing dark around me. I held my breath and kicked my legs, pushing my body to the surface. When I finally broke through the surface, I sputtered out water and shook my head to get the water out of my hair. I heard Casey laugh and I shook my head with a sigh.

"Are we even now?" She chuckled and sighed with a defeated nod. Nodding once, I moved my legs back and forth to keep my head above water. Looking back at her, I stared at her intently. "Why do you always wear a ponytail?"

She looked down at her hands as her fingers threaded through the clear water. "It's a habit. I've always worn my hair in a ponytail."

"But you let it loose for the party at my house that night, remember?" She glanced away and I couldn't help but feel like I was missing something.

"You really don't like not knowing something, do you?" she smiled softly, her eyes quietly observing me and I shook my head no.

"I guess I'm just curious."

"Curiosity got the cat," she replied and I chuckled. "My mom would always comb my hair in ponytails when I was a kid. They're presentable. It later became a habit that I couldn't break." I nooded understandingly. "Okay, fine, Ryder Cavanaugh, I told you quite a lot about me, now I'm going to ask you something."

I bit down on my bottom lip as I mulled that over. I didn't like sharing anything about myself, but I had pried in her life. "You get one question, so make it a good one." She looked away, thoughtfully, tapping her index finger against her chin. Seeming to decide on something, her eyes found me again.

"Why do you play hockey?" I drew back at the question, shocked. Where had that come from?

"What do you mean?" I asked, hesitantly, unsure if I wanted her to elaborate.