The girls hopped in the elevator *well...not literally*, and
rode down to the lobby. The floor was totally empty, except for that
gray haired woman from dinner, who was at the front desk.
"Can you believe this is really happening?" KC replied while they
waited for the Boys to join them. It was 10:25, so they were a bit
early. Ashley hadn't stopped smiling all morning. Lanye felt so happy
for her and AJ. But she also felt terribly jealous of them. Laney had
never been good with guys. Sure, she'd kissed a few, but she never had
a real boyfriend. Then there was KC. Miss Boyfriend Extraordinaire.
She'd practically gone out with every guy in their senior class!
Ashley was the happy medium; a steady boyfriend here and there. All of
them turned out to be jerks who hurt Ashley, painfully. Laney prayed
that AJ wasn't one of them.
Laney's thoughts were interrupted by Nick's excited voice. He was
talking about how great of a skier he was. Brian didn't seem to
agree with him.
"Sure Nick. Just like how great of a skater you are, right?" Brian said
laughing. Nick nodded happily. AJ smiled sweetly at Ashley and kissed
her forehead *awww!!*. Ashley blushed. Laney's heart sank, wanting
the same from Brian.
"I gotta tell you girls the story of 'Nick the great skater'!" Brian
exclaimed. The girls listened as Brian told the story. "Okay! Last
week, we went to Quebec for a couple concerts. You know how they have
that huge skating rink? Well, we had a day off and we went skating.
Let's just say Nick spent more time brushing off his pants from snow
than actually skating! That's the Florida boy in him I guess!" Brian
continued, excitedly. The girls all laughed at the thought of Nick
falling all over the ice. Nick looked like he wanted to crawl under a
rock and die. He soon laughed it off. Everyone signed out and headed
to the ski area. There was a place to put on your skis before going on
the ski lift. After everyone was suited up, Kevin took charge.
"Okay, we're gonna split off in fours. Laney, you come with me, Nick
and Howie. KC, you go with Brian, Ashley and AJ. We'll meet back here
at 12:30 for lunch, okay?" he ordered. Laney's heart sank again; she
wanted to be with Brian. KC felt the same way, though she wanted to be
with Nick. Both of their prayers were answered by Brian clearing his
throat and saying,
"Umm, Kev? Do you think Howie and I can switch places? I kinda wanna
ski with Laney." Laney smiled. Kevin saw the look on her face and
sighed.
"Ok. Brian and Laney come with me and Nick" he replied. Laney caught
Kevin's gaze and mouthed the words Thank you. Kevin just
smiled.
"Let's get goin' already!" AJ exclaimed. KC let out a loud sigh and
Laney knew what she was thinking. She called Kevin over.
"I think KC wants to ski with Nick. Is there any way that she can?"
Laney asked quietly. Kevin groaned and bit the inside of his cheek,
thinking.
"Fine! I'll change places with her. Geez! When did I become the
rejected one?" he huffed. Then he skiied off to tell KC the good news.
She squealed and skiied over to Nick. He smiled when she told him what
was happening. Laney felt guilty about what Kevin said about being
rejected, but kept it to herself.
"Okay Brian. You're the leader of the pack. Remember, you've got a few
youngin's with you" Kevin yelled as he tried to catch up to his group.
Brian stood proud and saluted his cousin.
"Will do, captain!" he yelled after Kevin. Laney muffled a giggle.
Brian skiied over to where Laney, Nick and KC were standing.
"Well youngin's. It looks as though I'm the leader. So stick to me like
glue" he replied, proudly. He started skiing to the lift. Laney, Nick
and KC followed him. KC looked unbelievably happy. Nick was joking
with her and she couldn't help but laugh at his corny 'knock-knock'
jokes. Brian was pretty smooth on his skis. But going down-hill might
be a total different story! They reached the lift. The hills were
totally empty since it was a private hill just for the lodge. And since
there weren't any people there, they wouldn't have to wait in line for
the lifts! This lift was a 4 seater. So they all boarded the same
chair. Nick took the far left, KC beside him, then Laney, and Brian on
the far right. Brian immediately brought down the bar. Laney remembered
how scared of heights he was. *Is this still true?* The chair got
higher and higher as it went up the mountain. Brian looked down and
tensed up.
"Umm...guys? Is there a way off this thing?" he whimpered, quietly.
Laney could sense the fear in his voice. Nick laughed evily.
"The only way off is DOWN!" he yelled. Brian's eyes opened wide in
fear. Laney took a chance and took a hold of his shaky hand. He looked
at her and smiled nervously. He squeezed Laney's hang tightly and
didn't let go. Nick was making creeking noises to scare Brian. Laney
was getting annoyed.
"NICK WILL YOU STOP THAT! BRIAN'S FREAKING OUT OVER HERE!" she yelled.
Nick leaned forward and looked at her. He had stopped his noises.
"Geez Laney. He knows I'm joking around. This chair's as solid as a
rock, okay Brian?" Nick replied. He slammed back against the seat,
angrily. Then came a large CREEEEK! Laney couldn't believe it.
"NICK!! STOP IT!!" she screamed. Nick let out a loud groan.
"LANEY! I DIDN'T DO IT!" he screamed back. A pit formed in Laney's
stomach. Another creek surrounded them and Brian's hand squeezed even
tighter.
