' kade , sometimes words get in the way ;

[brooklyn mckenzie !]

Another day at this camp. another day that Brooklyn wished she wansn't here. Although it wasn't quite as bad as last year. The year before she had tryed to get out of doing all the activities, and eating the food that really didn't appeal to her. This year she did at least some of the games planned and ate their food occasionally. It was hard to find any other food around here unless she escaped and went into town, but she was sure the camp owner had told coucelors or something about her and she's definately not here for fun. It might be better then Juvie, even the food which is hard to believe. One of the days where she decided to eat the good they served, was today. There was only two reasons for this though. One was because she didn't eat anything yesterday, because it all looked like crap. And the other would be because she had woken up early because someone in her cabin was being loud and obnoxious. Early for her was around 11:30. If she was left alone she could definately sleep until the evening.

At this moment, the girl was making her way from where they served the food. She had eaten it rather quickly, because to her, it smelt pretty bad in their. Maybe it was from dirty kids who didn't shower because their parents weren't there to tell them so, she didn't really know, and actually didn't want to find out. Brooklyn was walking down a dirt road, that she didn't know where it lead to. Frequently she would do so, to get away from everything. Sometimes she'd walk and walk and eventually forget where she was. She didn't worry though, eventually she would make her way back home. Whether she liked it or not. Her aunt and uncle were really great and everything, it's just not the same. Thank God for the friends that she had, who could keep her mind off of everything.

The dirt seemed to be kicking up from underneath her heels, yet she ignored the fact. Her blue eyes scanned the area that she had been nearing. From what she could see it looked really pretty, and actually a nice place to just sit and chill. There were tree's surrounding everywhere, and as of this moment she could hear the soft sound of water flowing, as if there was a creek. It sounded perfect. Brooklyn dug her hands into the front pockets of her shorts that were rather short, but it was hot, so it was necessary. Soon enough, everything came into view. It was just as she had imagined and heard, and she was actually happy to see it all. The breeze fit in with the whole situation as well. It was softly blowing her dark hair, yet thankfully not enough to make it go crazy and waste those fourty-five minutes of straightening. Yes, it took that long to straighten her hair, but it was only a price to pay. And she was willing too. At this point, it almost looked like a reddish brown color, only because of the sunlight.

Brooklyn had now been walking down a somewhat steep hill. It was obviously hard too, seeing as she was in heels and everything, but those were pretty much the only shoes she wore, and that's that. Finally, she had neared the little creek. This place was pretty much amazing, definately different from her normal scene. That would be the club. Normally she got crazily drunk, but lately she had been getting sick of doing that, because sometimes you end up regretting even more then you did before. Brooklyn made sure to find a nice spot, and actually sat down on the very green grass. As she brought her knees up to her chest, she rested her chin on them aswell, just staring blankly out toward the water that flowed repetedly.

OUTFITS! ♥

[/center][/blockquote][/blockquote]

[kade trent.]

Never in his life had Kade imagined a camp like this being so time consuming. He had known coming into it that as a counselor, he would have extra responsibilities and would be working instead of enjoying the constant free time that the campers had. But, even they didn’t have a whole hell of a lot of free time. There were always activities going on that they had to participate in at least here and there, and it seemed that a lot of the other counselors were sticklers about it. If someone was sitting out, doing nothing, then they would go over and tell them that they had to do something. Counselors would complain about the glares that they received for such actions, but Kade could completely understand where the campers were coming from. Not everyone enjoyed softball or volleyball. Not everyone thought that hiking was fun, or that going on the lake in a canoe sounded like an adventure. Some people just were not the kind that did things like that. They were the kind that rather enjoyed the calmer side of the camping experience, like the craft making or the campfires. Kade was more for the active things, and was glad that he didn’t get put in charge of crafts. Now that would have been funny. He had been the athlete in high school, and was still very athletic even after graduation and taking some time off from school. Kade had never been the type to just sit around and read a book or do some idle activity. No, he was the one that had to be doing something. But, even though that was the truth about him, Kade liked to have solitary things to do. The camp activities were all about groups and team work. There was hardly any time that he could slip away and have some time for himself and his thoughts, but when those moments came up he took them without hesitation. While Kade was good with the whole counselor thing and he liked what he was doing, for the most part, there were times when he liked to resort back to his loner ways. This was one of those times.

He didn’t seem to be needed for anything. The campers were finishing up with their meal and were otherwise occupied with different activities. There were more counselors there that could handle that. Kade going missing wouldn’t be too noticeable in the area of him being needed. It would just be that people would see that he wasn’t there. He skipped the meal entirely, not feeling the need to eat or to get caught up in mingling with the campers and other counselors. Kade stole away onto a trail that he knew would eventually take him down to Homestead Creek, the soles of his shoes treading lightly on the dirt path as his hands went to the front pockets of his jeans. It was a hot day out, but Kade wasn’t much on wearing shorts other than to sleep in, or wearing the kind you swim in. He wasn’t even a huge fan of the sneaker tennis shoe things that he had to wear, but he wore them because any other kind of footwear at a camp like this wouldn’t be smart at all. Well, other than some type of sandals, but those didn’t agree with Kade either. He was just picky like that when it came to those two things, but other than that he really could care less. He was just glad that the counselors didn’t have to wear any kind of goofy shirt. They had to wear a sort of name tag that identified them as counselors, but that was it. There was a light breeze blowing, making it more bearable out in the heat, and Kade could feel it pulling at the fabric of his t-shirt. Despite the heat, it was a nice day out, and he was glad that he was able to take a moment to just walk on his own and clear his head.

Hazel eyes glanced in different directions, taking in the scenery surrounding the path that was leading him to this creek. Kade wasn’t used to places like this where there were tress in every direction and wildlife and nature. He had grown up in Seattle, Washington. When he wasn’t there, he was visiting with relatives in Californian cities, or in Florida or New York. Those places hadn’t been anything like this. His family had also traveled to North Carolina where he and his brothers got a little taste of the backwoods, but still, it was nothing like this. Kade had never once thought that he would end up in Maine, living with distant relatives and then becoming a counselor at this camp, but he was enjoying it even if he wouldn’t admit it. After everything that he had been through, he needed to take a break, relax, and get a new hold on his life. For the past couple of years, his life had been pretty much like hell, one thing after another happening that sent him into a quick downward spiral. Coming here hadn’t corrected that downfall, but it made it seem like he wasn’t falling so fast, and that maybe he could forget about falling for a while and focus on reversing that trend. Or maybe this was just another one of those good moments that he got a taste of before something else went horribly wrong in his life. Whatever it was, he was choosing to savor this quiet moment as he walked down the path, his stride low and slow, relaxed and easy going as he got closer to the creek. He could now here the water running from somewhere in the nearby distance. It wouldn’t be long before he got there. Kade hadn’t really thought about what he was going to do once he reached said creek. He wasn’t wearing a watch, and he didn’t know what time he needed to head back to the main part of the camp. He should probably turn around and head back once he found the creek, just to be sure that he wasn’t being needed for some counselor thing that he was supposed to be doing. Or, he could say to hell with it all and just stay out here for a little while. The second option sounded especially appealing.

There was a steep hill, and then Kade found himself at the creek. It was a beautiful place, one that seemed like it shouldn’t belong in this world, but in some sort of fantasy. But Kade really couldn’t take the time to acknowledge that at first. His eyes were locked on the sitting form of a girl, but it wasn’t just any girl. It was a camper that he knew. Brooklyn Mckenzie. Talk about beauty. Kade wasn’t close with the girl. In fact, they hadn’t really gotten many chances to talk at all. He had heard a few things about her, though, and it seemed that whenever they were around one another, the flirting started to pick up. It was wrong; he shouldn’t be flirting with the hot camper girls. That was so against the camp rules that it wasn’t even funny. But, Kade was a natural flirt, and she was gorgeous. There was no way that he wasn’t not going to flirt with her, and it seemed to be the same on her end as well. He stood silently for a moment, observing as she appeared to stare blankly to the creek and beyond. Then, he slowly approached her, speaking when he was just a few feet away. ”You know, campers aren’t supposed to be out here alone.” A small smirk played over his lips as he continued to approach her, and then took a seat beside of her in the grass. Just a few moments ago, he had been so happy in his solitude and wished that he didn’t have to go back to the main camp. Now, he was finding that he was rather glad that he had run into this girl, but what sane guy wouldn’t? Once situated in the grass, Kade turned his hazel gaze on Brooklyn. If she weren’t so damn gorgeous, the rules would have been so much easier to follow, but then again, he had never been much on following rules. He couldn‘t help but to notice the short length of her shorts, or the high heels on her feet. A playful grin came to his lips. ”You’re sure dressed up for a hike to the creek, aren’t you?” he asked, teasing of course. But only in a flirting way, as was to be expected.

[brooklyn mckenzie !]

Brooklyn was actually enjoying her time out here while she had it. Normally she didn't just come out to places like this to just to think, but every once in a while she really felt like she had to escape, or get out and she would. Things at this camp was definately not horrible, but it really wasn't her time of place. She was actually enjoying it more then she thought she would, but she wasn't the one who thought of coming here. She was at Juvie before, and they didn't want to keep her in there for the summer, so they thought that coming to this camp would be better for her, and that she would learn something important for her life. At first, she was really ticked but now she didn't mind as much. The bed was way more comfortable, and the sad part; the food is actually better here, although she still hardly ate any from here. She had actually done a series of things to end up getting there. It all started at school, where she wouldn't listen to any of the teachers. Any of them. Then it lead to talking back, swearing etc. It was just because she had talked to her parents, and apparently they didn't want to talk to her, even though they haven't seen each other in around a year. She was not in the mood for any of the teacher's crap, and walked out of the class. The principle then said something like, if you step out of the school you're expelled. The stepped out of the school, and walked away. But it didn't end up there, along the way of that horrible month she had managed to steal a car, and apparently the police didn't like that, and eventually ended up at this camp. She definately wasn't a threat to anyone's safety or anything, despite what they might of heard.

Brooklyn had heard some leaves crunching and branches breaking softly in the backround. She didn't think anything of it beuse it seemed obvious to her. What else would be out ere then wildlife. It was most likely a squirrel or a chipmunk, in her opinion. They were cute then mice at least. And she had too much trouble with mice these past couple of days. As soon as she entered the cabin, one little white mouse had been set out on annoying her. When she would sleep, it would crawl under her bed and in the walls. So then she thought that if she got a tennis racket, she would be able to scare it away. Apparently, it thought it was smarter then her, and the sad part is, it actually is smart. She then thought up that sleeping with the tennis racket beside her would help. So in that case, she took some random girls bedside table and put the racket on it. The little devil still doesn't give up, no matter how many evil glare's Brooke give's it, or how many times she attempts to kill it. She misses everytime, which makes her now regret not being as athletic. Really, there were only two athletic things she did. Her favourite was surfing, which explained the tattoo of two waves on her wrist. The other being running. She wasn't that big on it, but she still did it on occasion if she felt really lazy or fat, ha.

Soon enough, the sound was really starting to annoy her and it was growing closer and closer. Brooklyn's blue eyes eventually peeled away from the clear flowing water, and made their way over to the nearing figure. Okay, so it definately wasn't what she thought it was. She had saw feet, but soon her eyes made their way up to the mystery figure's face. Now she had recognized who it was. How could she not? The counselor was absolutely gorgoues, and she had a tendency to flirt with him a lot. She knew about the rules here, and that had to be one of the most stressed rule, but since when did she follow them. She didn't even bother to think if the guy was actually interested in her, because well, he was a counselor and he probably knew better then that. They could probably like fire him if anyone found out if he gotr romantically involved. It would be fun though. Like a rebellious romance. Exciting. Brooklyn lifted her chin from her knee's, and listened to what Kade had to say. "There are a lot of thing's im not supposed to do, but really, I don't care." She declared, not caring that he was in higher authority then her. A sly grin formed on her face, as her blue eyes gazed into his, and watched him until the boy sat down next to her. She was pretty happy he did, she could use some company other then wildlife out here, and he was definately not sore on the eyes. ”You’re sure dressed up for a hike to the creek, aren’t you?” Brooklyn couldn't help but let out a quiet laugh at that, as she looked back out ahead of her, now lengthening her legs and straightening them in front of her, aswell as propping herself up by her elbows which were rested behind her. "Yeahh, this is as far as i'll go for that category." She said with a grin, still not making eye contact at this exact moment. She didn't care about getting all into the proper gear for that kind of stuff, she'd deal with it. Actualy, she would probably trip all over the place if you gave her a pear of flats. Wierd, really. "What brings you here? She asked, finally looking him in the eye again. "You knew I was here, didn't you." She joked, tilting her head to the right slightly.

[/center][/blockquote][/blockquote]

[kade trent.]

“There are a lot of things that I’m not supposed to do, but really, I don’t care.” God, did those words sound familiar. It wasn’t because Kade had heard them so many times, but because he had been the one to say them himself. There were whispers around the camp about this girl that sat before him, and they all had pointed to her being a lot like him when it came to their pasts and how they acted at times. Kade didn’t know anything about her other than what he had heard, which he hadn’t been purposefully paying attention to in the first place, but it had been impossible to ignore. Kade was the type that he didn’t believe something just because it was the latest thing from the gossip mill. He didn’t even like to listen to all the rumors. Well, most of the time. There were times when it was just good stuff whether it was true or not and you were glad that you wasted some time in listening to some idiot babble on about someone else’s life. That hadn’t really been the case with the things that were said about Brooklyn, though in the same conversation he had heard some whispers about this Kade Trent guy and how messed up he was. Obviously, the person who was talking didn’t know Kade was right there listening to the whole thing. Kade had just grinned along like it was nothing, like he had no idea who these people were. That camper was probably shocked to learn who his new counselor was. That had been a pretty great moment. But anyway, hearing these words come from Brooklyn herself gave him the impression that not all of the rumors were nonsense, that Brooklyn could really have that wild flare to her. Of course, she could always be lying, or saying something witty in response to his own words, but Kade had always had a knack for reading people and in Brooklyn he didn’t see this as some sort of cover. Not now, at least. But as said before, he didn’t know a whole hell of a lot about the girl other than she was drop dead gorgeous and seemed to not care so much about the rules, just like he didn’t care so much about the rules. Rules were made to be broken anyway, right?

After he had addressed her chosen apparel for this little hike that they had both made, Kade heard the quiet laugh that passed through her lips and watched as she turned her head, her blue eyes staring ahead of her. He stayed ever observant as she repositioned herself, and listened the words that were spoken to him as a reply. Kade grinned a little wider, wondering how it was that a girl could walk in heels like the ones that Brooklyn had on her feet on a flat surface. He couldn’t even imagine it on the kind of path that had led down to where they were currently sitting, but it was just another one of those girl things that guys just were not meant to understand, it seemed. Kade saw a grin grow on her lips, and imagined her thinking that it was somehow easier for her to go out in the heels as opposed to regular shoes. How that would really be possible, he still didn’t know, but it wasn’t like he sat around contemplating women’s footwear. It was just a random thought that left his mind as quickly as it had formed. A strange random thought, but that was something that people really don’t have a lot of control over. Kade was kind of amused that that sort of thought had even entered his mind, him wondering how in the hell his mind had wondered that far in the short silence that fell between him and Brooklyn. Some people might have wanted to keep talking and kill the silence with their words, feeling uncomfortable in this sort of situation when nothing was said, but Kade was content to sit there saying nothing. But, it wasn’t like he was given a lot of time to sit there in that silence, because she turned back to him, her piercing blue eyes finding his once again as she spoke.

”What brings you here? You knew I was here, didn‘t you?” That caused the playfulness in his expression to arise once again. ”You think I have any better reasons to come out here?” he asked in a teasing tone that suggested that there wasn’t any other possible reason at all. Oh yeah, he wanted to get in touch with nature and all that bull shit. That wasn’t Kade at all. While he did enjoy the peacefulness of this area, there was no way that he was about to turn tree hugger and go all Green Peace or whatever the hell that was. This was good as a break. Nothing more. ”I mean, don’t get me wrong,” he started, lying back on his side and propping himself up on one elbow so that he was still facing her, ”this place ain’t half bad, but there’s always a method to the madness.” Yeah, the method behind the madness of coming on this little nature walk had been that of freeing up his mind, not really tracking down a girl that he happened to find extremely attractive, but Brooklyn didn’t need to know that. And Kade wasn’t about to go into detail about the real reason that he had slipped away from the camp. That information came on a need to know basis, and it was something that no one here needed to know, so therefore they didn’t. It was like one of those don’t ask, don’t tell deals. Unless asked for specific information, there was no way in hell that Kade was going to just pour his heart out about it. He had more pride and dignity than that. ”And what about you? You knew I was going to follow you, right?” This came so easily to Kade, so naturally and he was so comfortable with it. In a way, that could be seen as a good thing. At least he wasn’t nervous or uncomfortable with girls, right? Those were the last things that Kade was.

Flirting came easy to him. He had the confidence and the charm to pull it off, and it was something that all the girls seemed to fall for every time. Kade could be seen as a player if that’s what you want to call it, him having quite a few one night stands to his name, and very few real girlfriends. He wasn’t afraid to go out and party and have a good time, and he certainly wasn’t afraid of breaking a few rules along the way. That’s what was getting him into trouble right at the very moment. If the wrong ears over heard even this much of what he and Brooklyn had said, they could turn him in and he would be fired in a heart beat. The camp had such strict rules when it came to the camper/counselor relationship policy, the one that said that it just would not happen, and it really wasn’t fair. Kade was only a year older than a lot of the campers that he was playing counselor too. Why shouldn’t he be allowed to mix in with them at times? Yeah, he knew the answer to that one, but it still didn’t seem right. But, even with knowing that he could be fired from this job and have it go down in his records somehow, Kade was still there, lying back in the grass with Brooklyn and enjoying every moment of their flirtatious banter. In his opinion, the risk made it twice as fun, and worth it that much more.

[brooklyn mckenzie !]

The situation that they were in seemed to be silent for a couple moments. She was somewhat suprised yet awfully glad that it wasn't one of those extremely awkward times where neither of them knew what to say. It felt kind of different with Kade. Like, they both had many things to say, but felt accomplished not saying anything at all. It was wierd, but pretty cool at the same time. Brooklyn took the time that was silent, to look around at the scenery. She decided to let him strike up the conversation once again, because she was feeling kind of lazy to make an effort, and he seemed as if he wanted to be here so it would all work out anyway. A little squirell ran in front of her and she tapped her thigh, attempting to get the little guy over here. She was almost certain that the creature wouldn't follow the sounds and actually sit in her leg, but she decided that it was worth a try anyway. As she thought, she animal scurried away and climbed up a tree. She crunched her face only briefly, as if she was mad at the innocent chipmunk, and layed down completely on the grass with a loud sigh. "That was rude of him." She said with a slight giggle, as she was now looking up at the clouds. Of course, earlier she had made sure she wasn't in a spot with animal crap or anything near it, so as of now she was safe, along with her clothing.

As she was looking up at the clouds, that seemed to be moving rather slowly, she tilted her head towards her somewhat, as if the small grass pieces were going to block the sounds of his voice. Her eyes watched contently as they followed this one specific cloud. It was shaped like a pear, and that made her laugh slightly for some reason. Apparently, fruit made her laugh now. Out of pure randomness Brooklyn squinted one of her eyes, and lifted a slender arm in the air. The motion of her fingers were clear that she was attempting to harb the cloud and smoosh it or something. Eventually she had lost interest, and let her arm fall back down onto the soft green ground. Well, that was her entertainment for the couple of seconds that the silence was held, and it was fun while it lasted. Now that she thought of it, she had never actually taken the time to look at clouds. In movies and such you always see couples or friends looking up at the clouds, and trying to discover what shapes they looked like, but oddly enough, she hadn't done that. Well, now that was changed. "I found a pear.." She said, looking up at the sky once again. She was never one to keep eye contact for a long period of time. A lot of the time, people ended up seeing the side of her face. She didn't care at this point. "Which also could be seen as Dr.Phil's head.." She said, pouting her bottom lip out slightly, raising her eyebrows and nodding as if in an agreeing motion. It was a wierd observation, but she had to point it out once she noticed it.

Eventually her thoughts would be interrupted and the moment came quickly. Not that she cared, the boy seemed to actually be able to hold a converstaion, so therefore she didn't mind. ”You think I have any better reasons to come out here?” Brooklyn nodded in agreement, not showing any specific facial expressions. "True, true." She said, a grin forming on her face as she soon quickly turned her head to rest on the grass, and face Kade directly. She was never one to stay in a specific place for a long period of time. Especially when it came to sitting. For some reason, she always had to change her position until the found the most comfortable one. People might get annoyed at that fact, but oncde again, she didn't care. Not that this position wasn't comfortable or anything, but it seemed that it would be more convenient if she reversed it. So that is exactly what she did. Brooklyn had not repositioned herself so that she was laying on her stomach, her arms curled up by her side, and she was still facing him. "All better." She said nuzzling her head into the grass playfully, as if it was a soft blanket. Oh what she would give to have her bed right now. It was so soft and comfortable and fluffy, and just all around amazing. Especially compared to the beds they give you here.

Another flirtacious remark exited the handome boy's lips. ”And what about you? You knew I was going to follow you, right?” Brooke nodded in agreement, as she pryed all the hair out of her face, and now it layed on the grass gently behind her. It was getting in the way, so she had to do what she had to do, right. She was all for the flirting, it came naturally to her aswell. It's like it was in her blood. Although most of the time, she was the girl that the boys had to chase after. She normally didn't give into anything so fast, and acted as though she wasn't impressed or anything. But this case was different. When it was someone older then her, everything changed. Unless they were nerdy or inexpirienced of course. But she had no doubts that this guy had been with many girls in his past, and knew all the right things to say. He probably knew all the tricks in the book. "Since your a counselor and everything.." She said, smiling innocently, or what seemed innocently at him. ".. Wanna go back and tell them I, like, died or something so they don't bother me anymore?" She asked with only a slight laugh escaping her lips once more. The question was somewhat sarcastic, but a lot of the counselors checked up on her frequently. "I think they think im going to kill someone or something." She said with a laugh, widening her eyes. She now covered her pocket jockingly, as if she were hiding a weapon in there.

[/center][/blockquote][/blockquote]

[kade trent.]

Kade Trent was the type of person that could often be compared to a locked box. It was something that was there, and something that often caught peoples’ interest because it was locked and they let their curiosity as to what lay inside the box get the best of them. They would stick around and try to figure out by picking at the lock or try to pry open the lid, but it would never work. Soon, most lost interest and moved on, still wanting to know what was inside of that damn box but thinking that it wasn’t worth the hassle. As the others moved on, there were still some that stuck around, waiting to see what this box had in store for them. Sometimes, the box would open up just a little, letting the people that stayed long enough see a hint of what actually lay beyond the lid. Then, there were a few that got the lock to loosen up and the lid came close to coming fully open, but it was never really completely opened. The key to the lock of this particular box only went got to a few very close people. The people that got to see Kade totally and completely without any kind of mask or walls put up between them could be counted on one hand. Maybe about three years back, it wouldn’t have been like that. Kade hadn’t always been the most trusting guy in the world, and he kept his circle of friends limited for that reason. But, after his brother had died, he became even less trusting than before, really limiting the number of people he allowed to have this theoretical key. Sure, Kade would laugh and play and flirt, and he really meant it most of the time and was enjoying himself, but it was all part of that mask that went on to keep people looking at one thing while they remained totally clueless about the other. He wanted people to see the fun side, the wild side of him that everyone seemed to like and fall for. The other side wasn’t nearly as fun, and it was a side that Kade didn’t like so much himself. But, it was there, and he didn’t know how he supposed to get rid of it rather than pretending, like he so often did, that it wasn’t there at all. That was the part that was kept locked up in that box, and even he didn’t like holding the key to it.

It seemed to reason that with Kade being as untrusting as he was of just about everything in his life these days that he would also be highly observant, always watching and trying to find a reason for his distrust, and also looking for a reason to trust in something. This was true, but Kade had always been observant, enjoying sitting back and watching things happen just as much as he liked being a part of it. His hazel stare was intense at times, him often able to see what a lot of other people wouldn’t. It was an odd ability, but one that he had seemed to possess since early childhood. Then, he hadn’t really paid much attention to it, thinking that it wasn’t anything special. Now, he still didn’t pay a lot of attention to it and didn’t really think it was something special, but he knew that he somehow caught onto the little things that most people either missed completely or chose to ignore. Like emotions. Some people were like him when it came to hiding their emotions. They didn’t want anyone to see, and they never voiced them, but Kade could see them as if they were written clearly across the person’s face. At times, it was a good thing because he was able to better understand what a person was going through, but then other times it seemed like a curse when he saw something but couldn’t figure out the meaning, or why it had been there. But, whether it was a gift or a curse didn’t matter. It was something that he could do, and it wasn’t something that he could ignore. As he sat there, watching Brooklyn as she tried to call a squirrel over to her, he was convinced more than before that there was a lot more to this girl that meets the eye, and a lot more than what most of the other campers were giving her credit for. The little creature that she was attempting to call seemed oblivious to her attempts and quickly found its way up a tree. Kade’s hazel eyes flicked back to her just in time to see her scrunch up her face for a moment. Then, she allowed herself to lay back in the grass with a sigh, his eyes still watching. He chuckled at her accusing the poor squirrel of being rude. Squirrels and Kade hadn’t always gotten along. It was a long story, but from his experience from that one time in North Carolina left him with the impression that Brooklyn should be glad the weird little rodent hadn’t joined her as she called.

It was almost odd at how comfortable this felt, just lying back in the grass with this girl that he hardly knew. But only almost. Kade was used to being around people that he didn’t know and making the best of it. When he had first arrived at this camp, he hadn’t known anyone. Now, it seemed that people were always wanting to get to know him and he had like, a million friends. Okay, so maybe not a million, but you get the drift. While Kade was willing to talk and joke around, he was still like that locked box. Most people here at the camp were content to just see the outside, and none had tried too hard to see what was on the inside. Even when the campers started asking random questions and one hit too close to home, Kade was either able to come up with a false answer that seemed true enough to satisfy the one who had asked, or was able to avoid answering completely by offering up one his smart ass remarks that seemed to come naturally to him with little thought. There was no pressure, and that’s what made sitting there by that little creek with Brooklyn so comfortable. There was no pressure to be one way or another. They both seemed content to let their minds wonder in the silences that fell between them, not feeling awkward or uncomfortable in the slightest. Brooklyn seemed content to let her blue eyes gaze up that the clouds, which caused Kade to tip his head slightly, his eyes lingering on the passing shapes of the clouds above them for a few moments. Kade had never been one that took the time to watch the clouds and try to make shapes out of them. He was sure that he had probably had the time and the opportunity before, but it had never really crossed his mind to actually do it. Maybe had he been here on his own he would have taken more time to see what he could make of these clouds, but he wasn’t alone. Brooklyn was there, and she had just picked her arm up, taking Kade’s gaze away from the clouds as he watched this movement. For some reason, it seemed endearing, something that made him like her character and personality more, even though he knew very little about her at this point. ”I found a pear.” So that sort of explained what she had been trying to do. ”Which also could be seen as Dr. Phil’s head.” Kade had never paid much attention to the shape of Dr. Phil’s head, but if Brooklyn said so, then okay. It was a random observation for her to make, but there wasn’t anything wrong with random.

”True, true.” Her response to his questioning came easily, a grin forming on her lips as she turned her head to face Kade. Then, it seemed that she became restless, needing to move and change how she was positioned in the grass. After all her movement was over, she was lying on her stomach, still facing him. ”All better.” Kade usually wasn’t one to sit in one position himself, often needing to either move around or get up and do something rather just sit still, but he didn’t feel that way at the moment. He was good where and how he was positioned, no need to move around just yet. As his suggestion about why she herself was out here at the Homestead Creek fell upon her ears, Kade saw her nod in agreement as she moved her hair away from her face. ”See, I knew it.” He hadn’t even known that she was out here, but that didn’t really matter at this point. Both of them knew that he hadn’t just come out here because he knew she was out here, and she hadn’t come just so he could follow her, but why bring the truth in and ruin all their fun? Hazel eyes still watched her closely, not in the weird staring way, but in the observant way that was typical of Kade. A seemingly innocent smile pulled up the corner’s of Brooklyn’s lips, and immediately had Kade wondering just what she was going to say. He didn’t have to wait long. Her request seemed really out there. Most of the campers were asking for extra pillows or more free time or longer showers. This was the first request that Kade had gotten about reporting death. He could hear the sarcasm in her voice, but Kade could understand why she would throw in that, ”so they don’t bother me anymore,” bit. The other counselors here did seem to check up on her a lot more than they did the other campers, but Kade really didn’t know why. He mostly stayed out of it, thinking that if they wanted him to know then they would share the information. He was a counselor, yes, but the others were catching on to the fact that the campers were befriending him rather than fearing him as a higher authority figure. They knew that while most of the campers respected him as such, Kade wasn’t the one to go to with things like this when it came to the campers that were close to his own age. So, he knew that they checked up on Brooklyn. He just didn’t know why, but the why didn’t really matter. Being checked up on, no matter what the reason, could be annoying as hell.

”I could do that, but that would probably reflect badly on me for losing a camper. Not to mention that I would probably get called up as a suspect for playing a part in your death or escape, and I really don’t need that going on my record.” God no, nothing else needed to be on his record. Not with all the thefts and the drug use and the underage drinking and, well, the list continued. His record might not as impressive as some, but had made him quite the marvel back in his hometown. Kade have very few regrets in his life, and the things on that record weren’t them. Even so, he didn’t need suspected murder added onto it. Or the assisting of a runaway. The last part of what she said was what was sticking to his mind, though. ”I think they think I’m going to kill someone or something.” Part of him wanted to ask why in the world would the other counselors be thinking that, but that would be like trying to pry open the lid of that locked box when it didn’t want to budge. Or maybe it did want to budge in Brooklyn’s case, but Kade wasn’t about to go there himself, seeing as he knew how frustrating it was to have someone ask something personal when they really had no right to. ”And you don‘t seem much like the murdering type to me,” he commented, tilting his head to the side slightly. Then a sly grin came to his lips. ”But that’s part of the plan, right? You’re just waiting for the moment when you can jump me and cut my throat?” Such a morbid picture, but Kade was still grinning, teasing and playing, choosing not to let the conversation get too serious unless Brooklyn wanted it that way. After all, he was the counselor. If she wanted to talk, he would gladly listen, but until then, he was more than fine with the playfulness that seemed to be a constant between them.

[brooklyn mckenzie !]

Brooklyn couldn't help but try to figure this guy out. She always felt that everybody in the world was hiding something. Obviously some secrets were worse then others, and some should probably never be revealed. Other's she knew that people were dying to tell their secrets, they were just to worried about what everybody would think, and fear of rejection. As her blue eyes gazed into his, she wondered how many things in his life that he could be hiding from everyone here. To her, it seemed as if there was a lot to him. He just had that vibe about him. Also, this place isn't the normal hot spot for guys. A lot of them were most likely at the beach trying to hit one some of the girls, and failing miserably. But a place like this always seemed to attract people whom care more about the whole camp expirience. People that have more imprtant things to worry or think about. Her eyes were glazed over with curiosity. There was a slight chance that Kade might have thought that she was staring at him admiringly, unless he could tell by the look in her eyes. It was obvious to people to who tell, that she wasn't being creepy or anything. Brooklyn was actually into people with flaws or hidden things, that take a while to find out. She, herself, hid a lot of things from pretty much everyone in her life. There has never yet been an occasion where she had found someone that could completely understand her or been in similar situations as her. If they had, then she could be really interested. In hearing their stories, and as them as people. To her, people who have hardly expirienced anything in their lives, is really a total bore. They have nothing to them other then what's on the outside.

As she was deep in her own thoughts she didn't notice that a bug had crawled onto her arm. It wasn't a small little black thing, it was way more disgusting. It was large, had huge antenna's and it was more of a brown color. She wasnt into bugs or anything like that, so she obviously wouldn't have a clue in which type of bug this was. All she knew, was that it was extremely gross and definately not what she wanted while laying here. Her blue eys widened as she glances down at the very disgusting creature crawling on her slender arm. Immediately, she couldn't help but freak out. She hated bugs with a passion. Almost at the top of her list of things that she hated. Although most of the other things on the list, were certain types of people and such. She flicked her arm continously while squealing quietly. Man, how that disturbed her. She didn't know where the little guy landed, so she stood up faster then most times and jumped around in the spot. Brooklyn then flew her hair around in all directions, shaking it like mad. There was a lot of hair there, and it could be hiding anywhere. Nasty thoughts, nasty thought. Once she was semi-sure that the bug had retreated and probably had a heart attack, and lowered her arms in a reassuring moment, with a quiet sigh. Soon enough, her arms were back up in the air, directed out at both sides as if she was in an airport, her eyes were still widened. "Scan." She said blankly. Yes, she meant she wanted him to make sure that the bug wasn't anywhere on her. She didn't care if some other girls would feel objectified for a guy to look everywhere, but she wasn't that way. She didn't care if people looked at her in that way, especially when it came to looking for a bug. So he'd better do a good job.

Brooklyn didn't feel like sitting on the grass once more, after that whole situation. What a conundrum she was in. She'd find somewhere to sit eventually, but for now it didn't mattter. After all was done she listened to the boy speaking once more. See, I knew it." Brooklyn didn't say anything at the moment. She wasn't one of those people who really cared about making sure to say something at every moment in time. the slinences between the two of them was kind of reassuring. She felt like she didn't have to say anything at all time in order to keep him interested, but she obviously wouldn't keep ignoring him. A conversation would be needed and she was definately willing to. She did wonder though, how things would work out afterwards. I mean, if they were to become friends here, could it be awkward seeing as he worked at the camp? Other workers here could soon become suspicious, or what if somebody neared them at the moment, im sure it looked a bit odd right now. "If another councelor came her right now, they would be suspicious you know." She said, raising her eyebrows slightly. "I mean, you pretty much just checked me out." She declared putting her hands on her hips now. It only looked that was because she forced him too, but that was beside the point, and she wasn't going to get mad at him or anything.

”I could do that, but that would probably reflect badly on me for losing a camper. Not to mention that I would probably get called up as a suspect for playing a part in your death or escape, and I really don’t need that going on my record.” Brooklyn nodded in agreement. it would look awfully suspicious that he seemed to be the only one to know that the girl went missing, yet he had no excuse for her death. She wasn't actually serious about the plan, whic she was certain he knew, but whatever. [b"Fine."

[/b] She stated back to the boy, now crossing her arms, and tilting her head to rest on his arm as if she was mad at him, only jokingly of course. ”And you don‘t seem much like the murdering type to me,” Brooklyn's eyes soon looked as if they were full of mysterym which was what she was going for at the moment. "I also don't seem to be the type of person to be here, now do I." She stated, as if she was actually a murderer. A grin couldn't be stopped, and was immediately formed on her face. Cutting the throat would definately be a painful death, but if she was a serial killer she'd go for something more intense. "No, actually that wasn't in my plan." She said, shaking her head slightly, crossing her arms once more. She took a step closer to him, and her blue eyes looked up at him, staring at him for a couple minutes. Slowly, she began to speak again as their bodies were nearly touching. "I guess you'll find out." Is what she said, turning her face only slightly.
[/size][/center][/blockquote][/blockquote][/left]

[kade trent.]

There were times when Kade wondered why it was that people were so fascinated with other people’s secrets. He could understand when it was just a few people that had found out something about someone, but then pretty soon everyone knew and it wasn’t a secret anymore. It was public knowledge, something that got to be the main subject of a gossip mill for a little while. Why was that so impressive? It wasn’t like he was meaning that he was any different, because he wasn’t. While he didn’t agree with the idea of gossiping, he was just like everyone else that he liked to try and figure out what it was that people were hiding. He wouldn’t purposefully dig around for the information unless it was something that he felt really needed to be uncovered, but if it was willingly told to him he wouldn’t object to listening. It was just that he wondered why we as people seemed to get so caught up in things like secrets. And keeping secrets often turned to telling lies to keep those secrets safe. Then, it was just one thing after another and it all started to pile up. The downward spiral was set in motion, and would only end when the secret was revealed or the secret keeper did something to turn all the negativity into something positive and turned the spiral around. Kade didn’t really have secrets. He just had a lot of things that he would much rather the people here at this camp not know about. He thought that he had a pretty good idea of what the campers would start saying, because he had heard it all back in high school when his life had started to go down in that spiral and then hit rock bottom. They already talked about how he seemed like he had the real potential to be a little wild and often joined right in with his trouble making campers in the Yellowstone cabin instead of enforcing the rules of the camp. If people knew what had happened to Kade in the past few years and about how he had been raised before then, they would understand and wouldn’t have much reason to talk. That might make it seem easier to just let his past become public knowledge, but that just wasn’t going to happen. There was no way in hell that he was going to pour out every detail of his life just to satisfy some campers’ curiosity. Kade was entirely too stubborn and too prideful for that.

There was a moment there with Brooklyn that he could almost feel her trying to pry open the lid to the box, wondering what was lying beneath the surface. He could see the difference in how she looked at him, her blues eyes meeting his hazel ones. Kade wondered what it was that she would think if she got a real good look inside to see what it was like there, to see what all had been damaged and what he had done as a result. There was a part of him that saw her as the type that would be understanding and not write him off as a head case with a serious problem. If the rumors that he had heard were right, they really did have more in common than what they had found out on their own so far. Brooklyn might be the one that understands better than anyone, but because what Kade had heard was just rumors from some little camper that he had barely taken notice of, he didn’t dare rely on that information. Besides, even if he did have an idea of what type of person she was beyond what little of her had had actually seen at this point, he wouldn’t just start telling her his life story. For that, Kade had to really trust in the person that he was telling, and have a good reason for them to know. All his contemplation over this matter ended very abruptly when Brooklyn’s piercing blue gaze shifted from his own and down to her arm. His eyes followed instinctively, and he saw what had distracted her. Kade saw some sort of ungodly looking bug crawling on her arm. Hm, he wondered how that was going to over with her. Had the bug been on him, he would have just used his hand to flick it away, and that would have been the end of it. Kade didn’t like bugs, but no one likes them, really. Girls, though, seemed to have an extremely low tolerance of them. Kade was only like that with spiders, and he wasn’t even all that bad with them. He started laughing lightly as she flicked her arm and squealed, finding it purely amusing. The bug was gone within the first few flicks, but that didn’t seem to help her any. Brooklyn was on her feet before Kade could even say a word, and was doing some hopping to try and make sure that the bug was gone, he guessed. And as you can guess, he found this even more entertaining than her flicking her arm. It might not be nice of him to laugh when she was so clearly in distress over this bug, but Kade had always been the type to laugh first, ask if you’re okay later.

”Scan.” Kade was still laughing lightly when the word came through her lips. He thought about telling her that there was no way that the bug was still on her after that little dance that she had done, but he knew that it wouldn’t be enough to just hear it. She would want him to look her over and make sure that the disgusting little thing was gone for good. Plus, what guy would really turn down an invitation to do something like this for a girl like her? Not one in his right mind, that was for sure. Kade’s laughter almost subsided, he gave a sigh and got up from where he had been lying in the grass, brushing a few blades from his arm and clothing as he did. Then, he walked over to where Brooklyn and stopped, grinning as he hazel eyes moved over body. Yeah, he looked for the bug that he already knew wasn’t there, but he couldn’t help but to notice that the girl’s body didn’t seem to have a single flaw as he walked around her. He stopped standing a few feet in front of her, one hand resting in the front pocket of his jeans. ”No bug, you’re good,” he told her, an amused grin still on his lips. He would have never expected something like that out of her for some reason, but it was another one of those little endearing things that made him like her even more, made her seem more human and not so much of a stranger. ”If another counselor came here right now, they would be suspicious you know. I mean, you pretty much just checked me out.” A brow raised and her hands came to her hips. Kade smirked. Now, did she really think that he had been able to check for that damn bug without checking her out? ”If another counselor came, I’d tell them the truth, that I was just checking you for bugs.” He looked around, as if double checking to make sure that they were alone, but already knowing that they were. His hazel gaze came back to Brook, smirk still playing on his lips. ”Seeing as there are no other counselors here, I’m going to tell you the truth by saying, yeah, maybe I did check you a little. It was hard not too.” Just a little, huh? Yeah, well, as he told her it was hard not to look at her in an admiring way. The girl had to know that she had a great body, didn’t she? No guy was immune to that sort of thing. Well, maybe if he was gay, but that was beside the point. So it was totally going against camp rules to look at her in that way and even more against them to tell her and flirt with her, but at the moment, Kade was ignoring all those rules as he broke them.

She seemed to accept that he couldn’t help her escape the overprotective veil of the other counselors, but pretending to pout at him and be mad at him for it. Kade could tell that she was just joking, and it was yet another one of those little endearing things about her. He liked a girl that could joke around, goof off, and have some fun without having to be all serious about everything all the time. Those type were just dull. Kade didn’t like dull. So far, Brooklyn was anything but. ”I also don’t seem the type of person to be here, now do I.” No, no she didn’t. Kade had always thought that she didn’t seem like a summer camp would be her first choice of summer activities, just as it wasn’t his, but he hadn’t given a lot of thought to it. The little grin on her face took away from the idea that she could actually be a murderer of any sort, though, but her efforts of being mysterious had been pretty good, Kade would give her that. “No, actually that wasn’t in my plan.“ She took a step closer to him, silence falling over them for a few minutes as they looked to one another, her having to look up because of the few inches in height he had on her. They were so close that they were nearly touching, Kade just that much short of being able to feel the warmth of her skin. Damn. ”I guess you’ll find out.” Wait, find out what? Oh right, her plan. He thought about that for a moment before speaking. ”So when do I get to find out what this plan of yours involves? he asked, really having to fight the temptation presented to him by just how close they were standing. ”If it involves me, I have a right to know, don’t I?” Of course he did, at least, he should. Though, when it came to murder plans, the victim was usually the last to know about it. But, who said any of her plans had anything to do with murder? Or him, for that matter. That last part was something that he didn’t really think about, but he did allow himself to maybe wonder about other plans that might have formulated in her mind, or if they were there at all.

[brooklyn mckenzie !]

In the midst of Brooklyns acts of pleading for the bug to be gone, she really forgot he was there for a moment. She was so caught up in getting that thing off of her that she'd jump up and down in the exact same matter even if the queen of England was there. Soon enough, she was reminded that he was there because a laugh escaped his lips. This forced a fragile smile to form on her face. She was definately the type of person that was able to laugh at herself, and she truly never got embarrased. She could take anything someone said and try to at least turn it onto something not as harsh, or say something nasty and rude back to them. She has been known to throw some really rude remarks around, and cuss some people out, but that doesn't mean she is a mean person in general. If it came down to a situtation where she felt like it was needed, then she would do so. Although, other times she just really isn't in the mood to take anyone's crap, and sometimes doesn't really realize what she is doing or saying. Those are the times where she normally does stuff that one should regret afterwards, but that aswell doesn't happen to her. Those were some things that she actually liked about herself. She was more then just a pretty face, and that's exactly what she liked about other people too. Of course, their looks first get everybody noticed, but afterwards it really is all about what their story is etc. Of course, if she couldn't stand to look at them, then that would be a different story. She was never really put into those situations where a really treterous looking person had tryed to hit on her. There were on occasion gross creepy people, but it seemed all the other one's were to shy. Brooke was indeed attracted to quiet people, that seemed to be hiding something, but it's not the same in all situations. Different people all have different ways to live life, and she was really intrigued by everyone with interest to them.

Brooklyn was relived that the boy had actually decided to scan her over. If he didn't then she would most likely still feel the bug crawling on her. It's just something that she had to get out of the way, and she thanked God that he decided to. Brooklyn made sure to stay still as he looked her up and down. She could also tell that he wasn't just looking for the bug. He obviously was looking at her body, in which she was actually really proud of. She tryed to work really hard to maintain it, because she knew it was good, and at least she wasn't insecure about it or anything. A grin played across her face, as he soon revolved completely around the girl and was now back in front of her. Brooke let her arms fall back to her side, and grabbed all of her hair in one hand, finally resting it on one shoulder. She did seem to have a habit of playing with her hair a lot. It was just o long and out there, it was hard not to. Whether it was running her fingers through it, or twirling it around her finger, she did it. Sometimes it would suck, becuase it would cause it to get greasy faster. Brooklyn had always been a really clean person and normally took two showers a day, unless she was super busy. When she was here, she lowered it to one a day, because well, the showers were pretty gross here. The boy began to spoke again, and she darted her bright eyes immediately in his direction. ”If another counselor came, I’d tell them the truth, that I was just checking you for bugs.” She nodded, raising her eyebrows only slightly in an agreeing manner. "Mkay.." She said, knowing that he wasn't yet finished his statment. "”Seeing as there are no other counselors here, I’m going to tell you the truth by saying, yeah, maybe I did check you a little. It was hard not too.” Now a satified smirk settled on Brooklyn's face. She loved hearing stuff like that, even if she could tell he was doing so in the first place. "Oh really.." She said letting her hands slide from the top of her hips to the bottom of her shirt. She began to lift it up in a very slow manner while keeping eye contact, a mischevious smirk writtten all over her face. Of course, she didn't take her actualy shirt off she had only lifted it above her belly button, maybe just to drive him crazy. "I don't see why it was hard to." She said, shrugging with a pouted bottom lip slightly. It was all an act, of course. But it was dang fun.

As the two of them were now nearly touching, Brooklyn was still looking up directly at the older boy. It almost seemed as if he believed that she was really going to kill her, although she obviously knew that he thought otherwise. "”So when do I get to find out what this plan of yours involves? Brooklyn only shook her head, feeling that words weren't necessary at the moment. Kade had continued to speak but at his point she only looked into his eyes, hoping to snap him out of speaking. It seemed to have not been working at first, so she raised a finger, pressing it gently against his now closed lips. "Too much talking." She said, a small laugh coming from her mouth once again. She loved having the whole mysterious side to her. Aswell, as seductive. Sometimes she could be downright flirty, but other times it all changed to a more seductive sexy side of her, which she definately found more fun and worth while. A lot of the time it drove the opposite gender wild and always came back wanting more, while others most likely got very annoyed with her, but didn't show it.

This was now when Brooklyn walked away slowly, turning her head and keeping the eye contact until her head was turned around completely, and examined the area that she was surrounding her. It really was pretty, but not something she could spend days and days at. The only place that she could succed in doing that, was the beach. She loved to take her dog, Monroe there. And yes, the husky with two different colored eyes, is named after Marilyn Monroe. If you didn't already guess you would have noticed that she adores the late Marilyn Monroe. She had the lovely tattoo on her lower arm, and named her dog after her. When Brooklyn was younger and lived with her parents still, she was pretty much taken away with Marilyn. She was so pretty, and seemed to handle everything so well. Especially the things they said. They always meant something really special to her. After Marilyn had died, her mom said that whenever she heard her voice, Brooklyn would break down and cry. It was a really good memory to have, because it was one of her strongest and meant a whole lot to her. Whenever she looked at her lower arm, she remembered those times. The times she loved. The times she missed. All of her tattoo's meant something. Brooklyn always found it stupid that people got tattoo's mearly because they looked cool. Most of hers represented people that meant a lot to her. Only three of her tattoo's were based on stuff that she personally enjoyed. The star and moon, the waves, and the strength symbol on the back of her neck. Those were for her only, and truthfully she adored them.

[/left][/blockquote][/blockquote]

[kade trent.]

Kade was more than certain that he was supposed to be somewhere other than he was, doing something other than what he was doing. Mealtime back at the Cyprus Hall was probably either already over or getting very close to it, and he was supposed to be watching over his campers and making sure they got to their next activity on time and safely and all that jazz. What had he been thinking when he had talked himself into believing that he really wasn’t needed. Of course, the other counselors could do his job for a little while; it wouldn’t be hard at all and anyone could do it. But, it was the fact that they were his campers, and therefore his responsibility. At the moment, the other counselors were probably starting to realize that Kade wasn’t there in the hall at all. They would ask a camper or two if they had seen him, and they would all reply no, that they hadn’t seen him there at all. Then, the counselors would realize that he hadn’t been there and had skipped out on the meal all together. None of them would know where he had gone to, and they would either choose not to care or try to figure out where the hell he had went. Kade really hoped that they opted for the first option rather than the second. The last thing that he wanted was people trying to hunt him down like they were on a fox hunt, and he was the fox. Kade knew that no matter which course of action they decided to take, he was going to hear about not being there when he did finally decide to show up again. There would no doubt be a lecture about responsibility, and then he would be told that the next time he was taking a brief period of absence that he would need to let someone know where he was going and when he planned on being back. Life as a counselor sounds great, doesn’t it? Kade knew that he would be there, pretending to listen and nodding his head a long to the monotonous hum of the an older staff member’s voice, adding a few, “I understand,” and “Of course, it won’t happen again,” statements in there to put on the show that he was paying attention and taking it very seriously when he really wasn’t at all.

This job had in no way been his first choice of things to do this summer. It hadn’t even made the top ten list. Kade would much rather be down in North Carolina with his uncle, or out in California with his other uncle, aunt, and cousins. Heading down to Mexico to spend the summer with yet another aunt of his and his relatives there would have been great. Hell, even going to Florida to spend the summer with his aunt and cousins that he absolutely could not stand would have made the list over being there at Camp Brunswick. But, out of all the relatives that he had, Kade had ended up with his Aunt Jenny and Uncle Joe that lived in Maine. While he did love these members of his family, they were in good standings with his parents and they enforced his parents’ rules on him while he was there. Growing up, Kade would have heard that last sentence and scoffed, asking, “What rules?” His parents had always been very lenient with him and his brothers growing up. They had taken the parenting route of letting their children make their own mistakes and learn from them. Marion and Robert Trent hardly ever interfered with the doings of their sons, and what rules there were, such as curfews, were always fair and often times lightly enforced. They were just the cool parents that all of Kade’s friends loved. After the death of the middle Trent brother, Jared, there had been zero rules at all, seeing as the whole family had been shattered by the loss. Kade and his baby brother, Hunter, could have gotten away with anything, and Kade took advantage of that. Not purposefully, of course, but he reacted to his brother’s death by pretty much falling into the deep end and losing who he really was for a while. He fell into the wrong crowds and got caught doing a lot of the wrong things. He was brought home by the police several times, and even held at the station one time after several of these incidents. Each time, his mother would just offer a sad, small smile and make the excuse for him that he was going through a hard time, but she and her husband never cracked down on them themselves, not having the heart or the strength to do so.

Life in the Trent household went on that way for the next year, almost two years. The family was still broken, moving through the motions of life but still mostly numb to it all. But there was one thing that Kade absolutely could not stand about the situation, and that was how his father had responded to it. While Hunter, Kade, and Marion made the best of it, Robert retreated into alcoholism to cure his pain from the loss of his middle son. He did nothing to help his wife or his two remaining sons who were all hurting, but dealing with it as they could. There came a day when Kade got tired of having to be the one that took care of it all, and he confronted his father about his drinking, but only in not such a nice way. Kade could have been more graceful about it, and he could have worded things a little differently, but at the time he was just so mad that he went off. The end result was an all out fist fight between him and his own father, who was drunk even then in the early morning and ended up being pinned to a wall by his son. Since then, Kade and his father haven’t spoken a word to one another, though Robert sends his love in the form of speaking to his brother, Joe, and making sure that Kade’s life is pretty well miserable while he’s in Maine. Joe sympathizes with Kade a lot, but there’s something about the Trents and the bond that was formed among the brothers of the family. You respect the other’s wishes, and you do it without questions asked. Kade had that with both of his brothers while both were still alive, and he still had that with his youngest. He just wished that the bond were a little more strained between his father and uncles. Kade had ended up in this camp this summer because of his father’s new rules. Kade had no doubt in his mind that Robert had somehow found this camp and made sure that Kade got the job as counselor there, and then instructed his brother to make Kade go and to go further and say that if Kade came home early, the car that had come into his possession from his father would be taken back, and he wouldn’t be staying with his Aunt Jenny and Uncle Joe, but would be going back to Seattle. Kade was nineteen and he could do whatever he pleased, but with no money and no car, he had no alternatives. Robert knew that his son was under his thumb, and Kade knew it too. It was a fact that he hated more than anything, but it was still a fact. Going back to Seattle, though, was something Kade was not willing to do. He would stay at this camp, and would finish the summer, and then he was out of Maine and on to where he could start his own life without the bastard that is his father running it. Yes, Kade was pushing the rules of this camp to their breaking point, letting the members of his cabin sleep late and have parties and doing whatever the hell they pleased, but he was good at covering it up and good at making sure that no one, including himself, got caught.

This, him pulling his disappearing act, would really be his first offense, if it would even count as one. Though, if the camp officials knew what he was doing while on this little break, he was sure that it would count as something with a much higher punishment. But, they weren’t going to get caught. He and Brooklyn were perfectly concealed back by this little creek, and it wasn’t like they were doing anything that couldn’t easily be covered itself. Keeping his job here at Camp Brunswick was very important to him, but Kade wasn’t one that liked rules all that much. While this was one that would surely send him back home to Seattle if he got caught breaking it, it was one that he was willing to test when he was sure that no one was around to recount his actions to a higher camp authority. Brooklyn knew the consequences as well, and Kade was trusting her not to let this one slip, because not only would he be in trouble, but she would be as well. Of course, she could set it up to where it would all seem to be Kade’s fault, but he didn’t see that in her. Maybe she could be bitchy when she wanted to be, but he didn’t see her turning this on him when they were both at fault. Maybe giving her that much trust was a mistake, he didn’t know, but he was going to take that chance, just playing a little and enjoying their flirtatious moments until he knew her better. Then, well, they would have to wait and see, he guessed. Now though, all of these thoughts were far from his mind. Yeah, he had other places that he should be, but why leave when he was enjoying his company here? The tease that she gave by lifting her shirt to show her belly button was enough to push Kade close to that edge, him knowing better than to expect her to really go all the way and pull her shirt off, but at the same time wanting it. There were girls that were expert flirts, but they really didn’t have the experience beyond that. There was very little doubt in Kade’s mind that it was like that with Brooklyn. The girl knew what she was doing, and that was something that Kade could work with just fine. Ha, listen to that. This girl was off limits by the rules his future balanced on, and yet he was still playing the flirting game and letting his mind think ahead to what could possibly happen in the future between them. If anything.

As Kade had wondered out loud as to what this plan of Brooklyn’s might be, he got the idea that she was wanting him to stop talking, but by the time that he realized it, his words had already been said, spoken and unable to be taken back. Her finger came to press lightly against his lips, a touch that he hadn’t been expecting at all, but one that was in no way unwelcome. ”Too much talking.” A small laugh accompanied her words, and Kade could see the switch from a fun, flirty Brooklyn to a sexy, seductive Brooklyn take place before his hazel eyes. Fun and flirty was, well, fun. Kade liked it because he could make jokes and laugh and just fall into that scene comfortably. But sexy and seductive was always better, him able to adapt to that just as easily was the other. Brooklyn then took a step away from him, and then another, her eyes staying on his until she turned her head around completely. Quite the little tease, wasn’t she? Kade was getting sucked into it more and more, he could feel it, but the thing was that he was not accustomed to stopping, and in this situation he really should. The saying, however, says that old habits die hard, and this was one that Kade was sure followed that philosophy. It wasn’t just the fact that Brooklyn was sexy and seductive and beautiful, though. It was all of that, plus the little endearing things, plus the fact that Kade was able to see more to her than what he knew so far that made him so drawn in. What the hell. Kade would throw caution to the wind, forget their counselor/camper statuses, and take a few steps forward to fall in beside of Brooklyn, which is exactly what he did. He let his hazel eyes gaze at her gorgeous face for a moment, then he let his eyes fall to her slender arm where he had noticed a tattoo before, but hadn’t really taken time to see what it was. Now, he reached out and gently took her arm in his hand, her skin warm and soft beneath his fingertips as he turned her arm over, seeing now that it was a tattoo of Marilyn Monroe. A grin, much softer than the ones from before, came to his lips as he glanced up at Brooklyn, still holding her arm gingerly in his hand. ”I’m guessing you’re a fan,” he said, his voice also having a softer tone to it, though no doubt still playful. Of course she was a fan. If she wasn’t, she wouldn’t have the woman on her arm. It was a different tattoo to have, but it was apparently of some meaning to Brooklyn, otherwise she wouldn’t have it. You don’t put a tattoo of Marilyn Monroe on your arm for no reason at all.

[brooklyn mckenzie !]

Brooklyn too had events and activities that she was supposed to be at right now. She had never really paid attention to her schedule, once they handed it to her as soon as she arrived she threw it in the garbage can. That was mostly because at that point she was really bitter about getting sent here without wanting to, for her third year in a row. When she is forced to do something that she doesn't want to do, she'll either try to do everything wrong just to annoy the people who made her do it in the first place, or not do anything at all. A lot of the time people will get angry at her or yell or something, but she will mearly sit there and take what they have to say, as they waste their time. Yesterday she had slept in until three o'clock in the afternoon. It does seem all a bit extreme to sleep in until the early evening, but she hadn't got any sleep the night before, she she had good reasoning for it. It was kind of wierd how she could go without eating for a long period of time. Some days she could eat and eat and eat all day, and never get full. After that, she wasn't hungry until around two days later, where she would eat something small and be full once again. It was definately odd, but it was never something she cared to pay that much attention to because it was obviously not anything serious, such as a medical condition. If it was, she was dealing with it just fine and she sure didn't feel like she was dying. And in the end, that's all that matters to her. As she was thinking about where she had to be at the moment, it clicked into her brain that he had more important places to be. He was actually been paid to work here and watch over campers. Well he was definately watching one in particular at the moment, but I don't think that is considered the same thing as what he is paid to do. She really didn't mind though. They seemed to be connecting even though they weren't actually speaking to each other all of the time they were here. It felt nice not to worry about pointless things like that, and it was rare to come across someone so alike yet had potential to be so different. If, in the end, they did get caught, Brooklyn wouldn't take a second to think about her action. It was like her instinct to take the blame, because she was so used to it. She would always make up some believable excuse about falling down the hill in heels or something, because she normally was quite a good liar. That's normally not a good thing, but it can be in some situations.

She always felt as though her mission was complete once she did the walking away scene. If the boy followed, then he was obviously into her. If he said something along the line's of him having to leave them he wasn't interested. Brooklyn knew all about guys, although not exactly everything. She did however know all the little tricks to make them go crazy. Through all her years of expirience she did learn that a lot of boys had different ways of going insane. Some can melt just from the girl running her hands through her hair, and watching the strands falling back into place perfectly. Other's it took some more work. She actually had to put some sort of an effort into it. Either way, she had a heck of a lot of fun doing it, and she knew the boys most likely found some entertainment in it. By the look on his face as she had lifted her shirt slowly, she got some sort of idea. Kade was obviously intrigued by her body, and found some interest in it because he soon followed behind her. Sweet victory. She loved when she had hardly put any effort into seducing someone into her little mindgames. Especially with Kade for some reason. He actually seemed like he would be worth pursuing, like he wouldn't be dissapointing in the long run. She had seen him around before, but this was the first time they had actually had a conversation, so it did seem wierd she was thinking about the future that the two of them could potentially have. She had some free time, so why not. They were alike, quite alike. They both seemed to have those rough edges to them, like they didn't care about anything else in the world right now. They were carefree and daring, and together the chemisty was unstoppable. Whether it would lead to anything or not, them definately had somethin going on for them.

Something now came that Brooklyn wasn't really expecting. She felt his hands grasp onto her arm, and turn it over. At first she was confused by his actions, forgetting about the tattoo for only a couple seconds. Eventually she had remembered as she glanced from his eyes down his arm, and then to her ink'd skin, of the deceased beauty's face. She loved that tattoo a lot, becuase it was pretty unique and also had that awesome meaning to it. She smiled after she had heard what the boy had said. Well, obviously she was a fan, but he knew that already. It would be stupid to get a tattoo of her face, without even having a care in the world about the woman. "Yeah, since I was a baby." She said, her voice now softer then before, as her blue eye's shot back at his hazel eyes once more. She missed those days a lot when her and her mom would watch those old black and white movies, and admire everything about them. Sometimes they would dress up as they did, or talk the way they did, just have those days where nothing else mattered in the world, but their fantasies and their fun. "Hollywood is a place where they will pay you a thousand dollars for a kiss, and fifty cents for your soul." She said, quoting her absolute favourite quote of all time, that happened to be from the lady on her arm. The sad thing about it was that it was actually true in a lot of situations. Like in everyday life even. Boys would do anything to sleep with the 'hot' girl, and do absolutely nothing to actually give a crap about who they are as people. It was so accurate, and she loved it dearly. Brooklyn was so passionate about her tattoo's. If anyone asked, she would gladly show them all. Even if some were hard to see at the moment, she really didn't care. She was proud, and she would show. Her arm was still resting in the soft surface of his hand, as she dug her free hand into her front pocket.

- meh, kind of sucky, im tired haha -

[/left][/size]

[kade trent.]

There was probably some great significance to the simple action of Brooklyn walking away, and Kade following. Actually, he was more than sure that it was there, that him following her to where they now stood was a way of practically screaming that she had him hooked, that he was interested and this was her proof. Kade knew the action well, and was surprised that he hadn’t thought about it sooner, but any man’s judgment would be clouded with a girl like Brooklyn being the one pulling the strings. All she would have had to done, though, was ask. Kade was not shy about that sort of thing, always being the one to tell a girl what he thought of her without holding back. Of course she had caught his eye the first time that he had seen her. Yes, he was most certainly flirting with her on purpose and not doing it out of habit. But, where was the fun in asking and telling, right? Why not make it more interesting? That was what Brooklyn had done, it seemed, but Kade didn’t mind that he was being sucked into her spell more and more. Kade never did mind getting drawn in, as long as there was something worth being drawn into. There had been girls in the past that he played this game with, and in the end it wasn’t really worth it either because he got turned off by some mannerism of the girl’s, or the girl wasn’t willing to act on her own words. Those were disappointments, but ones that Kade recovered from quickly. But, in those situations, there had always been certain expectations. Here with Brooklyn, there were no set expectations. It was a no pressure situation, remember? They were just exploring the situation more thoroughly, seeing what there was to see and starting to dig around to find out if there was potential for anything more. There was no way to be disappointed in that, and that made this that much better from Kade’s point of view. If something was there, it was there. If it wasn’t, or if it was going to take a little bit longer to determine, then that was fine too. It was almost like a win/win situation, no way to lose. Those kind of situations are the best, aren’t they? Too bad they didn’t turn up all that often.

There was on situation in particular that should have presented itself as a win/lose situation from the start, but Kade hadn’t seen it until it was way too late. His senior year of high school was a bad one. Most people go on and on about how senior year was the best, but Kade couldn’t say that he was one of them. The summer before, his brother had died, and just three months after the devastating loss, Kade and his remaining brother had gone back to school still in pieces. Kade didn’t let that stop him from having a good time though. Actually, that was what had prompted a lot of his bad behavior and ill made choices. There was one girl, Cami, that was very close to him as a friend. They had known one another since the preschool days, and she too was hurting from the loss of the middle Trent brother. One night, Cami came knocking on Kade’s door, wanting him to go out to a party that she knew of with her, and Kade didn’t even hesitate in agreeing to tag along. This party was being held at one of the more up class homes in Seattle, a huge house that belonged to a guy in their class that Kade didn’t really like all that much, but Cami happened to be dating him, and it was a party with free beer, so Kade didn’t complain. The music had been loud, and it seemed that every single kid from their school was there. Kade wasted no time in living up to his reputation of the hardcore party goer, drinking and letting himself get a little bit high off of some marijuana what was getting passes around. You got to love parties like that, ha ha. Unfortunately, with alcohol and drugs in one’s system, judgment seems to go right out the window like it was never there in the first place. To make cut some time in the telling of this long story, Kade and Cami, who was also totally wasted by this time, ended up in bed together. Kade had no recollection of how they had gotten there, and neither did she, but there was hell to pay on two fronts. The first being with the boyfriend, who had engaged Kade in an all out brawl the following Monday at school. Both boys had held their own, and came out with black eyes, busted lips and some sore spots, but that was nothing compared to when Kade had to face Cami. That friendship, though still there, had been compromised. Their conversations were strained, and when they were together there was this incredible sense of awkwardness that even Kade couldn’t find a way around.

That had been yet another factor that Kade added to his downward spiral that landed him here. Losing Cami as a friend was something that he took the blame for, never once letting himself think that Cami had any part in it other than being a pawn in his game of self destruction. Kade was good at taking the blame for things that weren’t necessarily his fault. It was just something that he did, his mind making him think that it really had been his fault. He was the reason that his brother was dead. He was the one that had caused his family to fall apart. He was the reason that his and Cami’s friendship was no longer existent. That was just the way his mind worked. There were a lot of issues that needed to be worked through, and Kade’s mother had tried to get her son to go to therapy for some time after Jared’s death. Kade had just flat out told her that there was no way in hell he was going to some shrink just so he could be told how screwed up he was when he already knew it. No thanks. He would take his chances and see what else he could possibly screw up. Turns out, there were a lot of things that he could screw up. A lot more than what he had imagined. While coming to this camp has not been his choice, he was seeing that it offered some sort of security. There were very few ways that he could mess things up if he just abided by the few simple rules that the camp had set. At first, Kade hadn’t found that too hard, but now look how good that had turned out. With the sense of security also came the potential to screw up in a major way. Being here with Brooklyn was one way to do that. Befriending the girl wouldn’t be the problem. The camp wanted the campers to make new friends, and to feel like they could be friends with their counselors. They couldn’t get in trouble for being friends, but there was this sense that being friends wasn’t going to be where they stopped once they got going. That was going to be the problem, the thing that Kade could probably add to list that was contributing to the downward spiral. Or maybe not. Maybe, but some miracle, this would be something that would work out right. But it was entirely too early to be thinking along those lines. Right now, he was gazing at a tattoo of Marilyn Monroe on the girl’s arm, and this situation had yet to turn from a win/win to a win/lose.

”Yeah, since I was a baby.” Kade couldn’t remember being a fan of anything for that long. It was impressive that she could hold onto that interest, though, seeing as most of the time young children like one thing one day, and then move onto something entirely different the next. She was a true fan, though. Kade liked Spider-Man, but he would never put a tattoo on his body of something like that. He wasn’t opposed to the idea of a tattoo, but it would have to be something that he would really like and care about. Nothing stupid, nothing cheesy, and nothing that would be just for looks. He had yet to find something like that, and it was unlikely that he would actually get a tattoo any time soon, but one never knows. ”Hollywood is a place where they will pay you a thousand dollars for a kiss, and fifty cents for your soul.” The girl really did know her Marilyn. Kade recognized the quote easily. His mother had always been a fan of those old black and white movies that the actress stared in, and Kade had paid some attention to them here and there, even if he wouldn’t really admit to it out loud. While that was a great quote from the woman, Marilyn Monroe had a few others that Kade knew thanks to his mother. ” ‘I’ve been on a calendar, but never on time.’ That’s my mom’s favorite Marilyn quote,” he said, his eyes staying on the tattoo on Brooklyn’s arm for a moment longer, then he let his gaze come to her face. ”But mine was always, ‘The body was meant to be seen, not all covered up.’” Kade didn’t really look like the type that would know quotes from a late actress of a different era, and yet here he was, quoting her like any obsessed fan would. The truth was that those were the few quotes that Kade knew word for word. Other quotes from the actress that were well known, well, Kade mostly just knew what they were about. There’s was one about her becoming a star, or being a sex symbol, but that was the extent of his knowledge on the subject. And of course he would chose that quote as his favorite, the one that seemed to be suggestive in the best of ways. ”Those were words to live by, don’t you think?” he asked, the grin on his face still soft and gentle as it had been before, but his voice taking on a little bit more of a playful note. He slowly let her arm drop from his grasp, his eyes watching her and waiting for some sort of reply.

[brooklyn mckenzie !]

For some reason Brooklyn was actually glad that the councelor had stumbled across her path. She didn't have a care in the world right now. Even if someone did realize that they were out here as they knew they weren't supposed to be at the same time, they could definately get into a lot of trouble. Brooklyn always loved that feeling though. When she was just dogding getting into trouble, it always made her feel sneaky and she loved it. It was a wierd thing to enjoy, but little things in life could keep her happy. Like all the years until she was seven and had to move. Her parents and her lived in a really cheap aparment. They would go for drives to upper Manhattan, and they would promise her that they'd live there one day. The little girl sat in the back seat, and truly believed every word that had come from their mouths. All through the week, she would let her mind wander, and hang out with some friends who all had nicer places to live then her. She always came home, with no complains in the world. She didn't want that expensive house. She didn't want all the pets, and fancy toys. She had something that was more then that, the only thing that can really keep a person going. Everything that her parents did, they did it for her. Apparently the biggest thing that they decided to was move her in with her aunt and uncle. They had a son, and Brooklyn and him soon became best friends. She was of course upset about the move, but also understanding. Her parents were her hero's, and were everything to her, so whatever they said, she did happily. Those were the only people she seemed to listen to. After that, everything seemed to go fine, until she started acting out. She hardly saw her parents after that, and now to this day they rarely talk. Sometimes she wondered if they did it for what was best for her, or what was best for them. She was not in any mood for a good time, and she was forced to move around a lot because of her uncle's job. Soon enough, they stayed solid in once place for a year, and Brooklyn made two amazing friends. She thought she could finally regain trust and be happy again. Until one day, it all fell apart. Brian had said some stuff to Brooklyn about him liking her more then Aly, and she couldn't stand for that. Brian and Aly were in the car, and Brooklyn was going to do whatever she could once again, to stop him from ruining everything. She followed in her car, behind them, and could tell they were fighting. After that, everything seemed to be in slow motion and a huge blur. They got into a car accident, and Brooklyn saw the two of them die. The only good thing about that accident, was she told them to say they loved each other, as they held hands and passed away. Of course, it was a horrible scene to see. The two people you cared about most, die right in front of you. That was the cause for two of her tattoo's. The one that said 'Brian' next to her pie, and the poem she wrote that goes down her ribcage. She felt as though the boy next to her had been in hard situations like that, and she was dying to talk about it. Normally she did whatever she could to avoid the topic, but right now she couldn't control it, it was wierd.

Brooklyn stopped walking and turned to face him. her blue eyes connecting with his once more. She almost felt like she had to tell him, because she felt something that he was feeling inside as well, almost like he'd been through the same thing. She wanted to be as some sort of help. She also could recall something about him and a death because, she had heard some rumors around the camp. She wanted them to be true at this point, becuase it would be wierd talking about her expiriences without him talking back about his. "I lost my two best friends." She said, looking up at him, trying to figure out what was going on in his mind. With anyone else, saying that would be really awkward because they weren't even on that topic. But right now, it felt like they were working up to this point or something, it just felt right. "..and it was my fault." She said, as all the pain that had happen flashed before her eyes again. It tormented her to see that picture over and over again. Normally she would never say that. She had never talked to anyone about it. Why was she telling this boy that she had just met. It was odd, and she couldn't control herself. Since they were already on the topic of the Marilyn tattoo, and he seemed to be interested in it, she decided to show him the two that related to the little story she had just told. Lowing her shorts only slightly, she showed the name of the beloved boy who had loved her, and died. The other one would be somewhat hard to show, but she went for it anyway. Brooklyn kind of had to lift the side of her shirt up in a manner, to show all down her ribcage. The cute little poem that read 'there once was a girl who never knew love until a boy broke her heart'. She came up with it, and she loved it a lot. As she lowered her shirt, she looked at him as she was almsot asking him about his story with her eyes.

Brooklyn's arm was still in the hold of Kade at this moment, and she didn't really take the time to realize it earlier. She didn't mind though. Wait, what. He knew quotes from Marilyn Monroe. A sparkle in her eye could definately show her excitement. Hardly anybody took the time to realize how amazing the woman really was. Instead, they were obsessed with celebrities, who don't accomplish anything but look pretty. It was really annoying, to her. Her head soon became slightly tilted, and a smile was immediately formed on her face. Kade had stated two of her quotes, both of them were good choices. She nodded, lingering her smile for only moments longer. ”But mine was always, ‘The body was meant to be seen, not all covered up.’” She laughed slightly, as she looked downward to the bright green colored grass. "Of course you would, your a guy." She said, with a mischevious grin on her face. Obviously a boy would think that, because most of them would much rather see the girls body instead of any clothing on it. His mother even seemed to like Marilyn Monroe. How perfect was this. "Your mom had good taste." She said, nodding. I guess Marilyn was more in their parents time, but anyone could really take the time to appreciate her. ”Those were words to live by, don’t you think?” Brooklyn nodded in an agreeing manner. "Yeah, especially the boy one." She said looking at her attire, which kind of lacked a lot of clothing. She pretty much did live by that one. She never felt the need to cover up completely, becuase your supposed to have fun while you can and live life to the fullest. Which she tryed to do everyday. Brooklyn eye's now switched from the gaze at the grass, back to the boys lovely Hazel's.

[/left][/blockquote][/blockquote]

[kade trent.]

Kade’s introduction to the world of “drugs, sex, and rock n’ roll” had come early, much earlier than what it really should have been. At the young age of thirteen, he had already been brought into the party scene, learning to drink with the best of them. As a freshmen in high school, his virginity was gone and he was beginning to be widely known for the reputation that came with such an early appearance in such a lifestyle as partying was. He hadn’t had the privilege of having a lot of innocence, but Kade didn’t feel like he had missed out on anything too important. After all, he had made his decisions and he didn’t regret them. Well, most of them. In the high school world, girls that sleep around are called whores and sluts and are talked horribly about, but it isn’t like that for the boys like Kade who get to enjoy what is probably more than their fair share of the ladies. Kade had the reputation, yes, and he got attention from certain people because of it, but he didn’t much care for that sort of thing. He went about doing what he was doing, not caring who was agreeing with what he did or not. The girls came easy to him, Kade never once faltering in his confidence or charm and often able to win the girl, or girls, in question over with one look from his hazel eyes and one of those seemingly perfect grins of his. Shallow? Yeah, the relationships were never more than skin deep. There were a few rare occasions when Kade would get to know the girl behind the pretty face and the gorgeous body that had caught his eye, but that wasn’t very likely. That part he didn’t mind either. If there were no emotions and none of that getting to know one another thing, then it made everything else that much easier. Somehow, though, he didn’t get that same vibe when it came to Brooklyn.

When it came to her, it almost felt like getting to know her beyond her looks was what was going to make things easier. Maybe it was just his curiosity getting the better of him. Kade was never one to pry into someone’s past, because if he pried then it gave them reason to pry into his and that was something that he didn’t want. But, there was no denying that comfortable feeling that he got when around her. It was like she already understood him and what had happened in his life without even knowing all the details. It was a strange feeling, one that Kade wasn’t quite sure whether he should take that comfort in, or be weary of. There had been people that had been through similar experiences and he had in his life that tried to talk to him and encourage him. They told him how it had been a dark place, but they had pulled through it and turned their life around and all that other junk. When in the presence of said person, Kade would nod his head and use every last bit of his patience while trying to remain at least half way polite. But, as soon as this person was gone, he would forget everything that they had said. While he was glad that some people had the ability to change and things got better for them, he knew that it wasn’t going to be that simple for him. Maybe he was making it harder than what it had to be, but that was Kade for you, and he was a person that didn’t change easily. With those people, though, Kade had never had this sense of ease and felt so comfortable as he did here with Brooklyn, so that had to be something, right? Kade still wasn’t completely sure what it was about her that made him want to know and made him want to trust, or even why they felt so well in tune to one another when this was really the first conversation that they had ever had. She was going to be one of those rare occasions, one of the girls that he wanted to get to know. And it seemed she was wanting to offer up information about herself to him at the same time.

”I lost my two best friends…and it was my fault.” They hadn’t been on this topic at all. In a normal conversation, Kade would probably have been lost by that statement and had to have either backtracked to figure out where it had come from, or ask what the hell had triggered such a random thought. This was no normal conversation, though, and hearing this let Kade know that Brooklyn was feeling that same, strange sense of a connection being there between them, that they both had unhappy stories that were being kept a secret from the rest of the world. Brooklyn had just told him her secret. It was vague and without details, but Kade had clearly seen the pain from the memory flash in her eyes, and that had been enough. She started moving then, pulling down the side of her shorts ever so slightly to reveal yet another tattoo, this one of the name Brian. Then, she moved to lift up the side of her shirt. Kade’s hazel eyes read over the short poem that was there, easily able to see that these two tattoos related to the loss of her two best friends. There was a thought, him wondering just how many tattoos this girl had, but it hardly registered within his mind as his eyes moved back to her own. He saw there in them a sort of pleading, and he knew what she wanted. Brooklyn did see that they had in common a troubled past, and seeing as she had just told him hers, she was asking to be let in on his. There was a part of him that felt that he owed her that much, to tell her because she had been trusting enough to tell him, and another small part wanted to tell her just so it wouldn’t be this great big, guarded secret anymore. But, there was that familiar part that told him no, this wasn’t something that is shared just like that. You’ve got to earn the right to hear it. That part was still seeming to be able to win out over the others, even when Kade knew it wasn’t the best part to let take over. ”It seems that we have that in common, loss and being at fault for it,” he said slowly, picking the words carefully and letting his hazel eyes linger on hers a moment longer, wanting her to see that she shouldn’t take offense in him not sharing his story with her then. Kade was glad that she found him worthy of being confided in, and eventually he would be able to confide in her as well. Just not then. Then would have been too soon.

Brooklyn seemed to be excited over the fact that Kade knew anything about Marilyn Monroe. There was a spark of it in her eyes, and he was glad to see it there over the pain that had been seen as she had spoken of the loss of her friends. ”Of course you would, you’re a guy.” Well, yeah. There was nothing wrong in saying that the body was meant to be appreciated and looked at instead of hidden away from the world. Nothing at all. ”Your mom had good taste.” Kade smiled a little more warmly at that one. While he could never be considered a “momma’s boy,” he did love his mother very much. She was the parent that hadn’t totally forsaken him after the death of his brother, and the one that still tried to show love for him. Marion was not in the best state herself, but she had never once blamed Kade for Jared’s death, unlike his father who had from the start. Marion was an artistic soul, finding her passion in photography of many different forms. She had always been a fan of Marilyn because of the way the woman appeared in photos, and that was what had first started Marion’s obsession with the old movies the actress had stared in. Of course Marion had good taste; Kade had never doubted it. Nor had he doubted that his favorite quote from Marilyn was the quote to live by. It seemed that Brooklyn agreed with him, and that she practiced living by it herself. Kade was never really one that walked around in the bare minimum, hardly liking shorts enough to wear them frequently. But, just because he didn’t really live by those words didn’t mean he didn’t appreciate it when girls like Brooklyn did. ”Of course,” he said, grinning a little wider now. ”And you seem to have no trouble living by that one at all. Not that I, or any other sane man, minds.” He really hoped that they could get back to enjoying their fun, playful and flirting selves now that the touchiness had passed. There would still be that little gap between them on that level as long as he kept his story from her, but maybe it wouldn’t be there forever. Maybe it would close quicker than either of them thought possible.

That thought was interrupted from a sound coming from somewhere in the not so far off distance. Kade knew it to be the sound of the campers being released from Cyprus Hall and onto their other activities, the activities that Kade was supposed to be supervising and Brooklyn was supposed to be taking part in. A soft sigh passed through Kade’s lips as he looked down in Brooklyn’s beautifully dark eyes. ”We better be getting back before they realize that we’ve been gone all this time. As you said, people might get suspicious,” he said, that last part with a small smirk and the slightest of mischievous gleams in his hazel eyes. He turned to start walking on the path again, the one that they had both followed to get here on their own, and would take back to the camp together. There were things between them that felt right, and so certain. There were others that just felt overwhelming, almost baffling. Kade, however, chose to stay between those feelings for now, and would sort them out in the weeks to come. With Brooklyn around, this summer just got that much more interesting. Kade knew that much for certain.