The Adventures of Teen Island

Team Building

Emma's POV
"Why are we on the beach?" I asked. "We're supposed to be a team. That means, trusting each other" Tony said. A volleyball came out of nowhere and clocked him in the head. "Ow! Hey!" He yelled and looked over. Carter laughed at him and Tony growled at her. "That's trust?" I asked. "Unfortunately, yes" He held his head. "So what are we doing today?" I asked. "Having fun" he shrugged. "Heads up!" Carter yelled. I ducked at the volleyball. "How come she gets a heads up?" Tony asked. I picked up the ball and chucked it at Carter. She caught it and raised an eyebrow at me. "Oh you're fucked" Tony said. Carter smirked evilly. "Run!" Tony said. I bolted off and hid behind Siren. "Help me!" I said. "What did you do?" She asked. The volleyball hit Sirens arm. "Ow!" She yelled. A sound wave shot out and blew the ball back to Carter. "Uh oh" I said. "Oh. I see it now. Come on" she said. We ran together. Two balls landed in front of us and we stopped. I looked over. "What the hell Tony!?" I said. He laughed and shrugged. "Throw them back" Siren said picking one up. She chucked it and hit Tony before grabbing me and pulling me away again. "Clay! A little help?" I said. Clay looked over and wasted no time to join. He turned into his dog form, ran up to us, jumped up, and kicked a ball into Oliver's head. Oliver looked over confused and then joined Tony and Carter. Clay changed back to normal. "This is an interesting game" he yelled as we ran. "Shut up and keep running!" I shrieked. He followed. "Courtney! Stephanie! Help!" I yelled. We hid behind them. "What are you guys playing?" Stephanie asked with a laugh. "I have no idea, but I cant breathe. Please. Just help us" I panted. Courtney looked at the group running at us and then at Stephanie. "What are you doing?" Stephanie asked skeptically. Courtney giggled. "Sorry stormy. Its not fair if its not even" she said. "What?!" We said. "Id run if I were you" she said. Stephanie, Siren, Clay, and I took off. "I don't like this game!" Stephanie yelled. "Are you kidding? This is fun!" Clay smiled. Clay stopped and caught one of the balls. "Dodge ball!" He said. We all stopped. "Oh..." I said. Thats better than running.

After playing dodge ball and what Carter called "ball tag," we sat down on the beach just to chill. Carter really likes ball tag. I can see the appeal since she's always the one with the ball. Never the one being chased. I'm exhausted from the running. My arms hurt from throwing the balls. I think this was more tiring than target practice. It was really fun though. Stephanie is talking with Siren and Oliver. Clay is with Tony and Courtney. Carter came and sat next to me. She handed me a soda. "Thanks" I said taking it. "That was fun right?" She asked. "Yeah. What a day" I said. "A day? Its only two in the afternoon" she said. "You'll be lucky if I can finish this soda. I'm exhausted. You really wore me out with ball tag" I said. "Sorry. I get a little carried away" she shrugged. "A little?" I asked with a laugh. She smiled and rolled her eyes. "The others are gonna hang in the water. You wanna go?" She asked. "There is no way in hell I can escape you in the water when I'm this weak" I said. We laughed. "You're trying to escape me?" She asked. I looked her up and down. Honestly, I'm just trying not to melt seeing her in her bathing suit. "You could say that" I said. "Well, I'm gonna go get a Pina colada. Have fun. Make sure Tony doesn't drown" she said, walking away. I watched her walk away. Clay trotted up to me in his dog form. He sat in front of me. "What are you doing?" He asked. I turned to look at him. "Huh?" I asked. "Go after her!" He said, wagging his tail. "What? Why?" I asked. "Emma, you have to make a move. Go!" He said. "You know?" I asked. "We all know. Just go!" He said. "But-" I was cut off when he barked at me. I was taken back. He just kept barking and barking. "Ok! Ok! I'm going!" I said.

I ran up behind Carter at the cocktail stand. I put my hands on my knees and panted. "Took you long enough. Come along tween" she said, walking calmly. I walked behind her. "You knew I was coming?" I asked. "Of course. Here" she said, handing me a cocktail. "What is this?" I asked taking it. "Its a Pina colada. Its good" she said, sipping hers. "I- uh- I don't-" I stuttered. "What? Scared of little alcohol?" She asked with a smirk. I looked at her and then the drink. "Well..." I said. Carter watched me with an evil grin. "There's nothing in it. Relax. You think I'm gonna give liquor to a fresh thirteen year old?" she asked. "Ew. Why'd you call me that?" I asked. She shrugged. "Its non alcoholic. Just drink it" she said, continuing to walk. I hesitated but drank it. "Its not bad" I said. "I know its not" she said. "How did you know Id follow you?" I asked. She stopped suddenly and turned back to look at me. She looked me up and down and then smirked. "I knew" she said, before turning back around. I'm not gonna get a real answer. I kept following her. "Where are you going now?" I asked. "For a walk." She said.

After a minute, I looked around. "Its so weird seeing a beach so empty" I said. "You get used to it. People here get used to having the beach open all the time. So not many people come here. All the people that are here are newbies" she said. "Where are you from? I mean, I know this Island is off the coast of Florida but that doesn't mean anything" I said. "I'm still from Florida. Upstate though. Panama City" she said. "Woah! That's like... really upstate. I live in Tampa... lived" I corrected myself. "Well, no need to remember cities here. Just the zones" she said. "Zones?" I asked. "Yeah. There's a bunch. You only need to know the main ones. The castle, drivers gully, the marketplace, and the housing" she said. "Not glacier garden?" I asked. "That's a small zone" she said. "Oh" I said.

We walked for a while. We walked really far down the beach. The water is really calm here. We made small talk. She doesn't really like opening up, I've noticed. "So why did you follow me?" She asked. "Huh?" I asked. "I knew you'd follow me, but what exactly was your reason for following me?" She asked. I blushed. "I- uh-" I stuttered. "How many times do I have to say this? Stop stuttering" she crossed her arms. I gulped. "I... " I looked down. "Clay told me too" I said. That's not technically a lie. "And why did he do that?" She asked, pushing. She has that evil smirk on her face. Does she know? Is she just trying to get me to say it out loud? "I don't know" I lied. "Sure you don't" she rolled her eyes. She walked towards the water. Its getting dark out. I'm sure the others have gone home by now. "You coming?" She shouted from the water. I hesitated, but joined her in the water.

The waters up to our shoulders. "So you just followed me for no reason?" She asked, raising an eyebrow. "Uh, yeah I guess" I said. "Because I seem to remember you complaining about being exhausted. Yet you had enough strength to run all the way to the cocktail stand" She said, getting closer to me. "Are you drunk? Stop being weird" I said, with a laugh. She smiled and rolled her eyes. "I'm not drunk. It takes more than one cocktail to get my head spinning" she said. "Well, maybe there was a reason. Why should I tell you?" I asked, crossing my arms with a smirk. If she can tease me, then I see no problem teasing her. "Uh, because I'm your mentor?" She asked. "Ha! You think I never lied to a teacher before?" I asked. "Gotta admit, didn't take you for a cheater" she said. "Lying and cheating are two different things. Often used together, but still different" I said. "And yet, you're still a nerd" she said, unamused. "At least I'm not a cheater" I said, booping her nose. She was taken back. "So why did you follow me?" She asked. "Again, why should I tell you?" I asked. She swiftly grabbed me and turned me so that my back was to her chest. She held me there firmly, making me gasp at the contact. She put her finger gun to my head. "Don't make me out you tween" she said. I gulped. "Ok fine" I said. She didn't let go. I sighed. This is really awkward. "I'm waiting" she said. I whimpered. "I..." I looked down at her arm around my waist. I closed my eyes tight. "I have a crush on you" I admitted. Her grip weakened. She didn't say anything. I tensed. She let go of me and I looked down. "Open your eyes Emma" she said. I peeked up at her now that she's in front of me. "You really think I didn't know?" She asked. I looked up at her in shock. "I'm not blind Emma. You shouldn't be embarrassed. You have to own your feelings" she said. "Even when it hurts?" I asked. She smiled. "Especially when it hurts" she said. I looked to the side. She grabbed my waist and pulled me into her. I looked back at her shocked. "I don't know why you're hurt. I never said anything" she said. "Sometimes not saying anything, says everything" I said. "Look at that. I guess you do know some things." She said. I smiled slightly. "I hardly know you Emma, but Id gladly get to know you better." She said. I blinked a few times. "So?" I asked. She shrugged. "We'll see what happens. You're kinda cute" she said. I looked down and smiled. "So, are we heading back then?" I asked. "Not yet. I like swimming at night." She said.