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Thirty Five

As the night progressed so did the swimming shenanigans. Gina had since come back and and joined the group in time to watch the boys race each other across the length of the pool. All four lifeguards were excellent watermen so their races were quite a spectacle.

"Anybody need another?" Whippet asked, pointing to his empty beer bottle after a while.

Hands went up and he climbed out of the pool to retrieve the beers.

Emma swam over and leaned against the side of the pool next to Charley, who was still sitting on the edge of the pool with Gina.

"Who do you reckon'll get nude first?" Emma asked, looking over at the guys.

"What did you say?" Alex asked, overhearing.

The girls laughed, none of them wanting to repeat it. Charley secretly hoped all clothes would stay on though, afraid of what her brother would think.

"I think it'll be Whip. It's really only between him and Mouse," Emma smirked.

"Dear Lord don't let it be my husband," Gina laughed.

"What's wrong with you guys?" Alex commented, a hint of disgust on his face.

"Don't act like you've never done that kind of shit. Need I remind you of that time you mooned an entire hotel from the glass elevator?" Charley said, smirking.

"Now that's a story I'd like to hear!" Emma laughed, causing Alex to roll his eyes.

"Here mate, thought you might want another," Whippet said, coming back with the drinks and handing one out to Alex.

"Oh, thanks man."

He hadn't asked for a beer, wanting to be polite and not take advantage of the hospitality, but he was thankful for the second beer all the same.

"Come over here and join us guys," he said as he slid into the pool next to Beardy, Jackson and Mouse.

"Doubt those girls have anything interesting to talk about anyway," Mouse joked, winking at Charley.

Making his way across the pool, Alex commented, "They were actually making bets on who would get naked first."

The group erupted into laughter.

"Ryan Clark, you'd better keep those on, so help me!" Gina called from the other side of the pool.

More laughter from the group ensued.

"Remember how pissed she got at you when you did the Nude Superman last year?" Jackson said, taking a pull from his beer.

"Which time?" Whippet laughed.

"How about when Mouse streaked through our campsite at Byron Bay?" Beardy added.

Alex shook his head and took a sip of his beer. How old were these guys? He did stupid stuff like that back in college when he was in his twenties, not in his mid-thirties. He was still trying to find something about his sister's friends and boyfriend that he liked, but each time he saw them, it was harder and harder. He loved his sister and tried really hard to enjoy hanging out with her group, but he was having an increasingly hard time. Between the - to him - excessive drinking, the childish contests and the reputation of getting naked, he wasn't so sure his sister made the best choice in her company.

The conversation switched to camping and traveling, and after a little, Beardy turned to Alex.

"You like to travel, Alex?" Beardy asked.

He nodded. "Yeah, haven't been nearly as many places as I'd like though."

"Right on. What's your favorite place you've been?" Mouse asked him, taking a sip of his beer.

"Visited Charley when she was over in Europe. Paris was pretty cool. Grand Canyon was awesome. Favorite place though was probably St John. Charley and I used to go there a lot growing up."

"Go where?" Charley asked as she made her way to the guys.

"St. John," Alex replied.

The siblings had grown up going there quite often when they were younger, going with their parents and grandparents. It was a spectacular island of calm seas, clear water and white sand beaches. A small island, most of it was a nature preserve which meant lots of trails for hiking, satisfying both Charley and Alex's desires for exploring.

"Oh man. By far my favorite vacation spot. You know Mick here is quite the traveler," Charley told her brother as she leaned into her boyfriend.

"Really?"

Mouse nodded, "Yeah, I've been fortunate to go to a lot of great places. Peru, Croatia, Hawaii... I go to Bali a lot, too."

Charley smiled as her boyfriend talked. She knew how much he loved to travel and it made her heart sing to hear him talk about things that made him happy. His face just lit up.

"So you travel a lot, huh?"

Jackson laughed, "Mate, I've never met somebody who travels off as much as this bloke!"

Alex nodded and raised his eyebrows. He wasn't too keen on the idea of his sister's boyfriend taking off any chance he got. She had a good career now and couldn't leave whenever she wanted to. Would Michael just leave her behind anytime he wanted to visit a new place?

"We should go to St. John together, Mickey. It's gorgeous. Not the best surfing spot, though," Charley said, leaning into her boyfriend.

"Oh, well if I can't surf, I'm not going," Michael teased, smiling as he kissed Charley's temple.

"Shame you never got a chance to see Mick surf, Al. He's quite talented. All the boys are, actually," Charley said.

Leaning against her boyfriend's chest with his arm wrapped around her good side, Charley smiled. She was happy, watching her brother talk to her boyfriend and oldest friends. Talking about traveling, Alex seemed to be enjoying the conversation with Michael. Maybe she was paranoid for no reason.

"You outta see your sister in the waves," Michael said. "She's a real natural."

"Is that how you got hurt?" Alex teased.

"Funny enough, yeah, but it's not what you think!" She defended.

Charley retold the story of the day she was injured, with Whippet, Emma and Mouse adding in details.