The Woods

The sky had faded from a pale pink into a soft purple as the summer night brought a cool breeze over everyone in the field. Anticipation built up as the last name was being called. All four years leading up to this moment, summed up in a list of names and a parade of random speeches filled with bad jokes and even worse stories of old high school days and the excitement of college.

Out of nowhere plastic beach balls started bouncing over everyone. One last high school prank on the administrators. Keeping the mood light while some of the students just wanted to cry. The ones that peaked. The ones who knew that it woudn't get much better than this for them after this unless they married rich.

Then they finally heard it. The band playing and their principal telling them to stand up and turn their tassels. They were officially free! Tori looked up to the sky watching the caps fly and slowly drift down. The screams rattling her brain.

"Babe, we did it!!!! It's finally over!! Can you believe it???"Casey said excitedly "We're going to start our lives together far from here." She swooped Tori up in her arms and kissed her.

"Hey! Here's not so bad." Tori and Casey both turned to see Sam smiling back at them. Her hair blowing around and the blonde parts getting stuck to her lip gloss. "You know you'll be back anyways."

"Yeah Yeah. Everyone always comes back. I've heard it all before. Me and Tori are different right?" Casey looked toward Tori who was biting the inside of her lip.

"Ugh I just hate that the past four years of our life ended with a frigging turn of a tassel ya know? I mean Come the fuck on. Most of us have been through hell and back waiting for this shit to end and it was just that simple this whole time? A different position of a brightly colored tassel on a maroon cap that's too big to go over my head!" Tori finally spoke up. Casey pulled her close again and this time she could smell her and the shampoo from her hair and none of what she just said mattered anymore because she had Casey and she makes everything better.

"So guys we leaving yet? I cant wait to never smell sweaty jock and bleacher sex again" Kevin appeared through the crowd with V hanging off his back.

"Oh please, you just want to get to the cabin to ride V all night." Tori said

"Haha you don't have to deny it,. We all already know."Sam added

Vee hopped down and tore off her cap her short black curly hair just messed up. "No not all night. Maybe I want to ride too."

"Eww i don't want to think about that." Casey said as everyone made their way off the field and into the huge black truck with CONGRATULATIONS MUSTANGS written on the side. One last look back and the high school was a distant array of lights in the rear view mirror.

"Case, are you sure you're not lost?" Tori looked over to the driver's side.

"Babe I got this." Casey said back

"Mhm that's what they all say I'm sure." Kevin chimed in from the back seat

"Pfft mind your business. You ain't about this life." Casey said jokingly

"Guys play nice. We're almost there", Sam pointed to the sign on the side of the rode covered with vines, "See, Mountain top Cabins. Just make this turn."

Guest services wasn't far from the road. It was after midnight but the little white house type building still had the front lights on. They were just enough to illuminate the door and the front steps, everything else was just black. If it wasn't for the headlights they probably wouldn't have seen the small envelope taped to the door with Caseys's last name on it.

Casey jumped out of the car to get out the door opened and she jumped back. "Im sorry i really didn't mean to scare you haha. I'm stuck here for the weekend and all the roads going out are closed off because of the storm that's suppose to hit. My dad owns this place so you can just finish registering inside instead of coming all the way back here in the morning." The guy stepped onto the porch into the light. His hair poking out of his black hat and the tank top he was wearing showing off his tattooed arms, chest and neck. His voice was raspy as if he were just sleeping.

Everyone slowly got out of the car and followed him back into the building. "Uh hey well here's the money" Casey handed him her share still looking at him as if she really didn't want to go near him. One by one everyone put there money on the counter.

"So there's one other Cabin rented for the weekend so you guys basically have the whole mountain to yourselves" he started to say. "The shuttles to the dinners and everything wont be running this weekend because of the storm and my dad doesn't want me crashing it but if you need anything else just come up i'll be here. There's wifi in here and a phone just in case."

"Thanks but im pretty sure we're good" Vee said from Kevin's arms.

"i'm not, " Sam moved closer to the counter, "What do you have for a broken heart?"She batted her eyelashes and pushed her hair all on to one shoulder.

"Oh wow. I thought you weren't ready for a relationship just yet?" Kevin laughed.

"Who said anything about a relationship?" Sam turned her attention back to the guy behind the counter

"Aaannddd on that note it's time to go" Casey pulled her back

"Awe she deserves a little fun she did get dumped" Tori smiled and turned back to the counter "If you get lonely you know where she is" and she winked and grabbed the keys.