My best friend's brother

(4) Let's Go For a Hike

"How was your run?" Sadie inquired as I rung my hair out with a towel. I wrapped the towel around my waist and sat down in the chair next to her.

Taking in the scene in front of me, I brought my steaming cup of coffee to my nose, taking a deep breath in as I inhaled the bitter smell. The water was calm, and the sun was reflecting brightly off the surface. There was not a cloud in the sky. "Enlightening." I replied, although that hardly covered it. I eyed her for her reaction, and thankfully, she didn't question any further.

"My mom was talking last night about us all going for a hike some time this week, she thought maybe you could choose where we go, cause you're familiar with all the paths and stuff." I lit up at the idea.

"That would be so fun! I'd definitely take you guys on the path near the water, the one that leads out to that pretty point. It's beautiful. We could pack a picnic!" I beamed, as Sadie raised an eyebrow at me. While Sadie was an indoorsy, city type girl, I loved the outdoors and any kind of outings like this. I don't know how we're even friends, considering we have none of the same interests. Then again, opposites do attract.

"It better be a good picnic to make up for all the walking." Sadie huffed. I rolled my eyes at how lazy she was.

"Don't worry, the path is mostly flat ground, and you can set the pace, and we can take as many breaks as needed." I joked, babying her, something I knew she didn't like. She scowled at my humour.

"Watch it," she threatened, "Now let's go eat our own weight in bacon to fuel us for today."

I wanted to point out that bacon was hardly a good choice to eat before physical activity, but given her snarky mood I decided to keep to myself. I bit my lip instead. I followed her up to the cottage, where that sweet smell of porky goodness immediately overwhelmed my nostrils. One or two pieces wouldn't hurt, right?

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"MADS, hurry up!" Sadie cried from the kitchen.

"COMING." I called back. I shoved the last thing into my backpack and gave myself a once over in the mirror. I was wearing black capri leggings, a black sports bra and a loose grey tank top. My Nike sneakers were laced tightly to my feet and my damp hair was pulled back into a loose ponytail. I slung my burgundy backpack over my shoulder and joined the Conrads in the kitchen. They were all sitting on the couch, waiting for me. Sadie looked annoyed.

"Maybe if you didn't feel the need to look flawless every time you leave that room, we'd already have gone and come back by now." I laughed, noticing for the first time what she was wearing. She had on grey sweatpants and an oversized Superman shirt with questionable stains all over it. She had converse on her feet.

"Sade, half the fun of working out is the cute exercise clothes, you should know this." I said, pushing the door open. "Now let's go." Sadie looked defeated, and she folded her arms over her chest as she stomped out the door. As Declan walked past me, he paused for a moment, his shoulder brushing against mine. My heart sped up as I felt the warmth of his breath on my ear.

"Should we tell her how horrible the support in those shoes are?" He whispered. I smiled, eyeing her converse. I shook my head.

"I wouldn't poke the bear." He smiled at this and pulled away. His pace quickened and he caught up to his parents in front of us, slinging an arm around his mother's shoulder. I couldn't help but notice how his Blue Jays t shirt hugged his muscles and his athletic shorts fell off his cute butt. This guy pulled off everything he wore. Which was probably why I wanted to literally pull off everything he wore every time I saw him. I shook this thought out of my head. I just had to focus on having a great hike with the Conrad family.