THOSE GOOD TEEN YEARS 3 CRUSHES NO MORE

Chapter Nine: The Kiss

Emma tapped her foot impatiently as she waited for Sienna to come.

She couldn't wait for the trip to Elinor. She sat on the porch swing with her backpack. She was still wearing the yellow T-shirt and pink shorts. Her mom had told her to carry a thin windbreaker. It was colder in the 'open', so to say.

Finally, Si came. Emma jumped up and went inside.

"Mom, I'm going!" She yelled.

"Ok, honey! Have fun!" She replied.

"Take me with you!" Lance yelled. Emma rolled her eyes and went to the limo.

"Hey, Em! Ready?"

"Yep! Lock and load!" She said as she sat down. Peter was already there. He smiled at her. Emma's heart rate increased. Whether that was due to Peter or the trip to Elinor, she didn't know.

Soon, they picked up Ali, Lincoln and Luke. They all looked excited. This was an once in a lifetime opportunity. They didn't talk much, because the excitement was too much too bear. They soon reached the boundary of Elinor.

For as long as Em had lived here, for as long as she had heard her parents getting nostalgic about Elinor and its beauty, nothing had prepared Emma for this. Even from the entry, it looked simply heavenly. It was green, and it smelled fresh, the kind of scent that only comes in open places. Outside the gate was a checkpoint kind of thing, which had a young blonde girl checking something of the list.

She was beautiful, the kind of person all the boys would have on their crush lists. Blonde hair, blue eyes and good height. She was wearing a green tank top and beige shorts and hiking boots that make her look like a professional adventure sport director. She probably was.

"That's Lisa." Peter said. Now she got what he meant when he agreed with Luke that Lisa was hot. Because she was. A vicious stab of jealousy ran through Em, and she wanted nothing more than to strangle Lisa. Even if she didn't know her.

"Hey, Lisa!" Sienna yelled.

"Oh, hey, Sienna. And these are your friends." She looked over them, particularly Luke and Peter. All girls tended to do that. Even her mom (secretly) liked Peter. That was awkward. This, well, wasn't. This was normal.

Pay attention to the trip, she thought. She tried to push away the strangling thoughts. It was very difficult.

She smiled and led them inside. She ticked off their names. Then Em noticed a white handkerchief pinned to a board with a pink lipstick mark. She bit her tongue to keep from laughing. Sienna hadn't been kidding about her dad wearing lipstick and leaving a mark on a handkerchief.

"Ok, now, the rules. Don't litter. That's the main rule. No writing or making stupid hearts on trees. No campfires, it might end up in a forest fire. We can't risk that. Now," she lowered her voice, "I know you, um, bribed your way in here. You have exactly 24 hours, starting in about 5 minutes. I want you gone by 7 tomorrow evening, ok? The original bookers are gonna come, so you better move. Your placement is in Lake Springs."

"No shit!" Ali gasped. Emma could relate. Lake Springs was supposed to be the best part about Elinor. This was amazing.

So they all said yes and hurried into it. At the beginning it was kind of...drab. But then the topography started changing. Emma saw all sorts of trees, trees that should not have been growing in LA. But here it was. They followed a neat little path that had a wooden arrow pointing forwards called 'Lake Springs'. It was getting dark, and between the leaves of the trees, Em could see a dark orange sun that had half set. 

Emma got what people meant about Elinor being a romantic magnet zone. She could feel relaxed there, the kind of relaxed you felt when your romance life was fulfilling. Maybe something good would happen tonight.