Damaged -Grayson Dolan-

Chapter Nine

When we finally caught our breath, I was doubled over from laughing. "What I said really wasn't that funny." I managed to choke out, glancing at Grayson who was still struggling to speak.

"Then why are you laughing then?"

"Because seeing you laugh just made me lose it!" I hadn't been this happy for so long. I couldn't even remember the last time I'd actually laughed. A real laugh.

"They're going to wonder where we are," Grayson said eventually. He climbed to his feet and held out a hand to help me up. I stood up next to him and brushed the leaves and twigs from my legs and shirt. Then we made our way back to the trail and around the corner. Ethan and Mina were nowhere to be found.

"Weird," I said. "I guess we just keep going?"

"Knowing Ethan he's probably waiting somewhere to jump out at me." Grayson pulled out his phone. "No service," he said with a chuckle. "So I can't really text him."

"Well let's continue on." Up ahead on the trail, the woods broke. It emptied into a small overlook that had a four or five-foot drop down into a crystal, clear river.

"This is amazing," I stood at the edge and looked at the water lazily flowing down beneath us.

"Definitely," Grayson agreed.

"Hey, guys! What took you so long?" Mina came bounding into view with Ethan a few steps behind.

I shrugged. "We saw a deer and went to go follow it."

"Sure," she said with an arched eyebrow and a look that told me she didn't believe us. Then she broke into a grin. "Wait- let me take a picture of you guys! The backdrop here is perfect!"

I glanced at Grayson who just shrugged. "Okay."

"Give me your phones," Ethan said and we both handed ours over. Ethan gave mine to Mina and then they both held them up to take the picture. "Get closer," Mina told us and I sighed. Grayson wrapped his arm lightly around my shoulder and we both smiled at the camera.

"Perfect!" Mina said, she came back over and held out my phone. As soon as I reached out to grab it, Mina whipped it away and gave me a good shove. "Psych!" She yelled.

I fell backward as Grayson reached for my arm but then Ethan was there and gave his twin brother an even harder shove. I didn't even have time to scream as I went down, falling into the ice cold water below. My head went under and I kicked, coming back up to the surface.

"Holy shit!" I yelled taking a deep breath of the air. Mina and Ethan were scrambling down the edge of the river bed. "It's fucking freezing!"

Mina began to laugh so hard she collapsed to the ground, clutching her stomach.

"Ethan! What the actual fuck!" Grayson surfaced behind me, hair plastered to his forehead.

"Oh, my gosh," Ethan fell down next to Mina who was laughing so hard tears were streaming down her face. "I can't believe we actually did that!"

I spit out water and began to swim for the shore. "My hands are numb," I informed them as I felt my feet touch the muddy river bank.

Grayson splashed behind me. "I am going to fucking murder you," he said to Ethan.

"Hey, at least we didn't shove you in with your phones," Mina said.

"Wow! Best friend of the year award!" I retorted, throwing my hands in the air. I stood up, emergy slowly from the river which was hard to do in waterlogged sneakers. My wet clothes clung to my body and I smelled like a sewer. Grayson was behind me and Ethan and Mina just burst into laughter all over again.

"We could've drowned! Or hit a rock or something!" Grayson wrung out his shirt.

"Relax, on the park website it said this was a popular destination to jump in the river. Perfectly safe. And Mina told me Alanna could swim so I figured it was all good." Ethan grinned at his Grayson.

I sat down on the ground and took off my sneaker. Water came dumping out of it. Mina started to crack up again and I hurled the sopping wet shoe at her. She ducked and scrambled behind Ethan.

"What makes you think I won't throw my other shoe at him?" I asked with raised eyebrows.

"Bro, I lost my hat," Grayson said from behind me and I turned around. He had his shirt off and was bending over, shaking the water from it. I quickly looked back to Ethan and Mina before I made a fool of myself.

"Sorry, I'll find you a new one," Ethan said. "We did bring you guys blankets though."

"Yeah, we aren't that mean," Mina added. She tossed me one and I wrapped it around my shoulders gratefully.

"Well, I guess this means the end of our hiking trip," Grayson said as he draped the second blanket over himself. "Because if we stay out here any longer I'm going to get hypothermia."

"Drama queen," Ethan said as we began our hike back up the trail. My sneakers squelched with water despite the fact that I had tried to empty them out.

"Oh my gosh, look," Grayson said suddenly from beside me. He held out his phone. Ethan had taken a video of both of us being shoved off the cliff. You could see Mina come up to hand me my phone and the look of pure shock that crossed my face when she gave me a good shove. Grayson's reaction was instantaneous as he tried to grab my arm to keep me from falling. Then Ethan appeared in the frame and we both went flying off the edge.

"Oh my gosh," I said with a laugh. "They got us good."

"Yeah, they did. At least they took pictures first." He held out his phone again and I saw the picture of us both standing there with Grayson's arm wrapped around my shoulder. Mina had taken it on my phone too.

We made it back to our cars safely and agreed to drive home, and then grab some food once Grayson and I had changed. "You smell like a swamp," Mina wrinkled her nose as I climbed into my car and put the key in the ignition.

"And whose fault is that?" I asked, waiting until Ethan pulled out in his truck to follow them back to their house.

Mina just shrugged. "Wanna tell me what happened when you and Grayson went off chasing deer?"

I sent her an odd look. "What?"

"You can't lie to me! I see you blushing! Did you kiss?"

"What? No!"

"Holy shit, he kissed you! Yes! It's about time." She settled back in her seat with a satisfied look.

I gave a sigh of defeat. "Actually that's what I told him and I've never laughed harder in my life."

"Told him what?"

"After he kissed me I said, 'it's about damn time.'"

"No! Alanna, you did not."

"Yep," I followed Ethan's truck onto the entrance ramp of the highway.

Mina laughed. "Well, then I'd say he definitely likes you."