A Different, Better Timeline

Not Always Right

Courtney and Bridgette laid on the beach, their heads and shoulders touching. They had an hour before everyone had to meet there for the challenge, and they were enjoying some quiet time away from everyone else. It had been so long since Chris had given the campers any free time on a challenge day, and, while most used this time to do something productive, the only thing Courtney and Bridgette wanted to do was relax before things got crazy again.

The two rarely got any time to just sit back and breathe, even on the off days. It seemed like one of the guys always needed one or the other for something. It was never ending and a little annoying. So, when Geoff regretfully informed them that the "Bass Boys" had some business to attend to and sadly could not hang out with them before the challenge, Courtney and Bridgette pushed down their feelings of suspicion and headed straight to the beach.

"What do you think they're doing?" Bridgette asked, a hand absentmindedly tracing lines in the sand.

Courtney lifted a shoulder in a shrug before realizing Bridgette couldn't see her. "I don't know. I don't want to think about it. Probably something that's only accomplishment will be making today's challenge harder than it needs to be. You know, the usual."

"That sounds right," Bridgette said, moving an arm to cover her eyes. "But I really hope you're wrong. I don't want to deal with any surprises today. We finally have a chance to pull ahead of the gophers, and they're probably going to be too worried about whatever poorly thought out plan they've thought up. I just want the advantage, Court."

"Yeah, me too," Courtney agreed before moving on completely. "We're going to win this challenge today, you know that right?"

Bridgette laughed at this. Courtney hadn't been this positive before a challenge since... well, ever. Sure, she was the one who lead the Killer Bass through victories and losses, but she was never the one who encouraged. Instead, she usually groaned about how poorly things were going to go or were already going while she gave everyone their orders. It was usually up to Bridgette or DJ to point out that not all was hopeless.

"Why are you laughing at me, Bridge?" Courtney asked, a soft whine in her voice. "Do you not think we're going to win? That's not very optimistic."

"No, no, that's not it," Bridgette answered once she calmed down. "It's just, you're always so negative before challenges. It's weird to hear you say we're going to win so plainly. Not like you at all!"

Courtney gasped in mock indignation. "That's not true! I'm, like, the most positive person ever! How could you say that? Aren't I the one who never loses faith and always says we can do it?"

Once again, Bridgette started laughing. She was glad that Courtney wasn't taking herself so seriously, something that would not have happened just two weeks ago. It was nice watching her friend become less uptight and more relaxed. Then, Courtney started laughing with her. They were real laughs instead of her usual polite chuckle, signifying that she was letting loose completely. This caused Bridgette to turn her head towards Courtney and give her a smile, which she returned.

In all the excitement neither had heard a third girl approaching. It wasn't until Lindsay was standing over them, peering down and blocking the sun did they realize that someone had joined them. Lindsay watched in interest as the two calmed down, and, once they were quiet, she squatted and greeted them. "Hi, I'm Lindsay, from the Screaming Gophers."

At this, Bridgette and Courtney shared an amused look. Neither knew what Lindsay wanted, but they were curious to find out. Even Courtney, who would normally be suspicious of someone from the other team casually talking to them, wanted to know what brought her here.