Second Chances (Emerald Lake Prep Book One), page 14
I thought I would be more nervous, but I’m not. My body trembles with excitement, as I wait for my turn. The guys have already gone, whooping and hollering as they zoomed down. Oliver went with Ben, and Talon went with Lissy, and I get to go with Charlie.
I look over at her and see that she has the same excitement on her face as I do. "You ready, Em?" she asks me with an exhilarated grin.
I smile and nod enthusiastically. "YES!" I shout with a laugh.
The instructor does a safety check on our harnesses. "Alright, girls. Hold on to the cord. Relax and lean back just a little. Try not to spin yourself and enjoy the ride!"
Taking a deep breath, I look over at Charlie with the happiest expression plastered on my face, as we lift our feet up and off we go.
The moment I step off the platform, I feel free, without a care in the world. The wind rushing through my hair and cooling my face feels amazing.
Thank god I have my contacts in, because I would have lost my glasses by now, and there's no way I wanna miss this sight.
Whizzing past the mountains and trees, I look to my left and see a mama and baby mountain goat, and looking closer towards the bottom, I spot a deer. It’s such a beautiful view.
"Wahooooo!!!" I shout from the top of my lungs, laughing and smiling the whole way down.
I search for the ending point and see the guys and Lissy cheering on the other side.
I look over at Charlie to see that she seems to be enjoying the ride just as much as I am.
“This is fucking awesome!” I yell over at her.
“I know!” she shouts back.
I’m vibrating with adrenaline when my feet finally make contact with the platform. "That was AMAZING! Can we go again?" I ask, all giddy and pumped up.
Oliver chuckles. "I asked but, unfortunately, we don't have time to. Once everyone has had their turn, we are off to the rock climbing wall."
I’m only a little disappointed, because I'm thrilled about trying the rock climbing wall.
"Fine," I pout. "But then it's me versus you," I say with a playful smile. "I'm gonna ring that bell and leave you in the dust!"
Oliver gives me a wicked smile. "You're on! Although, I don't think I'd mind losing to you. I'm sure the view will be worth the loss.”
I shake my head and laugh. "You’re bad."
He shrugs his shoulders. "Only sometimes, when it counts," he winks.
I stick my tongue out at him before turning around and walking away, heading down the mountain path.
I don't get very far, when a warm arm wraps around me from behind stopping me. "Don't tempt me with that sassy tongue of yours, Firefly, or I'll find a way to put it to good use," Oliver says, his breath tickling the back of my neck and causing goosebumps to erupt from head to toe. He nips my ear before leaving me to catch up with Ben and Talon.
They pause, looking back at me. Ben smiles while Talon winks.
A shiver takes over my body. And now, my panties are wet... Awesome! Now I'm gonna be uncomfortable for the rest of the day.
I'M ALL STRAPPED IN and ready to kick some ass on that rock wall. Oliver is next to me, ready to go as well. He looks over at me with a mischievous smile.
He thinks he's gonna ring that bell before me, but he has another thing coming. I'm a pro at climbing. He would have known that if he was around. The community center back home had one, and I spent a lot of time there in the summer to get away from my mother.
I shake my head, freeing my mind of any negative thoughts. Now is not the time to be in that mindset. I'm having fun and enjoying this trip, and I won’t allow toxic thoughts of her to fuck with that.
"Alright, guys, the goal is to make it to the top and ring the bell before the other person. Winner gets bragging rights," the instructor says, laughing. "Are you both ready?" he asks, looking from me to Oliver, then back to me. We both nod, and he moves back behind me to hold my rope while another instructor stands behind Oliver with his.
I look over at Oliver. "You ready to eat my dust?" I ask playfully.
"It's on like Donkey Kong, Firefly," he says, and this time I smile at the nickname.
When the instructor counts to three, I grab onto the rocks on the wall and start to climb. It's a lot harder than the one at the center.
I keep slipping, because I'm rushing myself.
I'm about half way up, when I look over at Oliver. He looks like he's having just as much of a hard time as I am. Closing my eyes, I take a deep breath and clear my head. I need to stop trying to rush and just climb.
When I open my eyes, I look over to see how Oliver is doing, but he's not there anymore. Confused, I look up to see if he's in the lead, but he's not there either.
"Fuck!" a frustrated voice comes from below. I look down to see Oliver almost at the bottom again.
I take this opportunity and start climbing again. Now that I'm not scrambling to win, I'm more relaxed and my head is clear.
I'm almost at the top, with little to no slipping happening now. I can see the bell. I look down and see that Oliver has almost caught up to me, so I decide to push myself this short final bit.
Getting to the top, I haul myself up to grab another instructor’s hand, as he helps me stand.
With my eyes on the prize, I reach over and ring the bell. An adrenaline rush courses through my body. I'm so happy that I start dancing.
"Fuck yeah, baby!" I scream from the top of my lungs. I look down to see that Oliver is back on the ground with the rest of the group and they are all clapping and cheering for me.
"Language, Miss Knox!" I hear Mr. Luckson yell from below.
"Sorry!" I yell back, laughing.
Ready to make my way back to the bottom, I kick off the edge of the rock wall and start to descend with ease.
Once I'm out of the harness, Charlie runs over to me and gives me a big hug and a quick peck on the cheek. "That was awesome, Babe," she praises.
"Thanks," I smile back.
Talon walks over, all cocky with swagger, chewing on one of his snake bites. He scoops me up and spins me around. When he sets me down, he kisses the top of my head. I smile to myself.
"Nice going, Shorty. Way to kick our boy’s ass," he says, smirking over at Oliver and patting him on the shoulder.
"Yeah, yeah," Oliver says with a smile.
Walking over, I stand in front of him. "Sooo, how did it taste?" I ask him, tilting my head to the side, waiting to hear his answer.
He looks at me with confusion. "How did what taste?" he asks.
"All the dust you just ate!" I laugh.
"Funny," he says, rolling his eyes with a chuckle.
His arms wrap around me in a hug and it takes me by surprise. I tense up a little momentarily before relaxing in his arms and hugging him back. I rest my head on his shoulders and close my eyes. This shouldn't feel so safe or like he’s my home, but it does. I feel like I'm meant to be here with him. I can't wait to have that talk with Oliver when we get back to school, so I can finally have more moments like this.
"Way to go, Firefly," he whispers in my ear, sending shivers throughout my body. I am about to say thanks, but then he speaks again. "And you’re welcome," he says, releasing me from the hug and stepping back.
It was my turn to look confused. "For what?"
"For letting you win," he says with a cocky smirk. I just stand there, gaping at him. "I slipped..." he adds with a sarcastic tone. "...so that I could sit back and enjoy the view."
"Enjoy what view?" I ask, still confused.
"You, and your...'' he pauses his sentence, as he leans to the side, looking behind me. I look back to see what he’s looking at, but then I finally catch on to what he means.
He starts laughing a deep belly laugh, as he bends over holding this stomach. I walk up close to him and slap his shoulder.
What a jerk face!
"You're an asshole!" I laugh.
Then it’s the girls’ turn to go up against the guys next and, of course, the girls win.
"We totally let you win," Talon says, being a sore loser.
"What? No, I didn't! That girl’s a beast! Did you see how fast she went? Damn," Ben says, as he high fives Lissy. Charlie smirks at Talon, knowing he's full of shit and that she won all on her own because she's just that awesome.
Once everyone is done, we make our way to the obstacle course. From what I can see, we have to run through tires on the ground, swing across a ditch filled with water, army crawl under some fencing, and then walk on a beam that’s balancing over a pit of mud.
We get split into two groups, and I'm happy when my guys and both my girls are put on the same team with me.
The race begins and the guys each go one by one against their opponents before it’s Lissy’s turn and then Charlie’s, and they all end up doing pretty well. At first, our team is in the lead by two, thanks to Oliver and Talon's speed. But then it evens out, because Lissy trips up over one of the tires and then she gets her shirt caught in the fencing.
I'm the last one in our group to go.
I’m watching as Charlie is halfway over the beam, and I get a rush of energy, knowing it's almost my turn. I look over to the other team to see who I'm up against.
Just lovely. It’s Brittany, of course.
I smirk to myself, knowing that I’m gonna love kicking her ass, securing the win for my team.
She looks over at me, watching her. "What are you looking at, slut?” she sneers. “I'm gonna win and you’re gonna lose like the loser you are. Then your team is going to think of you as a fuck up, like they should!"
I roll my eyes at her. "Just shut the fuck up already, it’s just pathetic at this point," I say.
"Fuck you, bitch!” she snaps, looking like she's ready to come over here and kick my ass. “I'm going to show Oliver who the real prize is," she says, as her face morphs into a smirk.
Shaking my head at the babbling bullshit that's spewing out of her big mouth, I look over just in time to see Charlie jumping off of the beam and running to the finish line.
It’s my turn now, bitch! You're about to eat your words, Bitchany!
Taking off, I head towards the tires. Keeping up a good rhythm, I bounce back and forth through each tire, and I make it through without tripping.
The rope is next and I grip as tight as I can, before swinging my legs hard. I only just make it past the water, as I land in a crouch on the ground and start off for the fence.
Dropping down to the ground, I turn on my back and start using my legs to help push me to the other side. I look over and see that Brittany is struggling, as expected, as she’s bitching up a storm.
Making my way through to the other side, I jump up and run in the direction of the beam.
Getting there before Brittany, I look back, finding that she's still not through the fence part yet. I use the extra time to take a few deep breaths and place my hands on my knees, calming myself, so that I can focus on balancing on the beam.
Standing up, I find my footing, extending my arms out for balance, I start to walk.
I have a few close calls at first but manage to keep steady.
When I'm about halfway there, I can tell that Brittany is on her beam now too, and she's clearly pissed that I'm winning. She starts to yell out every name in the book, but I tune her out and make it to the end. I jump off of the beam and instead of running to the finish line, I look back to see how Brittany is doing.
She's trying so hard to make it across, but she's too upset and is wobbling bad. She's gonna crash and burn any second now, and I can't miss that now, can I?
Looking over in my direction, she catches me watching her with a smile on my face.
She flips me the finger, then loses her balance. She tries to straighten herself out, but she doesn't catch herself in time.
Falling to the side, arms flailing, she lets out a high pitched scream, right before she faceplants in the mud.
My eyes go wide and I burst out laughing. I run to the finish line and join my group to celebrate our win.
We're all laughing, and I’m trying not to pee myself, when I see Brittany trying to get up. The girl is looking like a swamp monster. She lets out another high pitched shrill as she tries to get the mud off her face and out of her eyes without losing her balance again.
The instructor eventually helps her out and gives her a towel. After wiping as much mud as she can off of her face, she looks over at us with a look that lets us know that she wants to murder us all in our sleep for laughing at her expense.
We all take off running back to camp.
ONCE WE’RE BACK AT camp, we eat and then enjoy our last night before our early morning hike back to school. We make s’mores while telling ghost stories.
Every so often, I look over to see Brittany watching us with a sour look on her face. Anyone can see that she's jealous. Not sure if it's because of Oliver and me or because of the group as a whole. We’re all becoming good friends. I'm starting to see the guys as my people. Looking over, I see the guys goofing around and Lissy and Charlie cracking up over something they said. I lean back in my chair and smile behind my hot chocolate, thinking about how beyond grateful I am with how my life is turning out.
These past two months have gone a lot better than I was expecting, except getting my nose smashed in and almost drowning.
Two holidays have passed, but it feels like I just got here. For Halloween, the girls and I just ate candy and watched all the Halloween and Friday the 13th movies from the moment we woke up until late into the night. There was a basement party that night, but after everything that happened, I wasn’t really in a partying mood.
For Thanksgiving, my foster parents had to work, so I just stayed behind at school. Talon, Ben and Lissy all went home with their families, but Oliver and Charlie stayed behind with me. Charlie and I hung out while Oliver kept to himself for most of the weekend.
Christmas is coming up soon and I am really excited to spend time with Amy and Rick. I miss them. They’re the closest thing I have to real parents. This is going to be my first Christmas with a tree and everything. Somehow I was always in my mother's care for Christmas, and, of course, she wouldn't waste her precious drug money to get her child a gift or a tree. I even started going to the homeless shelter as I got older. When Olly was around, he would always find a way to make me feel better, whether it was a Christmas cookie or just going over to his house to watch The Grinch.
I know if Rick and Amy knew, they would have invited me over, but I didn't want to make them feel guilty for what I was sent back to when I was not with them. But none of that matters now. This year, I'm getting a real Christmas. I have a feeling that the camping trip might just have been the start of me making new and better memories. I can't wait to see what else the universe has in store for me.
Chapter 16
Emmy
The camping trip was amazing, but sadly the weekend is now over. It's Monday and I'm sitting in Music class with Oliver.
"Alright, class, I have an assignment for you. I want you to pick a partner, and the two of you will come up with a song to perform together. I'd like you to write it yourself, if possible. The school has equipment and instruments if that's something you would like to use. You can either both sing, one can sing while the other accompanies or both can play an instrument. That's entirely up to you, but participation is mandatory. You will have until the end of the school year to work on this. Then, we will have a showcase for the entire school, where your parents are welcome to attend as well.”
Looking around to see who I could work with, I remember that I don’t really know anyone in this school other than my group of friends and, to be honest, no one else in here seems like the kind of people I’d care to get to know.
Sighing, I turn to the only friend I have in this class, Oliver. When my eyes land on him, I find that he’s already staring at me with a nervous smile. "Partners?" he asks. I look at him with hesitant eyes. Lightly placing his hand on my knee, he gives it a little squeeze.
"Come on, Emmy. We would get an A+ for sure. I’ll play, you’ll sing. We’ve got this," he says with a light smile as his thumb gently strokes my knee.
Leaning back, I think for a moment. "Alright, I guess we can try.” I nod.
That gets his smile to go from unsure to a megawatt beam in an instant. "Great!" He claps his hands together, resting them on his thighs. "Now we just need a song to sing," he laughs.
“Well, great songs take time to write. I have a few that I’ve already written, but I don't think they would work for this project. And coming up with a new one might take a little while.”
“Understandable. When you have something, you think you’ll want to use, write down the cords and give it to me, and I'll see what I can come up with on my guitar."
We spend the rest of the class talking about all the silly songs we used to come up with as kids. I find myself laughing hard when remembering some of the good times we had together. The teacher has to tell us to quiet down a few times, but that only makes us laugh harder.
It feels like old times again. Laughing and joking around, like nothing ever changed.
I have already decided that I'm willing to give Oliver another chance. He’s proven to me that he’s sorry and that he loves me. I just want to put everything behind us, because I’m sick of being this unhappy. If I have a chance to have the one person, who always made me feel loved and wanted while growing up, back into my life, then I'm not gonna let this chance go to waste. That is, once he tells me the rest of the story, like he promised.
After class ends, I say goodbye to Oliver and head to Art class. "Put your bags down at your desk, then come grab a canvas and get in line by the door," the teacher instructs and then leads us out the side door towards the grassy lawn. Covering half of the wall of the school building is a big plastic tarp that has been hung up with some of it spreading out on the ground below.
