The Fifth

A whispered conversation between Lacey and Austin worried the other three teenagers in the hot tub. Things could get awkward in the tub quickly if the only couple in the room started to get frisky with each other. In particular, Sean was concerned that Ramsey would feel uncomfortable and leave, dashing any chance for the two of them to talk.

"So, uh, Jared, I just wanted to apologize for earlier," Austin blurted out, surprising the other three. He glanced back at his girlfriend before continuing, "I shouldn't have taken out my disappointment on you. I, uh, need to work on being more gracious...and you guys just outplayed us."

While it was apparent that Austin's apology came at the prodding, if not insistence, of Lacey, it was still a surprising development. One that Jared decided to accept in hopes of ending any awkwardness for everyone on this trip.

"Don't worry about it. We're cool. I should say I'm sorry too if it came across like I was gloating at all. It was a great game for us, but it's not like we won state either."

"Yeah, you guys had no chance against Arbor Corners at all in the championship. You guys were just too small. Now I think we-" Austin broke off after a sharp elbow into his ribs from Lacey. "Uh, yeah, we're cool."

"Great! Now how about we talk about something other than football. Sound good?" the auburn-haired cheerleader happily suggested.

"Well, I did want to ask Jared a few things about the game," Ramsey revealed, giving her friend an apologetic look.

"Fine," came a sigh and eye-roll from Lacey.

"Um, so, I was somewhat curious as to why you wouldn't talk to me after the game?" the lighter-haired redhead shyly wondered.

"I'm not following you, Ramsey. I haven't seen you since the last year when we were down here visiting the Strattons. Not to mention I was so focused on the game I really didn't have time to talk to anyone," answered a confused Jared, looking around at the others for any help.

"Oh! Sorry, I meant I wanted to interview you for The Buzzy Bee, our school newspaper. I'm the editor this year. I was trying to get some reactions and quotes from the star player of the game," she informed him.

"Alright, I see. I pretty much only talked to our local reporter that was there. I think your local reporter and one of the tv reporters talked to Breck and Darren, our quarterback and running back. I would say they were the stars of the game, and you should have talked to them," he said, downplaying his role.

"I did talk to them, but you were the real difference-maker. Your interception in the second half truly was a game-changer. Not to mention those two sacks ended promising drives...uh, sorry, Austin," Ramsey said, noticing the annoyed look on the face of her best friend's boyfriend.

"Yeah, whatever," he said with a dismissive wave of his hand, while another thought hit him. "Shit, I forgot my phone."

"Why do you need your phone?" Lacey asked her boyfriend.

"Marcus and the guys are going to Metropolis tonight," he replied, referring to the local dance club. Wednesday nights were eighteen-and-over night. "Kessler planned to finally find Winkie a girl. This should be classic."

"Don't be an ass, Austin," Lacey responded with a frustrated sigh. "Will is a nice guy and deserves better treatment from his friends."

"It's not my fault that he walks right into these things. Winkie has the worst luck," Austin defended himself. "Remember that time he walked in on Whitney--"

"Well, maybe his luck will change tonight. The rest of the squad planned to hit up Metropolis tonight too. They were even going to drag Roxy and your sister out with them," the redheaded cheerleader revealed. "Maybe Yumi and Winkie will finally get together."

"Now that would be something to see. The airhead and the clumsy guy in town trying to hook up," Austin cracked. "But Rory won't be there no matter what happens. She can't go."

"Did something happen to Aurora?" Ramsey asked of his twin sister, Aurora "Rory" Rusk. Fearing the worst, she glanced over at Lacey, who merely shrugged.

"Yeah, she got grounded. So no dance club for her," Austin chuckled. "Still, maybe I should go grab my phone. I don't want to miss any of the highlights."

"I wouldn't bother," Ramsey said before he could stand up. "Cell signals are spotty out here."

"I've never had any problems when we stay at Max's family's place," Austin stated with certainty.

"I told you this, Auss," Lacey reminded him.

"Isn't their cabin on Frog Lake?" Ramsey questioned, getting a nod back. "Frog Lake is close to the old cell tower. Wasp Lake's southern shoreline and further south to Frog Lake can get signals, but once you get around the eastern shoreline, signals get spotty. Here, on the northern side of the lake, it's hit and miss."

"That's why my phone's directions here went haywire," Austin recalled. "This sucks! How am I supposed to know what's happening back in town?"

"You could always drive down to Wirchie's," Lacey suggested. "My phone always works fine there."

"Or use the internet," Ramsey suggested. "Mr. Diamond spent a considerable amount of money, putting in a fiber optic cable extension. He used to complain that the satellite connection would go out at the old cabin whenever some game he wanted to watch was on."

"Whitney said he might chip in or pay for a new cell tower too. But he's not as popular around here as he is in Honey Hollow. Putting that cable extension in raised some suspicions around here," Lacy recalled.

"Ugh, whatever. This is boring. We should've snuck some beer out here," Austin groaned.

"What were we talking about before?" Lacey inquired.

"My interview with Jared," Ramsey answered.

"You know, now that you mention it, some of the guys were giving me a hard time in the locker room. They said some hot ginger was waiting outside to talk to me. I figured they were just giving me the usual shit that goes on after a game. I'm really sorry, Ramsey, I would have been happy to talk to you," the linebacker remembered with a smile for the young reporter.

"You would have?" she asked brightly.

Sean had been watching this exchange, hoping for any opportunity to join in. Still, his heart gave a slight flutter when the joyful look lit up her face. Wow, she's so damn beautiful. I hope someday she can give me a look like that. I should have joined the school paper, now that I think of it. It would have been a great way to get to know her.

"I still would love to get a chance to do that. We have a series late in the spring that looks back at all the school year's important events. It would be great to have some new material for that game," she explained to him. "Maybe later this week we could sit down for a short interview?"

At the other end of the hot tub, Lacey and Austin grew increasingly bored. Austin didn't need to be reminded once again today about the last game of his high school career. He had tried to take his mind off the conversation by running his hand underwater over his girlfriend's fit body. Unfortunately for him, Lacey had shot that down with a hushed comment about saving that for later. Still, Lacey was sick and tired of football. She had hoped to be done hearing any football talk for months, as Austin always droned on about it. She found her gaze taking in her family friend's muscular frame while biting her lip gently. Oh my gawd, when did Jared turn into such a hunk. All those muscles, that chest and those arms...no wonder he gets around with all the girls up in Rattle Ridge. She found her gaze shifting slightly to the side towards her other family friend. Hmm, even Sean looks to be in pretty good shape. He's nowhere near Jared, of course, but still, he's not too far behind Auss. I wonder why he never played any sports; I know he likes them.

"Hey," Lacey said, motioning towards Sean. "How come you never played any sports?"

Startled out his musings about Ramsey, he took a couple of seconds to understand what the auburn cheerleader had just asked. "I did go out for basketball both our sophomore and junior years. I had that bad flu that was going around right before tryouts the first time. Coach Grimm told me I was out of shape and wouldn't listen when I tried to explain I was just getting over being sick. The next year, Dixon Solis landed on my ankle and twisted it badly," he said, referring to the school's very tall and very large starting center.

"Ha, that will do it," laughed Austin at the thought of Dixon Solis falling on Sean. That earned him a glare from his girlfriend.

"Yeah, he cut me right away after that. Dixon felt awful about it. I get the feeling that Coach Grimm doesn't care for me. I play pickup games with Jayden Cooke, and he wanted me to try out again this year, but I passed."

"That fucking sucks. Your coach sounds like an asshole," interjected Jared, breaking his conversation with Ramsey. "Our basketball coach is pretty cool. A few of us play two sports, and he's really understanding about it. Let's us football guys take it easy as that ends just before basketball starts up. Same with guys that play baseball in the spring too."

"Wow, you play both sports," Ramsey said, impressed.

"Yep, I was a power forward. I'm not playing this year. It was getting to be a little too much. Kind of wipes you out and takes up a lot of time. I want to enjoy my senior year, ya know," he explained.

"Of course," she agreed, sliding over a little closer to him. "So what's Rattle Ridge like?"

Sean gave a slight frown at how Ramsey seemed to be focusing her conversation on Jared. He wasn't all that worried as she never seemed interested romantically in athletes, but it still took away any opportunities for him to talk with her. He was intently paying attention to the chat in hopes of his chance, so much so that he didn't notice the other redhead in the tub slide over closer to him.

"Hey, what do you think of Skye?" Lacey inquired.

"Well...she's a...quite pretty," he answered, unsure as to how he should respond.

"Pretty? C'mon, Tarver. Just admit she's fucking hot! Or don't you swing that way? Hahaha," Austin yelled across from his side of the tub, earning yet another hard look from his girlfriend.

"Duh, yeah. I mean about her and Fred. Do you think it's kind of wrong to bring his newer, younger girlfriend up here for THIS trip?" she corrected her original question.

"Sure, my first--okay second--thought was that it's kind of weird to bring her up here considering the circumstances. They don't seem to have been together all that long," Sean agreed.

"See, Austin? I told you I was right," she proudly pointed out to her boyfriend before turning back to Sean. "I knew you would be the only one here right now I could talk to about this. I don't know if I should even talk to my mom about it. I would ask what Fred's thinking, but it's kind of clear he wants to show her off to his friends. Still, what's she thinking coming up here?"

"Hmm, Skye seems like a friendly, polite person from what I've seen so far. Oh, you don't think she doesn't know, do you?" he asked her with a suddenly thoughtful look.

"Oh. Fuck. No way! Could you even imagine? I mean, Fred can be a selfish dick, but even that is beyond him. Isn't it?" she exclaimed, hitting Sean's arm.

"I don't know which one would be worse. I wonder what Finn thinks of all this?" Sean asked, thinking of Fredrick's twenty-one-year-old son.

"Finn is what I'm afraid of. What's he think of his dad dating a woman barely older than him?" she asked softly.

"I bet he's jealous his dad's banging that!" Austin laughed.

"Austin, enough! This is family talk! So butt out!" she snapped out. "Can't you be serious about something other than fucking football?"

An awkward silence followed Lacey's harsh outburst. Jared and Ramsey looked at each other in confusion since they hadn't listened much to the other conversation. Lacey looked close to tears in her anger and concern over Finley and his father. Austin's shocked face was now starting to cloud over. Taking in all of this, Sean spoke up in hopes of calming down the situation, although he was pleased with how Lacey called him family.

"I think what matters most is how Finn feels about everything. So we should just wait until he arrives in a couple of days. Until then, how about we try not to worry about it too much. Sound alright, Lacey? Besides, Peyton and Lana are with him, and I bet they can tell us more," he gently suggested.

The upset redhead gave a couple of quick nods to his suggestion, "I'm sorry for yelling. I just worry about how Finn is taking all this. I knew you would understand my worry," Lacey said, giving Sean a quick hug. He tried not to enjoy her firm body against his for many reasons. The one scowling at him, being at the top of the list for now. The usually bubbly cheerleader then slid back over to her angry boyfriend, where she gave another whispered apology.

"Yeah, so, like I was saying, the ski resort job is a big deal for people at my school," Jared started back up, telling Ramsey and also looking over at Sean to include him. "Snowbird Lodge is kind of the big place to hang out at over the winter. The owners put a ton of money into it, making the other resorts seem cheap."

"Yeah, the place was packed when I was there a few years back," Sean added, seeing his chance. "You know, Rattle Ridge isn't that far away. Maybe we could visit some weekend. Skiing at Snowbird could be fun."

"Really? I don't remember you thinking it was fun the last time you were there," laughed Jared. Turning to Ramsey, he explained. "He hadn't tried skiing in a few years and was falling over left and right. My sister tried to teach him how to snowboard, and that went just as badly."

"You try having a bossy thirteen-year-old screaming at you. Just because she's a natural at snowboarding doesn't mean everyone else is. I'm lucky I didn't break a limb with her teaching ideas," Sean grumbled.

"Oh, poor little you. If you had broken a bone, then you would have had your own personal nurse 24-7," he laughed even louder until he noticed Ramsey's confused look. "My little sister, Julianna, has had the biggest crush on him for years. Drives him nuts."

"Gee, thanks for telling everyone about it," Sean sarcastically said, trying to cover his embarrassment as Ramsey grinned at his discomfort.

"You hooking up with a kid, Tarver?" Austin questioned with a laugh.

His flushed face didn't go completely unnoticed by his old family friend. Sean usually doesn't get embarrassed like that. Damn, I shouldn't have said it like that in front of people from his school. Austin doesn't need any more ammunition to tease him about. Not to mention in front of a beautiful girl like Ramsey.

"Leave him alone, Auss. Jules is sixteen now and quite beautiful," Lacey defended. "Or, at least, you thought so when I showed you her picture last month."

"Wait, what? That girl? That little hot--uh, that's his sister?" Austin jerked his thumb at Jared while looking flabbergasted.

"Yes, that was Jules. And I think her crush is sweet," Lacey added with a grin towards Sean.

"He knows I kid him because I completely trust him. If my little sister had this crush on some other guy, I would be worried. She's growing up, and I would be worried the guy would take advantage of her," he told Ramsey while trying to do damage control for Sean.

"That's so sweet of you to worry about her," she said, beaming at Jared. "So your parents are okay with her staying home by herself this week?"

"Home alone? Hell no! She's staying with our neighbors across the street. Bethany is one of my closest friends, and she's working up at Snowbird too. The little brat tried to stay home alone, but like that was going to happen. My parents still remember the party I threw freshman year when they came down here for a weekend visit. Yeah, that one still gets talked about," Jared added with a chuckle at the end.

The conversation turned back to life in Rattle Ridge. At first, it was interesting for Sean to watch Ramsey pretty much interrogate Jared as if she was writing a newspaper article. However, after close to fifteen minutes, he began to really feel left out. Lacey and Austin seemed to be on better terms at the other end of the tub again and in their own little world. Feeling like the fifth wheel in the room was pretty close to his original concerns about this week. The one friend he brought sat holed up in their room playing a game. The other friend he hadn't expected to be here was now soaking up all his crush's attention. Why couldn't JoJo be here to bail me out? Or better yet, why didn't I just wait a couple more days and drive up with Peyton's group?

"So you want to be a reporter? How did that come about?" Jared asked, breaking Sean's thoughts.

"I've always been interested in newspapers. My family owns and operates our local paper, so I spent much of my time there growing up. Still, the main reason is I just love discovering a potential story and searching for whatever scraps of information that are out there. It feels like putting a puzzle together or solving a mystery," Ramsey vocalized with growing passion in her words. "I've always loved curling up on the couch to read a good mystery story. Yet, I want more. I guess I want to be the person solving that mystery when it comes to investigative news."

"I wish I had something that I loved like that. I still have no idea what I want to do with my life," admitted the dark-haired linebacker before a thought entered his head. "Hey, you know who loves mysteries probably even more than you? My guy right here!" he announced with a gesture towards Sean.

"Oh, I didn't know that. You do?" Ramsey asked a silent Sean.

Suddenly granted the wish he desired, Sean was like a deer frozen in the headlights of Ramsey's eyes. "Uh, y-yeah, I do," he managed to mumble out.

"Oh, he totally does," swooped in Jared with the save. "Back when we were little kids, and our families took vacations together, he would be lugging around a bunch of books. One time camping, he kept me up reading some Hardy Boys--or was it Nancy Drew--book with a flashlight in our tent. Or in Hawaii when he would ask some stranger at the beach what a word in a Sherlock Holmes story meant."

"Ugh, I can't believe I never thought of it, Ram. I should have gotten you two together to talk about books," Lacey added as she joined the conversation. "He and my dad only talk about mysteries or detective stories whenever they see each other. Been like that for years. You've seen my dad and Finn talks for hours about books, well they aren't as bad, but it's close."

"Hmm, it seems like I haven't been paying attention. So what are some of the authors you like to read?" Ramsey asked with some interest finally in Sean. "I hope it's no some of those trashy novels that Mr. Stratton reads.

"Um, I...not really. I like detection--I mean, I usually prefer detective stories. I'm a big fan of Dashiell Hammett, Raymond Chandler, Ross Macdonald, those types," Sean said, struggling at first but gaining confidence as he talked about a subject he loved. "I'm also a fan of Agatha Christie. And Arthur Conan Doyle, of course."

"No, I've never been a fan of those hardboiled stories, nor armchair detectives. I prefer more modern authors, who use up-to-date techniques in their works," she stated before rattling off some newer authors who wrote plots based around forensic science, medicine, or psychology. Sean had never read any of them; he barely even knew some of the authors' names.

"Sorry, Ramsey. I guess I'll need to try out some of them. Maybe later this week you can give me some recommendations," he suggested in hopes of spending time alone with her.

"I'll have to see. I'm not sure what you might be able to handle. Several of these series require knowledge in different areas. I guess if we have time, I can see what you know," the strawberry blonde mystery reader answered back a little dismissively, although Sean hardly noticed.

"Sounds like Tarver only can read kiddie books, Ramsey! Maybe you better just think of what you read as a litt--ouch! What the hell did you pinch me for?" Austin squealed out at his girlfriend.

"Okay, let's get back to our talk. So tell me about..." Ramsey said to Jared, ending the discussion about novels with Sean.

Once again, Sean found himself left out of the two ongoing conversations. Happy at having a subject in common with his strawberry-haired crush, he replayed the interaction in his head several times. He knew that in a one-on one-discussion with her, he would have to do better. A plan would be needed so he would feel comfortable. Luckily talking about mystery stories was an area he felt confident about, and he would squash any doubts she had about him handling her new favorite authors.

Finding himself staring at his crush again, Sean noticed how steam was increasingly rising from the tub as the room grew colder. Combined with Ramsey's near-magical beauty in his mind, he was reminded of a scene from some old film about ancient travelers or warriors. In the scene, they had come across several nymphs in a hot spring, who had tried to entice them into joining them and abandoning their journey.

"Um, Ram? You might want to slide down a little lower into the water," Lacey gently suggested, the water up to her neck. "It's getting a little chilly in here."

"What? No, I'm fine. I don--oh my god!" she shrieked after glancing down. The innocent ginger's white one-piece swimsuit had turned semi-transparent from the water. Coupled with the growing cold air in the room, two dark, hard nipples could be seen pointing out. She swung her arm in front of her chest in embarrassed anguish as she dunked down further into the water. Her eyes closed to block out the humiliation she felt.

A few moments of awkward silence filled the room. Austin started to make a comment but thought better of it and shut his mouth. After taking in the sight of his nipples, Sean looked away from her partly out of respect and partly out of guilt, as his cock had rapidly hardened. Oh fuck, not again! he screamed at himself as visions of what he what like to do to her breasts raced into his head. Jared too had grown excited about the sight but could see how humiliated the innocent girl was, so he attempted to diffuse the situation.

"No need to feel bad, Ramsey. It's just from the water and cold air. You should try being a guy sometimes. We have worse problems with what points out," he said with a small laugh. "Back in my sophomore year, I was at my date's house where we were taking pictures with her friends before the homecoming dance. Seeing five girls in formal dresses definitely got a reaction from me. And those dress pants are pretty thin, so there was no hiding how I felt. My date's mom was blushing hard, while her dad was about ready to strangle me. I'm fairly certain those pictures aren't hanging up in their house. Talk about embarrassing."

Ramsey opened her eyes and gave Jared a grateful look. She then glanced over at Sean, noticing him peeking over with a guilty look, causing her to give him an annoyed glare. She next looked over to her close friend and mouthed a quiet "thank you" to her.

"Rammy, I think it's far past the time for a new suit. Looks like the lining in that one is wearing out," giggled Lacey now that her friend seemed to better with the situation. "Tomorrow, we'll go through all those extra suits Whitney bought for guests and find you one for the rest of the trip. I helped her pick out some cute ones that you might like."

"I'm going to see if I can turn up that heater some more," Jared said, jumping out of the hot tub and going over to fiddle with the device. Finished, he started to head back over to the tub but stopped as the door to the room opened.

Owen walked in and closed the door. A very drained and exhausted looking Owen. "Girls, Whitney said that if you want, you can go back to your room in around ten minutes."

"She's not joining us?" Ramsey asked, surprised.

"It didn't sound like it. Alright, I'm off to bed soon," he let them know before turning and walking out.

"Damn! I think Whitney broke him," Austin laughed.

"Shit, more like she's a vampire. That guy looked pale as fuck," Jared added.

Deciding he had enough of sitting by himself in the hot tub, Sean stood up and said he was off to his room as well. Noticing that his friend seemed a little upset, Jared said he would go with him, leaving Ramsey dismayed.

"Looks like I'll go what deal is with Whitney. You coming, Lace?" Ramsey asked her friend.

"I think Austin and I will stay here for a little bit longer," she replied with a small shrug.

"Yeah, don't wait up for her," he added with a big grin.