The Game

HELLO! Shana is back and with a new chapter! I am so excited because my creativity I'd back. I have better ideas for the story. And hell, I missed this story so much.

By the way, I kinda changed it from how I wanted last chapter, kinda. Not much, but kinda.
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Chapter 5 – Surprise, Surprise

“What?” I ask hesitantly, looking over at him with raised eyebrows. River Carlyle, the boy that hates me to the end of the universe and back, just said the three words I never thought I’d ever hear from his mouth.

“Do I have to say it again? It was hard enough to say the first time,” River snaps. I roll my eyes with a glare. Of course, once I think he’s going to nice to me, he becomes an asshole once again. “Look, the only reason why I said it was because you were crying, and I can’t stand people who cry, so suck it up, buttercup, and let’s go back to try to do that scene.”

“But — I thought,” I stumble, my eyes starting to burn. He was only nice because I was crying. Only because I was crying. That bastard. How dare he! How dare he try to make himself seem selfless only to tell me that it was because I had let my dam burst without a warning? He sighs and takes my face in his hands, and I can’t breathe. The suddenness of his touch and the closeness of his face, as completely unexpected as they are, are not only making me completely nervous but also terrified. What is he planning on doing? And why is my heart beating to the point that I think I’m going to have a heart attack?

“Don’t you dare cry, or so help me, I am going to rat on you for every little thing you’ve ever done,” he threatens in a deep voice. I gasp, my heart beating erratically. He wouldn’t dare do anything like that to me, right? He knows how much this camp means to me.

No, I think to myself, he doesn’t.

But, also, what is wrong with me? My heart is beating so fast, I can’t breathe, and I feel like my face is on fire. Something is seriously wrong with me already.

River glares into my eyes, then his light blue orbs roam around my face for whatever reason he has. I’m too afraid to breathe, and it’d be suicide if I spoke. Finally, he lets go of my face, his hands lingering slightly, almost to the point where I don’t catch it, before standing. I look up at him, confused, and he gives a sigh, though it isn’t frustrated. I can’t tell for sure, but it’s almost relieved and maybe a bit disappointed. It’s hard to detect, but it’s there, practically hidden.

As I look up at the boy, I become mesmerized by the way the sun shines on him. It gives his dark hair a shining gleam, making them look like feathers. His eyes are almost like the water of Lake Harbor, the water making slight waves from the water glinting with the sun. And as I look up at him, he looks rather wonderful, almost like a god, I suppose. Just like when I first met him. He looks…perfect…

Okay, weird thoughts. Gonna ignore them.

“Are you getting up or not?” he asks me, sending me a glare and breaking my thoughts, and for the better. I send him a glare in return and he outstretches his hand to me, offering to help me up. I ignore it and push myself up on my own. He pulls his hand back with a scowl, turning away and walking back. I watch him walk, a glare set on his back. I slowly follow and instead of going back to work, I head to the lake. The one place where there might be some peace and quiet. By the time River will realize I’m gone, he’ll have no idea where I am. And that’s just what I need.

Once I get there, no one is at the lake. Everyone must be in their classes or working on their projects. I pull off my black flip-flops and throw my feet in the water as I sit down. I lie back, sighing softly to myself. Nothing but nature is here to bother me and nature isn’t all that bad compared to River. I close my eyes and let the sun shine down on me, the warmth drying my face.

Minutes later, I hear footsteps, and I instantly sit up, pull my feet out of the water, and grab my flip-flops, ready to run.

“Don’t run, okay? I just want to talk to you,” River tells me. How the hell did he even find me here? I mean, the only person who knows I come here is Jordan, so maybe River followed me? Or Jordan told River where to find me. But, I don’t really care how he found out.

“River, come on.” I glare at him, and even though tears are threatening to pour again, I keep a straight face. “I just really, really need to be alone. You being here is not going to help me at all.”

“Just,” River sighs, running his hand through his hair. I watch his hand carefully, seeing it sweep through his black fluff he calls hair. As much as I hate him, he does have really, really nice hair. “Look, I want to talk to you. I want to figure out why you hate me, and I need to get you to understand some things yourself. Alright?”

I gape at him, staying silent for a long while. Slowly, I place my feet back in the water. Maybe I should listen to him. I mean, he has a few decent reasons to talk. I guess he deserves to know why I hate him, and I guess I could hear him out. I sigh and set my flip-flops beside me. River stands still, watching me closely. After a moment’s hesitation, I pat the spot beside me, looking down at my lap with a small blush. I have no idea why I’m blushing, but I am, and I hate it. And my heart is beating erratically. And I have no freaking idea why, but I hate it.

“Thank you,” River says, and there are two more words I’d never think I’d hear River Carlyle say. Maybe crying’s the key with him, you know? But, whatever. I glance over at him and note that he’s also a bit flushed. River, blushing? What in the world?

“So, do you want me to start with why I hate you?” I ask quietly, looking down at my hands. I don’t know why but I feel completely nervous. Why should I? But then again, why not? What does River have to say?

“Sure, that sounds good. Why on earth do you hate me? And only me? I mean, I know that you’re mother is a touchy subject, and that is the main reason why, but why did you start with the pranks?”

“You shoved me, you asshole!” I tell him, whipping my head up to glare at him. “My first day here, you just pushed me to the ground! What the hell was your problem?” I watch his expression, first sincerely sorry, which is a huge shock as always, and then it turns to shock and sorrow. Oh, shit, what now? I am not going to listen to him cry. Because if he starts crying, I am walking away.

“Oh, right, that first day. That year before, um, my parents got a divorce. So, I was extremely unhappy and wanted to take it out on someone. You were the new girl, and you looked vulnerable. So, I thought, what the hell? Why not?”

This is the second time I gape at him. His parents got divorced? I know enough people to know that is horrible. He’s missing a parent like I am. Well, not entirely, but it’s close. Who has custody? Does he see his other parent, or does he never? Holy hell, what does he go through every year?

“Dammit, River,” I sigh. “If I had known, I might have been nice.” I shake my head and rest it in my hands. After a long moment, I look back up at him. River is staring out over the lake, a hard frown slowly taking shape. I wonder what he’s thinking about. And why the hell is he opening up to me? I should be the last person in the world he would open up to. But, I guess not.

“If I had known,” River pauses, thinking. I think he’s trying to word it correctly. “If I had known what happened to you, I would have been nicer as well.” He chuckles a bit, glancing over at me. “Our lives suck.”

At that, I give a snort. “One thing we can agree on.” After a second, I pull my feet out of the water and turn to him. His black hair glints a bit, showing a healthy shine. “Why are you being nice to me? I’ve caused you pain and anger, and you did the same. So why, after five years now, are you eciding to be nice?”

“This project, of course. According to an outside source,” River starts.

“Jared,” I interrupt, nodding. “He’s the outside man for both of us. He got us the snakes, etc. Continue.” He sends me a small glare for interrupting, but sighs and waves it off.

“Anyway, Jared says the prize has something to do with this camp. And I’ve heard Mr. Snow is thinking about retiring. I don’t know exactly what it means, but we need to win if it means Mr. Snow might retire from this camp. You and I care about this camp more than this whole camp put together. It’s my escape and it’s a reminder for you. We need to win. And in order to do that, we need to grow up and work together. So, what do you say? Truce?” River holds his hand out to me, turning to me as well.

“No more pranks from you? I can understand if Flint pranks us, but you won’t?”

“None. I swear on my life. Today is the last day I have any pranks planned.”

I send him a small glare. “How do I know you’re telling the truth? You and I are enemies.”

“I opened up to you, didn’t I? And trust me, you are the last person I would ever tell anything to.”

I sigh, thinking this over. He’s right about how much I love this camp. He did open up to me. We do need to grow the hell up. And if he’s right about Mr. Snow, I need to make this truce happen.

Mr. Snow is old. His hair is white, he looks like he’s in his late 60s. If he’s going to retire, this camp is gone. And if Jared is right, and this camp has something to do with the prize, then we do need to win. I love this camp because it reminds me of what my mother knew I could do. River said it’s his escape. From what, I don’t know, but I do know I can’t let this camp go.

I guess he does know what this camp means to me after all.

“Fine,” I finally say, and his eyes widen in complete and utter shock.

“Really?” River asks.

“I need this camp, and if the prize has something to do with this camp, fine.” I take his outstretched hand and shake it. “Truce it is, then.”

“Looks like we’re not enemies?” he asks. I send him a look that says, “You’re kidding?”

“No, we are. But we’re putting that aside. It’s like frenemies.” I shrug.

“That’s stupid, but okay. Whatever.” He shrugs back, and it causes me to look at our hands. We’re not shaking hands anymore, but it’s kinda like we’re holding hands. I widen my eyes in horror and yank my hand back, flushed. I turn back to the water and stare down at my lap, the blush showing no sign of leaving.

“Sorry,” I say, my heart thumping against my chest.

“It’s cool,” he says in a weird voice. I don’t bother glancing up at him because I don’t want him to see the redness of my face. What is wrong with me, seriously? I am such a weirdo. Maybe it’s because I was crying, which I do not do, and now my body doesn’t know what to do. Yep, that sounds good to me. My body is just being weird. Sounds right.

To break the awkward tension, River turns to me. At first, I think he’s gonna say something. But instead, he shoves me into the water.

I gasp, and ha, big mistake. I’m underwater and I inhale a large amount of water. I flail in the water, my mind going back to the days where I didn’t know how to swim, and I can’t remember. My mind is going into panic mode, and my body is being pulled down in the water. I can’t breathe, I can’t push myself to the surface, and I can’t think.

I close my eyes and suddenly memories flash through my mind and the only thought I can make out is, Oh my god, I’m going to die. And that thought plays over and over in my head as I see memories pass in seconds.

Most contain my mother. I see her smiling down at me, then I see her playing with me. Her hands are handing me toys, she hands me a bottle, she feeds me. Everything with my mom passes and now my memories containing my father flash by. Him and I, these last few years mainly. The Zoe comes into view. Then Gwen, our old friend. Jordan. Marissa. Flint, even. Everyone I know comes into view, and lastly, there’s River. The boy who just pushed me into the water, the cause of my death, is in my view now. I see him laughing at me, yelling at me, smiling even. I see every moment I have ever spent with him, and I honestly wish I could spend more time with him.

Suddenly, I feel something around my torso, pulling me up, up, up and out of the water. I gasp, my eyes open now. Everything is a complete blur, and I feel myself being laid on the ground. I see the sky, but like I said, it’s a blur.

“Sam?” I hear, and I see familiar black hair above me. I see a face, though it’s blurrier than the rest. “Samantha?” I hear again. And before I can reply, I blackout.
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Talk about a surprise...

So, yeah, Sam almost drowns. But guess who saves her...

I didn't edit because I'm so excited. So, if I made a mistake, oops, sorry. Let me know?

So, I am going to get back to writing!

I love you all!

 

Hey! Um...I have a problem... My iPod is slightly broken... The on/off switch/standby switch is broken or something. So... I'm gonna have to get it fixed. Which means I'll be posting from my alternate account TheGirlWhoWrites if I don't get it fixed soon (which will probably happen because I'm broke) so, yeah. Just letting you guys know.

Also, I am working on the next chapter. It's slow, yes, but I'm working on it. I promise. I just don't know how this chapter is going to go because of last chapter's ending and how I want the chapter after this one to go. It's complicated, but I'm working on it. Promise.

 

Hello everyone! This is not an update. This is a news announcement. This story is going to be postponed because I am going to work on another project, which is rewriting Cupid's Chocolate Villa and the other two short stories that go along with it. And I may or may not begin posting this story on the Wattpad that was made for the PIMD FF community by Acc/Raven/whatever her name is because I haven't seen it. I'm sorry for the postponing, but I really want to focus on the rewrites because I am a better writer now and I feel that the stories would be better now.

The second reason why I'm postponing it is because I can't write it right now. The chapter I'm working on is completely horrible because everyone is completely out of their character; so I want to wait until I can actually write the characters correctly.

I hope you guys can wait. It will take a while with school coming up, and that means I will have tons of boring homework and other lame stuff. But I'll do my best.