Mia's eyes narrowed into sharpened narrowed slits as she scanned my position sitting back on the bed beside hers. It was undeniable that she was confused. Minutes ago, on the coach, I'd just been passionately ignoring her, and now here I sat on what was supposed to be her best friend's bed, confidently declaring we'd now be sharing a room.

I looked nuts.

"What do you mean, it's our room?" she said, her voice striking up slightly.

I swallowed nervously against my throat realizing I might have been a little presumptuous in thinking she'd automatically be cool with sharing a room with me just because she wanted us to be friends again.

Neutralizing my expression, I swiftly rolled my eyes. "It wasn't my idea, Lucas kicked me out of my room and replaced me with May. If you've got a problem with it, take it out with him," I said in justification before quickly going back to look at my phone.

I wanted to look bored, and disinterested; like I hardly even cared that I was sharing a room with her. It's no biggie, really. Sure, she's insanely attractive, and was likely going to be sleeping in the bed beside me in tiny little sleeping shorts and a camisole but that didn't mean anything.

I was mature and controlled now, and I would not look at Mia Collins in any way that wasn't appropriate. I also definitely wasn't going to think about her when she was showering...or imagine what it would feel like to have her tucked up in my bed beside me...or...

Never mind, you get the point.

Mia's brows furrowed, and she made an irritative step towards the door, muttering something rude about Lucas and May under her breath. My heart leaped up in a panic, realizing she was on her way to yell at them so she wouldn't have to share with me. As shameful and stupid as it was, a part of me at that moment genuinely wanted to grab her hand and demand she stay.

She'd barely made a full step before she suddenly paused, and turned back to look at me. The look in her eyes made my stomach dip especially when she swallowed, and let her gaze drift lingeringly up and down my body. I could see the cogs of her brain slowly turning as she continued to stare.

Holy shit, was she checking me out? Do not smile, Ethan. Don't you dare fucking smile. You don't care that she's checking you out.

By some stroke of miracle, I managed to stop my mouth from twitching upward and watched her clear her throat sharply and move slowly away from the door and towards me. Something had clearly made her change her mind about telling off Lucas, and May.

I stiffened slightly as she took a seat at the end of the bed. "But what if the teachers find out...," she asked cautiously, her eyes swimming over mine slowly.

"Relax, miss goody-two-shoes, the teachers aren't allowed to come in the cabin unless they knock, which gives us plenty of time to swap back," I explained with a lazy roll of my eyes.

I tried to seem unbothered but in reality, I was scared shit at the possibility of getting caught which was a very real possibility. But for some stupid, idiotic reason, I wanted to take the risk.

"I suppose that's true...," Mia murmured slowly. There was a pause, and Mia's eyes continued to dance around my face, in a way that distracted me.

I once again, cleared my throat and returned my eyes back to my phone and away from distraction.

Mia Collins was not going to make me soft.

A short while later after everyone had settled into the cabins and gone to dinner, our cabin went on a quick pointless walk around the camp before settling ourselves down on the grass by the lake.

Everyone was laughing, and chatting with one another while I stared solemnly out at the dark lake water below me. The evening was chilly, and as another gust of wind swept past my arm, I looked over at Mia for the nineteenth time this evening. I frowned noticing she was just wearing a flimsy-looking cardigan and was no doubt freezing.

Why the hell hadn't she brought a thicker jacket? It was pissing me off. The urge to slide closer to her and give her my jacket was killing me. I couldn't, of course. The second I did that the words 'I'm still insanely in love with Mia Collins' might as well be inscribed across my forehead.

She'd been torturing me all evening. When we'd left the cabins to go for dinner in the hall, she'd kept throwing looks at me over the table. I mean, sure I didn't have to reciprocate by staring back for several seconds, but it was her fault, she trapped me.

I wasn't sure how much more I could honestly take. I was a ticking time bomb and knowing I was soon going to have to retire to bed in the same room as her filled me with a strange kind of nervousness. If I was smart, I'd force May to switch back with me, but unfortunately, I wasn't.

A peaceful silence soon broke through the air before Lucas being the chatty bastard he was, decided to disrupt it.

He threw Mia, a look - a mischievous one with twinkling eyes. Knowing he was going to say something stupid, my heart immediately dropped.

"I was expecting you to come to yell at me for switching rooms, Mia," Lucas spoke up with a chuckle as he threw Mia a particularly knowing look.

"I can always start now if you'd like me to," Mia snapped in a warning.

Lucas continued to smile, in a way that only spelled trouble. "I just thought I'd let you know that Ethan didn't hesitate for a second when I asked him to switch. Take that how you will," he smirked as he started to look between Mia and me suggestively.

I snapped my head towards him immediately, more than irritated. "Do you ever shut the fuck up," I bit back.

In reality, I was more annoyed at myself that what he was saying was true. I hadn't hesitated. I had been shamefully eager to share a room with Mia, and now our whole cabin knew it.

Mia knew it.

"Sorry...I can't help it, I'm bored, I felt like provoking someone," Lucas whined before pouting his lips out toward me.

I tried hard to maintain my glare on Lucas, I really did try but soon enough a smile cracked my lips, and then a chuckle as I shook my head at him.

That was the thing about Lucas as easily as he could piss you off, he was extremely hard to stay mad at. It was almost impossible.

I watched as May shuffled closer to Lucas and grabbed a hold of his hand before starting to play with it. The corner of my lips edged up as I watched them, and I had to push back the depressing feelings of jealousy that were rising as I watched the two of them together. As much as I was overjoyed for Lucas, seeing them together could sometimes be a bitter reminder of how badly things had failed for me romance-wise.

Mia suddenly let out a light laugh, her eyes resting on May and Lucas' entwined hands. "I still can't believe that you guys are dating, didn't May kick you at your own party," she laughed as she looked between the two of them in disbelief.

"What can I say May has an interesting flirting technique...," Lucas sighed before throwing May a pitiful look.

May scowled and then pinched him on the shoulder.

"Ouch, see what I mean," Lucas whined as he rubbed his arm.

Mia started to chuckle as she watched the two of them interact, and my eyes latched onto her as she did. A warmth spread through my chest, missing the sound of her laughter, and the corner of my lips edged up against my control.

Returning my gaze from her lips back to her eyes, my eyes widened slightly as I realized, she was staring at me. Shit.

Dropping my smile immediately, I looked sharply away, embarrassed that I had let myself look and smile so obviously.

What a fucking idiot.

From the corner of my eyes, I saw Mia's smile drop just as easily from her face and she turned back quietly to face the dark lake. Her fingers edged to her wrist, likely to play with her bracelet in the way she always did when something made her nervous. This time, I was the one making her nervous.

"Shit," Mia suddenly said in a panic.

I looked over at her in concern.

"What's wrong, Mia?" Chloe asked softly, her brows pulling together in confusion.

"I've lost my bracelet," Mia cried. Jumping to her knees Mia then started frantically patting around the grass, in the clear hope that it would miraculously appear. She was blinking rapidly, looking like she was on the brink of tears.

Frowning, I let my eyes fall around all the areas on the ground beside me, hoping to see a flash of silver somewhere.

Just as I was about to suggest we try the dining hall; Mia's eyes fell over to the lake and suddenly she was on her feet and walking quickly over to the brambles along the riverbank. Mia had been throwing rocks off the small but steep cliff just a few minutes ago, and I wasn't all too pleased that she was back there.

"Mia, where the hell are you going?" Chloe called out in confusion, voicing my thoughts entirely.

"I think I found it," Mia shouted back. Then throwing her hands on one of the large rocks along the steep riverbank, she hoisted herself up onto its uneven surface.

I went incredibly still, feeling more than on edge as I watched her straighten herself up to full height. I wrestled with myself in that moment, as I thought back the urge to run up to her and snatch her back to the ground. I was furious, angrier than I'd ever been at her for being so dangerous.

"Just come back, Mia. You're not supposed to walk on that bit," Chloe called out in concern.

Mia turned back and rolled her eyes before spreading her arms out a little to balance herself before moving slowly to step onto the next rock.

A rock suddenly shifted sharply underneath her foot, and I jumped to my feet in a second.

"Mia, get the fuck down from there, now!" I yelled out, just as she'd regained back her footing. My voice was shaking, embarrassingly so.

I was too nervous to pretend that I didn't care. I wanted her back on the ground, with me, and safe.

As she was mid-way through stepping onto the next rock, she turned back to look at me in surprise. That's when the rock rolled right out from underneath her foot. Mia screamed in shock as she lost balance and skidded off the side and off the cliff.

"Mia," I yelled as I sprinted to the rocks.

It was far too late to reach her, and I watched shaking as she tumbled helplessly down the rocks that lined the steep bank. My eyes stung, and everything around me seemed to drown away as I watched her fall, my breath ripping away from me.

Finally, her body hit the water and submerged her in the darkened water.

My breath came out in heavy pants, as I waited for her to emerge. One second went by and nothing.

"Shit, do you think she got knocked out?" Chloe cried from behind me.

"I don't know..." Lucas mumbled, his voice cracking. "I'll run for the camp lifeguard and-"

Before I knew what I was doing, I started kicking off my shoes, and aggressively threw off my jacket as I blinked back tears.

This was my fault. I should have fucking grabbed her from the beginning. It was my fault.

"Ethan, the water's freezing, you could go into shock. My cousin almost died that way," Lucas hounded, his voice harsh to the sound as he tried to block my way.

"And?" I snapped, as I pushed him back harshly. "The lifeguards are too far away, and I won't allow her to die."

With that thought on my mind, I climbed up onto the rocks and dove headfirst into the water.

My second my body crashed underneath the surface; my body clenched up as the icy cold water drowned every surface of my body. I nearly gasped and choked on the water, before I blinked realizing, I needed to get a hold of myself and stay strong.

Spinning around beneath the water, I searched rapidly for any sign of Mia. A flash of dark hair anything but it was almost impossible to see anything in the murky dark water.

I felt my chest burning for air, as panic overtook my chest. Knowing giving up wasn't an option, I swam deeper into the water.

Five seconds of searching and feeling in the dark turned into nothing, then ten seconds, then twenty.

How long could someone survive without air? She must have fallen ten seconds before I did.

I pushed away the thought as fast as it had come, refusing to let myself think about that. She was going to be fine; I'd make it so.

Just as I was starting to feel the pressure of the lack of air, I noticed a branch of a tree lying abandoned at the bottom of the lake, and right beside it, I just about made out a limp pale hand twisted between the leaves.

Thank-fucking-God.

Never feeling more grateful in all my life, I swam over to her quickly and felt around for her waist, and pulled her towards me.

My eyes burned extra sharply, once I realized, she wasn't moving at all. Slinging her arm around my shoulders, I kicked up toward the surface with her in my arms.

The second we broke the surface, I looked at Mia hoping to hear a gasp. There was nothing, no gasp, just limpness.

Land. I needed to get her to land. That's why she wasn't waking up.

With the last remaining strength I had, I swam us over to the edge of the lake. The second we reached shallow water; I heard fast splashing. Looking up, I saw Lucas, Chloe, and May running through the shallow water as they rushed over to help. The four of us all helped lift her towards the grass at the edge of the lake before rolling her onto her back.

"Come on, Mia, Mia, breathe," Chloe begged frantically, as she frantically shook her shoulders. Her breathing was frantic as she tried to awaken Mia and I watched numbly, tears starting to roll down my cheek.

May stood beside Mia shaking, looking down at her unconscious friend with a wobbling lip. "Is she... Is Mia..."

"No," I snapped, immediately, my voice harsh and breaking.

Crawling over to Mia's side rapidly, I grabbed roughly at her hand and felt for a pulse. My hands were as cold as ice, and I just felt nothing. Just as quickly I put my hand on her chest, hoping to feel breathing, anything but again I only felt stillness.

May slowly covered her mouth, several tears spilling out of her eyes.

"No, she's not dead!" I snapped at May, not even needing to hear her speak to know what she was thinking. "She's still warm....she's-" I cut myself off, my voice cracking.

Swallowing painfully hard against my throat, I climbed to my knees and put both my hands in the center of her chest, and started pumping.

I'd never done CPR in my life, I wasn't trained, but I didn't know what else to fucking do. She was not dying today. I wouldn't be able to take it.

Chloe's sobs only got louder as I started the compressions. Lucas knelt down beside Mia's body and grabbed a hold of her hand, and gently put a finger against her wrist to try and detect a pulse.

His eyes were red as well, and the moment I saw them my heart squeezed, knowing the most optimistic person in the world, had lost hope.

"Wake up, Mia. Wake up! Please, please wake up," I choked out, my body starting to shake. At that moment I was only left with regret. Regret for not forgiving her sooner. Regret for not being smart enough to grab her away from the water, and regret for wasting so many years of my life by not telling her every single day how much I loved her.

Just as I felt something in my chest, truly die, there was a jerky movement of Mia's chest beneath my fingertips and suddenly Mia gasped for air.

I stopped immediately and watched with blurry, disbelieving eyes as Mia rolled herself to the side and started furiously coughing up water out of her lungs.

She breathed long, and shaky breaths as she tried to get more air into her lungs. Still, in a state of shock, I just watched, further tears falling from my eyes, not sure if I was imagining her.

"Oh my god," Mia," Chloe cried out in a sob as she rushed towards Mia and grabbed a hold of her hand in a death grip.

I wanted to do worse than that. I wanted to jump on her, then kiss every inch of her beautiful alive body, then get her permanently glued to my chest so she'd never be able to leave me again. Scary, I know, but accurate.

Mia blinked rapidly, as she tried to likely clear her vision, and the second she looked at me with those soft brown eyes, I lost it.

Letting out a sob, I let my head sink into her chest. "Thank God, oh thank God," I cried out as relief swept through my chest.

I grabbed a hold of her free hand and kissed it then clung onto it desperately.

"What the hell happened?" Mia finally croaked out, her voice raspy and sore.

I slowly lifted my head to look at her. "Mia, you almost fucking drowned...," I whispered, finally admitting to myself what had just happened out loud.

Mia seemed to pause before her brows knitted together softly. "How...did I get out? I kept trying to get up, but I....I...couldn't." There was a visible shakiness to her voice as though the memory scared her.

Chloe still beside her smiled softly down at her. "Ethan pulled you out, Mia. It took him a while to find you, but he did. We thought...," she swallowed then bowed her head. "We thought it might have been too late..."

Mia immediately turned back to face me her eyes scanned my body, likely taking in my dripping hair and drenched clothes. Her mouth opened then closed, seemingly utterly shocked. I wasn't all too sure what she was shocked about. Of course, I jumped in the lake after her. I'd do it over and over again. I loved her.

Finally, after a few silent seconds with her eyes dancing gently between mine, she softly swallowed. "So, does that mean you forgive me?" she breathed out weakly.

I stared at her blankly for a second, before slowly realizing she was talking about our fight. Truthfully, I'd completely forgotten we were even fighting. Faced with the prospect of never seeing her again, had put everything into perspective for me. I realized the amount of happiness, love, and laughter she brought into my life, didn't even come close to the amount of pain.

My lips edged up slowly, not sure whether to laugh or cry that seconds after almost drowning, Mia's first concern was whether or not we were still in a fight.

Leaning forward, I brushed a small strand of hair behind her ear for her. "Of course, I do you absolute idiot," I smiled.

The thought I had to kiss her at that moment was interrupted by a sharp clear of a throat. "Ethan, honey, she almost drowned, I think your flirting can wait," he snorted lightly.

I just rolled my eyes at him, not even annoyed by the teasing.

Mia slowly started to sit up, then winced slightly. My smile slid quickly off my face, and I immediately reached out to steady her back. "Are you okay?" I asked quickly, eyeing her side over in concern. I remembered suddenly how nasty of a fall she had down that ugly rock side.

"Yeah, I'm fine," Mia said dismissively.

Then throwing me a stiff smile, Mia tried to rise to her feet. She didn't make any more groans or winces, but from the tight expression on her face, I knew she was in pain.

I frowned, annoyed that at a time like this, she was still trying to be a hero. "No, you're not fine, that fall was nasty. Let me help you," I insisted in a firmer tone before wrapping an arm around her waist.

"I'm fine, Ethan," Mia persisted, as she tried stepping away from me.

She took one step before her legs seemed to buckle underneath her and she almost went crashing to the floor.

My eyes widened and I quickly grabbed a hold of her before she could fall. "This is ridiculous, Mia, you almost fucking drowned! Let me help you," I begged.

Mia gave me a look and seemed as though she was about to object again, but taking in her still wobbly stance and likely bruised side, I released an impatient breath. "You know what, I don't give a shit if you want my help or not. You're getting it!" I snapped.

Before she could get another word out, I wrapped my hands gently around her waist and swept her off her feet and into my arms. Then turning on my heel, I started walking in the direction of the cabins.

Mia let out a sigh. "Ethan, I can walk this is ridiculous. I didn't break my legs," she muttered.

I just ignored her and pulled her even closer to my chest where she belonged while muttering under my breath how stubborn she was.

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Hope you enjoyed xx

The Ethan ignoring Mia days are officially behind us. Yay.

Also really hate making dramatic chapters, much prefer funny.