The sun, filtered by the net curtains at the Crofts' kitchen windows, tells me that if I want to go camping, I should leave now.

Jet messaged me a few minutes ago, saying they want to go on a sunset cruise. Everybody who owns some kind of boat brought it. He told me that if I'm not there within the hour, he's sailing all the way up here and kidnapping Kira. If I don't want to lose her to him forever, I'd better get my butt over there ASAP.

I'm really tempted to stay here and see how he sails all the way over here since we're not close to any body of water large enough to take a boat.

Then again, it's Jet... he just might use one of the water systems and pop up in the toilet or fall from a tap. Hmm... I might really stay to see which one he chooses. I have my preference for the sewer rat.

I have Kira in my lap, and we're drinking lemonade and sharing the M&Ms in the tub on the table beside our glasses. Life doesn't get any better than this.

We even had our very first fight as a couple; it was awesome! Yes, it was about the M&Ms; she still called them her M&Ms. In the end, we agreed that it didn't matter since we're a couple now, so it's our M&Ms. Then we made up with a long, long kiss, which is where the awesome part comes in.

I am now sitting here in the aftermath of that kiss, thinking about mealworms and hairy toes.

"You don't like mealworms, Ethy," Kira tells me with a confused frown. "And I don't have hairy toes."

I might've said the mantra aloud when thinking about it didn't help anymore.

"You sure don't," I tell her, tilting my head to look at her cute, hairless toes dangling just above the floor. She kicked off her shoes the minute we entered the kitchen door and shrieked when I grabbed her and plopped onto a chair, dragging her into my lap.

I think this will be our standard seating arrangement from now on. Whenever Kira gets up to do something, I stop her from using a chair when she returns. After pulling her onto my lap the third time, she no longer tried to sit anywhere else.

My girlfriend is so easy to train. Hehe.

Shit, I'd better not say that out loud, or I'll get clobbered. She's training me too. She touches M&Ms to my lips, and I open my mouth to eat them. I love this game. I would like to play it all day, but I can hear the kitchen door rattling. I'm about to yell at Jet that my time is not up yet, and he cannot have Kira when it opens, and Delia pops her head around it.

"Are you guys decent? Can I come in?" she asks, but she's already inside, grinning widely when she sees us sitting by the kitchen table, sharing one chair. Kira moves as if to jump from my lap, but I hold her in place. It's just Deli, and we need to get used to this relationship shift.

"Why wouldn't we be decent?!" Kira exclaims, her cheeks flushing bright red, but she doesn't try to leave my lap again; she just perches prettily on my knees. She's ready to run. I'm going to need a leash for this girl. "This is the kitchen!"

"Kicks, you know my sister," I chuckle. "She's never decent; it doesn't matter where she goes."

"Yeah, yeah," Delia scoffs, suddenly looking less sure of herself while she crosses the floor. When she reaches us, she drops to her knees and grabs Kira's hands in hers. "I'm so sorry," she says, blinking up at her. "Please believe me that I hated doing that to you. I couldn't even look at you; it hurt to see you upset. Though I kinda wanted to slap you for being so dense."

"I'm not sure if you're apologizing or trying to insult me," Kira snaps, yanking her hands from Delia's and when she gets to her feet, I don't try to stop her again. "I don't think you've ever lied to me that spectacularly before."

"Seriously!" Delia huffs, rising too. "I couldn't believe you fell for the garbage I spewed. Dad and Ethan, fighting over a shoe! Do you even know them?"

"I was scared; I would've believed anything," Kira mutters, folding her arms. She'd moved to the corner diagonally across from us, and she is not happy. "At the river, I got freaked out, thinking about Ethan and how almost every female I've ever met seems to be ready to pounce on him and how much it would hurt when our deal ended and he was a great boyfriend for one of them."

"Kicks, no..."

"I told you he loves you..."

"I still don't quite get why," she whispers, looking at me with a puzzled smile, clearly feeling slightly shy now that she'd blurted out what's been bugging her.

"I could make you a spreadsheet," I grin, and she clicks her tongue, annoyed, but I can see that she is considering the idea. Kira does love a good spreadsheet.

"A presentation!" Delia says, snapping her fingers. "With pie charts."

I'm not sure Kira is as fond of pie charts because she's narrowing her eyes, and I think she's on the verge of throwing something at my sister.

"I'm just one big joke to you," she says, and I can see that she is really hurt by what Delia did this afternoon despite it finally bringing us together.

"No, you're not!" Delia says, leaning the palms of her hands on the tabletop. "I'm sorry, Kiki. I got desperate. You were really hurting my brother and yourself, and I couldn't stand it anymore. I knew you just needed a little push."

"I was hurting you?" Kira asks me, and I'm about to deny it with my dying breath since Delia is going to kill me for contradicting her. She stops me from ruining her speech by putting a hand on my shoulder. I think I can feel her nails.

"He fell in the river and nearly drowned when you ran away."

"What?!" Kira exclaims, looking horrified, and I realise that when it comes to me, she is really vulnerable and willing to believe anything.

"I didn't nearly drown!" I grumble, shrugging off Delia's hand, and she turns on me, her blue eyes flashing sapphire. "Enough with the lies and exaggeration," I tell her firmly.

"You didn't see yourself coming out of that river, Ethe!" Delia shouts. "You looked terrible, and I'm not talking about being soaked and muddy with leaves and twigs stuck in your hair. Your eyes, your face..." She shakes her head, swallowing loudly. All mockery is gone from her face now. "You were so miserable. I'm sorry, Kira, but lying to get that torture to end was worth it."

"It wasn't that bad; I was just-" I don't get to finish my sentence. Kira must've flown across the kitchen because she's suddenly on my lap again, hugging me like she'll never let me go. "It really wasn't," I assure her, patting her back.

"Fine," she says, letting me go to turn and look at Delia instead. "I forgive you... and thank you. Next time, just say: Kira, you're hurting my brother. That should work just fine. Don't ever lie to me again. It's going to be hard to believe you for a while."

I like hearing that my being hurt is enough incentive for her to spring into action. I'm smiling widely when she turns to look at me again.

"She's going to be a terrible sister-in-law, isn't she?"

"Definitely," I chuckle, so happy to hear her call my sister her sister-in-law. "She's a terrible sister, after all."

"Yeah, yeah!" Delia grumbles. "Now get your arse out of here and go make sure your brother-in-law survives his first Founders' Weekend camp while I show my sister-in-law the many ways in which she's going to serve me to earn the right to be with my brother."

"We're going to need a cage," Kira tells me.

"And some strong chains," I agree, carefully standing up so that Kira can put her feet on the floor. "Thanks, Deli," I smile, pulling her into the crook of my right arm while I'm holding Kira with my left. I kiss her forehead and let her go to give Kira one last lingering kiss.

"Play nice," I tell them, and after giving each of them another tight hug and thanking Delia again for helping us out, I force myself to leave the Crofts' house.

This time, while I'm driving down the street, with the trees flashing past in my peripheral vision, I'm looking forward to the camp. My heart is light and buoyant with love, and I cannot stop smiling, which means I'm going to have to dig so many bugs out of my teeth when I finally arrive.

When I park at the campsite, everybody is gathered on the beach, skirting the inlet to the lagoon. They're getting ready to board the handful of motorboats, catamarans and small yachts moored in the cove above the inlet. It is the ideal place for a sundown cruise as there are no rocks in this bay to interfere. If the tide is high, like now, boats up to the size of Jet's can enter the lagoon and sail down it quite far unhindered. After rains like last night, the lagoon is swollen, ready for the boat ride.

"Dammit!" Jet yells when he sees me strolling towards them. "There goes my awesome kidnapping plans!" His wide grin makes a total liar out of him, and when I'm greeted with cheers and bro-hugs and handshakes, I finally feel like I am where I belong.

"How did it go?" Burlap asks when we're on the boat, sitting on the benches in the cockpit, enjoying the wind in our hair, while Jet shows Simon how to steer the boat down the lagoon without crashing into any of the other boats or going too fast. He's using the engine instead of the sails tonight.

"Well, at first, I kissed her, and she ran away," I summarize. "Then I fell into the river and lost a shoe."

I decide to end the story when Jet doubles over laughing. At this rate, he is going to sink the boat, and I promised Lance and Reuben's mothers and Delia that I would bring their boys home safely.

"Long story short, we are now officially dating!"

"Awesome, Ethe!" Burlap chuckles, throwing an arm around my neck and pulling me close to rub his knuckles over my head. "I told you."

"Yes, you did."

"Damn! There goes my last chance," Jet exclaims, but when he turns to look at me, his eyes are filled with happiness for me.

"Wait, hold on," Lurch, seated on the padded bench across from me, says, frowning.

"Yeah," Barn, sitting beside him, agrees, his hand pausing on its way to grab another handful of potato chips from the bag in his lap. "Haven't you been dating for a week already?"

Oh dammit! I did it again!

At this rate, it will soon be general knowledge because there are other guys on this boat with us now, sitting on the benches and lying on the deck - the yacht can comfortably carry about ten people - and they are all looking at me now.

"He was on probation," Jet jumps in with a laugh. "He is now her full-time boyfriend."

"What?" Paul asks, giving me a baffled look. He is sitting beside Barn, trying to grab a handful of chips each chance he gets. Sharing with Barn isn't always easy. The guy eats way too fast and sometimes forgets to hold the bag so others can get some too.

"Think about it," Jet clarifies. "If you had to date Ethan, wouldn't you also want to take him for a test ride before making up your mind? The guy is a menace!"

"Here we have the kettle," Burlap scoffs, tousling my hair, his arm still around my shoulders. "And there we have the pot," he says, waving a hand towards Jet.

"You're just sour because now you have to share Ethan," Jet snorts, not making any sense, as usual.

His strange explanation seems to have distracted the others enough, though they probably now all think Kira is fickle. I'm not sure how to set them straight without making life awkward for her by telling them the whole truth. I'm hoping they will just forget about it.

Lurch and Barn are watching me with speculative grins, and I know they know me well enough to have some fairly accurate theories about what really happened. I'll tell them later.

Burlap's cell phone suddenly screams a death metal tune, shattering the tranquillity in a million shards, causing Jet and me to give him alarmed looks while a few guys complain about cell phones being outlawed during camp. That tune means Wendy! Burlap hastily pulls his phone from his pants pocket and answers it.

"Wends?" he says, and before he can ask, I can hear her chattering loudly, clearly agitated. When Burlap notices the tension on our faces, he interrupts her. "Slow down, Wendy, and wait, I'm putting you on speaker. Please repeat that."

"- almost everything is there." I don't think Wendy heard Burlap.

"Everything is where?" I ask.

"Weren't you listening?!" she snaps, but she is too excited to chew my head off today or to realise I'm not Burlap. "Jack found the van. They arrested the two guys who robbed the house with Franklin. All our stuff was still in the van, except one or two small things they pawned for drug money. I know where, so we could perhaps get it back."

"That is awesome, Wends!" Burlap exclaims, blowing out a relieved breath. Looking up at Lurch and Barn's horrified faces, I realise there are more things we will have to tell them about. Until now, they thought it was the old story of Franklin trying his luck with Wendy, resulting in a tousle and her fleeing.

"And Franklin?" Jet asks.

"No sign of him yet."

We chat with her a while longer, and when we hang up all eyes are on us, asking a million questions.

"Franklin and two guys robbed her house and stole her metalwork equipment," Burlap sums it up for them. "Seems they will be getting most of their things back once the police release it. I will clear out a section of the pool house for her to use for her work. There's no way she's taking it back to her shed."

It is almost completely dark by the time the boats are moored in the cove, and we're back at the campsite. We built a huge bonfire in the special pit created for it just above the beach but out of reach of the forest if any sparks should escape.

The air is filled with the fragrance of roasting meat and vegetables on grills over sections of the fire. The night is alive with the sound of laughter and chatter, and the camaraderie fills the atmosphere with a sense of well-being that is hard to find anywhere else.

"When are we doing the naked dancing around the fire?" Lurch's brother, Elliot, asks. "I'm not sure I want to do that. There are big mosquitoes here," he says, taking a couple of sips from the water bottle by his side.

He is ten years old, going on about 73, and always warns us to be careful and tells us to behave. He is cute, though, with his old man glasses and wise expressions. I like the kid; he might be a stickler for rules, but it is because he is earnest and wants things to go well.

"We dance naked around the fire?" I ask since it's the first time I've heard about it.

"Who wants to see a bunch of naked guys?!" Lance shouts, horrified at the idea, and his outcry is met by a chorus of laughter, all agreeing that it is not something they want to see either.

"You really told your brother all kinds of stuff, didn't you?" Barn laughs. "We don't do that, kid; don't worry."

"We so do!" Lurch disagrees, casting incredulous looks around, but everybody is shrugging or shaking their heads. Nobody has any idea what the guy is talking about.

"What's up with you?" I ask Jet when dinner is done, and we're melting marshmallows on sticks to make s'mores.

He turns his head to look at me, and Burlap on my other side, and shrugs.

"Everything is getting too real, is all," he sighs. "They're talking about wedding venues, picking out a place where I'll live. My dad is already enrolling me for a degree in Economics and Business Administration so I can take my place as the head of Shop 'n Swipe. I can't do this anymore."

Jet once told me that his grandfather opened secret banking accounts for him and his brother years ago and told them to save up as much as they could to find their freedom when needed. He means to use that money now.

"Dude, your family owns the friggin' Shop 'n Swipe chain all across the country. I would love it if my parents would hand something like that over to me." Steven, a guy we know from school, says, and a few others agree. I didn't know that Jet had gotten so loud that everybody stopped talking to listen to him.

"Yeah, sure, Steve. I agree, it's pretty cool, except I've never been given a choice in any of it. If I were given one or felt like I had options, I would probably happily go to university and study for that degree. I would CEO the hell out of my dad's company. That's the problem. I have no choice. None. Right now, they're planning a merger with one of the other top four chains in the country. I don't even know which one, and part of the merger includes marriage. I don't get to choose who I marry or where we live. I'll probably get a schedule for my next 30 years, including conjugal visits to create the 2.3 grandchildren they require."

Everybody is silent now, wondering if they really still think it's so cool. Nobody dares to ask how you have a 0.3 child because Jet might explain it.

"What would you do if you had a choice? I mean, aside from sailing, is there something else you would rather do as a career?" Simon asks, giving Jet a compassionate look.

"I have no idea, Sy," Jet chuckles sadly. "I've never been shown options, sent for aptitude tests, or taken to career exhibitions. It's always been Shop 'n Swipe for me. Business. That's it. For my brother, Atherton, it's the law so that he can join my mother's practice. They don't care that he wants to be a pilot. It's not fair."

He rubs a hand through his hair and when he withdraws it, he spreads his fingers, indicating his friend beside him.

"I mean, look at Barn here. His dad owns a seriously successful fried chicken franchise. Has he ever told him he has to become the next King of Juicy Breasts?"

"It's Crispy Thighs, Jet," Barn interjects.

"Dude, no part of a woman should ever be crispy."

"It's chicken, not... oh, forget it." Barn gives up and bites into the s'more he'd just assembled, dripping with hot marshmallow and melting chocolate.

"No, his dad is not expecting that," Jet continues as if there was no interruption. "When he told them he wanted to teach kids how to get physical, both his parents were on board right away!'

"Physics!" Barn clarifies when the audience mutters in confusion, and he receives many ahs in answer.

"And believe me, he will be an excellent teacher," Jet assures us. "I actually almost paid attention when he explained to me, using physics, why I shouldn't try to light my farts on fire, so I don't try it as often anymore."

"I thought it was because you got sick of almost roasting your butt," Barn laughs.

"You would think that, but no," Jet shrugs. "Look at Ethe; he's going into business with his dad when he gets his degree because he wants to. He actually likes his dad and building boring stuff. So, good for him! He gets to do what he wants. Burlap is going to go to the UK to see how people's brains work over there because they don't work over here, and nobody's stopping him because he wants to go."

'I don't want to go," Burlap mutters, and Jet stops mid-speech to gape at him.

"Because you realised that their brains don't work either?"

"I just want to do it here instead," Burlap sighs, rubbing a hand over his face, and I realise again just how much the incident with Wendy has rattled him. "I don't know, maybe I'll go for a year. I'm not sure."

"Still, you can make that choice, yeah?'

"Yes."

"Lurch is going to Hummelton to learn to make Bubblebath because he loves washing people!"

"I'm going to Paris," Lurch says in a flat voice, once again grinding Jet's impassioned speech to a halt.

"That's a suburb of Hummelton?" Jet blinks, not happy to hear this.

"No, the one in France."

I was expecting this, but it still hits me in the gut with a nauseating punch.

"Tonia got into a prestigious art college there," Lurch clarifies, pulling up his shoulders. "It's her dream."

"What about your Bubblebath business?" Jet asks miserably.

"It's not bubble... never mind," Lurch sighs, rolling his eyes. "I can do a good course in organic cosmetics there too... so... I'll study for a year, maybe work there for a bit and then return when she's done with her course."

"What does your mother think of this plan?" Burlap asks since part of the reason Lurch was going to do the course was to help his mom.

"She thinks it's great," he assures us. "She said I should spread my consciousness and breathe in new discoveries while breathing out stagnant thoughts."

"What is that in English?" Barn asks, looking as confused as the rest of us.

"I should broaden my horizons... I think." I don't like this. The guy does not look happy.

"Do you want to go to France?" I ask, my voice tight, struggling to find its sound.

"Yeah, sure," Lurch grunts. "I'm very excited about seeing the pyramids."

"Those are in Egypt," Lance laughs, but I'm sure Lurch knows that.

"And the Big Ben."

"That's in London," Elliot assures him.

"And the Statue of Liberty."

"That's in the US," someone shouts from the shadows on the other side of the fire.

"How about the Eiffel Tower," someone else suggests.

"Why the hell would I want to see the Eiffel Tower?" Lurch grunts.

"It's in Paris!"

"Exactly!" Lurch exclaims, looking miserable. "I don't want to see it. I don't even speak French, and I don't think I can live on frog legs or snails."

"I think they have loads of other yummy things to eat, Bro," Barn assures him, wrapping an arm around his neck to either strangle or hug him. From this point of view, it seems like it could go either way.

"I thought you wanted to leave Egret's," I remark, wondering what's changed.

"Yeah, up to Hummelton for five days a week, away from the noise and activity," he explains. "I want to have some fun and feel a bit independent but be home again on weekends. I didn't mean France. Do you know how far Paris is from here?"

"Extremely?"

"And then some."

"What are you going to do?" Jet asks, not in the mood for speeches anymore.

"Go to France... see the friggin' Eiffel Tower," Lurch sighs. "Who knows, maybe I'll like it."

"Well, I'm depressed now," Jet grunts, hanging his head.

"Let's swim!" Barn barks, and everybody is more than happy to close the fire with the pit's heavy lid, strip off their clothes, and run for the sun-warmed water to wash away the rising gloom.

We swim, we frolick, and we affectionately try to drown each other. Mostly, we all try not to think about next year and what it might mean for our friend- and family bonds.

When the cold night breeze has sucked any remaining heat from the water and drives us back to the fire pit, we get it going again fast. We crowd around the flames, trying to get dry enough to pull on our clothes. Only about two of us remembered to bring towels, but they did not even bother to fetch them from their bags.

I laugh when Jet strolls to the tents and, seconds later, returns carrying his violin case.

"Wow! The naked violinist," Steven shouts. "That's not even the weirdest thing I've ever seen here. Gonna give us a classical music show now?"

"I like Vivaldi," Elliot announces, shivering next to the blaze.

"Me too," Jet grins, and as soon as he has his violin in his hands, he kicks off with a passionate, tricky piece that has Elliot grinning with wide eyes when he puts his glasses on to see the music better, I suppose.

https://youtu.be/ZPdk5GaIDjo

After thrilling Elliot with some strains from Vivaldi's Winter (one of Jet's favourites), he suddenly changes tune - quite literally - breaking into a lively version of Drunken Sailor, playing his violin as if it were a fiddle. It is something he started doing with almost more skill than playing classical violin for the sole reason that it drives his parents wild.

They've stopped asking him to play his violin for their guests.

https://youtu.be/IFSqjyigczU

Lately, he does it because he's grown to love it and says it's the best music for sailing. Right now, it's the best music for dancing around the fire too. We're into his third tune, with a couple of guys drumming on coolboxes, when we all realise that Lurch didn't lie. This happens virtually every time.

We are dancing naked around the fire!

It's not pretty. Fortunately, there are enough shadows and flickering firelight going around to create the illusion that this is not the worst sausage fest in the world. As soon as we're dry enough, we pull our clothes on in an attempt to hide from the mosquitoes eagerly taking part in a blood feast.

Looking around me at all the laughing faces, listening to made-up words sung in cheerful voices, a knot forms in my throat. I turn to look at Burlap when he puts an arm around my shoulders, and I can tell that he feels the same. When Lurch leaves his spot to put an arm around me from my other side, I pull his head onto my shoulder and tousle his wet curls. Barn dances over and hooks an arm around Lurch while we sway, watching Jet - the only one still naked since he pretty much always loses his clothes when he can - play his heart out, smiling like a Christmas card angel.

This is too important to give up.

All these guys linking arms around the fire are brothers. Some are in their twenties. One or two even became fathers recently, while others are only ten years old and just starting on their journey to adulthood. We all have one important thing in common. We're Summerfield boys, and this is our legacy.

This is our home.

♂♀