JJ's POV:

Today is my seventeenth birthday and all I wanted was to go camping. I got the tent, packed a cooler, and all that, and loaded up the Twinkie. I was waiting for my friends but Pope backed out as he had to study for a test and John B bailed as apparently Ward Cameron needed him for something.

Kie left the Chareau this morning and I haven't heard from her. John B needed his van so he dropped me off at our famous spot. It was about ten minutes away from the Chateau. It was in the woods and we used to camp there as kids.

"You sure you'll be alright alone?" He asked

"I'll be fine" I said annoyed

John B left and so set up the tent and got a fire going. I was honestly kinda pissed off. My friends, my fucking family ditched me. I don't ask for much but all I wanted for my birthday was to go camping. I've never really done anything for my birthday before and I thought they'd enjoy this. Now, I'm spending my seventeenth birthday alone in the woods.

I was throwing a few sticks in the fire when I saw Kie pull up. She got out of the car and asked, "Where's John B and Pope?"

"They bailed, why are you here?"

"I went to the Chateau but you weren't there. I thought you guys left without me"

"You've been gone all day, I thought you ditched the whole camping thing"

"Hell no, it's your birthday and if you want to go camping then I'll be there. I was on the mainland picking up your present and the ferry was delayed"

I smiled at the fact that Kie was here and she wanted to be here.

"So what'd you get me?" I asked

Kie went back to her car and tossed me a bag. It was small and inside was a small box. I opened it and inside was a ring. It was the ring I'd been talking about. It was super sick and pretty expensive. I didn't really know what to say so I made a joke, "Aren't you supposed to be on one knee when you propose?"

Kie laughed and just hearing her laugh was a present itself. I put the ring on and it was a perfect fit. I thanked her and she seemed happy that I liked it.

We sat by the fire and had a few drinks, roasted marshmallows and made s'mores. We talked and just had fun.

It was late and the flames were dying. Kie was wearing my flannel over her crop top and jean shorts. She looked so freaking beautiful. She rested her head on my shoulder and said, "I'm sorry that John B and Pope bailed on the camping trip. I know how much you wanted this trip to be perfect"

"It still was perfect thanks to you"

We were heading to bed and I unzipped the tent and Kie went in first to change out of her clothes. She opened the tent back up and I came in and took my shirt off and laid down next to her. It was a tight squeeze in the tent. We were supposed to have a bigger tent for all four of us but I brought the smaller one since I thought it was just me.

"Jayge" Kie whispered a few minutes after we were both trying to fall asleep

"Yeah" I said back so she'd know I was still awake

She didn't say anything which I thought was weird but I didn't think much about it. She moved and rolled over and sat up. I sat up thinking something was wrong but she looked at me kissed me. I was caught off guard and didn't kiss her back right away so she pulled away. She looked humiliated and I said, "Come here"

I pulled her back and kissed her again. We broke apart and she said, "I'm kinda glad it was just the two of us"

"Me too" I said as we laid down and I wrapped my arms around her and we fell asleep

We woke up early with the sun the next morning. I got up and made Kie coffee over the fire while she got up. I couldn't stop thinking about the kiss last night. I was caught up in my thoughts when Kie appeared.

"Good morning" I said handing her a cup of coffee

"Thanks and good morning" She said sitting down next to me

She was in her pajama shorts from last night and she had my flannel on over her sports bra. She totally caught me looking at her and I awkwardly looked away. She's caught me checking her out so many times before this but after last night, it feels different now.

She was totally blushing when she caught me looking. She took a sip of her coffee and then she started getting things ready to make breakfast. She made pancakes and I offered to help but she wouldn't let me.

We ate together and breakfast was amazing. Kie always made the best pancakes. I helped clean up and it was pretty quiet. We both weren't saying much and Kie finally said, "We should probably talk about last night"

I knew we'd eventually have to talk about it but I didn't really want to. I was pretty sure I knew exactly where this conversation was going. She was going to tell me it was a mistake, one-time thing, we're better off as friends, the usually lines.

"You regret it" I spoke for her

"What? I didn't say that. I just said we should talk about what happened last night"

"But that's usually how the conversation goes"

"JJ, I don't regret last night. I just want to make sure you don't freak out because I know how you are. You overthink and then you do something stupid. Let's talk about it before it gets to that point" She said calmly and I couldn't deny it because she was right

"I mean I've kinda been freaking out since I got up this morning.... My best friend kissed me last night and I haven't stopped thinking about it because the kiss was amazing and I know I've kissed a lot of girls but this kiss was so different. It was just...." I was cut off by Kie pressing her lips to mine

We both melted into the kiss and this time, I placed my hands on her body. I wasn't worried about her pushing me away or breaking the kiss because she was uncomfortable. When we did break apart, I said, "Thank you for getting me to shut up"

"You're welcome and I like kissing you too" She smiled

We packed up the tent and everything else into her Jeep. She asked me if I'd drive back to the Chateau and  I was happy too. I started driving and I grabbed her hand and held it and she just smiled.

We got back to the Chateau and John B and Pope were there. Kie and I unloaded her car and John B asked, "You two went camping together?"

"Yeah, we did" Kie said grabbing the cooler and I realized she was still in my flannel

"How was it?"

"Pretty fucking amazing" I smiled at the boys

We finished unloading and Pope said, "I feel like I'm missing something"

"Me too" John B said as the two watched us

Kie and I just went on as we normally would. We agreed that we weren't going to be obvious about whatever was going on between us but we also weren't going to hide it. John B and Pope could both sense that something changed between me and Kie.

"Dude, you guys totally macked" John B smirked

Kie looked at him and the look was priceless. She asked, "You really think I'd mack him?"

John B looked between the two of us and he was even questioning it. Kie's poker face was the best. He said, "Guess not, but something seems different"

"Nothing is different" Kie said and her eyes just sparkled as she looked into mine

Kie walked inside with the cooler and I followed with my backpack. John B and Pope stayed outside and I met up with Kie in the kitchen. She was putting the leftover food in the fridge and she asked, "Should we tell them?"

"I think they already know"

"Yeah, I got that vibe too" Kie said and I laughed and she rolled her eyes because she knew exactly why I was laughing

"You're so immature" She laughed

"Yeah, but you still love me" I smirked, and then we made eye contact and we both realized what I said

She looked at me said, "You're right, I do love you"

"I love you too" I said smiling at her

We both went in for the kiss and it turned into a makeout in the kitchen. We were interrupted by John B and Pope clearing their throats. 

"Thought there was nothing going on" Pope said

"And Kie you just said you wouldn't mack him" John B added

"Well, something is definitely going on" Kie said looking at me

"We saw and now I need to try and erase that image from my memory" Pope said grossed out

"Yeah, didn't need to see your tongues down each other's throats" John B agreed with Pope

"Well then you guys might wanna leave" I warned them as I leaned back in to kiss Kie

We were kissing when we heard the door shut and we both laughed. John B and Pope would come around to the idea of us. But right now, I was just focused on kissing my girl.