"Sarah," I whined quietly. The bus was quiet, and it was dark out. Anyone who wasn't sleeping was on their phones or listening to music. I'm pretty sure Madi was watching Netflix. The only noise was the bus across the highway. "Sarah." I poked her shoulder.

She groaned and turned away from me. "Shut up," she mumbled.

"But I have to pee." I tugged on her blanket. "Like really, really bad."

"Then go," she said shortly and pushed me away.

"Ow!" I fell into the aisle and banged my head on the seat across from us. I groaned and squirmed in the narrow space, trying to get back on my feet. When I finally did, I glared at the sophomore, rubbing my bottom. "Jerk." My butt still hurt from that morning. Ash wasn't a happy camper when she found out I didn't pack the night before like she had asked me to more than a hundred times. And she also didn't appreciate me lying about packing either.

Sarah didn't look up and by her breathing, I could tell she fell back asleep. With a frown, I sat back down. A couple minutes passed, and I still had to pee really, really bad. I turned and peaked over my seat, sitting on my knees, so I could look behind me. Ash was sleeping against Jessie in the back of the bus.

"Pssst."

No response.

"Pssst."

Nothing.

"Pssssst," I hissed a little louder.

"Umph!" A pillow flew and nailed my face. I fell back and bumped the seat in front of Sarah and I. Gillian groaned. "Would you chill out?" She grumbled, reaching behind her to smack me.

I swatted her hand away and kneeled on my seat again. Before I could open my mouth to get Ash's attention, Brooke glared at me. "Malcolm, open your mouth one more time, and I'll throw a lot more than my pillow."

I slowly closed my mouth and sank back into my seat. I huffed and crossed my arms, bouncing my leg. "I gotta pee so baaaad." I squirmed in my seat. My butt still stung a little from this morning, but it wasn't enough to distract me from my bladder.

"What is going on?" Ash asked coming up the aisle, looking like she just woke up.

I ignored her agitated tone. "Ashy, I gotta pee!" I whined, tugging on her sweatshirt desperately.

She rolled her eyes with a sigh. "I told you to go before we left."

I peered up at her sheepishly. "I didn't have to go then."

Gil turned in her seat and snorted. "You're such a baby," she teased. I kicked the back of her seat. She reached back and slapped my leg.

I looked up at Ash. "Did you see that? She just hit me!"

The senior just shook her head. I couldn't tell if she was amused by our antics or annoyed. "Just hold it we're almost there." She turned and took a step back down the aisle.

"Wait," I grabbed her sleeve and pulled her back. "What if I can't hold it?" I asked desperately.

She pointed towards the back of the bus. I glanced anxiously at the small bathroom tucked in the corner. I shuddered. "No."

"Then hold it."

"I can't," I insisted. The bus rocked, almost knocking Ash off her feet. I looked out the window to see the highway disappear behind us and forest thicken around us. The bus was even darker without the lights of passing cars.

She pointed outside. "We're almost there. You can hold it.

I slumped, defeated. Ashy walked back to her seat leaving me to fidget and avoid peeing in my pants. Eventually, I spotted the outline of a cabin in the darkness. "Hallelujah!" I shouted as the bus came to a stop. I sprinted down the aisle and tripped before I could walk down the bus stairs.

"Yes, Ams!" I heard someone shout.

I didn't even care that everyone was probably laughing at me. I just needed to pee!

I ran around the entire first floor of the cabin before finding the bathroom. "Thank the Lord!" I shouted and slammed the door behind me.

———

"Please, please, please, please, please, please, please, please, pleeeease!" Ese, Gil, and I begged.

Sawyer sent us a heated glare. "Shut up before I shut you up."

"Sawyer," Ash said in a warning tone, shooting the junior a look. Sawyer's grumpy face didn't go away, but she did, stepping away to join another group's conversation. I didn't complain. Ash looked back at us. "We are not taking rooming requests."

"We'll be super quiet," Ese insisted. "And we won't cause any trouble." Gil and I nodded in agreement.

Jess chuckled lightly. "The three of you together is trouble. Room assignments are already set. We have them right here." She unzipped her backpack and pulled out a spiral notebook. Everybody clambered to get a peek at the list.

"Freeze!" Ash shouted. Everyone stopped, but I was smarter. I kept going and reached out for the notebook at full speed. At the last second, Jess pulled away, and I kept going, tripping over my own feet and landing on the carpet with an "Umph!"

Jess smirked at me. "Good try, kid," she said and nudged me with her shoe.

I winced and rolled over on the carpet. I managed a cheeky smile and wheezed, "Keepin' it real." Cough. Cough.

The blond senior rolled her eyes, but she was still smiling, so I knew she wasn't really mad. Ash asked, trying to contain her laughter, "Are you okay?"

I nodded sheepishly. She helped me up and sat on a loveseat with me on her lap. I squirmed, wanting to go sit beside Ese and Gil. Her grip around my waist tightened. "You're sitting with me," she said matter-of-factly. "No more trouble." She rested her chin on my shoulder and added quietly to herself, "For tonight at least." Even though I wasn't facing her, I could hear the smile in her voice.

I rested my head against her chest and didn't complain. I was too tired to argue, and I liked cuddling with her, so it wasn't worth making a scene.

Jess read through the room assignments. There were five bedrooms in the large mansion-like cabin. One was for the coaches, one was for the seniors, and the other three were split between the rest of the players.

Let me tell you the room assignments sounded like hell, and whoever created the assignments was possessed by the devil.

I looked up at Ash. "Are you guys trying to start World War III?"

She chuckled. "We're getting you guys ready to push for playoffs."

I looked around the room, taking in the tension. "Your plan kinda sucks."

———

"Amily Bryn. Go to bed."

Bang! Bang! Bang! I had to rap the door with my palm since my knuckles felt ready to split.

"She's gonna kill me in my sleep!"

"You're being dramatic. Just go to bed."

I gaped at the door. "Are you serious?" I shouted. "I just told you there's a chance I won't wake up tomorrow, and you're just gonna send me back to bed?"

There was a pause and then a tired, "Yes, so go to bed. Now, please."

"Ashy," I insisted. "This is crazy. Sawyer hates me. Like hate hates me. I'm going to die!"

There was shuffling and the door swung open. I greeted Ash with a cheeky smile. She was not amused. I peeked around her. Jess was sitting on her bed, leaned against the headboard reading a book. She was shaking her head at me with a sly smile. Ellie was knocked out on the other bed.

"Ams, I'm tired and not in the mood for this right now. Go to bed," she said sternly.

I crossed my arms. "I want to room with Sierra and Gillian."

She warned, "I won't tell you again. Go to sleep or you can write lines."

"You brought my notebook?" I whined loudly.

She nodded and gave me a warning look. "Yes and if you wake anybody up with your complaining I will tan your backside."

"You already did that today," I reminded her.

She raised an eyebrow. "And? That doesn't make you immune. I'll spank you all the same."

I blushed. "Please don't," I said quieter.

She smirked in triumph. "That's what I thought." She kissed my forehead and spun me around. With a gentle nudge and pat to my bum, she said, "I love you. Goodnight. Sweet dreams."

With that, she shut her door and left me standing in the hallway.

I sighed. I ventured back to my room, pushing the door open. Gracie was on her bed with her glasses and a bible opened on her lap. She was the only one awake. "What's wrong, squirt?" She asked.

I pointed to Sawyer, fast asleep in her bed.

Gracie offered a sympathetic smile. "Some people are just EGR."

"EGR?" I repeated, genuinely confused.

She nodded. "Yeah, you know, extra grace required. EGR."

I nodded slowly. "Anyways, if I pranked her, would you tell on me?"

Gracie sighed and went back to reading her bible. "I will see nothing."

I smirked. "Perfect."

Sorry it's shorter and took forever😬. But don't worry the next chapter will come faster than this one did. As always please vote if you enjoyed and comment what you think. Anything you'd like to see, let me know!