A little under three hours later, we got our first view of the sparkling water of Lake Murray. It was almost completely hidden by the thick pine trees, but every now and then the trees would clear and we'd be dazzled by the crystal clear waters shimmering with light. I was so awe struck by the natural beauty that I almost didn't notice when Lewis brought the car to a stop. Mia immediately shot out of the car, screeching 'NEED TO PEE' as she ripped the house keys from her dad's hands and booked it to the front door. The rest of us exited at a leisurely pace, stretching our arms and legs and breathing in the cool winter air.

A wave of nostalgia covered me as I looked at my surroundings. How many Christmas breaks had I spent here as a kid, playing hide and seek amongst the trees and getting pushed into the near freezing water? I inhaled the fresh pine scent, closing my eyes for a second to savour it, unable to stop the small smile that grew on my lips.

"Savannah honey would you mind going just around there to the electricity box and flipping on the power switch?" Sarah asked me, forcing me to open my eyes. "It's the one on the far right."

I nodded in response and strolled around the corner, easily locating the electricity box. Just as I reached it, the sound of footsteps rang out behind me and I whirled around in case one of the McCormacks was coming to help me. My surroundings, however, were empty, so I turned back to my task slowly.

Little weird.

I flipped the power switch and power walked back towards the front of the house, finding that someone had already moved all but one of my bags out of the car and onto the front porch. I hooked my duffle bag over my shoulder and pushed the front door open with my foot, hobbling inside.

The house was huge and modern inside, with high wooden ceilings and cozy looking furniture that appeared perfect for curling up and taking a nap. There was a fire place in the corner already stocked with wood, and a huge decorative Christmas tree a few feet to my left. It was exactly how I remembered it.

I stumbled through into the kitchen and dropped my million-tonne bag onto the floor, sighing with relief as I rubbed my aching shoulder. Sarah and Lewis were unpacking groceries as Mia descended the stairs, dressed weather-appropriately in her comfy looking sweater and jeans.

"Is there anything I can do to help?" I offered Sarah and Lewis, glancing at the half-unpacked food on the counter.

Sarah declined with a dismissive wave of her hand. "Oh no we'll be done in no time, sweets. You kids should go down to the lake and explore whilst it's still light out." She paused, glancing up from where she was rifling through a drawer. "But put warm hats on okay? We don't want anyone getting sick for Christmas."

Mia offered her mom a salute and we clambered upstairs, me dragging my bag with me. The house had three bedrooms, which meant that Mia, Jaz and I were sharing a room and its queen sized bed whilst Dallas and Brooks were sharing the room with two singles. I set my stuff down on the side furthest from the door, knowing that Mia would want to sleep on the right like she did in her own bed.

"Brooks, we're going down to the lake if you want to come with." Mia yelled out to her brother as she searched through her giant suitcase for a beanie. I pulled mine out of its spot in the side pocket of my bag and shoved it over my head, making sure to cover my ears. Brooks appeared in our doorway a moment later, leaning against the frame with his arms crossed.

"Bingo!" Mia grinned, holding up her beanie triumphantly. "Alright let's go."

She led the way down through the house and the trees to the lake front, stopping only when we got to the very edge of where the earth met the sand.

"Wow." I breathed, rubbing my arms to try and keep away the cold as I stared out at the water. If I'd thought it was stunning from the car, the view was even better close up. Mia wandered closer to the water's edge, leaving Brooks and I alone to observe our surroundings.

The lake seemed to go on forever, dancing and glittering under what was left of the afternoon sunlight. Tall trees framed the outskirts, telling us where the water stopped and the land began. As a kid the lake had always just been a lake-- nothing special aside from the fun it represented. But now I couldn't help but notice how truly magnificent it was.

I was brought back to reality by a buzzing in my pocket, and I reached down to pull my phone out of my jeans. There were four new messages from Andy, three letting me know that I had to get my ass back to LA pronto and the last asking me why I had even gone in the first place. I sighed deeply, turning the phone off and shoving it back in my pocket.

"Something wrong?" Brooks asked quietly, his warm breath creating fog in the crisp air. He kept his eyes trained on the lake, never looking at me for even a second.

I frowned. "No, just my pain in the ass co-star who likes to remind me that if I can't convince my parents to let me go back to LA before the end of the winter filming hiatus, everyone's pretty much screwed."

Brooks raised his eyebrows, his dark brown eyes widening in surprise. "Isn't your mom all about the show business? I thought it was her dream for you to be on TV. Why wouldn't she let you go back?"

My mouth fell open gently, my heart beating rapidly in my chest. Was it possible that he didn't know why I had come to Beaufort? Had Sarah and Lewis not told him? I took a moment to think this over, wondering if that meant that Mia didn't know either.

"Yeah, she is. But I guess once she had made enough money off me to buy herself a fancy house in Malibu, she didn't really care so much about the show and me as she did about her clothes and image and luncheons with LA's elite." I answered his first question, smoothly dodging his final one.

"But why wouldn't she let you go back to LA?" He pressed, finally turning to look at me. I stared back at him speechlessly, knowing that in order to tell him why I couldn't go back would mean telling him why I'd come in the first place, and I definitely didn't want to share that information.

Luckily, I was saved by Mia, who yelled out for us to come over to where she was by the shore. I stalked away from Brooks and towards her without a second's hesitation, feeling the sand squishing under my boots as a wave of relief washed through me.

Some stories just weren't meant to be told.