Title: Family Bonding
By: Forlay
Pairing: J/R
Rating: PG-13
Summary: The weekend after Rachel tried her hand at leading the Animorph, she and Jake are taken on a family camping trip, and learn that maybe they're not as different as they think they are.
Author's Notes: A big, huge thanks you goes out to the expert on all things Jake/Rachel, Ross, for practically co-writing this fic with me. The last half of this all comes from an IM discussion we had about this fic. This fic would never have been written without him.
In other news, in case you didn't figure it out from the summary, this is set the weekend after 37 (yes, the book I don't even like to consider canon).
And yeah, I said after 'Breakdown' I wouldn't be doing anything for awhile...I lied. College, so far, has been easier than high school.
Lots of love goes out to anirarepair as usual. Without the challenges issued by them (that I've yet to actually take them up on) I wouldn't have even gotten started on writing a fic.
Rachel's mother was at the door to greet Rachel as soon as she got home from school.
"Your father called," Naomi said flatly. "He wants you to call him back."
"Okay," Rachel said hesitantly. "Um, did he say why?"
"He just said he wanted to talk to you. Apparently he forgot that we're two hours behind him."
"All right. I'll go call him as soon as I put my stuff away." Internally shaking her head at her mother's behavior, Rachel carried her bookbag to her room.
Aren't parents supposed to remain amicable after a divorce? Rachel wondered as she picked up her phone and dialed her father's number.
He picked up after the second ring. "Hello?"
"Hi, Dad. It's Rachel."
"Rachel! How're you doing, sweetheart?"
Rachel shook her head. There was a loaded question. "Okay." Considering this weekend I almost got several of my friends killed. "Mom said you called?"
"Yeah. I've actually called a couple of times, but no one was ever home. But that's besides the point. The point is I have a vacation coming up this weekend. I thought you and I could go hiking and camping Friday night and Saturday, and then Saturday night or Sunday I could take Sara and Jordan out to do something."
Quite honestly, Rachel was sick of nature. She had to spend way too much time in it as an Animorph. But she hadn't seen her dad in months, and hiking was something they'd always enjoyed doing together. "That sounds like fun."
"Really?"
Rachel smiled, even though Dan couldn't see her. "Really."
"Well, then I have another twist I want to run by you."
"Okay," Rachel said guardedly.
"What if I invited your uncle Steve and Jake and Tom to come along? I haven't seen any of those guys in a long time, either, and I bet you haven't seen Jake outside of school."
"Um, actually, he's dating Cassie. So I do see him. A lot."
"Jake's dating? Cassie? Your friend Cassie?"
"Yeah. I know. Crazy, isn't it?"
"Wow. You kids grow up so fast. But what do you say?"
Rachel thought about it for a moment. On the one hand, a weekend with Jake wasn't her ideal father-daughter bonding experience. And the prospect of Tom being there sent chills down her spine. Then again, spending time with Jake wouldn't kill her, and so long as they were careful Tom would practically be a non-issue. And her dad did sound really hopeful about spending time with his brother and his kids. . . . "Sure, Dad. Invite them along, too. Cassie can live without Jake and I for a night."
Dan chuckled. "Attached at the lip, are they?"
Rachel grimaced at that image. "No, not quite. I was joking."
"I see. Of course." A slight pause. "What about you, Rachel? Any special someone in your life?"
Rachel thought quickly. "Of course, Dad. You." She wasn't even going to bother trying to explain Tobias. For all she knew if she even hinted at a romantic interest, Dan would want to meet "the lucky guy" when he came to town.
Dan laughed. "Good answer. Are your sisters home from school yet? I already talked to your mom about my plans for them, but I want to tell them myself."
"I just got home, Dad. They don't even get out of school for another half an hour. It'll probably be an hour before they're home."
"Oh, right. Crazy time zones. Anyway, could you have one of them call me when they get home? And I'll call you later this week and tell you when my plane will be arriving."
"All right. I'll talk to you soon, Dad."
"Right. I love you, Rachel."
"Love you, too, Dad. See you on Friday."
***
On Friday afternoon, Jake met Rachel at her locker immediately after school. "Tom's not coming."
Rachel sighed in relief. "Thank God."
"He had a legitimate excuse. Or as legitimate as they come. He really has been scheduled to go on a Sharing camping trip this weekend. He's been planning it for about a month."
"It's not going to be anywhere near us, is it?"
"No, they're going to be at the state park, near the beach."
"And the others?"
Jake knew who she was referring to. "They're going to keep an eye out, but Marco and Ax are going to make a joint decision about any actions that need to be taken. Hopefully there won't be."
"Yeah, I know," Rachel said quietly
Jake looked at Rachel closely. "Are you okay?"
"Oh, yeah, I'm fine."
"You know you did fine last weekend, right?"
Rachel ignored his comment. "I've gotta go catch my bus. I'll see you in about an hour." She held her bag onto her shoulder with one hand and briskly walked towards the main entrance of the school, and her bus. Jake shook his head and followed at a more sedate pace. Rachel usually faced things head on; things much more difficult than a risky - yet successful - mission. How long was she going to run from this incident?
***
Jake's house was between Rachel's and the airport, so Rachel wasn't surprised when her dad pulled into the driveway in a shiny rented SUV with her uncle Steve in the front passenger seat and Jake sitting behind.
"Mom!" Rachel called from the front hall when she saw the SUV out the front window, "Dad and Uncle Steve and Jake are here." Naomi wasn't interested in seeing the men, Rachel knew, but Jake was still her nephew by marriage or something complicated like that. She still sent him and Tom birthday presents.
Naomi and Dan reached the front door at about the same time. "Hello, Naomi."
Naomi nodded. "Dan." She looked over his shoulder. "Hi, Steve. And Jake!"
"Hi, Aunt Naomi," Jake said dutifully. He'd have been content to wait in the car. He knew reunions between Rachel's family and his were always awkward. But his dad had insisted that he be polite and greet his aunt.
Dan looked to Rachel. "You ready to go, sweetheart?"
Rachel noticed her mother bristle at the pet name and sighed internally. Externally she plastered on a smile. "Sure, Dad." She hugged her mom and kissed her cheek. "I'll see you tomorrow, Mom."
"Have fun," Naomi said to Rachel. She nodded to the men, and handed Rachel her hiking bag. "I'll see you soon."
Rachel slung her bag over a shoulder and followed her dad, her uncle and her cousin out to the SUV. She climbed in the backseat next to Jake and threw her bag in the back.
Dan and Steve, sitting up front, talked during the whole half an hour drive, catching up on the exotic places Dan had visited and people he had met recently as his news casting career was taking off at break neck speed. Rachel and Jake, however, sat in silence. Jake was afraid of accidentally saying something that would set Rachel off, and Rachel wasn't interested in having a social conversation with Jake at the moment.
"All right, kids," Dan announced as he pulled the SUV into a gravel parking lot at the edge of a forest. "Here's where civilization ends. Everybody out."
The four Berensons helped unload the SUV. Jake and Rachel grabbed their personal bags and the cooler. Dan and Steve had their bags and each carried a two-person tent. It had already been worked out that Dan and Steve would share one tent, and Rachel and Jake would share the other.
Dan led the way to the camp site. It wasn't anything official, but it was known to the local campers and hikers, as evidenced by the blackened fire pit. Being experienced campers, it only took ten minutes for the tents to be set up and have water bottles filled from the chilled bottled water in the cooler.
"You kids ready to head out?" Dan asked.
"I don't know, Uncle Dan, you've spent the last year living in the city. We're probably going to outpace you by a mile," Jake joked.
Dan laughed. "I wouldn't doubt it for a minute. So be gentle on your old men, all right?"
"Gentle? I'm not gentle on anybody," Rachel said with her fearless grin. The adults laughed good naturedly, but Jake had to force it.
As predicted, once they started the hike, Rachel and Jake naturally took the lead from their fathers. Rachel had been here before, and had a better natural sense of direction than her father, so no one was worried about being led astray. It was a rather difficult climb though, especially since for all their bravado Rachel and Jake hadn't had many workouts as humans in the last few months, so neither pair of hikers, Jake and Rachel or Dan and Steve, spoke much until Dan declared they had reached their destination.
It was nearing sunset by now, and the four hikers were standing on a small outcropping of rock that was just high enough to allow them to see over the tops of most of the trees, towards the ocean where the sun was setting.
"Wow," Rachel said after she had taken a drink of water. "It's beautiful."
"I knew you'd like it," Dan said as he put an arm around his daughter's shoulder. "You don't get views like this inland."
"This was a great idea, Dan," Steve said.
"Hey, what else are little brothers for?"
Rachel put a hand on her stomach after feeling it rumble. "Do we have to hike all the way back for dinner?"
"For a full dinner? Yeah, I'm afraid so," Dan said. "I have a few granola bars, though, if you need a pick me up before we head back."
"We should have just camped up here," Jake said. Dan offered him a granola bar as well and Jake took it. "This place is great."
"Maybe you could have carried a tent up here, but I know your old man couldn't have," Steve said.
It didn't take long for the group of hikers to eat their granola bars and come close to finishing off their water bottles. When Dan felt they had all had a good enough rest, he picked up his bag and stood up. "Let's head back to camp. I'm ready to call it a night."
The hike back to camp was slower going than their first hike. Everyone was tired, and the sun was setting lower every minute. By the time the group got back to the camp site, it was completely dark under the trees. The group pulled their flashlights out and began collecting wood to start a small fire. The granola bars hadn't been very filling in the first place, and there were certain camping traditions that needed to be upheld, such as roasting marshmallows over the fire.
Hot Dogs were cooked on sticks over the fire first, and eaten quickly, before the marshmallows were taken out and roasted, or burned to a crisp, as Rachel liked to, at a more leisurely pace. Rachel and her father sat on one side of the fire, while Jake and his father sat on the other. At one point during the evening, when their fathers were engrossed in their conversation, Rachel caught Jake's eye and smiled. Jake thought he understood. This was a dream moment for them. Two kids out with their dads for an evening out in the woods. This was the sort of thing they were supposed to be doing. It was a well deserved vacation. Jake also hoped it meant Rachel would start opening up to him again. He didn't expect to - or really want to - be best friends with her, but he couldn't have her avoiding him for the rest of her life.
No one had the energy to gather more firewood, so the fire was allowed to die out at it's own pace. When little more than coals remained, Dan stood, stretched, and announced that he was going to bed. Steve followed close behind, leaving Jake and Rachel to ensure the fire was completely out before they went to their own tent, in turns first to change, and then to finally sleep. Or that was the plan, at least.
"Rachel?" Jake called after he'd changed out of his jeans, leaving him to sleep in his boxers and T-shirt. "You can come back in now."
"Thank God," Rachel muttered. She was in a camisole and pajama pants. "The mosquitos were trying to eat me alive." She climbed into her sleeping bag.
The pair laid in the tent in silence for a minute, before Jake asked again, "Rachel?"
"What?"
"What happened after school today? Why did you run off without really talking to me?"
"I told you. I had to catch my bus. I didn't exactly have time to waste by walking home before Dad showed up."
Jake shook his head. Not that Rachel could see it in the dark. "It was more than that, Rachel, I could see it in your eyes. You didn't freak out until I mentioned last weekend."
"I didn't 'freak out.'"
"You need to face what happened sometime -"
"I've faced it plenty," Rachel snapped. "Trust me, Jake. I haven't had a full night's sleep all week. I've been reliving last weekend every night. I'd really appreciate it if I could avoid reliving it while I'm still awake."
"The others thought you did fine. You did as well as could be expected."
"I don't care."
"Why?"
"Because it doesn't matter, all right? It's done, it's over, I don't want to think about it anymore." There was a pause before Rachel finally said, "What do you want me to say, Jake? That I was wrong, I'm not the consummate leader like you are, and I admit it? 'Cause I will."
"I don't want you to say anything. I only want to know that you're going to be okay. I know that it was hard for you."
"But it shouldn't have been. You should have been there, or left someone in charge. I can't believe you thought the Yeerks would lay low for a weekend just because you weren't there."
Jake was silent for a moment before answering. "You're right. I shouldn't have. I guess you have your proof there that I'm not perfect."
There was another silence, this one was longer. Jake thought Rachel had fallen asleep before she said, "I didn't mean it like that. I know you're not perfect. But sometimes...it feels safer to believe you are."
"What do you mean?"
"If you're perfect, and have the perfect battle plan... this is going to end someday. Someday soon."
"I hope that's true but...I've made so many mistakes, Rachel. I've gotten you and the others almost killed so many times...I didn't leave anyone in charge last weekend because I didn't want to risk anyone else having to make those same decisions."
"We've all made choices that have nearly gotten someone else killed during this."
"But it's different when you're the leader, isn't it?"
"Yeah, it is," Rachel whispered. "You know, the others...I don't know if it's true, but I get the feeling they all think I'm the strong one. But if that's true, they're wrong. I don't have half the strength you do, Jake."
"That's not true -"
"Just go with it, Jake. Please? I don't want to discuss the subject anymore."
"Sure."
"Um, we could still talk though," Rachel said hesitantly. "I mean, the old guys may be tired, but I'm not really."
Jake was surprised. Now all of a sudden Rachel wanted to be social with him? Maybe she was more tired than she thought. "Yeah, I'm not, either. Any ideas for conversation?"
Rachel rolled over in her sleeping bag, propping herself up on her elbow, to look in Jake's direction. Her eyes had adjusted enough to the darkness that she could just make out his silhouette. "What about you and Cassie?"
Jake also rolled over to look at Rachel. "What about me and Cassie?"
"Well, I hear all about Cassie's thoughts, what do you think?"
"You know you're putting me in a dangerous situation here. Besides, I don't kiss and tell."
Rachel grinned. "Cassie does."
"What?!"
"Joking, joking. She hasn't actually told me that much. For the same reason."
"Okay, fine. You tell me what you think about me and Cassie."
"What does my opinion have to do with anything?"
"You know her better than anyone outside of her family, and probably the only person who knows me better than you do is Marco. Plus you're a girl, which means you have some sort of instinct for relationships. You're the perfect person to ask."
"I'll let the 'plus you're a girl' comment slide for now. Only because you're right, about me, at least. I think Cassie might be lacking that so-called instinct. Anyway," Rachel took a deep breath. "My absolute honest opinion?"
"Um, I guess. Yeah." Jake prepared to hear some horrible truth about how Cassie actually hated him and only dated him out of pity.
"I really don't think she's you're type."
"Wait. That's it?"
"Isn't it enough?"
"No. I mean, yes, it is. But what do you mean? She's perfect."
"Oh, she is, I won't argue with you there at all. But...she might be too perfect. She needs someone to nurture, Jake. Which is all fine and good, but you're like me. Maybe more than either of us want to admit. Cassie's nurturing has a time and a place, but eventually she's going to try it at the wrong time and you're going to snap and maybe permanently damage a relationship that could, and should, last, in some way, a life time."
Jake thought about that for a moment before saying, "What about you and Tobias? You have the same relationship as Cassie and I, except with the roles reversed."
"What do you mean?" Rachel asked tensely.
"In your relationship, you're like me. Yet Tobias needs nurturing, and you're trying to fill that role. How long is that relationship going to last?"
"Are you saying I'm not nurturing?"
"Not in the way Cassie is. Maybe not even in the way Tobias needs."
Rachel opened her mouth to argue, but she knew what Jake was saying was true. She'd known it for a long time. "Well. That conclusion just makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside."
"Join the club," Jake muttered.
"So what now?" Rachel asked after a moment.
"Well, according to you I need someone who isn't going to nurture me, or will but will understand when I snap and not be deterred."
Rachel nodded. "Of course, that's not gonna happen for awhile. Unless you planned on dating Marco."
"Yuck. That'd be worse than dating you."
Rachel stared at Jake for a moment. He'd just described her perfectly...but no. Dating a person of the same gender was more acceptable than dating a person from your own family.
Jake fidgeted in the awkward silence that followed his flippant statement. "What, no witty comeback?" he asked desperately.
Rachel shook her head to clear it. "That's Marco's department. Like I said, you want that, date him."
"It would be like dating my brother," Jake said, and shuddered at the thought. "At least you'd be the right sex."
There he goes again! But if Jake wanted a war of wits, she'd give it to him. "And that's it? That's all you care about? That's all I am to you?"
"Well, no," Jake admitted. "Actually, if you weren't, you know, my cousin, I'd love to - to date you." He could feel himself blushing as he said it and looked away from Rachel. He doubted she could see a detail like that in the dark, but he didn't want to take a chance.
But Rachel was blushing too as she said, "I've kinda thought the same thing."
Jake glanced back at her. "Really?"
Rachel nodded slightly, then looked away from Jake. What the hell am I saying? You don't talk about liking your cousin after the age of five! In pre-school it was cute to tell people you were going to marry your cousin someday. In high school you're called a red neck.
Jake was having his own internal debate as Rachel had hers. I need to shut up. Now. Before she freaks out on me completely. Yeah, tonight's been fun but starting tomorrow we need to go back to being teammates again. This isn't going to help anything. He paused in his thoughts for a second. Then again, leaving it unresolved isn't going to help, either. He glanced back to Rachel at the same time she glanced at him. Both looked away immediately, then giggled slightly.
Jake took that as his cue to keep talking. "You are kinda pretty, you know."
Rachel smirked. "Yeah, I've heard that one once or twice." She paused. "But, you know, I've overheard girls at school talking about how cute you are and - and I can't say I completely disagreed with them."
Jake rolled over again so that he was looking directly at Rachel. He suddenly realized just how small the tent was. In all the shifting they'd done so far, Rachel's face was just inches from his. Even in the dark he could see her clearly. Hesitant and awkward, he reached over and touched Rachel's shoulder.
Rachel jerked back instinctively at being touched so intimately. "But you said it, Jake. I'm your cousin."
Jake nodded. "Yes, we are." But he couldn't look away from Rachel.
And Rachel found she was having the same trouble. She knew what she wanted to do, and she knew what she should do, and she didn't know which to listen to at the moment.
What the hell, she finally decided, an experiment. Just to see what it's like. In an instant, before she could lose her nerve, Rachel leaned forward and kissed Jake quickly.
Rachel pulled back slightly after kissing Jake. Far enough so their lips weren't in contact, but not so far that Jake couldn't continue the kiss if he wanted to. And he did. He leaned forward to eliminate the small space between them and captured her lips with his.
In a moment Rachel wriggled out of her sleeping bag and maneuvered herself on top of Jake's, kissing him hungrily.
After a few minutes, Jake whispered, "We shouldn't be doing this, you know." He kissed Rachel again. "Our dads aren't that far away."
Rachel kissed Jake before answering. "You're right," she whispered against his lips, then kissed them. "You stop first." Jake had no intention of doing so at the moment, and neither did Rachel.
About ten minutes later, the sound of rustling in the brush outside their tent abruptly broke the couple apart. They froze, ready to feign sleep if it was a parent, or morph if it was an enemy. But after several minutes of silence, they concluded it was nothing but an animal, or their imaginations.
But the make out session didn't immediately continue. "So, was it just me, or was that really good?"
"It was really good," Rachel admitted, She studied her hands for a moment, then looked up at Jake. "So what now?"
Jake ran a hand through his hair, trying to move it back into place. "I don't know," he said. "Because, we both have significant others." He looked up at Rachel. "Right?"
Rachel nodded. "For the moment."
"But we both felt something tonight. Love, lust, like, I don't know. But there was something. Right?"
"Yeah, there was."
Jake sighed and massaged his forehead. "Our families would freak."
"Our friends would freak," Rachel added.
Jake reached over and took Rachel's hand. "But I don't want this to die."
"Then we're back to where we started. I don't know what to do, and neither do you. We can't tell anyone, but we live enough lies as it is; I don't want to add another one."
"So this ends here. Tonight."
Rachel nodded firmly. "I won't tell anyone and neither will you."
"No. Not now, at least. But after we win...."
Rachel smiled and squeezed Jake's hand. "Yeah. After we win."
By: Forlay
Pairing: J/R
Rating: PG-13
Summary: The weekend after Rachel tried her hand at leading the Animorph, she and Jake are taken on a family camping trip, and learn that maybe they're not as different as they think they are.
Author's Notes: A big, huge thanks you goes out to the expert on all things Jake/Rachel, Ross, for practically co-writing this fic with me. The last half of this all comes from an IM discussion we had about this fic. This fic would never have been written without him.
In other news, in case you didn't figure it out from the summary, this is set the weekend after 37 (yes, the book I don't even like to consider canon).
And yeah, I said after 'Breakdown' I wouldn't be doing anything for awhile...I lied. College, so far, has been easier than high school.
Lots of love goes out to anirarepair as usual. Without the challenges issued by them (that I've yet to actually take them up on) I wouldn't have even gotten started on writing a fic.
Rachel's mother was at the door to greet Rachel as soon as she got home from school.
"Your father called," Naomi said flatly. "He wants you to call him back."
"Okay," Rachel said hesitantly. "Um, did he say why?"
"He just said he wanted to talk to you. Apparently he forgot that we're two hours behind him."
"All right. I'll go call him as soon as I put my stuff away." Internally shaking her head at her mother's behavior, Rachel carried her bookbag to her room.
Aren't parents supposed to remain amicable after a divorce? Rachel wondered as she picked up her phone and dialed her father's number.
He picked up after the second ring. "Hello?"
"Hi, Dad. It's Rachel."
"Rachel! How're you doing, sweetheart?"
Rachel shook her head. There was a loaded question. "Okay." Considering this weekend I almost got several of my friends killed. "Mom said you called?"
"Yeah. I've actually called a couple of times, but no one was ever home. But that's besides the point. The point is I have a vacation coming up this weekend. I thought you and I could go hiking and camping Friday night and Saturday, and then Saturday night or Sunday I could take Sara and Jordan out to do something."
Quite honestly, Rachel was sick of nature. She had to spend way too much time in it as an Animorph. But she hadn't seen her dad in months, and hiking was something they'd always enjoyed doing together. "That sounds like fun."
"Really?"
Rachel smiled, even though Dan couldn't see her. "Really."
"Well, then I have another twist I want to run by you."
"Okay," Rachel said guardedly.
"What if I invited your uncle Steve and Jake and Tom to come along? I haven't seen any of those guys in a long time, either, and I bet you haven't seen Jake outside of school."
"Um, actually, he's dating Cassie. So I do see him. A lot."
"Jake's dating? Cassie? Your friend Cassie?"
"Yeah. I know. Crazy, isn't it?"
"Wow. You kids grow up so fast. But what do you say?"
Rachel thought about it for a moment. On the one hand, a weekend with Jake wasn't her ideal father-daughter bonding experience. And the prospect of Tom being there sent chills down her spine. Then again, spending time with Jake wouldn't kill her, and so long as they were careful Tom would practically be a non-issue. And her dad did sound really hopeful about spending time with his brother and his kids. . . . "Sure, Dad. Invite them along, too. Cassie can live without Jake and I for a night."
Dan chuckled. "Attached at the lip, are they?"
Rachel grimaced at that image. "No, not quite. I was joking."
"I see. Of course." A slight pause. "What about you, Rachel? Any special someone in your life?"
Rachel thought quickly. "Of course, Dad. You." She wasn't even going to bother trying to explain Tobias. For all she knew if she even hinted at a romantic interest, Dan would want to meet "the lucky guy" when he came to town.
Dan laughed. "Good answer. Are your sisters home from school yet? I already talked to your mom about my plans for them, but I want to tell them myself."
"I just got home, Dad. They don't even get out of school for another half an hour. It'll probably be an hour before they're home."
"Oh, right. Crazy time zones. Anyway, could you have one of them call me when they get home? And I'll call you later this week and tell you when my plane will be arriving."
"All right. I'll talk to you soon, Dad."
"Right. I love you, Rachel."
"Love you, too, Dad. See you on Friday."
***
On Friday afternoon, Jake met Rachel at her locker immediately after school. "Tom's not coming."
Rachel sighed in relief. "Thank God."
"He had a legitimate excuse. Or as legitimate as they come. He really has been scheduled to go on a Sharing camping trip this weekend. He's been planning it for about a month."
"It's not going to be anywhere near us, is it?"
"No, they're going to be at the state park, near the beach."
"And the others?"
Jake knew who she was referring to. "They're going to keep an eye out, but Marco and Ax are going to make a joint decision about any actions that need to be taken. Hopefully there won't be."
"Yeah, I know," Rachel said quietly
Jake looked at Rachel closely. "Are you okay?"
"Oh, yeah, I'm fine."
"You know you did fine last weekend, right?"
Rachel ignored his comment. "I've gotta go catch my bus. I'll see you in about an hour." She held her bag onto her shoulder with one hand and briskly walked towards the main entrance of the school, and her bus. Jake shook his head and followed at a more sedate pace. Rachel usually faced things head on; things much more difficult than a risky - yet successful - mission. How long was she going to run from this incident?
***
Jake's house was between Rachel's and the airport, so Rachel wasn't surprised when her dad pulled into the driveway in a shiny rented SUV with her uncle Steve in the front passenger seat and Jake sitting behind.
"Mom!" Rachel called from the front hall when she saw the SUV out the front window, "Dad and Uncle Steve and Jake are here." Naomi wasn't interested in seeing the men, Rachel knew, but Jake was still her nephew by marriage or something complicated like that. She still sent him and Tom birthday presents.
Naomi and Dan reached the front door at about the same time. "Hello, Naomi."
Naomi nodded. "Dan." She looked over his shoulder. "Hi, Steve. And Jake!"
"Hi, Aunt Naomi," Jake said dutifully. He'd have been content to wait in the car. He knew reunions between Rachel's family and his were always awkward. But his dad had insisted that he be polite and greet his aunt.
Dan looked to Rachel. "You ready to go, sweetheart?"
Rachel noticed her mother bristle at the pet name and sighed internally. Externally she plastered on a smile. "Sure, Dad." She hugged her mom and kissed her cheek. "I'll see you tomorrow, Mom."
"Have fun," Naomi said to Rachel. She nodded to the men, and handed Rachel her hiking bag. "I'll see you soon."
Rachel slung her bag over a shoulder and followed her dad, her uncle and her cousin out to the SUV. She climbed in the backseat next to Jake and threw her bag in the back.
Dan and Steve, sitting up front, talked during the whole half an hour drive, catching up on the exotic places Dan had visited and people he had met recently as his news casting career was taking off at break neck speed. Rachel and Jake, however, sat in silence. Jake was afraid of accidentally saying something that would set Rachel off, and Rachel wasn't interested in having a social conversation with Jake at the moment.
"All right, kids," Dan announced as he pulled the SUV into a gravel parking lot at the edge of a forest. "Here's where civilization ends. Everybody out."
The four Berensons helped unload the SUV. Jake and Rachel grabbed their personal bags and the cooler. Dan and Steve had their bags and each carried a two-person tent. It had already been worked out that Dan and Steve would share one tent, and Rachel and Jake would share the other.
Dan led the way to the camp site. It wasn't anything official, but it was known to the local campers and hikers, as evidenced by the blackened fire pit. Being experienced campers, it only took ten minutes for the tents to be set up and have water bottles filled from the chilled bottled water in the cooler.
"You kids ready to head out?" Dan asked.
"I don't know, Uncle Dan, you've spent the last year living in the city. We're probably going to outpace you by a mile," Jake joked.
Dan laughed. "I wouldn't doubt it for a minute. So be gentle on your old men, all right?"
"Gentle? I'm not gentle on anybody," Rachel said with her fearless grin. The adults laughed good naturedly, but Jake had to force it.
As predicted, once they started the hike, Rachel and Jake naturally took the lead from their fathers. Rachel had been here before, and had a better natural sense of direction than her father, so no one was worried about being led astray. It was a rather difficult climb though, especially since for all their bravado Rachel and Jake hadn't had many workouts as humans in the last few months, so neither pair of hikers, Jake and Rachel or Dan and Steve, spoke much until Dan declared they had reached their destination.
It was nearing sunset by now, and the four hikers were standing on a small outcropping of rock that was just high enough to allow them to see over the tops of most of the trees, towards the ocean where the sun was setting.
"Wow," Rachel said after she had taken a drink of water. "It's beautiful."
"I knew you'd like it," Dan said as he put an arm around his daughter's shoulder. "You don't get views like this inland."
"This was a great idea, Dan," Steve said.
"Hey, what else are little brothers for?"
Rachel put a hand on her stomach after feeling it rumble. "Do we have to hike all the way back for dinner?"
"For a full dinner? Yeah, I'm afraid so," Dan said. "I have a few granola bars, though, if you need a pick me up before we head back."
"We should have just camped up here," Jake said. Dan offered him a granola bar as well and Jake took it. "This place is great."
"Maybe you could have carried a tent up here, but I know your old man couldn't have," Steve said.
It didn't take long for the group of hikers to eat their granola bars and come close to finishing off their water bottles. When Dan felt they had all had a good enough rest, he picked up his bag and stood up. "Let's head back to camp. I'm ready to call it a night."
The hike back to camp was slower going than their first hike. Everyone was tired, and the sun was setting lower every minute. By the time the group got back to the camp site, it was completely dark under the trees. The group pulled their flashlights out and began collecting wood to start a small fire. The granola bars hadn't been very filling in the first place, and there were certain camping traditions that needed to be upheld, such as roasting marshmallows over the fire.
Hot Dogs were cooked on sticks over the fire first, and eaten quickly, before the marshmallows were taken out and roasted, or burned to a crisp, as Rachel liked to, at a more leisurely pace. Rachel and her father sat on one side of the fire, while Jake and his father sat on the other. At one point during the evening, when their fathers were engrossed in their conversation, Rachel caught Jake's eye and smiled. Jake thought he understood. This was a dream moment for them. Two kids out with their dads for an evening out in the woods. This was the sort of thing they were supposed to be doing. It was a well deserved vacation. Jake also hoped it meant Rachel would start opening up to him again. He didn't expect to - or really want to - be best friends with her, but he couldn't have her avoiding him for the rest of her life.
No one had the energy to gather more firewood, so the fire was allowed to die out at it's own pace. When little more than coals remained, Dan stood, stretched, and announced that he was going to bed. Steve followed close behind, leaving Jake and Rachel to ensure the fire was completely out before they went to their own tent, in turns first to change, and then to finally sleep. Or that was the plan, at least.
"Rachel?" Jake called after he'd changed out of his jeans, leaving him to sleep in his boxers and T-shirt. "You can come back in now."
"Thank God," Rachel muttered. She was in a camisole and pajama pants. "The mosquitos were trying to eat me alive." She climbed into her sleeping bag.
The pair laid in the tent in silence for a minute, before Jake asked again, "Rachel?"
"What?"
"What happened after school today? Why did you run off without really talking to me?"
"I told you. I had to catch my bus. I didn't exactly have time to waste by walking home before Dad showed up."
Jake shook his head. Not that Rachel could see it in the dark. "It was more than that, Rachel, I could see it in your eyes. You didn't freak out until I mentioned last weekend."
"I didn't 'freak out.'"
"You need to face what happened sometime -"
"I've faced it plenty," Rachel snapped. "Trust me, Jake. I haven't had a full night's sleep all week. I've been reliving last weekend every night. I'd really appreciate it if I could avoid reliving it while I'm still awake."
"The others thought you did fine. You did as well as could be expected."
"I don't care."
"Why?"
"Because it doesn't matter, all right? It's done, it's over, I don't want to think about it anymore." There was a pause before Rachel finally said, "What do you want me to say, Jake? That I was wrong, I'm not the consummate leader like you are, and I admit it? 'Cause I will."
"I don't want you to say anything. I only want to know that you're going to be okay. I know that it was hard for you."
"But it shouldn't have been. You should have been there, or left someone in charge. I can't believe you thought the Yeerks would lay low for a weekend just because you weren't there."
Jake was silent for a moment before answering. "You're right. I shouldn't have. I guess you have your proof there that I'm not perfect."
There was another silence, this one was longer. Jake thought Rachel had fallen asleep before she said, "I didn't mean it like that. I know you're not perfect. But sometimes...it feels safer to believe you are."
"What do you mean?"
"If you're perfect, and have the perfect battle plan... this is going to end someday. Someday soon."
"I hope that's true but...I've made so many mistakes, Rachel. I've gotten you and the others almost killed so many times...I didn't leave anyone in charge last weekend because I didn't want to risk anyone else having to make those same decisions."
"We've all made choices that have nearly gotten someone else killed during this."
"But it's different when you're the leader, isn't it?"
"Yeah, it is," Rachel whispered. "You know, the others...I don't know if it's true, but I get the feeling they all think I'm the strong one. But if that's true, they're wrong. I don't have half the strength you do, Jake."
"That's not true -"
"Just go with it, Jake. Please? I don't want to discuss the subject anymore."
"Sure."
"Um, we could still talk though," Rachel said hesitantly. "I mean, the old guys may be tired, but I'm not really."
Jake was surprised. Now all of a sudden Rachel wanted to be social with him? Maybe she was more tired than she thought. "Yeah, I'm not, either. Any ideas for conversation?"
Rachel rolled over in her sleeping bag, propping herself up on her elbow, to look in Jake's direction. Her eyes had adjusted enough to the darkness that she could just make out his silhouette. "What about you and Cassie?"
Jake also rolled over to look at Rachel. "What about me and Cassie?"
"Well, I hear all about Cassie's thoughts, what do you think?"
"You know you're putting me in a dangerous situation here. Besides, I don't kiss and tell."
Rachel grinned. "Cassie does."
"What?!"
"Joking, joking. She hasn't actually told me that much. For the same reason."
"Okay, fine. You tell me what you think about me and Cassie."
"What does my opinion have to do with anything?"
"You know her better than anyone outside of her family, and probably the only person who knows me better than you do is Marco. Plus you're a girl, which means you have some sort of instinct for relationships. You're the perfect person to ask."
"I'll let the 'plus you're a girl' comment slide for now. Only because you're right, about me, at least. I think Cassie might be lacking that so-called instinct. Anyway," Rachel took a deep breath. "My absolute honest opinion?"
"Um, I guess. Yeah." Jake prepared to hear some horrible truth about how Cassie actually hated him and only dated him out of pity.
"I really don't think she's you're type."
"Wait. That's it?"
"Isn't it enough?"
"No. I mean, yes, it is. But what do you mean? She's perfect."
"Oh, she is, I won't argue with you there at all. But...she might be too perfect. She needs someone to nurture, Jake. Which is all fine and good, but you're like me. Maybe more than either of us want to admit. Cassie's nurturing has a time and a place, but eventually she's going to try it at the wrong time and you're going to snap and maybe permanently damage a relationship that could, and should, last, in some way, a life time."
Jake thought about that for a moment before saying, "What about you and Tobias? You have the same relationship as Cassie and I, except with the roles reversed."
"What do you mean?" Rachel asked tensely.
"In your relationship, you're like me. Yet Tobias needs nurturing, and you're trying to fill that role. How long is that relationship going to last?"
"Are you saying I'm not nurturing?"
"Not in the way Cassie is. Maybe not even in the way Tobias needs."
Rachel opened her mouth to argue, but she knew what Jake was saying was true. She'd known it for a long time. "Well. That conclusion just makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside."
"Join the club," Jake muttered.
"So what now?" Rachel asked after a moment.
"Well, according to you I need someone who isn't going to nurture me, or will but will understand when I snap and not be deterred."
Rachel nodded. "Of course, that's not gonna happen for awhile. Unless you planned on dating Marco."
"Yuck. That'd be worse than dating you."
Rachel stared at Jake for a moment. He'd just described her perfectly...but no. Dating a person of the same gender was more acceptable than dating a person from your own family.
Jake fidgeted in the awkward silence that followed his flippant statement. "What, no witty comeback?" he asked desperately.
Rachel shook her head to clear it. "That's Marco's department. Like I said, you want that, date him."
"It would be like dating my brother," Jake said, and shuddered at the thought. "At least you'd be the right sex."
There he goes again! But if Jake wanted a war of wits, she'd give it to him. "And that's it? That's all you care about? That's all I am to you?"
"Well, no," Jake admitted. "Actually, if you weren't, you know, my cousin, I'd love to - to date you." He could feel himself blushing as he said it and looked away from Rachel. He doubted she could see a detail like that in the dark, but he didn't want to take a chance.
But Rachel was blushing too as she said, "I've kinda thought the same thing."
Jake glanced back at her. "Really?"
Rachel nodded slightly, then looked away from Jake. What the hell am I saying? You don't talk about liking your cousin after the age of five! In pre-school it was cute to tell people you were going to marry your cousin someday. In high school you're called a red neck.
Jake was having his own internal debate as Rachel had hers. I need to shut up. Now. Before she freaks out on me completely. Yeah, tonight's been fun but starting tomorrow we need to go back to being teammates again. This isn't going to help anything. He paused in his thoughts for a second. Then again, leaving it unresolved isn't going to help, either. He glanced back to Rachel at the same time she glanced at him. Both looked away immediately, then giggled slightly.
Jake took that as his cue to keep talking. "You are kinda pretty, you know."
Rachel smirked. "Yeah, I've heard that one once or twice." She paused. "But, you know, I've overheard girls at school talking about how cute you are and - and I can't say I completely disagreed with them."
Jake rolled over again so that he was looking directly at Rachel. He suddenly realized just how small the tent was. In all the shifting they'd done so far, Rachel's face was just inches from his. Even in the dark he could see her clearly. Hesitant and awkward, he reached over and touched Rachel's shoulder.
Rachel jerked back instinctively at being touched so intimately. "But you said it, Jake. I'm your cousin."
Jake nodded. "Yes, we are." But he couldn't look away from Rachel.
And Rachel found she was having the same trouble. She knew what she wanted to do, and she knew what she should do, and she didn't know which to listen to at the moment.
What the hell, she finally decided, an experiment. Just to see what it's like. In an instant, before she could lose her nerve, Rachel leaned forward and kissed Jake quickly.
Rachel pulled back slightly after kissing Jake. Far enough so their lips weren't in contact, but not so far that Jake couldn't continue the kiss if he wanted to. And he did. He leaned forward to eliminate the small space between them and captured her lips with his.
In a moment Rachel wriggled out of her sleeping bag and maneuvered herself on top of Jake's, kissing him hungrily.
After a few minutes, Jake whispered, "We shouldn't be doing this, you know." He kissed Rachel again. "Our dads aren't that far away."
Rachel kissed Jake before answering. "You're right," she whispered against his lips, then kissed them. "You stop first." Jake had no intention of doing so at the moment, and neither did Rachel.
About ten minutes later, the sound of rustling in the brush outside their tent abruptly broke the couple apart. They froze, ready to feign sleep if it was a parent, or morph if it was an enemy. But after several minutes of silence, they concluded it was nothing but an animal, or their imaginations.
But the make out session didn't immediately continue. "So, was it just me, or was that really good?"
"It was really good," Rachel admitted, She studied her hands for a moment, then looked up at Jake. "So what now?"
Jake ran a hand through his hair, trying to move it back into place. "I don't know," he said. "Because, we both have significant others." He looked up at Rachel. "Right?"
Rachel nodded. "For the moment."
"But we both felt something tonight. Love, lust, like, I don't know. But there was something. Right?"
"Yeah, there was."
Jake sighed and massaged his forehead. "Our families would freak."
"Our friends would freak," Rachel added.
Jake reached over and took Rachel's hand. "But I don't want this to die."
"Then we're back to where we started. I don't know what to do, and neither do you. We can't tell anyone, but we live enough lies as it is; I don't want to add another one."
"So this ends here. Tonight."
Rachel nodded firmly. "I won't tell anyone and neither will you."
"No. Not now, at least. But after we win...."
Rachel smiled and squeezed Jake's hand. "Yeah. After we win."