A/N: This is my very first oneshot, dearest reader. I know those of you reading my other story probably wished I had updated instead of done this, but it's been in my head ever since my sister thought the idea up while we were watching the That's Off the Chain! episode where the campers have to build bikes and race. Speaking of which, this oneshot is dedicated to my wonderful sister Myranda. She's an inspiration. lol.
Duncan walked briskly through the woods towards camp. He inwardly cursed himself for making his little hiding place so far from the cabins, but he didn't want Chris or any of the other campers to see what he'd been working on. Actually, if he was being honest, there was one camper he was willing to show his project to. In fact, this certain camper was the main and only reason he'd started his project, that and the fact that he'd been dead bored after she was voted off. Sure, he bantered and messed with some of the others still around, but their reactions had been nowhere near as enjoyable or entertaining as the ones he could bring out of his princess.
After that thought, Duncan's pace slowed briefly before regaining speed. Okay, so maybe he had it a little bad for Courtney-
'A little?' a sudden mental voice asked incredulously.
Duncan sighed inwardly. Alright, so he had it bad. At least he had the comfort of knowing that he wasn't the only one. The other guys like Geoff and Trent were obviously and utterly whipped. Duncan just preferred to be a little more subtle in his feelings for Princess. After all, he had a reputation to uphold and looking soft in front of the entire viewing world definitely wasn't going to help that. Not the surprise he had planned for her tonight would actually make him look soft, if he decided to let the cameras get it on film that is. He didn't plan on that happening. This would be a… special (he shuddered somewhat at the word) time between him and his princess only. No. One. Else.
At that, Duncan grinned. Princess had no idea what she was in for tonight. As he broke through the edge of the forest, Duncan thought about how lucky he was that the producers decided to bring every camper back to the island for the shooting of the final challenge. Otherwise, it would have been a while until he had the opportunity to get Courtney alone for some late-night fun. It's not as if he could've done anything with her while at the resort, the hardly had anytime to talk or even see one another. With the show almost over, everyone was busy doing something: giving an opinion on who should win, coming up with a possible challenge or catching up on some sleep after being run ragged. Duncan felt a slight pout come over his face at recalling how he hadn't been able to steal even one kiss from Princess. He composed his expression quickly, just in case there was a stray a camera around that he hadn't noticed.
As he approached the camp, Duncan tried to think of a plan to get Miss C.I.T. to come outside with him. Unfortunately, his usual knack for formulating brilliant and infallible plans on the spot was failing him. He frown emerged upon his countenance but quickly morphed into smirk as he made the decision to get Princess' attention a classic way. Didn't girls like their guys to do those cheesy "romantic" clichés that always managed to work out perfectly in just about every chick flick ever produced? Besides, if it didn't work for him, he could always just carry her out, cameras be damned.
The Killer Bass cabin loomed in front of him and Duncan stealthily walked around to the side of it, doing his best to keep in the shadows. Grabbing onto the wooden siding of the cabin, he lifted himself up so that he was peering through the window on the girls' side. Duncan figured that he must have done something really good in a past life because it turned out that Courtney's bed was right against the window he was currently looking through.
Duncan then looked down at the object of his affection, fast asleep and unaware of his presence only a few inches away. The moonlight flowing in through the window poured over her slumbering form, enhancing the features he'd fervently memorized a while ago. The pierced delinquent mentally debated opening the window and climbing in bed next to her for a moment before reluctantly deciding against it. His goal was to somehow convince her to come outside with him, not to be slapped and scolded by a gloriously angry Princess for trying to get some early morning snuggling.
Duncan chuckled to himself, just thinking of how Princess would react to having him curled around her in the bed when she woke up. The mental image of her pretty face scrunched up into that adorable half pout/half glare look she often had when angry was almost enough to make him damn his previous decision to hell. More grudgingly than before, he pushed the idea to the back of his mind, fully intending to try it some other time. And there would definitely be other times to do it. The very second he finished his time in juvy that had been postponed by the show, he was going to find Courtney- no matter what.
Carefully letting go of the cabin siding, Duncan dropped to the ground. He ran his fingers through his green faux-hawk before quickly gathering a pile of small stones at his feet. Picking up a few with one hand, he took one of them with his free hand and threw it, hitting his target.
Tink…tink…tink.
Courtney's mind slowly ascended into consciousness as the small repeating sound continued on. Glancing over at the cabin's other occupants, she was relieved to see that all of the other girls were still fast asleep. She definitely didn't someone else with a more… irritable nature, like Eva to be woken up by the sound. She shuddered at the thought of what Eva might recklessly do in her angry retaliation at the noise disturbing her sleep. Hoping to silence whatever is was making the "tinking", Courtney silently shifted around until she was kneeling on her bed so that she could see out of the window.
To Courtney's extreme surprise, she saw that it was Duncan making the noise by throwing stones at the window. Before he could throw another one, he noticed that she was looking out at him and grinned. Dropping the stones he had in his hand, the teen loped over to the side of the cabin and lifted himself so that he and Courtney were face to face, the window still closed. When she pushed the window open, Duncan made to crawl in and frowned when Courtney placed her hands on chest to get him to stay where he was.
"What do you think you're doing, you stupid ogre?!" she whispered.
Duncan raised his brow in mild surprise, "Why, I'm simply trying to spend a little quality time with my Princess."
"Well you can't do it in here!" she gestured toward the others in the cabin, "Everyone else I sleeping and you and I should be too; it's 2:30 in the morning!"
"Why don't you come outside with me then?" he questioned smoothly in an attempt to hide how much he'd enjoyed it when she'd innocently added the "you and I" to her rebuke.
"Um, did you not just here me? I should be asleep right now!"
"You should be asleep. But you know you want to come out here with me, babe," he stated with a confident grin.
Courtney sighed and lightly palmed her forehead. "You're not going to leave me alone until I come out there are you?" she asked wearily.
"Nope."
"…Fine. I'll be out in a few minutes."
Duncan's grin grew wider and genuinely pleased due to the fact that his impromptu plan had actually worked out. As he dropped to the ground again, Courtney poked her head out of the window and looked down at him, frowning, "You know, if this is some kind of trick Duncan, I will never speak to you again."
Before he could respond, Courtney pulled back into the cabin and shut the window as quietly as she could. Leaping off the bed, Courtney scrambled over to her small dresser and grabbed a thin, short-sleeved and scoop neck black shirt from one of the drawers. Quickly changing out of the tank top and yanking it on, she retied the string on her green plaid pajama pants, so as to make sure that they wouldn't fall down at all. She rolled her eyes at the thought of how much the delinquent waiting outside would enjoy that particular incident.
Hurriedly raking brush through her hair and grabbing an elastic should she need it, Courtney deemed herself ready and headed out of the cabin. It was only after walking down the cabin stairs to get to the clearly impatient, yet amused looking Duncan that she realized she was barefoot.
"Damn it! I forgot my freaking shoes!" she said in an irritated tone.
Duncan laughed at her expression and somewhat at the fact that he had never seen her dressed so… normally. It was good look for her. He stopped laughing immediately when she turned around to head back up the steps and grabbed her around the waist to draw her to him.
"Where are you going?" he said in a slightly puzzled manner.
"I'm going to get my shoes."
"No you're not," he said and threw her gently over his shoulder, wincing a little when she let out a surprised cry. Wanting to get away from the camp before anyone could see them, Duncan walked to the edge of forest he been in previously, ignoring the fists of protest Princess was currently raining down on his back.
Once making sure that he was far enough away that Courtney wouldn't be able to just bolt back to the cabin the minute he set her down, he stopped walking and waited until her surprisingly strong blows lost a good amount of energy. When he finally let her down, he his hands on either of her shoulders so that she would stay in place. His contented smile turned a little south when Princess wouldn't look at him, letting her hair cover her face so that he couldn't see her face enough to judge exactly how much shit he had gotten himself into.
"Princess?" he asked uncertainly, shaking her just a smidge. "Courtney?"
She looked up then, eyes wide in shock. "You know what my name is?"
He smiled in relief. The fact that she had actually responded told him that he hadn't done anything unforgivable. Not answering her incredulous yet still sarcastic question, Duncan lifted her up bridal style (which resulted in another surprised yelp) and started walking again. To his extreme surprise, Princess didn't protest to his carrying her despite the fact that she knew she didn't have any shoes on. In fact, she seemed to just settle herself more comfortably in his arms if anything at all. Duncan grinned with satisfaction as he realized that he might finally be breaking through the wall of denial and indifference she always tried to put between them. His blissful musing was interrupted by Princess.
"So, where exactly are you taking me?" she queried curiously.
"It's a surprise."
"I hate surprises," Courtney grumbled, wrinkling her nose in a way that Duncan thought was adorable.
"You'll like this one," he assured her, smirking when she huffed in disbelief.
For a while, the two were silent, each consumed in their own private thoughts… about one another of course. In fact, Duncan was absorbed in his ruminations that he almost strolled right on past the hidden path to the project he'd worked so diligently on.
Courtney was brought out of her own reverie when Duncan turned and started to make his way along what could barely be considered path as it was just grass that had been trampled often enough to keep it crushed against the ground. As the "trail" went deeper into the trees, Courtney couldn't help but get a little anxious. Just as she was about ask Duncan if he was sure that he knew where he was going, the forest started to thin out, so she held her tongue.
Soon enough, a small and decrepit looking shed appeared in the early morning gloom of the forest. Courtney was a little doubtful that any surprise for her in there would be a likable one, but Duncan wouldn't drag her all the way out here for something he thought she might not like, right?
"Okay Princess," Duncan said warningly, "I'm going to put you down now, so try not to step on anything I can't save you from." The last part she was sure he added on to irritate her as a smirk quickly followed it, but she was too curious to really get riled up.
"Yeah sure, whatever. Are you going to show me what I came out here for now?" she said eagerly.
Duncan grinned and nodded at her. "Wait out here while I get it."
Courtney smiled and started wringing her hands in anticipation, clearly showing that she'd been lying like crazy when she said that she didn't like surprises.
Duncan went into the old shed and Courtney heard what sounded like a bucket crash down followed by cursing. Her excitement caused her to find this even more funny than she usually would have and she let out a rather loud burst of laughter. Duncan stuck his head out of the shed door and pretend glared at her while wagging his finger playfully before ducking back inside. That only gave Courtney cause to laugh a whole lot more.
Eventually, Duncan came out of the shed grinning like a fool and wheeling beside him… the bike he'd built for the motor cross challenge. Needless to say, Courtney was a little bit confused.
"Duncan?" she asked.
"Yeah?"
"Not that I don't like your bike or anything, but what exactly does it have to do with the surprise?"
The punk only smiled more, but this time with a glint of mischief in his eyes. He rapidly sauntered over to her after putting the kickstand down on the bike and picked her up again, like a sack of flour instead an actual person. Courtney screeched in both distress and frustration before scolding her captor.
"Are you going to be doing this at every given moment you creep?!"
Duncan merely laughed at her outburst, plopping her down on the seat of the bike before seating himself in front of her. Looking back at his royally pissed off Princess, he found himself grinning lecherously as the way she was sitting had pulled her scoop neck shirt enough that he had a rather nice view of her-
"Duncan! Stop looking at my boobs!" Courtney hissed, adjusting her shirt self-consciously. He shook his head in amazement over how oblivious she was to her own appearance. In his opinion, Princess was damn gorgeous; more so than any other girl he'd seen in his lifetime, and he'd seen quite a few. Not wanting to say the wrong thing in an effort to ease her insecurity, he did the only other thing he could think of. Rotating himself on the bike so that they were face to face, he leaned down and kissed her gently, savoring the sigh she let out as she wrapped her arms around his neck. Before Duncan could deepen the kiss, he felt the bike wobble a little and reluctant broke away from a dazed Courtney to find that the bolt connecting the kickstand to the bike had fallen off.
Cursing under his breath, the pierced teen yanked the kickstand completely off and threw it in the direction of the shed. Lifting his head to look at Princess, he found that she was gazing at him curiously while biting her lip in a way that made Duncan want to get right back into what they'd been doing before the kickstand interruption.
"What was that for, Duncan?" she asked, a faint smile gracing her face.
He smirked in return. "You're just too tempting, Princess. I couldn't help myself."
With that, he shifted back to his original position on the bike, inwardly patting himself on the back after glimpsing the flush of pleasure on Courtney's face in his peripheral vision. Reaching over the handlebars to grab hold of the skull ornament on the front of the bike, Duncan yanked it and the bike started to move. He heard Princess gasp from behind him and wrap her arms quickly around his torso as the bike gained speed. As the bike whipped back up the crushed grass path and away from the old shed, he felt her bury her face in his back while her grip on him tightened a little with each lurch it made as it moved over the uneven ground. Duncan maneuvered the bike through the dense forest, trying his best to be careful as Princess' hold was slightly robbing him of air. Not that having her lithe form pressed against him wasn't pleasant or anything, he just needed the air to keep living so that he could continue to enjoy it.
Finally breaking from the thick expanse of trees and onto a dirt path near an abandoned beach on a far edge of the island, Duncan hit the skull on the bike and brought it to a stop. He felt Courtney lift her head from its spot against his back and draw her arms from around him. After getting up from the seat, Duncan held the bike steady as she shakily did the same.
As he gently set the bike down on its side, he heard Princess stumble around before taking a seat on the edge of a small rise overlooking the beach. Standing near her awkwardly for a moment, he took a seat next to her and draped his arm across her shoulders. He inwardly sighed with relief when she did nothing but glance at him with semi-wide eyes.
"You okay, love?" he asked, adding the last word on a little uncertainly. He got a little worried when she didn't respond right away, and mentally cursed himself for being weak. He pushed that to the back of his mind when drew in a breath to answer him with though.
"I think I'm going to be okay," she said laughingly, making him grin, "That was such a rush, though! It was almost like a rollercoaster but, you know, without all the screaming and puking."
Duncan just sat there for a moment, not saying anything. Courtney began to fidget nervously in his embrace, concerned that she had said the wrong thing. It was then that Duncan started laughing, loud body shaking laughter. Courtney chuckled over his display of amusement, genuinely happy to see him so consumed by hilarity. When his mirth finally died down, Duncan gave her a peck on the cheek and while nuzzling into the crook of her neck mumbled something that was too quiet for her make out.
"What did you say?"
"Thanks," he replied, his words making vibrations against her neck, "I really needed that."
Courtney giggled, "Glad I could help." After a minute or two of just sitting contentedly together and watching the sky start to gain the lighter purple tones of early sunrise, Courtney cleared her throat quietly.
"Um, Duncan?"
"What do you need?"
"Can I ask you something?"
"Go ahead. I live to serve you, my Princess," he smirked.
Courtney rolled her eyes but smiled faintly at him. "Well, I was just wondering… do you think maybe next time, I could drive?"
Duncan grinned crookedly at her before dipping his head down to kiss her deeply. She drew in an uneven breath and threaded her fingers through his hair. He smiled into the kiss, thinking that if she reacted like this every time, she could drive whenever the hell she wanted.
A/N: There you have it. i personally thought the end was a little suckish, but my sis said it was cute. I'm going for cute, but it's really up to you isn't it reader?? Review if you so wish. Tchau!