I was in trouble. My sleepover guest last night hadn't passed unnoticed. Aunt Lauren, who had woken before Derek had made a get away, had kindly agreed to not tell his dad if I conceded to whatever form of punishment she saw fit. When I'd agreed, I had never dreamed that that punishment would be anything like as cruel as it was. What was this punishment you may ask? Here's a hint: she'd been sitting next to me since we left the motel eight and a half hours ago.

My backseat bed had been sacrificed to provide extra seating now that Derek was back and I was currently sharing that space with Tori. She knew exactly why we were sitting together and she thought it was absolutely hilarious. I had started to wonder if Aunt Lauren was paying her for every time she sniggered at me. Shed be loaded by now.

I pulled my backpack out from under the seat and plunged my hand in up to my elbow, fishing around for something I knew was in there somewhere. My hand brushed across my polyester pj pants and my only change of clothes and then it closed around the notepad I'd nicked from one of the motel nightstands. I pulled it out along with its matching pen, stuffed my bag between my knees and turned my body so that back was to Tori.

I'd started working on my movie again, scribbling down the events of my real life as if they were a screen play. Mr. Bae thought it was a great way for me to "put things into perspective," whatever that meant. The perspective I had gained was that my life was like a really bad horror movie. Like one of those weirdo cult movies that make it big with the kids that dye their hair six different colors and have like eleven nose piercings. Oh and they wear the fake fangs all the time. Hmm, it was good to know that my life was going somewhere.

I wrote until it got too dark to see my paper. We were about 20 minutes out of Virginia Beach when we stopped for dinner at a Burger King. The entire town was packed with college kids and I suddenly understood why we'd come here. We could disappear. The adults were going to have to pretend they weren't with us if we were really going to blend in with the spring breakers but I didn't see that actually happening. At the very least maybe they'd give us some space.

Living once more under their supervision had been really weird, especially because things had changed so quickly. We'd been on our own, careful not to trust anyone but each other and now we were squirming like ants under a magnifying glass. Its not that we didn't trust them because we did, and it's not like we weren't glad to have them with us because we were, it was just weird.

I shared my concerns with Simon and Derek. We all knew that a bunch of teenagers with two adults that could be their parents would be conspicuous. "I'll talk to dad," Simon promised. "See what I can do."

We got our usual two rooms at brightest and most crowded hotel we could find but I guess Simons talk with his father because we divvied them up a little differently. Mr. Bae and Aunt Lauren took one room and the rest of us took the one beside theirs. "Make sure that door is locked and your phones are ALWAYS on," Mr. Bae instructed. I want to be able to reach you at all times." We all agreed and turned I for the night.

. . .

In the morning we reached the general consensus that we could stay here a day or two and relax. Aunt Lauren wanted to take me into a free clinic and get checked out as long as we were here. "I'd be willing to bet money that you won't be the first electrocuted kid they've seen this week," she told me. They probably have a whole burns unit set up. You'll just need to get your story straight because I can also guarantee you that there are gona be police officers there asking questions."

"Fine, it was a dare," I told her. "They can't arrest someone for daring me to put my hands on an outlet can they?"

"No I don't think so," Mr. Bae conceded. "Just don't tell them you were drunk because you don't have an ID."

"Yeah actually I've been thinking that maybe we should get on that," Simon piped up. "I bet this place is swarming with people that'll make them for us. All of us."

"Fine," he agreed.

We waited till late afternoon and then headed into the down and the hub of the action. We scoped out one of the more sketchy bars and Derek and his dad went inside.

"Wait here," Derek told us. "We'll just be a sec."

"Hold up, you're going in without us?" Tori interjected.

"You wana try to pass as a 21 year old? Be my guest. They won't let you in," Derek called over his shoulder, chuckling loudly as he pulled open the door.

"Bite me pup!" He ignored her and disappeared into the smoky room beyond. Simon laughed and leaned against the wall. He was cute, I had to give him that, and, looking over at Tori, I had to wonder if maybe she was still thinking the same thing. Yuck. Someone had to tell her sooner or later. I knew her well enough to know that she'd want to know and not only because she'd been crushing on her brother. I was kind of hoping that maybe once she realized that her real father didn't think she was a total freak she would be a little bit nicer. Probably not though, I had a feeling that her issues were rooted a lot deeper.

They came out 15 minutes later, their expressions unrevealing. "C'mon," Derek said, wrapping an arm around my shoulders and towing me back down the street.

"We're going to CVS," I heard Mr. Bae explaining behind me.

"Why?" I asked Derek.

"We need a camera."

"Okay?" He didn't elaborate. He bought a disposable camera and made us each accost it in front the white wall outside the store. Then he went back in and had the pictures developed while we grabbed dinner at a pizza place down the street. After we ate and retrieved the products of Derek's photo shoot, Mr. Bae suggested we head back to the hotel.

"Derek and I will go finish up at the bar and meet to back there a little later." Simon joined Tori in her protests this time, unhappy to be left out of the action again. His dad clapped a hand on his back. "Don't worry about it Son," he promised. "You're not missing out on much." Tori rolled her eyes.

"Mhmm."

"Shut up Tori," Derek growled. I touched his arm warningly and Simon raised a hand to aid my efforts.

"Woah now, lets not fight children," he chided, his usual impish grin returning to his face. "We have to stay united against my dad here!"

"Well go unite against me back at the hotel." He grinned at his son. Tori grunted and started to walk away with a dismissive wave over her shoulder to the rest of us, still congregated outside of the drugstore. Some creep wolf whistled from across the street she flipped him off.

"Hey sweetheart, cool it!" he called. "You're cute but I was talking to your friend."

"That's what Neanderthals call talking?" she yelled back.

"Tori," Aunt Lauren warned.

"So how bout it beautiful? What do you say we ditch the football player and I'll show you what a real good time is?" A gentle breeze picked up and tickled my nose, soaking me with the greasy stench of the fast food strip across the street, and I felt Derek stiffen under my hand.

"She's not interested," he growled.

"You let him talk for you baby?"

"I'm n-not interested," I confirmed. Derek had begun to shake. It wouldn't have been noticeable to anyone who wasn't touching him; just little tremors that wracked his whole body. Something was wrong. I dug my fingertips into his arm, telling him I could hear him but it didn't seem to make any difference. I could feel his skin heating up now.

"Dad, I wana keep them with us," he whispered as a second man joined the one across the street. Mr. Bae didn't ask any questions. Just nodded and motioned for us to follow him back to the bar. It looked different now than it had during the day. Neon beer signs lit up the windows and several young women in very revealing shirts stood by the door, ushering in potential clientele. I shot Derek a meaningful look but he didn't seem to notice. He was still glancing over his shoulder and the men behind us, teeth slightly bared and jaw taut.

"Lets just do this and leave, ok?" he asked no one in particular. Something was definitely wrong. "You think you can go in without me?" This time he addressed his father.

"Sure. But Derek, what's the problem?" He looked worried.

"I'm being paranoid. Just, please…" he let his sentence dissipate and Mr. Bae nodded and walked toward the women that guarded the door. He was gone a while, maybe half an hour, maybe more. The men across the street went into the pizza restaurant we had just left and sat down at a booth by the widow. Every now and then they'd glance in our direction, their expressions almost jeering. Derek never relinquished his grip on my arm, shifting to a stance that more or less blocked Simon and me from view of the window across the way.

The two men were joined by a third about 10 minutes after Mr. Bae had gone inside, and a fourth just moments later. As their group grew though, they seemed to become less and less interested in ours. The time eventually came when they stopped checking on us all together and Derek traded in his fervent shaking for a nervous leg bounce.

By the time Mr. Bae finally rejoined us Derek looked about ready to explode. The sun had disappeared completely and the entire street was now ablaze with neon bar signs and street lights. People had begun to fill it too; adding to the general buzz of the lights and making me feel a little less uneasy. Whatever it was that had Derek's Spidey sense tingling somehow seemed less threatening once we were surrounded by people that could make us invisible. After all, wasn't that the reason we'd come to this place?

This however, didn't have the same calming affect on Derek as it did on me. He hurried us along, rushing his dad through the distribution of our fake IDs and no less than propelling us back up the street towards our hotel.

"Ok, when we get back Dad, you go check us out and we'll get the stuff." Derek issued this command like a proclamation, assuming he wouldn't be contested but of course he was wrong.

"What?" Tori demanded? "You want us to leave town? Just because some skeevy asshole was checking Chloe out?"

"Well what did you think I meant when I said 'lets do this and leave?'" he asked, clearly annoyed.

"Uh… what any normal person would think your meant? Leave as is leave here and go back to the hotel where we have warm cozy beds to sleep in? And cable TV?" Derek rolled his eyes.

"Well you got it wrong. We need to go."

"Woah," Mr. Bae interjected. "Derek, don't you think that maybe Tori's right? Aren't you maybe overreacting a little bit? They're not going to follow us back to the hotel and no body got hurt."

"They were jerks," Aunt Lauren added. "But harmless." Derek shook his head.

"Wrong." He muttered as the door across the street swung open and the now four men immerged back onto the street.

Just as they did a few things happened at once: The breeze picked u again but this time coming from behind us, tousling the hair on the back of my head. The man that stood closest to us lifted his face, his shoulders rising and falling as he took a deep breath, inhaling the new air that had blown from our side to theirs. Three other faced whipped around to stare at us, their eyes burning with anger and Derek shifted again, this time to a protective crouch, his entire body shaking.

Finally, he relinquished his hold on me before breathing one final command.

"Run!

A/N: Im sorry Im sorry Im sorry Im sorry! I am a horrible person for keeping you all waiting so long but i honnestly did have writers block! I knew i wanted them to head to virginia beach but i had not clue what would happen once they got there. I toyed with the idea of having Chloe write this chapter as a screan play since she is doing that any way. What would you all think about that? I was about to ask you guys for help when last night i actually dreamed this chapter into existance (finally!). so naturally i had to type it up as soon as possible. So here you are!

Anyways, I got really into this chapter so it is a little bit longer than my usual and i hope that makes up for it a tiny little bit at least. Also since i was so into it (and for once know exactly what is going to happen next!) the next chapter shouldnt take tooooo long to appear. The only thing is that i am going away with my aunt and little cousin for a week to a hotel that, though they claim it has wifi, im not entirely sure does. If that becomes the case i will not be able to update again until next monday :( unless i mannage to do it from the train. hmmmm thats an idea! Well as usual, please R&R and let me know what you all think. Any and ALL ideas and suggestions would be appreciated and taken into serious considderation. I love hearing from you guys and i really do think that your contributions (as well as your wonderfully motivaiting reviews) make this story a million times better than it would be if it was just me.

Thanks for reading!