Chapter 15

The first week of March was hectic. I had a term paper due in EDTHP and had mid-terms in every course. Kelly and I spent as much time together as we could, but it wasn't enough. We didn't find enough time to make love again that week. Spring break was going to be a welcome treat.

Kelly and I packed our things in my VW before lunch on Friday so we could escape from State College quickly when I finished my exam in Econ 2 at 2:15. The Econ mid-term wasn't too bad and I expected to have a decent grade. I hurried back to my room, dropped off my school books, grabbed my playbook and headed for Beaver Hall and Kelly.

Kelly was ready to give me a hug, until she spotted my playbook. She asked, "What's this for? I thought we were going to be on vacation."

"Sorry, honey," I explained. "Spring practice starts in two weeks. I don't stay #3 receiver if I don't know this whole book." I hefted the five inch tome to emphasize my point. "I promise I won't study too much."

"OK," Kelly answered, pretending to pout. "Just promise me you will make a little time for your girlfriend."

"That's an easy promise to make..." I answered, giving Kelly a kiss. " ... and to keep." I gave her another kiss. We walked up Bigler Road to my car, climbed in and headed east for Paradise.

Once we were over Seven Mountains, I called Mom at work. I got her voice mail. I left this message. "Hi Mom, it's Kyle. Kelly and I are on the road and on schedule. We should be home between 5:00 and 5:30. Set two more places at the table. We'll have supper with the family. Love you, Mom. Bye."

Traffic wasn't too bad on Route 322 until we got to Harrisburg. We crawled down I-83 until we hit the turnpike and I-283. Traffic was heavy, but moved well as we headed to and around Lancaster. Kelly and I pulled up in front of my house at 5:32, a couple minutes after my family's normal dinner time.

Kelly and I walked hand in hand across my front lawn and in the front door. I announced, "We're here everybody."

Liz was in the living room with one of my nephews. He on the couch getting his diaper changed. The other twin was in the playpen – standing! Liz continued wiping my nephew's dirty bottom. She said, "Welcome home, Kyle. Hi, Kelly."

"The twins can stand?" I asked, incredulous.

"Only Noah right now," Liz answered as she put Connor's diaper on him. "He figured it out a few days ago." Liz leaned down and nuzzled Connor's nose with hers. "Stinky boy doesn't know how yet, do you?"

Connor giggled and said, "Inky ... Inky..."

Noah rocked back and forth a little calling "Inky ... Inky..." He giggled, teetered and fell down. He made a funny face and called, "Izzy ... Izzy..." He started to whimper.

"Hang on, Noah," Liz said. "Aunt Lizzie has to take care of your brother first," she explained as she put Connor's pants on him.

Andy came rushing in from the dining room at the first sound of Noah's cry. He swept him up in his arms and said, "What wrong, little man?"

Liz answered, "He's fine, Andy. He got excited and lost his balance. Relax."

Andy finally turned around and saw Kelly and me. "Ahhh ... you must be the fabulous Kelly O'Keefe. Kyle has said so many nice things about you."

I introduced Andy and Kelly. The commotion drew more family members to the living room. Dad came in and greeted Kelly warmly. Will and Abby followed Dad into the room.

"Will! Abby!" I exclaimed. "I didn't expect to see you tonight."

"Mom's making her famous pot roast," Will replied. "Anyway we had to come to meet this girlfriend you've been raving about." Will looked Kelly over. "Your description didn't do her justice, Kyle."

I introduced Kelly to Will and Abby. Just as I finished the introductions Mom yelled, "Dinner's ready."

Liz carried Connor into the dining room. Andy brought Noah. The rest of us followed them into the dining room. Mom had the table leaves added to make space for this crowd. Liz put Connor in the high chair between Mom's spot at the head of the table and her seat. Andy put Noah between him and Liz.

Mom came out of the kitchen carrying a platter with the evening's pot roast. I did a double take when I saw Mom. She had been showing her pregnancy a little in January. She was huge now. There wasn't any question that she was carrying a baby.

I gulped and forced myself to be polite. "Mom, I'd like to introduce you to Kelly O'Keefe, my girlfriend." They shook hands. "Kelly this is my mom, Sharon Martin."

"It's nice to meet you, Mrs. Martin." Kelly said.

"Please, call me Sharon. We're not formal around here," Mom said. "It's a pleasure to finally meet you, Kelly. Kyle has said so many nice things about you."

"Thank you for inviting me to supper with your family," Kelly said politely.

Mom indicated where Will, Abby, Kelly and I should sit. Dad led the grace when everyone was seated.

Mom had outdone herself with the meal. In addition to the pot roast we had twice baked potatoes, frozen sweet peas from our garden last summer and chow-chow (pickled mixed vegetables, a Pennsylvania Dutch specialty). The food was fantastic.

Dad teased Kelly a little. "I hope this crowd around the dinner table doesn't scare you off."

"No, Dan," Kelly explained. "I'm one of seven children. This is normal for me."

"I'm glad you're comfortable with our little family." Dad answered.

Kelly told the rest of my family about her four brothers and two sisters. Our family talked about our background and family history too. The getting-to-know-each-other conversation was interesting.

"Kyle neglected to tell me one thing, Sharon," Kelly said. "He didn't mention that you were expecting."

"Did he forget that part?" Mom teased.

"It simply never came up in our conversations," I explained.

Mom laughed, "I can understand that. How does an eighteen year old tell his girlfriend that his mom got knocked up again?" Mom patted her stomach. "This one wasn't planned but will be very welcome."

"Some time, Dad..." I teased. "I can sit down with you and talk about the birds and the bees. This family doesn't have a good track record with planned pregnancies. What are you batting .400?"

"OK, smart ass, I'll get the last laugh when you get married and start a family."

"DANIEL!" Mom commanded. "Watch your language around the twins."

Connor giggled, furrowed his brow and said "Mart azzz" He laughed and repeated, "Mart azzz" Andy and Liz laughed while Mom just shook her head in dismay.

Noah giggled with his brother and then added, "Mar ... mart ... azzz" He grinned at us after he got the words out.

"How long have they been talking?" I asked.

"My boys have been doing this for a month," Andy said proudly.

"They're really just mimicking us right now," Mom explained. "We think they understand names, but that's all. Connor is better at parroting words than Noah. Noah is better at standing up."

"Connor?" I asked, looking directly at my nephew. He looked back at me. "Can you say Uncle Kyle?" Connor scrunched up his face. I prompted "Uncle Kyle."

Connor pursed his lips and spit out, "Kkkk ... Ky" He giggled. "Kyyy..."

""Very good," I praised. "You're a smart boy."

"Mart Azz..." Connor answered. He laughed again.

Noah watched the exchange. He worked his mouth for a few seconds and then waved his arm at me. "Ky!" he said proudly.

We talked about the twins' vocabulary. So far the only words they remembered more than an hour were Da, meaning Dad for Andy, Izzy for Liz, Ma-Ma for Mom, and Po-Po for Pop-Pop, my Dad. Hopefully they would remember Ky the next time I came home. I ruefully remembered that I wouldn't be home again until the end of the semester in two months. I'll probably have to teach them my name again when I was home for the summer.

I picked up other news that evening. Will was returning as Aquatics Director at the scout camp again. Abby would be the camp health officer. The contracts hadn't been sent out yet, but I was slated to be one of the Assistant Aquatics Directors again. Trent Wilson, Christian's cousin, was going to be offered the other slot. Justin Finnegan would not be returning to camp anymore. He had a full time job now so he could afford to raise his orphaned brother and sister.

Will and Abby made a crumb top apple pie last night for our dessert. It was delicious. We lingered at the table, enjoying having our whole family together.

Dad quizzed me about our spring break plans. He wasn't wild about us driving straight through to Florida. "You could spend the night here," Dad suggested. "Get some sleep and leave refreshed in the morning. You and Kelly could use the bedroom in the basement."

"No, that's not necessary, Dad," responded. "Kelly and I are going to take turns driving. We'll be fine. Anyway, Ed won't have a place to sleep if we don't get there tomorrow afternoon. We're bringing his tent with us."

"Ummm..." Dad responded. "Promise me you'll pull off the road if you get too tired."

"We'll do that if we get too tired, I promise." I said. "Hal and Tammy will be caravanning with us the whole way down. We'll be fine."

Mom added, "Be careful about alcohol down there. I don't want you getting in trouble."

"We'll be fine, Mom," I answered. "We're there for the sun, the surf, the sand and some dancing. The websites warned us that we'll be able to get in the clubs at night, but they are extremely strict about carding people. They won't serve us since we're underage."

I didn't feel it was necessary to tell Mom that Jacob Miller had picked up a case of Troegs Amber Ale for me. It was buried in my car trunk. She didn't need to know that Hal was bringing more beer. Jeremy certainly would bring some. Ed – well, Ed would make sure there was no shortage of drinks in our campsite. Mothers don't need to know some things.

I glanced at my watch. It was 6:40 pm. "Thanks for supper, Mom. Thanks for the pie, Abby." I said.

"I baked the pie." Will insisted.

"Thanks, Will. Hal and Tammy will be over in twenty minutes. Kelly and I have to stop at the Fritzes to get things for Ed. We have to run."

Kelly added, "Thank you for dinner. It was wonderful."

Kelly and I said our good byes to my family. We walked down the street to the Fritzes and rang the front doorbell. Mr. Fritz answered it and invited us inside.

Mr. Fritz and I exchanged pleasantries. I introduced him to Kelly. Ed had sent detailed instructions about the camping gear he needed. Mr. Fritz had everything ready by the kitchen door. Kelly and I gathered it up, thanked Mr. Fritz and headed out the kitchen door to their driveway.

I froze when I was out the door. Across the Fritzes' driveway from us, Penny Edwards stepped out her back door. "Um, Hi." I blurted out.

"Hi, Kyle." Penny answered.

"Umm ... I guess I should introduce you. This is my girlfriend, Kelly." I said.

Kelly said, "Hi."

"Kelly, this is neighbor and my ex-girlfriend, Penny Edwards." I said. After an awkward pause I added, "Ed asked me to bring some of his camping equipment down to Florida for him."

"I heard about that, Kyle," Penny said. She turned towards Kelly. "It's nice to meet you, Kelly. I understand you are going down to Panama City Beach for break with our gang."

"Yes," Kelly answered.

"I guess the grapevine has been busy," I said.

"You know how our friends are, Kyle." Penny said.

"You aren't skipping this trip because Kelly will be there are you?" I asked.

"No," Penny explained. "Dr. Chu already asked me to work next week before I heard your girlfriend was going. I can use the money."

"I can understand that," I replied. "I'm lifeguarding at the pool at school to earn some cash." I glanced at my watch. "We probably need to get going Penny. Hal and Tammy are meeting us at my house in a couple of minutes."

"Have fun in Florida," Penny said. "It was nice to meet you, Kelly."

"I'm glad I met you too," Kelly answered.

"See you later, Penny," I said. Kelly and I carried Ed's stuff down the driveway to the street.

When we were out of ear shot, I said, "Sorry about that. I didn't expect to run into Penny this evening."

"You don't need to apologize, Kyle," Kelly answered. "I'm bound to run into ex-girlfriends of yours."

We loaded Ed's things in the back seat of my car. Hal and Tammy pulled up in Hal's beat up old Toyota. I introduced everyone. We went over the route on the map. Kelly and I stopped in my house to use the bathroom and say good bye to my family.

Connor and Noah both called out "Ky ... Ky ... Ky..." when they spotted me. I picked up each nephew and gave each a kiss and a hug before I left.

"Remember your Uncle Kyle, guys. I'll see you in May." I said. Mom insisted on one more kiss before I was allowed to leave.

Hal and I agreed to take turns leading the group. I was driving for the first three hours and Tammy would follow in Hal's car. Hal and Kelly would rest up for the next shift of driving.

I headed west on Route 30 for York, with Tammy following behind me. We took I-83 south to Baltimore and picked up I-95. We would spend the next fifteen or sixteen hours on that highway until we reached Jacksonville, Florida.

We reached our planned stop at a rest stop near Fredericksburg, Virginia a little more than three hours later. The four of us took a fifteen minute break to use the bathrooms, get some coffee or energy drinks, snacks and rest.

Hal took the lead on the next segment of highway with Kelly following him. I tried to nap so I would be ready for my next turn at the wheel. The highway was fairly empty, only a few cars plus the long haul truckers heading south with us.

I took over driving south of Richmond when we stopped for gas and a rest. The South of the Border signs started soon after I got on the highway again. The first one announced it was only 175 miles to South of the Border. We passed another sign every few miles. They were fun. One of my favorite signs said, "Keep Yelling Kids (They'll Stop)". The best of all said "Keep America Green. Bring Money". The guy who owned the place was a brilliant marketer. In honor of his efforts, I had to stop there when we finally got to South of the Border.

We topped us off with gas at the service station in the complex and wandered around a little seeing some of the sights. It was four am, so most all of the shops were closed. Hal and I teased our girlfriends about the Dirty Old Man Shop. Hal and Kelly took over driving again. I thought, 'Maybe Kelly and I can stop on the way north next Saturday, ' as I settled in to nap.

It was light when Kelly woke me at our next stop. Hal had gotten off I-95 and stopped at a McDonalds so we could get breakfast. This was the first opportunity that Hal and Tammy had to get to know Kelly. Everyone seemed to hit it off well.

I drove us south into Georgia with Tammy following me. We got gas and switched drivers south of Savannah. We stopped for lunch after we took the beltway around Jacksonville to pick up I-10. I led our caravan again as we drove west across Florida into the panhandle. I got us as far as our turn off at Mariana. We picked up more gas when we got on Route 231. Hal and Kelly drove the rest of the way into Panama City Beach.

Tammy did a good job feeding Hal the directions when we got close to our destination. Hal made every turn correctly to take us to our campground, Raccoon River Campground, on Hutchison Boulevard. We checked in at the office and then headed to our campsites.

We met up with Ed, Jeremy, Kathy, Brandon, and two new people. Ed introduced us to his companion for the week, Victoria Harris, and his roommate, Eric Peters. Eric's girlfriend Amber Rice would be joining us later in the day. I was happy we had more people here than just my gang of friends from Paradise. That was going to make things much easier for Kelly to fit into our group.

We got busy setting up camp. Jeremy, Kathy, Hal and Tammy took the first campsite for their big tent. Ed, Vicky, Kelly and I set up Ed's tent on the middle campsite. Eric, Amber and Brandon set up Eric's tent on the third site.

Kelly and I moved our things into Ed's tent. It had plenty of space. It had a central room with a sleeping room on each side with a door to zip closed for privacy. It was perfect for two couples.

Kathy and Jeremy had arrived at the campsite a couple hours ahead of us. They drove straight through from South Bend, Indiana. Brandon flew into Gainesville last night. Brandon was lucky to be able to afford an airline ticket. His uncle had a prosperous construction company and he paid Brandon well at his summer job. Brandon sacked out on Eric and Ed's floor last night. He rode over with Ed, Vicky, and Eric this morning.

The group decided to walk down to the beach and check things out after Amber arrived. Thousands of college kids were here this week. The beach was hopping. We wandered down Front Beach Road, checking out the clubs and restaurants.

We decided to have an early supper since most of us were worn out from our long drive. We picked a small restaurant and grabbed burgers and fries for dinner. We walked back to the campground after dinner. Our group had some logistics to take care of before stores closed on Saturday night.

We divided responsibilities up. Eric, Amber, Ed and Vicky were going out to pick up non-alcoholic drinks and ice for our coolers. Hal and Tammy would go out for firewood, charcoal, lighter fluid and white gas for our stove. Kelly, Brandon and I volunteered to go to the grocery store to buy food for the next couple days.

We headed down Hutchison Boulevard a few blocks to a Publix grocery store we passed on the way to the campground in the afternoon. We didn't buy anything fancy for meals – eggs, cereal, milk, orange juice, bacon, sausage for breakfast; a couple loaves of bread, lunchmeat, cheese, peanut butter and jelly for lunches; and the makings for spaghetti one night and steaks, potatoes and corn another evening. Brandon has a big sweet tooth – we bought a cake at the bakery section. We loaded up the cart with snacks to keep us satisfied between meals. We added some dishwashing supplies and paper towels and headed for the check out. I put the $167.23 charge on my credit card. Everyone was going to settle up at the end of the week to balance everyone's costs.

Ed, Eric and the girls came back a few minutes after we got back to the campsites. They had coolers filled with ice for our sodas, food and beer. The seven of us loaded the groceries in one, the sodas in a second and added a selection of beers from the various cases each of us brought down.

Hal's carload came back half an hour later, just as we finished putting all our supplies away. Hal and Jeremy got a small fire started while we stored the charcoal and other supplies. Everyone pulled their chair into a circle around the fire and relaxed. We talked and got to know each other.

Eric Peters was from Quincy, Florida, a small town outside of Tallahassee. Much to the disgust of Florida State fans, he chose to go across state to Gainesville to play for the University of Florida. Eric played wide receiver too. He and Amber Rice had been dating since eleventh grade. Amber also attended UF. She was studying to be a microbiologist.

Vicky Harris grew up in Mobile, Alabama. Her family moved to Tampa Bay a year ago. She was studying business administration. She got to know Ed in the fall through a psych class they both took. Ed dated her a little. Ed and Vicky weren't an official couple – they simply enjoyed each other's company occasionally – in bed and out.

My friends got to know Kelly and vice versa. Kelly seemed to be well received by Tammy and Kathy. That had worried me a little before we left. Both girls were close friends with Penny and while I expected they would be mature and treat her decently, I was pleased when they did.

We broke out the beer while we got to know each other. Ed grabbed one of my amber ales. He studied it. "Troegs, I've never heard of this one. Is it any good Kyle?"

"I found the brand in January," I explained. "I really like it."

"It's one of Daddy's favorites," Kelly added.

Ed took a big swig. "This is pretty good, Kyle. How many cases did you bring?"

"Just one," I answered.

Ed shook his head in dismay. "What have we got to do to get you to remember to bring enough beer?"

"Sorry," I responded. "I was in a hurry yesterday and didn't have much space. I had to drive out of my way to Paradise to get someone's camping gear."

"Touché, Kyle," Ed conceded. "Thanks for bringing stuff from home for me." Ed looked around the group. "What'd everyone bring to drink?"

Our group took stock of our liquor situation. Hal and Tammy brought a case of beer. Jeremy and Kathy brought two cases of beer along with three bottles of wine. One of Ed's over twenty-one teammates bought Brandon two cases of beer and a bottle of Jack Daniels yesterday. Ed and Eric had three cases of beer between them along with two bottles of gin and two bottles of vodka. Ed decided that we probably could stretch our liquor supply out to last the week. He said he'd track down a couple juniors from the UF football team who were staying at a hotel a ½ mile away if we ran out. He thought they'd be able to get them to help us out.

Jeremy, Kathy, Hal, Tammy, Kelly and I ran out of steam early that evening. We hadn't slept for a day and a half. We went to our tents to sleep while Ed, Vicky, Eric, Amber and Brandon stayed up and talked around the fire.

Kelly and I went to our tent and set up our sleeping bags. Kelly started to arrange her things to sleep alone. I suggested, "Why don't you open up your sleeping bag. If we push our mats together and cover them with your sleeping bag, we can use my sleeping bag for our covers. It would be a lot cozier."

"I've never tried that," Kelly answered. "It sounds like it could be fun."

We arranged our bedding for the evening. I stripped down and climbed in naked while Kelly put away her dirty clothing. Kelly turned and saw me. She smiled and said, "Somebody is looking for some fun tonight I see."

"Maybe," I said. "I like sleeping in the buff when I share my bed with my girlfriend."

"OK, Kyle," Kelly answered. She pulled off the knee length T-shirt/nightie she had on and laid down beside me. We spooned together. I draped my arm over Kelly. She pulled it across her chest and snuggled it against her bosom. Kelly sighed and relaxed as we cuddled.

"Good night honey," I said as I kissed her neck.

"MMMmmmm..." Kelly sighed. "Good night, Kyle."

We cuddled, enjoying the warmth and feeling of closeness to each other. The closeness produced one more, not unexpected reaction. My cock hardened. I rubbed it between Kelly's legs and gave her a kiss. "Kelly?" No answer. "Do you want a little fun before we sleep?" I asked hopefully. The only answer was her gentle breathing. My exhausted lover was sleeping already. I sighed and let my own weariness send me to sleep.

--oooOooo--

I had an extremely realistic dream early that morning where Kelly was giving me a hand job. I awoke with a start when I realized that it wasn't dream. I opened my eyes to see my naked girlfriend lying on her side facing me, gently stroking my steely cock.

We could hear the sounds of Ed and Vicky coupling with each other a few feet from us in the other room of the tent. I blinked a couple times and stared at my girlfriend.

Kelly winked and said, "Your friends got me excited. Can you make love to me?"

"Sure," I said expectantly. "I'd love that.

Kelly leaned in to kiss me. I puckered my lips to accept the kiss. When Kelly crinkled her nose before our lips touched and backed off. "Morning breath, Kyle," she explained.

"Sorry," I replied. "We could do a little 69 to get ready if you want."

"Ummm ... I've never done that," Kelly said.

"Have you ever given a blow job?" I asked. Kelly nodded yes. "It'll be similar except I'll be eating your goodies while you do me."

"OK," Kelly said simply. She continued to stare at me.

I rolled on my back and explained, "You turn around and straddle me. You should be on top so you can control how much of me ends up in your mouth."

Kelly slurped the head of my cock into her mouth as soon as she was in position. Kelly swirled her tongue around the head. I put my hands on her ass cheeks and pulled her pussy closer to me. I licked along her slot.

Kelly's juices were already flowing and I used my tongue to spread them around. Kelly giggled as I teased her. She was enthusiastic but inexpert at fellatio. I licked and fingered my girlfriend to get her properly excited. Kelly licked, sucked and stroked my cock but didn't get me close to cumming. I brought Kelly to orgasm.

Kelly went back to sucking me off when she recovered from her climax. I let her go a minute before I suggested, "Why don't we make love now? Do you want to be on the top?"

"Top?" Kelly said. Her face lit up. "Goody, I like it that way." Kelly switched around so she was facing me. She clasped my erection, centered it on her opening and sank down slowly onto it.

I put my hands on her waist to help steady Kelly while she worked all of my cock into her tight little pussy. I smiled as my bare cock slid into her. I was glad Kelly had taken care of birth control. Skin on skin is simply the best.

I knew I wasn't going to last too long. In spite of my womanizing reputation, I had sex one time before last weekend since the winter semester started. Kelly's hot, slippery pussy stimulated with my bare cock as she rode me enthusiastically.

We made love for at most five minutes. Kelly tried to stifle herself with limited success since our friends were nearby. I managed to bring her to orgasm teasing her breasts and clitoris before I jetted a wad of cum into my lover.

We dressed, gathered our shower things and went outside. Jeremy and Kathy were at the picnic table eating breakfast. Brandon was sitting in a chair tending the small fire.

"Morning," Jeremy said cheerfully as we emerged from our tent. He gave us a wink. "There's nothing like a morning quickie to get you started."

Kelly and I mumbled "Good Morning," as we headed for the shower house. Kelly blushed with embarrassment.

Kathy swatted Jeremy as we walked away. "Behave yourself," she commanded.

Jeremy protested innocently, "What?"

We heard Ed and Vicky start up round two of lovemaking as we left. We held hands as we walked. When we were out of ear-shot of camp, Kelly commented, "Your friends certainly are comfortable talking about sex."

"Sure," I answered. "We've been overhearing each other have sex for years. We're used to it."

"I don't know if I'll ever get used to it," Kelly said. "I've never talked about sex with anyone but my sister Anne and my closest girlfriends from school."

"I understand," I explained. "These are my closest friends. We've known each other since elementary school."

"I'm not used to so many people knowing that I'm..." Kelly said nervously.

" ... Getting screwed?" I finished. Kelly smiled and nodded yes. "You get used to it. If we'd have woken up earlier, I'm sure Jeremy and Kathy were doing it. We heard Ed and Vicky. It's no big deal."

Kelly didn't argue my point but I knew she was skeptical. We found the shower house and took adjoining stalls. We emerged fifteen minutes later, clean and refreshed from our long drive and our lovemaking. We walked back to our campsite holding hands.

We whipped up some eggs, bacon and hash browns for breakfast. We hung out and talked with my friends. Couple by couple, the rest of our group joined us. Around noon time, after everyone had showered and eaten, we headed down to the beach.

It was sunny and the temperature was in the mid-seventies, very pleasant after my cold winter in State College. Ed, Brandon, Jeremy and I tried a swim in the water but the Gulf was much too cold to enjoy the swim.

The beaches were packed with thousands of college students. I saw a least a hundred different colleges represented in the crowd on T-shirts and shorts. I wore one of my many Penn State Football T-shirts. Jeremy proudly wore his National Champion Fighting Irish shirts.

T-shirts came off. All the girls were dressed in bikinis. I'm prejudiced, but I thought Kelly was the prettiest of all the girls in our group. I'm sure Ed, Eric, Jeremy and Hal disagreed.

Our group spent time in the afternoon getting a tan. The Floridians were slightly pale, the rest of us northern college students were pasty white. The sun felt good on our bodies.

Brandon spent time checking out the other girls at the beach. He had hopes of hooking up with someone quickly so he wasn't the odd man out in our group of couples. He chatted with some girls on the beach and flirted with a few more. I noticed when I flipped over from my back to my front he was engaged in an extended conversation with a couple guys and three girls.

The guys and girls he was talking with split a few minutes later. Brandon came back smiling and laid down beside on his towel beside me. I looked over at him. "Success!" Brandon said proudly. "I got myself a date with that hottie I was talking with a few minutes ago."