(Holden's POV)

I gave Luc a quick kiss and waved to him as he left for work. We had already unloaded most of the equipment and had played on everything Mr. Lakes had brought from his work. I had an hour before I had to take Brook into town so I went back to helping with the clearing.

"Holden, do you think you could help get this chain around this log?" Ethan asked.

"Yeah, who's running the backhoe?" I asked.

"Dillon, so make sure you get out of the way as soon as we tell him the chain is on." Ethan said laughing.

"Hey, I heard that." Dillon said.

"I know, you were supposed to." Ethan said laughing at the now pouting Dillon.

"Okay, myside is one." I said making sure the chain was tight.

"I got my side." Ethan yelled and then both of us ran like hell away from Dillon and the log.

"Very funny you two." Dillon yelled before gunning the engine and slowly backing it up while lifting the bucket on the backhoe.

Slow and steady the log came out of the whole it had been buried in for years. Dillon added it to the growing pile of logs and stumps. Carter and Mr. Lakes were loading everything in the back of a bump truck to be hauled out of here.

"I think we only have like five more of these to go before we have to get wet and get the ones in the pond." Landon said wiping sweat off is forehead. He had been working with Mason and Brandon.

"I want to have the water tested before any of you get in it. That could be a hospital bill waiting ot happen." Mr. Lakes said.

"How long is that going to take?" Landon asked.

"Not long, Leo is going to be here in about an hour with a test kit." Mr. Lakes said.

"Cool that will give us time to get the rest of this done and cleaned up." Brandon said.

I work nonstop until I had to leave to take Brook in to meet her friends. When I left there was only one more log to get out and then the clean up. Mr. Lakes handed me some money to stop and get some water and ice for everyone.

"I am so excited." Brook said once we were in the car and on our way.

"Promise me that you will be careful and do not get in a car with someone that has been drinking. If something happens to you I will kill who ever does it to you." I said letting her know I was playing by looking into her eyes.

"I won't. And I promise to stay in a group of my friends when I am out. I don't want some creeper creeping on me. I have my knife with me." She said but it didn't help make me feel better.

"Call me everyday so I know you are okay. If you don't call I will start to call all of your friends and the police. I want to know where you are at all times." I said turning into the parking lot at Wal-Mart where they were meeting. I saw the big RV sitting in the back of the parking lot and headed towards it.

"I will text in the morning and call at night." She said smiling at me.

"Promise" I said slowing down.

"Promise, you have Kaley's number and I will be with her at all times. Plus you have Mitch's number and he is the one driving most of the time." She said almost bouncing in her seat.

"I will call them too so don't think that you will get away with not talking to me. I also know where they all live and I am not afraid to go talk to there parents." I warned.

"I know if you don't mom will so I get it. I will contact you at least once a day. Now we are heading to New York first so you know and then I don't know where we were talking about maybe going to Canada and then hitting California. I know the last place we are going is Mexico so I think we are going to just work our way there slowly from New York." She said smiling really big. I could see the excitement in her face. 

"Okay, let me help you get your shit out of the trunk and into that beast you'll be living in for the next month." I said smiling at her. I was worried but I wanted her to have fun so I sucked it up and helped her load up.

"I will send post cards from everywhere. I want a set put up for me when I get back but the other two will be for you and mom. She bought me a shit load of stamps. I also have three other cellphones and two hidden credit cards she made sure to tell me they were for emergencies only. Plus I have a little cash on me but most of my money is in the back." She said going over the check list mom gave me.

"Do you have your laptop, Ipod and that mini Ipad mom got you?" I asked.

"I have all of them plus extra chargers for everything." She said laughing at me.

"I love you, Brook." I said hugging her.

"I love you too, Hold. Take care of mom and Luc. I am going to miss you so much." She said I could hear the tears in her voice so I knew it was time for me to go. If she cried I would too so to avoid all of that I waved one last time before getting in the car and heading for the store.

I picked up a couple cases of water and head for the check out. It was already after two and I hated leaving those guys to do all the work. I found a short line and rushed for it. Once I was there I wish I hadn't come to this line. There stood Cal my ex-best friend. I turned so he wouldn't talk to me. I was glad when it was my turn and he didn't wait to say anything. I paid for the two cases of water and two bags of ice and headed out to my car. 

"Hey, Holden." Cal said as soon as I popped the trunk open.

"What do you want?" I asked loading the stuff in not even looking at him.

"I just wanted to say hey and see how you were." He said.

"Hey and I am fine. Now if you will excuse me I need to get back." I said shutting the trunk and heading for the drivers door.

"So do you live down the road from me or is that just some friends?" He asked.

"Both, I live there sometimes with my boyfriend and best friend." I said making sure he heard both boyfriend and best friend.

"Oh, so you don't live there all the time. There is a lot of people there which one is your boyfriend?" He asked. I am not going to give him anything so he might as well stop now before I punch his ass.

"I wouldn't tell you anything like that Cal, I don't need you trying to get with my boyfriend, again." I said smiling at him.

"I said I was sorry about that. I didn't mean for any of that to happen." He said.

"Yeah well it did and more then once so forgiven me if I don't want you around so you can do it again." I said opening my door.

"I just want to be friends with you." He said looking sad. Well fuck him and his sad pony he rode in on I don't care.

"Not going to happen." I said getting in the car and starting it. I backed out and left him standing there. I don't need people like him in my life. I had Luc and Landon so I was good with that. I knew that Landon wouldn't go after my boyfriend and if he did I think Luc would kill him. 

I drove back to the house and unloaded everything on Luc's little wagon and hauled it back to the clearing. It was looking really good and seeing Landon and Mason in the water only meant that the water was safe.

"Hey hows the water?" I asked walking up to the edge.

"Not to back there is a lot of shit in here though. Dad is having one of his friend that has a dive suit come and help us get some of this shit out. The pond is deep as hell too." Landon said.

"Do you need more help in there?" I asked.

"No, you can go and help Brandon and them with some big rocks they found. We are going to bring them out of the woods and put them on the other side of the pond." He said.

"Cool, I will go find them and see if I can help." I said leaving them to do what ever it was they were doing. I walked farther into the woods following the path that one of the loaders made.

"Holden, get your ass over here and help me with this chain." Dillon yelled.

"Why do you think there are so many of these rocks here?" I asked looking at the pile of rocks.

"I think this was once part of that pond. The ground is soft like it held water before so I think back in the day these were under water." Mr. Lakes said looking up at the trees.

"Cool, so are we moving all of them?" I asked.

"I would like to we can uses the smaller ones for a fire pit and the bigger ones for seats or whatever." Mr. Lakes said.

"Well let's get to moving them then." Brandon said picking up some of the smaller ones and loading them in the bucket. Dillon and I secured a chain on one of the bigger ones. Mr. Lakes call for all clear before starting the big loader up and slowly lifting the bucket. The big rock lifted and started swinging a little as Mr. Lakes backed up slowly moving towards the pond. Ethan stood behind him guiding him back.

It took us all day to move the rocks and clean the pond out with the help of some guy named Roe the diver. When it was too dark to work we called it a day and headed back to load all the equipment up on the trailer's. Mr. Lakes started the grill and said he would be back in time to add the steaks before he left to take back the equipment.

"What time is Luc supposed to get off?" Landon asked once we were all done showering.

"Nine, so about an hour or so." I said finding a spot on the patio. Everyone else was swimming.

"Do you think he will freak when he finds out these guys are staying the night?" Landon asked.

"No, he might hide in his room." I said frowning.

"He's getting better and the only one here that may have fucked with him is Carter so I think he will be fine." He said.

"I hope so, the last time they were here he did okay for a little bit but he won't go swimming or anything with them here." I said.

"Why?" He asked.

"His size, he hates that he is so small and he know someone will say something about it." I said laughing.

"Well he is short and the size of a tooth pick." He said laughing too.

"You would be surprised at his body. He is pretty fit for his size." I said thinking back to the first time I had seen him naked. He had an awesome body. Muscles in all the right places and just the right amount of abs for me. Not a six pack but a nice little four pack.

"Then why is ashamed of it?" He asked.

"I don't think he realizes it. I am working on it. Did you notice he is wearing tighter shirts and his shorts arn't as baggy?" I asked.

"Yeah how did you do that?" He asked.

"I switched his clothes on him. I have been doing it for about a month now. He hasn't even noticed. When we go shopping he will pick out something a size bigger and I will go back and get it a size smaller. Luc has a habit of cutting all his tags out so he never knows." I said laughing.

"What do you do with all the clothes he bought?" He asked laughing.

"I give them to the Goodwill." I said.

"That's funny, you know when he figures it out your in big trouble." He said.

"I hope so." I said wiggling my eye brows.

"Sick man you are a sick man." He said laughing.

"Says they guy who teased his brother for some sound that he heard." I said lifting my brow.

"Dude, I don't know which one of you it was but I had to put my headphones in. You guys are fucking loud." He said shaking his head.

"I will not say which one of us it is but be sure to always keep your headphones ready." I said with a smirk. I wouldn't want Luc to start trying to stay quiet. I love to hear him it make everything ten times better.

"What are you guys talking about?" Brandon asked coming to sit by us.

"Gay sex" Landon said with a smirk.

"Oh, Okay" Brandon said looking confused.

"No we weren't, Landon was bitching because he heard something he didn't want to the other night." I said laughing.

"Yeah, gay sex." Landon said laughing making me shake my head. Luc would be trying to bury his head right about now.

"I don't get it and I don't think I want to. I don't have any issues with gay people I just don't want to know about what goes on in their bedrooms." Brandon said.

"Make sure you have your headphones then." Landon said laughing.

"If the guys are staying the night Luc isn't going to do anything." I said chuckling.

"Why not?" Brandon asked. Okay Brandon is a big guy I mean big like Shaq big so he has this deep ass voice that like echo's off of everything.

"Luc don't like being around a bunch of people. He freaks out." I said honestly.

"Why is that? I have seen him in school and don't understand why he was always hanging his head or jumping when he would run into someone." Brandon said.

"That would be my fault. Now I am not proud of myself or making excuses for what I did but I will say I honestly hated Luc growing up thanks to our mom. I bullied him at school and at home because I thought he was the reason my dad left us." Landon said.

"But he's your brother." Brandon said now everyone was sitting around listening.

"Yes he is, but my mom had pounded it in Lacey and I's head that Luc was the reason that dad left and also the reason why she couldn't work and shit. She made it seem like he was the reason life on earth was hell. So I beat the shit out of him, let my so called friends beat the shit out of him. Until I found of the truth. Mom was the reason dad left and she wasn't working because Luc was paying her to live at home plus dad was giving her money. I am not proud of what I did and if I could go back and change it I would but I can't. Luc and I have worked it all out and he forgives me. And now if you fuck with my brother I will hurt you." He said.

"That is so fucked up. No wonder he hates people." Mason said.

"He doesn't hate people he just doesn't trust easy." I said. 

"That's my fault. I would always be nice to him until I got him where I wanted him and then I would humiliate him so bad we wouldn't see him for at least a week.' Lacey said coming into the pool area.

"You'll some mean ass siblings." Dillon said.

"Yes we were and the key word is were. We grew up and learned a lot in the last couple months." Lacey said sitting next to Landon.

"Does anyone fuck with him now?" Brandon asked.

"Not that I know of. His ex likes to pop in and talk shit but that's about it." I said.

"Who's his ex?" Carter asked.

"Harvey something. He just graduated." I said.

"He works at the bowling alley." Mason said.

"Yeah, his dad owns it." Lacey said.

"I don't like him, he is very cocky." Dillon said.

"Yeah, well he has his own haters group on facebook and it has been messing up his game." I said laughing.

"So you two are a couple then, right?" Carter asked.

"Yes, we are." I said making sure to look him in the eyes.

"I don't like it but I'm not going to start anything. It's not my life." Carter said.

"Good, when Luc get home just act normal around him but don't try and scare him by rough housing with him or anything he will freak out. If you just talk to him and let him get to know you he will be fine. Oh and don't freak if he doesn't look at you when your talking to him or if he talk to you." Landon said.

"Got it" Everyone said.

When Luc got home it was good. He stayed with us for a whole hour before going up to his room. I was so proud of him. He talked with everyone but mostly Brandon. I like Brandon and all but he better not be after my baby. I would hate to see the big guy fall.