***Kayla's POV***

Today is the day we all leave for the big camping trip!

I'm so excited, and so is Soda. We've talked about it every day since we left the cellar, which was about a week ago. Let's just say we're all pretty stoked to be getting away from the city for a while.

Everyone should be meeting at the Curtis home at 10:00 am, and it's currently about 9:00 am. No one who hasn't been staying here has shown up, so we're waiting on Alex, Dally, Two-Bit, Bailey, Steve, and Ellie. Everyone who is here has been loading up 3 cars full of camping gear and clothes. You'd think we were leaving for a month.

Soda comes bounding into our room where I'm doing last minute additions to my clothes bag and picks me up before I know whats going on. Then he races outside where the Curtis's and the Jameson's are standing in a bunched up group.

"What is it?" I ask and Soda puts me down so I can see.

"You're Christmas present!" Victoria squeals.

"From who?" I ask as I try to find it through the crowd of people.

"The whole gang!" Ponyboy says.

"What is- OH MY GOD YOU GOT ME A PUPPY!?" I scream as I spot the puppy sitting. She trots up to me and places her head in my lap. She looks like a husky and has beautiful blue eyes.

"Yeah!" Lauren says. I pick the little girl up and she licks my cheek.

"Thank you guys so much! Oh my goodness, how'd you know I wanted one so bad?" I ask and hold the precious thing against my chest.

Soda raises his hand and I run over and give him a huge hug.

"Awe! That's so cute, they're like a little family!" Victoria says. Soda and I look at each other and laugh.

"I can't thank you guys enough!" I harp.

"You gave her the dog before we got here?" I hear Two-Bit whine. I turn and see him and Bailey making their way to us.

"Was her reaction priceless?" Bailey says. I nod and everyone nods as well.

"We brought our share of the gift," Two-Bit says and hands me a paper bag. I peek inside and pull out a leash and a collar.

"This is perfect! Thank you guys so much!" I say and go around to give everyone hugs.

"She already got it!?" Alex yells. Everyone turns and sees that the final members of the gang are making their way to us.

I run over to Alex and give her a huge hug. She laughs and when she pulls away, she hands me another bag. This one is bigger and holds a dog bed.

"You guys are too nice!" I say and hug her again. I give Dally a hug too before Ellie hands me a large bag. I open it and find dog food.

"You guys are amazing, I love you all so much," I say and hug Ellie and Steve.

"You guys want to know who Dallas loves?" Darry says in a mock tone.

"Alex!" Dally says happily. Alex smiles and Dally bounces a little bit.

"Dallas, are you bouncing?" I ask with a laugh. He stops and turns away.

"He's just really excited," Alex explains.

"Well since everyone is here, let's load everyone's things into the cars and get on the road!" Darry says. We all cheer and finish packing everything up. I take out the collar and the leash and tie it around my girl. She trots around happily and sniffs everyone.

"Babe, we're riding in this car!" Soda calls. I see him getting in a car with Dallas and Alex getting in the back. I tug on the leash and we both come running to the car. I wave to the two other cars, one filled with Bailey, Two-Bit, Johnny, and Victoria, and the other filled with Steve, Ellie, Lauren, Darry, Ponyboy, and Bryce. We drive in the middle of the three cars, discussing the sleeping girl in my lap.

"What are you gonna name her?" Alex asks happily. I think for a moment.

"I need some help," I say. Dally laughs.

"Alex, I think that's a really beautiful name," he says. Soda gags in the driver's seat and I laugh.

"You two are gross, it's too much for my baby's ears," Soda says.

"Soda, I'm the same age as you," I laugh.

"I was talking about the dog," Soda says matter-of-factly. The whole car bursts out laughing.

"Let's name her! Come on!" Alex cheers.

"Okay, let's say some names and see which one she reacts to," Dally suggests.

"Just shout 'em out," Soda says.

"Princess."

"Molly."

"Jojo."

"Waffles."

"Really Soda?"

"Cola."

"Ripley."

"Luna."

"Minnie."

"Dallas, you aren't Two-Bit."

"Lucy."

"Kiki."

"Zoey."

"Lulu."

The puppy sticks her head up.

"Babe look, she liked my idea!" Soda says excitedly.

"Yay! Do you want to be Lulu?" I ask her. She sits up and sticks her tongue out so it looks like she's smiling.

"I think her name is Lulu!" Alex says. The puppy - Lulu - licks my cheek.

"She is such a Lulu," I say as she licks all over my face.

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It takes 7 hours to get there. 7 HOURS.

Alex and Dally passed out together in the second hour and Lulu and me on the fifth. When we weren't sleeping, Soda and I were either singing or talking and playing games.

The campsite was in the middle of nowhere. The radio stations went out about 4 hours into the drive, so it was crucial that we brought CDs.

By the time we found our spot, it's nearly 5:30. There were a few picnic tables in our lot, so we gathered around to make plans.

"Everyone, this is Lulu!" I say. Everyone "AWW!"s and Lulu sits proudly on the ground by my feet.

"Alright guys, here's how this is going to go down. We brought three tents that can fit a maximum of 8 people each. We won't be needing that many for all of them, so here's what I am thinking," Darry says and pulls out a piece of paper. This has obviously taken a ton of effort.

"I think we should put Lauren, Ponyboy, Bryce, and myself in one tent. Then, we place 3 couples in another tent and 2 in the other. If I got this right, and I think I did, I would say that Kayla, Soda, Dally, Alex, Steve, and Ellie would sleep in one tent, and Two-Bit, Bailey, Johnny, and Victoria in the other. Sound good?"

Darry nailed it. Everyone nods and we begin to set up camp.

I don't know the first thing about setting up a tent, so Alex, Ellie, and I stand to the side as our men put the tent up. When they've finished, we make the beds and grab flashlights and food for tonight. I look over at the other tents and notice everyone else doing the same thing.

"Alright gang, get ready for tonight's tradition!" Dally hoots. The boys cheer, and the girls look at them like they're crazy.

"Every year, on the first night of the trip, we all go out to look for a Christmas tree!" Soda shouts. "Darry, we brought decorations, right?"

Darry nods.

"Oh, and we take pictures, and whoever takes the best one gets to put the star on the tree!" Ponyboy says.

"As the reigning champion of 2 years now, Dally may be a tough competitor," Two-Bit points out. We all laugh and split boys and girls for preparation for tonight.

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An hour later, the girls emerge from the trees, dressed to impress. We all look killer. Lulu even has a bow around her neck.

We leave while it's still light out. Lauren and Darry stay behind with Bryce to cook dinner.

We spend hours taking pictures, choosing the perfect tree, and having a blast. The sun is down by the time we've chosen our tree, and we head back to camp.

Dinner smells amazing. You could smell it half a mile out of camp. By the time we arrived back, all of our stomachs were screaming.

As soon as the food is set in front of us, we all chow down. Darry and Lauren made a delicious chicken meal, followed with some chocolate cake they made the night before. We joke around about who had the best picture, but in the end, it's clear that Dally won't be three-year reigning champion.

In fact, he lost to his own girl.

Alex doesn't believe she won until Darry hands her the star. She reddens and walks over to the tree. Dally ends up getting her on his shoulders so she can reach.

After that, we get straight to decorating. It's way past dark by the time we head for the tents and start the second tradition of the trip.