"No! You can't make me!" I shouted, clawing at the sand and kicking my feet to get away from Trey.

"It's just water!" Trey exclaimed.

"I don't know how to surf!" I cried back.

We had decided to put Abbey's plan about traveling around the world with our newfound magical abilities into action. We had sat around one day at my father's flat and tried to figure out where we should go, but we all ended up arguing in the end. Abbey suggested drawing straws and then picking a place in order of longest to shortest straw. I, of course, got the shortest one, which meant that my choice of travel destination would be last. Lance, on the other hand, got the longest one, and his choice was to go to Australia. So that's where we were now: on the beaches in Sydney.

"We can teach you!" Lance said.

"Hell to the no," I said, finally managing to break free of Trey's strong grip. I blushed for the millionth time as my eyes got a full view of Trey's glistening and toned body. Why was I getting so embarassed? I saw Trey shirtless all the time.

"Just leave her alone. Can't you see she badly needs to work on her tan?" Abbey asked, stretching on her beach blanket by my feet. Lance and Trey snorted and I kicked sand onto her, making her squeal. "Hey!" she yelled.

"Oh, stuff your face in the sand," I grumbled. "Let's go surf," I said to the boys. Lance and Trey punched the air victoriously.

"You have to get a suit first," Lance said.

"What's wrong with this?" I asked, indicating my bikini.

"You'll kill yourself," Trey said.

"You guys are being ridiculous," I said, rolling my eyes.

"I'm pretty sure they won't let you rent out a surfboard unless you have a suit," Lance pointed out. I stomped in the sand.

"All right, all right! I'll buy a damned suit!" I exclaimed.

"You don't have to get all worked up about it," Lance said. I sent him a glare.

"Where's the shop?" I asked. Lance pointed to the boardwalk at a shop that had a surfboard on top of it. "Hmmm, fitting," I said, in regards to the decor of the shop.

I began treading my way through the sand towards the shop.

"Hey! Wait up! I'll come, too," Trey said, following me.

"I think I am more than capable of buying a suit for myself," I said.

"So? You don't know what kind of board you need," he replied.

"Where did you even learn how to surf? You live in New York," I said.

"We have a vacation house in California," he replied with a shrug of his broad shoulders.

"You have one in Georgia, too," I said.

"I think we've already established that my father is filthy rich," he said bluntly.

"So, surfing, huh? What else don't I know about you? Have you also been to the moon?" I asked. Trey chuckled, his multi-colored eyes twinkling in the sunlight.

"No, but that sounds like a good idea," he said. "Maybe I'll choose the moon for my vacation idea," he said with a smirk.

"I'll probably opt out on that trip, then," I said as we reached the shop. We opened the door to be blasted by a gust of cool air. "Merlin, it's cold in here," I said, shivering.

"Look at what you're wearing. You could have at least put your cover-up on," Trey said, shaking his head at me. I stuck my tongue out at him and then made my way over to where the suits were hanging.

"These are pricey," I mumbled.

"You can rent them for cheaper, if you want," I heard an Australian voice say.

I looked up to see a very attractive young man standing in front of me, wearing nothing but a pair of brightly colored swim trunks. He was tall and muscular and looked as if he had just stepped out of an ad for the non-Magi store, Abercrombie and Fitch.

"I'm Kye," the attractive man said, smirking at me to reveal a set of pearly, straight white teeth. I smiled back at him.

"Caley," I replied.

"So were you looking for a suit?" he asked.

"Yeah," I replied, sighing. I realized that he was checking me out, as his gaze would fall down to my chest too frequently. "My boyfriend is making me learn how to surf," I said, watching his expression change when he heard the word boyfriend.

"Ah, your boyfriend?" he asked, tilting his head to the side. I nodded, fighting a smirk, and pointed to Trey, who was examining the surfboards in the shop with a critical eye. He raised an eyebrow at him.

"That's your boyfriend?" he asked, his voice dripping with scrutiny.

"Yes," I replied, beginning to grow annoyed.

He glanced back at Trey again and then at me. Kye leaned against a pole that was next to him and crossed his arms over his chest in an attempt to appear even more masculine than he had previously.

"Don't you think you can do better?" he asked, lowering his voice slightly, as if this exchange were a secret.

"Honestly?" I asked, looking at Trey and then back at Kye. "No, I can't. Because I love him and he's the best thing that's ever happened to me," I said.

"Jesus, you're smitten," Kye said, widening his ocean blue eyes.

"Yes, now if you'll excuse me, I have a suit to buy," I said, stepping around the Australian hottie and walking towards Trey. Trey looked at me when I approached him.

"Didn't find anything?" he asked, smirking. "I told you that you would need my help," he said in a cocky tone. I rolled my eyes at him.

"No, I didn't find anything. Just a super hot Australian surfer dude," I replied casually. Trey's eyes narrowed instantly and he looked behind me at Kye, who was watching us with an interested expression.

"Him?! What did he say to you?" Trey demanded.

"He wanted to teach me how to surf and touch my bod," I replied, fighting back a smirk as I watched Trey's expression turn livid. Then, after a few seconds, he turned his gaze back towards me, giving me a look.

"Touch your bod? Are you serious?" he asked. I smirked.

"It was all I could come with on the spot," I said with a shrug.

"You're a real riot, Caley," Trey said sarcastically.

"He honestly did say that he wanted to teach me how to surf, though," I said.

"And you said?" he asked.

"That I was taken and he needed to lay off," I answered.

"That's my girl," Trey said, smiling. He pulled me in a close embrace and kissed my forehead.

"Oh, stop it, you. Mr. Green Monster," I said.

"Mature," Trey said.

"Jealous," I coughed.

"Real mature," he replied, shaking his head. "Come on. We have to find you a suit and a board before it gets dark. I want to teach you how to stand on the board at least," he said.

"All right, all right!" I exclaimed, smiling at him.

He grinned back and took my hand, leading us back to where the suits were hanging. Trey shot Kye a dirty look as he passed us and I chuckled under my breath. It really was cute how jealous Trey got of other guys. He really should have known, though, that he was the only one I would ever love.

                                                       ~~~~~~~~~~~~

"I get to pick next," Abbey said as we all sat around the bonfire on the beach at the end of the week.

"You're probably going to be really cliche and pick Italy," Lance said.

"That's not true!" Abbey exclaimed.

"That's where I'm going," I said off-handedly.

"What do you mean?" Abbey asked.

I widened my eyes when I realized what I had just said. I had told myself that I was going to tell Abbey about my studying abroad at the end of the summer, after we had had as much fun as possible. But now I had inadvertantly blurted out my plan for the coming year, and I had no choice but to explain it.

"For when I study abroad," I said, wincing as I felt her gaze turn sharp. I felt her burning green eyes sizzle my Austrailian sun-kissed skin.

"For when you study abroad?" she asked, her voice low, her tone threatening.

"Ummm...yeah," I mumbled, averting my gaze so that I was staring at the burning embers in the fire.

"You're studying abroad?" Lance asked. I swallowed and nodded, wincing when I heard a twig in the fire snap. And then another. And then another.

I looked up to see Abbey standing up, rage flickering in her eyes. I realized that it was she who had caused the branches to snap in the fire. I raised my eyebrows, slightly impressed that Abbey was able to extend her powers to an object of her elemental use: plants.

"And when were you going to tell me this?" Abbey asked, her voice steady, but clearly ready to crack in anger.

"At the end of the summer," I muttered.

Abbey glared at me, her nostrils flaring.

"So you were going to tell me at the last minute, right before you left, so that I would be all alone and without a roommate for a semester?" she asked.

"A year," I corrected in a small voice. All of the twigs in the fire turned to ash and our fire suddenly went out. A few people that were around us looked over, curious as to why our fire went out when there was no breeze or water.

"Will you calm down, Abbey? We'll get in trouble for exposing magic," Trey hissed, glaring at her.

"Oh, well pardon me for being dramatic! I thought this was adequate way to react when your best friend decides not to tell you such a big revelation!" she exclaimed.

"You are acting way too dramatic," Lance pointed.

"She wasn't going to tell me!" she exclaimed.

"I was!" I cried back.

"At the end of the summer!" she yelled back, drawing attention.

"Quiet down!" Trey hissed.

"Oh, shut up," Abbey seethed, glaring at me.

"What's the point in getting all worked up now? I've already made my decision, so there really isn't any point in you getting all dramatic," I said. Abbey stood up straight, looking at me with a blank stare. She shook her head at me for a moment. And then, she started laughing.

"What the hell is wrong with you?" I exclaimed in a whisper-shout.

"Me? What the hell is wrong with me? I could ask you the same thing," Abbey replied.

"What are you talking about?" I asked, running a hand over my face, frustrated with my friend.

"You haven't changed one bit since I first met you, Caley. Two years ago, at the start of our senior year at Trinity High, you were condescending, arrogant, a bully, and completely independent and closed-off. And now, two years later, even after you've been with Trey and made plenty of friends, you're still the same way. You're still condescending. You're still a bully. And you still act like you don't need anyone's help," Abbey said.

I felt my anger beginning to rise. I glared at Abbey so threateningly that the sand around her began to smoke with the intensity of my rage. Trey noticed this and he put his hand on my shoulder to calm me down.

"How the hell am I condescending and a bully?" I asked, trying--and struggling--to keep my voice stable and level.

"You act like you're so high and mighty with your overly-extensive knowledge of magic, which we have no idea where you got from. And you're a bully because you put down anyone that tries to get close to you. Which leads me to my point about you being independent," Abbey said. "We're your friends, Caley! We're here for you; we've always been here for you. Haven't we gained your trust yet? How much more do we have to do? Why do you insist on keeping us in the dark about everything that goes on in your life?" she continued.

"Because that's not who I am!" I shouted. "I don't like telling people everything that's going on in my life because it's none of your f*cking business! I don't trust people as easily because I've found that people take advantage of it. I don't like publicizing every aspect of my life! It's not always about you, Abbey! You make every little, f*cking thing about you!" I yelled, standing up so that we were at the same level.

I looked Abbey in the eye, squaring my jaw. I felt angry and annoyed and extremely frustrated. I had so much going on in my life and all she was thinking about was her and how my actions affected her. I never asked her to be so involved. I wasn't going to change who I was just to please her.

I looked around and realized that people were intently listening in on our little shouting match. I sighed and loosened up my stance, glancing at Trey, who nodded at me, silently telling me that I needed to continue and make her understand.

"You are a friend of mine, Abbey, and as my friend, I ask you not to make my life more difficult than it already is. I'm really confused about a lot of things and I need to figure them out on my own. Your drama isn't making my life any easier; in fact, it's giving me more to worry about. I just need time alone so that I can sort out my thoughts. So just please, get off my back," I continued, my voice dropping so that I wasn't shouting anymore.

"I just don't understand why you can't tell me," she said, dropping her voice, too.

"Because I can't. I can't tell anyone until I figure it out on my own. I appreciate your help, but what I'm going through right now is a solo-act. I need to be by myself for a little while," I said.

Abbey looked at me, her green eyes dark and stormy. I had always found it so strange that we had ever become friends in the first place. But whenever I questioned our friendship, I always thought back to the little things that Abbey would do that best friends were supposed to do. I thought about the little postcards she would send me when we were on separate vacations during our breaks. I thought about the tiny gifts she left on my bedside table everyday the week before my birthday, before giving me one big gift on my actual birthday. I thought about how she would leave me concerned text messages or voicemails on my mother's death day and birthday, because she knew I'd be upset.

Abbey was a really good friend and it was true; I was a poor friend in return. I never made an effort to get her little gifts, to ask how her life was going, to ask why she was upset on a particular day. I just assumed that like me, she'd want to be left alone. But Abbey was different. She was nice. And it was this quality that I found myself constantly taking advantage of. I was selfish and mean and she really did deserve a better friend. And although I constantly questioned why she chose to stick around even though I was so terrible, I was glad that she did. Because there were always those certain things that I couldn't talk to Trey or Gerrard about. I needed a female presence in my life and Abbey was that person. I only hoped that her kindness remained after she found out who I really was and what I had gotten myself into.

"Are you girls done, now? Can we go back to the hotel?" Lance asked.

Abbey and I stood looking at each other for a moment. I looked away first and nodded.

"I think we're done. Right?" I asked her. She bit her lip and I could tell that she wanted to say no. But she thought better of it and nodded instead.

"Yeah, we're done," she said.

"Good. Let's get out of here, then," Lance said.

________________________________________________________________

A/N: I should be studying for an exam right now....

Once again, I apologize for taking ages to update. Life is still pretty darn busy for me and it's about to kick into overdrive because finals are in about...5 weeks and teachers are just piling on the workload. So like I always say, I don't know when I'll update next, but feel free to keep checking back in case I do.

Basically, this chapter was just a fun one. The past few chapters have focused mostly on Caley's destiny and job. This chapter was just to take a break from all of that. We got a little more of playful Caley and another test of Abbey and Caley's friendship. Do you all think Abbey will stick around once she finds out what Caley is up to?

Leave me a comment below with your thoughts! I think maybe next chapter I'll have Caley and Gerrard go to Brazil. That'll be a fun chapter to write, I'm sure. It's going to have action, information, and a whole lot of magic, so look out for it!

Thanks for the votes and the support, everyone! It means a lot!

XOXO