"It's starting," Bridgette screamed from below the third floor. When an answer did not return, she angrily ran/stomped up the stairs to my room, and pushed open the door. There, she found me, sitting on the floor, isolated in thick knit blankets staring into a tiny Nintendo DS screen.
"Just one more game, Mom..." I muttered.
"Sofie," Bridgette grabbed the DS from within my grasp and held it above my head. Even without it, my eyes didn't leave their position.
"Almost to the cave of enchantment, Mom..."
"You poor child." Bridgette sighed, taking my hand and dragging me step by step down the way she came. "I told you earlier to come by the pool! All the good seats are taken. The TV will barely be audible!"
I blinked my eyes a few times and looked up at her.
"Do I have to watch?"
"Do you have to watch?"
"What?"
"Yes." she scowled, turning her back to the disappearing door of my room.
"I just wanna watch it up there, Bridge!" I whined. She turned her golden eyes away from me as we turned the corner and entered the pool and hot tub area of Playa Day Losers ... or something. Chris had only mentioned the name of this place; this horrible place, this "sparkling paradise of a location", once. "To make the fallen comfortable," they say. But I know what it really is. A trap. A trap for pain and suffering ... and there is no escape.

"Alright!" Chris announced, gawking those perfect white teeth. "Are you all ready to watch the new episode, live?!"
Cheers roared from our small crowed of unwanted campers. Chris clicked on the plasma TV, and the pain began.

At first, it was funny to watch our Chef dress as a general or admiral or whatever that horrid man looked like and prance around telling those traitors who's boss ... all but one. I smiled, then, knowing that my Duncan didn't take any crap from Chef. He stood up for himself, making jokes along the way in retched situations such as these.

The humor enlightened when I saw Courtney get sick.

The humor decreased when I saw Duncan and her alone.

All eyes turned to me when they touched.

By the time their lips had met the humor had wadded up into a ball of lead and was dropped onto my heart 50 stories.

And then, only then was it silent. The laughter had ceased. So dead quiet everyone around me heard my slow, suffering tears plunge into the pool to dissolve and desperately try to escape my body, who's soul was fierce and frightened by what it saw. With my throat aching I slid against the wet grounds of the pool area trying to run or sprint and maybe even fall or fly just to get away.

--

Looking back on this moment I smile with a little embarrassment. Bridgette is one of my best friends. She helped me heal my obsession and desire for someone. Someone who had a great girl, but was caught and wrapped into a world of evil. Devoured by his own sick need for Courtney.