Hideaway: Chapter 7

Carly and Becca stuffed bathing suits and towels into beach bags on Becca's insistence that Paul's home had a fantastic beach, and they should be prepared in case people decided to go swimming, and were ready at noon on Saturday when Paul and Arthur knocked on their door.

Paul seemed a little surprised to see Becca in a cute green sundress with a smile on her face, but his surprise was quickly replaced with a grin, and they made their way together down the hall. For Carly, Becca had chosen a short white skirt with a purple tank top, and when they had been admiring the selections in the mirror together earlier, both girls had admitted they looked fantastic.

"Are there going to be a lot of people at the barbeque, Paul?" Carly asked once they had all gotten into Arthur's car.

Paul buckled himself in, turning around to look at the girls in the backseat while he did so. "Usually it's my sister and her friends... she's a senior at Mankato State. Then, my mom and dad always have several of their friends over, not to mention my Uncle Tom, and my Uncle Chuck and their families. You know, the usual."

"Sounds like a lot of people," Carly said, looking over at Becca, who smiled at her.

Arthur took the car out of park and they were off. "You have no idea," he said, and Carly could see his eyes smiling at her from the rear view mirror.

Lake Emily was not very far from Gustavus, and they reached Paul's family home within minutes. Arthur parked in a long wide driveway that led up to a large white house that was beautifully landscaped. As she got out of the car, Carly could see Lake Emily and several boats, already enjoying the beautiful weather, just beyond the house. On the lawn, the barbeque had already started, and several people waved to them when they stepped out of the car.

Carly tried not to be shy as she approached Paul's family, walking alongside Becca, but she was so used to being Carly Callahan, who everyone knew before she even said hello. Being Casey Lewis was very different, and something she was still getting used to.

"Hello, everyone!" Paul tried to say over his talking family and friends. "I'd like you to meet my new friend, Casey."

Carly smiled and waved at those sitting at the picnic tables and the three men who looked like they were probably Paul's dad and uncles standing by the large propane grill. They all smiled and waved back, saying various greetings.

"I think most of you remember Becca," Paul went on, trying to put his arm around her shoulders, but she shrugged him off and took a step towards Carly. Paul laughed awkwardly. "And of course you all know Artie!" he said.

"No introductions needed!" one of the men who stood by the grill called out, and several other people called out in agreement.

"C'mon," Arthur said to Casey and Becca, a slight pinkness to his cheeks, and the two girls followed him over to grill.

The barbeque began, and formalities, whatever was left of them anyway, ended. Carly and Becca were laughing along with Paul's family and friends like they had known them for years. It was right after they were tossing their paper plates into the trash, that Paul turned to Arthur and was giving him a look that looked all too sneaky for Carly's taste that she began to grow suspicious.

"You didn't tell them, did you," Paul said to Arthur, tossing his cup into the garbage. "They don't look dressed for the occasion.

Becca leaned around him and placed her plate on top of the heap. "Tell us what?" she inquired. "And what's wrong with our outfits?"

Paul turned to Becca and put his hands on hips. "Really, Becca, you should know better," he said. "It's September... the fish are starting to bite again. You can't honestly think that we wouldn't be going fishing this weekend, would you?"

Becca's jaw dropped, and Carly had to cover her mouth to keep from laughing. "Fishing?" Becca gasped. "You're expecting Casey and me to go fishing?"

Arthur put his hand on Paul's shoulder and pushed him aside. "Actually, I was thinking it would be fun since Casey's never been fishing before. You can just watch, if you want, Becca."

Becca's face, Carly noticed, was screwed up... probably imagining what it was like to be in a dirty boat filled with worms and fish. Becca suddenly held up her beach bag. "I'll sit on my towel!" she decided.

"Great!" Paul said, lighting up. "I think we'll take the speed boat out. That way we can give you girls a ride, too."

Carly stiffened. Speed boat? She had only been on a yacht before in the Pacific. "How fast does a speed boat go?" she asked, trying not to sound like she was completely afraid.

Paul was already running down to the dock, and Becca was following after him. Arthur smiled at Carly, falling into step beside her.

"Don't worry," he said. "Paul's dad would kill him if he crashed the boat."

Carly laughed. "That's very reassuring!"

They followed Paul and Becca down to the dock and stood next to Becca while Paul climbed into the boat. Paul checked the gas level and gave them the thumbs up before moving over to the ignition and turning the key.

Arthur hopped in and held his hand out to Carly. "Step carefully," he told her. "One of Paul's sister's friends fell into the lake last year while she was trying to get on the boat."

Carly laughed at that, but it didn't stop her from looking down between the boat and the dock when she reached for Arthur's hand. Arthur pulled her in right when she was looking down, and she almost missed her footing. Instead of ending up in the lake, she tripped into the boat and collided into Arthur. He grabbed her arms and steadied her, and when she looked up at him, he was grinning.

"I told you to be careful," he said.

Carly let go of his shirt and moved away. She hadn't even realized she had grabbed onto him. "I'm sorry! I was looking in the lake..." she explained. "It's a good thing I didn't land there!"

Still smiling, Arthur let go of her arm and reached for Becca's hand, who made a much more graceful landing.

"Are you okay?" Becca asked, taking Carly's arm.

"I'm fine," Carly told her. "I just scratched my leg a little on the side of the boat." She held her calf up a little to reveal a slight scratch. It wasn't even bleeding. "It's nothing," she insisted.

"Artie, will you untie the boat?" Paul called from the driver's seat, and Arthur untied the ropes from the dock. Paul turned around and smiled back at the girls. "Take a seat, girls, and enjoy the view!"

Carly and Becca sat down on the back bench of the boat and Arthur sat beside Carly after he had thrown the ropes back to the dock. The motor revved and in no time, they were moving away from the dock. Becca held Carly's arm tightly as Paul pulled back on the clutch, the boat tilting when they picked up speed.

"I should have brought a sweatshirt!" Becca yelled over the sound of the motor, and Carly grinned at her, nodding in agreement. Soon, they were both laughing while Paul went in circles around the middle of the lake, and Arthur yelled at him to stop messing around. He finally settled on a spot in deep water and killed the engine before dropping the the anchor while Arthur grabbed a couple of fishing poles and the tackle box.

Carly sat and watched him threading a worm onto a hook. “That's appetizing,” she said, smirking at him.

He looked up at her from the hook, smiling. “This one's for you,” he said. “I'm going to show you how to cast the line.”

“Oh, Casey,” Becca groaned behind her shoulder. “You're not actually going to do that, are you?”

Carly turned to Becca and shrugged. “Why not? It's good to try new things, right?”

Paul flopped down in the side seat next to Becca with his own fishing pole and began baiting his hook. “C'mon, Becca,” he said, grinning at her. “I know you're a native Minnesotan. You can't tell me you've never been fishing before.”

Becca looked at him, holding her chin up. “So, maybe I've been fishing before,” she admitted. “Maybe my dad used to take me when I was a kid... that doesn't mean everyone who goes fishing loves it!”

“Okay, okay, fine,” Paul said, laughing. “You can watch us. Or maybe even hold the net when I catch the big one!”

Arthur handed Carly the fishing pole, and she looked at it. “There,” he said. “It's all set. Come with me to the front of the boat, and I'll show you how to cast it.”

Carly followed Arthur to the front of the boat, looking back to wave at Becca and Paul and noticing that Paul had a silly smile on his face. She wondered if perhaps Arthur was giving Paul a chance to spend a little time alone with Becca and hoped it would go well. The last thing she needed was Becca in a bad mood out in the middle of a lake.

“Paul scares the fish away,” Arthur explained once they had reached the front of the boat.

“I heard that!” Paul called from the back.

Carly laughed and held out the pole so Arthur could show her how to cast it.

He placed his hand around the backside of the reel. “Grasp it here, and place your thumb here.” He showed her the large button on the top. “Then all you do is throw it out and let go of the button... but not the rod! After that, you just watch your bobber till you get a bite.”

“Oh!” Carly said. “I think I can do that. Where should I aim?”

Arthur looked at her with a smile before looking back out at the lake. “Anywhere out there,” he said, letting go of the rod and stepping back. “Why don't you give it a try?”

“Okay,” Carly agreed. She pressed the button and held it, drew the pole back and threw it out, letting go just like Arthur had told her to do. The line flew out into the lake, and her bobber landed several several yards out, floating on top of the water. She looked back at Arthur with a grin. “How's that?”

“Pretty good!” he approved. “Now let's catch a bigger fish than Paul!

Carly grinned and then looked out at her line while Arthur went to grab his own pole. "Arthur," she said, searching the lake with her eyes. "Where did my bobber go? Do you see it?"

Arthur looked up from his hook and out at the lake. "You probably have a bite. Reel it in!"

Carly reeled in her line, pulling hard until it came out the water and then held up a tiny fish. She smiled guiltily at Arthur. "Does this count?"

He grabbed the line, swinging the fish towards himself so he could get a better look at it. "Well," he said. "It's your first fish, so I guess it'll have to count... even though it's probably one of the smallest sunfish that I've ever seen." He grasped the fish and pulled the hook out of its mouth, holding it out a little ways to Carly. "Say goodbye?"

Carly waved and Arthur threw the little fish back into the water. "Better luck next time, I guess," she said.

Carly cast her line back out and Arthur cast his out as well, and the two of them sat down beside each other at the front of the boat, watching their bobbers float atop the water.

"Try not to catch another baby one," Arthur teased.

Carly nudged him with her elbow. "You make it sound like I have control over what fish are under my hook!"

He leaned in a little closer. "Try pulling on your line a little if you feel anything nibbling," he suggested. "The little ones won't have time to bite that way."

"Or... I could just use the little fish as bait to catch a bigger fish!"

Arthur laughed. "You might be fishing for a while that way!"

They sat staring at their lines in comfortable silence for a few minutes, and Carly wondered if maybe it was just baby fish out there, after all. Several times she had to jerk her line away from the nibblers and noticed Arthur doing the same. Then, a thought occurred to her. "Do you and Paul often sit for a long time without getting any bites?" she asked.

"Sometimes," Arthur said, reeling in his line a little. "When it's really hot in the summer, even though the fish aren't biting, sometimes we'll just come out here and sit on the boat with our poles anyway." He paused. "Just to get away."

The way he said that last part made Carly turn to look at him. She wondered just what he was getting away from. "Paul's family seems really nice," she said. "How long have you and Paul been friends?"

Arthur looked over at her, the faraway look that had once been on his face suddenly gone and replaced with a smile. "Since kindergarten," he said. "I forgot my lunch on the bus the first day of school, and Paul shared his with me."

"That's so sweet!" Carly said, glancing back at Paul who was currently trying to get his arm around Becca's shoulders without her noticing. "Who knew he had it in him?"

Arthur looked back at his line. "Yeah. Paul and his parents have been like family to me."

"It's nice to have so many people to care about you," Carly said. She wished she could be as lucky as Arthur and have more people in her life that were close. Being on tour made that difficult. She hadn't seen her own mother since Easter, and her best friend back home... had it been Christmastime? "So, I guess it's okay if Paul picks on you every now and then, right?" she added, poking him in the shoulder.

He smiled at her and chuckled. "I guess you're right," he agreed. "Though giving me a break now and then would be nice!"

Carly laughed. "I don't see that happening anytime soon..."

"No," Arthur said, reeling his line in. "Probably not."

Carly heard some splashing toward the back of the boat, and both she and Arthur turned just in time to see Paul pulling a large fish out of the water. Arthur cast his line back out and Carly watched it soar far past hers.

“Now I have to catch one bigger than that!” he said.

*****

Carly and Becca were just arriving at their room when Carly's cell went off. Becca grabbed Carly's arm when she reached for her phone.

“Oh!” Becca exclaimed. “I love this song! Do you love Brandon Sloane, too?”

Carly turned the key in the lock and chuckled nervously before opening the door and stepping inside, Becca at her heels. Becca really had no idea. Carly glanced back at her, noticing that she was looking over her shoulder at her blackberry's display.

“So, Brandon's calling,” Becca said with a knowing smile. “Is that why you have that song as your ringer? Because Brandon Sloane has the same name as your boyfriend?”

“Honestly, I just like the song,” Carly told her, thinking it was for the best that way. She picked up the call and put the phone to her ear. “Hello?”

“Hey, Carly,” Brandon's deep voice came over the line and Carly immediately felt as though she could melt. She tossed her beach bag onto Becca's bean bag chair and sat down at her desk.

“Hey,” she said simply. “How have you been? I haven't talked to you in a few days?”

“I know. I'm sorry I haven't called,” he said. “This record is just a pain in the ass. You know when you just can't get a track right and you gotta sing the same part over and over till they're satisfied...”

Carly stared at her computer screen's wallpaper, which happened to be a field of wild daisies. “Yeah, I guess,” she lied. The truth was... she usually sang her tracks though on the first take and then went through it several more times so the producer could select variations if he or she wanted. Though, Brandon wouldn't know that, as he had never come to any of her recordings.

“It took me all yesterday just to get through the first verse!” he went on.

Carly turned and glanced at Becca, who was watching her from the corners of her eyes. She obviously couldn't have a candid conversation with Brandon with Becca in the room. “That really stinks,” she told him. “Hopefully it'll go better on Monday.”

“Yeah,” he agreed. “Hopefully they won't be such asses and cut me some slack!”

She laughed uncomfortably, deciding it was best change the subject. “Well, things are going great here. My classes are good, and I've met some new friends that I really like.”

“Oh,” Brandon said. “Well, that's good that you're keeping busy. I would be going nuts up there. And school! Ugh!” He paused. “It really is too bad about your tour. Everyone here's talking about it... and that stalker! My God!”

“Yeah. Him,” Carly muttered. The last thing she wanted to talk about was Eric Zale. “Things'll turn out, though. It'll be back to normal in no time.”

“Let's hope so,” Brandon replied.

Carly didn't know what to say. She didn't expect that a conversation with Brandon would depress her, but it had. Now, all she wanted to do was hang up the phone and go back out on the boat with Arthur, Paul, and Becca. “Look,” she said. “I have to go... but we'll talk soon, okay?”

“Yeah. Sure, babe,” Brandon said, and Carly could hear the smile in his voice again. She quickly said goodbye and disconnected the call, setting her phone down on her desk. Just after a week in Minnesota, her life in LA didn't seem as fun as it used to anymore.

“Everything okay?” Becca asked after it was quiet for awhile.

“Yeah, it's fine,” Carly told her. She stood up and grabbed her beach bag, taking out her things and stuffing them back into her drawers and avoiding Becca's eyes at all cost. “Today was fun, wasn't it?” she asked, trying to change the subject.

“Yeah, if only Paul would keep his hands to himself!” Becca smiled, taking the bait.