The Circle Of Friends: The Last Summer

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Junnabee

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Friend is one of the most confusing and powerful words in the human language. Others would argue it was something else like: Love, Hate, Fear. Thousands of different words, but without the strongest is Friend. You can be Friendless, Friendly. You can have a Girlfriend, Boyfriend, Best Friend. All and all we are nothing without Friendship.

Friendship is what bounds human beings together in camaraderie. Friends smile together. Friends cry together. Friends laugh together. Triumph together, and fail together. Friends stick through the good and the bad. Friends travel together threw thick and thin. They are your listening ear, your closest confident, your shoulder to cry on. Friends are everything.

Some friendship drift into oblivion, and others crumble under the wait of their own stressed interactions- but were those ever really friendships? Some friendships, however, stand the tests of time. Some friendships outlast the greatest of tragedies.

Those friendships last forever.

---
Some would argue "The Ten" started their senior year, others would volley that it was earlier. Some even say it truly began back when the first two came together in kindergarden. "The Ten" would tell you it didn't matter where they started because it would never end. They believe in there friendship- believed they had bounds that could stand against the end of time itself. They had fought, and hurt, and cried; but never had they broken.

Together they felt as if they could taken on anyone- anything. They were an unstoppable force, always there to catch each other. To spur each other on. Who needed the rest of the world when they had each other? Nothing could go wrong.

Until, well, it did. High school ended. Some of them sent out applications to schools, some to jobs, others to internships. Some didn't do anything at all. They all realized they weren't on the same path anymore.

...Could they really stay together when they were so obviously straying apart?

There was nothing they can do and, though none of them really wanted to say it out loud, it scared them. Faced with the unrelenting reality of it all they set out in one last ditch effort to hold everything together (or maybe, for some, it's more of a last goodbye to what they once had).

A few weeks after Graduation they made there plans, said their goodbyes, and got their ride. "The Ten" (plus a slightly unwilling extra) planned to set out on a trip around America, all cramped into a tiny nine seater with few destinations actually planned, as a last huurah before punching the ticket on their 'life long' friendship. At the end of June their final(?), and greats, adventure will have begun.
---
The days were long and uncomfortable warm all through out the june following their graduation. The day of their departure was no different. The air was humid, and caused sweat to stick to gather under waist bands and collars as the eleven individuals, ripe and at the cusp between childhood and adulthood, situated how their bags and themselves were going to travel.

The thick of this individuals stood about the old Volkswagen bus, situating their belongings inside. Light arguments broke out here and there as their irritation was egged on by the persistent heat that lingered in the air. No of their words packed any real punch and the air around the group seemed to spark with unsung excitement.

Any minute now they would be let lose on a world just as unready for them as they were for it.

All they were waiting for now was the tall pink haired man, and small spunky brunette that stood a little ways away from the group. They spoke in animated, if not exasperated, tones to a tired looking man with hair dyed white to conceal it's graying nature. The man seem reluctant, and was rightfully so. It wasn't every day you let your niece and her friends take your vintage ride on a cross country trip with only your favorite employee to keep an eye out for them; but it was to late to say no now.

The burnette turned and flashed the group a thumbs up as the white haired elder turned to bark instructions at the pink haired individual beside her. A sign they had almost run him down into finally letting go and letting them go on their way. Which, mind you, they had originally planned to do a half hour earlier. Not that the delayed really mattered.

No amount of planning had really prepared the group for the adventure they were about to partake in.​
 
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|Location: Near The Volkswagen Bus-Inside The Bus|Mood: Excited & A Bit Irritated|Outfit: Day 1|

♦"On Good Days I Am Charming As Fuck"♦-Tove Lo

The girl with the silver hair that was standing against the back side of the bus, was named Heather Grey. She was waiting in the hot sun for her friend, Mandy, to finally get her uncle to trust them with the Volkswagen. She hoped that he would be cool with it, he should be. "Come on... Mandy." Heather had her fingers crossed, hoping everything would go great. She couldn't wait to go on this trip with everyone, and better yet, her cousin was going as well. Dominic was fairly new, but he would fit right in... anyone related to Heather was cool and not drama filled. Speaking of her cousin. "Dom, you could of just rode with us in the van." Heather's cousin just waved her off, she rolled her eyes. Dominic loved his motorcycle, so he wasn't going to be in the van with the group for the road part of the vacation. Heather took a second to make sure all of her bags were in the van, she would hate to forget something, because she was sure she wouldn't be able to go and get what she left once they hit the road.

Heather stood there, and watched Mandy and some pink haired boy speak to Mandy's Uncle. They looked pretty funny in the way they were speaking. She clapped a little as she saw Mandy give the group a thumbs up, they were in the clear. She rested her head against the Volkswagen, her right heel tapping one of the tires. "I picked a bad day to wear all black..." She smirked and walked over to the entrance of the van. "I guess we are about to leave!" She yelled out to everyone around her, before stepping into the van and taking her seat in the middle section of the bus. She fixed her long sheer skirt and her lace bra under her sheer crop top... glad that she remembered to put a bra under it this time. She took out her phone and started to play music, her favorite thing to do when she was going to be riding for a very long time.

While Heather sat in the bus, she thought about everything that had happened this past year. She had actually just Graduated! This was crazy. She was also the Valedictorian of her graduating class, who would have thought? Heather does have more in her brain than just music and outfits, she gave a great speech. Heather did not like that she started to cry at the end though... she hated being emotional and looking weak. The Principle loved her speech, and everyone clapped. It was a good and bad day, that was the last time she would see most of those people... and this might be the last time she would see all of her closes friends all together like this. The Ten were Legendary, and she had a big part in starting it and getting all of these wonderful people together. Heather also hasn't told anyone, not even Dominic or Blair, about her contract negotiation with a big time Music Exec. They wanted to sign her and start working on her debut album by next year, this might actually be the last time she would be with her friends for a while. She went to the door, opening it. "Hey! Come on!" She laughed as she ushered everyone into the bus, except her cousin.

Interaction(s): No One
Mentioned: Mandy, Jason, Blair, John, Ken, Toby, Xavier, Alianne, Yumma

Tagged: @Justaddnutts @Shayla @Gateman @Nickboom @Kurogane86 @SugaarCereal @CynderTheDragoness @The Mernsicle
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|Location: Near The Group/Near The Volkswagen Bus|Mood: Nervous & Hyped|Outfit: Day 1|

♠"No One's Ever Left Me Quite This Sore"♠-Shawn Mendes

Dominic Banks was sitting on his baby, his Motorcycle in the hot sun. Luckily he had on one of his favorite hats to block out most of the heat. He laughed at the way his cousin, Heather, was fanning herself. "No one told you to leave your Gothic Umbrella at home." He raised his hands in the air as a sorry when she was about to walk his way. He watched as she went to the back of the van. Dominic went back to his Motorcycle, he started to clean off the "already clean" bike with his hands. Dominic didn't care for much in the world, when it came to material things, but his bike was his everything. He was nervous because he was fairly new to the group, only knowing most of them for a few months or so. Dominic would come to his cousin's house when she was with her close friends, and he became to know them and like them. They were known as "The Ten" with him joining and clicking with them soo fast. He was still getting to know most of them, but they were cool, and if Heather liked them for soo long, he could get to like them as well. "I can tell this trip is going to be amazing." He winked at the girl named Mandy. Dominic like Mandy, she was cute and quirky... just his type.

When he saw Mandy give the group a thumbs up, he started to get his bike ready to rip the road apart. He noticed his cousin yelling for everyone to get into the van, she was and will always be Miss Bossy. "I guess the Captain has given us orders." He saluted towards the group, ready to get this trip on the road. "Let's get ready to see the states and everything they have." Dominic had taken a year off from life, well, he took the year off to find himself. He had traveled to most of the East Coast States, so he knew some of the cool places in like; New York, Connecticut, and Florida. He could be their East Coast tour guide or something like that. Dominic fixed his hat on his head, looking back at the group. "Time for some fun."
Interaction(s): Mandy
Mentioned: Mandy, Blair, John, Ken, Toby, Xavier, Alianne, Yumma

Tagged: @Justaddnutts @Shayla @Gateman @Nickboom @Kurogane86 @SugaarCereal @CynderTheDragoness @The Mernsicle
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> Location - Near the Volkswagen & Loading Up ~ Mood: Excited and Nervous ~ Outfit of the Day: Day 1 <

Blair yanked a heavy bag from the back of her Stepfather's cruiser's trunk as she gave a loud huff with each heavy yank she took upon herself.. She all but nearly stumbled back with a near heavy fall to the ground only to be saved in a catch by her Stepfather. He smiled warmly down to her with that boyish look of wonder she always found constant within that very gaze of his. She quickly scrambled away from his grasp within seconds." Thanks Kai.." She mumbled lowly as her lips drew back into a thin line once more. She didn't hate Kai and she didn't want people to go about thinking that she did. In all honesty , he was by far one of the sweetest men she had encountered in her life even though he was far younger than that of her mother... That one part still ate away at her when she thought of it. It was weird in all blunt honesty to watch her mother married away happily to a man who was all but a solid 11 year's older than that of herself.. She still hadn't adjusted to that one thought and to the main one above all that he just wasn't her father. She flashed him a quickened smile against the curve of her lips as she swept up the suitcase quickly over her shoulder as she proceeded to leave his side. She was ready to get away for the summer more than words could dare go about trying to explain. She had been counting this down since graduation as she eagerly awaited her best friend's last adventure. Yes , it wouldn't probably be there very last with each other it would simply be a very long time before they would set foot around one another again with the crashing waves of change throwing itself abundantly among every last one of them. This was to be their last summer with one another and for God's sake she was going to live each and every day to her fullest without giving much thought on what there was to come afterwards.

She found her way over to the car as she waved happily to Mandy with a curt nod to the man she assumed was her Uncle.. Seemed that they were going to be having a personal escort for this trip about. Blair gave a small chuckle as she ran over quickly to the back of the car where the back door's stood wide open. She hadn't told anyone that she'd be back in time to go the first half of the trip. They all believed she would be meeting them in five days time once she had gotten back from Japan. Yet , here she stood more than happy to be back in time to kick off the beginning of the trip with those she held closest.. She had been keeping secrets held away from all in the group. She hadn't even told Heather or John that she had been accepted to study at Oxford in Journalism.. She didn't want to make them miss her to much or let their mood be affected on the present trip to come. It just wouldn't be fair to do to them at this given point.. Her eye's flitted to the ground as she finished loading up the last of her bags. Her eye's all but seemed to be clouded and hazed in thought. She would tell them on the last day of their trip.. It would be more fair to them that way , right? She thought as she all but questioned her thoughts in that current situation at hand. Blair let her eye's drift shut as she all but took a small breath before they slowly re-opened. They held a sense of confidence and happiness again as if nothing had dared yet to come about and trouble her.

At that , Blair gave a small stretch as she felt her golden blonde tresses breeze behind her as the wind whipped and played against it softly. Blair tucked her tiny manicured hands within the confines of her short pockets as she went on to cross around to the seating area. When she made it around to the other side she all but caught sight of Heather. A flash of playfulness came to light in her eyes as she ducked down a bit to creep around the open door.. She all but eased her head around the corner to peek at Heather standing as if awaiting to usher everyone into their seats.. Once she had snuck in close enough she jumped up with nimble ease behind Heather." Now , someone should tell me that future celebrities are opening door's now a days for us people." Blair came around to stand before Heather with a cheeky playful grin curved against the soft rose pink of her lips as her eye's glimmered with her sound happiness there. She laughed a bit before swinging her arms around her Bestie's neck to hug her tightly before delivering a sound kiss to her cheek. At that she stepped back a bit to look to Heather as she braced her hands light against the curves of her hips." Missed you , My favorite songbird.. I'll keep you company." She said in her silken tone before winking. At that she cupped her hands against her lips as she called out in a teasing tone." I didn't come back early for us to be late to the road... Come on slow pokes! Time to load up and take on the road!" She grinned just a tad as she awaited quite happily with her constant smile beside that of Heather as she propped her hand against the open door.

Interactions:
" Sorry it won't let me tag anyone... Will try again later! "
 
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Amanda &quot;Mandy&quot; Watson
Jason Lee Whitmore

As Amanda flashed the group her thumbs up she noticed Heather regard her with an pleased look and her cousin, Dominic, toss a wink in her direction. Delighted but tossed an over exaggerated, almost comical one back- only to get quickly distracted. She noticed another figure approach the group, and almost squealed when she figured out who exactly it was. Blair wasn't supposed to be here until much later, either way she was pleased to see her already present. An enthusiastic wave was offered to Blair, mid-turning slightly to Jason. Hand still hovering- she slapped it onto his left shoulder ignoring his hiss in surprise.

Jason pulled out of rang giving her a nasty look, "Watch it!"

It must have gone straight over Mandy's head because she swatted him again, "You can take care of things here right? Who am I kidding! Of course you can. Hurry up, ok?"

"Now wait a sec-"

"Thanks again for the buss, Eric! Love you!" Mandy suddenly snatched the sleepy man by his shirt collar, causing him to grunt in discomfort as she yanked him down to her level for a hug. Being short and being strong, well, it made your hugs deadly. She ignored her uncles choked plea for freedom, only letting go with a cheek to his cheek when she was satisfied she had gotten her point across.

"Bye-bye," with that Amanda was suddenly sprinting across the asphalt to the group around their bus.

Jason watched her as he patted his boss, Eric's, back, in an attempt to help him breath. As was par the course when it came to the Mandy-Death-Hold™. He didn't bother saying anything until Eric had gotten his breath back and addressed him first.

[BCOLOR=#808080]"I swear to god she's going to kill me one of these days, I'm to old for this crap."[/BCOLOR]

"Mmhm, sure, you love it old man."

[BCOLOR=#808080]"...I control your pay-check."[/BCOLOR]

"And i'm shutting up now."
There was a pause before he hummed,
"But really, are we good to go? Anything else you'd like to lose hair over?"

[BCOLOR=#808080]"Pay-check."[/BCOLOR]

"Hard Ass."

---

Meanwhile Mandy made quick work of the distance between her and the group- practically bouncing with each step. As she drew closer she heard blair call out from the middle of the back row on the bus.

"I didn't come back early for us to be late to the road... Come on slow pokes! Time to load up and take on the road!"

She came to a halt slamming a hand excitedly on the drive seat door as she did. Part of it was for the noise affect, and the other part was without bracing herself her excited momentum would have probably sent her tumbling over her own feet.

"You heard the lady people! Bags in the car, butts in the seats, let gooooo~" She puffed up with an exaggerated drill sergeant pose, "We got a schedule to keep! Move It, Move It, Move It!" She's conveniently ignoring the fact her uncle is the reason their running late. She dropped out of her pose and dropped into the front seat, turning the key in the ignition. She cranked up the air for Heather while they waited, glancing back with a grin.

"Don't want you killing over from heat stroke before we even go!"

With that she popped back out of the car and doubled around to the back to help out whatever way she could,
"Need any help?"

---
Mentioned:
EVERYONE
Dominic (Shattered♦Secrets™)
Blair (Shayla)
Heather (Shattered♦Secrets™)


Interacted:
Dominic (Shattered♦Secrets™)
Blair (Shayla)
Heather (Shattered♦Secrets™)
 
Location: Outside the van | Mood: Excited/Nervous | Outfit: Same as my picture​



John walked down the street, two heavy rucksacks strapped to his back and a small duffle bag on his arm. Mandy had certainly picked a great day for starting the road trip; nothing says summer of fun like being crammed into a tin can with an angry sun beating down on you and the stink of several sweaty teens filling the air. For some reason though, he wouldn't have it any other way. He stopped for a moment to adjust his jeans, wondering why he hadn't taken the extra few minutes to find his belt, as he got closer to Mandy's house. "Man, a day like this really makes you realize just how much you care about someone...you truly gotta love them to be out in this nasty heat." Finally, the group was in sight. He jogged the last little bit once he heard Mandy's voice and came to a stop right behind Blair. "And how's my favorite writer today? Got anything new for me to read?" he asked, wrapping her in a big hug before giving her a kiss on the cheek. He slung the rucksacks into the back of the van, one holding holding a couple large tents, and the other holding a few sleeping bags and pillows, along with the bag with his clothes.

With that out of the way, he took off the simple white shirt he was wearing and used it to sop up the sweat he'd accrued on the short trip here, tossing it aside in the van once he was dry. He bent down and kissed Mandy on the forehead and tousled her hair. "You know, if you keep acting like that, you're never gonna find a man who can keep up with you. Don't wanna scare me off, do you?" He said, messing with her a little bit. In reality, he had started developing feelings for her about a year ago; he wasn't sure when it had started, but he realized it himself when she spent the night in bed with him, cuddling when a terrible storm made it too dangerous for her to drive home. To be honest, a part of him hadn't wanted her to leave the next morning, but he didn't really know what to do about it. For one thing, he loved Blair; for another, he was unsure if he could even date either without messing up the group... "Oh, I finally got that tattoo I was showing you done." Changing the subject, he turned away from her and flexed a little, showing off his new tattoo. "What do you think, girls? Did it come out well?"



Interaction:
@Justaddnutts
@Shayla
 
Location: Outside the van | Mood: excited

Cute_Anime_Guy1.jpg

Yu was sitting underneath a tree, he kept starring at his parents recent letter and sighed. He looked up to see the thumbs up, he smiled and stood up dusting his pants off and stretching in the warm summer sun. Yu stuffed the letter in his pocket and picked up his bags. he walked over to Mandy's uncle and Jason. "thank you so much for the loan, i promise to help Jason Keep an eye on your crazy Niece." Yu walked past Dominic who was busy polishing his bike. "The bike looks great Dominic." Mandy was walking around getting things packed into the Van. "thanks Mandy, i got it. it's just one duffel bag and a backpack."

Yu tossed his bags in the back and made his way to the open door. He walks up just in time to see John unveil his new tattoo. "nice, Tattoo." Yu jumped in the van and watched as Blair and Heather were admiring John's new art piece. Yu's eyes subconsciously wandered to Blair. She was dressed well just like always, he wanted to compliment her but he figured it would sound weird to just come out and say so. Although Yu really liked Blair he figured it would be best to keep quiet about it since he didn't want to ruin their friendship.

Yu turned his attention to Heather. "so Heather, do you have a great playlist picked out for the long drive?" Yu always enjoyed the music Heather picked out. She knew just what to play, her taste in music seemed to match everyone's preference. He sat back and waited for the trip to start.

Interacted with @Gateman, @Justaddnutts, @Shayla, @Shattered♦Secrets™
location in the back of the van
 
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Location: Leaning against van -> Inside the van | Mood: slightly annoyed, hot
Xavier Tate
image.jpeg
Image heat was seriously getting to him and it showed in quick and almost careless way he shaded his drawing. Currently, he was sitting cross-legged on the ground he was huddled close to the side of the van that the sun wasn't shining directly on. It was some relief from the heat, at least.

He was finishing a drawing wherein everything was frozen because there was no sun. Flowers iced over and eventually broke due to their brittleness. Small confused birds huddled for warmth only the be mummified in that position. Everything was just frozen in time. It was, perhaps, a bit depressing but his works always reflected his mood. Right about now, he could do without the sun. As for all the frozeness, That had a double meaning.

It was partly him not really wanting this point in his life to pass. Or at least not as quickly it currently was. He'd been in such a miserable place back during fresh, even if he didn't know it at the time. Meeting and befriending what was now "The Ten" changed his life for the better. He didn't want things to go back to the way they were, but the teen couldn't shake the feeling that it was exactly what would happen. Everyone would go off, live their lives, and completely forget about one another.

The other part was that stuck feeling he'd lived with ever since he got accepted into a college that he didn't even remember applying to. Turned out that his dad had "done him a favor" and applied for him. He'd sent out his own apps of course. One in particular, to a small arts college then he had his eye on. Yet he was still unsure if he should actually go.

A commotion, near the trunk of the car, pulled him out of all that. Peeking around the side of the van,
he saw the rather...interesting sight of Mandy and Blair gazing at John's back. The blonde was apparently joining them sooner than planned. It lightened up his mood quite a bit. Now he could enjoy this vacation, in full, with all his friends. Back to the sight, though, it was particularly strange because he couldn't see that they were looking at a tattoo. He blinked and then snapped a picture of it.

"This will be named 'If you stare hard, it looks just like a Honda key, I swear'" he muttered, standing up and bypassing the three. Usually his photos were named the first thing that popped into his head while looking at it, even if they were dumb. Xavier made sure to toss a little smile in Mandy and Blair's direction while passing.

The very back row of seats was empty, so that's where he sat. He would've said hi to Yu and Heather but they seemed busy. Instead he opted for returning to his sketch while listening to whatever Heather decided to play.

Interacted with: Blair, (@Shayla ) Mandy(@Justaddnutts ) John (Kinda, not really, not sure) ( @Gateman )

Mentioned: Blair, Mandy, Yu, John, Heather, everyone in The Ten
 
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Ken Thornton
Ken came to the meeting slower then the rest, hopping out of his mother's car as he gave her a quick kiss on the cheek, everyone in The Ten probably already knew that his mother was the closest thing he had left to a family, he never spoke about his father and he was never seen or heard either, leaving who he was up to the imagination. Ken was smiling though, somewhat of a far cry from how he usually looks, he was excited for this trip, to spend it with all his friends made him pretty happy, even if a few of them were scary. Walking up to the group first person he spotted was Heather, he blinked a few times, kinda wanting to say something to her but resisting the urge, she looked like she was having a good time with Blair so it just wasnt right to bother them. He spotted a few bags resting on the ground and quietly moved over to them. He hadnt said a word yet, nor would he. He was pretty naturally quiet, but despite that he was showing some good spirit lifting the luggage and putting it away.

Shifting his weight a bit he had his light jacket on, he always wore that thing, it was pretty rare to see him without it. He in particular really enjoyed it because it in a way shielded him. It hid away his disgusting body away from the world. But pretty soon all the luggage was away and seeing as how Blair was being talked to by someone else...maybe it'd be ok to talk to Heather a bit? Ken quietly shuffled up to her and with a small smile spoke to her. "Hey Heather...How are you doing? Its been a while hasnt it? Eh, tell me if I'm being a bother here or not, but um...do you wanna sit together on the bus? We could catch up a little bit." His way of speaking was usually likeable to that of a mouse, quiet and timid, as if he'd bolt off at any sudden movement. "Hows the music thing going for you? I already got accepted to the med school I wanted to go to, though I'm still a little worried that maybe medicine isnt the right path for me...it'd suck if I just wasted everything in college ya know." He was trying hard to make conversation but sadly to him he felt as though he was being awkward and annoying...oh well at least Heather might tell him off nicely, you see the truth was he had a big crush on her...but he'd never ask. She was one of his first friends when he got to high school, and stuff like that is only shit you read in books.

But still he couldnt control the way he simply felt lulled towards her, just that she was everything he wasnt. Confident, beautiful, pursuing her dreams, really there was no way he even had a chance with her. So he wasnt here to flirt or try and ask her out, but as her friend, because thats all he'll ever amount to.

Interacted: (Its not letting me tag D: But the person is) Shattered Secrets
 
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