[qzar9999]

The rustling and crunching of leaves and twigs, along with the approaching voices, startled a few birds into flight from branches overhead. Shortly, five people pushed out of the forest nearby and walked close to the shore, where a narrow wooden bridge crossed a short span of water to a small island with a single gnarled, ancient-looking tree poking out of its earth. The lake's smooth surface reflected the image of the tree, its leaves turned brilliant shades of fall colors.

“Well, there it is,” Neil said, gesturing at the tall oak. “The loneliest tree in Wolf Lake.”

“It's beautiful,” Lisa said, stepping up beside him and taking his hand as she stared at the scene.

Alan walked up to Neil's opposite side, his girlfriend Suzanne in tow. “Looks like a great spot for a picnic,” he said, adjusting his grip on the basket full of food he carried.

“Yeah, it's pretty. Still don't think it was worth coming all the way down here for,” a fifth voice muttered.

Neil turned around to glare at his older sister. “You didn't have to come along, Sasha. You could have stayed at the campsite. Better yet, you could've let me borrow your car in the first place and you wouldn't have to be here at all.”

“Sure, I could have stayed at the campsite, except you guys were taking all the food we packed for this little picnic of yours. And I could have just let you borrow my car, but last time I let you borrow it, you put a huge scratch in the paint. Plus, I didn't feel like having to clean sex stains out of the backseat,” she replied.

Lisa flushed, embarrassed. “Don't antagonize her, hon,” she said, rubbing Neil's arm. “Let's just try to have a nice, enjoyable picnic.”

He scowled at Sasha, but bit down on whatever he was going to say. “Fine,” he said instead. “Let's go.” He strode briskly toward the small bridge, carrying their ice chest in one hand. Lisa followed him, with Alan and Suzanne close behind. Sasha grudgingly crossed the bridge last, wishing she had brought a chair and a good book. She hated feeling like a fifth wheel, but Neil insisted that he needed her SUV, and where it went, she went.

The group set out a blanket beneath the spreading branches of the tree, passing out packed sandwiches, fruit, chips, and cold sodas as they sat down. Sasha sat on the edge of the blanket, as far away from the couples as she could manage. As she ate, she stared at the woods ringing the lake, and at the serene, glassy surface of the water. She slipped her earphones on and started up her mp3 player, listening to some relaxing music. After a short time, she felt at peace, if not quite happy.

She was startled out of the reverie of her own thoughts some time later when Alan tapped her on the shoulder. “Hey. We're packing up and heading back to camp,” he said. “You ready to go?”

“Yeah, thanks,” she replied, wadding up the sandwich wrapper and picking up her soda can. She dropped them into the small plastic bag he offered, and then she stood up as Suzanne folded the blanket. She tucked her mp3 player into her pants pocket.

As they were leaving the island, Lisa stopped to stare at the water. “It looks so nice and inviting,” she said with a smile. “We should take a dip.”

“I didn't bring my swimsuit,” Suzanne said.

Lisa grinned impishly. “I didn't either. Who said anything about swimsuits?”

Neil's eyes lit up and he elbowed Alan, a wide, goofy grin on his face. It died a moment later when Sasha spoke up.

“You know that water's gonna feel really cold, right? And we didn't bring any towels, so you're either gonna have to walk around naked or get your clothes all wet. You'll be freezing your ass off the rest of the day.”

Lisa sighed. “Huh. I hadn't thought of that. Thanks.” She turned to Neil and shrugged. “Sorry, baby. I guess we'll just have to skinny dip another day.”

Neil scowled, glaring daggers at Sasha. “Thank you so very much,” he grumbled.

“My pleasure!” Sasha replied with a smirk. “Seriously, you don't really want your girlfriend to be cold and miserable for hours just to see her naked for a few minutes, do you? I'm doing you a favor and helping you be more of a gentleman!”

“Again. Thank you.” Neil's voice remained cold and flat.

When the five of them returned to the bridge and started across, Neil stopped, crouching down to tie his shoe. The rest of them walked past him, Sasha at the rear of the group again. By the time she heard running footsteps thumping across the planks, it was too late to stop what happened next. Her brother came dashing up behind her, shoving her hard to the side and causing her to tumble into the frigid waters of the lake. She came up spluttering and coughing, splashing water everywhere as she flailed. “Neil! You asshole!”

“Gotcha, you killjoy!” he cried, laughing raucously as he kept walking across the bridge toward the shore.

Sasha paddled over to the wooden planks of the bridge, hauling herself out of the water. She rested on the boards for a few moments, her teeth chattering and her body shivering. Her wet shirt clung to her skin, and her waterlogged jeans felt cumbersome over her legs. She rose to her feet shortly, wiping wet strands of brown hair out of her eyes. She stared murderously at her brother, standing on the shore and laughing at her. Her shoes squelched as she marched over the bridge, trembling partly from cold and partly from rage.

As she got closer to the other side of the bridge, the feeling of cold began to fade. It was replaced by a curious tingling sensation that she couldn't really identify. Her shirt felt even clingier, and she stopped for a moment, lifting it off of her skin and wringing it out as much as she could. It was still wet when she let go, but at least it felt a little better. Her soaked shoes were suddenly pinching her feet uncomfortably, and her anger at Neil intensified as she stalked toward him.