Dashing Through the Snow (Cam)

[Cameron Osiris]

Cam wondered how insane one person had to be in order for them to fall in love with nearly anyone. He couldn't even count how many people had captured his heart before. Maybe the trick for him was to find the one person who wouldn't let him go, and who he couldn't live without, not simply with. "Maybe you can come visit?" He asked with a hopeful smile. Then he could show her around some of the California beaches he loved so much.

"I know how you feel," he said without disclosing anything else. It wasn't fair to Declyn that Cam felt this way, but he honestly thought the feelings for Chester would've left by now. But they hadn't. And really, even while he was with Ravyn they had been there - so who was he trying to fool?

His heart broke for Ray. No one should ever have to go through what she was feeling. "He was there for you when you needed someone and the moment felt right. Don't regret it and don't let anyone make you regret it." It was her choice to make, and in Cam's opinion, it had become a part of who she was now. "You should show it to me when we get back," Cam said in reference to the picture. She must have been a pretty big deal to Carter for him to have made something like that for her. Cam knew what that was like when he made his songs for people.

Cam's eyes went wide. Honestly, he didn't think she was going to be that honest with him about her first time ever, but he did love her more for telling him. "A desk? Talk about hard wood." He laughed at his own joke and smirked at her again. He then pouted to steer clear from the seriousness of the moment. "Couldn't have been me, hey? Though I must say you have quite the weakness for blondes." Why was he sounding all regal about this? Oh well, just another way of going about things.

[Ravyn Rozanova]

"Could I?" Ravyn asked, her eyes lighting up. She had never been to the west coast of the United States before. "I would love to, Cam. That would be amazing." She couldn't help but think of warm, sunny beaches in comparison to the cold snow they were in now. Her hometown was awesome, but California sounded like heaven too.

She looked over at him as he sympathized with her. Biting her lip, she had to ask,"It's Chester, isn't it?" As he knew, it didn't take a genius to connect the pieces. They were both in hard situations, then. She didn't doubt that Cam had feelings for Dec too, but when one person was on your mind, you couldn't ignore it. That's what had happened with her and Lucah - she had had feelings for Noah back then, and they didn't just go away, even though she liked Lucah, too.

She nodded, letting out a small sigh of relief as he strengthened what she had said. "You're right. I really do think he cares about me, too. It didn't feel like just a random hook up." Who was she to know, really? That's just how she felt about it. He had made sure she was comfortable, had been gentle about it, and had paid attention to her needs. She didn't expect him to necessarily have feelings for her in any way, but she knew she cared about him more than she had previously. Sex was an amazing thing. "Oh, definitely," she agreed, coming back to the present. "He's an amazing artist. It looks just like me." She smiled faintly; Carter had made her feel beautiful, and she was definitely a different person because of it.

She covered her mouth at his comment, unable to hide the small, slightly horrified laugh that she let out. "I didn't expect it!" she exclaimed, wringing her fingers together. "He just... I don't know, it was all sort of a blur." Really, was it even possible for her to... Use a bed? Oh goodness, she needed to stop thinking so much. Ravyn bit her lip again, shooting Cam an apologetic look. "I wasn't on birth control back then," she mumbled. "But I did think about it. A lot." After the Talk, when she had sent Dr. Neville a question about the subject, she had decided it was something she should start. "Apparently," she smiled weakly. Lucah had dark hair, but she did realize she had a history with lighter-haired boys more than not.

[Cameron Osiris]

Cam smiled. He hadn’t really thought of it until now, but Russia and Cali would be like two totally different worlds. “Duh, you can come whenever you want.” Friends were always welcome, and he would love to return her the favour of how she’d shown him this place. One heaven for another.

“What? No!” Cam said a little too quickly. His face turned red and it wasn’t because it was cold outside. Hearing Ray say it out loud made it that much more clear. It wasn’t like he didn’t know it, but there wasn’t a damn thing he could do about it so ignoring it seemed like the only option. Besides, Dec was great. He was attractive and funny, and... he wasn’t Chester. Cam ducked his head and didn’t say a word. Ravyn knew better than to believe his outburst. He glanced over to her with worried eyes. “There’s something seriously wrong with me, isn’t there?”

Cam smirked. “You’re totally right, I bet he’d be willing to do it all over again.” At least she wasn’t in love with the guy, Carter probably wouldn’t return the feelings. Sex was pretty awesome. Cam couldn’t wait to see the drawing.

“A blur? Couldn’t have been that good then,” he teased, laughing to himself. Honestly, he was sure it was wonderful, and he really didn’t care that he had never slept with Ravyn. Cam smiled and shook his head. “Well that’s as close as I’ll ever get,” he said with a dramatic sigh.

Stopping in front of the bar, Cam nudged her. “So we goin’ in or what?”

[Ravyn Rozanova]

Ravyn clapped her hands together gleefully. "Oh, I can't wait!" she beamed. Maybe Noah could come again, too! Sunny beaches, and Noah and Cam.... Yes, definitely heaven.

Cam's reaction made it quite obvious that Ravyn had been right, and she frowned sympathetically. His reaction would have been cute, had she not known how much he was already dealing with. Between Dec and Mia and Chester and who-knew-who else.... Poor thing. She reached out and caught his hand, giving it a squeeze. "No, there isn't," she reassured him. "You love different people for a reason. You just need to figure out which one you want to pursue the most." Whether that was Dec or Chester, she didn't know for certain, but there was one thing she knew - Cam was definitely smitten with Chester. Just the way he talked about the redhead reminded her of how she talked about Noah.

Now it was Ravyn's turn to blush, and she looked away, chuckling quietly. "Maybe. I... I don't know what will happen now. I'm just glad he was there when I needed it." She wasn't totally against sleeping with Carter again, but it wasn't something she was going to actively pursue.

Cam's comment made her snort and nudge him. "Stop teasing me," she chided him with a grin. She let it fade as he sighed. "Never say never?" she responded with a smirk.

She stopped when he did, letting her grin widen. "Sure, why the hell not?" she asked, stepping forward to go inside. It was east getting in, and since it was still pretty early, it was kind of empty. "Where to?" she asked, motioning to the tables and the bar itself.

[Cameron Osiris]

“We should definitely go tripping more often,” he suggested with a curt nod. Cam had already decided this was one of the better ideas he’d had in a long time. And yes, Noah was obviously included.

Hiding from the world wasn’t an option for the social butterfly, though Cam had thought about it a couple times. Cam could fall for anyone, but Chester was something else entirely. Cam could fall for everyone and still not have him. He held her hand as though he might fall otherwise. A serious expression took over his light features. Cam without light was like a dead light bulb – burnt out, and useless. “What does that matter, who I chose? I don’t want to bother him when he’s not interested, that would ruin our friendship...” Cam’s voice drifted off. Even that was in shambles. This was why he didn’t talk about things.

“Well if I were single I’d offer to be there for you too,” he offered with a wink, teasing as per usual. Cam laughed, his arm around her waist again in no time. “Then you gotta stop teasing me,” he said, kissing her temple and snickering. Honestly, what would he do without her?

“You’re the expert,” he said with a shrug, looking around the place, “anything works for me.” Cam released her and headed for one of the tables despite what he’d just said. “I’ll be your designated driver, I know alcohol’s your only weakness,” he joshed, sliding into a booth.

[Ravyn Rozanova]

"We should!" Ravyn agreed. "Travel the world together. The three of us. Oh, if only we had the money." She would love to just get away from school and forget about studying. She was tired of it. At least she was almost graduated.

Ravyn was surprised at the strength with which Cam held her hand, and she kept it their, for both their sakes. Cam was nearly never serious, so she knew this was a big issue for him from that if nothing else. His words sounded like they were out of her own mouth - she was in the exact. same. position. "It's awful, isn't it?" she sighed, wishing she had advice to give him. Hell, she wished she could get advice from someone. "I mean, it hurts not to be able to do anything without risking the friendship, right? And I would rather be friends than nothing at all..." Now she was talking about herself, and she blinked, focusing back on him. "Cam, why are our problems so similar?" she asked, laughing weakly. "We need to stick together and get through this with each other. I don't know who else to go to at this point." He understood her like no one else.

"I appreciate it," she replied, grinning at Cam's wink. She couldn't help but think what it would have been like to hook up with Cam like that - who knew where they would be now? "Neverrrr," she laughed, closing her eyes at the kiss and tucking herself closer to him. This relationship, at least, was perfect.

Ravyn followed Cam over to the table, settling down right next to him rather than across the way. It was much better that way, in her opinion. "Oh?" she laughed, waving over a (of course, gorgeous) barmaid. "Sounds good to me. I trust ya." She quickly ordered a couple beers before settling back, letting her head rest on Cam's shoulder. "I'll try not to kiss anyone this time," she murmured teasingly.

[Cameron Osiris]

“Doesn’t hafta happen all at once,” Cam said with a shrug, “besides, someday I’ll be rich and famous.” A guy could dream couldn’t he? Unlike Ray, he still had another year left at Hammel after she was gone. He was about to be very lonely.

Cam nodded. It was the most heart wrenching thing he had ever had to endure. But he couldn’t give up Chester, even if all they ever had was friendship. They had a chemistry he hadn’t found with anyone else. He made his heart wrench with the smallest glances and well, Chester was the sweetest guy. But he wasn’t interested. He was about to speak but she took the words right out of his mouth. He laughed bitterly and drew her closer to him for comfort. “I dunno Ray, but at least we’re not alone. We can bitch together.” Maybe they weren’t going to last romantically, but theirs was a friendship made in gold.

Sitting close to Ray, Cam let his hands drum on the table. His eyes grew wide as the server approached, but he smiled quickly. What a fantastic distraction. He found accents fascinating, but Rayn speaking Russian was really cool. “I’d let you kiss me,” he said with a playful smirk. No, he would never stop teasing. He touched her hand. “But, back to Noah, you’ve at least told him how you feel, right?” In that aspect, Ray was braver than he was.

[Ravyn Rozanova]

Ravyn smirked at him. "'Course you will. I have complete faith in you." Hey, if that's what he wanted to do, then who was she to say he couldn't? She could totally see him pursuing that path if he wanted to. And, thought she hadn't told anyone yet - she was considering staying at Hammel as a recruiter. Maybe. It was still something she was thinking over. She just didn't feel like college was right for her, and there was too much keeping her in Pilot Ridge...

But, anyway. Ravyn didn't know Chester, of course, but even so, she wanted this to work out for Cam. She really hoped Chester was good enough for him - Cam deserved someone as wonderful and sweet and amazing as he was. She was going to have to meet this redhead soon. The feel of Cam's arm around her comforted Ravyn, and she nodded in agreement. "Yep. Bitching buddies. And drinking buddies," she added, since they were indeed going into a bar. "The best kind of friendship!" She couldn't help but wonder what it would be like between them, say, thirty years from now - she couldn't imagine Cam not being in her life in some way.

Ravyn let her lips break into another smirk as Cam spoke. "Friends kissing isn't weird," she agreed. Ah, the thought of kissing Cameron was far from unpleasant. She would never admit it, either, but she loved his teasing. His question made her smile fall again, though, and she nodded, looking down at their hands. "Yeah. A lot of good that did me. He said he used to feel that way about me too, but..." She fell into silence. "How do I get him to feel that way again, especially now that he's seeing someone? And should I even try?" Their drinks came them, and Ravyn took hers and took a long draught. Ah, Russian pivo. She wanted to get tipsy, and this would definitely get her there.

[Cameron Osiris]

“I want to go to university too, so, we’ll see what happens with the whole getting famous thing,” he said, as though he had everything all figured out. But he wasn’t opposed to things changing. If Ray did decide to stay, Cam might have to squeal.

Cam didn’t think Chester and Ray would ever meet, he didn’t see why they ever would. “Huzzah!” Cam said enthusiastically. Chester would always befuddle him. “The best kind of friendship is with me,” he said, his thumb at his chest in reaffirmation.

“Oh totally not at all, I mean, in some countries, that’s how you greet those you love, right?” That probably didn’t happen here, and if it did, awesome, then maybe he was in luck. Cam listened as she spoke. It was a good thing he hadn’t told Chester his feelings then. He thought about what she was asking while the beers were served. He held it between his hands tentatively. “Maybe he loves you like that and has killed off the feelings,” he said speculatively. “I mean, if Chester came up to me right now and told me he loved me, I’d...” What? Cameron frowned deeply and chugged back half of it before sputtering. “Holy shit, what is this made with? Rubbing alcohol?” He laughed and coughed, wiping at his mouth.

[Ravyn Rozanova]

"University is good," Ravyn agreed. Just... Not for her. Hammel was hard enough schoolwork for her as it was. It wasn't that she wasn't smart, she just... Didn't have the motivation to do it half the time. And it was a lot different from school in Russia. If she decided to stay at Hammel, Noah and Cam would be the first people she would tell.

Hah, Cam was wrong. She was totally going to scope out the situation more, whether he liked it or not. Look out, Chester. "Yes," she agreed, laughing at his statement. "Only you, Cam," she added, patting his back affectionately.

Kissing was indeed more common as greetings in Russia than America, as far as Ravyn knew. "Absolutely," she nodded, grinning widely. Ah, Cam, getting Ravyn drunk and teasing her like that was sure to lead to something. She continued to sip at her drink as he spoke. The use of the word 'killed' made her heart hammer. "Do you think he did?" she asked sadly, not really expecting an answer. She looked at him as he didn't complete his sentence, about to say something until he took a chug of the drink. She leaned back against her chair and laughed, tilting her head upwards. "That's why you should just take a sip first," she told him, offering a napkin. "Try again, you'll get used to it." She took another drink; she wasn't really a lightweight, but it shouldn't take too long for her to start feeling the effects.

[Cameron Osiris]

Cam was motivated to do something great with his life, and he was humble enough to realize that not everyone became rockstars, not even him. So at least if he went to school, he could find something he loved doing. That was the hope anyways.

Only him? Oh if only others felt the same.

"Awesome," Cam said with a toothy grin. Dec wouldn't be mad over a kiss between friends would he? Cam smirked at the thought, he wasn't going to blame it on the alcohol though, and honestly, the thought of kissing Ray didn't give him butterflies like it once had. If it did happen, well, who knew. He shrugged. "I haven't really asked him about it," he looked at her momentarily, "and if I did, I wouldn't want to make it look like you had asked me to." He winked at her. That meant he was going to find out for her, and hopefully, Noah wouldn't catch the drift.

"It didn't hit me 'til after I drank half the stuff, oh, god," he said, flinching again as tears fell from his eyes from the burn. Cam did as he was told and tried again. It didn't take much for Cam, since he wasn't a drinker from the get go and was affected quite easily. "You gotta show me some cool scenery," he said randomly, "I wanna get some good shots of the place for Dec." Cam smiled at the thought of his boyfriend, and then frowned again. "Noah doesn't have any siblings that hate you by any chance, does he?" Because if he did, well, that would just be creepy.

[Ravyn Rozanova]

Ravyn smirked at him again, before going to pull off her winter coat. It was pretty warm in the bar, and she was feeling hotter because of the drink, too. She nodded at his answer, leaning her elbows against the table and resting her head on her hands. She looked over at him with wide eyes as he winked at her. "Would you do that?" she asked, not wanting him to go to the trouble if he didn't want to. This was her problem, and she didn't really want to drag more people into it. But then again, if she was going to find Chester... Maybe they really could help each other out. This might actually be something good.

"Oh, you poor thing," Ravyn held back her laughter, covering her mouth with her hand. She was fortunate, sort of - she had a family history of drinking, and well, she was Russian. It was more her gender and light body structure that made her more of a lightweight than she could have been. At least he was willing to try again. "I could order you something else," she offered, finishing off the glass she was on and asking for another. "Deal," she agreed. "There's this really cool bridge just outside of town, the river looks really neat when it's all frozen over, with the mountains and trees in the background." She had planned on showing it to both of the boys anyway. His question threw her off, and she hesitated, thinking. "Um, he has a younger brother, but I haven't met him," she answered. "Why?"

[Cameron Osiris]

Okay, maybe he had just forgotten about those butterflies. Ray looked a whole lot better without a jacket on. Noah didn’t know what he was missing, the idiot. Men, idiots. Cam leaned his arm against the table and turned so he could face her better. “I’ll see what I can do,” he said, wondering how he could bring it up at all. With his luck, he’d probably just flat out ask him while in a drunk stupor or something.

“You know, you coulda told me before I started drinking it.” He shook his head as though disappointed. Maybe Cam should’ve been a heavier drinker, his personality alluded to it, but he didn’t purposefully seek it out. If it happened to be around he would have some, but never with the intention of getting drunk. He liked being thrilled and feeling full of life, not dulled and unable to remember anything. But just being with Ray and sharing a drink, well, that was all the peer pressure he needed. After all, he couldn’t say no.

“Nope,” he said, holding up two fingers. If she was having another one, so was he. Cam held his face in both of his hands, smiling sleepily at Ray. “Aw, he’s gonna love that.” Dec was so into photography. Cam wasn’t any good at it, but he’d take a few pictures for him. It was gonna be his Christmas present, along with a whole bunch of video footage. “Just curious, wanted to see just how much we had in common.” He smirked, knowing he’d have to explain that one. “Dec’s brother has it in for me.” And come to think of it, maybe the redhead was right about Cam. Weren’t he and Ray just talking about his undying love for Chester? Cam rubbed his eyes – this was such a mess.

[Ravyn Rozanova]

Heh. Boys. Ravyn smiled at Cam as he turned towards her, lifting a hand so she could cup his chin. "You're the best," she said, hoping he knew what he was doing. She figured whatever he did, it wouldn't do any more damage than she had already done.

"For some reason I assumed it wouldn't be a problem," she told him honestly, still grinning. For some reason, the fact that she was more experienced in this department than he was made her feel weird. It wasn't like she was a drunk like her dad, but she did enjoy the occasional drink, especially when she visited Russia and it was, you know, legal. She didn't do it very often in the U.S. Usually. Yay peer pressure!

"Thatta boy," she snickered as he ordered another. Always up for anything, Cam. She loved it. The drinks came a few minutes later and Ravyn continued to drink, beginning to feel a pleasant buzz in her head. "I bet," she nodded about Dec. She didn't know about his love of photography, but in her opinion, the beauty of her hometown in the winter could be appreciated by anyone. She cocked an eyebrow at his explanation, smirking slightly. "Ahhh. Well, apparently we don't have quite that much in common," she replied. What he had said concerned her a little, though. "What do you mean, he has it in for you?" Was this something she should be concerned about? Was she going to have to wingslap someone? "No one messes with my Cam and gets away with it," she tutted, taking another sip.

[Cameron Osiris]

Cam smirked and pulled his face out of her grip. "I know," he said nonchalantly. He was so blessed to have self worth.

"I don't really drink, like, ever." He admitted, because there was no point in lying about something she was about to witness first hand. Cam's fingers wrapped around the second drink and he let out a slow breath. He was sort of starting to feel it already, that sensation in your body that told you, hey, a few more of these and your fine motor skills are going out the window.

"I dunno. Dec's brother thinks I'm an asshole. I mean, he's never said it to my face, but he doesn't have to." Cam shrugged. "Just someone to stay away from, I mean, it wasn't a make or break factor for Dec, so, Odion must be like that all the time." No, they didn't have everything in common. Cam got to keep his sanity.

Half way through his next drink, Cam sighed. "Thanks for inviting me here again, I probably never would've got the opportunity otherwise."