silver springs ~ c. walter

chapter 1!

"Lee! Want to lend me a hand?" Dorrie shouted down the stairs as she heard the wheels of a skateboard go by. Jackie Howard was due to arrive any minute, and the room the girl was to be staying in was hardly ready for her to live in. Katherine had called her earlier that day, frantic at the state of things and asking her for any sort of assistance. Dorrie arrived ready to be put to work and expecting to see the boys pitching in, but was disappointed to find out that all of them had "other things to do" and had left most of the brunt work of tidying up the bedroom to Katherine.

"Not really!" he yelled up the stairs. "You volunteered, after all."

Dorrie sighed as she tucked in the covers. She was almost done, but wanted to make sure she finished before Jackie arrived and she was getting stressed. The floorboards creaked behind her, and she saw Cole in the doorway, peering in.

"Hey, I'm going for a swim now and you should join me when you're done," he said. Dorrie started to open her mouth, but he held up his finger before she could protest. "I know you keep a swimsuit in Isaac's room in case, so don't use that excuse on me."

"Fine," she sighed. "But only if you help me finish making the bed." It was only then that she realized that Cole was ready to swim right then. As in, shirtless. She fought the blush that was threatening to give her away and turned towards the end of the sheet that she was trying to tuck beneath the mattress. Feeling a presence behind her, she turned to find Cole directly at her back, about to reach over her to take the sheet from her. "Not like that, dumbass. Go get your own corner."

"But what if I want this one?" he smirked, reaching his arms around her body so that he was practically hugging her and grabbing the sheet.

Dorrie laughed as if her heart wasn't running the 100 meter at his proximity. "That's not very effective, Cole." She tried to take it back, but he wouldn't give. And when she tried to duck under his arms, he blocked her, picked her up in his arms, and spun her around. She yelped in shock and laughed with him.

"You're the one who asked for help," he joked, letting her down after a second and stepping away.

"Yeah, help with the sheets, not with every step I had to do myself." Dorrie was positive her cheeks were tomato red at that point and she did everything she could to forget what it felt like to be pressed to his bare chest. "Besides, the faster we finish the faster I'll go swimming with you."

Cole immediately started to tuck the sheets and she laughed when he motioned for her to hurry. "Get to it, Banks."

"On it captain," she said with a mock-salute. They made the bed in silence until she looked up to find him staring at her. "What?"

He blinked for a second before saying, "Nothing. Just wondering why you're having so much trouble lifting the mattress, especially as a varsity track athlete."

"Oh, really? I could beat you in a race any day, Walter." His smile faltered for a moment and she realized her mistake. "How are you feeling being back at school? We haven't talked about your leg lately."

Cole tried to brush off the question. "You're not my therapist, Dorrie."

"But I'm the only person you talk to about this. So talk to me."

"Only after you swim with me," he said, standing. "I think our work here is done, so it's time."

"Fine," she laughed. Dorrie stood and started walking towards Isaac's room before calling over her shoulder, "But don't think I'll forget this!"

As she walked into Isaac's room, she immediately went straight to the drawer that was designated for her clothes only. She was over so often that Katherine and George had insisted that she keep some extra items in the house, especially with how rowdy the boys could get. Dorrie barely went through a single day without getting mud splashed over her or paint on her shirt.