The Castaway Hotel: Next Generation Book 3 - 44. Growing Tension

After we got out of work the following Saturday, we rushed home to eat and change, and then we did our chores quickly, so we would be finished before it was time to go down to pick up Ryan. We told him to call when the bus got close, in case it was running behind schedule again, and my phone finally rang just after 4:00.

“How long before you think the bus will arrive at the terminal?”

“Probably fifteen or twenty minutes.”

“Ok, we’ll meet you there.”

We told Dad and the others that we were leaving, but we’d be back shortly, and then Brandon and I went to collect Ryan and Owen. The bus was just pulling in when we reached the terminal, so we waited for them to get off and collect their belongings before we went out to greet them.

“Nice to see you again, Owen,” I said as I reached out to shake his hand and pull him in for a hug.

“Yeah, I’m glad to be here with you guys too. It was really great to spend time with Ryan again.”

“I know he was looking forward to seeing you as well, so welcome,” Brandon told him. “We’re happy to have you with us for a couple of weeks.”

“So how was your visit?” I asked Ryan as he and Owen were picking up their duffles.

“It was great. It was like we’d always been together and not like we were away from each other for almost a year.”

“Yes, it’s always good to be reunited with old friends,” Brandon replied as we led them to the car.

“Yeah, but I wish it wasn’t just for the summer.”

“I know it’s always hard when the ones you care about move away.”

“Maybe we could do this again next summer,” Owen suggested.

“Of course, that would be fine with us as long as your parents don’t mind,” I agreed.

“They won’t. They enjoyed having Ryan stay with us too,” Owen confirmed.

“Yeah, they were really great to me while I was there.”

“We were sure they would be,” Brandon concurred.

As we were driving to the house, I thought I’d give Owen a warning. “There are lots of different people living at the house now, so we’ll introduce you to them as soon as we get there.”

“Yeah, I know. Ryan told me a little about them already, and he said there’s a girl living there too.”

“Yes, there is,” I confirmed, but I also wondered how much Ryan had told him about Holly, including his interest in her. “It hasn’t been a problem, though, because her bedroom is on the first floor, so she doesn’t see them running around naked upstairs, and we don’t allow any skinny-dipping while she’s there.”

“She works during the day, so we can go skinny-dipping then,” Ryan offered.

“Just make sure you’re out of the pool and dressed by the time we get home,” Brandon advised them, “because she rides with us.”

“Don’t worry. Grandpa Josh, Uncle Dion, or Uncle Trey always come out to make sure we do that,” Ryan acknowledged.

“And Ryan wouldn’t care if she saw him naked,” Owen added.

Ryan spun around and glared at Owen after he heard his comment, and it kept Owen from saying more. It also confirmed my suspicion that Ryan had told Owen quite a bit about her and obviously indicated that he was interested in her. Otherwise, why wouldn’t he mind if she saw him naked?

When we got to the house, we let Owen say hello to everyone he knew first, and then we introduced him to the others. He took a second look when he met Holly, and then he glanced over at Ryan, but he didn’t say a word. However, I think it meant that Ryan had definitely talked to him about Holly when he was at Owen’s house, because I thought Owen’s reaction was saying: ‘Yeah, she’s as cute as you said.’

“I just wanted to thank you for my birthday present,” she told Ryan after meeting Owen, and then she showed him she was wearing the necklace before she let Owen see it too.

“Pretty impressive,” Owen said with a little whistle.

“Yes, it’s really nice and I love it, and Noah gave me this ring.” She then showed it to both of them as well.

After looking at the ring, I saw Ryan glance over at Noah. At the same time Noah had been staring at him, and I think they were silently trying to tell the other one to back off and stay away from her. I’m afraid Brandon and I might eventually have to step in to keep the situation from escalating, just not right now.

We still had a couple of hours until dinner, so we talked to Owen some more and asked him lots of question about his new home, his new school, and how he was getting along there. During that time we discovered that he liked the house, his father liked his new job, and he told us the school was really nice as well. He said he’d made some friends, but none as good as Ryan, and he wished they could be together again. Although I didn’t say it, I was thinking that he and Ryan might not be as close as they were before if he was living here again, because I think Holly would come between them. Hell, she might even come between Ryan and Noah.

A short time later, Dad called us out for dinner, which ended our conversation and prevented me from saying anything prematurely about a potential confrontation. Brandon and I went out with the others, sat down at the table, and began to eat.

“Where’s he gonna sleep?” Hunter asked in between bites.

“He’ll sleep in my room, with me,” Ryan answered.

“Oh, ok. I was just wonderin’.”

“Were you two friends for very long before you moved away?” Holly asked next.

“Yeah, for more than three years,” Owen replied.

“So I take it you were really close?” she continued.

“Yep, you might say that,” Owen responded, and then he looked over at Ryan and grinned. I wondered if Holly was able to read between the lines.

“So how are your parents,” Dad asked next.

“They’re doing great. My dad likes his new job, he’s making more money, and we’ve got a really nice house.”

“I’m glad to hear that.”

“Do you still play baseball?” Dion followed.

“No, I didn’t try out for the school team, and seeing I knew that me and Ryan would be spending time with each other this summer, I didn’t sign up for the summer league either.”

Shortly after we finished eating, Owen, Ryan, Holly, and Noah went out to the rec room, so I decided to stay close to that area in case there was a problem.

“Do you and Owen want to play ping pong against me and Holly?” Noah asked making the first move.

“Yeah, let’s do that,” Owen agreed, although Ryan was shooting daggers at Noah with his eyes before he agreed.

They played a couple of games that way, and Ryan did his best to seem happy and have a good time, but I could tell he resented that Noah had found a way to stake his claim on Holly. I was wondering how this was going to play out.

I asked Dad to keep an eye on the situation when Brandon and I went up to read to the younger boys, so it wouldn’t suddenly fall apart. I let Brandon read this time, even though it was my turn, because I was thinking about how I might defuse the situation. I had come up with an idea by the time Brandon had finished reading, and we then went through our nightly ritual with that group before moving on to the next group.

When we got up to the third floor, we went to Ryan’s room first. “Before we say goodnight to you and Owen, I have something to discuss,” I told them, and Ryan suddenly looked worried. “I can tell that both you and Noah have taken an interest in Holly, and it’s much more than just a brotherly interest in a sister, and I don’t want this to get out of hand.”

“Ok, maybe I do, but why did he have to get involved? I liked her first,” Ryan objected.

“That’s not exactly true. I had a similar chat with Noah about this very topic shortly after we first brought Holly to the house for a visit. We could tell, even then, that he was apparently attracted to her from the very start.”

Ryan’s mouth dropped open and he looked shocked. “I didn’t know that.”

“And Noah obviously didn’t know about your interest in her either, at least until he saw the necklace you gave her for her birthday.”

“So we both like her and didn’t know the other one did too?”

“Yes, it appears that way, so I don’t want this to become a problem for the family. In the end it will be Holly’s choice as to whom she likes, and I’m still not convinced her feeling for you or Noah are as strong as you seem to feel about her. In the end, it might even turn out that she’s interested in someone who’s not part of this family.”

“Yeah, but I hope not.”

“You still have to prepare for that possibility.”

“Yeah, I know.”

“Owen, I hope you remembered that you’ll be going to church with us in the morning,” Brandon said, changing the topic.

“Yeah, I remember how I used to do that with you guys whenever I stayed over with Ryan on Saturday night, so I’m good. I even brought something nice to wear when we go there.”

“That’s good, and we’ll see you both in the morning.”

Brandon and I then said goodnight to each of them before going over to speak with Noah. I had basically the same conversation with him, and then Brandon and I hoped it would take care of the situation for good.

We then went over to say goodnight to Elliot, but he wasn’t in his room. I assumed he was still out with Ian, but I figured they would show up eventually, since Elliot told us they only had sex when they stayed here. In the meantime, we went down to say goodnight to Holly next.

“Owen seems nice,” she told us after we knocked on her door. “I had fun playing table tennis against him and Ryan.”

“I’m sure they enjoyed it too,” Brandon replied.

“Ryan seemed upset with Noah at different times. Are they having a disagreement?”

“They were, but I think it’s taken care of for now,” I answered. “Sweet dreams and we’ll see you in the morning.”

We both kissed her on the forehead before we left the room, and then we went out to chat with the others. “The tension was running high after you went upstairs,” Dad told us as we joined them for coffee.

“Yeah, we talked to both of them when we said goodnight to each one,” I replied. “I’m hoping it will defuse the situation for now.”

“I hope so, because I was afraid they might start throwing punches as they were leaving the rec room.”

“I hope it wasn’t that bad.”

“It didn’t get physical, but you could see the tension between them and cut it with a knife.”

“Hopefully we put an end to that, at least for the time being.”

As soon as we finished the discussion, each of us called it a night and headed to our own rooms. We definitely wanted to be alert and well rested in the morning, in case a new problem arose.

After we got everyone up and ready for church, Brandon and I drove down to pick up Becky, Revin, and Tristan next, before meeting up with the others again. Owen went with Ryan to his Sunday school classes, and everyone else went to their class, and along the way Becky asked me a question.

“Who’s the new boy?”

“That’s Owen, Ryan’s friend. He’s the one Ryan went to visit, and now he’s staying with us for a couple of weeks.”

“There’s always something new going on at your house,” she joked as we sat down and got comfortable.

After Sunday school and the church service ended, we all went out for brunch. “Wow, you guys still do this?” Owen asked when we entered the diner.

“Yes, it’s kind of a family tradition,” Dad replied.

“Owen, this is Becky and her son, Revin,” Brandon said as he introduced them. “Next to Revin is Tristan, and he’s another of our sons that you haven’t met yet. And for the rest of you, this is Owen. He’s Ryan’s friend and he’s staying with us for a couple of weeks.”

They all said hello to one another, and then they chatted briefly after we’d ordered. During that time I also noticed that Ryan and Noah were sitting on either side on Holly, but there didn’t appear to be the same amount of tension between them as the day before. Maybe my little chat with each one had done some good.

After we’d dropped off Becky and Revin and arrived at the house, I told the boys to feed Dobby and Flash and then take them outside. I noticed Owen and Ryan went with the younger boys when they went to feed the puppies, and I was surprised to see them follow the boys outside as well. When I checked on them a few minutes later, Owen and Ryan were playing with Dobby and Flash too, so this proved to be another distraction from the conflict over Holly.

While they were doing that, I was trying to think of something we could do to keep everyone entertained and away from each other’s throats. Since I was looking outside, I noticed the volleyball net was still up, so I decided to see who wanted to play. I got a pretty decent response as I went around asking, so I formed the teams to prevent problems. When we got outdoors, I announced who would be playing on which team.

“On team one will be Ryan, Holly, Noah, Dion, Trey, and Joshie. Elliot, Ian, Owen, and Benny will join Brandon and me on team two. Any questions?”

There weren’t any, so we got started. I’d put Ryan, Holly, and Noah on the same team to prevent problems, but also to possibly get them to start working together. Unfortunately, the number of players available didn’t allow me to include Owen on their team. That was due to the fact that Dion and Trey wanted to play on the same team as Joshie, but luckily Owen didn’t mind playing with the rest of us. In fact, he seemed to relish going against Ryan. We could have had more players on each side, but Tristan, Wyatt, Hayden, and Hunter wanted to play with the puppies instead, but it was still working out fairly well.

The games proved to be very competitive, and the teams split the first two contests. Everyone wanted to play a third game so we could declare a victor, so we started out once again. It was another close match, but Holly’s team won. I said it that way because she played a fantastic game and did the most to help her team win. She did everything from spectacular digs, powerful spikes, and setting up the others. I went over to congratulate her as soon as the game ended.

“That was an incredible show you just put on. You must have been one of the better players on your high school team.”

“I did ok, but there were other girls that were just as good or better.”

“Then I’m glad I didn’t have to play against any of them.”

When we finished, we went inside to wash up and relax for a while before dinner. After we did that, most of us ended up in the family room watching a movie, while Brandon and Trey went to help Dad and Pop fix dinner. They timed it so they didn’t call us to eat until after the movie ended, and then we went out to join them.

“This has been a fun weekend,” Owen announced while we were eating. “I really enjoyed it.”

“We’re glad you had a good time and we’ll try to plan something fun for next weekend too,” I responded.

After dinner, the younger boys challenged Owen on the PlayStation, so Ryan went with them. While they were doing that, Noah and Holly challenged Elliot and Ian to play ping pong, air hockey, and shoot pool against them. It worked out well and kept everyone occupied until we sent the younger group upstairs to get ready for bed.

They took Dobby and Flash outside first, and then they raced upstairs to shower. When they finished, we went up to join them and I read the next chapter of the story. When I finished, Brandon and I performed our nightly routine with them before we left the room, and then we went to say goodnight to everyone else. When we got to Noah’s room, he had something to tell us.

“I hope tonight isn’t like last night. Ryan and Owen kept me up until 1:00, and then Elliot and Ian woke me up around 2:00 and kept me awake until after 3:00.”

“We’re they talking too loud?” Brandon asked. Noah’s room happened to be located between the other two rooms.

“Hell, no! They were having sex, and they weren’t being quiet about it either. Owen and Ian are both moaners, and the beds squeak too. I also don’t understand why Ryan is interested in Holly if he’s having such good sex with Owen.”

“It’s because he’s a horny bisexual teen. I just hope the younger boys didn’t hear what was going on up here.”

“I don’t think they would have, because the floors up here are much thicker than the walls separating our rooms. The floors should have blocked the noise well enough that the other boys didn’t hear what was going on up here.”

“In that case, this is just a temporary problem for you, because Owen and Ian aren’t here every night.”

“Owen might only be here for a couple of weeks, but Ian’s going to be staying with Elliot most of the summer.”

“Actually, I think he may be leaving around the same time as Owen, because Ian has to be at Harvard in early August. It’s possible we can do something to help you out until then, since I’ve heard that cork board is good at absorbing sound. Maybe we can put some on the walls between your rooms.”

“On which side?”

“It would probably be best if we did it on both sides of the connecting walls to deaden the sound more.”

“Yeah, I suppose, and I can always hang posters on it so the room doesn’t look too dark and dingy.”

“Sounds like a plan and I’ll ask Grandpa Josh to call his contractor and ask if he can do this for us. It shouldn’t take too long, once he gets the material, because all he’ll have to do is to attach the panels to the walls.”

“Ok and thanks. That should help a lot.”

Once we left his room, we went over to say goodnight to Elliot and Ian, and we made sure to knock first, and then we waited for them to tell us we could come in. After we left the room, we went downstairs to say goodnight to Holly.

“Thanks for the fun weekend. It was really great.”

“We’re glad you enjoyed it. Sweet dreams and we’ll see you in the morning.”

When we left her room, we stopped to talk to the others before we headed upstairs again. “How did things go today from your perspective?” Pop asked.

“I think it went quite well and there were no real problems,” I replied.

“Except that Noah complained that Ryan and Owen, as well as Elliot and Ian had loud sex last night and kept him up,” Brandon added.

“I’m glad Brandon mentioned that, because I need to ask you a favor,” I said as I looked at Dad. “Can you contact your contractor and see if you can arrange for him to come and install cork panels on the walls connecting those rooms. I think it will help to muffle the noise.”

“Certainly, I’ll call him first thing tomorrow.”

“Thanks. Just find out when he can do it and how much it will cost. It shouldn’t be a big project, as long as he’s able to get the material.”

“Do you want the entire wall covered?”

“Yes, on both sides, so that’s four surfaces. It’s just the two walls on either side of Noah’s room.”

“Ok, I’ll take care of it for you.”

Now that this had been settled, we bid the others goodnight and headed up to bed. Another week down and a new one ready to begin.