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Chapter Text

-Dylan Lenivy-

I was nervous. Scratch that, I was beyond nervous as my train arrived at North Kill station and came to a screeching halt. While some of the passengers gathered their belongings, I stayed in my seat, staring out the window. I suddenly felt glued to the spot, and all the doubts I’d had for weeks continued piling up.

What if I just… didn’t get off the train?

“Come on, you can do this…” I whispered to my reflection in the window.

I had to get moving before the train would, so I took a deep breath and got up to grab my bag. I had no reason to be this nervous. It was just a summer camp. In the middle of nowhere. With a bunch of strangers. And a swarm of kids I was supposed to be responsible for. For two months.

I had to practically throw myself out of the train, and once outside, I tried to ignore the feeling that taking this job as a summer camp counselor was a big mistake. It was not a mistake. It was going to be fun . I’d enjoyed my time at the camp as a kid, so of course I’d have fun now as an adult. As a counselor. Who was responsible for the wellbeing of the kids. With a bunch of strangers.

Dear fucking me, why did I come here…?

I glanced around on the small platform, but didn’t spot anyone familiar, so I followed the few other passengers through the station to get to the parking lot. I took another glance around, but still saw no one I knew. There was, however, a small group of people my age gathered by the curb that caught my eye. I would’ve assumed they were just a group of friends traveling together, but it was clear they didn’t know each other that well. And it was clear they all had the same destination.

“Is this your first time as a counselor at the camp?” one of the girls, a tall blonde, asked one of the guys in a flirty manner.

Great. I’d found my group. I let out a silent breath, took a stronger hold of my bag and headed their way, even though I actually really wanted to run.

Social interactions. Yay…

“You’re heading to Hackett’s Quarry?” I spoke up when I was close enough.

“Hi! Yes, we’re waiting for Chris,” the same tall blonde said, smiling widely. “I’m Emma. You’re one of us counselors?”

“Dylan, and yeah. First time,” I said shortly, trying to act calm and composed as I dropped my bag close to theirs.

But of course, having so many sets of eyes just staring at me sent my nervousness into overdrive.

“I mean, I’ve been there as a camper a couple of times years ago, but it’s my first time as a counselor.”

Oh, God, why was no one saying anything…?

“I’m kind of nervous but I’m sure it’ll be just fine.”

Polite nods. That was all I got.

“I promise I’ll do my best so not all of us need counseling once the summer is over,” I added, trying to smile but it was probably just an ugly grin.

But they laughed. Oh my fucking God, they laughed.

“Counseling. Good one,” one of the guys, a big bloke, said with a smirk.

“Not all of us?” Emma repeated with a raised eyebrow and an amused smile on her face. “So you’re saying some of us will need therapy?”

“Eh,” I only said and shrugged – I was not reopening my mouth anytime soon.

I was let off the hook as the others decided to share how many times they’d been at the Hackett’s Quarry summer camp, and how often they’d been a counselor. I was not the only first timer, thankfully, which calmed me a bit.

And soon enough, the big boss himself, Chris Hackett, showed up in a big old, dusty minivan to pick us up.

“There’s my Hacketteers!” he shouted through the open window in a cheery manner after stopping the car next to us.

“Hey Mr. Hackett!”

“Sorry I’m late,” he said as he stepped out and joined us by the curb. “I couldn’t find my shoes.”

I chuckled at his words, just like the others. Man, he had not changed much. Though, when I took a closer look at him, he seemed… older. Too much older than I remembered. It hadn’t been that many years since the last time I saw him, but he had a lot more gray in his hair and wrinkles around his eyes. He was also clearly tired, like he hadn’t slept at all. But his demeanor was still as happy as ever.

“Emma, how’s it going? Ryan! Back again, huh? Abigail, Nick, Jacob, welcome, welcome! Kaitlyn, looking as sharp as ever! And Dylan, long time no see!” Mr. Hackett greeted us all shortly with a big smile on his face, while I tried to memorize all the names. “Ready to go? There’s food waiting for us at the camp.” 

I followed the rest, tossed my bag to the back of the minivan, and moved out of the way, only to get faced by Mr. Hackett.

“Sorry Dylan, Nick. You’ll have to fight for the front seat,” he said apologetically.

I frowned and gave Nick a confused look, only to see him mimicking my expression.

“Because we’re… tallest?” I guessed since we both seemed to be the exact same height at almost six feet two, making us several inches taller than the rest.

“There’s not much room for legs at the back,” Mr. Hackett only said and wandered off.

I turned back to Nick. “You can sit in front.”

“No way, man,” Nick replied quietly. “You sit with him.”

“No, you sit with him.”

“No, you do it.”

“Ugh, what are you, ten?” said Kaitlyn, an Asian girl, rolling her eyes.

I snapped my mouth shut and shot a short glare at Nick.

“I’ll sit with him,” an African American guy, Ryan, said with a smirk and walked to the front, probably thinking we were complete idiots.

“Sure thing, boss,” I said, trying to act indifferent even though Kaitlyn’s words still echoed in my head.

Not the best first impression, I had to admit.

I ended up sitting in the back row of the minivan with Nick and Kaitlyn, the latter stuck between us since she was the smallest person in the group. There really wasn’t much room for legs, but I wasn’t complaining. Neither was Ryan, it seemed. As the minivan started moving, he chatted with Mr. Hackett like they’d known each other for years. I listened to their cheerful conversation for a bit, and quickly realized that was indeed the case.

While I was at it, I failed to notice that I was being stared at. It took me a moment to realize Emma was smiling at me. I did not, however, fail to notice the quick up-and-down look she gave me. I nodded at her shortly, feeling awkward. At least she didn’t seem to mind that I’d acted like a kid just now.

“I feel like I know you,” she suddenly said. “Have we met at the camp when we were kids?”

“Uh, maybe? I don’t know…” I said. “But I’m just as bad with names as Mr. H is finding his boots.”

“I heard that,” Mr. Hackett said, thankfully sounding amused, while the rest snickered at my words.

“Emma Mountebank? You don’t remember me?” Emma asked in a very innocent voice.

“Sorry, no,” I said.

“Hey! How about me? Jacob Custos? I got sent to the camp a lot of times,” the big bloke said, trying to turn around in his seat in his puppy-like enthusiasm, nearly squashing Abigail, who was basically the size of his leg.

“Oh…” I said, letting my smile drop in an instant. I definitely remembered that name. “Weren’t you the guy who pulled the drain plug off a boat in the middle of the lake and everyone on it had to spend the rest of the very cold day in wet shoes?”

Jacob laughed loudly. “Yeah, that’s me!”

I faked a smile. “Yeah, I remember you.”

“How do you remember something like that, but not me?” Emma asked, trying to pull the conversation back to her.

“It was a very, very cold day,” I only said.

“Don’t be mad at me. I had wet shoes too,” Jacob said, smirking.

“Don’t get on a boat with me,” I told him. “Not without a spare pair of shoes.”

He and everyone else laughed.

So. I had one girl checking me out, and another thinking I was ten. I’d already had a small quarrel with one of the guys, and I got to spend two whole months with the annoying camp bully from my childhood.

I let out a deep sigh, letting my head drop down in defeat. This camp sure was going to be interesting. At least people seemed to like my jokes. I didn’t even know I could be funny, so that was a plus.

“What band is that on your shirt?” Emma asked, and I assumed she was still trying to get my attention since I was indeed wearing a band shirt.

But when I looked up, I spotted Ryan watching me behind Emma with a small, crooked smile on his lips. He slowly looked away when our eyes met.

Oh, fuck…

“Dylan?” Emma leaned a bit closer.

“Oh, uh…?” I glanced at my shirt, then at her.

“The name is literally the only thing on his shirt,” Kaitlyn told her sharply, stealing the words right out of my mouth.

“I couldn’t see it well,” Emma said without losing an inch of her confidence.

I suffocated a sigh and stole a glimpse of Ryan, but he was now back to talking with Mr. Hackett, so I looked away.

I had a… bit of bad news for Emma.

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Chapter Text

-Dylan-

The summer didn’t really start so badly after all. Us counselors spent a few days alone without the kids while Mr. Hackett showed us the ropes and gave us our tasks and shifts for the summer. The sucky part was that two of the counselors never showed up, so the remaining seven of us had to take their shifts as well. It was cool though, since as an activities assistant, it gave me the opportunity to help the others with their jobs and get to know everyone a bit better.

Another bummer was that Mr. Hackett wouldn’t let us keep our phones because he despised technology. In his words, he didn’t want us to get distracted by them. It wasn’t easy to get used to not having my phone. It was like living without a hand.

But what really sucked the most was the one-on-one meeting we all had to go through with Mr. Hackett. Mine was on the third day after our arrival, and I dreaded it. I mean, Mr. H was cool, and I liked him, but interviews in general made me uncomfortable. Well, it wasn’t an interview per se, but a meeting, nonetheless. A meeting where I had to talk.

I stepped into Mr. Hackett’s office when my time arrived, trying to stay cool and positive. He just wanted to make sure I wouldn’t fuck up, that’s all. Nothing to worry about.

While I took a seat, he walked around his desk and sat down in his chair, keeping his eyes on me. That did not help with my nerves. Like at all. I wished he’d look away, but no. And the worst part was that he had an expression that told me he was not going to talk about my job at the campsite.

“Dylan Lenivy,” he muttered, leaning against his desk.

“That’s me, looking as handsome as ever,” I blurted out.

Mr. Hackett chuckled shortly, then leaned back in his seat. “And healthy,” he said, and my stomach dropped. “How are things with you?”

“Fine, fine, just… just fine. You know, a leap year and all that. Taking time off to smell the flowers and figure out what to do next,” I said.

“Is that why you came here?” he asked.

“What are you, my shrink?” I joked, then tried to calm down and stop being an idiot. “Yeah, I kind of missed this place. I’ve made good memories here.”

He nodded slowly. “I was surprised to see your name on the applications. It’s been… How many years?”

“Many,” I mumbled. “Wait, you remembered my name?”

“There are… cases… I’ll never forget,” he said, and leaned back toward me. “It’s really good to see you,” he added, stressing every word.

I did not miss what he was trying to imply. 

“Yeah, same,” I said, wondering if this could get any more awkward. “So! Weren’t you going to give me ten tips on how not to traumatize the kids?”

“Not so fast, champ,” he said with a chuckle, but his expression turned serious right away. “I wanted to let you know I am here for each and every one of you if you need an adult to talk to. An older adult. Since you’re all grown up now too, I’m not going to pretend I didn’t have my suspicions that something was going on back when–”

“I’m not a case,” I said a bit too sharply, so I took a breath before adding in a softer tone, “Thanks for your concern, but nothing was going on. I’m fine.”

Again, he nodded slowly. “I can see that, but my offer still stands.”

“I’m fine,” I repeated. “How about those ten tips?”

“Sure,” he said, sitting back up.

The rest of the meeting was fine, though I didn’t like the way he sometimes looked at me. Like he was surprised to see me still alive. If I’d known he still remembered me, I wouldn’t have come here. I guess. Maybe.

But to be honest, when he finally let me go and I stepped into the sunny yard and saw all these strangers who didn’t know me, it felt… refreshing. Here, I could be whoever I wanted to be. If I wanted to act like the happiest, most carefree person on earth, no one would question it. Well, except for Mr. Hackett, I suppose, but I couldn’t care less.

I took in a deep breath, trying to shake the word, case, off my mind. The past didn’t matter, and now I was building a future for myself. I was going to have a fun, interesting summer, and I wasn’t going to let anyone take that away from me.  

Speaking of interesting…

Ryan walked down the pathway to the lodge, heading toward the staircase I just climbed down.

“Hey, Ryan!” I said. “What’s up?”

“Nothing much,” he spoke, slowing down but never stopping. “I need to talk to Chris – Mr. Hackett – so…?”

“Oh, yeah, sure. He should be still in his office,” I said, and he nodded before continuing his way to the stairs.

This guy… I only saw him when we were working, but once we were free to go, he simply vanished. I hadn’t had a single opportunity to talk to him, not when there were people around, and definitely not alone.

I was tempted to stay where I was and wait for him, or at least follow him to see where he went to hide from us – he really didn’t seem to enjoy company – but I heard voices approaching me from another direction.  

I held back a sigh and faked a smile when I turned around to face Emma and Abigail. “Hey guys.”

“Hey Dylan! How did it go with Mr. Hackett?” Emma asked.

“It was… cool,” I said.

“Cool! Come, sit with us,” Emma said with a wide smile and grabbed my hand on her way to the closest seating area.

“I was uh… I… Sure,” I mumbled in defeat and followed her.

I wasn’t surprised when Emma started asking questions, keeping her tone light and flirty. I gave her vague answers mostly in a joking manner, feeling a bit guilty for not letting her know I was gay as fuck. I just wasn’t comfortable sharing that information with a whole bunch of people I didn’t know. Two months was a hell of a long time in case things went to shit.

I also did feel bad for Abigail. She did not get to say a word, and she got bored enough to grab a sketchbook from her bag. I quickly took advantage of that to get away from Emma and her interrogation.

“So you do art?” I asked Abigail, and she did a little jump in her seat like I’d scared her.

“Y-yeah,” she said, brushing her long, red bangs behind her ear.

“Cool. Can I see?” I asked, peering at her sketchbook.

“Uh… Sure,” she said, perking up a little as she showed me her recent art. The drawing was really, really good.

“Wow, you’re good,” I said and grinned. “You should paint me like one of your French girls.”

“Uh… Sorry?” she asked timidly.

“It’s uh… meme,” I said apologetically. “But you are really good.”

“Thanks,” she said, blushing lightly.

“She’s super talented, isn’t she?” Emma said and patted Abigail’s back. “Maybe you could draw me sometime?”

“Hey, the line starts here,” I joked, and was glad to hear Abigail laugh a little. She did seem really shy.

“I saw her first,” Emma said, chuckling.

We had a short battle over who would get to be the first model, and I had the feeling we both kept going just because Abigail found it amusing. Making people laugh – especially the shy ones – was actually fun.

“Fine, fine, ladies first,” I finally said, and Emma flashed a victorious smile at me.

“Hear that? I’ll be your first!” Emma declared, hugging her friend with one arm.

“You do hear what that sounds like?” I asked.

Abigail blushed, so she definitely understood what I meant. Emma just laughed, but then gave me a stern stare, still smiling.

“Is that what you want it to sound like?” she asked quietly, and Abigail blushed harder. “Does that rock your boat?”

“O-oh no, no, no, that’s n-not what I… meant… I wouldn’t…” I stammered on, but she wasn’t letting me off the hook.

“Do you have something against lesbians?”

“No. No. Definitely not,” I said. “I was just joking,” I added, gaining back a little of my composure.

“Good,” she said, her smile turning friendly again. “I was just joking too.”

“You’re evil,” I told her, but she only laughed.

“Come on, I just wanted to see you squirm. But do you really not watch…?” she trailed off, probably just to spare Abigail.

“No,” I said sternly.

“Hmm,” she said and leaned back in her chair, watching me so closely I tried to come up with an excuse to leave.

But I forgot all about that when Ryan stepped out of the lodge and made a tight turn away from us. I tried to guess where he was heading based on the direction he took, but I got interrupted.

“Dylan?”

“Hmm?” I turned to look at Emma – I’d heard her speak, but had no idea what she said.

She raised her eyebrow at me, then peered at Ryan, then looked back at me.

“ Oh …” she breathed out quietly. “I see.”

Fuck…

“You see what?” Abigail asked in confusion.

“Me in that cute summer dress when you draw me,” Emma said without missing a beat.

“The one you showed me? That is pretty,” Abigail agreed and went through her bag to find a pencil. “Do you really want me to draw you?”

“Of course!” Emma said, giving her a short glance before turning her eyes back to me.

And as I watched, she lifted her hand, pinched her thumb and index finger together, then ran them across her lips to let me know my secret was safe with her. I wanted to believe her. She seemed like a nice person, but I didn’t actually know her.

“I wonder where Jacob is,” she then said.

I laughed at her words.

Chapter Text

-Ryan Erzahler-

“Hey, Ryan! What’s up?”

I slowed down my step when I heard someone calling for me and looked around. Dylan stood at the bottom of the stairs, watching me with a friendly smile.

“Nothing much,” I told him, hoping that was enough of an answer but fearing he’d want to stay and chat, so I continued before he could say a word. “I need to talk to Chris – Mr. Hackett – so…?”

“Oh, yeah, sure. He should still be in his office,” he said, looking a tad bit disappointed.

I nodded and walked around him to get to the stairs. Maybe if I hadn’t been busy, I could’ve stayed for a bit and see what he wanted, but… I was glad I was busy. The guy was all right, I guess, they all were, but this one in particular was a bit too… hyper. Not in a bad way, but a certain set of mind was required in order to be around him, and now I definitely did not have enough mental energy for that.

I entered the lodge and headed to Chris’ office. The door was open, so I knocked on it and peered in.

“Ryan! Everything all right, sport?” Chris greeted me with a smile and got off his chair.

“Yeah, yeah, I was just going through some equipment at the boathouse and I found a couple of life vests in bad shape. I don’t think we have enough good ones.”

“Oh, darn it, you’re right. I completely forgot to replace them,” Chris said with a heavy sigh. “I’ll put someone get new ones. Was everything else OK?”

“Yeah, I think so. I can double check for you,” I said.

“Thanks. You’re a lifesaver,” Chris said with a chuckle. “Don’t know what I’d do without sharp eyes like yours.”

I shrugged. “It’s no big deal, really. Hey, uh… Do you mind if I call Sarah? I’m kind of having separation anxiety…”

“Yeah, go ahead. Tell her I said hi,” Chris said and headed to the door. “I’ll go deal with the vest situation before I forget. Again. Make sure to lock the door when you leave, okay?”

“Sure,” I said and waited until he was gone before sitting down next to the phone that was way older than me. I dialed the number, hoping Sarah wasn’t too busy to pick up, but it only took a moment before I heard her voice on the other end of the line. “Hey, sis, it’s me.”

“Ryan! What number is this?”

“It’s the lodge’s – didn’t I tell you to save this number in case of emergencies?” I asked.

“Oops…”

“Sarah…”

“I promise I’ll save it right after this,” she said and chuckled. “What’s up?”

I let out a deep sigh, making sure she heard it. “I still need to give you a lecture before we can change the subject.”

“Come on!” she groaned, but sounded amused. “I still have the number written down somewhere. It’s no big deal!”

“ Somewhere ?” I repeated.

“How is the camp?” she asked sternly. “Are you having fun?”

“I’m not here to have fun. I’m here to work,” I reminded her. “But… it’s nice to see the Hackett family again.”

“Come on, why can’t you have a little bit of fun on the side? You never have fun!” she exclaimed.

“I could have fun, but every time I turn my back on you for five minutes, you get yourself in trouble,” I said, fighting back a smile.

“I’m not that bad,” she said with a snort.

“Uh-huh. Maybe I should ask grandma about that?”

“You could, but she’s not home right now.”

“What a coincidence.”

“I know right? Speaking of fun, have you met anyone cute yet?”

“Sarah… I am here to work,” I repeated.

Fifteen-year-olds…

“You can still have a hot summer fling,” she said. “Come on! Live a little! Have fun! Hook up with someone hot! I’m begging you!”

“I feel bad enough for dumping you to our grandparents for two whole months,” I said quietly.

“Excuse me, but wasn’t it me who practically had to force you to go? I want you to be there. I know you love that place, and I’m old enough to start taking care of myself. I really just want you to have fun!”

“But–”

“No buts. I’ll be fine with Grandma and Grandpa.”

“But–”

She laughed. “Just have fun, okay? Enjoy the fact that I’m not your responsibility for two whole months.”

“But you are.”

Now she sighed. “Ryan… You’re supposed to be my brother, not my parent. I want it that way.”

I stared in front of me for a moment, then sighed as well. “All right, fine. I’ll try to have a little bit of fun.”

“Great! And get that summer fling! You deserve it.”

I chuckled at her words. “I can’t make any promises.”

“Why not? No hot people?”

“If you must know, it’s the other way around,” I told her jokingly. “Too many hot people.”

“Okay now I’m jealous,” she said, playing along. “Who’s the hottest?”

“Haven’t decided yet,” I said. “There’s a couple of really tall guys though.”

“Oh? Legs reaching up to their necks?”

“You know it.”

“ Nice. Go climb those poles!” she said.

I laughed, then let out a deep breath. “I’m going to miss you,” I told her. “But I’ll try to have fun. You take care of yourself, okay? I’ll ask Chris if I can call you every now and then so I can hear about your summer.”

“Two months will be over fast,” she said reassuringly. “But I hope he lets you call me. And next time I hear from you, you better have climbed at least one pole.”

“Oh my God…” I muttered, rolling my eyes in amusement. “I’ll… do my best, but I’m pretty sure the guys are straight.”

“There’s still the girls,” Sarah said, clearly never giving up on this.

“Sure, sure… I should probably get going. I’ll try to call you soon,” I told her.

“I’ll be waiting,” she replied and told me goodbye, and with a heavy heart, I hung up.

I stayed seated and stared at the phone. I hoped Sarah would be just fine with our grandparents. It was never easy to leave her alone for too long, and now I’d be away for the entire summer. I knew she was right, and that I should be more of a brother to her, not a parent, but that wasn’t easy either.

Not after all this time…

I got up with a sigh and left the room, locking the door behind me. I spotted Jacob with Nick at the other side of the lounge, goofing around. I watched Nick for a moment, thinking about what Sarah had said, but honestly, I wasn’t interested in flings. Not even when they had a very nice Australian accent, dark eyes, and dark, curly hair.

I quietly exited the lodge, and spotted Dylan with Emma and Abigail sitting under the trees. I quickly continued walking away from them, because my God, I could not handle both Dylan and Emma at the same time.

If I was going to do what Sarah said and hook up with someone in this place, it would probably be Abigail, the cute, quiet, artsy girl.

I shook my head to get rid of those thoughts. I was here to work, that’s all.

I managed to get away from the lodge without getting followed by anyone, but when the boathouse came to my view, Kaitlyn stepped in the middle of the pathway up ahead, waving at me.

“Ryan! What’s up?”

I suffocated a sigh and conjured a smile on my face instead. “Nothing much. What’s up?”

“Just following your example and hiding from everyone else,” she said. “I thought the little kids would arrive later, but instead, they’re my coworkers.”

“I… probably shouldn’t laugh at that,” I said slowly.

“You don’t have to. It wasn’t a joke,” she said, nudging her head toward the boathouse, and we continued walking. “I’ll let you hang out with me, though. For as long as there isn’t going to be any butt jokes.”

“O-kay,” I said with a smirk. “I guess I’ll hang out with you then.”

“Sorry, did you have something else to do?” she asked.

“No, no, just going through the equipment at the boathouse. You know, making sure everything is all right for the campers. And double checking the drain plugs on boats.”

“You might want to glue them in,” she agreed and smiled.

“You think Jacob will steal them again?”

“I know he will. I’ve known him for ages,” she said.

“Huh. Didn’t think you’d be friends with him.”

“Who said anything about being friends? We simply tolerate each other.”

I took a better look at her. “I… see.”

“So, boathouse?” she asked. “Do you need help?”

“You don’t have anything better to do?” I asked, and she shrugged.

“I already was helping at the nurse’s office earlier today,” she explained. “Now I have nothing to do.”

“Nurse’s office?” I repeated just to be polite.

“Yeah. I wasn’t supposed to be helping there, but since that Kearney girl and her boyfriend never showed up, I volunteered. Should be doable on top of coordinating the activities, which is my original task.”

“She was supposed to be helping the nurse?”

“Yup. A vet student or something.”

“Huh… I wonder why they never showed up,” I said.

“Me too.”

We reached the boathouse, and she actually did stay to help me go through the equipment one more time. Didn’t even complain once. I didn’t even mind how straight-forward she was because she was… actually a pretty chill girl.

And I didn’t mind hanging out with her.

Chapter Text

-Dylan-

“Let’s put the boxes up in the radio hut,” Mr. H said, gesturing for me and Jacob to follow him.

We all grabbed boxes full of new spare parts from the trunk of his car and headed to the gray wooden building behind the cabins. I waited at the bottom of the stairs leading up to the door while Mr. H opened the lock. When he pushed the door open, we were immediately greeted by thick, dusty air.

I remembered the place from my childhood, but back then, it had been mostly used for storage. I climbed up the stairs and stopped to stare at the radio hut. Well… Radio shack. No. Radio dump.

“Awesome,” I muttered and stepped in, my footsteps softened by a layer of dust.

There were boxes and power tools and empty bottles and canisters and old cabinets full of papers and spare parts everywhere, and the radio itself was tugged away in the back corner on top of a rickety desk. Absolutely everything was covered in a thick layer of dirt and leaves and poop and whatever else the critters of the forest had dragged in. I looked around and spotted a broken window, assuming that was how the animals had gotten in during the off season.

“Just leave them by the door. I need to get that window fixed…” Mr. H said and sighed. “Was this everything?”

“Yeah,” said Jacob, while I made my way to the broadcasting equipment.

“Let’s get going then,” Mr. H said, but I was way too fascinated to leave. “Dylan?”

“I remember we had our own radio broadcasts here when I was a kid,” I spoke out loud.

“No one has used the radio in years,” Mr. H said. “I doubt it still works.”

I cleared some of the dust off the buttons and connected a couple of the loose wires. I heard Mr. H walking closer to me.

“Do you… know how to use it?” he asked in surprise.

“I uh…” I turned a couple of knobs, hoping my memory wasn’t failing me. Then I hit the broadcast button, and the speakers on the roof came to life.

“You do ,” Mr. H said, sounding even more surprised. “How? This thing is older than you!”

I let go of the button. “I… just picked it up, I guess,” I muttered, not really interested in admitting I loved old gadgets.

“I was sure it wouldn’t work anymore,” Mr. H said, stepping next to me.

“You know, we could use it to play music on the PA system and radios and make announcements, just like we used to,” I said.

“And who would do that?” Mr. H asked me. “We’re already short staffed.”

“I don’t know. Maybe someone wants to volunteer on top of their own tasks,” I said with a shrug.

“Great! I’m glad you volunteered,” Mr. H said with a big smile, patting my shoulder. “It’s all yours, but don’t forget your other duties.”

“Huh? What? Me?” I asked with wide eyes, and Jacob laughed.

“You’re loud and quick with words. Giving announcements is a job best suited for you, I’m sure,” he said. “And you can work on the schedules while the music is playing. It’s a perfect combination.”

“M-me?” I repeated. My social anxiety was kicking in fast. “I didn’t–”

“Our very own DJ Dylan,” Mr. H said.

Fuckkkk…

I turned to look around, and spotted Jacob smirking at me. He knew I hated the idea. He thought I’d decline. He thought I couldn’t do it.

“Okay, yeah, sure, I’ll do it,” I said to Mr. H. “It’ll be fun.”

“Atta boy!” he said, then glanced around in the dusty, dirty hut. “Looks like you have your work cut out for you if you want to get this place cleaned. I’ll ask my kids to help you out. I completely forgot that darn window last fall…”

“You don’t have to do that. I’m sure Kaylee and Caleb have better things to do, and I still have a few days before the campers arrive,” I told him. His kids were great and all, but this was actually a good opportunity for me and my nerves to get some alone time.

“You sure?”

“Yeah, I’m sure,” I said as reassuringly as possible. “I don’t mind working alone.”

“Not used to having so many people around?” he guessed.

“Nope,” I muttered, peering at the closest pile of boxes.

“Okay then. Let me know if you change your mind. And if you need anything,” he told me, and stepped to the door with Jacob on his heel.

“A heavy-duty vacuum cleaner, perhaps? And chlorine. Or, you know, matches,” I said, looking around again.

“Do not burn my place down,” he said, but smirked at me. “I’ll pay you extra for cleaning this place, don’t worry. I’ll tell someone to bring you whatever you need.”

“Thanks. Uh… Where do I put all this?” I asked, pointing at the boxes and tools.

“Sorry, sport. It all has to stay here. I don’t have room elsewhere,” he said. “I would’ve gotten rid of this hut a long time ago if it wasn’t so convenient as storage.”

“Gotcha,” I said with a nod, and hid another sigh from him.

“Good man. Better get at it,” he told me, and left.

“Sure,” I muttered, and turned to face the chaos.

While I waited for the cleaning equipment to be brought to me, I carefully checked out the boxes and tried to figure out how to organize everything. The wonky cabinets had to be fixed asap, as well as the big desk in the corner, and the window. By the time Mr. H’s kids brought me what I needed, I had some kind of plan on how to proceed.

And fuck me, it was a task and a half to clean the place. By the time the sun was setting, I’d only managed to clean enough so I wouldn’t get tetanus or salmonella. I hadn’t even started organizing the place, and the radio itself was still untouched.

But I was happy with my progress, nonetheless. No trash, bird poop, or leaves anywhere. It was a good place to continue the first thing the next morning.

Once I was ready to call it a day, I went to take a quick shower and then headed to the beach, where we normally gathered around by a firepit in the evenings. Abi, Nick, and Jacob were already there, the latter two wrestling in the shallow water while Abi was drawing something by the fire. I chose to sit down on the sand close to her.

“What’s up?” I asked.

“I’m coming up with ideas for my classes,” she said in excitement and showed me an opening in her sketchbook that was filled with cute little doodles of animals.

“You’re teaching art, right?” I said.

“Yup.”

“Cool. Maybe I get to help you out here and there,” I said. “I can’t hold a pen, but I can create wicked abstract art.”

“Really?” she asked with wide eyes.

“Yeah, take a brush, dip it in paint, and toss it on the canvas, right?”

She laughed at my words. “Well…”

“No?”

I never got her reply since Jacob and Nick joined us, dripping water everywhere. They were both breathing heavily, but they seemed to be having fun.

“Hey, Abi,” Nick waved at her with a small smile and went to sit on the other side of the firepit.

“Hey, Nick.” Abi smiled back at him, looking really shy.

Such a cute duo…

“What? Don’t I get a hi?” I asked.

“Eh…” was Nick’s reply.

“I’ve been rolling in bird poop so you guys get to listen to actual music this summer, and I’m not even getting a hello?” I spoke, acting dramatic.

“Wouldn’t call that stuff you listen to ‘actual music’,” Jacob retorted.

“Just like I wouldn’t call your face an actual face,” I threw back, and grimaced at myself. But I had to make it worse. “Sorry, but it looks more like a butt.”

“Of course it’s butt jokes,” spoke Kaitlyn in an annoyed voice somewhere behind us, so I glanced over my shoulder to see her, Emma, and Ryan walking to us.

Oh, good, Ryan heard what I said. That was my cue to roll over and die.

“What does bird poop have to do with music?” Abigail asked.

“Mr. H gave me a new task,” I said, acting much more cheerful than I felt about it. “I’ll be manning the radio this summer, but I have to clean the place first. Bunch of birds have used it as their nesting site.”

“Do we get radio broadcasts like we used to years ago?” Emma asked in excitement.

“Yes, exactly,” I said.

“Does it still work?” asked Ryan when he sat oh so close to me on the log bench.

“It does need some maintenance, but it works,” I said, trying to stay cool.

“Mr. H thought it was broken, too, but Dylan fixed it in, like, seconds,” Jacob told them.

“Really?”

“No, it wasn’t broken,” I said with a shrug, not sure if Jacob was going to make fun of me or not. “Just missed a few wires, that’s all.”

“Still impressive,” Jacob said.

I squinted my eyes at him, but he turned to talk to Nick.

What a weird guy…

“So we’re getting music?” Emma asked with an excited smile.

“Yup. Good music, no camp songs,” I said with a smirk.

I was actually getting into the idea now, especially since these guys seemed excited about it. And I sure loved music. Not a big fan of making the announcements, though.

“Getting announcements will make things easier too,” Ryan added. “Good job getting it to work again.”

I suddenly didn’t find the announcements annoying anymore.

“Don’t worry, my announcements will kick ass,” I promised.

“More like suck ass,” Jacob said with a grin.

“You can suck my ass,” I retorted.

“Yeah, in your dreams, buddy,” he only said.

“Oh my God, would you guys just grow up?” Kaitlyn asked and scoffed hard.

“Sorry, no can do,” I said with a shrug.

She rolled her eyes and went to sit as far away from me as possible, while the others chuckled at my words – even Ryan. I smirked and leaned back against the log bench, taking in a deep, content breath.

I guess I’d found my calling. At least for the summer.

Chapter Text

-Ryan-

The last day before the kids would arrive was our day off. None of us really had much to do, anyway, and Chris wanted us to relax and charge our batteries before the real work started. I didn’t really know what to do with all that time, though. I had hidden my phone from Chris, but the service was nearly useless at best, so I couldn’t exactly watch YouTube or anything.

After a long walk around the Hackett’s property to pass my morning, I ended up sitting behind the cabins, away from the sun to cool off. I heard voices close by, but didn’t pay much attention to them. Just the girls chatting about college.

I’d grown to hate that topic. School. It made me uneasy since I couldn’t decide what to do with my future education. I wanted to continue with studies, especially since I got accepted to study animation, but that would mean leaving Sarah with our grandparents since I couldn’t just force her to leave her life behind. It wasn’t fair to her, and I’d also miss out on her last years as a teenager.

I pushed the thought out of my head. I had time to decide. I didn’t need to figure things out today, or this month, or this year.

I could just not decide. Ever…

I leaned my head against the wall and closed my eyes, trying to enjoy the peace and quiet in the cool shade. It didn’t last long.

“Oh, hi!”

I breathed out and turned to see Dylan approaching me. How did he find me?

“Hello,” I said slowly.

“I swear I’m not stalking you. I was going to check out the radio tower and spotted you,” he said, gesturing at the tall mast next to the radio hut behind him.

“What’s up?” I asked when he stopped a few feet away from me.

“Nothing much,” he said with a smirk. “Do you mind having company? It’s really hot…”

Like there was any way for me to tell him I didn’t want company without getting the reputation of a massive dick. Everyone else seemed to really like the guy – except maybe for Kaitlyn – so if I didn’t want a lot of enemies in this place, I had to be nice to him.

Besides, since everyone else liked him, maybe it was time for me to try to find out why he was so charming. At least he was cute with his big, brown eyes, short brown hair he had flipped to the side, and a kind smile. And my god, he had limbs for days… I even spotted a tattoo of a wolf’s head on his left arm that was half realistic, half geometric.

“Have a seat,” I said and smiled.

“Thanks. Don’t worry, I have to get back to work soon, so I won’t annoy you for too long,” he said as he sat down in the shadows next to me.

“Why would you think I’m annoyed by you?” I asked out of curiosity.

“Dude, you have an impressive resting bitch face,” he said with a chuckle. “Like you’re trying to decide whether to use my head as a football or an anchor.”

I had to smile at his words. “Anchor, definitely. Perfect to keep the boat still,” I said.

“It’s not that big,” he said.

“No, but your mouth is,” I said tentatively, and felt relieved when he laughed. “But you’re not annoying me,” I added.

“Give it a minute,” he said and grinned.

“I think I can last longer than a minute,” I said, and stopped to ask myself why I was saying such things.

In the meantime, Dylan was biting his lips together, looking almost constipated.

I snorted in amusement. “Go ahead. I know what you want to say.”

He shook his head, relaxed his expression, and took in a deep breath, closing his eyes. “No, I shall not. I will be mature, and gracious, and act like an adult.”

“Uh-huh, sure,” I said.

He was silent for long enough for me to believe he wasn’t actually going for it, but then…

“That’s what he said,” he muttered, then slapped his hand over his mouth. “Fuck…”

I laughed, and I wasn’t even sure why.

“Sorry, that wasn’t even a good one,” he said after lowering his hand.

“And your… butt jokes are?” I asked.

“Hey,” he said sternly. “I’m basically a ten-year-old, so you can’t demand too much from me. Besides, butt jokes are God’s gift to creation.”

“Yeah, sure…”

“One day, I will make a butt joke good enough to make even Kaitlyn laugh,” he said confidently.

“I don’t know man, she really doesn’t seem to appreciate butt jokes,” I told him.

“We will see about that,” he only said. “So! Are you ready to take on the responsibility of not causing permanent damage to the little campers’ mental health tomorrow?”

“I think I am. Are you?”

He shrugged. “I’ll try my best.”

“It’s your first time, right?”

“Yup. How about you?”

“I’ve been coming here for years,” I only said.

“Yeah, I noticed you know Mr. H pretty well,” he said, giving me a curious look. “Any dark secrets I should know about?”

“No,” I said. “Mr. Hackett is a good man.”

“Everyone has their dark secrets,” he said.

“Do you… have dark secrets?” I asked, and he leaned closer to me.

“Like I said, everyone has,” he said in a sinister voice.

“I’m… not sure if I like the sound of that,” I said with a frown.

“I’m kidding,” he said, flashing a smile at me.

“I don’t know if I should believe you,” I said slowly, but he only laughed.

“You wouldn’t believe me if I told you,” he said with a wink. “But now my minute is up. I should go check out that tower.”

“You mean… on the ground, right?” I asked, peering at the very tall radio tower.

“Yeah, sure,” he said and got up. “Talk to you later.”

I watched him walk across the yard to the radio hut and stop to peer up at the top of the tower. For a moment, I really thought he’d try to climb up, but after checking out the base and the ground around it, he turned his back on it. Instead, he headed to the ladder that led up to the roof of the radio hut.

And he started climbing.

I hurried up on my feet. “Hey! I don’t think you should go up there!” I shouted as I made my way to him.

“What? Why not?” Dylan asked, a few steps above the ground.

“It’s not safe,” I told him when I stopped next to the ladder.

“Come on, I only need to check the wires,” he said, and continued climbing. “I’m not going on the roof.”

I let out a loud sigh, looking around, hoping to see Chris somewhere so he’d put an end to this.

“Maybe… Maybe you should wait. Let someone else do it,” I said, but it was already too late since he had nearly reached the roof.

“I’ll be fine,” he said too nonchalantly.

This was exactly how Sarah always got herself in trouble, or in a hospital…

“Just… Be careful,” I said.

As I watched, he stopped when the top of his head was on the same level as the highest part of the roof, then wrapped his right arm around the ladder, and reached toward the wires coming out of the wall on his left.

“Just a little more…” he muttered, leaning even further to his left.

“Man…” I sighed, trying not to be the overly cautious adult, but failed. “Why do you even need to see them?”

“There must be something loose…” he replied. “Ah! Found it!”

I let out a deep breath when he reconnected the wire, then started climbing back down. When he was safely on the ground and stood in front of me, he flashed a big smile at me.

“See? Didn’t get myself killed,” he said.

I just shook my head. “Don’t do that again,” I said and turned my back on him. “At least not when I’m around. I don’t want Chris to get mad at me for allowing you to get hurt.”

“Allowing?” he repeated. “Uh, you’re not the boss of me. And why would he get mad at you?”

“Look, I just don’t want to disappoint him, all right? He trusts me to keep an eye out for him,” I told him after turning around.

“I wasn’t that high up,” he said, keeping his tone neutral.

“You were almost ten feet off the ground!” I said, but then took a deep breath, trying not to get more frustrated with him. “I just don’t think we should be taking unnecessary risks. Especially since we’re already short staffed.”

He stared at me for a moment, then raised his hands. “All right, all right, I’m sorry. You’re right, and I won’t do it again,” he said softly. “But I think you should loosen up a bit.”

“Sorry, no can do,” I only said, and walked away.

Or at least I tried to.

“Ryan… Come on…”

I didn’t need to look over my shoulder to know he was following me. I wanted to keep going because I feared seeing his face would only make me more agitated, but it was the quiet plead in his voice that slowed me down.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t think it through, and I’m sorry,” he spoke, catching up with me.

I let out a sigh. “No, I’m… I’m sorry. I… have a bad habit of… overreacting,” I muttered.

He raised his hands dismissively. “So we’re cool?”

“Yeah, we’re cool,” I said, feeling awkward for getting all grown-up on him. He was an adult, too.

“Cool. And I don’t want you to get in trouble with Mr. H. If I do stupid shit, I’ll make sure you’re not around,” he said with a playful smirk.

“I’d rather not have you do stupid shit at all, but I guess I’ll take what I can,” I said.

“Well, since you asked nicely, I’ll see what I can do,” he said.

I sighed, then laughed at his words. “Thanks.”

“Don’t mention it,” he said, and turned back around to return to the radio hut.

I watched after him for a short moment.

The charm was definitely there…

Looking for more to read? Visit my website www.dollygrand.com

Chapter Text

-Dylan-

I was a nervous wreck the next morning when I got out of bed, and it only grew worse when I joined the other counselors for breakfast. The kids would arrive later that day. How was I supposed to not fuck them up mentally? How was I supposed to not fuck up? I’d never been responsible for so many kids all at once before!

What if I fucked up bad…? Like, really bad? Like the worst way bad? Like someone leaves this place in a body bag bad?

I was almost nauseated. Even seeing food made my stomach turn, but I acted brave and tried to get at least a few bites down. No one else seemed to have the same problem. On the contrary. Everyone else was excited to meet the kids.

I tried to find comfort in the thought that I’d spend a lot of time alone in the radio hut. At least I couldn’t get anyone killed by playing music.

“Not hungry?”

I peered at Ryan, who sat close by, and realized we were the only two left at the table. I wanted to make a joke, but my mind was shooting blanks. There was nothing but dread and misery up in my noggin.

“Yeah…” was all I could muster.

“You’ll be fine, Dylan,” he said quietly. “You’re helping out as an activities assistant, right?”

I nodded and turned to stare at my sandwich.

“That means you’ll rarely be alone with the kids. There’s usually another counselor with you. If you run into trouble, you can always ask for help. Everyone here will be glad to give you a hand, so don’t be shy,” he spoke in a calming manner. “And if you find yourself alone with the kids, just make sure everyone stays together, and bring them back to the lodge if things get overwhelming.”

I nodded slowly as I listened to him.

“And if you ever have doubts or concerns, you can and should go talk to Chris – Mr. Hackett – about it. I’m sure you can work something out with him if needed,” he said.

“Or he’ll kick me out,” I said and sighed – I was not able to keep my dark thoughts private in that state of mind, which made me a bit embarrassed.

“He won’t,” he said reassuringly. “Just take a deep breath. You won’t fuck up,” he added.

“What if they hate me…?” I muttered.

“Nah,” he said and smiled. “You’ll be their favorite counselor with your butt jokes in no time.”

I laughed a little, and took a deep breath, like he’d asked.

“Suddenly the announcements don’t seem so scary anymore,” I admitted.

“Kids are just tiny people,” Ryan said. “They’re not scary at all, as you will soon learn.”

“Tiny, squishy people…”

“Accidents happen sometimes, but we don’t have dangerous activities around here,” he said, his voice still staying calm and soothing. “Like I said, it’s unlikely you’ll be left alone with them, especially in the beginning. You’ll be fine.”

I took another deep breath, my body finally relaxing a little. “Thanks for the pep talk. I needed that.”

“Anytime,” he said. “Now you should try to eat. We have a long day ahead of us.”

I nodded and noticed his empty plate. Had he stayed for me…? It didn’t even look like he was going to leave before I was done. He just sat there, his arms crossed on the table, looking out the window.

“So you’ve been a counselor how many times?” I asked.

“A few,” he said. “Eat.”

I grabbed my sandwich and took a bite, suddenly feeling hungry.

“I thought I’d die from nervousness on my very first day,” he continued, surprising me. “But it went well, and I had fun. I had great work friends I could count on, just like you have now.”

“Did you ever have any accidents or something like that with the kids?”

He glanced at my breakfast like making sure I was still eating before he replied.

“There’s always someone who falls down the stairs or gets scratches or bruises in the forest or while playing – that’s why we have a nurse on site – but never anything serious,” he said. “Maybe a couple of broken bones…”

“Ugh…”

He smirked at me. “That is how things go with kids. They’re rowdy and full of restless energy that gets them in unnecessary trouble.”

“You sound like you have experience with that,” I said tentatively, but he didn’t take the bait.

“Maybe.”

“I can’t see you being rowdy or getting yourself in unnecessary trouble.”

“Maybe that’s my dark secret,” he said.

“Maybe I want to learn more?”

“Eat,” he said sternly. “You definitely were rowdy and got yourself in unnecessary trouble.”

I snorted. “Nope.”

“No?”

I shook my head slowly, and looked away, my childhood memories lurking close by. “No…”

“And there is your dark secret,” he said quietly, watching me closely.

“Where?”

He shook his head. “Never mind. Eat.”

“I am eating,” I said, and took a big bite of the sandwich. “See?”

He laughed lightly.

A few more bites later, I was done with my breakfast. We went to put the dishes away and headed outside to find everyone else.

“Feeling better?” he asked when we stepped through the main door.

“I wasn’t nervous,” I said in a joking manner. “Like, at all.”

“Uh-huh,” he said with a smirk.

“Okay maybe I was freaking out, but…” I continued. “But, yeah, I do feel a lot better now.”

“Good,” he said. “And if you want, I can stay close by. For moral support.”

“Yeah, I’d like that,” I admitted. “But there will be a lot of butt jokes.”

He let out a dramatic sigh. “I guess that is the price I have to pay in order to be a good coworker.”

“Seriously though… Thanks,” I said quietly.

“Don’t mention it,” he said.

We found the rest of our group gathered around in the middle of the cabins, so we joined them. Ryan kept his promise and stood next to me, even after Mr. H arrived to make sure we and everything else was ready for the campers.

And two hours later, the bus arrived, bringing the kids. Thankfully, we were going to stay together for the day. First were the introductions and getting everyone settled in their designated cabins, and then we showed them around. I stayed close to Ryan the entire time, even though I didn’t really have to do or say anything. But I needed it. It was easier to get used to the swarm of kids when I could hide behind him, and it was somehow comforting to know he knew I was nervous.

Not the image of myself I wanted to give him, but at least he was cool about it.

I did end up having fun. The kids were just as scared of me as I was of them, but as the hours passed by, and we learned more about each other, the atmosphere slowly changed. I didn’t have to hide behind Ryan so much anymore, either. I didn’t even want to know what I must’ve looked like cowering behind someone who was inches shorter than me.

And I was supposed to be a counselor…

In the evening, when we were all gathered in the lounging area of the lodge to chill for a bit before going to bed, Ryan came to sit next to me at the back.

“So? How was your day?” he asked.

“I had fun,” I said with a smile.

“Told you it’ll be fine,” he said. “The kids seem to like you already.”

“Yeah?” I asked, peering around.

“Yeah,” he said. “You will do fine. I can already tell.”

“Thanks,” I said quietly. “But… just so you know… I appreciate what you did for me today. I don’t think I could’ve done it without you.”

“Don’t mention it,” he said and smiled back at me. “You’ll be a kick-ass counselor.”

“I don’t know about that,” I muttered awkwardly.

“You will,” he said reassuringly.

A kick-ass counselor, huh…? I was not anywhere near as sure about it as he was, but I did have a good feeling about this summer.

I did not, however, feel the same way the next morning, when I sat behind the radio in my messy hut, ready to make my very first announcement. I kind of wished Ryan would’ve been there this time as well, but no. I was alone, with only a list of things Mr. H wanted me to say.

“Okay…” I muttered to myself, getting my equipment ready. “You can do this…”

I pulled Mr. H’s paper closer when my setup was ready. But I wasn’t ready. Again, I wanted to make a run for it.

Just breathe… You’ll be fine… You’ll be a kick-ass counselor…

I held onto the words Ryan had told me the day before, trying to find my confidence.

You won’t fuck up .

“I won’t fuck up,” I whispered, and cleared my throat.

Then I pressed the broadcasting button, opening the line.

“Hi everyone! This is… My name is Dylan, and… and I’m here to play you some music, and… But first, I have a few announcements to make,” I spoke, hating myself, my words, and my voice in the speakers with a burning passion. “So, uh, let’s… let’s get things started, shall we?”

Oh God, why did I ever come here…?

Chapter Text

-Dylan-

The first few weeks flew by faster than I even noticed. I actually had fun, and the announcements stopped being scary after a few tries. The guys I worked with were fun people, and even Kaitlyn warmed up to me a little. The kids were awesome, and I really enjoyed my time as a counselor. I even managed to not fuck up much. I lost or broke a few things and forgot some stuff, but at least no one got hurt because of me, and I never ruined anyone’s day. I could live with that.

One night, after the activities were over, I headed down to the firepit by the beach. On my way there, I saw Emma and Jacob sneaking into the lodge, holding hands and giggling like teenagers. The two of them had hit it right off after Emma gave up chasing me, and it seemed like they were actually really enjoying each other’s company.

Once I arrived at the firepit, Nick and Ryan were already there with a bunch of kids, enjoying the warm fire in the surprisingly chilly night.

“What’s up, my little dudes and dudettes?” I shouted to let them know I was approaching in the dark pathway, so I wouldn’t scare anyone.

“Dylan!”

“DJ!”

I laughed when I got surrounded by a bunch of excited kids. “Hello, hello, hello! Did you have fun today?”

The answer was a very enthusiastic yes. I had to walk slowly so I wouldn’t trip anyone as we made our way down to the firepit.

“Do the monkey tree! Do the monkey tree!”

“A what now?” I asked.

“Jacob lets us hang from his arms!”

“Oh, sorry guys. I’m a stick figure. I don’t think I’m strong enough for that.”

“If Jacob can do it, so can you!”

“Well Jacob exchanged his brain for his muscles,” I said. “I’d rather stay super smart.”

“You? Smart?” Nick said and smirked.

“My IQ is through the roof, actually,” I said as I sat down. “I just have to play dumb so you guys can understand me.”

Nick laughed, but Ryan seemed curious.

“Wait, for real?”

“Sure,” I said, and he spent a moment staring at me.

“Nah, you’re just messing with us,” he then said.

“Don’t believe me, I don’t care,” I said with a shrug, and turned my attention to the kids. “Who’s going to sit with me?”

All of them, apparently.

“What are you guys up to now? Just chilling?” I asked once everyone had gotten comfortable around the firepit.

“Actually, Ryan was going to tell us ghost stories,” Nick said.

“Oh, goodie, no sleep tonight,” I said with a chuckle. “You’ll get very grumpy announcements in the morning.”

“They’re not that scary,” Ryan said.

“How scary on a scale of one to Kaitlyn?”

“Uh… Five? Six?”

“Do we trust him?” I asked the kids, who all said yes. “All right, but I will sleep alone. No one gets to sleep next to me this time.”

“Who in their right mind would want to get into your bed?” Nick asked.

“You would love to get into my bed,” I said, packing enough sass into the words. “Anyway, can we stop talking about my bed before it gets creepy?”

“Sure,” Ryan said, letting me off the hook.

The stories he told were not actually scary – at least in my ears – but I did love to listen to him. He had such a deep, deep voice, and when he tried to sound scary, it went even deeper. I often found myself trying to imagine hearing that voice next to me in the mornings… Which was bad. Very bad. I wasn’t here to hook up with my coworkers. It would only end up in a heartbreak once the summer was over.

But he sure had a nice voice. And nice, brown eyes. And nice, big lips. And a nice, toned body… It was such a blessing that he was the sailing instructor who often waltzed around the beach only wearing shorts.

For a brief moment, I imagined myself having enough courage to ask for his number…

Once again, I had to kick myself out of my daydreams and focus on making sure he wasn’t scarring the kids for life. He was probably straight, anyway, and I was still deep in my closet to make sure my summer here wouldn’t be a homophobic disaster. I was pretty sure Emma was still the only one who knew about me. Or they all knew but didn’t give a fuck.

It didn’t matter. No summer flings for me.

The bedtime arrived, and we led the kids to their designated cabins, where we made sure everyone actually went to bed. Once there was another adult staying with the campers in my cabin, I headed outside to catch my breath and chill before going to sleep myself.

I stepped back outside and sat down on top of the stairs to stare at the sky, enjoying the peace and quiet. It didn’t last for long, but this time, the disturbance was a welcomed one: Ryan stepped out of his cabin.

I let out a deep sigh as I watched him stretch on the porch of his cabin. What were the odds he liked guys too? If one out of ten people were gay, and there were seven of us, the chances were very, very slim. Unless we counted the kids, then maybe there was a chance…

No. It didn’t matter. I was not going to hook up with anyone, anyway.

I tried to decide if I should go say hi to him. It didn’t seem like he’d noticed me across the dark yard, partly hidden away by a large old tree right in the middle of the cabins.

Another cabin door was opened, and Kaitlyn stepped out. She immediately noticed Ryan.

“Hey! Ryan!”

I sighed again. There went my chance… No. That was a good thing. No flings, goddamnit.

“Hey, Kaitlyn! What’s up?”

“Did you tell ghost stories to the kids again?” she asked sternly.

“I uh…”

“You did,” she said with a groan. “They’re not going to sleep tonight!”

“My bad,” Ryan said, laughing a little.

Fuck, the guy had a nice laugh too… It was rare to get to hear that.

Kaitlyn shook her head, squinting her eyes at him, but then sighed. “Fine, I’ll forgive you, but only because you’re handsome.”

Ryan just laughed at her words, while I slouched back.

Straight, obviously… And Kaitlyn was so pretty I felt like dirt next to her. Short, sassy, and sexy. I was a gay guy and even I liked looking at her. There was no way I could compete with that.

But that was good. Now I could just stop drooling over the dark, mysterious sailing instructor and get on with my life.

I sighed as I took one last glimpse of Ryan and got up. He was laughing again at something Kaitlyn had said…

Fuck…

I didn’t feel like going to bed yet. It wasn’t that late, anyway, so I headed to my little radio hut to make sure I had everything ready for the morning. I had a couple of new songs I wanted to add to my list, anyway.

I entered the building, and flipped the lights on, revealing the last bit of chaos that still lingered at the back of the big room. Mr. H had brought new shelves and hooks, but some of them were still empty.

The peace and quiet in my hut felt welcoming at that point. I really was growing to love the place, and not only because everyone usually left me alone. The kids weren’t allowed in because of the power tools, and everyone else hated the gray walls and the gloomy atmosphere. For me, it had become a safe place.

I walked past the piles of spare parts, sat down behind my little station and pulled my lists closer. I didn’t actually see them as I stared at them. I could still hear Kaitlyn’s voice. Ryan’s was too low for my ears in the distance, but I knew he was there with her.

I wasn’t sure why I was suddenly feeling so down. Not only because of the duo talking outside, but because of… everything. I guess the past two weeks had taken their toll on me. I’d not had much free time, after all, and being on the move from dawn to dusk every day was really exhausting. Plus, the introverted me really could’ve used some alone time. A lot of it, actually.

With a heavy sigh, I leaned back in my chair and got immediately lost in my thoughts. I was kind of supposed to use this time here trying to figure out what to do next. Well, I knew what I wanted to do next, but I wasn’t sure how.

Quantum physics. Bachelor’s and Ph.D. in physics, and all the quantum mechanics courses I could find. That was what I wanted, but the how part was still unclear, especially since my support network had burned a long time ago, and Mom…

I got up from my seat, and headed back out, refusing to go down that path right now. I was way too tired to be thinking about it all. There was no point in dwelling in the past. I just had to keep my head up and focus on building the future. I’d figure things out. If not now, maybe next year.

After closing and locking the door, I turned to look at Ryan’s cabin, but the porch was now empty. Once I’d stared at the empty spot long enough, and managed to get a grip on myself, I slowly walked down the steps and headed to my own cabin.

Maybe a summer fling would’ve been exactly what I needed, after all… To take my mind off things. But that was not going to happen. I was too much of a chicken to even try to see if that could happen.

Chapter Text

-Ryan-

It was hard to believe the summer was already halfway through, and we’d already spent a month at the Hackett’s Quarry. One more month left… I let out a sigh as I made sure our boats were ready to take the campers to the little island we had in the middle of the lake.

One more month and I’d be back in my normal life. I had nothing to complain about, but… I always felt somehow… free… in this place. I hated myself for feeling like that. It was unfair to Sarah, who had nothing to do with how our lives had turned out to be, but…

Oh well… A month was a long time.

The boats were ready, and the campers and other counselors arrived with their small bags, ready to spend the night at the island. It was kind of a tradition to spend at least one night camping on the island around the middle of the summer, and everyone was excited.

“All aboard!” I shouted and watched while the others helped the kids on the boats.

“Everything good?” Chris asked when he stopped next to me.

“Yes, sir,” I said. “So you’re not coming with us this time either?” I asked with a grin.

“You know I have way too much work,” he said. “I trust nurse Kelly to take care of everything.”

“Too much work, or do you just prefer sleeping in your comfortable bed right next to your comfortable bathroom?” I said, trying not to smile too much.

“Ha. Ha. Very funny,” Chris said, nudging my arm. “When you get to my age, you’ll understand.”

I smirked and turned to look at the boats. “I get it. And I’ll help nurse Kelly to make sure everything will be fine.”

“That’s my boy,” he said, filling me with pride. “Don’t know what I’d do without you, Ryan. You’re a good kid.”

“Nah, it’s nothing…” I muttered.

“It is, trust me,” he said and smiled. “You guys better get moving before the sun goes down. I have to get going, too.”

“Sure,” I said, and after giving me a pat on my back, he left.

I watched him for a moment, enjoying the feeling of belonging here. After pretty much growing up without a father… Or a mother… I don’t know…

“All right! Do we have everything we need?” I turned to ask the rest of the counselors.

“Jacob and Kaitlyn are still bringing some stuff,” Emma said.

“So, we’re not missing anything important is what you’re saying,” Dylan said.

I let out a weary sigh. “Dylan… You know I have better use for that mouth of yours.”

“Uh… You do know inside jokes don’t always work well out of context, right?” Dylan asked while the rest of them were giggling their butts off or whistling at me.

I suddenly realized how my joke came out. “Let me rephrase that.”

“Too late, man,” Nick said with a smirk.

“I meant… Like his whole head as an anchor… I… uh…” I was getting flustered, especially since it didn’t look like they’d stop making fun of me for what I said.

Not a good way to start this boat trip…

“Whole head?” Nick repeated with a grin, and the laughing continued. “Don’t you mean–”

“Hey! Asking for a friend. What if… what if you’re afraid of deep waters?” Dylan spoke, interrupting Nick as he peered into the lake.

“Are you telling me you’re afraid of deep waters?” Emma asked with a smirk, and all eyes were on Dylan. “How did you become a counselor!”

“What ? There could be monsters. Or dead bodies,” Dylan said, and people laughed at him.

“It’s… not that deep here,” I said, but I doubted many were listening.

Honestly, I forgot what I’d said, too. Especially when Dylan flashed a small smile at me, then continued talking about possible monsters in the lake and making people laugh. At him. I just stared at him.

I’d seen him swim around the lake with no issues.

“There are no monsters in the lake,” Abigail said sternly, trying to calm down the kids who’d heard Dylan. “He’s just messing with us.”

“Yeah, she’s right. I’ve not actually seen anything in the water,” Dylan admitted.

“Let’s just get going, okay?” I said, and everyone agreed.

I didn’t end up in the same boat as Dylan, but I did steal a couple of glances of him on our way to the island. Sometimes I felt like none of us knew the real him, but why would he hide behind his jokes and sarcasm?

Everyone has their dark secrets…

I suppose it was none of my business.

It wasn’t a big of a trip to the island – the distance was easy enough to swim – but getting anchored on the other side with several boats took a lot of time and coordination. But we got there safe and sound.

We spent a few hours building our camp close to the only house on the island that stood way above the ground on massive poles, surrounded by wooden walkways, viewing platforms, and staircases. There were also a few poles for ziplines, one of which took us straight back to the mainland.

Once the tents were up, Nick took care of our food as the kitchen supervisor, and we helped him to build a big campfire. The sun was setting by the time we started eating, and darkness had fallen once we were done. We spent the remainder of the evening telling stories, singing songs, and just hanging out.

And later that night, when the campers were crawling into their sleeping bags and telling us goodnight, I spotted Dylan sneaking away from the tents. I assumed he’d be back soon, but by the time the kids were slowly falling asleep, he hadn’t returned.

I went to tell nurse Kelly that I’d go for a short walk around the island, then grabbed a flashlight and headed in Dylan’s direction. Thankfully, it was a full moon, and I could see my surroundings pretty well even without the flashlight. I doubted I would’ve found Dylan if it had been completely dark, since he was hiding behind a rock formation on the beach, and only his ridiculously long legs could be seen behind it.

“This is one of my favorite hiding spots,” I said quietly as I approached him.

“You have a good taste,” he spoke, sounding cheerful, but I doubted he actually was in a good mood. “You can see the boathouse from here.”

I glanced over the water, and saw my own base on the other side, illuminated only by a couple of lights.

“I swear I wasn’t following you,” I said, but changed my mind. “Actually, yes I was. You didn’t return, so I thought something happened.”

Dylan let out a playful gasp when I sat down next to him on the sand. “Are you telling me there actually are monsters in the water?”

I chuckled. “No, but you can easily slip and break your neck on these rocks.”

“That’s so boring,” he muttered.

“Breaking your neck is boring?”

“Yeah. I’d rather be eaten by a monster,” he said. “It’s a cooler story.”

“Careful what you wish for.”

“Ehh…”

“Is… everything all right?” I asked carefully.

“Oh, yeah, sure. I just needed some peace and quiet, that’s all,” he said, and turned to look at me. “I’m used to having a couple of hours of alone time in the evenings.”

“Oh… I can leave you alone if you want?”

“Nah, it’s cool. It’s not like you’re a rowdy little kid.”

“Far from it…”

“We’re all different,” he said with a shrug. “For different reasons.”

“That’s surprisingly deep,” I noted.

“It’s really not,” he said and laughed.

“I think it is.”

“So what’s your reason then?” he asked.

“For what?”

“For being the person you are? The serious, broody loner?”

“I’m not serious or broody.”

He only stared at me.

“Okay, maybe I’m a little serious and broody,” I admitted. “I… don’t think there’s a reason for it. I just… am.”

“Hmm…”

“What’s your reason to be you?” I asked.

“I wish I knew…”

I was bad at reading people, but I had a feeling there was something on his mind. “Is everything actually all right?”

“Midsummer blues I suppose,” he said and sighed. “We’re halfway through. One month left.”

“Yeah, I know that feeling,” I said and sighed as well. “Time is going too fast.”

He nodded slowly a few times. “That it is…”

I take a better look at him. “It’s odd to see you serious.”

“Ah, let me whip out a butt joke.”

“Okay, let’s hear it,” I said with a chuckle.

“Your face.”

“Come on, you didn’t even try.”

“Uh… hmm… I…” he trailed off, frowning. “Yeah, I got nothing.”

I tried to come up with one myself, but… “It’s surprisingly hard to make butt jokes.”

“Thank you! Finally someone who understands my art!” he exclaimed dramatically, making me laugh.

“I’m jealous of how good with words you are,” I admitted. “Your delivery and timing are superb.”

“I’m just blurting things out without giving it a second thought. I’m surprised I don’t have more enemies in this place,” he said.

“I can’t see how anyone could hate you,” I said quietly. “You’re like a shot of endorphins: great for mind and soul.”

“Until you overdose.”

“How do you come up with these replies so fast?” I asked. “It’s unfair!”

He laughed a little, then shook his head. “I don’t know where it’s coming from. But thanks. It’s fun to make people laugh.”

“Even when they laugh at you?” I asked, thinking about what happened earlier at the boathouse.

“I don’t mind,” he said with a shrug. “To a certain point, of course. It gets less fun when people take it too far. Not everyone knows when to back off.”

I nodded and let out a breath. “I uh… appreciate what you did for me today. I was…”

“Don’t mention it,” he said softly.

I smiled at him. “Should we go back?”

“You can go ahead if you want. I still want to rest my ears.”

“I don’t think I should leave you alone in the darkness,” I said slowly.

“You think I’ll actually break my neck?” he guessed in amusement.

“I don’t know, man. You’ve got legs for days and I’m not sure how anyone could control them,” I said before I could stop myself.

That was not a normal thing to say, and I cursed myself to the lowest parts of hell.

“So you’re calling me Bambi?” he joked, and I relaxed a bit.

“Just saying…”

He laughed. “Fine, I’ll come with you. It’s getting creepy out here.”

And as on cue, we could hear a wolf howling somewhere in the distance.

“Yeah, this Bambi wants back to his momma,” Dylan said, letting out a nervous chuckle.

“Are you afraid of wolves?” I asked, peering at his bare arm. “You have a tattoo of a wolf.”

“I’m not afraid of anything! But… I rather watch the wolves in documentaries,” he said as we started walking.

“Fair enough,” I said with a smirk, and led the way back to the camp.

And I had to admit… I was slowly starting to like his charm.

Chapter Text

-Ryan-

I had to admit I understood why Chris chose to stay at the lodge while the rest of us were camping on the island. Sleeping on the ground really wasn’t that great, and I woke up with a sore body. I hadn’t had much sleep either, since the tents didn’t really block the sounds and there were plenty of kids and counselors who had just as much trouble getting sleep as I did. That did result in us having a bunch of grumpy kids in our hands.

And I wasn’t even talking about just the kids.

“Good morning, everyone!” Emma practically sang when she emerged from her tent.

“Piss off…” Kaitlyn muttered back at her.

“Shut up…” Dylan muttered to Kaitlyn.

“You shut up.”

“Guys…” I said in a warning tone and received grumpy stares. “Let’s act nice.”

“Fine …” Dylan muttered, tousling his already messy morning hair, his eyes squinted like he was unable to open them more than that.

I shook my head, holding back my smile. “How did everyone sleep?”

I received more grumpy glares.

The morning took off slowly, but in a few hours, the atmosphere had turned cheerful. We had a few workshops for the kids where they could learn how to survive in the wilderness, and they were having a blast. The weather was perfect, and things were going smoothly, so I was able to relax a bit and not worry so much about disappointing Chris. He was counting on me, after all.

After the workshops, we let the kids do what they wanted until it was time for us to head back to the lodge. I could tell my coworkers enjoyed these simple babysitting tasks since they were allowed to just sit around and keep an eye on the kids without having to do much on top of it. They deserved it, too, especially after the rough night.

I did my best keeping my eye on the kids, but more often than once, I found myself keeping my eye on Dylan. Not because he needed someone to keep an eye on him – this time – but because… The guy looked good in a white, tight tank top and gray shorts. He was laughing and goofing around with the kids chasing him, never actually catching him unless he let them. It was clear he was one of their favorites.

That didn’t surprise me. How could he not be their favorite? He had such perfect humor for kids. He was always happy and never lost his cool, though he knew how to be stern when needed. He had such a… welcoming aura. It was so easy to sit down next to him and get immediately caught in his witty words and playful nature…

“You’re all smiles today, aren’t you?”

I nearly jumped off my seat when I heard Kaitlyn’s voice right in front of me.

“Jesus…” I gasped, straightening my posture.

“Sorry, didn’t mean to spook you,” she said with a smirk, and sat down next to me. “Someone is going to break their neck sooner or later,” she added, nodding toward Dylan and the kids who were still running around the beach.

“It’s mostly sand,” I said. “I doubt they can get themselves hurt.”

She just shrugged. “I want to know where he gets his energy from.”

“Who?”

“Dylan.”

“Oh. I guess that’s just the way he’s built,” I muttered, stealing a glimpse of him.

“I suppose. What are you planning on doing tomorrow? You have a day off, right?”

“Uh… I was planning on hanging out with Kaylee and Caleb,” I told her. “We’re going fishing.”

“Fishing?” she repeated. “You have the chance to go to North Kill, but instead you’re just… staying here? That sounds boring.”

“Uh… I don’t really need to visit the town,” I muttered.

“Don’t you miss civilization?” I shook my head. “At all?”

“Not really, no,” I said.

“Suit for yourself. Next time I have a day off, I’ll–”

Her words were interrupted by a loud splashing noise, and we both turned to see Dylan escaping the kids in the water, laughing. The kids tried to follow him, but before they could reach him, he vanished below the surface and from our view.

I chuckled quietly, then turned back to Kaitlyn. “You’ll what?”

“I’ll book a table at a restaurant and spend hours at the…” she trailed off when another splash of water interrupted her again. “At the…” she repeated absentmindedly, staring at the lake.

I turned to see what she was seeing and understood immediately why she forgot what she was going to say.

Dylan was back up on his feet, walking back to the shore, laughing. Man, that white tank top… all wet and glued to his toned body… Not really hiding anything anymore… And his shorts had slid downwards, revealing quite a bit of his lower stomach and hips…

“All right! All right, all right… I’ll give up! You won,” he spoke when the kids swarmed him. “I need to sit down for a bit,” he added, his breathing heavy.

“He has to play some kind of… of a… sport,” Kaitlyn muttered.

“I guess,” I muttered back.

“My money is on hockey,” she said.

“Hmm…”

I was still not able to take my eyes off Dylan. I could hear my sister’s words somewhere in the back of my mind, telling me to have fun and climb a pole or two.

Dylan walked past us, and both Kaitlyn and I turned to look after him. His ass sure looked good in those shorts… At that moment, I couldn’t remember a single reason for not wanting a summer fling.

I forced myself to look away before anyone would notice me staring at him.

But it was too late.

Emma was watching me over her sunglasses close to the firepit. She had an amused smile on her lips when she glanced at Dylan, then at me, and raised her eyebrows.

Fuck… She knew. 

As I watched, she pinched her index finger and thumb together, then moved them quickly past her lips. I let out a breath, hoping I could trust her not to tell anyone about what she just saw. She did seem like the kind of person to keep her promises.

But… I couldn’t quite relax. I carefully peered at the others, but none of them seemed to have noticed anything. By the time I turned to look back at Emma, she had pushed her sunglasses back up and had continued bathing in the sun.

I really should’ve been more careful…

Much later that day, when we had returned to the lodge, and the kids were already heading to bed, exhausted but happy, I made my way to the boathouse to check the boats. I was still nervous, and I wasn’t sure if I could get any sleep that night.

I wasn’t even sure why I was so nervous, since I could easily deny everything Emma said. I’d already come up with dozens of lies I could defend myself with if she chose to reveal my secret to everyone else. I kind of managed to calm myself down a bit while I made sure the boats were tied up, and no one had left their belongings behind.

And then I heard a knock on wood somewhere behind me.

I turned around, only to find myself face to face with Emma, who was smiling.

“What do you want?” I asked, my voice more hostile than she deserved.

“I just wanted to have a quick chat,” she said without losing her composure or smile. “First, I want to say your secret is safe with me. I would never tell anyone about such things.”

“Can I be sure I can trust you?” I asked when she stopped in front of me.

She leaned closer to me, partly covering her mouth like there was someone seeing us, and whispered, “I’m bi, so…”

I frowned. “Really?”

She nodded. “I’m not out, and I’m planning to keep it that way, at least for now. So I wouldn’t do that to you, or anyone else, in any circumstance.”

“Okay…” I said slowly. “Is that what you wanted to talk about?”

“Not really,” she said. “Why not ask him out?”

“Huh?”

“Yeah. You have a day off tomorrow. He has a day off tomorrow. You should ask him out,” she suggested.

“What? No! I’m… I’m not asking him out,” I muttered quietly.

“Why not?”

“I’m… I’m just… I’m here to work, that’s all. Besides… I… He…”

“All right, all right,” she said soothingly, raising her hands. “It’s your call, of course. I just thought it could be cute.”

I stared at her, then shook my head. “I really don’t want to have a relationship right now. Not even hook-ups. I’m… It’s just not the right time for me. I need… I have other things I need to focus on right now.”

“I get it,” she said with a friendly smile. “Maybe next year then?”

“Maybe,” I said, finally able to relax. “And thanks… I really don’t want to come out now, either. It’ll just make things more complicated.”

“Do you… want to talk? I’m a very good listener,” she asked.

“It’s just… Stuff that solves themselves in time, I guess,” I said. “I just want to focus on my job.”

She nodded again and smiled. “Well, if you ever need someone to listen, I’m here.”

“Thanks,” I said, and smiled as well.

“Oh, I also wanted to say that I agree with you,” she said, taking a step away from me.

“Agree with what?”

“That he has a cute butt,” she whispered with a wink.

I laughed, took a deep breath, and nodded. “Yeah…”

“Goodnight!” she sang and left the building.

Chapter Text

-Dylan-

It was about a week after our camping trip to the island when Jacob, Nick, and I had our stupidest idea ever. Since we’d had a day off together, we had decided to spend it visiting the town, and we returned back to camp so late we missed dinner. None of us had been smart enough to buy any food while in town, so we were starving.

The three of us never should’ve been left unsupervised, but there we were, right after sunset, standing behind the door of the closed camp store.

Trying to break in.

“Hurry up,” I whispered, peering around, while Jacob tried to lock pick the door while Nick held the flashlight for him.

“We’re so going to get in trouble for this,” Nick said, his voice amused.

“Mr. H will put us in body bags and ship us back home,” I muttered – but I still wasn’t stopping this.

“Come on, guys. We’re not going to steal anything,” Jacob muttered.

“This is the stupidest thing we’ve ever done…” I continued, but still didn’t put a stop to this.

“Shut up. Let me focus,” Jacob told us.

“How do you even know how to do that?” Nick asked.

“No, no, no. I don’t want to know,” I said, stepping away from the two to check the pathway to the store was clear.

“Do you even know how to do that?” Nick continued.

“Shut up. Of course I know,” Jacob replied.

“Should we just go raid the kitchen instead?” I asked.

“Nah, man, Mr. H could hear us,” Nick said. “It’s too close to his office. Besides, there’s nothing we can eat without cooking it first.”

“Didn’t I just tell you to shut up? Let me concentrate!”

I let out a sigh. I did not feel too great about this, but at the same time, I wasn’t too worried. I was tired and hungry, and I didn’t have the energy to be smart. We weren’t going to steal anything. We had money to pay for whatever we took. Bought. Now we just had to get in and out without anyone noticing us…

“Can you just… hurry the fuck up?” I asked Jacob, watching him struggle with the lock.

“Shut up! I almost got it,” he hissed at me.

“What are you doing?”

All three of us jumped the fuck away from the door at the sound of Ryan’s sharp voice. I turned around to see him marching to us on the pathway, looking pissed as hell.

“Nothing! Nothing! Just… uh… looking for my uh…” I spoke in a hurry, but couldn’t come up with anything.

“I saw what you were doing!” Ryan said angrily.

“No, we were looking for my… keys,” I said, but he did not believe me.

“You’re lying to me now?” he asked in disbelief. Of course he didn’t believe me. He wasn’t blind nor stupid, after all.

But fuck… Mr. H finding out about this was one thing, but Ryan…? Fuck, I suddenly hated myself.

“Good job, Dylan,” Jacob snapped at me. “You were supposed to keep an eye out!”

“Are you guys fucking serious?” Ryan asked when he stopped in front of us and snatched the lock pick from Jacob. “You’re actually breaking into the store? To steal stuff?”

“No, no, no, no, no, no! I swear, we weren’t going to steal anything,” Nick said, pulling his cash out of his pocket. “We were just hungry. We just wanted to buy food.”

“And I’m supposed to believe that?” he asked, his disappointment growing.

“It’s true,” I said, feeling sick to my stomach when the rational side in me suddenly kicked in, and his expression made it a hell of a lot worse. “We just got back from our trip to the town… We missed dinner, and… We don’t have any food…”

“Come on, man,” Jacob tried. “We’ll just grab something quickly and pay for it. No one needs to find out.”

“No one needs to find out?” Ryan repeated, clearly trying to keep himself from yelling at his face. “Are you fucking idiots? The register is in the safe! You won’t be able to pay for shit! And if you did, there’s timestamps! They can see someone used the register after closing time!”

I had to take a step away from him. I crossed my arms over my stomach as the uneasy feeling grew a lot worse. I wanted to shrink out of existence, and not only because I was so ashamed of myself. Angry people had always made me uneasy.

“Okay, okay, we’re sorry,” Nick said. “But please… We didn’t mean any harm, and we didn’t get in, so… Please don’t tell Mr. H. He’ll get really mad at us.”

“Well you should’ve thought about that before you decided to break into his store!” Ryan said. “You’ll be lucky if he doesn’t press charges!”

Fuck… We were in trouble… In actual trouble… And for what? And now Ryan was mad at me… At us all…

“Dude! It’s not that serious! We meant no harm!” Jacob said, getting scared as well. “Look, we promise, we won’t do anything like this ever again. Can we just forget about this?”

“We’re sorry,” I muttered, unable to look at him. “You know us… We didn’t mean any harm to Mr. H… We’re just… massive idiots…”

“How the fuck did you even come up with something so stupid, huh?” Ryan asked.

“I… We…” I didn’t have an answer for him. “It wasn’t supposed to be a big deal…”

“Breaking and entering isn’t a big deal?” he repeated.

“Yeah it… sounds really stupid now…” I admitted.

Ryan let out a deep, annoyed sigh. I peered carefully at him and tried not to look away when I met his glare.

“You’re supposed to be the responsible adults here. You can’t go around doing stupid shit like this. Why didn’t you just… fucking ask? I’m sure Mr. Hackett could’ve arranged something for you,” Ryan spoke, but his tone was growing softer.

“We are sorry,” Nick said.

Ryan let out another deep sigh, then walked past us. “Move.”

We got out of his way when he kneeled down in front of the door, and to our surprise, he started picking the lock.

“Uhh… Ryan?” I frowned.

“You need food, don’t you?” he asked, and in seconds, opened the lock, then stood up. “I’ll deal with Mr. H.”

“Dude! That’s awesome! Thanks!” Jacob said with a smirk, and he and Nick hurried inside. “We’ll be quick.”

I just stared at Ryan.

“How do you…?”

“Don’t ask,” he said. “Just go get what you need.”

“But… Are you getting in trouble with Mr. H?” I asked.

“Don’t worry about it. Go get what you need,” he said, turning his back on me.

“I, uh… I’m not that hungry anymore,” I mumbled, stepping away from the door.

I leaned against the railings to take a breath, trying to bring my anxiety down a notch. Ryan was still there by the door, but I didn’t dare to look at him.

What the fuck were we thinking…?

“You need to eat,” he said, glancing at me over his shoulder.

I just shrugged.

“Come on… I’m sorry I yelled at you. I… overreacted again. But dude, what the hell were you thinking? What happened with not doing stupid shit?” he asked, walking closer to me.

“I don’t know…” I muttered. “I really don’t know…”

He shook his head. “Just… don’t do it again, okay? I know you’re better than this. All of you.”

“Yeah, sure… Sorry…”

“Come on. Go get what you need. I’ll make sure Chris won’t find out about this,” he said surprisingly gently.

I nodded and entered the store, but I still wasn’t able to look at him. I still wasn’t hungry, either, but I walked to the closest shelves, trying to focus on getting food instead of feeling so goddamn ashamed.

“Hey, man,” Jacob appeared next to me. “Do you think he’ll tell Mr. H?” he whispered to me.

“We deserve it if he does…” I said, grabbing a muffin from the shelves.

“Yeah… But boy, am I glad he has a soft spot for you,” he said with a smirk.

“What?” I glanced at him, but he was already walking away.

A soft spot for me? I was lucky Ryan wasn’t actively trying to murder me at that very moment. Like I deserved. Like we all deserved. It felt wrong to let him cover up for us, especially since I knew how important Mr. H was to him.

I peered at Ryan when he walked to the empty cash register and grabbed a piece of paper and pen from the table. Nick and Jacob quickly counted their money and gave Ryan what they owed, then left, leaving me alone with him.

“Dylan? You ready?” he asked, glancing at my muffin, then sighed. “You need to eat. Actual food.”

“This is fine,” I said, but he gave me a stern stare.

“Yeah, like having you running on nothing but sugar is a good idea,” he said, making his way to me. “I don’t want to witness that.”

I had to laugh a little at his words, and my mood came up when he smiled, too.

“I’m not a little kid,” I told him, but he only stared at me. “Am not!”

“Sure,” he said with a smirk, and went to grab a couple of apples from the shelves. “Take these, and maybe something precooked. You can heat it up at the firepit.”

“So now you’re deciding what I eat, huh?”

“Yes.”

His reply was so stern I had to laugh again. “Fine, fine… I can’t really say I don’t need adult supervision after what we… uh…”

He shook his head. “Just let it go. I’m fine with saving your asses. This time.”

“Understood,” I said with a nod. “Trust me, I don’t want to disappoint you again.”

“Good,” he said, giving me a crooked smile. “But can we please get moving? If Chris sees us here…”

“Oh! Fuck, sure…” I said, grabbing the apples from him. “And, uh… thanks. For this. And I’m sorry for causing you trouble.”

“Don’t worry about it,” he said, patting my arm.

I was so not going to do stupid shit like this ever again. The disappointed expression on Ryan’s face was enough to make sure of that.

Chapter Text

-Ryan-

I wanted to believe the idea of breaking into the shop did not come from Dylan. No. I refused to believe it was his idea. I didn’t care if it was Jacob or Nick who first suggested it, as long as it wasn’t Dylan. Pulling stupid shit like that wasn’t like him. He was better than that. He was better than the others. He had nothing to do with it. He only got dragged into it.

He just got dragged into it.

I let out a sigh as I sat on the stairs leading up to the shop right before opening, waiting for whoever it was that manned the shop this morning. I could only hope it was someone who wouldn’t ask any questions. I was quite confident I’d be able to explain the situation to Chris without getting anyone in trouble, but I wanted to avoid that. No one needed to know.

“Fuck me…” I muttered, rubbing my temples, trying to ignore the fact that the only reason I was sitting there, willing to cover up for those three idiots, was because one of them was cute.

But to be fair, none of them were bad people. They just… had some growing up to do.

I looked up when I heard footsteps coming my way, and sighed in relief when I saw Kaylee, Chris’s daughter, walking down the pathway.

“Ryan! Hi!”

I waved at her. “Morning. Are you by any chance working the register today?”

“Sadly, yes,” she said when she stopped in front of me. “Do you need something?”

“A favor,” I said as I stood up and followed her to the door. “I uh… need you to ring in some stuff for me.”

She frowned while opening the lock. “Okay…?”

“Don’t ask…” I said, following her in.

She gave me a curious look and smirked. “Why does that sound suspicious?”

“Maybe I am doing something suspicious,” I only replied.

“You? No way,” she said, leaving her bag on the counter. “So? What do you need?”

“Here,” I said, giving her the list of items the three stooges got last night. “And here’s the cash.”

“All right, do you need a bag?” she asked while ringing them in.

“Uh… no.”

“Sure? This is quite a lot of stuff.”

“Uhm… I’m just paying for them. I don’t actually need them…”

She raised her eyebrows at me. “…Why?”

“Don’t ask,” I muttered. “And could we… keep this between us two?”

“Wow,” she said and chuckled. “Ryan Erzahler is actually doing something suspicious.”

“Funny,” I said with a smirk. “I can do stupid shit too, you know.”

“I’m impressed,” she said, handing me the receipt. “Do you want this, or should I burn it?”

“You can throw it away,” I said. “And thanks. I appreciate this.”

“No worries. You go be suspicious. Whatever you’re up to, I’m rooting for you,” she said with a wink.

“Thanks,” I said, and left the store.

At least that went well… Kaylee wasn’t going to tell anyone, that was for sure. Now if only Jacob, Nick, and Dylan kept their mouths shut, no one would find out about what happened last night.

But that was a big if… One of them was definitely going to get us all in trouble…

I didn’t really have a destination as I started walking around the campsite, enjoying the time alone. I didn’t go too close to the lodge, where the kids were with the other counselors, making a lot of noise. I wasn’t really in the mood to hang out with any of them right now, and I had to admit I was still a little pissed at some of them, so seeing their faces didn’t really seem like a good idea.

But of course, I had no such luck.

I spotted Jacob and Emma sneaking through the woods, holding hands, and laughing. Seeing Jacob having fun somehow rubbed me the wrong way. Like it was no big deal he’d tried to break into Chris’ store last night.

It’d had to be his idea…

I turned my back on them and took in a deep breath, trying not to get pissed. That guy’s attitude just really… Did he even appreciate the fact that I was risking my own reputation by covering up for them? Unlikely.

No, no, no. I was better off just forgetting the whole fucking incident. If I let it get to me now, I’d be in a bad mood for the rest of the day. Or the entire week. I just had to forget it.

But for fuck’s sake… If Dylan had not been involved, I would’ve marched straight to Chris.

Speaking of…

I spotted Dylan walking down the pathway to the lodge. He hadn’t spotted me yet, and for a brief second, I considered taking another path just to get some time alone before I had to start working, but…

“Hey,” I spoke, gaining his attention.

“Oh, uh, hi,” he said almost timidly, stopping several feet away from me.

That was unusual for him. He still wasn’t back to his normal, energetic self, and it was so glaringly obvious even I could see that. His entire posture was timid and fidgety, and he wasn’t even looking me in the eye, but somewhere past me.

All that anger and other negative emotions I’d had after seeing Jacob having fun left me. I let out a sigh and smiled at Dylan as I slowly approached him. He peered at me carefully, and tried to smile as well, but it was clear he was still ashamed.

“You did eat, right?” I asked him.

“Oh, yeah, yeah…” he said, shifting his weight from leg to leg in a nervous manner.

“Dude, you can relax now. I took care of… it,” I said reassuringly.

“Good… That’s good… Thanks. Again. You really didn’t have to do it… It’s… Uh… I mean, if Mr. H…”

“Don’t worry about it,” I said, but it didn’t do much. “I mean it. We can just… forget it ever happened. It’s no big deal.”

He nodded slowly a few times. “Sure…”

“Where are you heading to?” I asked to change the subject since he clearly wasn’t going to feel any better if we kept talking about last night.

“Oh, I’m supposed to help Abi today,” he said. “You?”

“I’ll be at the boathouse all day,” I said.

“Cool, cool…” he mumbled, nodding.

At that moment, I really wished I was even half as good at talking to people as he was. An awkward silence fell between us, and the longer it continued, the harder it was to come up with something to say. We just stood there, in the middle of the pathway. I could’ve told him to have a good day and flee the scene, but… I couldn’t leave it at that, not when he was still uncomfortable around me.

“Do you…?” I started, but my mind still drew blanks. “Uhh…”

“Do I… what?” he asked, giving me a curious look.

“Do you have…? Uhhh…”

Fuck! Why was I so goddamn awkward with people? Dylan raised his eyebrows at me with a small, amused smile appearing on his lips, and I finally remembered it was indeed Dylan I was talking to. He wouldn’t make fun of me or anything, so I had no reason to be awkward.

“I don’t know. Words? Please help me, I got nothing,” I begged.

He chuckled, giving me a genuine smile, and I relaxed. “I do have words, yes.”

“You’re… going to share with the class?” I asked, smirking.

“Maybe,” he only said with a wink.

“You’re not going to help me, are you?”

“Well, we are exchanging words right now. Do they have to be specific words?”

“I guess any words are fine.”

“Cool. So, here’s a bunch of new words.”

“They are… uh… very good words.”

“Thanks! I chose them very carefully just for you.”

I had to laugh. “How do you do that? This is the most pointless conversation I’ve ever had, and you still make it sound funny.”

“I doubt anyone else would’ve found that funny,” he said with a smirk. “Which means you have just as poor taste as I do.”

“I don’t know, man. I’d call it refined, not poor,” I said, making him laugh.

“Now that’s a good word to have,” he said, taking a step past me. “I should get going or I’ll be late for art class. I think I’ve disappointed enough people for a lifetime…”

“You’ve not disappointed anyone,” I told him, turning around to watch him continue his way down the pathway.

“Not even you?” he asked over his shoulder.

“Definitely not me,” I said.

He smiled and nodded. “I’ll keep it that way.”

“Good,” I said.

He waved at me. I stood watching him until I couldn’t see him anymore, then turned around and headed to the boathouse. It took me a long time to realize I was still smiling. My foul mood was long gone. I couldn’t even remember why I’d been pissed in the first place.

That guy and his smile… 

Chapter Text

-Dylan-

When we had two weeks left of the summer camp, all of us counselors had our last night off together. Which obviously meant party time. Which obviously meant alcohol. Which obviously meant stupid shit.

Now I was not planning on doing any stupid shit, especially so soon after the store incident, so my plan was to stay away from alcohol this time. Alcohol and my big mouth were not a good combination. Though I guess I was mostly worried I’d try to hit on Ryan and ruin everything. But…

“Here, Mr. DJ.”

I looked up from the radio I was messing with. Ryan stood in front of me, offering me a bottle of beer.

“Thanks,” I said with a smile and didn’t even hesitate taking the bottle from him.

So much for my decision…

“What is that thing?” Ryan asked, peering down at the big, clunky radio.

“A cassette player,” I said with a smirk, and he raised his eyebrows at me in amusement. “I… uh… Mr. H refused to give me my phone for the night so we could play tunes. This is all we got.”

“Does it… work?”

“Yeah, yeah, I just need to find the right channel,” I said and continued turning the knobs until it picked up a signal.

The sound was far from perfect, but that thing was almost twice my age, so I was just glad it actually worked.

“Where did you even get that thing?” asked Nick, who had been following our conversation close by.

“It’s Mr. H’s. He gave it to me when I complained about not having music,” I told him with a chuckle.

“Well, better than nothing, I guess,” Ryan said.

“Come on, it’s not that bad!” I exclaimed.

Ryan smirked. “Sure.”

I rolled my eyes but laughed.

“Now if only it played actual, decent music, that would be great,” Kaitlyn spoke on the other side of the firepit, eyeing the radio with a hint of disgust on her face.

“Sorry, there’s nothing we can do about your poor taste,” I retorted. “But if you want to upgrade it, I can give you a list of songs to start with.”

“The same ones you’ve been playing this entire summer? No thanks. I’ve used up all Jacob’s tampons while trying to stop my ears from bleeding,” Kaitlyn said without missing a single beat.

“Hey! What did I do?” Jacob asked her in annoyance.

“You always have done something.”

“Okay, okay,” Ryan said in his scolding tone. “We’re here to have a good time, not roast each other.”

“What’s the difference?” both Kaitlyn and I asked at the same time, then turned to glare at each other.

“Unbelievable…” Ryan muttered and chuckled.

I chose to open my bottle and take a sip instead of giving more attention to Kaitlyn. Teasing her was fun, but since we weren’t the best of friends, things could get out of hand fast, and I was supposed to stay away from stupid shit. And I didn’t want to annoy Ryan, who actually liked the girl.

But since I focused on my drink, Kaitlyn had the freedom to snatch Ryan’s attention.

“We still have a date for tomorrow?” she asked him in a very perky way, and my stomach dropped.

A… date?

“Is it a good idea to practice shooting with a hangover?” Ryan asked jokingly, joining her on the bench on her side of the firepit.

“You can’t hold a few beers?” Kaitlyn asked with raised eyebrows.

“You didn’t answer my question.”

“It’ll be fine – besides, we won’t be using real guns,” Kaitlyn said.

As they continued talking about guns and shooting, I relaxed a little since I got the feeling it wasn’t an actual date they were talking about. Though, it didn’t really matter since Kaitlyn was being very, very flirty, and Ryan did seem more than interested. Might as well call it a date.

I should’ve just forgotten all about him… Like I was supposed to. I never meant to have anything to do with the guy, after all. He was just a coworker. Nothing more.

I heard footsteps and Emma’s and Abi’s voices coming our way in the dark pathway.

“Em! Hey Em!” Jacob got up on his feet and hurried to his girlfriend to take her hand in his. “I have something to tell you!”

I chuckled when the two of them continued their way to the beach, leaving Abi behind. She looked a bit uncertain, like she always did when left alone, so I waved at her.

“Come sit with us,” I said, patting the free spot between Nick and me.

Abi perked up, and I knew it was because she got to sit next to Nick – which was my master plan. Those two really needed encouragement from third parties. After six weeks, nothing had really happened between them, and we were running out of time.

“How was your class today?” I asked her once she got seated to start the conversation.

“Oh!” It was great!” she said and proceeded to talk about her day.

I listened for a bit, feeling proud of Nick for asking a few questions here and there, clearly smitten by the art tutor. Once I was sure they were able to keep the conversation going without me, I turned my attention to Ryan. Who was still deep in his conversation with Kaitlyn… I quickly looked away, trying to remember I was not supposed to drool over my coworker. I searched for Emma and Jacob, wondering what it was that the latter had been so excited about, but they were too busy making out by the water.

And then it hit me.

Not the third wheel, not even the fifth wheel… I was the seventh wheel. I guess it was lucky that two of the counselors never showed up since I’d heard rumors that they were a couple. I’d be the ninth wheel if they had.

Fuck me…

I spent a long time trying to not let that get to me, but with all that cute flirting going around while I only had the radio to keep me company, and I’d had a long day helping Emma with the kids, it was hard to hold on to my positivity.

“I uh… need to go take a leak,” I said as I got up.

“Sure,” Nick said, never taking his eyes off Abi. I wasn’t even sure if he’d heard me.

I smiled at them two, then made my way quietly to the pathway leading up to the lodge. I was going to have a short toilet break, but I… I ended up not returning to the firepit. It just… Just no. I was not in the right mental state to deal with that. I didn’t want to go to bed just yet either, so I made my way to the seats where I could see the lake behind the trees and sat down.

If I listened close enough, I could still hear the music coming from the firepit. I hoped someone would take the radio with them once they were ready to head to bed, or Mr. H would get mad at me for leaving such an old relic in the sand by the beach. It would be a shame if it broke. Something so old didn’t deserve to get ruined just because I left it there.

Yes, I was hyper-focusing on the radio, so I wouldn’t have to think about Ryan and Kaitlyn.

I let out a heavy sigh and continued staring at the lake.

We didn’t have long before we had to return home… Only a few more weeks, so it didn’t matter who Ryan liked. There was not enough time left to do anything about… anything. I had already missed my chance. Once we returned home, things wouldn’t work out anymore. Long-distance things were hard to maintain, and two weeks was not enough time to build something meaningful enough to be maintained.

And I’d be busy enough to deal with my life once I got back home. That was another topic I really didn’t want to think about, but I couldn’t avoid it forever. I couldn’t continue living the way I had before I came to this camp, that was for sure. I needed… I didn’t even know what I needed, but things couldn’t continue the same way anymore.

“Hey.”

I nearly jumped off my seat when I heard Emma right behind me.

“Christ! Don’t sneak up behind people!”

“Sorry,” she said with a smile. “I wasn’t sneaking, though. I just wanted to say hi.”

“Well, hi,” I said with a frown, rubbing my chest.

“Why are you here all alone?” she asked softly, taking the seat next to me.

“I uh… just a headache,” I lied. “I’m trying to decide if I should come back or head to bed…”

“A headache, huh…?” she repeated, staring at me in such an intense manner I was sure she could read my mind. “Or was it because we accidentally made you feel left out?”

I glanced at her, then turned to stare at the lake. “Just a headache…”

“Hmm…” she hummed, then turned to look at the lake as well. “Or it’s because of Ryan.”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” I said swiftly.

“You’ve caught feelings,” she said quietly. “Actual feelings.”

I shook my head. “It doesn’t matter.”

“It doesn’t?”

“No. I’m not looking for a relationship. And he’s obviously straight.”

“You don’t know that,” she said, and I turned to raise my eyebrows at her.

“You did see him with Kaitlyn right now, right?”

She laughed lightly. “And you’ve seen me with Jacob.”

I stared at her for a moment, then realized what she meant. “So you’re not…?”

“Not the straightest girl in town, no,” she said. “But I’d appreciate it if you kept that to yourself.”

“Sure, of course. And… I actually need to thank you for keeping my secret.”

“I wouldn’t tell anyone,” she said reassuringly.

I nodded, then sighed and turned to look at the lake. “It really doesn’t matter, anyway. Summer is coming to an end. We’ll go back to our own lives.”

“That it is,” Emma said with a quiet sigh. “It’s a bummer, really.”

“Yeah…”

“Maybe you should give it a go, anyway. You don’t know how things could turn out,” she said. “I think you two are cute together.”

I snorted. “Define together. I’ve seen him like twice the entire summer.”

She laughed at my words. “I’m serious. I don’t think you have anything to be afraid of. Ryan is a good guy. An actually nice guy. Even if he’d say no, he wouldn’t be a dick about it.”

“You don’t know that,” I said, and she turned to stare at me, and she continued staring at me long enough for me to change my mind. “Okay, fine… You’re probably right. But my answer is still no. It’s too late.”

“Okay, okay,” she said slowly, raising her hands. “It’s of course up to you. But it is a shame… You are such a sweet guy, Dylan. You deserve to be happy. So does Ryan.”

“Even if he’s not straight, what chances do I have?”

“Come on! You’ve been ranked the third hottest person in this entire camp!” she exclaimed.

“…Huh?”

“Yeah. The girls in cabin seven have a list.”

“O-oh…”

She laughed lightly at my expression. I stared at her for a moment longer, but then I had to laugh as well.

“I mean… third? I’m only the third hottest person?” I said.

“I ranked you higher,” she said. “Which is why I tried to flirt with you when we arrived here.”

“To be fair, if I had any interest in girls, I would’ve flirted back,” I said.

“So you’re gay gay?”

“Uh-huh.”

“That explains a lot,” she said, tossing her hair over her shoulder, and smiled.

“So… Who is number one?” I asked.

“The hottest person? Ryan.”

“Obviously . And the second one?”

“I… uh… I… can’t remember,” she said.

“So, Kaitlyn.”

“Yeah…” she said with an apologetic grin on her lips. “But I didn’t make that list.”

I only laughed.

“Well… If you really don’t want to ask him out, I guess I’ll just have to leave it at that,” she said.

“Yes, please… I just want to enjoy this summer while I still can,” I told her.

“That’s fair,” she said. “Maybe next year? You are coming back next year, right?”

“If Mr. H takes me,” I said.

“Good. It wouldn’t feel the same without you,” she said. “I absolutely love your jokes. And music. It really wouldn’t be the same without you here.”

“Aww,” I cooed, trying not to show how awkward I felt. “And same. It’s been fun working with you. Your peppy aesthetic is really catchy.”

“Thanks,” she said and got up. “You better start following my vlog once we get the hell out of here.”

“You have a vlog?”

“Yup,” she said. “If you follow me, you get to enjoy my peppy aesthetic all year long.”

“Okay, okay, I’ll follow it,” I said with a smirk.

“Good,” she said. “Did you decide if you want to come back or…?”

“I think I’ll go to bed,” I said. “I uh… The theme of the party is a bit too flirty for my taste right now.”

“I can hang out with you,” she suggested, but I shook my head.

“Nah, I wouldn’t want to steal you away from Jacob,” I said. “You two are a really cute couple, by the way.”

“Thanks,” she said. “If you are sure, then I’ll bid you goodnight.”

“Goodnight,” I said, and watched her head back to the party.

Once I couldn’t see her anymore, I took a deep breath and got up as well. I could see the light coming from the firepit behind the trees, and for a brief moment, I considered following Emma, but the idea of being the seventh wheel stopped me.

It was just too much right now.

Chapter Text

-Ryan-

I watched the pathway leading up to the lodge over the bonfire, trying to listen to Kaitlyn, but I was getting restless. Dylan had left ages ago, and he still hadn’t returned. When he left, he’d looked… I don’t know… I just had the feeling he wasn’t all right. And it was dark. Like really, really dark. What if something had happened to him? The whole campsite was filled with big stairs and fallen trees and rocks and what if he’d tripped in the darkness and hurt himself?

I tried to take a deep breath. Then another. I had no reason to get all concerned adult on him. We were close enough to hear him if he was calling for help.

But what if he was unconscious…? Maybe he broke his neck?

No. Everything was fine. I was just being dramatic again. I just needed to learn to relax a bit. Though I couldn’t help it. Sarah always got hurt in the weirdest ways imaginable. She’d made being concerned adult my full-time job.

I forced myself to focus on the conversation with Kaitlyn, but I did notice Emma walking past us, heading toward the pathway. Good. She’d find Dylan if something had happened to him. Now I could relax.

But when she returned an eternity later, there still was no sign of him.

“Hey, Emma? Did you happen to see Dylan?” I asked carefully.

“Yup, I did. He’s heading to bed,” she told me with a smile and continued on her way to Jacob.

“Is everything…? Is he all right?” I asked.

“Oh, yeah, everything is fine,” she said, took a few more steps, and suddenly stopped. As I watched, she tilted her head a bit, then sprung around. “Actually,” she began in a dramatic voice. “Now that you mentioned it, I don’t think he was all right.”

“What?” I asked and stood up as she returned to me, looking really, really concerned.

“Yeah. I don’t think he was all right at all,” she said. “Maybe someone should go check up on him?”

“I’ll go,” I immediately said.

“Great!” she said with a big smile. “He was heading to the cabins. I’m sure you can catch up with him.”

“Okay, thanks,” I said, and hurried up the pathway.

At least he wasn’t injured… But I’d been right. Something was wrong. It was not like him to leave a party so early. And that look on his face…

I picked up my pace and ran the rest of the way to the cabins. I crossed the bridge leading over a small creek just in time to spot Dylan climbing up the stairs to his cabin.

“Dylan! Wait up!”

And it was at that exact moment when I paused to ask myself why was I running after him like his life depended on it? The guy was not injured; he was just heading early to bed! I could’ve waited until morning to ask him about it!

“Ryan?” he spoke my name with a confused frown.

“U-uh…” I stopped a few feet away from the staircase as he came back down.

What the fuck was I supposed to say? He’d seen me running after him, for crying out loud! I was making a fool out of myself… I couldn’t tell him I got concerned because of the way he’d looked right before he left the firepit.

But I couldn’t come up with a lie, either, and I had to say something so…

“I just… Emma said something was wrong, and I… uh…”

“What?” he asked, his frown getting deeper.

“Yeah, yeah… I mean, you didn’t come back, so I feared you finally broke your neck, and when I asked her if she saw you, she… uh…”

For fuck’s sake, Emma! She did this on purpose! This was a fucking trap set up by her… That’s why she was acting so dramatic, making me think something was terribly wrong. For what? So I’d talk to Dylan?

“Did she also mention I have a headache, and that’s why I’m skipping the party?” Dylan asked in a weird voice, looking somewhat annoyed.

“No, she just said that something was wrong… so…”

Dylan nodded and sighed. “Well I’m fine. It’s just a headache. No need to worry about it,” he said, then smiled. “You really think I’ll break my neck, huh?”

“Uhh…” I decided not to say anything and only grinned, making him laugh.

“I am perfectly capable of handling my own legs, you know?” he said and started walking away from me.

My cursed eyes trailed down to his legs, and my even more cursed head came up with a few ways I’d handle them… I got my sanity back when he went to sit down at one of the picnic tables under the big tree in the middle of the yard.

“Accidents happen in the dark,” I said with a shrug, and hesitated for a moment before sitting down next to him. “It’s not like you to skip a party, so you can’t tell me I was worrying for nothing.”

“Yeah, I suppose,” he said softly.

“So… You are all right then?” I asked.

“Yeah… Long day… It’s nothing…”

“Do you…? Wait, I’m sorry, you said you wanted to go to bed. Should I…?” I said and almost got back on my feet, but he shook his head.

“I can sit here for a while. You know I like to rest my ears for a bit before bed,” he said with an inviting smile.

“Okay, cool,” I said. “Do you need painkillers?”

“It’s okay. It’s not that bad.”

“Cool…”

After that, I really didn’t know what else to say. I was still embarrassed over running after him like that. At least he wasn’t bringing it up. I didn’t even want to know what he was thinking… It was weird. It had to look weird from his point of view. I could only hope he thought I was just being overly cautious again…

“By the way, if you’re going to head back to the party, could you make sure Mr. H gets his radio back unharmed?” Dylan spoke.

“Yeah, sure thing,” I said. “I can’t believe you know how to use it.”

“It’s really simple,” he said with a smirk. “You just turn the knobs.”

“Right,” I said, nodding slowly. “Don’t know why I’m surprised, though. Of course you know your way around music players.”

“I do like music, yeah,” he said, watching me. “How about you? Is there something you are good at?”

“Worrying,” I said, earning a short laugh from him.

I wasn’t in the mood to talk about animation and stuff, so I was glad he left it at that. I still had no idea what to do about school, and still, every time the thought crossed my mind, I felt uneasy.

Silence fell between us, but it wasn’t uncomfortable. I leaned back against the table and looked up at the clear night sky. I could feel Dylan’s eyes on me for a moment, but then he looked up as well, letting out a slow breath as he rested his arms on the table behind him.

This was actually really nice… I preferred this over the party. My social batteries had run out, so not having to force a conversation was exactly what I needed. And Dylan didn’t seem to mind the silence. I mean, he preferred silence too, right? He needed his alone time in the evenings.

I forgot to enjoy the peace and silence. My entire focus was on Dylan. I didn’t miss a single yawn or movement, and I actually had to fight myself so I wouldn’t turn to look at him. I had nothing to say, so I had to keep looking away.

Again, Sarah’s voice emerged. I’d talked with her several times over the summer, and she always asked me if I’d hooked up with anyone yet. Teenagers… She’d kept pestering me about it and more often than once, I’d considered doing it just to get her off my back.

And this… kind of was my chance. Thanks to Emma, I was alone with Dylan, and I doubted anyone would come to interrupt us. But what were the odds that he was not completely straight? Well, he did not seem the most straightest of guys, but maybe that was just… wishful thinking.

I let out a silent sigh. No. No, no, no… No hook-ups. I’d have a few one-night stands back at home whenever Sarah was staying somewhere else. That was enough. That was what I’d always done. With everything going on, that was enough.

Besides, I didn’t want to make these last two weeks awkward if he happened to be straight, after all. Or that things just didn’t work out. Or something…

But honestly… I didn’t want to come up with excuses. Dylan was… His playfulness and dry humor, his good looks, his sweet nature, even his restlessness… I had no idea I’d be into that, but…

I failed and turned to look at him. He quickly noticed it and turned to look back at me. Fuck, now I had to say something.

“Are you… feeling better?” I asked, congratulating myself for not freezing completely.

“Yeah,” he said.

“Good… That’s good,” I muttered.

For a brief, brief moment, I imagined myself asking him out. What would he say if I did? Would he give me a weird look or that adorable grin of his?

“You want to go back to the party, right?” he asked, waking me up from my daydreams.

“I… don’t know anymore,” I said. “I’m getting kind of tired too.”

What if I kissed him at that very moment…?

“Oh. Do you want to go to sleep? It is quite late.”

His lips looked soft…

“I guess I should,” I ended up saying and looked away, feeling sad. “Kaitlyn wants to teach me how to shoot in the morning, so…”

“Right, right…” Dylan muttered.

“Yeah, so…”

I didn’t want to go, but I knew I had to. I was so close to giving in…

“Well, I uh… see you tomorrow?” Dylan spoke and stood up.

“Yeah. I’ll… I’ll see you tomorrow,” I said.

He smiled, nodded, and made his way to his cabin. I still had a few seconds to change my mind. I wanted to change my mind. I really wanted to change my mind.

But I turned my back on him and walked away.

Chapter Text

-Dylan-

That damned Emma…

“Well… If you really don’t want to ask him out, I guess I’ll just have to leave it at that, ” she’d said.

Good fucking job leaving it at that, Emma. She’d made Ryan think something was wrong with me just to make him come talk to me. And for nothing. I didn’t want that chance to be alone with Ryan. I mean, I did, but not like this.

Not as coworkers.

I knew she’d meant well, but she only made things worse. Seeing Ryan so concerned as he basically ran all the way to me… That actually hurt. That was just the overly concerned adult Ryan wanting to make sure I was fit to do my job the next day or something. And I wanted so much more than that.

So, yeah… That was cruel.

And to top it off, Ryan had to mention his date with Kaitlyn…

I was not feeling much better the next morning. If I did, seeing Ryan leave with Kaitlyn after breakfast ruined it. I wasn’t sure why it was affecting me so much now. I could only guess, but I wanted to blame the fact that I was getting increasingly anxious over having to return home in two weeks. I still hadn’t figured out anything, even though I’d had the entire summer to decide what to do about school and family and everything.

And I really didn’t want to figure out anything. I just wanted to… fucking disappear. Just pack my bags and move across the country and change my number and name and start all over. It was hard enough to try to figure out life as a new adult without no one to turn to, but with certain people making things a hell of a lot harder… I fucking hated it.

When I left the lodge, I tried to get into a more positive mood by dreaming about leaving the entire state of New York for good. Find a school far away from here. I could do it. I could honestly do it. Just get up and leave and rip the last ties I had and not look back. I could finally focus on myself.

But I knew I couldn’t do that. I knew myself well enough. I’d just get pulled back and I wouldn’t even try to stop it.

I tried to get rid of all the negative stuff in my head as I headed to the radio hut. And for some goddamn fucking reason, I chose to take a detour past the shooting range and make myself feel worse. It was like I wanted to wallow in self-pity and all that shit.

I slowed down when I heard their voices. Ryan’s and Kaitlyn’s. There was a lot of laughing going on… I really should’ve turned around, but I kept going until I reached the shooting range. The two of them were still just chatting, with a few bags at their feet, both smiling... 

It sucked to admit that they did look like a cute couple…

Fuck me…

Ryan moved a little to see the targets on the other side of the range, giving Kaitlyn the room to have direct eye contact with me. Her smile immediately turned into an annoyed one, and she quickly turned her back on me as well.

I wondered if she was just generally annoyed with me, or if she knew I had a crush on Ryan. It was obvious she had a crush on him, so maybe she could tell that I did too? I mean, I’d tried to act normal around him, but…

Fuck, I suddenly wasn’t sure about that at all.

“So, have you fired a gun before?” Kaitlyn asked him.

“A few times.”

“Why am I not surprised?” she asked with a flirty smile, then grabbed one of the bags.

I let out a silent sigh. It didn’t matter. My feelings didn’t matter. I’d wasted all my chances while she was clearly ready to take hers. And if Ryan enjoyed her company, all there was left for me was to wish them happiness and good luck. They sure did make a cute couple.

I just had to stay positive and hope I’d find the right guy one day. A college fling didn’t sound so bad, either.

I took one last look at the two as they hassled with the bags, then took a step toward the radio hut.

And immediately tripped over a root poking out of the ground and practically planted my face deep into the forest floor.

“Dylan!”

I stayed there for a brief moment, lying on the ground, defeated. My damn luck… Of course it had to be Ryan and Kaitlyn who witnessed my downfall. I’d never stop hearing from this.

“Dylan! You all right?”

I rolled on my back and burst out laughing when Ryan stopped next to me.

“You all right?” he repeated, but his concerned expression turned slightly amused. “I told you those legs are a safety hazard!”

“I’m fine, I’m fine,” I said, still chuckling. “The rocks softened my landing.”

He shook his head and offered his hand. “At least you didn’t break your neck.”

I grabbed his hand, and he helped me back up. I quickly checked myself for any injuries, but only found a few scrapes on my palm.

“All good,” I declared.

“You should go see a nurse,” Kaitlyn told me, but not out of concern – she was clearly annoyed that I had interrupted them and just wanted me out of the picture.

“I’m fine,” I simply said, though I was not planning on staying a second longer in her presence. “Didn’t mean to interrupt you guys, so I’ll just–”

“What? You don’t want to stay and watch while I make a fool out of myself with the gun?” Ryan asked with a smirk.

“Hmm. Tempting, tempting,” I said slowly.

“Maybe if you ask nicely, Kaitlyn can show you how to–”

“Excuse me,” Kaitlyn interrupted him with raised eyebrows. “I’m not letting a ten-year-old butt joke handle any kind of weapon.”

Both Ryan and I turned to stare at her.

“Did you just call me a butt joke?” I asked.

“Yes.”

“You…” I trailed off and let out a dramatic gasp. “That was a butt joke.”

“No, it wasn’t.”

“You just made a butt joke,” I said, acting shocked.

“I did not!”

“That counts as a butt joke!” I said, and grinned. “Kaitlyn Ka made a butt joke!”

She gave me an annoyed glare.

“I have converted you!” I continued. “You are now just as bad as I am!”

Her glare turned into a murderous one, but there was also a hint of a smile on her face, which surprised me. Ryan had been chuckling the entire time, and he nudged her teasingly.

“Welcome to the butt joke club,” he said.

She rolled her eyes and sighed. “Are you done?”

“Yeah,” Ryan said, trying to contain his smile.

“I’m done, I’m done,” I said, raising my hands. “But I have an important announcement to make, so I should get going.”

“I swear to God, if it’s about my butt joke…” Kaitlyn said in a warning tone, while I backed away, still keeping my hands up.

“So you admit it was a butt joke,” I said.

“I will shoot you,” was her reply.

“And that’s my cue,” I said, turning my back on them. “See you!”

“See you around,” Ryan replied, while Kaitlyn stayed silent.

A ten-year-old butt joke, huh…? Fuck, I actually found that funny. I guess Kaitlyn was all right. Way too mature and serious for my taste, even if I were into girls. But she did seem like a good fit for Ryan, who was almost just as mature and serious as she was.

I let out a long sigh, but the gloomy mood couldn’t quite get a hold of me anymore. Seeing them together, having fun and laughing around, felt almost like I’d found some kind of closure. Ryan just wasn’t for me, and Kaitlyn clearly cared about him, so… I had to let it go.

But that didn’t mean I wasn’t sad about it. It didn’t mean I didn’t regret taking my chance. It definitely didn’t mean I wasn’t wondering if things had been different if I’d acted more mature and serious as well. It sounded so boring, but…

Whatever…

I stepped into my radio hut and went to sit down behind the radio. I pushed Ryan and Kaitlyn out of my head and pulled my journal closer. I had a job to do, and that was what I’d be focusing on during the last few weeks. I also had to figure out what to do with my life once the summer was over.

And accept the fact that Ryan wasn’t going to be part of that life.

I glanced at the short list of announcements I had for the day, then opened the line.

“Good morning Hacketteers! Is everyone having a good day?”

I peered down at the list again, the first one being about bigger changes in the schedule for the weekend.

“I need you all to pay close attention now because I have a few important news today,” I continued.

I could almost see Ryan and Kaitlyn at the firing range, having fun at that very moment, probably too busy with each other to even hear what I had to say, and I was okay with that. They deserved good things and to be happy. I could already see them as a great couple. I could accept that since I had nothing against Kaitlyn. She was a good person, after all.

But that didn’t mean I’d stop annoying her.

“Kaitlyn made a butt joke,” I spoke dramatically into the microphone, and I could almost hear her frustrated groan somewhere in the distance.

Chapter Text

-Dylan-

“Goooood morning Hacketteers! This is your very own, very handsome DJ Dylan broadcasting live from the heart of the Hackett’s Quarry Summer Camp! I hope everyone is well rested and well fed, since I am here to kick-start our two-day long, very special, end-of-the-summer grand finale!

“Now I know we’re all sad that the camping season is two days away from ending, and we all must return home, but look at the bright side! We no longer have to see Jacob’s butt face! I’m kidding, I’m kidding. Love you, man, you know that. And Nick? Could you make sure he doesn’t poison my food? Thanks.

“To start this celebration, I have a very special list of the best summer hits ready for you special boys and girls, but first, let me talk about the super awesome activities our amazing counselors have come up with!

“Our lovely Abigail will be hosting an art gallery with all your greatest art in the lounging area of the lodge, so don’t forget to go check them out! And today at two in the afternoon, you can take part in the football game hosted by the butt-face – I mean Jacob. Counselors versus campers! Who will win? At seven, we all get to finally see the spectacular play directed by our beautiful Emma and starred by you beautiful campers – I’m personally excited to see this one. Of course, Nick will make sure we have the greatest party food and snacks available all day – seriously, Nick, don’t let Jacob in the kitchen at all, okay? And Kaitlyn and the big boss himself, Mr. H, have a special surprise for you arranged in the field after the play, but you’ll have to wait and see what it is! And finally! We will end the day with a boat ride around the lake with our handsome Ryan, who hopefully will forget to put a shirt on, so there’s actually something for us to look at.

“And that concludes my second to last morning announcement! Next up is my carefully picked playlist of sweet summer jams! Enjoy the day, the sun, and the greatest company in the entire world!”

With that, I closed the microphone and switched the radio to play the music, then took a deep breath and leaned back in my chair, exhausted from the hype I’d put into my announcement.

“Two days left,” I whispered, and sighed.

Where did the time go? How was it possible that the summer was already over? Two whole months, gone in a blink of an eye…

And I’d had fun. I’d made so many good memories and friends and just… I would miss this all. In two days, I’d have to return to my tiny apartment. To those few people I could barely call my friends. To whatever shitty job I could find. To the silence. To Mom and her problems.

Compared to that boring life, this place was a wonderland.

I took a deep breath and let it out slowly, trying to regain the enthusiasm I’d felt making the announcement. This was not the right time to be sad.

Since the playlist was quite long and I no longer had any other administrative tasks to do, I went to sit outside on the stairs to get some fresh air and see what everyone else was doing. The kids were playing around the tree with the counselors keeping an eye on them, and I forgot myself as I watched them. It was a warm, sunny day, the air smelled sweet, and the wind was gently rustling the trees… So perfect…

I was going to miss this place so much…

“Dylan! Hey Dylan!”

I waved at the kids who spotted me. A couple of them came to chat me up for a bit and then returned to play with the others. Once they were gone, I was approached by someone else: my favorite disruption, Ryan.

“Do you need to breathe?” he asked with a smile when he came to sit down next to me, holding two cans of soda in his hands.

“Huh?”

“Your announcement. I didn’t hear you stop to take a breath once,” he said, offering me a can.

“Oh, I’m a vampire.”

“Ah,” he said with a chuckle, and opened his own can. “No wonder you’re so pale.”

“I’m not pale,” I said, bringing my arm up. “I’m just–”

“Pasty white,” he said, putting his own bare arm next to mine. “See? White as a sheet.”

“Well compared to you, obviously,” I said with a snort, and he laughed.

“You should’ve come out of your hut every once in a while,” he said.

“I did,” I said, stressing those words.

“Really?” he asked with an amused expression on his face. “I don’t think I’ve seen you around much during these past couple of weeks.”

Yeah… Because I’d done my best to avoid him. And Kaitlyn…

“Look who’s talking?” I retorted with a smirk. “You’re the supreme loner. Always hiding from everyone.”

“That is my trademark, yes,” he said.

“That’s fair,” I said, and looked over the yard, then sighed. “But now the camp is coming to an end, huh…?”

“Yeah…” he said quietly, his expression dropping. “But there is next year.”

“Yeah… Ten months away…” I muttered.

He suddenly chuckled and turned to look at me, his big brown eyes sparkling. “Still remember your first days?”

“I wish I didn’t,” I said with a smirk.

“You see, I was right,” he continued. “You really are a kick-ass counselor. Everyone here adores you.”

I hid my smile from him, shaking my head. “I just played tunes…”

Fuck, how I wished I had the courage to ask for his number… I mean, nothing had happened between him and Kaitlyn in these past couple of weeks. But it was way too late now. Two more days, and we’d go our separate ways. Getting his number would not change that fact.

“You were great,” he said quietly. “Next year will be easier for you.”

“Are you coming back next year?” I asked.

“I’ll keep coming here for as long as Chris lets me,” he said. “It’s like a… second home at this point.”

I nodded. “I hope he’ll have me next year, too.”

“I’m sure he will, and I’m looking forward to working with you again,” he said.

Just ask for his number… Ask for his number… This is the perfect opportunity to ask for his number!

“I’m looking forward to that as well,” I only said, and nearly facepalmed at myself.

I was so fucking useless…

But the thing was, I was scared of his reaction and possible rejection. I didn’t want to ruin anything. I didn’t want to leave this camp with horrible, possibly homophobic memories, because those would be the ones stuck with me. I’d had an amazing two months, but it all could be ruined if he or someone else turned out to be a massive jerk, and there were good candidates for that as well. Mainly Jacob. He had that vibe.

“So, are you the only one without a task?” Ryan asked.

“Mr. H told me to be where my help is needed,” I said with a shrug. “My playlist should go on for a few hours.”

“Great! That means you can help me at the boathouse,” he said and got up. “I need to get everything set for the evening.”

“Oh, uh, sure,” I said and hurried up as well.

I quickly checked the radio, then returned to Ryan.

“What do you need me to do?” I asked as we headed down to the beach.

“Help me check the life vests, pack some stuff away for the off season, stuff like that,” he said.

I’d thought he needed my help with something he couldn’t do alone. I don’t know, like moving the boats or something, but no. After we arrived at the boathouse, and we started going through the vests, I realized he could’ve easily done it by himself in a matter of minutes.

Did he… ask for my help just so he’d have company?

Since when did Ryan want company?

“Let’s bring everything we still need down here at the tables,” Ryan told me once we were done with the vests and ready to start packing stuff away. “Everything that isn’t needed goes outside to wait for Mr. H.”

“Sure thing, boss.”

Maybe I should ask for his number, after all…

No. I was not going to ruin anything by letting him know I had a crush on him.

We didn’t really talk much in a while, and even then, we only talked about the equipment that needed to be put away. I didn’t really mind. My playlist was on the PA system, the day was gorgeous, and I got to hang out with Ryan without anyone else butting in. What else could I have asked for?

His number…

No.

“It’s still odd when you’re quiet,” Ryan suddenly spoke.

“I can make you regret saying that,” I told him with a smirk.

“Who says I’d regret it?” he said with a wink.

I froze for a brief moment. That was… That wasn’t…? No, it couldn’t be. He was just playing along.

Right…?

“You know, I’m very good at making people regret their decisions,” I said, grabbing a fishing rod from the table so I could pretend to be focusing on it.

“Is that your dark secret?”

“Uh-huh.”

“Hmm… I don’t believe you,” he said.

“Maybe I would’ve told you the truth if you’d tried to get to know me better,” I said in a joking manner, but also feeling nervous.

“Maybe…” he only said, and when I glanced at him, he had a sad expression on his face as he stared over the lake. “I should have, right? I… I don’t think I know much about any of you.”

“Well, maybe next year you won’t find us so annoying anymore,” I said with a grin.

“You’re not annoying,” he said, but left it at that.

“Thanks,” I said. “You’re not annoying either.”

He laughed lightly. “Thanks.”

I honestly hesitated at that moment. I really, really wanted to take the risk and ask for his number. What did I have to lose?

“Hey, uh…” I muttered, and he turned to look at me.

Fuck…

“Yeah?”

Fuck, fuck, fuck…!

“Should we pack these away as well?” I asked, pointing at the fishing rod.

“Sure. I don’t think anyone will have time for fishing anymore,” he said, and turned his back on me again.

“Okay,” I said.

Fuck me…

Looking for more to read? Visit my website www.dollygrand.com

Chapter Text

-Ryan-

Was I just imagining things or… was there something… going on…? Some of the things Dylan said felt so… flirty. Was there something going on? Or was he just being… Dylan? He was so playful it was really hard to read him sometimes.

And it was probably just… wishful thinking…

I’d missed his company over the past two weeks, but we both had been busy with our tasks with not much time off. Maybe it was for the best. I probably would’ve ended up doing something I regretted. I had tried my best to ignore it all, but that night I’d ended up alone with him after the party was still haunting me.

I should’ve kissed him…

No. I did the right thing by not doing it.

But that joke about getting to know him better somehow stuck with me. I didn’t even try to figure out if that was a personal jab at me, or just another meaningless joke, but it did make me regret not spending more time with him and the rest. Maybe I should’ve listened to Sarah and tried to have fun while I had the chance… Now it was too late. In two days, I’d have to go back to my responsibilities.

I held back a sigh and focused on clearing out the shelves at the back of the boathouse. Well, half of my focus was on Dylan, who was packing stuff away close by. He was not as lively as usual, but I understood that. I wasn’t in the greatest of moods, either. It was always hard to go back home.

“Man…” I muttered when I peered at the top shelf, then tried to reach for it, but I was too short.

“Hmm?”

“I need something to climb on,” I muttered, glancing around to find the closest chair or something.

“I can get them for you,” Dylan said, stopped next to me, and easily grabbed the bags from the shelves.

“Man, you’re making me feel short,” I said with a chuckle.

“There’s nothing wrong with being short,” he said with a smirk.

“I’m not short!” I exclaimed. “I’m five feet ten! You’re just a giant!”

“I’m not that tall,” he said, enjoying the conversation too much.

“What are you? Six feet one? Two?”

“Something like that,” he said, still smirking, but it faded a little. “My dad was actually taller than me, so I never see myself as tall.”

Was…?

I nodded slowly. “Same,” I muttered, taking the bags from him. “Let’s get these outside.”

“Let’s, so we can avoid this topic,” he muttered.

“What’s that supposed to mean?” I asked, not sure if he was making fun of me.

“Dead dads,” he said with a shrug. “Not something I usually talk about…”

“Oh… Yeah…” I said, turned my back on him and headed to the doorway, but then slowed down. “How did your…?” I asked tentatively, not sure if I should’ve asked.

“By own hand,” he said as he followed me. “Yours?”

“Electrocution.”

“Wait. What?”

“Construction worker. Freak accident.”

“Oh… I’m sorry,” he said quietly.

“Thanks, and likewise,” I said, glancing at him. “I don’t know if I should…”

“Should what?”

“Ask what happened with your…”

“Oh. You shouldn’t.”

“Okay, I’m sorry. Didn’t mean to intrude…”

He was silent as we walked through the doorway, then sighed. “He was sick. Didn’t end well for him.”

“I’m sorry,” I said quietly. “Is that… your dark secret?”

He gave me a short look. “Part of it.”

I nodded, realizing I probably should’ve shut my mouth a long time ago. This was none of my business, and he’d clearly stated he didn’t like talking about it.

“I’m sorry, man… I shouldn’t have asked such personal questions,” I said.

He let out a sigh, then conjured a smile on his face. “At least you’re showing interest in getting to know me now.”

“I, uh…”

What was I supposed to say to that?

“Well isn’t this nice and awkward,” he muttered when I stayed silent, leaving the bags with the rest of the stuff we’d packed away.

“And this is why I don’t try to get to know people,” I said quietly. “I’m bad at it.”

“Don’t worry about it,” he said, his smile kind. “At least you’re trying.”

I just nodded.

“So! Now that we know each other better, I can let you hold my rod,” he said.

“W-what?”

“My fishing rod,” he said, grabbing it from the pile. “What were you thinking, you perv?” he said, shoved the fishing rod to my chest and walked away.

I could only stare after him. When he stepped back inside, he turned around to give me a grin, then continued his way. After a moment of standing there, I started laughing quietly.

“God…” I muttered and followed him.

I… really regretted not trying to get to know him better.

“So? You still need help with these shelves?” he asked when I stopped next to him.

“You just want to flaunt your height,” I said, and he smirked.

“Only because it bothers you,” he said, winked, and faced the shelf.

“It doesn’t bother me,” I said.

“No?”

“No. Why do you think it bothers me?”

“I don’t know, man. Maybe because you keep bringing it up?”

“I don’t keep bringing it up,” I said, slowly getting flustered.

“Okay, okay,” he said with a chuckle. “You need all of this?”

“Yeah…” I muttered, relaxing again now that he let me off the hook.

“All right…” he said softly, and got up on his toes, giving me all the time in the world to take a good, long look at his frame while he moved the stuff from the top shelves to the lower ones for me.

And he had a nice frame… He kept calling himself a stick figure, but that wasn’t accurate at all anymore. He wasn’t muscular, but he definitely was toned. He had pretty wide shoulders and chest that narrowed a little down to his hips, where his figure continued down as long legs, a nice set of thighs, and a cute butt…

I shouldn’t have stared. I felt guilty for doing so. For one, if he really had tried to flirt with me, I had no intention of taking that bait. I was not interested in having a relationship, so checking him out felt wrong. And two, I needed to focus on my responsibilities, not be fooling around. And three, he was doing my job while I was standing around being useless.

“We had empty bags left, right?” I asked as I turned my back on him, needing some space before my restless thoughts would get a hold of me.

“Yeah, they’re by the door.”

I nodded and made my way back outside. I grabbed a few duffel bags and was about to head back to Dylan, but someone called for my name.

“There you are!” Kaitlyn shouted on the pathway close by, giving me a cheerful wave.

“Hey, Kaitlyn. What’s up?”

“Nothing much. I came to see if you needed a hand,” she said while she made her way to me.

“Nah, we’re almost done here,” I told her.

“We?” she repeated, looking past me.

“Dylan,” I said. “He’s been helping me out.”

“I don’t have much to do right now,” she said and entered the building. “Give me something to do.”

“Uh… There’s really not much to do anymore…”

“I guess I’ll just stay to hang out,” she said, looking around in the almost empty boathouse. “You’ve been busy.”

“Hey, Kaitlyn,” Dylan greeted her. “What’s up?”

“Just trying to find something to do,” she told him.

“Oh, cool,” Dylan said, then turned to me. “Do we have enough bags?”

“I think so.”

“So? What is the first thing you’re planning to do once we get back to civilization?” Kaitlyn asked, sitting down on top of a desk.

“I, uh… Watch TV,” I said.

“I’m going to binge-watch all my favorite shows,” Kaitlyn said. “After I’ve taken a long bath. And I will not put my phone down. I will tape it to my hand before I go to bed.”

“That doesn’t sound comfortable,” I noted, while Dylan chuckled lightly behind me.

“I don’t care. I will surround myself with electronics for months,” she said with a smile. “You’re probably excited to see Sarah again.”

“Sarah?” Dylan repeated.

“My sister,” I told him. “And yeah. I’ll probably take her shopping or something when I get back home.”

“I didn’t know you have a sister,” Dylan said.

“You know me,” I said with a shrug.

He laughed. “Weird choice of words, but all right.”

“You know what I mean,” I said, and turned back to Kaitlyn. “You excited to see your friends?”

“Definitely,” she said, and told us about a girl’s night out she was planning.

For a while, she did most of the talking while I tried to reply here and there, but Dylan was being awfully quiet. More quiet than he’d been so far that day. I couldn’t say he was being rude exactly, but from what I’d seen, he and Kaitlyn didn’t really get along, and it seemed like he wasn’t going to change that. But I suppose Kaitlyn was only talking to me, so maybe it was a mutual feeling.

It was kind of awkward, so I was kind of glad when the music on the radio suddenly stopped, and all that was coming from the speakers was quiet white noise.

“And that’s my cue to get back to work,” Dylan said. “See you guys around.”

“See you,” I said. “And thanks for your help.”

“Don’t mention it,” he said with a dismissive shrug.

“Bye!” Kaitlyn said, giving him a short wave before continuing talking to me.

“Bye,” Dylan said quietly, and left.

I let out a sigh as I watched him exit the building. Quite hurriedly, too, like he really wanted to get away from us. No, what was I thinking? He was just in a hurry to get back to his radio.

Right…?

I sighed and turned back to Kaitlyn, who had continued talking in a cheerful manner. Almost like she was happy that Dylan was out of the picture… No, I was just imagining things. I sucked at reading people, so who was I to tell what was going on between them? And it was none of my business.

But I sure hoped it wasn’t Dylan who had left…

Chapter Text

-Dylan-

So that could’ve ended in a disaster. This entire time, I’d tried to find the courage to ask for his number, nearly succeeding in it several times. Thank God, I didn’t ask… I’d only had to take one look at him with Kaitlyn to understand it would’ve been a big mistake. I’d never seen Ryan so relaxed around anyone. And he clearly told her things he wasn’t comfortable sharing with others.

If nothing had already happened between those two, it wouldn’t take long before something did happen. So… My cowardice saved the day this time. Things would’ve gotten really awkward if I had confessed my feelings to him.

But it didn’t feel great, though. I returned to the radio hut, avoiding people on my way. After entering my safe place, I closed the door and went to put on another playlist, then sat down to stare at the table.

Why did he look so good when he laughed…? Especially with Kaitlyn…

“Just forget it,” I told myself, but failed to listen to myself.

I let out a groan and leaned back in my chair. I’d done so well keeping him out of my thoughts during these past two weeks! I really should just forget it. Him. His good looks and careful humor. Every time he forgot to be serious, he was really fun to hang out with. And there really was nothing wrong with his serious side, either. It was kind of… hot.

“Fuck me…” I breathed out.

Sometimes I really wished I was straight. Life would’ve been so much easier if I were… I could’ve used easy for a change.

A knock on the door interrupted my moping, and I got up to go open it.

“Mr. H!” I said, faked a smile, and stepped out of his way. “What’s up?”

“I came to see if everything is all right. I heard the white noise?” he said when he stepped in.

“Oh, yeah, that was my bad. I was helping Ryan and forgot to get back in time to reset the playlist,” I told him.

“Ryan, huh?” he said, giving me a curious look.

“I know right, I was shocked too,” I said with a smirk. “But everything is all good.”

“Good, good. And how’s things with you? Do you regret coming here this summer?” he asked in a joking manner.

“Nah,” I said truthfully. “I really had a blast. And… I’m hoping… I’ll get to come back next year,” I said carefully.

“I’d be glad to have you back, champ,” he said with a kind smile, patting my shoulder. “You were great this summer. The kids really look up to you. And look at this place! I don’t even recognize it anymore!”

I glanced around as well, feeling proud of my handiwork.

“You are a good kid, Dylan,” he said quietly. “I really am expecting to see you next year.”

I really couldn’t blame Ryan for liking this man so much…

“I will be here,” I promised quietly.

“Good,” he said. “I actually have a bit of spare time right now, if there is something you want to talk about. Give me feedback or ideas, and I’d really like to hear how you felt working with us.”

“Well, I uh… I really enjoyed my tasks. I love this radio hut. Making the announcements really grew on me, and I love music, so… I had a blast. But I don’t think I have anything negative to say,” I told him.

“No feedback?”

“Not really. Maybe if you’d let us keep our phones…” I said with a smirk, and he squinted his eyes at me, but still looking amused.

“Nice try,” he only said. “I’d constantly have to be kicking your butts to get you back to work.”

“Yeah, yeah, and honestly, being disconnected from the world really isn’t bad,” I admitted, and added in a quieter tone, “I think I’m going to miss that, actually…”

“You will?” he asked just as quietly.

“Yeah… I mean… I kind of like not being available around the clock. At home… there are… certain people who will get mad if I don’t answer their calls or messages right away, and… and they don’t really understand I need time alone. Like, completely alone. It’s… kind of stressful sometimes.”

“You are allowed to set your own boundaries,” he said slowly. “With everyone, no matter what your relationship with them is.”

“Including your own mother?” I muttered before I could stop myself.

“Including your own mother,” he repeated gently. “It’s not easy. Family is important, but every relationship needs good boundaries.”

I probably shouldn’t have said anything, but today I was feeling… not well. Not with the camp ending so soon and everything.

“I uh…” I looked down at my feet. “While here, I, uh… It’s opened my eyes a little. I know I need to make some changes at home… Boundaries and shit, like you said…”

He waited for me to continue, but he understood I wasn’t going to.

“Do you want to talk about it? About this situation with your family?”

“I, uhm…”

“You know I keep this camp going every summer because I want to help kids, right? Kids like you.”

I let out a sigh, trying to put my thoughts in order. I’d told Ryan about it, so maybe it was a good idea to clear the air with Chris now that I hadn’t had the time to bury the memories back to the deepest parts of my mind. He clearly thought I was being abused or something, and I didn’t like that.

I nodded slowly, peered at him, then sighed again. “Okay, um… You remember when you said… on my first days here… that you remember certain cases, right?”

“I do, yes,” he said slowly.

“Well, I really was not a case,” I said. “Nothing was going on when I was a kid. Well, I mean…”

“Other than you arriving at my quarry with bruises,” he noted. “I’m not going to pretend we didn’t notice that.”

“It wasn’t like that… My dad… He had schizophrenia,” I said quietly, feeling restless talking about it. “He was… on and off his meds, which made him… a bit… scary sometimes.”

“Scary, huh?” he said slowly and leaned against the desk. “Did he ever get physical?”

“Not the way you think… Not intentionally. Sometimes when he saw things, we… kind of accidentally got in the way. It usually happened really fast, so… And his symptoms could get really bad when he was off his meds,” I admitted. “I know he didn’t mean to. He was just sick.”

“It sounds like he shouldn’t have been off his meds,” he said.

“No, he shouldn’t have, but… I don’t know… He never really got the actual help he needed. Mom, um… She thought she was doing the right thing… protecting him by covering up for him, but it only made things worse.”

I could tell Mr. H was getting upset over what I told him. He bit his lower lip, his arms crossed over his chest, as he stared at me, clearly trying to find a way to put his thoughts into words without letting me see how angry he was.

“I’m fine now,” I said quietly. “And it wasn’t that bad back then. Accidents with him didn’t happen that often. He was just… scary. And Mom did what she thought was best for us all. She kept sending me here to give me a break from it.”

He stayed silent for a moment, watching me so carefully I felt the need to keep covering up for my old man, just like Mom always did, but I stayed silent.

“Is he still around?” he finally asked, and I shook my head.

“He, uh… No… He’d been off his meds for a while, and he ended up… ending it. For good,” I muttered. “It happened years ago…”

“And your mom?”

“Does it matter?” I asked.

“You said you want to set boundaries with her,” he reminded me. “I mean, if you still want to talk about that?”

I tossed my head back, letting out a groan. “Haven’t I revealed enough dark secrets?”

“Maybe I can help,” he offered.

“I don’t know… She’s just…” I trailed off, but what was the point in not talking? I trusted Mr. H. “Well… Because Dad did what he did, Mom needed ways to… cope.”

“Alcohol?”

“…And drugs. Like opioids and all that shit. She usually only contacts me if she needs something. Like money…”

“And that’s why you need to set boundaries with her,” he nodded. “Is she trying to get better?”

“Kind of. She gets clear for a while, but then something inconvenient happens and… Well, you know the deal… I’m trying to make sure she stays sober, but… I’m also trying to deal with my own issues and build my own life. I mean… I’m trying to. I wish there was a manual on how to adult,” I said, letting out a fake chuckle in hopes of bringing up the mood a little.

“Do you have any other family you can turn to?” Mr. H asked, not taking the bait. “It’s an awfully big burden for someone so young.”

I raised my eyebrow at him. “You really are trying to dig up all my secrets, aren’t you?”

“I didn’t mean to,” he said with a frown.

“Well, fuck it. I’m gay. In a very conservative family. They pretend I don’t exist. There, another secret for you. Happy now?”

“No. Not at all,” he said, stepping closer to me. “I’m horrified. I knew something was off, but this? What you’ve been through is bad. A good kid like you deserved so much better than that.”

“It wasn’t all that bad…” I muttered. “I just want to focus on building a new life for myself. I admit, things could’ve been easier, but they could’ve been a lot worse, too. And I’m not my past.”

“You know…” Mr. H said, giving me a sad look. “Sometimes it amazes me how strong kids can really be. After what you’ve been through, you’re still here, making people laugh.”

“It’s whatever…”

“You deserve better. I do want to help you if you’ll let me, okay? I’m always happy to help my counselors. Even off season, and I’m sure we can figure things out.”

“I guess… I could use a hand,” I muttered.

“It’s a deal then. Let’s just wrap up this summer, and after you get back home, you call me, okay?”

I sighed, then nodded. “If it’s not a bother…”

“I am here to help all year round. Not just during summer. And I want to make sure you’ll come back next year,” he said, placing his hand on my shoulder.

I smiled at him. “Sure… And thanks.”

“Anytime,” he said. “I need to skedaddle, but just so you know, I will be expecting that call.”

“I’ll keep that in mind, Boss,” I said.

“Good. Now, give us those tunes, will you?”

“Sure thing,” I said, and watched him leave my hut.

Man, now I really understood why Ryan looked up to him so much, and why he didn’t want to disappoint him. And now the thought of returning home, where absolutely no one was waiting for me, felt even worse. At least I’d get to see my cat again…

I tried not to fall back into the gloomy set of mind and instead chose to pack away some stuff as well. I had two days left in this place, after all, and I had to make the most out of it.

Even if that meant I had to watch Ryan and Kaitlyn flirt with each other.

Chapter Text

-Dylan-

It was a fun day. I didn’t have much to do, so I spent the majority of my time watching the kids wherever the activities took place. Abi’s art gallery was great, Emma’s play was amazing, and the kids obviously won the football game Jacob hosted since, weirdly enough, us counselors had collectively forgotten how to football correctly. The food was great; I didn’t get poisoned, and the surprise Mr. H and Kaitlyn had planned was a small fireworks show, which seemed to be highly exciting to the kids. Not so much for me. Not with the loud bangs and screaming kids that brought back memories I really wanted to avoid, but I made it through.

I was also able to avoid Ryan – and Kaitlyn – most of the day, but we still had that one last activity left for the day: the boat ride around the lake with the sexy sailing instructor.

I was running a little late since I’d stayed behind to help to clean up the field with Caleb, Kaylee, Jacob, and Emma after the fireworks, so I hurried to get a set of warmer clothes before heading out to the boathouse. Jacob and Emma stepped out of their cabins almost at the same time, but since I wanted a few minutes to rest my ears, I waited until the two started walking down the pathway before I followed them.

And boy, was I happy with my decision or what?

“Jacob… I’m sorry, but… I think we need to talk,” Emma spoke.

Yikes…

“About what?” Jacob asked in his happy-go-lucky way, and at first I thought he was missing all the blaring warnings in Emma’s words, tone, and expression.

Emma sighed and took his hand in hers, while I slowed down my steps so I wouldn’t intrude too much on their privacy.

“Once we get back from this boat trip, we should go for a walk,” Emma said quietly, but smiled.

“Okay, sure!” Jacob said, acting cheerful, but his tone was off.

He wasn’t stupid. He knew. Poor guy.

And I realized that this, getting dumped on the last day of summer camp, probably would’ve been my faith as well. I mean, if by some goddamn miracle I would’ve found the guts to tell Ryan I had a crush on him, and by even more damned miracle he would’ve returned those feelings. Whatever would’ve happened between us, it would be coming to an end now. That, or we’d be facing a long-distance thing. Neither of those sounded great, though getting dumped would’ve been the worst of the two.

I was spared from that, but… It didn’t make me feel any better.

Obviously, when I finally spotted Ryan in the middle of the crowd, he was with Kaitlyn. I turned my back on them and asked the kids if they were excited just to get my mind off how good they looked together. It was one of my last chances to hang out with the campers anyway, so I wanted to focus on them. I’d get to see Ryan next year again, but I doubted many – if any – of these kids would return next summer, after all.

It was quite easy to stay distracted by the hassle in the boathouse while we lowered the boats into the water one last time. The kids were still in hyper mode, so it was quite noisy too. It took a while to get all the boats and the campers ready, but finally, we were ready to get the campers seated.

I was with my designated group, helping the last kid down into the boat, when…

“Hey! Dylan!”

I turned around just in time to see Ryan taking his shirt off. With a smirk, he quickly turned it into a ball and threw it at me. I caught it, then stopped to stare at him in mild shock. He didn’t say anything. He just winked at me, still smiling, and turned his attention back to his boat, while I still couldn’t stop staring at him.

I think everyone at the boathouse was silently staring at him. It was Emma who first recovered from it and whistled at him, making a few people laugh.

“Ryan – you’re going to get cold,” spoke Kaitlyn, the second one to find her voice.

“I’ll be fine,” Ryan said, shrugging her off.

Oh, my stupid mouth…

“What do you mean? You’re fine as hell already,” I said.

FUCK.

“All right, all right, enough with the flirting. Let’s get moving,” Mr. H said way too nonchalantly, and I quickly turned my back on all of them.

Then I realized I was still hugging Ryan’s shirt. I quickly tossed it into my boat in case he did get cold, hoping no one saw how red my face was. I took a few deep breaths, deciding the best course of action now was to act like nothing happened.

But I could not pretend nothing happened. I was the reason he took his shirt off. He did it because of me and my stupid announcement! But why? Why?! Why? Just for shits and giggles? Or…? No, no, no, no! He did it for shits and giggles. He had no other reason to do it. Absolutely none.

Fuck’s sake… I was doing so well, too, but just like that, Ryan had completely messed me up. And that wink he gave me… But he completely ignored my remark about how fine he was… Oh, God, did I make a massive fool out of myself by saying that? Though, to be fair, that was exactly the kind of shit people expected me to say, so I was probably fine. I just had to calm down and focus on the boat trip.

It almost worked, but when I took my seat in the boat, I touched Ryan’s shirt and realized I would have to give it back to him. And here I was planning on avoiding him for the rest of my life.

I carefully peered around, but people didn’t seem to pay any attention to me. Except for Emma, who was smirking at me. I rolled my eyes at her, then turned my attention elsewhere. And immediately spotted Kaitlyn, who gave me an ugly stare, then turned her back on me.

Actually… Going back home suddenly didn’t feel like such a bummer anymore. This was getting too messy, and getting my hopes up every time Ryan paid any kind of attention to me was taking its toll on me. I was tired of lying to myself as well. The truth was that I wasn’t able to let go of hope for as long as Ryan was right there, taunting me with his good looks and winks.

I needed to get away from that before he’d ruin me for good.

We spent a few hours slowly sailing around the lake, and everyone was having fun. I tried to stay further away from Ryan’s boat and just enjoy my time with my little group. It was surprisingly easy to keep my mood up this time. I was feeling more hopeful about going back home, too. Maybe it was because Mr. H promised to help me with stuff at home, and that I was expected to come back next year. I had something good to look forward to now.

Maybe I’d finally figure out what to do with my future. It was a nice feeling.

When the sun started to set, we headed back to the boathouse. It was another hassle to get everyone out of the boats and make sure no one left anything behind. Most of the counselors took the kids and led them to the lodge, and for a moment, I considered joining them.

But then I saw Ryan’s shirt still in my boat. I had to give it back to him. I couldn’t leave it in the boat, and it didn’t feel right to leave it on a desk where he could find it, either.

So, I grabbed the shirt, and turned around to search for its owner. It was easy to spot him in the almost empty boathouse, so I made my way to him, trying to bring out the jokester in me. And to stay calm.

Ryan heard me and turned around to face me. He glanced at his shirt, then turned his attention to me with no expressions on his face. And by that I meant he had his impressive resting bitch face on, which ate up a little of my courage.

I still had to try, though.

“Thank you,” I said with a little bow as I handed it to him. “I’m sure there were plenty of people who enjoyed the views. I hope you didn’t get cold.”

He took the shirt, but didn’t put it on. “I was fine.”

“Obviously,” I said with a smirk, forcing myself to not look at his bare chest. “Do you still need help?”

“No, not really. We’ll get the boats out of water tomorrow, so we can call it a day now,” he told me, and I had the feeling he didn’t want company right now. He was being distant again.

“Gotcha,” I said with a nod, taking a step back. “Welp, I guess I’ll head to the lodge then.”

“Sure.”

I nodded again, suddenly feeling like I should’ve left the shirt on a desk somewhere for him to find.

“See you,” I said and headed to the door.

He didn’t even reply to me…

I reached the doorway. My mood was dropping fast, and I decided to head to my radio hut, not to the lodge. Fuck, I felt bad…

“Did you?” Ryan spoke with a slightly raised voice.

I stopped and slowly turned around. I wasn’t sure if he was talking to me, but when I was facing him, our eyes met.

“Did I… what?” I asked slowly.

“Enjoy the views?” he said, watching me almost too closely.

Excuse me what? What?! What was I supposed to say? What was I supposed to say?! Why did he even ask that question?! I had to come up with an answer at that very instant, but my mind was empty. I had no words.

I don’t know what possessed me to do it, but I winked and smiled at him.

Then I left the boathouse. Didn’t even say anything. I just left and panicked my way up to the radio hut.

And I was not coming out until it was time to go home.

Chapter Text

-Dylan-

And then it was time to go home.

I tried not to get overly sad about the summer ending while I helped the kids in my cabin with packing, while also trying to find all my belongings. It was a hassle, but finally, the cabin was completely empty, and the kids were heading to the lodge to wait for the bus that would take them home.

I stayed behind for a brief moment, just staring at the empty bunk beds. Two whole months, gone in a blink of an eye. At least there was next year. So far, far away…

The sounds in the yard were quieting down, so I grabbed my bag with a heavy sigh, then stepped outside. Mr. H was already locking the other cabins on the other side of the yard. The kids were making their way down the pathway with several other counselors.

I looked up at the radio hut. My little safe place. I would miss it the most. Well, it was the place I’d miss the most about the whole quarry. I wanted to go take one last look at it, but I had to hurry to catch up with everyone else, so I turned my back on the hut and followed the others.

Turned out we were not in a hurry at all. The bus was an hour late to pick up the kids, which was kind of stressing everyone else out since we had trains and buses of our own to catch. Mr. H seemed particularly tense while we loaded everyone and their belongings on the bus and said our last goodbyes, but he hid it well.

Once the kids were seated, Mr. H gave them a little goodbye speech and welcomed everyone back next summer, then got out, peering at his clock.

“You two,” he pointed at me and Nick. “Once you’re ready here, come grab your phones from the office.”

“Awesome,” Nick said with a smile, while I had mixed feelings about getting my phone back.

Mr. H was already talking to Kaitlyn and Jacob, gesturing for them to follow him to the minivan. “You two make sure the car is ready. Check everything. And don’t forget your bags, all right?”

“Sure, Mr. H.”

“Oh, crap,” muttered Emma, who turned to whisper something to Abi, who discreetly started sneaking back to the cabins.

“All right,” Mr. H said as he unlocked the minivan, then turned around to wave at the kids, then hurried up to the lodge and disappeared behind the doors.

“He’s in a hurry,” Nick muttered while he and I took our bags to Kaitlyn.

“Aren’t we all?” I asked, peering at my watch. “My train is leaving in two hours.”

“Eh, we’ll make it,” he said calmly.

“Only if we get a move on,” Kaitlyn said and grabbed my bag, then tossed it in the back of the van. “There’s more bags in the lodge. Go grab them for me.”

“Sorry, Mr. H wants us to collect the phones,” I said with a smirk, backing away.

She just sighed and rolled her eyes.

Nick followed me up the stairs to the entrance of the lodge, but before we could enter the building, the bus driver turned on the engine. We stopped to wave at the kids as the bus started moving, and then it really hit me.

The summer was over.

And just like that, my eyes spotted Ryan, who was making his way below the deck Nick and I were standing on. I hadn’t said a word to him after that whole flirting incident at the boathouse. I hadn’t even seen him around until now, so I had the feeling he was avoiding me too. He must’ve realized I had feelings for him. He had to.

And now he was avoiding me.

I forced my focus on the bus that was now slowly heading to the road, and waved at the kids who had their faces glued on the windows.

“Bye!”

“Laters!”

“Peace and love!”

“See you later kids!”

“Yeah! Hackett’s Quarry forever!”

And with that, the bus and the kids were gone.

“Come on – we’re getting our phones back!” Nick said, and hurried inside.

I followed him at a slower pace, trying to keep my mood up, but the dark clouds of despair and anxiety were already gathering around. The summer was over, I had not figured anything out, Ryan was avoiding me, and I’d get to see all the missed messages from Mom.

Fuck me, I was getting really anxious all of a sudden.

Mr. H was nowhere to be found when we stopped behind his office door. We knocked on it several times, but no one came to open it, and we couldn’t hear a sound inside.

“I guess he’s outside,” Nick muttered after we did a quick search around the lodge but couldn’t find him.

“Maybe he forgot he was supposed to wait for us,” I said.

“Probably.”

Someone knocked on the main entrance, so I went to open it, hoping to see Mr. H behind it, but it was only Jacob.

“Hi.”

“Hey, are you guys going to help with the bags or what?” he asked, looking annoyed.

Of course not.

“Oh, um… You know, I was actually just working on fixing…” I spoke, carefully peering around for ideas. “Uh, the door. It’s… It’s broken,” I added, slowly pushing the door.

“Dylan, come on. Dylan, please,” Jacob said, looking tired with me as I kept closing it in his face.

“I can’t, it’s… it’s…”

“I’ve got to get the last bags in there, come on!”

“What’s wrong with this thing, it’s just closing!” I said, trying not to start laughing as I finally shut the door. “It’s closed!”

“Dylan, please!” Jacob tried one last time, then let out an annoyed sigh.

“Sorry, bro!” Nick told him, secretly giggling at my stunt.

“Cool, thanks guys…” Jacob muttered barely loud enough for us to hear.

I bolted the door so Jacob couldn’t burst through to strangle me, but I didn’t stay amused for much longer. I was going to miss all of this…

“Jacob’s going to murder you for this,” Nick snickered while we watched him looking for another way in.

“Nah. He’s just fed up with me,” I said, and made my way closer to the office. “I guess we’ll just have to wait for Mr. H to show up.”

“Looks like it.”

While we waited, I visited the bathroom, but I wasn’t in a hurry to come back out after I was done. I needed to catch my breath. On top of all the things that were making me anxious, I realized I still had to face Ryan. I mean, how was I supposed to avoid him in the minivan? Maybe if I chose my seat carefully…

“Just fucking stop…” I muttered to myself in the mirror and splashed some cold water on my face.

Even if Ryan had realized I had feelings for him, he wasn’t going to be a jerk about it. He was the avoiding kind of guy, as I’d already found out. He would continue avoiding me like plague, so I had nothing to worry about.

But that did not make me feel better. On the contrary…

“Dylan, is that you?” Jacob’s voice suddenly came from the other side of the door, accompanied by a knock.

Great, he’d already found his way into the lodge…

“I can only deal with one shit at a time, Jacob,” I said before I could stop myself.

I cursed at myself. The guy didn’t really deserve that. To make things worse, he didn’t even reply to me and just walked away. He was dealing with shit of his own – mostly Emma breaking up with him last night – and my bad mood had nothing to do with him, so… I was the jerk now.

I tried to recollect myself a little before stepping out of the bathroom. Jacob was already gone, so I’d have to go look for him so I could apologize. I didn’t have time for that, since Mr. H suddenly stepped in, and spotted us.

“Good, you’re here. Come get your phones so we can get moving,” he told us while making a beeline to his office.

We followed him and grabbed everyone’s phones from the locked drawer he had in his office. I didn’t miss the fact that there were only six phones, so someone had gotten theirs back early. And there was only one counselor who was on such good terms to get such a privilege…

But I yeeted Ryan out of my head as soon as he had entered it, then Nick and I got kicked out of the office by Mr. H.

“Make sure everyone is ready to leave,” the big boss said before closing the door on us.

“Sheesh… Someone is grumpy,” I muttered.

“He’s really on the edge, isn’t he?” Nick said with a frown.

“Like he can’t wait to get rid of us,” I agreed, fearing that the deal I had with him was now off.

I really, desperately needed him to keep his promise… Returning home was now making me even more anxious.

“He’s probably just worried because the hunting season started today,” Nick then said, and I relaxed a bit.

“Oh yeah, his lands are swarmed by people with guns now,” I said as we exited the lodge.

I spotted Jacob in front of the minivan, checking the engine, and I immediately felt terrible about the shitty joke I made. I had to apologize to him and make sure we were cool. Kaitlyn was there too, finished packing the car and looking annoyed, as usual.

“Up here, my dudes,” I spoke loudly, waving Kaitlyn’s phone in my hand.

“Why do they look like they’re up to something?” Kaitlyn asked Jacob.

I didn’t understand what she meant by that – until Nick called for Jacob, holding his phone above his head like he was going to throw it.

“What? No! Dude, please! D-don’t…!” Jacob begged, but it was too late.

“Go long!” Nick shouted and threw the phone.

“Nick!!”

But obviously Mr. Jock here caught the phone just fine.

“Boom! There it is!” Jacob smirked and did a little victory dance. Except it wasn a little victory dance and he was still grinding his hips like Magic Mike when we joined them on the yard.

“Ooh, I wish I had some singles,” I joked, acting like I was throwing money at him as he still kept going.

Had to admit, the guy did have nice moves.

“Freaks. I’m surrounded by freaks,” Kaitlyn said, rolling her eyes, and Jacob finally stopped dancing.

I gave Kaitlyn her phone, and for the first time ever, she didn’t look at me like she hated my guts.

“Oh, thank God. I mean I get the whole ‘no technology’ thing, but take me back, world!” she said as she turned it on.

“You would’ve thought Mr. H could have charged up our phones like a little bit,” Jacob said when his didn’t turn on.

“Nothing’s ever your fault, is it?” Kaitlyn asked him.

Right, I was supposed to apologize to Jacob about the joke.

“You know,” I began, but then saw Jacob’s smug face, “you should really just save it for emergencies only.”

Hmm, that was not an apology.

“Unless of course is being dumped an emergency?” I added.

Nope, not an apology either.

“Ha ho, burn!” Nick said with a laugh.

“Uh, okay. Well, at least I had a relationship this summer,” Jacob said in the smuggest way he could muster.

Yeah, screw that apology…

“Oh, damn! Now we burned,” Nick said with a smirk.

“Yeah well maybe not everyone is looking for a hookup, okay?” I said, but thankfully, before any feelings could get actually hurt, Kaitlyn stepped in.

“Okay, okay! Let’s all put our little dicks away and get this show on the road, huh?”

“Where is everyone else?” Nick asked, and I took a quick look around.

There were just the four of us. I assumed Abi and Emma were getting their bags, but I wasn’t sure where Ryan had gone. Was he still under the deck? I wasn’t going to look for him, so I kept my focus on the conversation between Nick and Jacob.

But I wasn’t really listening to them because the anxiety was again clouding up my mind.

Chapter Text

-Dylan-

I peered at my watch, and seeing it was already six o’clock made me even more nervous. I would miss my train soon… We all would. I peered at Kaitlyn, who was getting more and more annoyed as the minutes went by, and I couldn’t blame her. Nick was pretty chill, while Jacob was fighting with his phone.

The silence between us was getting on my nerves, so I pulled my phone out of my pocket.

“Don’t worry, Jacob. I got you. I got a full tank of gas, so…” I said, trying to turn my phone on. I did not turn on. “Oh, fuck me…” I said with a sigh, and Jacob laughed at my face.

“Idiot,” he said as he walked past me, still chuckling.

“Does nobody own phone chargers anymore?” Kaitlyn asked.

“There’s no signal out here anyways, dude, okay. This place is like patchy as balls,” Jacob said.

“Your balls are patchy?” I asked.

“What? No!” Jacob said in annoyance.

Okay, okay, I’d teased him enough, so I let it go. “It’s okay. I’ll just go get some juice from Mr. H before we go, and–”

“Uh, ew?” Kaitlyn said, interrupting me with a scoff just when Abi and Emma finally arrived with their bags.

“Hey, Nick!” Abi greeted him with a big smile, ignoring the rest of us.

These two had still not figured out they liked each other! It was getting painful for the rest of us. And now we were out of time…

“Hey. Where were you guys?” Nick asked.

“Wouldn’t you like to know…” Emma said with a mysterious smile on her face.

“Ignore her, please,” Abi said sternly, waving Emma off while Kaitlyn approached us.

“Let’s gooo!” she said, snapping her fingers at us all.

“Just got to get these bags up onto the–” Emma began, grabbing her bag from the ground, but Jacob hurried to her aid.

“Oh! Hey, here, let me um… Let me get them for you,” he said.

Poor guy…

“I can take care of my own bag, thank you,” Emma said.

Oof, poor guy…

“Are you sure? Because, I mean, it’s really not that big of a deal–”

“She can take care of her own back, thank you,” Abi said sternly.

“We can both take care of our own bag, thank you,” Emma added.

Damn, they didn’t need to murder my man, Jacob. But I was secretly enjoying it. Jacob stepped back while Emma flung her bag over her shoulder and took it to the car.

“Cool,” he only said.

Man, the guy was hurt. But then again, if Emma didn’t want a relationship with him, it was for the best that she acted cold and not let him keep his hopes up, because that dude really wasn’t over her.

My attention was taken by Abi, who still stood next to us, holding her bag. She wasn’t technically looking at Nick, but it was clear her whole attention was on him. I glanced at Nick as well and held back a sigh. That dude was so oblivious…

I quickly stepped next to him and pushed him toward Abi. He glanced at me in confusion, but after I nudged my head in her direction, he understood what to do.

“Oh, uh, Abi, do you need…?” he asked, trailing off.

Abi’s eyes brightened up. “Yeah,” she said with a nod.

“Can I…?” Nick muttered while Abi promptly dropped the bag at his feet.

Oh, god… These two… I had a big grin on my face while I watched Nick grabbing the bag from the ground and taking it to the car, while Abi was radiating – in her shy way. How did they not know they liked each other? It was so obvious! I really wished they’d at least exchange numbers before we parted our ways… We really should’ve done more to get these two together.

“Hey, has anyone seen Ryan?” Kaitlyn asked.

“Oh yeah… He’s probably off being all brooding and mysterious and alluring somewhere,” I said in a joking manner.

But it backfired immediately.

“I’m here,” Ryan’s voice came right behind me. He definitely heard me.

Oh good, my cue to roll over and die yet again…

“What were you doing under there?” Kaitlyn asked, pointing at the space below the deck. “Having a little ‘me party’?”

“Uh… I was listening to a podcast, actually,” Ryan said.

“Oh, podcast, nice. That’s cool,” I said, trying to save my face while also feeling excited about learning more about him. Of course he was a podcast guy.

And he didn’t seem too phased with what I said, so I relaxed a little. Even though this was the first time we had to face each other after the flirting incident… But he didn’t seem phased about that, either…

Which was… kind of a bummer…

“What’s it about?” Kaitlyn asked – of course she was also excited to learn more about him…

“Yeah, what’s it about? Is it about me?” I asked playfully, trying to steal Ryan’s attention.

I wasn’t quite sure what possessed me to ask that, but I couldn’t let Kaitlyn get his attention all to herself. It was our last day together, after all.

“You think I was listening to a podcast… about you?” Ryan asked with raised eyebrows.

“Okay, if anyone here had a podcast about them, it’d be me,” Kaitlyn said oh so confidently.

“Yeah, if there was a podcast called ‘How to Look and Smell Like a Butt’,” I said, and Kaitlyn scoffed at me.

“Oh my God. You are so childish,” she said, but! She was smiling while she spoke. Wow.

“At least I don’t look and smell like a butt,” I said with a grin, gaining a few laughs from others.

“No, it’s…” Ryan said, also smiling at my little bit. “It’s a paranormal podcast. This episode was actually about this place, weirdly enough. The Hag of Hackett’s Quarry.”

“The who of the whatsit where now?” Kaitlyn asked. “What’s The Hag of Hackett’s Quarry?”

“You don’t know about The Hag of Hackett’s Quarry?” I asked in disbelief.

“Uh, if I did, would I be asking, dumbass?” she said.

I turned to Ryan. “Tell her about The Hag of Hackett’s Quarry!”

“I don’t think she wants to know about The Hag of Hackett’s Quarry,” Ryan said, playing along.

“Can we just please stop saying ‘The Hag of Hackett’s Quarry’,” Kaitlyn said, her tone rising with her annoyance, while the rest of us were smirking at her.

“It’s just this campfire story for the kids. It’s um…” Ryan paused for a moment and put on his ghost storyteller mode with lowered voice and everything. “There’s supposedly an old woman who died in a fire a few years back. She haunts the woods, looking for her lost baby boy. There are like… reports of whispers, or whatever, and this figure that floats around… You know, textbook ghost stuff.”

He had a small, dramatic pause before he continued. “Some people say that if she catches you alone, she’ll try to turn you into her son… Or kill you or something… It’s never been clear. Anyways, The Hag of Hackett’s Quarry,” he ended, spreading his arms a little like he was her presenter or something.

“Y-you made that up,” Kaitlyn declared, looking a little more timid than normally.

“It’s right here in the podcast, man,” Ryan said, holding his phone up.

“Cool story, bro,” Jacob said with a smirk, and I wasn’t sure if he was making fun of Ryan or not.

“Seriously though, you should’ve seen the first time he told the story to the kids at the campfire. They were scarred for life,” I told Jacob.

“I mean, not for life…” Ryan muttered.

“You got to be careful with this stuff, man. That shit is true,” I said jokingly.

“Come on, dude, bullshit!” Jacob said, rolling his eyes.

I frowned at him, but our conversation was interrupted when Mr. H stepped out of the lodge.

“What’s the holdup, Hacketteers?” he asked.

“Heya! Yeah, uh, nearly done, Mr. H!” Jacob hurried to tell him.

“Hop to it! Get those butts in gear,” Mr. H told us.

“Sorry, Mr. H!” Emma told him, then lowered her voice before she added, “We had to liberate some luggage…”

“Shut up!” Abi whispered to her.

So that’s why it took them so long to get back to us. Mr. H must’ve locked the cabins already with their bags still inside. They must’ve broken in to get them.

Naughty girls…

“Maybe if somebody didn’t spend so much time trying to impress the ladies with all his ghost stories…” Kaitlyn said, looking at Ryan.

“You asked!” Ryan frowned.

“Ghost stories?” Mr. H repeated.

“The Hag of Hackett’s Quarry,” I explained – making Kaitlyn groan.

Mr. H only scoffed almost in disgust. I was sure he’d heard enough about that already.

“Hey, you still have the van key, Mr. H?” Kaitlyn asked.

“Why, yes I do!” he replied, like he’d forgotten he still had it. Who was I kidding? Of course he’d forgotten he still had it. He started going through his pockets, and again, I wasn’t surprised he couldn’t find it. “You know… I’d lose my head if it wasn’t stuck on… Back to the office I go…”

And he was probably going to forget to return to us. With the key… He really was being absent today.

“Give me a hand, would you, Ryan?” Mr. H said, waving his hand at him.

“Oh, okay,” Ryan said and headed to the stairs, while I took a step closer to the camp leader.

“Yo, Mr. H,” I spoke to stop him from leaving just yet.

“What’s up, DJ Dylan?”

“Any chance I can get a little charge? I want to have some tunes for the road,” I asked.

“Ah, no can do,” he said apologetically.

What? Why not? I only needed like five minutes… But I didn’t want to start arguing. “Cool, cool, yeah… No worries,” I ended up saying.

“Good man,” Mr. H said.

“No big deal. You can share my earbuds,” Ryan told me.

I could what now? Did he actually just…?

Fuck me.

Oh, fuck me.

He was not avoiding me?

I was so stunned that I only flashed a smile at him and returned to the others, suddenly feeling extra giddy. And very nervous.

Fuck me, Ryan was not avoiding me… Did that mean he hadn’t realized that I had accidentally flirted with him?

Or had he been flirting back?

Chapter Text

-Ryan-

Well then… I didn’t know what to think. What to believe. I followed Chris into the lodge, still thinking about Dylan, and the smile he gave me after I promised we could share my earbuds. I hadn’t forgotten about what he said about me, either. Alluring.

Were we… flirting? Not just now, but the entire summer? I mean, he’d winked at me when I asked if he had enjoyed the views on our final boat trip…

I let out a sigh when we walked through the main hall of the lodge to Chris’ office.

It didn’t matter. We just had to find the keys, and we’d get the hell out of here. Whatever had been going on this summer… Didn’t matter.

I pushed Dylan out of my head when I entered the office. I still needed one last piece of advice from Chris. I still had no idea what to do about school, and I wasn’t sure if I could ever decide on my own. “So, uh, Chris… I’m actually glad we got a moment to talk,” I spoke while Chris headed to his desk.

“Uh-oh, I’m not fired, am I?” he asked jokingly, but he wasn’t quite… present.

I let out a short chuckle, but I suddenly felt nervous about asking his advice. I was not good at that. “No, no. It’s just, uh, it’s just, you know… About the whole thing with the–”

His phone started to ring, interrupting me. We both stopped to stare at it, and for some reason, Chris looked… spooked. He wasn’t in a hurry to pick it up, that was for sure.

When he finally did, he turned to look at me. “Hold that thought, partner. I’m going to have to take this.”

“Oh, yeah, okay,” I said, trying not to feel disappointed.

Chris stared at me, glanced at the phone, then turned to look back at me.

“Oh, sorry,” I said when I realized he was waiting for me to leave the office and hurried out.

“Hello!” Chris spoke to the phone while I stepped out and pulled the door closed behind me.

Something was off… Chris had acted a bit strangely the entire day, and that phone call… I probably should’ve just continued listening to my podcast, but…

I stepped right behind the door and leaned closer, holding my breath.

“What?” Chris asked in an annoyed tone. “Because kids are kids! I can only do so much or they’ll–”

Oh, now that didn’t sound interesting at all. Probably just someone misbehaving on the bus or one of them forgot to take something with them… I was about to step away, but then…

“They’re almost out of here, all right?” Chris continued.

He was talking about us counselors? What did we do?

I pressed my ear against the door. If I focused hard enough, I could just about hear the voice on the phone.

“You’re cutting it pretty close, and we don’t want to have–”

“Just hold your damn horses, all right? Everything’s A-okay on this end,” Chris said, getting increasingly annoyed.

Oh, so he had somewhere to be. Right… We had taken too much time to pack the car. That was why he was annoyed.

“Bobby and I are geared up. If he isn’t here, we’ll get him,” the voice spoke.

“This is a waste of time. You know it, I know it,” Chris said. The guy on the line said something I couldn’t hear, and Chris replied, “No. Should I have?”

“He’s gone quiet.”

“Probably staying out of the way. Speaking of which, the longer you keep me on this damn phone, the longer it’s going to take me to get rid of these damn kids!”

He was getting angry. He wouldn’t speak of us like that if he wasn’t angry. I mean… I’d never heard him do that before. Not in front of us.

“Yeah. Of course. Adios,” Chris said, and hung up.

I frowned, trying to understand what was going on. Sounded like he was late to pick someone up? I guess he had a good reason to be mad at us, since we were the reason he was running late.

The door suddenly opened, and I realized I was still very much standing right behind it, my ear aimed at it. I straightened my posture when Chris stopped to stare at me, looking disappointed.

“Sorry, I wasn’t, uh… I wasn’t listening. I was just… like… waiting…” I stammered hurriedly. Chris raised his eyebrows, looking even more disappointed in me, but I couldn’t shut up. “Like, I mean… I heard… I mean I didn’t hear what you were…”

Chris frowned and shook his head, letting out a small sigh. “We’re cool, champ. Just come on in,” he said, stepping away from the door. “Sorry I pushed you out like that,” he added.

I followed him, feeling awkward, but he didn’t seem mad at me. He returned to his desk and started looking around, his expression stiff. He completely ignored me, which made me even more nervous and awkward.

“You need a hand looking for the keys?” I asked.

“No. End of summer, busy busy…” he said with a sigh, turning his attention to me. “Anyway. You were asking me?”

“Oh, uh. Yeah, yeah. It was just the whole animation school thing. What you thought I should do,” I said.

“Right,” he said with a nod, and continued looking around.

“You know… It’s… Whether or not I should leave my sister with my grandparents…” I said, but I wasn’t sure if he was really listening. He kept glancing at me, but he was clearly more interested in finding the keys.

I still continued, because this was important to me, and I needed his advice. “Since I’d have to live on campus, you know, and my mom’s not exactly around, so… I wouldn’t want to leave Sarah on her own… You know, our family is small enough as it is.”

“Well, family is important, Ryan,” he only said and started going through his drawers.

I watched him, feeling… Whatever…

“Dang it,” Chris muttered after he’d checked them all.

Part of me wanted to get frustrated with him, but… He was already agitated, and in a hurry, so… I’d figure things out on my own, I guess.

“Is… everything okay?” I asked, thinking about the phone call. “You got a hot date tonight?”

“Oh boy… If only you knew,” he said, letting out a chuckle.

Silence fell, and it was getting awkward really fast. I didn’t want to bring up my issues anymore, and I wasn’t really sure why I was here if he didn’t need my help to look for the keys.

“So, uh… What did you need me for?” I asked.

He sighed. “You’re one of my favorite counselors, Ryan, you know that? One of the good ones,” he said. “But do you know how many calls I get from parents? Letter after letter of these terrified kids, that they send home.”

“Huh. I… I didn’t realize that,” I muttered.

“Believe it or not, scaring kids away from sleepaway camp is kind of bad for business… So maybe just ease up on the ghost stories,” he said.

“Sorry… I didn’t realize it was such a big deal,” I said, feeling bad.

“Got to understand the repercussions of your actions, buster. That’s a big part of being a counselor. A leader.”

“Yeah…”

“Just stick to Kumbaya next time, okay?” he added in a joking manner.

“What’s that?” I asked with a grin.

“You guys don’t do Kumbaya anymore?” he asked. “Good grief, I’m outgrowing my own cliches…”

Before I could come up with anything to say, he continued searching for the keys, his frustration growing again.

“Seriously Chris, what’s going on?” I asked.

“I just want to get you guys safely out of dodge before the sun goes down.”

“Why?” I asked.

“It’s getting dark, Ryan. And it’s not safe to… drive in the dark,” he said, losing his temper a little. “And safety is the first step towards… fun,” he added in a lighter tone.

I was not quite sure what to say to that. Something wasn’t quite right with him, but he clearly didn’t want to talk about it, so…

“Just give me a minute,” Chris said with a sigh, so I went to sit down behind his desk while he continued looking. “Where in the good God damn are they…?”

I peered around as well, but spotted a picture of Chris with his kids on the desk. “Will you say goodbye to Caleb and Kaylee for me? They sort of just snuck off…”

“You’ll see them again next year,” Chris said reassuringly. “Caleb works at the scrapyard during the off-season, and Kaylee… Well, she’s still figuring out what she wants to do – she’s got her whole life ahead of her. They both just come and go as they please, really. Teenagers, am I right?”

“Actually, we could’ve used the help packing up since we were short staffed…” I said.

“Hey, you guys seemed to manage all right,” Chris said. “But I’ll tell them both you were sad you missed them.”

I nodded, and Chris turned to face his office.

“Unlocked the van… Put the keys in my pocket… Came in the office…” he muttered with closed eyes, trying to retrace his steps. He hovered over his desk for a brief moment, but then opened his eyes and grabbed an empty coffee mug. I heard the sound of the keys right before he picked them up.

“Right where I left them,” Chris said, showing them to me.

“Aha,” I said with a smile.

“Let’s skedaddle,” he said, sounding relieved, and hurried to the door.

I got up and followed him at a slower pace. I let out a sighed when I exited the room. This was it. Time to go back home. I had not figured out much during this summer, and now it was over. My heart had always been heavy whenever I’d have to leave this place, but this time it was heavier. The fact that Chris was so spaced out and agitated made things worse.

I stepped onto the deck outside. Everyone else was by the van, waiting for us. One of them looked up when he heard us. Dylan.

And this time I also had something I regretted, but I shoved that thought down into the deepest parts of my mind.

It was too late.

Chapter Text

-Ryan-

“Make sure they’re ready to go. For real this time,” Chris told while he locked the lodge’s front doors.

It was awfully kind of him to think I had any influence on this group… Well I suppose I did, but as soon as I turned my back on them…

I followed him down the stairs, pulling my phone out of my pocket to check the time. We really had to get moving now, or some of us would miss our transport home. While the rest of my work friends minded their own business, Dylan turned to us. He looked straight at me, but then noticed my phone.

“Wait, how did you get your phone back before the rest of us?” he asked.

“It’s because I never turned it in,” I told him quietly as I passed him by.

It was better if I stayed away from him…

“You should’ve turned it off before you handed it in, Dylan,” Chris said as he followed me. “Them’s the rules, you noob!”

I hid my smirk and made my way to the car, while Chris gave the car keys to Jacob.

“I try not to dwell on the past, man,” Dylan replied to him.

“Good, because it’s time to dwell on the minivan and get on with our respective lives,” Chris said while Jacob climbed into the driver’s seat. “Move it, let’s go!” he added, gesturing for us all to get in.

But the van didn’t start. We all turned to look at Jacob while the engine refused to fire up, no matter how long he tried.

“What’s the problem?” Chris asked, his mood dropping fast.

“Ugh, dude, I don’t know. I-I think there’s something wrong with the engine, Mr. H,” Jacob said, spreading his arms, then tried to start the car again.

“Yeah, I can see that,” Chris replied.

“Yeah, dude, it’s just like… kaput!” Jacob added.

He did know how to drive a car, right?

“All right, let me try,” I offered.

“What? Dude, I’m telling you, all right, it’s busted,” he told me when I approached him, not letting me even try.

“Well maybe you’re doing it wrong,” I said, getting annoyed.

“Well maybe you’re doing it wrong!” he mimicked me in a very childish manner.

“The fuck, dude?”

“Enough! Enough, both of you,” Chris said loudly. “Shit. Come on, come on, let’s go,” he continued, pulling Jacob out of the car quite roughly.

“All right, dude, chill! Chill dude!” Jacob said as he tried to stay up on his feet.

Chris just ignored him and sat behind the wheel himself. The car didn’t start, so it wasn’t a Jacob problem. We were definitely missing our transports back home…

“Dammit! I thought I told you kids to check everything!”

“We did!” Kaitlyn said, looking concerned. “It… it should be working…”

“Yeah, well coulda and shoulda doesn’t mean it is, does it?” Chris said angrily, and tried again, but in vain. “Dammit!”

He was getting really angry, and it made everyone else uncomfortable. Couldn’t blame them. None of us were used to seeing him so angry.

He climbed back out of the car, taking in deep breaths. “Okay… Okay…” he muttered, trying to calm down.

“Well, uh… Look, it’s not that big of a deal, okay? We’ll just spend one more night here,” Jacob suggested.

But Chris got even more ballistic.

“No! NO! Just stop. Let me think,” he said, and walked past me.

What the hell was going on with him…? He paced around for a moment, then rushed back to the car and opened the hood. I thought he was going to check the engine himself, but he slammed the hood back shut, letting out a frustrated shout.

Okay seriously? What the hell was going on?

He took a deep breath. “Okay. Dammit. You’re right. You’re right, yeah,” he muttered, taking a grip on himself.

“What?” I asked in confusion.

“Yeah, you’re right…” he said, pulled a set of keys from his pocket and tossed them to me.

I caught them and realized they were the keys to every building in the campsite. Before I could ask about them, Chris walked past me and told me to follow him. I did so, but when I realized he was heading to his truck, my confusion only grew worse. He sat behind the steering wheel and turned to me, his expression much more calm now.

“So we didn’t get to finish our conversation before,” he said.

“What?”

“Animation school,” he reminded me. “I say go for it. You got to do what’s best for you.”

“But… You said family is important,” I reminded him.

“Family is. It’s like the most important thing. But you also got to do what you got to do,” he said and smiled. “You got this, kid.”

I didn’t know what to say. The fact that he, in the middle of this chaos, still brought it up and encouraged me to chase my dream made me feel so much better. Calmer. I should go for it, just like he said.

“Now, uh… I need something…” Chris said, glancing at the other counselors. There was something heavy in his voice when he continued. “I need you to do something for me.”

“Okay?”

“Make sure that everybody is inside the lodge for tonight. Lock the doors. No one in, no one out, no one. Got it?” He gave me a stern stare when he took a small pause and noticed my questioning look. “I have some business to… I’ll be back first thing in the morning, and we’ll get you all on the road. You just have to keep everyone inside. Can you promise me you’ll do that?”

I was dying to ask him where he was going, but the look in his eyes stopped me. This was serious.

“Yeah… Sure. We’ll stay inside,” I said.

“’Atta boy,” he said and smiled at me, then started his car. “Lock the doors!” he shouted from the open window as he backed out of the yard. “And for God’s sake, keep the noise down!”

And with that, he drove off, leaving us alone at his lodge. We all stared after him, each of us more confused than the other.

“So… What was that about?” Dylan asked once Chris’ car vanished behind the trees.

“He, uh… said to stay inside. That we’re not leaving until the morning,” I explained, though it wasn’t a very good explanation.

“Are… you kidding me?” Emma asked in annoyance.

“Em…” Jacob pretty much sang her name, looking way too excited.

“Are you kidding me?!” Emma repeated her question, but with an angrier sound in her voice. “What are we supposed to do?”

“Well, we should go inside. Like he said,” I spoke.

But goddammit…

“We could go inside. Until Morning…” Dylan spoke, a smirk appearing on his lips.

For fuck’s sake…

“Yeah,” I said, giving him a glare.

“Or…” Dylan took a dramatic pause, glancing at the others. “Or we could do something else.”

No. We were going to do what Chris told us to do. He specifically told us to stay inside with no room for argument, so that was exactly what we were going to do.

But because it was fucking Dylan who suggested it, with an excited grin on his lips when he looked at me from the corner of his eye…

“What… are you talking about?” I asked hesitantly, unable to stop the question.

“No Mr. Hackett. No screaming kids. Just a bunch of grown-ass adults ready to cut loose and get down with their animal side,” Dylan spoke.

“Ohh, hell yeah!” Jacob cheered him on.

“P. A. R. T… Why the fuck not? All right, it seems like the stars have aligned for us. No?”

“Okay, okay, okay,” Kaitlyn said, looking like she was really into the idea – I already knew I had lost at that point.

“One last epic bonfire blowout for all time,” Dylan concluded.

Absolutely not. Sadly, I was the only one feeling that way. The rest of them were very much considering it.

“Dude! Fuck yes! I’m in. Nick, you’re in,” Jacob said, pointing at the Aussie.

“Yeah I’m in,” he said.

“Dylan’s in. Obviously. My man. Kaitlyn?” Jacob turned his attention to her.

“I go where my people need me,” she said with raised hands.

“Yeah! Okay… Em, what do you say?” Jacob continued.

Emma didn’t reply immediately, but it was clear she wasn’t going to say no to a party. “Yeah, I’m in,” she said, laughing.

“Mr. Hackett seemed pretty insistent we stay in the lodge,” Abigail said hesitantly.

“He was just trying to freak us out. You know, like um… Like one of Ryan’s stupid ghost stories,” Jacob said, gesturing at me.

“Why would he want to scare us?” Abigail asked in disbelief.

“I’m sure he’s just looking out for us. No big deal,” I said.

“All right, yeah! Party!” Dylan said with a grin.

“No, I didn’t mean–” I hurried to explain, but Dylan cut me off by raising his hand.

I just stared at him, feeling frustrated. Abi and I would never be able to stop this party from happening. I already failed Chris. I really didn’t have any authority over these people, no matter what Chris thought.

Dylan still stood there with his hand up, looking at me like I was an idiot while his smile never changed. “High five. Touch my hand, Ryan.”

Even if it was Dylan who asked…

“I’m sorry. He made me promise,” I said, earning disappointed sighs from the others.

“Dude, he won’t even know,” Dylan said.

“I don’t know…” I muttered.

I guess I could’ve considered it. Dylan gave me a pleading look, so…

But Jacob opened his mouth.

“No, nah, nah, dude. We get it. You don’t want to disappoint ‘daddy’,” he said in such an obnoxious way that I lost my cool.

“Yeah, well, someone’s got to give a shit,” I told him angrily.

“Awww,” was his very mature reply.

“You know what? I don’t even care what you guys do. I’m doing what Chris told me to do,” I said, and headed to the stairs while Jacob booed at me.

“Ryan, come on man, wait!” Dylan spoke softly when I passed him by, but I ignored him.

Whatever. I was not going to disappoint Chris because of this immature group.

When I reached the main entrance, Jacob was already giving people tasks to prepare for the party. I heard him talking about getting supplies from the store, but I ignored that too. I had the only key to the store now. It was pretty empty, anyway, so whatever.

I entered the lodge but left the door unlocked in case Abi – or anyone else – wanted to follow my example. I doubted they would. No, scratch that. I didn’t leave the door open for any of them. I knew none of them would stay in the lodge for the night.

I left it open in case one particular person wanted to come make sure we were still cool – like he always did.

Chapter Text

-Dylan-

Fuck me, I should’ve kept my mouth shut. Now Ryan was mad at us. Why did I even…? I knew he would do what Chris told him, and now I made things a hell of a lot worse for him.

I listened with one ear while Jacob told us what to do to get ready for the party, but turned my attention to him when he spoke my name.

“Dylan, you just… I don’t know, figure out how to charge the phones or something…” he said, and I nodded. “All right, let’s do this!”

Nick and Abi left to get firewood while Kaitlyn made her way to the fire pit. I turned my attention back to the lodge, trying to guess if I’d get kicked out by Ryan if I tried to go talk to him. I kind of needed his help with the phones too since he had the keys…

“Dylan?”

I turned around when Emma approached me.

“You don’t look too into your own idea anymore,” she noted, stopping next to me.

“I don’t know… It doesn’t feel right to have a party without Ryan, you know,” I said with a sigh.

“Dude, don’t worry about it,” Jacob said with a grin. “He’s coming.”

“You did hear him, right? He’s definitely not coming,” I said.

“Want to bet?” he said.

“Why would you think he’s coming?” I asked.

“Because you,” he said, poking me in my chest, “are going to ask him.”

“Yeah, sure,” I said with a snort, but he ignored me and turned to Emma.

“Em, shall we?” he said, gesturing at the store behind the lodge.

She gave him a curious look, then turned back to me. “I guess I’ll see you and Ryan at the party,” she said, smiled, and followed Jacob.

I shook my head at both of them. Ryan was not coming just because I asked him. I’d have to use all my non-existent persuasion skills and he’d still kick me out of the lodge as a result.

With a sigh, I headed to the stairs. I climbed up and stopped by the door to take a deep breath. This was the first time the two of us were left alone after the shirt incident… I nearly chickened out. I’d break into the radio hut or something and charge the phones there…

No. No, no, no, no…

The van broke. That had to mean something. We got one more day to spend together. One more last chance. We were supposed to be on our way to the train station at this very moment, but we were still here, and I was immediately offered a moment alone with Ryan.

This had to mean something. Faith or a sign or whatever.

No, no, no, no, no… This was not a sign. Ryan probably didn’t want to see my face. I was the one who had made his life difficult, after all. Chris was going to be mad at us all tomorrow morning because of me. Ryan had probably locked himself in the lodge and wouldn’t come out until he heard Chris yelling at us.

I tried the handle. I was so sure it would be locked. But the door opened.

“Fuck me…” I whispered.

Now I was nervous.

…Did I believe in signs?

“Hello?” I said quietly when I entered the lodge. “Ryan…?”

Maybe he wasn’t there. I didn’t see him anywhere, and the stairs leading upstairs were still blocked. Unless he was in Chris’ office. I peered at the door, but my courage was fading fast.

“I’m here.”

I nearly jumped when I heard Ryan’s voice coming from behind the massive fireplace and its chimney right in the middle of the lounging area.

“Oh… Uh… May I come in?” I asked.

“Why not?” he asked, and at least he didn’t sound angry.

I closed the door behind me and made my way around the fireplace. He was there, standing next to a window with his arms crossed and his back turned to me.

“What are they doing?” he asked.

I joined him by the window. The store was there, and Jacob was kneeling in front of the door with Emma standing next to him.

“Uhm…” I said timidly. “S-something not good.”

He turned to stare at me with the full might of his resting bitch face. I wanted to shrink out of existence.

“Look, man, I’m sorry… I never should’ve suggested the party,” I told him. “I… I just… It’s our last night… But I now understand I just made things difficult for you… with Chris. And I’m sorry. I really am sorry.”

He said nothing. He didn’t even blink. So much for the sign… I already screwed it up.

“You have all the right to be angry with me,” I muttered. “I guess this counts as stupid shit I promised not to do…”

He took a deep breath and let out a slow groan, then shook his head. “I was about to say yes,” he said.

“What?”

He sighed. “I was about to say yes to the party, but then Jacob pissed me off.”

I opened my mouth, then shut it, then tried again. “So you’re not… mad at me…?”

“Why would I be mad at you?” he asked. “I can’t be mad at you. Just looking at you now makes me feel like I kicked a puppy, for fuck’s sake.”

“Ah yes, my hidden evil power,” I joked, and felt a thousand times better when he laughed. “So we’re cool?”

“We are cool,” he said with an amused snort. “But Jacob’s going to die.”

We both turned to glance at the window just in time to see Emma kicking the door in.

“I… take that back,” Ryan muttered.

“So… if you were going to say yes…?” I muttered.

He sighed again, shaking his head. “I really don’t know, man… Chris was serious about what he said. You saw him. He was… He was really freaked out.”

“I mean…” I muttered, not really sure if I should try to change his mind or anything. Chris was important to him, after all, and I felt like a snake, trying to make him go against the man he looked up to. “I mean, I’m not trying to persuade you or anything. I’m cool with it if you want to stay inside, but…”

“Just spit it out,” he said in amusement.

“I feel like he was just afraid we’ll get ourselves killed while he’s not here,” I said with a shrug. “The hunting season just started, after all. He’s probably just afraid we’ll wander into the woods and get shot. Or he’s afraid we’ll forget to lock the doors and accidentally let strangers in the lodge to steal stuff or break things.”

“Why would he be afraid we’d do something like that?”

“Really?” I asked him, pointing at the now-broken store door.

“Good point,” he said, relaxing a bit. “And I guess Chris was already agitated. He needed to get going. He was running really late…”

“See? I’m sure everything is fine. He just had too much going on, and now he has to fix the van too to get us home,” I said. “And don’t worry about the party. Everyone is tired, so it’s not going to be a long one. We’ll just stay by the fire and make enough noise so the hunters don’t accidentally shoot us, and then we’ll go to bed before midnight.”

He watched me while he considered my words, and finally nodded. “Okay. But I’m just saying Chris may want to strangle us all if he finds out.”

I wanted to say that Mr. H didn’t have to find out, but he most likely would. Especially after he saw what Emma and Jacob had done to the store…

“That’s a problem for the us of tomorrow,” I said with a smirk. “So…?”

He shook his head, looking annoyed. “Fine. I’ll come to the party.”

“Yes!” I said, lifting my hand.

His annoyed expression didn’t change when he finally gave me that high five. “So what now?”

“I actually need to charge my phone. We need tunes,” I said. “Do you know where we can find chargers?”

“So you really didn’t take yours with you?” he asked, and I shook my head with an apologetic grin. “How are you still alive…? Come – Chris has a few in his office,” Ryan said, gesturing for me to follow him.

“Hey, um…”

He stopped and turned to look at me.

“We can tell Chris that we locked you in the storm shelter or something. That you tried to stop us,” I said. “That way you don’t get in trouble with him.”

He laughed at my suggestion. “Nah, dude. I’ll take the fall with you guys.”

“Awesome,” I said with a grin.

He continued his way to the office, and I followed him. So… He wasn’t mad at me. And he was coming to the party, after all.

“So this is our last party together, huh?” I muttered.

“For the summer, yeah,” he replied.

“Maybe we should make the most out of it,” I said a bit too carelessly.

“Are you planning on getting me in trouble or not?” he asked with a laugh while he went through the keys.

I laughed too. “No, I mean like… I don’t know. This may be stupid, but… The fact that the van broke feels kind of like a… I don’t know, like a gift?”

“A gift?” He frowned.

“Yeah, I mean, if we have something we regret not doing… Now is the last chance.”

“Huh… I didn’t even think about it that way,” he said, stopping behind the office door.

“Do you have something you regret not doing this summer?” I asked.

He stopped to stare into nothingness while he thought about my words. Then he turned to look at me, but he didn’t say anything. Instead, his gaze slowly traveled down on my body, then back up. I kind of froze when his eyes met mine. I felt pinned to my place during that brief moment he stared at me. It was only after he turned away that I could even breathe again.

Fuck me… Now that was a sign. That had to mean something.

Right?

Chapter Text

-Dylan-

Okay, okay, okay. So. I mean. Maybe it was just a joke. We’d been joking around a lot lately. There was no way that Ryan was being serious. That the thing he regretted not doing was… me. He was just messing with me. That was what we did. Sexual jokes. That was our thing. I mean, Ryan wasn’t gay. He was into Kaitlyn.

Unless…

I took a grip on myself while Ryan opened the office door, then followed him in. Maybe it was too late, but I faked a smile and acted like nothing had happened as I glanced around.

“All right, the inner sanctum!” I said as I passed Ryan, who stayed by the door, and stopped in the middle of the room.

“It’s just an office,” he replied in a bored voice – of course he wouldn’t find the room fascinating since he’d spend so much time in it, but that was not the case with the rest of us.

“This is where the magic happens,” I told him, spotting the phone chargers under a desk that was next to the door.

“Okay, yeah,” he muttered with a snort, handing me his phone when I kneeled down to get the cords. “Let’s just make this quick.”

“Sure. Just give me a sec to get this going…” I said as I plugged in both of our phones. “And… engage.”

I wasn’t sure if I was just imagining things, but I was pretty sure the atmosphere was turning awkward between us. Maybe it was just me. I was the awkward. Of course I was the awkward! The guy I had a crush on was implying he regretted not banging me, for fuck’s sake!

I got back up on my feet and faced Ryan, who looked like he wanted to be somewhere else. Or he was just bored. Whatever it was, the silence was freaking me out, so I had to come up with a topic. A safe topic.

“Podcasts?” I said with a smile, trying to look interested.

“Yeah,” was his dry reply.

“All right,” I said, cursing him a little for making me do all the talking again. “Uh, what’s it called? The one that you’re listening to right now?”

“Bizarre Yet Bona Fide,” he simply said.

“So, like, ghosts and stuff?”

“It’s like… Yeah, like the weird and the wonderful. Digging up weird mysteries and discussing if they’re, well, bona fide,” he said.

No, I was not going to… I was not that immature… I was not going to ruin things now that things were getting less awkward between–

“Boner fide.” I blurted out with a grin, but Ryan only stared at me without even blinking. “Get it? Boner?”

“Your wit knows no bounds,” he said, but I wanted to believe I spotted a smile tugging at the corner of his lips.

Still, I was better off changing the subject and steering the conversation to safer waters. No more adult-oriented jokes.

“So… Should we check out what Mr. H keeps in his private den of sin?”

Good job, Dylan…

“I don’t know, man…” Ryan said hesitantly, glancing around the room. “I feel a little weird going through his stuff…”

“Okay. Well, I don’t. I mean, come on, what kind of dirty secrets does the owner of a summer camp filled with impressionable young children is going to have, anyway?” I said, taking a few steps away from him. When I glanced back at him, he didn’t look amused at all. “Not Mr. H, I know. He’s cool,” I added.

“Always been cool to me,” he said quietly.

Okay, I really needed to learn when to shut up… The good mood was totally gone now. I wasn’t going to actually dig through Chris’ paperwork or anything – how boring was that? – but we didn’t have much to do while waiting for the phones to charge, so I did look around a bit.

There was a door on my right, and I knew it led to Chris’ living quarters, but I had never actually been there. I was tempted to check it out, but there was also a shotgun on the wall right next to it that drew my attention. 

I stopped to stare at it. I wasn’t really a big fan of guns. Dad owned a few when he was still alive, and that was why I still needed to work on my fear of loud sounds. And… that was why I no longer had a father.

For a short moment, I didn’t see the shotgun in front of me, but myself as a little kid, hiding in my little fortress in my bedroom, reading a book. I could still hear the loud bang coming from the next room, and my mother’s scream only seconds later…

I shook the memory, my dark secret, out of my head with a sigh.

“Hey, what’s the gun for?” I asked Ryan.

“Uh, Chris… Mr. H told me it was for, um… bears,” he said, taking a few steps closer.

“Bears? Here?” I said in disbelief.

“Yeah, yeah, he said they don’t really come around because he’s got the… gun… to…” he trailed off like he’d just now realized how silly it was.

“Yeah,” I said and chuckled, trying to reach for the gun.

“Just leave it alone. Just leave it alone,” Ryan said sternly.

I took a step back, raising my hands, but I still kind of wanted to know how it felt like to hold the shotgun, so…

“Dude, we’re going to be out partying in the woods tonight, right? What if the bears try to crash?” I asked. “It’s like my mom always said. If you want to party, you got to bring protection.”

Ryan let out an amused snort. “Well, I think that she was talking about condoms,” he said.

“I’m not going to fuck a bear,” I said, keeping my face neutral.

He stared at me in amused disbelief, and I was glad to see the mood was getting back up.

“The most dangerous thing I’ve seen in these woods is a pissed off squirrel,” he finally said.

“That sounds pretty scary,” I noted jokingly, but he wasn’t having it, so I gave up. “Okay, fine,” I added, backing away from the gun.

“Well, we know where the gun is. If we need it,” he said.

Of course Ryan wasn’t going to let me hold a gun. Part of me was disappointed since I’d never held a gun and I wanted to know if it would… I don’t know… help with my issues or something. But the other part was glad I didn’t have to have anything to do with it.

“Your call, man,” I said, and turned around to face Chris’s desk.

It was a mess, like always, with a big pile of papers and files, and a few empty coffee cups. He also had a picture of himself with his kids right in the middle of it, and I went to pick it up.

“Kaylee and Caleb Hackett…” I muttered, watching the smiles on their faces in the picture. “Weird kids, huh?”

“I like them,” Ryan said.

“Yeah, me too, um… They are pretty reclusive, you have to admit,” I said.

Ryan only shrugged, but I guess he had a much better relationship with them. Bunch of lone wolves… They all liked to keep themselves to themselves, after all. I’d tried to chat with them a few times, but I never could tell if they were terribly shy, or just hated my guts. Probably the latter. 

I put the picture back down and walked around the desk, but as soon as I reached the chair, the floorboards under me let out a weird, hollow sound. I stepped back when I realized I was standing on a trapdoor.

“Well hello, what is this?” I asked, my hands on my hips. I tapped on the wooden surface a few times with my foot, looking up at Ryan. “You hear that?”

He walked over to me and frowned when he saw it. “Is that a trapdoor?”

It probably led to the basement, but that was so boring.

“I knew that there was a secret sex dungeon around here somewhere,” I told Ryan with a smirk.

“Yeah yeah…” he said, a smile tugging at the corner of his lips again.

“I bet you Mr. H is into some real kinky shit,” I continued.

“I doubt it,” Ryan said.

“Weren’t there a couple of counselors who never showed up?” I asked.

“Uh-huh, why?”

“Secret… sex… dungeon,” I spoke teasingly.

“Yeah, that’s not funny. It probably just goes to the basement or something. Open it up,” he said.

I grabbed the handle and pulled on it, but the trapdoor didn’t open all the way up. I peered in, but couldn’t really see anything except for a long ladder going down.

“All right, well it looks like it’s a pit of eternal darkness, so…” I told Ryan.

“You’re being dramatic.”

“Climb down, take a look. Look, you can squeeze through there,” I told him, pointing at the gap.

He scoffed at me like I was being silly, but I had the feeling the darkness made him uneasy.

“You opened it. You climb down,” he said, acting all tough as he came to hold up the door for me.

Darkness didn’t really bother me, so I just shrugged and wiggled my way through the doorway. The ladder wasn’t the sturdiest thing I’d ever climbed on, but it held my weight as I descended into the darkness. It was a long climb down, but it gave my eyes time to get used to the dark, so by the time I reached the bottom, I could see at least something.

It was indeed the basement that doubled as a storm shelter. I’d been there a few times and knew the place was massive.

“What’s down there?” Ryan asked.

“Oh my God , Ryan, you will not believe this,” I said as dramatically as I could.

“What?! What, what, what?” he asked, sounding almost panicky.

“It’s… nothing.”

“Oh. Lame,” Ryan said, sounding disappointed.

“I had you going there for a second, didn’t I?” I asked, looking up at him.

“No. Maybe. Shut up.”

I chuckled a little and looked around. My vision was getting better, but that also meant I started seeing immobile figures and shadows in the far corners… And it smelled like death. I couldn’t hear a single thing, but it only made me feel more uneasy.

“It is, uh… pretty spooky down here though, and it smells very unnatural, so…” I spoke, looking around carefully.

I could almost picture dozens of nightmarish monsters watching me behind the pillars and boxes…

“Yeah, okay, I’m coming back up,” I said and hurried back to the ladder.

I felt much better immediately after I had climbed up, and Ryan let the door fall closed. He didn’t mention my sudden hurry to get back up, thankfully. Now I felt ridiculous for getting spooked like that. It was just a basement.

I sat down on the chair to catch my breath and spun around.

“Ooh, that’s a nice chair. I could get used to this,” I said as I continued spinning around.

“You better hope Mr. H doesn’t catch you taking his baby out for a joyride,” Ryan said, and I stopped to face him.

“Come on, he’s not going to know,” I said dismissively.

“Okay. Just… be careful,” he said.

“What do you think I’m going to do? Break it? Come on,” I said, lifting my feet up on the desk to make myself comfortable.

Obviously, I’d jinxed it, and the chair immediately started falling back. A second later, I was staring at the ceiling, my lungs cleared out of air. Ryan said nothing, and just because of that, I knew he was smirking at me.

I laughed quietly when I pushed myself up and awkwardly climbed out of the chair to get back up on my feet. Ryan indeed was smirking at me, but he was a champ and didn’t say anything.

“That’s a design flaw,” I said as I picked the chair up.

“Mmm,” Ryan uttered with a nod while I sat back down.

At least he was having fun, so it was easy to not feel embarrassed. Much.

There wasn’t anything interesting on the desk, so I opened a few drawers out of curiosity. I didn’t expect to find anything interesting – only more paperwork – but I did find the Counselor’s Ledger. Ryan looked discreetly away while I grabbed and opened it.

I flipped through a few pages and landed on a list of all of our names and tasks. Two of the names had been crossed out.

“Oh, Laura Kearney and Max Brinley,” I read out loud.

“Oh yeah, those are the ones that never showed up,” Ryan said.

I glanced at him, then at the book. “Yeah, it’s because of these goobers that we had to work extra shifts this summer,” I said, and put the book away since there wasn’t anything else interesting in it.

I wasn’t mad at the no-shows. Obviously it sucked that we had less free time than we were supposed to, but it also meant extra cash, which I definitely needed, and working with the other counselors had been fun. It just would’ve been nice to know about it before we had already arrived at the camp. I wondered why they never let Chris know they weren’t coming after all.

Ryan made his way back to the door while I got up from the seat. The only other interesting thing on Chris’ desk was the old landline phone that looked at least three times older than I was. I was amazed that it was still working.

“Look at this old thing,” I said as I picked it up, turning to Ryan. “Hey, give me your number. I want to try it out.”

“Why?” he asked, giving me a suspicious look.

Why…?

I could’ve made a stupid joke. Something meaningless. Safe.

Or…

“So that I can ask you out on a date, duh.”

Chapter Text

-Dylan-

“So that I can ask you out on a date, duh.”

Surprisingly, I felt somewhat calm when I said that. A little giddy, but not too nervous. This was our last chance to do the things we regretted not doing, after all. Besides, after what he had been implying earlier, me asking for his number was pretty damn innocent.

And I was proud of myself for taking the leap.

“Mmm, smooth,” he said with a smile.

Okay, not a reply I was expecting. But what had I expected? He wasn’t into me. The thing about regretting not doing me had obviously been a joke. And now he probably thought I asked for his number as a joke as well. 

So much for the sign I guess…

At least he didn’t get all homophobic on me. 

“I think if I tried a cell phone number on this thing it would just explode, though,” I spoke, playing it cool as I brought the phone closer to my ear.

“Dylan…”

“Hello? What?” I said, my heart skipping a beat in a bad way.

That was not Ryan who spoke. I could’ve sworn I heard a woman whisper my name on the phone, but when I pressed the phone against my ear, I didn’t hear anything.

“What? Who is it?” Ryan asked.

“Uhh, hello…?” I tried again, but the phone stayed silent, so I put it back down, feeling nasty shivers going down my spine. “That’s weird, I thought I heard someone…”

“Maybe you should’ve asked them out on a date?” Ryan joked.

“Damn it. I missed my shot,” I replied, but I wasn’t really paying attention to it as I tried my best to understand what I’d heard.

Because I heard something, though it was probably just a weird glitch or static or something. The phone was old, old, after all. I just didn’t hear it clearly since I’d held the phone too far away from my ear. Nothing to worry about. And yet I felt uneasy. Like I was being watched.

And that was crazy.

I didn’t really want to think about it since I’d only drive myself actually crazy if I did, so I turned to look at Ryan, trying to ignore the phone and my shivers. I stopped to stare at him with questions on my mind. 

I couldn’t deny that I was getting confused with him. He had not given me his number, and by the looks of it, he wasn’t even considering it, but his reply had been inviting enough for me to find all my courage to approach him. I probably should’ve just given up, but I couldn’t shake the feeling that maybe there was something going on between us. 

“So… Got anything going on when you get back home? School or…?” I asked him tentatively.

“Eh… Jury’s out,” he only said.

“Understood,” I said, trying to think of something else to ask him, but there really was only one thing I could think of. “Girlfriend?” I said as casually as I could.

He seemed a little surprised by my question, and he didn’t reply to me right away. I could almost see him trying to decide if he should answer or not.

“Uh…” he finally began hesitantly. “Not… exactly…”

Exactly, huh…?

I nodded slowly, feeling braver than I thought possible. “Boyfriend…?” I asked and held my breath.

This time, he didn’t seem surprised. And then he gave me a small smile. “Free agent.”

“Cool. Yeah. Me too,” I replied without hesitation, feeling giddy while my hopes were getting right back up.

I mean, that meant he was interested after all, right? His reply definitely made him look like he was interested. It wasn’t just wishful thinking, right? And now he knew I was interested as well. Right??

“Are the, uh, phones…?” he asked, immediately bringing my hopes down a notch.

Well, Ryan was Ryan…

“Uhh… They could probably use a little while longer,” I said slowly.

“Ah… okay…” he only said.

This guy… Now I was getting really confused. Every time, right when I started to believe there was something going on between us, he immediately made me question it. Like I was just being crazy. Was I crazy? And the mood was turning very awkward once again.

“So if you do go to school in the fall, have you, like, picked out a major, or…?” I tried again.

But he wasn’t having it. “I don’t know, man. It’s kind of hard to talk about right now.”

“Oh, have you not decided what you’re going to do with your life?” I asked teasingly.

“Hey are the phones done yet?” he asked instead of answering, and I laughed lightly.

That was my cue to back off. But man, I was confused… Was he interested or not? Maybe it was for the best if I just stopped trying. Last night, after all. At least I finally found my courage to ask for his number. I’d failed, but nothing bad happened, so… I guess that counted as a partial win.

I stepped to the phones to see where they were at. Not far.

“Can’t you, like, speed it up at all?” Ryan asked, and I turned to look at him.

Was he in a hurry to get rid of me or something?

“I can try to encourage them?” I said jokingly and turned to the phones. “Go for it! You guys can do it! It’s not working…”

Ryan glared at me like he wanted to strangle me.

“We’re going to have to wait,” I told him and turned my back on him.

Maybe he did just want to get rid of me… Which only made me even more confused. 

There really was nothing interesting left in the office, except maybe for Chris’ private room, so I walked to it. The door was locked when I tried to handle, but I assumed Ryan had the keys.

“Yo, my guy, toss me the keys,” I said, fully expecting him to tell me no.

“So you can poke around in Chris’ private area?” he asked.

“I’m sorry, is that something only you’re allowed to do?” I retorted.

“Hardy har har.”

Maybe the rumors about him and Mr. H were true… Maybe that was what he meant with ‘not exactly’ when I asked about his girlfriend. 

“Come on, what’s the harm in looking? It’s… You’re not a little bit curious? I’m not going to touch anything,” I promised.

“Fine,” he said, shocking me as he grabbed the keys. “Don’t let me regret it.”

“Can’t promise that, but…” I said as he tossed the keys at me.

And I failed to catch them, obviously, since he was watching. I let out a deep sigh.

“I beefed it,” I said, and picked up the keys. “I don’t play sports,” I added, since Ryan was just staring at me – he was probably busy congratulating himself for not letting me touch the gun…

I opened the lock and turned back to Ryan. I tossed the keys to him, and he caught them without taking his eyes off me even for a second. Show off…

I pushed the door open and stepped in. The first thing I saw was an open closet with some clothes hanging in it. Chris’ bedroom was on the left, and his bathroom on the right. It was all just as boring as I’d expected. I peered into his bedroom, but nothing caught my eye, so I checked the bathroom instead.

I opened the cabinet above the sink, not expecting to see so many bottles of pills – mostly heavy painkillers – bandages, and even a few syringes. It kind of looked similar to the arsenal my mom used to have in her stash. Chris’ toothbrush and toothpaste seemed so out of place tucked away at the bottom shelf.

“Woah, there’s some pretty heavy-duty stuff in here,” I noted.

“Yeah, maybe let’s not touch that,” Ryan said behind me.

“Yeah, there’s nothing fun,” I said and closed it, then exited the bathroom to take a closer look at Chris’ wardrobe.

“Fashion icon,” I spoke jokingly as I peered at the simple t-shirts and spare camp leader uniforms.

“Mr. H knows what he likes,” Ryan said, and the way he smiled at the clothes made me a bit jealous.

Maybe the rumors actually were true…

“I’m sure he does,” I replied, pushing a few of the hangers out of the way. “Wow, there’s… Yo!”

There was a door behind the clothes! An actual, hidden door! I forgot all about everything else when I pushed the rest of the clothes out of the way and opened the door.

“Hey, hey! Maybe we shouldn’t…” Ryan began, but trailed off when I stepped into the hidden room.

And man, we hit a jackpot! I turned on the lights that illuminated the small dusty room, piles of boxes, and several old monitors at the back.

“Uh, Ryan…”

“Whoa… What the fuck…?” he breathed out after following me in.

I stared at the monitors. Some of them weren’t working, but the rest…

“These monitors… This is the camp,” I said when I recognized the landscapes and cabins showing on the screens. “Is Mr. H spying on us?”

“No, no… I mean… No, no… he can’t be…” Ryan muttered, watching the screens as well, but then he gained back his composure. “These are just… They’re all different trails in the woods around camp.”

“Uh, sure,” I said with a chuckle.

“Most of the cameras are pointed away from camp, so it’s not like he’s spying on the kids, unless they wandered into the woods,” he said. “You know, these are just… They’re probably just… trail cameras.”

“What are trail cameras?”

“People set them up to catch weird random shit,” he explained.

“Okay, yeah? Like what?”

“Like… bigfoot sightings, you know? That kind of thing…”

“So, okay, I’m going to upgrade Mr. H from super creepy pervert with a spy cam to, you know, super crazy conspiracy hunter,” I said teasingly, hoping to catch a reaction from him, but he didn’t take the bait.

“To be fair, bigfoot’s not a conspiracy,” he only said, not caring that I made fun of Mr. H.

Maybe the rumors weren’t true after all… He would’ve defended his secret lover. Ew, why was I even considering this…?

Because I was jealous…

“Okay fine. How about an aspiring cryptozoologist?” I said. “Hey, maybe he likes the podcast you listen to.”

“Sure, yeah, let’s go with that,” he said in amusement.

“Okay but… why go through all the trouble of hiding this room through a secret door in the closet?” I asked him.

“Uhh… I mean it’s not exactly a secret, right? Like it’s just… hidden by… stuff,” he said in an avoiding manner.

I stared at him for a brief moment in disbelief. “Yeah, that’s what a secret is, Ryan. It’s weird. It’s major league weird.”

“Yeah, I don’t disagree with you, but–”

“It’s got to be something juicy in here,” I said, interrupting him.

“Hey, Dylan, it’s none of our business, and if you really want to know, you can ask him tomorrow. I’m sure that won’t be an awkward conversation, like, at all,” he said, getting slightly annoyed with me.

“Okay, yeah. Maybe I will,” I replied, getting just as annoyed with him.

“All right. I’m leaving the secret lair. Have fun,” he said, and marched to the door.

Man, I couldn’t leave things like this…

“Hey, you just admitted that it’s a secret lair!” I shouted after him, hoping he found my words amusing, not more annoying.

Well, he didn’t say anything, so…

I sighed and turned my attention back to the monitors. I watched them for a moment, trying to spot anything unusual in them, but Ryan was probably right. These were just to keep an eye on wild animals that wandered too close to the camp.

“What was that?” I muttered when I saw movement in one of the cameras.

Suddenly, an older man appeared on one of the screens, and a few seconds later, the connection was lost. I stared at the static for a good moment. I did see that, right?

“It’s probably nothing…” I told myself.

I mean, come on. The camping season was over. Maybe the guy was there to do maintenance or take them down for winter or something. A few of the cameras were already offline, so he was probably there just to take care of them.

But I was getting uneasy no matter how good I was at coming up with explanations. This shit right here, the whisper on the phone and now this man on the screen, that was what my dad was famous for. Seeing and hearing things that weren’t there.

And that shit could get passed onto the next generation…

I turned my back on the monitors, trying to calm down. I’d completely lost my interest in the rest of the room. There were nothing but boxes full of tapes everywhere, and a map of the campsite with the places of the cameras marked on it on the wall.

I was ready to leave, but as I was making my way to the door, I spotted a bunch of unopened letters on top of one of the boxes. I almost brushed it off as Chris’ personal mail, but one closer look made me even more uneasy.

They belonged to Laura and Max, the counselors that never arrived.

I stared at the names on them. The letters had the camp’s address on them. That meant there were people who didn’t know they never showed up.

What if… something happened to them? A car crash or something? I mean, what if they crashed on their way here and died and no one ever found their bodies, and their families thought they were here, while we thought they were at home, and absolutely no one was even looking for them?

Fuck me, this was dark. I’d try to ask Chris about Max and Laura when I had the chance. Maybe he knew exactly what had happened to them, but chose to protect us from the news. Hearing about our coworkers’ deaths definitely would’ve ruined the mood.

I shivered at the thought and left the secret room. Ryan was waiting for me by the door, acting like he was ignoring me as I made my way to our phones. I didn’t care if they had enough charge or not. I was too uneasy to stay in the office a second longer.

“Nice. Full up,” I said and grabbed the phones even though they still were only around thirty percent. “Hey, donezo,” I told Ryan.

“All right, cool. Let’s go.”

I tossed his phone to him and put mine in my pocket, then followed him to the door. He held it open for me, so I walked past him.

“Thank you,” I said, but I guess he was still annoyed with me since he only let out a sigh when he closed the door.

He continued ignoring me as we made our way to the main entrance, so I stopped him before we could step outside.

“So… You’re coming to the party?” I asked carefully.

He glanced at me, then sighed. “Fine,” he said, sounding far from enthusiastic.

“Hey… I didn’t mean to annoy you,” I said. “I mean… With the personal questions…”

“Great, I kicked the puppy again…” he muttered, shaking his head. “I’m not annoyed with you.”

“Yes, you are,” I said, even though I should’ve kept my mouth shut.

“I’m not. It’s just… hard to talk about stuff like that. I don’t want to think about any of it,” he said, and gave me a short glance.

“Yeah, I get it. I promise, no more personal questions today,” I said, trying to smile.

“Thanks,” he said shortly. “Can we go now?”

I nodded slowly, but I wasn’t in a hurry to follow him when he stepped outside. He was definitely annoyed with me. And very, very distant. I should’ve kept my mouth shut. I never should’ve tried…

Ryan glanced at me over his shoulder and realized I wasn’t following him. He let out a light sigh, and his expression softened.

“Hey, if you get me drunk enough, I may tell you all about my situation with school,” he said. “So… Shall we?”

I knew he was just trying to be funny, but his words didn’t really make me feel better. I mean, he was saying he had to be drunk in order to tell me more about himself…

“Yeah, sure,” I said and walked past him.

But now I got my closure. I’d made my move, but he wasn’t interested. Case closed, as sad as it was. At least I’d finally tried to get his number, so I didn’t have to waste time wondering if I’d missed my chance just because I was a coward. Now I just had to get through this one last night…

And not let Ryan confuse me more than he already had.

Chapter Text

-Ryan-

I let out a quiet sigh when Dylan walked past me. I took my time locking the doors, trying to buy more time, even though the few seconds didn’t make a difference. Being alone with Dylan had never been this nerve-wracking to me, and I wasn’t sure how to feel about that. I didn’t even know what to do. What to say. How to act.

I really wished that I could be completely oblivious. I wished I could just act like nothing had happened in Chris’ office and move on with my life. It would’ve been easy. I’d ignored advances plenty of times. I knew how to do it. I just had to pretend one more night and be done with it.

But it was Dylan who’d asked for my number and about my dating life. And he was into me. Now it was obvious. He had not hidden behind his playful nature or acted like he was just joking around. I’d not failed to notice how excited he became after I had foolishly not denied the fact that I was into guys too. I’d also not failed to notice his confusion when I had suddenly decided to turn cold on him.

He had the hots for me. Dylan had a crush on me.

And I didn’t know what to do.

I really had no idea what to do. Half of me wanted to give him my number. The other half did not. I couldn’t pretend I didn’t feel anything when he asked for my number. Because I did. Just like I did when he asked if I regretted not doing something this summer. He was cute and hot, and he forced a smile on my face every time he opened his mouth. But at the same time, I couldn’t see the point in it. We both had our lives, school, friends, everything. I didn’t even have time on top of my responsibilities.

So… I was better off holding onto my decision to not do anything. It was better that way.

As we walked toward the firepit, Dylan stayed quiet and distant. I hated it. It was my fault. I wasn’t blind. He was disappointed, maybe even sad. Because of me. Because I didn’t give him my number. Because I chickened out too late and chose to push him away right after I got his hopes up. And then I got annoyed with him when I had absolutely no reason for it. Even I had to admit that the secret room was fishy, though I was sure there was a perfectly good explanation for it.

I glanced at Dylan, who was checking his phone while we walked. I had the feeling he was just acting like he was focusing on it so the silence between us wouldn’t be so awkward. I wanted to make a joke about it. Something about watching where he was going before he’d break his neck. But if I did that, I’d have to come up with another topic, and maybe worse: watch him get his hopes back up.

It didn’t even take us long to arrive at the firepit, and I was freed from my struggle to decide what to do about Dylan. Kaitlyn was standing close to the water, taking a picture of the treehouse on the island in the middle of the lake that was now dyed in the golden hue of the setting sun. It sure was a nice evening for a party.

“Hey Kaitlyn. Guess what?” Dylan spoke when we reached the firepit, sounding like his normal, cheery self again. “Mr. H is a voyeuristic creep. He has hidden cameras everywhere, and a secret room.”

“No, that’s not–” I began in annoyance, but Kaitlyn interrupted me.

“Woah now. Back up. What?”

“His eyes are everywhere. He’s always watching us,” Dylan said in a sinister voice, and I rolled my eyes as I sat down.

“Knock it off, man,” I told him and turned to Kaitlyn. “He’s just got… trail cameras set up. You know, forest surveillance. That kind of thing.”

“Oh,” Kaitlyn said in a disappointed manner.

“You don’t think that’s weird?” Dylan asked him in disbelief.

“Well he’s got a perimeter to check, kids to protect. Yeah, probably just to keep track of wildlife,” Kaitlyn said.

“You guys have no imagination,” Dylan said, now bored with us.

“So, uh… What’s going on here? Everything ready?” I asked Kaitlyn.

Her expression turned weird, and she glanced at the island, then grabbed her phone. “I did see a weird light in the treehouse across the lake,” she said and showed me the picture. It looked like there was light coming from it, but it could’ve just been a reflection of the sun. She then glanced at me with a smirk. “Yeah, that’s pretty spooky. Maybe it’s your girlfriend, Ryan.”

“The Hag of Hackett’s Quarry,” I said, trying to sound spooky.

“Ugh, I told you never to say Hag of Hackett’s Quarry again,” she said.

“What’s wrong with saying Hag of Hackett’s Quarry?” I asked, teasing her, but she only let out a frustrated sigh. “It just loses all meaning,” I added.

“All I can hear is haga hacka quorra,” Dylan said with a smirk while Kaitlyn rolled her eyes.

“Haga, haga-haga quarra,” I said, joining in on annoying her.

“Did you have a haga quarra?” Dylan asked me, his expression dead-serious.

“Yes,” I said and laughed.  

“Hag a hacka quorra!”

“Are you done?” Kaitlyn asked both of us, looking like she was about to strangle us.

“Yeah…” Dylan said, biting his lips and looking away.

“You know, I just realized, we may never see each other again after tonight,” Kaitlyn said to change the topic, and her mood was already coming back up.

“You can’t have just realized that,” Dylan said in disbelief.

“Just trying to set the mood!” she said with a smile.

“What mood?” I asked.

“The mood! The vibe! You know.”

“Speaking of setting the mood… I have work to do, okay?” Dylan said and took his seat quite far away from me. “Because playlists don’t make themselves… I mean, I guess they do, but…”

“All right, Ry-guy, time to get wood,” Kaitlyn told me, and I grimaced.

“Yikes, wording…” I noted with a smirk.

“Oh, I know what I said,” she said in a flirty manner.

Okay, what was going on all of a sudden? I mean, I’d had the feeling Kaitlyn was interested in me, but she hadn’t given me a single sign until now. Did everyone here think that us getting abandoned here for one extra night was some sort of sign from higher powers or what?

I thankfully didn’t have to react since Abi and Nick returned to us at that moment, and Kaitlyn turned her attention to them.

“Abi! Nick! Just in time!”

“We got wood!” Abi sang, showing her pile of sticks.

“Nice! But we’ve already done that joke,” Kaitlyn told her when she approached them.

“It’s mostly just kindling,” Nick said.

“That’s all we need. There’s already a big pile of logs here,” Kaitlyn said, pointing at the firepit.

“We could’ve gotten more, but there was a hog or a boar… But Nick was very, very brave and took one for the team,” Abi said with a smirk.

“Oh my gosh, it can’t be,” Kaitlyn spoke dramatically. “The Hog of Hackett’s Quarry!”

“What?” Abi asked in confusion.

“Thought you hated that phrase?” I noted, and Kaitlyn turned to me.

“Big jokes take big sacrifices,” Kaitlyn only said.

“You’re so brave,” I said.

She gave me a smirk and turned back to Abi and Nick. “Aww, I just want to shrink you down to a little pocket people and put you in my pocket and peep at you when I need a little pick me up!” she told them.

“Okay…” Abi said slowly and faked a laugh.

I wasn’t sure if Kaitlyn was just making fun of me, or if she was actually going somewhere with what she said, but I never found out since something exploded in the sky. They were just small fireworks, but the sudden sound spooked Dylan, who had mostly been paying attention to his phone.

We all glanced around just in time to see Emma and Jacob emerging from the woods, the latter pushing a wheelbarrow full of watermelons and beer. The former had a shotgun in her hands, and for a brief second, I thought they had broken into Chris’ office after Dylan and I left, but her gun was different.

I was about to get up and become an angry adult, but Kaitlyn beat me to it.

“Whoa, whoa, whoa! Where the hell did that gun come from?” she demanded to know as she made her way to Emma.

“Dude, relax, okay! It’s not even real!” Jacob said way too dismissively.

“Uhh?”

“Well, I mean it’s a real gun, but it’s just for shooting bears,” Jacob added, making no goddamn sense, as always.

“We found it in the storage room,” Emma said.

A storage room that was always kept locked… That meant there was another broken door on the premises. Chris was so not going to be happy with any of us, especially me…

Kaitlyn glared at them both, and finally, Jacob gave up.

“Okay, fine, fine. We’ll put it down,” he said, sounding disappointed.

“Thank you. Guns are no joke, dipshit,” Kaitlyn said.

At least Jacob and Emma listened to Kaitlyn, and apparently, losing the gun didn’t ruin their mood.

“And! And! We bring you a hand-picked selection of only the finest that Hackett’s Quarry has to offer…” Jacob spoke dramatically, gesturing at the wheelbarrow.

Nick picked up a bag of chips or something from the pile and immediately got excited. “No freaking way!”

“Yes, freaking way!” Jacob replied, and suddenly, they both started a… mating call? Dance? A ritual to summon something?

“Pop, pop, Peanut Butter Butter Pops!” they sang in unison. “Pop, pop, pop them in your mouth! Pop!”

I let out a sigh. Idiots. All of them.

“I didn’t even know you could still find these anywhere,” Nick said in awe as he stared at the bag.

I glanced at the bag again without recognizing it, but honestly, if those two found it extraordinarily amazing, I was better off staying away from it.

I was slowly losing my interest, anyway. Dylan was gaining my attention, even though he was still mainly focusing on his phone. He was smiling, but it looked a little forced, like he was faking it. I wondered if it was because of me, or Kaitlyn, or the gun, or the loud sounds.

Me, no doubt. I wanted to do something about that. He was always making sure things were fine between us. He was also always trying to make sure everyone else was having fun. Did anyone here ever do that for him?

While I watched Dylan, Jacob and Nick managed to get themselves into an argument over who got to eat the stupid butter pops. I was not interested in settling their quarrels, but thankfully, Kaitlyn stepped up to deal with them, so I didn’t bother paying too much attention to it. Not even when they agreed to have a shootout at the shooting range for the bag. Nick was harmless, and Jacob always listened to Kaitlyn, who agreed to be their referee, so I let her make sure they didn’t get themselves killed.

While the three of them grabbed the shotgun and headed into the woods, and Emma pulled Abi to sit with her at the other side of the firepit, I was left alone with Dylan. He was still focusing on his phone, but I still had the feeling he was only pretending I wasn’t there. I couldn’t blame him, not after getting turned down so clumsily by me. I wouldn’t have let myself get away with it. I would’ve called myself out for leading me on, or worse, but Dylan was too kind for that, and that made me feel even worse.

But what could I do about it?

Give him my number…

Should I? I mean… Maybe there was a chance it could work out? I mean, no one else had ever gained my interest the way Dylan had. Was I making a huge mistake by not giving him a chance? He was willing to give us a chance, and I suddenly had a feeling that he, too, had struggled with that decision for a while now. He knew things probably wouldn’t work out, but still he was willing to take the risk. And this really wasn’t supposed to be this difficult. I just needed to give him my number and see where it would lead us.

I took a deep breath. I had to stop overthinking this.

“Hey, Dylan,” I said, gaining his attention.

“Yeah?” he asked, finally taking his eyes off his phone, his big eyes finding mine.

Okay. Okay. I could do this. No more thinking.

“About the, uh–”

A loud bang came from the forest, startling us all, but Dylan got actually spooked. He nearly dropped his phone as he jumped on his seat, then squeezed his eyes shut in an angry manner while he took a deep breath.

“You all right?” I asked when he glared toward the shooting range.

He took another deep breath, then glanced at me. “I hate that sound…” he muttered. “Couldn’t they just use fake guns like always?”

I frowned. “You hate guns? But you wanted to hold one back at the office?”

“I wasn’t going to shoot it,” he told me with a snort. “And I hate the sound they make.”

“Do you have, like, sensitive hearing?” I asked.

“…Sure,” he only said, taking a third deep breath, finally looking calm again.

And someone fired the shotgun again. I felt bad when he jumped again, though he didn’t get as startled this time. The firing continued, but he eventually got used to it and didn’t get spooked. I wanted to ask if he actually had just a sensitive hearing, or if he had another reason to be afraid of loud noises. He didn’t like the sound of fireworks either, so… Oh well, none of my business.

“Anyway… What were you going to say?” Dylan suddenly asked.

“Oh, uh… Help me build the bonfire,” I said, and got up on my feet.

“Oh. Sure,” he said, and followed me.

I cursed myself, but I couldn’t help it. My courage was already gone, and my determination ruined by the sounds of the shootout that really felt like a sign from higher powers. Maybe it wasn’t meant to be. Maybe I just needed to get through this one last night and pretend there wasn’t a cute guy having a crush on me.

Because… truthfully… there wasn’t anything scarier than having hope that something good could come my way.

Chapter Text

-Ryan-

I had to admit, listening to the loud sounds coming from the shooting range was slowly getting to my nerves as well, not just Dylan. Although, while Dylan was jumpy, I was getting annoyed. Chris told us to keep it down. All that shooting was definitely going to attract unwanted attention if there were people close enough to hear it. We’d soon have a swarm of hunters on Chris’ property… I could only hope nothing bad would come of it if that was to happen.

When I was just about to lose my patience, they finally stopped. By the time Dylan and I got the bonfire lit up and the flames were strong enough to burn on their own, the trio returned to us.

It warmed my heart to see Jacob pouting.

“So? Who won?” I asked, like it wasn’t obvious Kaitlyn had kicked ass – she had a wide, cocky smile on her lips and the stupid butter pops bag under her arm.

“I’m telling you, the game was rigged,” Jacob said when he went to sit down far away from everyone.

“What was that, dipshit?” Kaitlyn asked. “An apology? For acting like an idiot?”

Jacob shot an annoyed glare at her, but stayed silent.

“That’s what I thought,” Kaitlyn said while putting the gun safely away while Nick was making immature faces at Jacob behind her back. “You ruined your own chances by handling the gun like a complete idiot, so you better not be taking this out on us.”

“You did what?” Emma asked Jacob with a frown.

“Mr. Marksmanship here got frustrated after missing a few shots after Nick got a perfect score and started waving the gun around,” Kaitlyn explained. “Had to take it away from him when he pointed it at us.”

“Not at you!” Jacob said. “I mean, not on purpose. You make it sound like I wanted to shoot you guys…”

“It doesn’t change the fact that you pointed it at us,” Kaitlyn.

Jacob pouted even harder, but probably because she told everyone what he’d done. I could only hope he was ashamed. It looked like he was.

“And then! Then! Kaitlyn surprised us both and shot every bottle and melon we’d set up as targets,” Nick said excitedly. “She’s really good with guns.”

“Had to show you two to your places,” she said with a smirk, putting the butter pops down on one of the benches.

Jacob let out a sigh and gave the bag a longing look. I was pretty sure I’d seen that same bag somewhere on the upper shelves in the store, forgotten for years. I doubted they were safe to eat anymore.

Nor was it safe to give Jacob a gun, apparently. I probably would’ve strangled him if I’d been there instead of Kaitlyn. He was lucky no one got hurt. And I had to stop thinking about it before I’d get mad. Everyone seemed unharmed, the gun was now out of sight, and we were ready to start our party.

The party I wasn’t supposed to take part in, now that I thought of it.

I sighed and stole a glance at Dylan, who was again focusing on his music. He had such a talent to make me do whatever he wanted… That would be disastrous in a relationship. And I probably wouldn’t mind that at all…

I sighed and looked away. Dylan said this last night felt like a gift, but to me, it was turning into a curse. A curse of countless what ifs. Because I was again thinking about it, even though I thought I’d already lost my courage. What if things could work out after all, but I was such a coward I was wasting my chance? What if I was going to regret not giving him my number?

Fucking Dylan… He sure knew how to turn a guy into a mess.

And… I didn’t hate being a mess.

“Here’s to our one last night!” Kaitlyn declared, grabbing a bottle of beer for herself. “Let’s hope I don’t have to see your ugly faces next year!”

“You know that’s unavoidable,” I told her with a smirk, and grabbed a bottle for myself.

“Yeah, you’re stuck with us,” Emma added.

With that, the party started. The sky turned dark as the time went on, and everyone was having fun – even Jacob bounced right back and joked around with Nick. I spent long moments just sitting in my seat, listening to the others, and watching the fire. It was quite cozy. The night was a bit chilly, but the fire gave more than enough warmth. Dylan was playing good, chill music, the beer was cheap but not too bad, and we shared a lot of good memories about the summer.

I guess this night was a gift, after all. It was actually really nice to just sit down and chat with these people, even though I hadn’t spent a lot of time with them. Maybe next year I would.

And maybe next year… I turned to look at Dylan. He was talking to Nick with a smile on his face. When Abi said something, Nick turned his attention to her. I still watched Dylan. He was smirking at Abi and Nick, who were now acting quite flirty with each other. About time too… But then Dylan turned to look straight at me, and kind of jumped a little when he realized I’d been watching him.

I could’ve turned to look away, but I felt surprisingly calm. So… I didn’t. Dylan was completely frozen for a moment, and I kind of expected him to turn away. He didn’t. Instead, he leaned back, frowning a little with a smile on his face, silently asking me why I was staring.

I didn’t know why. I couldn’t tell why I was feeling so calm at that moment. Maybe it was the beer. Maybe it was the cozy atmosphere. It definitely wasn’t because I’d made up my mind. I still didn’t know what I wanted to do about him. But I didn’t want to look away. I didn’t even feel the need to look away, since Dylan’s presence made me feel comfortable staring at him. Like he was comfortable with me staring at him, even though he wasn’t really expecting anything to happen between us anymore.

“So, Ryan – you still mad at us?”

I let out a small breath when Kaitlyn asked me that question, and Dylan turned away, his smile turning frozen.

“Why would I be mad at you?” I asked, forcing myself to look at Kaitlyn, who was sitting behind Dylan.

“For this party,” she said.

“Nah,” I said. “This is chill, like you promised. But I will blame all of you if Chris gets mad tomorrow. Especially when he sees his store.”

“Come on – we’ll just say it was a… a bear!” Jacob said with a grin.

“The door was like that when we found it,” Emma said, acting innocent.

I shook my head. “Sure, let’s go with that,” I said with a snort.

I glanced at Dylan, but he was already back on his phone with that same frozen smile still on his face. Suddenly, I wanted to be left alone with him. I was annoyed that our little moment got ruined like that. I’d always enjoyed our little moments, and this was the last time in ten whole months before we’d see each other again. Would we even have these moments anymore after ten months apart? How much would things change in that time?

“Is anyone actually brave enough to taste these?” Kaitlyn asked, grabbing the butter pops bag from the seat.

“Yes! Give me, give me, give me!” Jacob said with a mad grin, hurrying to her.

“All right, but if you get sick…” Kaitlyn trailed off in a warning tone when she let him have the bag.

“It’s fine! They’re fine!” Jacob said as he opened the bag, then loudly inhaled the scent – or smell. “They’re still perfect!”

“Sure…” Kaitlyn said, wrinkling her nose at him.

Jacob grabbed a fistful of the pops and tossed them in his mouth, looking like he was tasting a piece of heaven.

“Okay – maybe a little sticky – but otherwise perfect!” he mumbled, his mouth still full. “Nick? You want some?”

“Of course!”

The rest of us watched in disgust as the two of them stuffed their faces with them, loudly claiming they were still good.

“How long does it take for food poisoning to kick in?” Dylan asked. “I think I’ll walk to the bus station tomorrow.”

“Same,” I muttered.

“You guys don’t want some?” Jacob asked. “I swear, they’re still good.”

“No, you two deserve to keep the whole bag,” Kaitlyn said.

“Aww, thanks!”

I shook my head. We had a long walk ahead of us tomorrow…

They destroyed the bag in no time, while the rest of us joked about food poisoning. Things calmed down a bit later, and I found myself again just listening to the conversations around me. I wondered if Dylan and I could recreate our little moment and continue where we’d left off.

It seemed like I wasn’t the only one thinking about that. When I made the mistake of listening to Abi and Emma’s conversation about what they’d do tomorrow once they got back home, the latter noticed me eavesdropping. She raised her eyebrow at me, then nudged her head toward Dylan, clearly encouraging me to talk to him.

I shook my head a little, and she gave me an annoyed glance, nudging her head toward Dylan again. I shook my head for the second time, and she sighed sharply, rolling her eyes. I wondered if it was somehow possible that she knew Dylan had asked for my number. It shouldn’t be possible, but girls had superpowers I could only dream of.

“Okay! New idea!” Dylan spoke, and we turned to look at him. “Party game!”

His words were met with annoyed groans.

“Come on people, we might never see each other after tonight! Let’s make some memories!” he said.

And lo-and-behold, it was Kaitlyn who got interested.

“Well, what do you have in mind?” she asked.

“How about the ultimate game of secrets and lies? Truth or Dare, but Dylan style,” he suggested, and when no one objected to the idea out loud, he continued. “Okay, house rules are: someone asks you truth or dare… Then you choose, and then you do. And there’s no ifs, ands or buts.”

“So like, normal truth or dare?” Kaitlyn said.

“Yes,” Dylan said with a nod.

“So we can, like, make people kiss?”

I suffocated a groan. Why was that the first thing on her mind…? And why were the others warming up to the game all of a sudden?

“If they choose dare, yeah. As long as everyone consents, of course,” Dylan said.

“Cool beans,” Kaitlyn said, acting a little too… cool about it.

“I mean, keep it in your pants until it’s your turn, but…” Dylan said with a grin.

“Well, who does get to go first?” Kaitlyn asked.

“Well, it’s House deals, so…” Dylan said, glancing around the firepit. “Abigail! Truth or dare?”

Poor Abi looked frozen to her spot for a moment. Her eyes darted left and right, but she quickly recovered from it.

“Ummm… Truth,” she finally said, relaxing a little.

“You really dodged a bullet, huh?” Dylan said. “All right. Here goes… Have you ever slept with anyone…?”

“Oh, uh… I… I…” Abi muttered, looking down. She was visibly uncomfortable with the question, and I couldn’t blame her. This was why I hated these games. They got really invasive really fast.

I was considering interrupting them, but Dylan had noticed her discomfort as well, and was already backpedaling fast.

“Have you ever slept with anyone at this camp?” he corrected his question.

I wasn’t sure if that was enough to save the situation, but Abi snorted in amusement, shaking her head.

“No! Nope. Sorry,” she said, relaxing again.

“All right, Abi, it’s your turn,” Dylan said.

“All right, okay, um…” she said, looking at us all one by one. “Umm… Ahh…”

“Abi, oh my God, just pick someone!” Kaitlyn told her impatiently.

“Okay, okay. Um…” she said, and looked at us all again, unable to decide. “I don’t know!”

“Ugh. Ding ding ding. Too late. My turn!” Emma said, saving Abi.

And she immediately turned to look at me, her eyes turning almost evil. “Ryan… Truth or dare?”

Oh, no…

I froze to stare at her. She wouldn’t… right? She would not out me in front of all these people, right? She’d kept her word until now. But it was the last day, and she’d had a drink. One beer, but… Maybe it was too much?

Okay, okay, okay… I just had to have a little faith in her. But I was not choosing truth. Dare was easier to play off as a joke, no matter what she would make me do.

“Dare – give me what you got,” I told her, acting tougher than I felt.

“Okay, Ryan,” she began like we were in a courtroom. “Your dare comes with a choice.”

“Can she do that?” I asked.

“I can do whatever I want,” she said. “And I dare you… to kiss…”

Oh, God, no…

“…either Kaitlyn…”

I already knew the second name.

“…or Dylan.”

“Wow… I mean… I guess both is off the table?” I asked jokingly, trying to buy more time. Both Dylan and Kaitlyn chuckled shyly at my words.

“Sorry – I don’t make the rules,” she said, raising her hands.

“I mean, you literally just did, but okay, let’s do this,” I said, ignoring Dylan, whose smile was fading, and looking at Kaitlyn.

Because Kaitlyn was the right choice here. My easy way out, and the answer to my question of whether I should give Dylan my number. If I kissed Kaitlyn now, he’d back off for good. He’d be too hurt to give me another chance. I mean, I was about to kiss someone else right after he’d asked for my number. Right after I gave him the impression I was interested, then not, then showed interest in him again. He’d be too hurt to share those little moments I enjoyed so much with me again.

Fuck, even thinking about it hurt, but it was the right call in the end. I’d save myself from a lot of trouble…

The easy way out.

But all of a sudden, there was only one thing I could think of.

In ten months, someone else would claim those little moments with Dylan for themselves.

“Dylan,” I said, because I couldn’t lose them. “Let’s go.”

Dylan got slowly up on his feet, trying to contain his smile and trying to act cool and calm about it. I assumed I looked exactly the same. My heart was racing when he approached me, while the others whistled cheerily at us.

Then he stood in front of me, raising his eyebrows a little as to ask if I was sure about this. I wanted to ask if I looked that spooked. I felt spooked. I didn’t even think of getting up from my seat. I just stared at him, his cute face and timid, shy, giddy smile.

I knew my answer at that moment. I didn’t want to lose the moments with Dylan because they had become so precious to me. It wasn’t just about being close to him. It was about how I felt when I was close to him. I needed to give us a chance, or I’d regret it for the rest of my life.

I gave him a little nod, and he slowly leaned in…

He pressed his soft lips on mine…

And I kissed him.

Chapter Text

-Dylan-

“Okay, Ryan. Your dare comes with a choice.”

“Can she do that?”

“I can do whatever I want. And I dare you… to kiss…”

Oh, God, no… I nearly choked. Emma had given me glances the entire night, trying to get me to talk to Ryan. That was one reason I’d stared at my phone for most of the night. To make her stop trying.

“…either Kaitlyn…”

I already knew…

“…or Dylan.”

I froze. I knew she was going to do that to me, but I still froze, but my heart was suddenly racing. Kaitlyn or me. For real? Of course Ryan was going to pick Kaitlyn, and I’d be forced to watch! Why did she think this was a good idea?!

“Wow… I mean… I guess both is off the table?”

I turned to stare at Ryan.

Excuse me?

“Sorry – I don’t make the rules,” Emma said, raising her hands.

“I mean, you literally just did, but okay, let’s do this,” Ryan said, turning toward me.

But he wasn’t looking at me. He was looking at Kaitlyn, who sat behind me. After what happened in the office, after he turned super cold on me, I knew I never stood a chance. This night that had felt like a gift at first was suddenly turning into a painful curse.

Fuck… This was going to hurt a lot…

“Dylan. Let’s go.”

I nearly choked, or I would’ve, if my body and mind hadn’t completely shut down.

He… picked me? Me?

Somehow, I managed to stand up and start walking to him without running away. As I took the first few steps, I kind of expected him to change his mind or tell me he was just joking. But no. Instead, he looked as nervous as I felt. And he smiled as he waited for me. I probably had the goofiest grin on my face… I barely heard the cheers and whistles around us.

When I stopped in front of him, I raised my eyebrows a little to ask him if he was being serious. He gave me a little nod. My stomach was suddenly filled with happy little butterflies.

He actually picked me.

So… I leaned in… And I kissed him.

And man… His big lips were just as soft as I’d imagined. But better. Especially since he was kissing me back, his lower lip brushing gently past mine, sending shivers down my spine. I couldn’t believe he was kissing me back… I couldn’t believe I stood there, in front of everyone, doing what I’d dreamed of doing the entire summer.

He picked me. I thought… I thought I had no chance. I guess I thought wrong.

Wow…

I pulled back, feeling giddy and excited as I looked at Ryan, who was still smiling.

“Always happy to please,” he said, giving me an awkward grin. I almost laughed out of nervousness, but somehow managed to stay cool. Ish. I wanted to say something witty back, but my head was still unresponsive. I was better off not trying. I didn’t want to ruin this moment by blurting out stupid things. I stared at him for a few seconds longer, then backed away, returning to my seat with my head in the clouds.

Ryan chose to kiss me.

I completely blacked out for a moment. Not physically, but mentally. I had no idea what was going on around me as I tried to wrap my head around what had just happened. I was still probably grinning like a fool, but I couldn’t stop smiling.

Ryan kissed me.

Maybe I was right. Maybe the van breaking was a gift, after all.

“So you and Jacob go way back, right? Like, since you were kids?” Ryan spoke, continuing the game, but I still hardly registered it.

“Sadly, yes,” Kaitlyn replied.

“Lame question, bro. Waste of a turn,” Jacob added, sounding annoyed.

“You guys ever, ah…” Ryan continued, hesitating for a moment. “Get down to business together?”

Wait, what? I perked up. Kaitlyn and Jacob? Now I was listening.

“When we were freshmen, I made Jacob let me practice French kissing on him,” Kaitlyn admitted. “But it never went any further because,” she said, then continued in a loud whisper, “he’s a terrible kisser.”

I tried not to laugh too openly, and I wasn’t the only one. Jacob looked like he wanted to kick Kaitlyn’s ass, but he stayed seated, and surprisingly silent.

“And it was like kissing my brother. Ew. Still love you, bud,” Kaitlyn said, aiming the last words at Jacob. “Okay, my turn!”

Jacob pretended to blow her a kiss, but flipped her off as he sent it. She ignored him and turned to look at Emma instead.

“Emma.”

“Dare,” Emma replied before Kaitlyn could even ask.

“Emma… So you have to kiss Jacob… or…”

Jacob grinned at Emma, but Kaitlyn wasn’t done yet. She held a dramatic pause, then said, “Nick.”

Oh god. Oh no. No, no, no, no… Emma was not going to kiss Jacob.

“Well then,” Emma muttered, checking out her two options.

“Uh, sorry Nick, this is not even a dare. Obviously I got this–” Jacob spoke, while Nick was saying it wasn’t a good idea.

The mischief on Emma’s face was clear. She’d already made up her mind.

“I choose Nick.”

The whole campsite fell silent as she got up on her feet.

“Em? Seriously?” Jacob asked as Emma made her way to Nick and sat down in his lap.

I leaned back, not interested in seeing them exchange bodily fluids, so I carefully peered at Abi instead. She couldn’t watch it either. I felt so bad for her.

But there was someone who wasn’t feeling too bad for her. Nick. As Emma sat in his lap, wrapping her arms around him, he returned the gesture. And it wasn’t a simple smooch. They started making out, with tongue and all, right there, while Jacob and Abi both had to see that.

Okay then…

“Guys!” Jacob shouted, and Emma and Nick finally broke it off, but not in a hurry.

Emma stood up, while Nick seemed to realize they had an audience, regretting his decision too late, and peered carefully at Abi, who refused to look in his direction.

“Thank you, Nick,” Emma said as she returned to her seat.

I probably shouldn’t have suggested this game. I mean yeah, I got to kiss Ryan, but Abi didn’t deserve this. And Jacob kind of didn’t deserve it, either, I guess. This was not how I’d wanted things to go.

And then Emma made it worse as she sat down next to Abi. “He’s good,” she told her very good friend.

Abi couldn’t stand it, so she left in a hurry. At least now Emma seemed to feel remorse for what she did. In the meantime, Jacob stood up and approached Nick, looking pissed.

“You like kissing my girlfriend, asshole?” he asked in an unnaturally dark voice.

“Hey, I’m nobody’s girlfriend,” Emma said, but Jacob silenced her with a wave.

“It was just a game,” Nick said, looking concerned.

“The fuck it was. ‘Oh, it was just a game!’ Yeah, the fuck it was, man!” Jacob shouted. I thought he’d launch at Nick, he sounded so angry, but instead, he left as well, following Abi into the dark forest.

“Jacob, grow up!” Emma told him, but he ignored her.

Wow… This was not what I’d expected to happen tonight… And it was kind of my doing. Again.

Emma let out a sigh. “Well, I guess I should probably… go after him,” she muttered, then turned to Nick. “You should probably go find Abi.”

Nick got up on his feet and vanished into the forest in no time, but Emma took her time following him, leaving me alone with Kaitlyn and Ryan.

“So…” Kaitlyn said, looking at us. “Anybody want to play Parchisi?”

Both Ryan and I only stared at her.

“What?” she asked, like she was offended.

I shook my head in disbelief.

Silence fell over the firepit. I guess the party was over. I really hoped Abi was fine, but my mind was trailing back to the kiss. I carefully peered at Ryan, who stared into the fire, glancing at the forest every now and then, clearly concerned over the others.

For a moment there, I wondered if Kaitlyn had caused this drama to ruin the mood between Ryan and I – everyone – just because Ryan chose to kiss me, but I didn’t see her as that spiteful. I didn’t want to believe she could do that. She was better than that. But, on the other hand, she had to know what she was doing when she dared Emma to kiss Nick. She knew Emma would kiss him to piss off Jacob, and she knew it would hurt Abi.

I let out a silent sigh, sipping my beer. I got my kiss, but… what now? I couldn’t tell if Ryan even remembered what we did anymore. And that thought let my insecurities back in. Did he really choose me because he liked me or just because he wanted to joke around?

Fuck me, that guy really had messed up my head, and I had no fucking idea what to believe when it came to him. He really confused the hell out of me all the time…

“Should we go after them?” Ryan finally spoke, again peering into the forest. “We should’ve stayed together.”

Yeah, we were kind of not supposed to wander into the woods… I kind of promised we wouldn’t…

“Nah, they’re fine,” Kaitlyn said, waving her hand dismissively. “Emma is with Jacob, and Abi is with Nick. They know not to go too far.”

“You just don’t want to get your hands dirty in the drama you caused,” Ryan said.

“I did nothing,” she said.

“Nothing?” Ryan repeated.

“Dylan, help me out,” Kaitlyn turned to me.

“That was some mighty fine social disruption there, Kaitlyn, I have to say,” I told her, raising my eyebrows with a small smirk on my face.

“Ah, or was it just the nudge that Abi needed?” Kaitlyn asked me, acting mysterious.

Ryan laughed. “You’re an evil genius,” he said.

I could see that, yes. Now Abi and Nick would probably have an actual conversation about how they felt. I mean, Nick would have to be the most thickest person on the planet if he still wasn’t getting the hint that she liked him.

“Who do you think is going to make the first move? Nick or Abi?” I asked.

“Oh, good Q,” Kaitlyn said. “My bet’s on neither.”

That was possible, yes…

“I don’t know. Nick’s got the beast in him,” Ryan said.

“Uh, if by beast you mean some sort of mild-mannered baby deer…” Kaitlyn said, trailing off.

“Hey, don’t let the cute, preppy aesthetic fool you. It’s like a steel barbecue grill under that shirt,” Ryan said teasingly.

Kaitlyn snorted in amusement, while I was jealous of how great their dynamics were. Ryan was actually joking around with her…

“So you noticed that too, huh?” I asked playfully to avoid getting into a depressing mood.

I mean, the guy chose to kiss me. My jealousy needed to shut the fuck up right now.

“So, what do you guys want to do now?” Kaitlyn asked.

“We could keep playing,” Ryan suggested.

“Yeah? Just the three of us?” I asked.

Ryan shrugged. “All right, Dylan. Truth or–”

His question got drowned by a loud, scared scream coming from somewhere near in the forest. The sound was closely followed by a gunshot as we were getting up to look around.

I was immediately thrown back in my memories, and I froze.

“That sounded like Abi,” Ryan said in concern.

“Oh my gosh!” Kaitlyn breathed out.

“We have to help her.” Ryan said, walking past me.

I let out a short, nervous laugh at his words. I didn’t know why. My body was not under my control. I couldn’t even follow them. I couldn’t even consider it.

“Wait, where did it come from?” Kaitlyn asked as they hurried towards the forest.

“This way! Come on!”

I still stood there, unable to move. All I could do was watch after them. I wanted to go follow them. I wanted to help Abi, but my body refused to move. I couldn’t follow them. I didn’t want to go any closer to that dark forest. If Abi was shot… If someone shot her… I couldn’t breathe. I felt weak and nauseated. I could almost see bits and pieces of her body scattered around the bloodied forest…

It would be my fault.

And I heard it again… on an endless loop… My dad shooting his face off in the next room, and my mom’s scream a few seconds later after she found him.

“Fuck… Not now…” I whispered, trying to get the images and sounds out of my head.

“Mom…?”

I followed her desperate cries out of my room. I was scared. I stepped to the door of my parent’s bedroom… Mom tried to be fast when she slammed it shut in front of me.

But too late.

Chapter Text

-Dylan-

“Abi!”

I heard the voices but didn’t register them as I stared at the nightmare in front of me, frozen in time. The door stayed open only for a half a second, but I still saw everything. Every single little detail was still vivid in my memory. The man without a face and the big, red crown splattered on the window and ceiling behind him…

“Help! Please… Nick! Help him!”

Abi? Abi… Abi!

The fear in her voice was enough to help me find my way back to reality. I was almost surprised to see the dark forest in front of me after standing in the brightly lit room. But the room wasn’t real. Not anymore.

Abi was… uninjured. No bits of her were missing. But there was blood. She fell to her knees as Ryan and Kaitlyn hurried to help her. She was panicking. Her breathing was shallow panting, and she kept glancing at the forest in fear.

“Where’s Nick?” Ryan asked, his voice higher than normal.

“I… I…” Abi peered at the forest again.

Did Nick…?

“Go after Nick!” Kaitlyn told Ryan, trying to give him the shotgun.

No, no, no, no…! Fuck, this was serious. This was fucking serious!

“Maybe… Maybe you should go,” Ryan said hesitantly without taking his eyes off the forest.

“Look, I have to help Abi. Go! He might be hurt too!” Kaitlyn nearly yelled and tossed the shotgun at him without a warning. “That shotgun has a hell of a spread. Be careful.”

Ryan gave her an uncertain glance, but he didn’t try to give it back, not with her already giving him disbelieving, disappointed glances. He nodded and left running without saying another word. It felt wrong. He shouldn’t have been the one to go find Nick, not when Kaitlyn was much better with guns. But she was also the medic of the group, and Abi was bleeding.

Fuck, this was going all wrong… I never meant for this… This was my fault…

“Dylan! Get a fucking grip and help me!” Kaitlyn shouted at me when she noticed me still standing by the fire.

“O-oh… yeah…” I mumbled and hurried to her, finally free to move at least.

Abi was getting more and more hysterical while we brought her to sit by the fire. I had never seen her eyes so wide before. She couldn’t relax. She kept twitching and jumping at every sound and touch. She couldn’t look at the forest, but she also couldn’t stop herself from peering at it in fear.

“Hey, what happened? Abi?” Kaitlyn tried to talk to her, but it was like she didn’t know we were there. “Abi?”

“I don’t… I don’t…” she muttered, her eyes now glued to the dark trees. She wasn’t even blinking. Her breathing grew faster, and her lips trembled. Like she saw something horrible that we couldn’t.

“Hey, it’s all right. You’re safe here,” I said, trying to sound as soothing as I could while also trying not to freak out myself. Her fear scared the hell out of me. “What happened?”

She didn’t respond to me. She didn’t even react to my words.

“Dylan…” Kaitlyn muttered, holding Abi’s hand in hers.

I glanced at her palm. It was covered in blood, but not hers. I wanted to throw up. She only had small cuts and scrapes on her. Her wounds didn’t explain the blood she was covered in.

“Fuck…” I whispered, my voice high pitched.

Nick…

“W-what about Ryan…?” I asked, my stomach twisting and turning.

“He’ll be all right,” she said without looking at me.

“All right?” I repeated. “Does he even know how to shoot?”

“He does.”

I shook my head and paced a little, trying to stay calm but failing. “You shouldn’t have let him go. Not alone. He’s only getting himself killed.”

“Ryan can take care of himself,” Kaitlyn said sternly, but still with a little doubt in her voice. She peered at the forest, then turned her attention back to Abi’s wounds. “We couldn’t just leave Nick out there.”

“You know he’s already dead, right?” I whispered. “There’s too much blood on her and–”

“Shut it!” Kaitlyn hissed at me. “Nick is fine! Just shut up and help me calm her down! We need to know what happened!”

I turned to the forest, hoping to see Ryan returning to us, but nothing was moving out there. I balled my hands into fists, seriously considering going after him.

“Dylan!”

“Fine. Fine…”

Abi didn’t look like she’d heard our quick exchange. She was still staring at the forest.

“Abi?” Kaitlyn tried again while I kneeled next to her. “Can you hear me?”

“I…” she snapped out of it, whatever it was, then looked at us.

“What happened?” Kaitlyn asked.

“I don’t know!” she cried. “I don’t know… there was… I … I don’t know…”

“Hey, hey, can you tell me where did you go after you left the campfire?” I asked. “Which direction did you take?”

“I… I went… That way,” she said, and pointed to the right. “But I got lost… I didn’t go far, but I couldn’t recognize anything.”

“Okay, then what happened?” I asked.

“I… Nick found me. I heard him, so I shouted, and he found me,” she spoke, calming down a little.

“Good, okay, and then…?” Kaitlyn asked.

“We… We talked… and he kissed me… But there… there… there was an animal!” she said, getting all anxious and worked up again. She suddenly got up, gasping for air, looking around so fast it made me dizzy. She was panicking. We grabbed her in case she tried to run. “It was an animal! It attacked us, and… and… and… Someone was shooting, and… We tried to run, but…”

She came to a complete holt and stared into nothingness. “It bit Nick… Oh God… It bit him in the neck. There was blood everywhere…”

I turned to glare at Kaitlyn. There were so many things I wanted to say to her, but I kept my mouth shut. Nick was dead, and now Ryan was risking his life for nothing.

“I left him…” Abi whispered. “Someone was shooting at us… I… I… I…”

“Abi, calm down,” Kaitlyn said. “Nick is fine. He’s all right. He’s a tough guy, and Ryan must’ve already found him.”

Right…

“Yeah, yeah, I’m sure they’ll be here in a minute,” I said, trying to keep my voice sincere.

I just couldn’t believe my own words. If Nick got bit in his neck… There was just no way…

My need to throw up grew worse, but I tried to man up. Now was not the time to break down, not with four of us missing.

“Fuck… What about Emma and Jacob?” I asked.

“They went another way,” Kaitlyn said. “Let’s hope they’re somewhere safe.”

“They must’ve heard Abi’s scream,” I muttered.

“Abi – come – sit down,” Kaitlyn told her since she was again staring at the forest. “Abi? I’m sure Nick is fine.”

“Y-yeah… Nick’s… He’s all right… He must be…” she kept whispering, but the look on her face told me she didn’t believe her words, either.

“We can’t stay here,” I said. “We need to get to the lodge.”

Kaitlyn gave me a long, weird look, then helped Abi sit back down.

“What?” I asked.

“Ryan has the keys…”

I stopped to stare at her. “Fuck!”

“Look. He’ll be back here any minute now. With Nick. Then we get the hell out of here,” she told me sternly.

“Or they’re both dead and we’re next,” I said, nearly causing myself to panic.

Kaitlyn grabbed me by my shirt and pulled me closer, her eyes flashing angrily. “They are both fine! They’ll be here any minute now!” she growled in my face. “We’ll just have to fucking wait!”

I stared at her with wide eyes, but then I realized she was just as scared and worried as I was, and the only thing keeping her together was her stubborn belief we all would be just fine. And who was I to take that away from her? Especially since I needed her stubborn belief to keep myself together.

“Yeah, yeah, of course,” I mumbled. “You’re right. Sorry.”

She let go of me and gave me one last angry glance before taking a seat next to Abi.

“Do you remember anything else?” she asked Abi to gain her attention. “You said someone was shooting at you? Did you see who it was?”

“I didn’t see anyone,” Abi said. “But it scared that… that… thing. It let go of Nick, and I tried to grab him… but… but it attacked me.”

“And what was that thing? The animal?” Kaitlyn asked, but Abi immediately freaked out and sprung back up on her feet.

“Abi!”

“I don’t know! I don’t know…!”

“She’s too freaked out,” I said. “I’m guessing a wolf or a cougar or something.”

“Someone shot at us…” Abi muttered. “I left Nick…”

“It’s all right, Abi…” Kaitlyn said.

And again, Abi stopped to stare at the forest. Her behavior scared me the most. Like she wasn’t really with us. What did she see that made her like this? And as the minutes passed while Kaitlyn and I tried to calm her down, she kept repeating the same things, and absolutely refused to talk about the animal. She was not there with us.

I glanced at the forest for a hundredth time. No Ryan. No Nick…

What was taking so long…?

Chapter Text

-Ryan-

I could only hope I was running in the right direction. All I really had to go for was the direction we’d heard Abi’s scream coming from. A few times I thought I spotted drops of blood on the leaves as I passed them by, but I didn’t stop to take a better look. At least it was a full moon, and the sky was clear, so I had some light even under the trees. I definitely needed that, since I beelined forward, past the logs and rocks. I nearly broke my damn neck when I slipped while trying to get over a small creek.

But I didn’t stop. I had to find Nick.

I kept my eyes peeled as I ran, hoping I hadn’t already gone past Nick. He’d shout for me, right? He could hear me stomping through the woods. He’d yell if he saw me.

If he was conscious…

Fuck… Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck…!

We should’ve stayed at the lodge! I should’ve yelled at them until they listened to me! Abi was now injured, Nick was probably dead, and now we had a dangerous animal and hunters prowling in the area! Jacob and Emma were somewhere out there, too…

I kept my ears peeled as well, trying to hear if someone was shooting close by. What if the hunters run into the others, and mistook them for this animal…?

FUCK!

I had to find Nick, fast!

The adrenalin and the fear of finding him too late gave me the energy to keep going. I tried not to think that I was in danger as well. I was wearing dark clothes in a dark forest, running heedlessly where people were hunting a dangerous animal. Very smart indeed.

But all thoughts flew out of my mind when I finally saw movement up ahead. There was a big fucking guy wearing only denim overalls, and he had a gun! As I approached him, he crouched down to grab something. Something that was making pained groans.

Nick! He’d found Nick! He was still alive! He was bleeding heavily, but we could still save him! We just needed to get him out of this forest! I was about to sigh in relief and throw cautiousness out the window… But something odd was going on. The man had grabbed Nick by his throat and was dragging him away like my friend was some kind of trophy, causing him more pain. He didn’t stop when he spotted me. He didn’t say anything. He just… kept dragging Nick away.

I trusted my instincts. Something was wrong with this man.

“Fuck, shit, fuck, fuck, fuck! Fuck!” I muttered as I stopped and took my shotgun, raising it at the man.

He didn’t care. He didn’t stop.

“Hey! Get the fuck off him!” I shouted, pointing the gun at him, but he didn’t care. Nick gasped loudly in pain as the man pulled him over the rocks. “Stop! Stop! I’ll shoot!” I tried again.

The man only snorted at me. I didn’t know what to do. I didn’t want to shoot him! Especially since the spread could hit Nick. The man knew this. The longer I hesitated, the clearer it became to him I wasn’t actually going to shoot.

What could I do? What the fuck could I do?! I had to do something!

But before I could decide, Nick suddenly bit him hard on his finger. The man shouted in pain and let go of him. Nick got up on his feet surprisingly fast and ran toward me.

Fuck yes!

But the man grabbed his gun and aimed at Nick before I could do anything. He shot once, but thankfully missed. Nick kept running past me while I lifted my gun again, ready to shoot this man this time if he tried to shoot at us again, but he’d lost his interest in us.

He stared at his bleeding finger. And without hesitation, he shot the whole damn finger off as I watched.

I froze to stare at him. What the fuck did I just see…? He just… he just shot his finger off. His own fucking finger…! He stared at the bleeding stump, looking… he was annoyed. He lifted his gaze and glared at me, lowering his hand like he only got a paper cut. I felt sick. My ears were ringing, and my body was weak and drenched in cold sweat.

What the fuck was going on…?

Then the man turned his back to us and walked away. I stared after him until I heard Nick’s painful breathing that brought me back to my senses. I put my gun away and hurried to his aid.

He was barely standing. His legs were giving up under his weight any second. He was covered in blood. His eyes were wide in shock.

“Holy shit, dude…” I muttered, feeling like I was about to go into a shock as well.

“Dang it… Got to get… We got to go… nngghh…” Nick muttered, just about to pass out.

He reached for my hand to stay up on his feet, so I quickly grabbed him and helped him back up.

“Can you walk?” I asked.

“Can… Come on… Got to go…” he kept mumbling, shooting frightful stares after the man who tried to kill him.

He did not have to tell me twice.

“Come on, Let’s get back to the fire,” I told him.

Man, Nick was fucked up. He had deep gashes on his neck and shoulder, and even bigger running across his thighs. Something big had attacked him. A big animal, not the hunters. At least I couldn’t see any bullet wounds. I tried to ask him what happened while we ran, but he was losing his energy fast. He tripped hard, but I caught him before he could fall, and then continued dragging him back to the fire.

He was losing a lot of blood… There was no way he’d make it to a hospital… Thank fucking God, we had Kaitlyn… There had to be something she could use to patch him up still left at the lodge.

It took so fucking long, too, to get back while he was drifting in and out of consciousness. I feared it would be too late to help him. To save his life. My lungs and muscles were burning by the time I spotted the campfire looming up ahead, but I tried to move faster.

“Help! Dylan! Kaitlyn!” I shouted.

“Ryan!”

The voices of my friends were relieved, but their relief was gone when they ran to my aid and saw Nick.

“Oh my God…” Kaitlyn gasped, stopping a few feet away.

“Nick! Oh, God, Nick…” Abi sobbed, running past her, and hugged Nick carefully. “I’m so sorry… I’m so sorry!”

“Come on…” I said, trying to keep moving with Nick hanging off my tired shoulders while she held onto him. “He needs to sit down and we need to figure out what to do.”

“What the fuck happened…? What the fuck is going on…?” Dylan whispered, his eyes wide as he took in the bloodied mess that was our friend.

“I don’t know,” I told him gently. “Help me. He needs to rest for a bit. Then we need to take him to the lodge.”

He nodded and helped me to drag Nick the rest of the way to the firepit. He looked just as nauseated as I felt, and he couldn’t take his eyes off Nick’s injuries.

“See, Abi? He’s just fine,” Kaitlyn spoke behind us while leading her sobbing friend to the seats. “Everything is fine now.”

“What the fuck is going on?” I asked Abi. “What happened? What attacked you guys?”

“I… I don’t know…” she mumbled, wrapping her arms around herself while she and Kaitlyn went to sit down.

“She’s not been able to tell us much,” Dylan told me while we helped Nick sit down on the sand so he could lean against the log seats. He let out pained moans and nearly passed out again.

“There must be something you can tell us,” I spoke to Abi, trying to sound calm while I definitely wasn’t.

“Abi…?” Kaitlyn muttered her name encouragingly.

“It was horrible… It was…” she finally muttered, her voice growing panicky. “It was… I- I- I- I don’t even know what it was. It was so fast and… and there was… there was a hunter… and it was just… it was just…”

When she trailed off, taking in deep breaths, Kaitlyn leaned to grab something from her bag.

“Oh, Abi…” she pulled out Abi’s sketchbook and gave it to her. “Here.”

“What?” Abi looked at the book, then at her.

“Try drawing,” Kaitlyn said.

“Drawing what?” Abi asked in confusion.

“Can you draw what attacked you?” Kaitlyn asked.

Abi stared at the sketchbook, looking like she was about to start crying again, but she bravely picked up her pencil and started drawing.

In the meantime, Dylan and I tried to make Nick comfortable. He darted back up when we touched him, looking around with scared eyes. Then he let out a groan and slouched forward. Dylan and I grabbed him and rested him back against the log.

“Slow, slow, slow…” I muttered while we were at it.

When Nick was leaning against the log again, he looked up at me. Half of his face and his entire shoulder were completely covered in blood. I wasn’t sure if he knew who I was, but at least he seemed conscious now.

“Nick. Hey, buddy,” I said quietly. “Can you tell us what happened?”

“Animal attacked…” he muttered, his voice strained. “Where’s Abi…?”

“He’s super out of it, man,” Dylan noted, but I had to try again.

“We need to know what happened,” I told Nick.

“Right… There was… there was a guy there… but… there was some kind of… some kind of animal…” he trailed off, gasping in pain again.

“What fucking kind of animal does this?” Dylan asked.

We both stared at his wounds. What kind of animal could do this?

“Did… Did I get… Is Abi…?” Nick muttered.

“Hey, hey, she’s okay, dude. She’s right over there,” I told him and pointed at her, but I wasn’t sure if he understood my words.

“Big claws and… teeth right on top of me… I think it was a bear,” Nick continued mumbling.

“Full sized bear would’ve crushed him. There’s no way,” I muttered to Dylan.

“I thought we don’t get bears around here?” he replied just as quietly.

“No! Agh!” Nick suddenly groaned, trying to move again.

“Oh fuck! Look at that!” Dylan said, retreating from Nick as he pointed at the wounds on his leg.

The edges of the gashes were turning black, and so were the veins surrounding them.

“Oh shit!” I said, flinching away as well.

“That black stuff. That’s… That’s infection,” Dylan spoke, his voice turning panicky. “That’s… and it’s… it’s spreading. This is bad. This is really bad, dude.”

I knew nothing about infections, but the wounds were still bleeding. We needed to get him treated fast, but I wasn’t sure if he should be moving again so soon. The way back to the lodge wasn’t the shortest, after all. I put my hands over the wounds to apply pressure, and Nick groaned in pain again.

“You’re okay. It’s okay,” I said soothingly.

“Fuck, that hurt…” Nick mumbled with a hint of anger in his voice.

“We should amputate.”

I turned to stare at Dylan with my mouth open. I didn’t even know what to say.

“We should cut it off before the infection spreads,” Dylan said, his voice and face dead serious.

“What?!” Nick said.

“Why would we do that?” I asked Dylan in disbelief.

“I don’t know, man. Look at that black stuff,” he said, pointing at the wounds I had stopped pressing in shock.

“What… What do you think it is?” I asked him.

“Do I look like a doctor?” he only asked me.

I wanted to strangle him. This was not helping at all! But the wounds just kept bleeding. We couldn’t stay there a second longer. We just had to carry Nick back up to the lodge. He was losing too much blood.

“I can’t remember much…” Abi muttered suddenly. “I mean, I don’t even know what I saw…”

“Holy shit…” Kaitlyn muttered, taking the sketchbook from her, and stared at whatever it was she drew.

I was going to ask to see it, but something moved in the forest, just outside from our view. I got up quietly and grabbed the shotgun, pointing it at the trees.

“Hey! I have a gun. And I know how to use it. Sort of…”

I didn’t really feel brave at that moment. Not after what I’d already seen. If it was the hunter in overalls and missing a finger… He knew I was too much of a chicken to shoot.

“Ryan… What if it’s Jacob or Emma?” Kaitlyn came to ask me quietly.

“What if it’s not?” I asked.

“Be careful,” she said.

We waited for a moment, but we couldn’t hear anything anymore. Nothing was moving behind the trees. The shotgun had a flashlight attached to it, and I carefully swept the bushes with its light, but I still didn’t spot anything.

“It… It was probably nothing,” Kaitlyn said.

“Yeah… But is it gone?” I breathed out, lowering the weapon. I waited for another moment, but couldn’t hear a thing. “Yeah, you better run!” I shouted, mostly just to make myself feel better.

“Very brave,” Kaitlyn said in a mocking manner.

“All right,” I said, and put the gun down, but we both still kept our eyes on the trees. “So, uh… Lodge is sounding pretty good right about now, yeah?”

She didn’t have the time to reply to me when the bushes suddenly started rustling, and this time it was easy to tell there definitely was something big heading our way. I picked up my gun again and pointed it at the forest. There was something moving right on the other side of the closest trees. I held my finger on the trigger, trying to decide if I should shoot.

Thankfully, I didn’t.

“Wait! No, no, no, no, no! Don’t shoot! Don’t shoot!”

And there came Jacob, barging past the last bushes, wearing only his boxers. He put his hands in the air when he stopped a few feet away.

“I’m here to save you,” he told us.

But he had blood on his face. Where… Where was Emma? Did something happen to her? What the fuck was going on here?! We could only stare at him, speechless, while he spotted Nick.

“Holy shit, Nick…” he breathed out, lowering his arms and taking a few steps closer. “Is he okay?”

“Nick and Abi were attacked in the woods,” Kaitlyn told him.

He gave Abi a concerned glance as well, then he turned his attention back to us. “Hey, does anybody have any dry clothes? I’m fucking freezing,” he said.

“All our bags are still in the minivan.”

Jacob let out a tired sigh. “Fuck. Of course they are.”

“Jacob… Where’s Emma?” I asked.

“Oh fuck!” he shouted, agitated, like he’d forgotten her somewhere. “Jesus Crist. Um… I… I left Emma on the island, and I told her I’d be right back,” he told us.

Okay, so at least she was safe.

“Ouch…” Kaitlyn muttered. “Wait… The island?”

“Yeah? Why?” Jacob asked, frowning.

“No I just… I just thought I saw someone over there before…” she explained.

Right, she showed us the picture. Fuck…

“Someone?” Jacob repeated, his concern growing.

“No… I… You know, I… I don’t know. It’s… It’s probably nothing,” Kaitlyn said, glancing at the island in the middle of the lake.

“I left her out there alone!” Jacob said, now his agitation growing as he got ready to head back to her.

“Well, I think we’re going to head to the lodge,” Kaitlyn told him.

“Also, why are you covered in… what I hope is strawberry jelly?” I asked before he could head back.

“Oh yeah, no, um… I’m pretty sure it’s blood,” Jacob said. “There was this guy with um… He had like a bottle. It’s like… I don’t know dude, it’s like a really long story.”

“Ew!” Kaitlyn exclaimed.

“Yeah. No. It’s super fucked up,” Jacob said with a grin, but he seemed a bit shaken. “Oh and Jesus Christ I can’t believe I haven’t told you this yet! I saw a fucking body in the lake!”

“Like, a dead one?” I asked because this new turn of events did not quite fit in my brain right at that moment.

“Oh, no, no, no, no, um, one of the… one of the swimmers on the varsity team. He got lost on the way to practice and it was – yes, a dead one, dumbass!”

“Of course you did, Jacob,” Kaitlyn said in clear disbelief.

But I believed him. A dead body would be completely reasonable considering the things I’d seen in the past hour. But I wasn’t going to tell my friends I saw the hunter shooting his finger off. Not now. They didn’t need to know about that right now. Nor did they need to know about a dead body, but that was too late.

“No! For real! I did!” Jacob exclaimed. “I… I figured it must have been one of the counselors that didn’t show up, but I couldn’t tell because it was like all… all bloaty and… gross.”

“Something’s not right,” I muttered.

We all just stood there, trying to let all of this sink in, trying to understand what was going on, but nothing made sense. A body in the lake? Hunters pouring blood on people’s faces and shooting their fingers off, and the animal that attacked Abi and Nick…?

“I have to go get Emma,” Jacob said, breaking the silence, and reached for my gun.

“Uhh, excuse me?” I said, stepping back.

“I need this, okay? It’s not safe out there,” Jacob said to me, grabbing the gun again, but I didn’t let go.

“Dude! We need to protect Nick and Abi!” I said sternly, trying to get the gun back from him.

“Yeah, and I need to save Emma, all right? She’s out there alone!”

“You don’t even know if she’s in trouble!”

“You don’t know if you’re in trouble!”

“Are you trying to piss me off?” I asked him.

“No, I’m trying to save my girlfriend’s life, asshole!” he told me angrily.

His hostility was really getting on my nerves. “Yeah, I don’t think she’s your girlfriend, dude.”

He got angry at me for saying that and tried to rip the gun from me. I fought back, and it quickly turned into a tug of war. With a fucking shotgun.

“Get…!”

I had to let go. It was loaded, after all. But when I let go of it, it hit Jacob right in the face.

“What the fuck…?” he hissed, seething, then tried to hit me, but I dodged it.

“Fucking stop! We’re in a real mess here, guys. You’re acting like pricks. Both of you,” Kaitlyn yelled at us, then took the gun. “Jacob, we’re keeping this. Nick and Abi are injured. We need protection. There’s someone around here.”

I sneered at him.

“Ryan!”

“Sorry.”

“This is bullshit!” Jacob growled at us.

“Make sure she’s safe. If she’s on the island, she’s definitely fine,” Kaitlyn said with her end of discussion voice.

“And what? Risk another run-in with Captain Deliverance?” he asked, still angry, whatever that meant. “No thanks, okay. There’s probably another boat by the zipline. Either way, I can make it to the island from there.”

Kaitlyn let out a sigh when Jacob stomped off without giving us another look.

“We need to get back to the lodge. Try to get help,” she told me.

“How? Nick can’t walk properly,” I said, but then spotted the wheelbarrow by the fire. “Wait, I have an idea…”

She turned to see what I was looking at. “Yes. That’s good enough.”

“All right. Let’s get the fuck out of here,” I muttered.

“Let’s, before anything else goes wrong,” she said, and followed me.

Chapter Text

-Dylan-

There was so much blood… And the black stuff oozing out of Nick’s wounds made me even more nauseated as we helped him to sit in the wheelbarrow. He was completely fucked. He barely understood what was going on. Hell, none of us had no fucking idea what was going on!

I’d never felt so useless in my entire life. I was in a frozen state, unable to do anything unless someone told me what to do. I tried to keep myself from finding the biggest rock to crawl under so I could hide there and cry until this whole nightmare was over. I’d never had to fight against my need to throw up as much as I did now. My ears kept ringing. I was covered in cold sweat. My heart was beating fast.

And the memory of my father was making things worse.

When we finally got Nick seated in the wheelbarrow, Kaitlyn approached me and Ryan with a gloomy, confused expression on her face.

“Guys…” she muttered, giving us Abi’s sketchbook.

“This is…?” Ryan muttered as he took the book.

“That’s what she saw,” Kaitlyn muttered, glancing at her friend, who was making sure Nick was comfortable.

I stared at the black figure on the page. It was human like, but with long, animal-like limbs, pointy ears, and hunched shoulders, standing on its hind legs. It was just a simple silhouette with no details, but it was still clear it was not an animal, nor a human, but still both.

“She’s in shock,” Ryan finally said, giving Kaitlyn the book back. “This can’t be right.”

I agreed with him, but at the same time I didn’t. Whatever Abi thought she saw wasn’t real, but looking at the drawing, then looking at Nick’s injuries… It made sense. But that made no goddamn sense! I was freaking out, so my thoughts made no sense!

“Let’s go,” Ryan said and returned to Nick.

I sighed in relief as I followed him. We just needed to get out of here, and everything would be fine again.

And that was the only thought I allowed myself to have as we made our long journey back up to the lodge. It wasn’t that long, actually, but it felt like an eternity. At least Nick’s painful moans were becoming quieter… No wait, that was probably a bad sign… But finally seeing the lodge gave me hope, maybe even a little bit of courage.

“Easy,” Abigail said when Ryan stopped the wheelbarrow in front of the stairs leading up to the front door.

“I got it… He’s okay,” Ryan replied, and stepped back to see how Nick was doing while Abi crouched next to him.

“Are you in pain?” she asked.

“Nah… Nah, sorry, I’m just… I’m really hungry,” Nick replied, sounding much better already.

“We’ll get you some food inside, okay?” Abi said soothingly.

“Yeah, okay,” Nick replied quietly.

He clearly was still in pain, but otherwise he seemed pretty normal. Actually, a bit too normal considering how out of it he had been at the firepit just a moment ago. Although he’d probably been in shock, and now it was wearing off.

“Come on…” Abi muttered and stood up so she and Kaitlyn could help him out of the wheelbarrow while Ryan kept it steady.

“Oh man… I could eat a horse…” Nick muttered while getting up.

“I don’t know if we’ll be able to find you a horse, but there might be some granola,” Abi told him.

“Ugh… Yuck, I hate granola…” Nick muttered.

I let out a deep sigh of relief. Seeing him joking around, no matter how pained his voice was, was really fucking comforting. And seeing him walk with his own two feet made it even better. Because I thought… There had been so much blood…

But he was fine. We’d be fine. We just needed to call for help and get the fuck out of here before something else happened. I felt uneasy. Like we were being watched. We probably were if there were hunters in these woods. For some reason, that thought made me even more uneasy.

I peered at the dark forest as I followed the rest up the stairs, shivering. It had nothing to do with the temperature. Somehow, this forest I’d grown to love felt strange and dangerous. Even the trees looked sinister now. And I didn’t even want to acknowledge the sounds. The creaking noises, the cracking branches… If I focused, I could almost hear a nightmarish animal grunting and growling, conjured up by my imagination.

I tried really, really hard not to run past everyone else to get inside the safety of the lodge. That would’ve been really uncool.

Once we were finally inside, Ryan stopped by the doors while the others were making their way deeper into the building.

“This’ll open the nurse’s station. Should be plenty of stuff in there,” he said, and gave his keys to Kaitlyn.

“Well hopefully we can just get him cleaned up for now,” she said and walked after Nick.

“I’ll get you something to eat,” Abi told Nick, and headed to the kitchen.

Since I still couldn’t make my own decisions, I stayed with Ryan. He had the gun, after all. And I really needed a break from all the blood on Nick’s clothes…

Ryan turned to me. “You and I are going to find a landline,” he told me.

“Oh, uh, yeah. Um… Isn’t there one in Mr. H’s office?”

“Yep,” he told me, and turned back to Kaitlyn. “We’ll come meet you.”

“Copy that!” she replied as she led Nick to the nurse’s station.

I watched after them, still fearing Nick was in big trouble, but he was still walking pretty fine. And now that we were inside the lodge, I didn’t feel like such a chicken anymore.

“I really hope they’re going to be okay,” I muttered to Ryan, and turned to look at him. “Do you think whatever is left in the nurse’s office is going to cut it?”

“Kaitlyn knows what she’s doing,” he said calmly.

“Does she? I… I mean… She wasn’t even supposed to be working at the nurse’s office this summer. She only filled in because the other girl didn’t show up.”

“It’s better than nothing,” he said, clearly not losing an inch of faith in Kaitlyn. “Come on. Let’s go call for backup.”

I nodded.

“It’s pretty weird to see this place so dead,” I said, glancing around the dimly lit lodge as we made our way to Mr. H’s office.

“You never came down here at night while camp was in session?” Ryan asked.

“What? No, did you?” I asked.

“Couple of times, yeah,” he replied.

And at a time like this, I wondered if he’d come here alone…

“Dylan…”

I stopped and turned around, my heart skipping a beat. It was that same voice. A woman, whispering my name. I took a few steps back, hoping to see someone hiding behind the fireplace or the staircase. I forgot about everything else. Like I was being pulled. I couldn’t even consider stopping. I needed to find her.

“Where are you going?” Ryan asked.

“I…” I mumbled, his voice finally shaking me out of it. “I… I thought I just heard my name.”

“I didn’t hear anything,” he said.

I knew he didn’t. There were no strange women in the lodge calling for me. I still couldn’t stop peering at the shadows. There was no one, but I knew what I heard. I heard her voice like she was real.

And that was a problem.

Shaking myself, I turned back around and walked up to Ryan, who was waiting for me by Chris’ office. Again, I felt like someone was watching me, but I refused to look over my shoulder. There was no one. No one. I just needed to keep it together until we got the fuck out of here.

“I don’t think Nick’s injuries are as bad as we thought,” Ryan spoke while we entered Chris’ office.

Right. Nick… He was injured. I tried to push the strange woman out of my head so I could focus on reality.

“Well that’s good news,” I said, agreeing with him – Nick wouldn’t be walking around if he’d lost too much blood.

“Yeah.”

“So what now?” I asked, turning to the shotgun mounted on the wall.

“We have to call for help,” Ryan spoke, grabbing the phone from Mr. H’s desk.

I nodded as I stared at the gun. We needed it. The thought of having to use it made me uneasy, but the thought of not having anything to defend myself with freaked me out much more.

“Who should I call?” Ryan asked as I took the gun.

It was surprisingly heavy…

“Uh, Mr. H?”

“The only number I got is to this phone,” Ryan said.

That was the only number I had as well…

“Okay, then ninety-one-one,” I said.

He gave me a weird glance. “You mean nine-one-one? Who says ninety-one-one?”

I shrugged. “I don’t know…”

“Anyway, yeah, but like what should I ask for? Like police? Ambulance?” Ryan said, ready to dial the number.

“Huh…” I breathed out.

Why was he asking me? I didn’t know! I thought he had everything under control! He’d given us orders left and right until now, so why was he suddenly…? Unless he’d only acted calm and composed so the others wouldn’t start panicking.

He still stared at me, waiting.

Okay. It was my turn to act calm and composed, then.

“Cops,” I said sternly, glad to hear my voice so strong. “With guns. We need a lot of backup out there.”

“So they’ll say, ‘911, what’s your emergency?’ and then I say, uhh… ‘Help, my friends may have been attacked by a bear, or maybe not a bear, but definitely an animal with teeth, and we’re not sure how many there are out there or how smart they are so it’s very possible that they might be mounting an attack on us right now and we really need backup’.”

Yeah, he was definitely not so calm and composed as he’d let us believe. He was just as shaken as the rest of us. And clearly overthinking this.

“Yeah, yeah. That’s… That’s good,” I said, hoping he’d find it reassuring.

“…Okay,” he said, defeated, and turned to the phone.

He dialed the number and brought the phone to his ear. I could hear someone answering, but her voice was cut short. I frowned when Ryan moved the phone away and stared at it.

“What’s wrong?” I asked.

“Dead,” he said.

“Well that’s weird,” I said.

“Phones go dead… sometimes out here,” he said, and I wasn’t sure if he tried to soothe me or himself.

“Right when you’re about to call the cops, though?” I asked.

“It’s a coincidence,” he said, his voice unnaturally calm.

“Did you try that hang up thingy?” I asked as I approached him.

“What?”

“Here…” I muttered as I took the phone from him and propped it between my ear and shoulder so I could tap on the button that would hang up the call when the phone was put back down.

“What are you doing?” Ryan asked as I kept tapping it with no success.

“I don’t know. It’s what they do in movies when the phone goes dead. Tap on the little thingy,” I explained.

“We’re not in a movie,” he noted while I put the phone away.

“Okay, well, you know, how do you know that?” I asked. “Maybe that’s just what they want you to think, man.”

He only rolled his eyes at me, but I saw it as a positive change in his behavior. He couldn’t be freaking out while he was busy being annoyed with me.

“Okay so this phone is a no-go, No one has signal. Is there anywhere else in the camp that has a landline?” he asked, sounding more like his bossy self now.

I couldn’t think of any, but…

“Well, not a landline,” I said slowly, glancing at him.

“What?”

“The radio hut has some old broadcast gear,” I explained.

“Where… Where you do your announcements?”

“Where I curate my sweet summer jams, yeah, and where I do the PA announcements. It has some old equipment there. I think we could probably rig something up and get a message out.”

“All right, yeah. Let’s… let’s head over and see if we can contact somebody,” he said, sounding relieved. But then he noticed my shotgun. “Put that back, Dylan.”

Yeah, he was back being bossy, all right…

“I will put it back when we’re good and safe and help is on the way,” I told him.

He let out a quiet, annoyed groan. “Okay, just… careful with it,” he said, sounding like he was already regretting letting me keep the gun.

“I’ll be fine,” I said reassuringly.

But he was not reassured as he stared at me. I was sure he’d give me a lecture or something about gun safety, but then, all of a sudden, the lights went off.

“Okay…” I said, feeling a bit panicky again.

“Uh… It’s… It’s probably… the weather?” Ryan spoke, looking around.

“What weather, Ryan?” I asked snarkily.

“Maybe… Maybe it was the… bears,” he offered, his voice higher than normal.

I let out a sigh. I guess I had no choice but to roll with it. Whatever he needed to keep himself together, I suppose.

“Bear? Why does everyone blame everything on bears? Okay, so for the sake of argument, what if that ‘bear’ that, uh… cut our phone line and just cut out the power… what if that bear is waiting for us out in the hallway?” I asked, pointing at the door with my shotgun.

“Fair point,” Ryan said.

“Thank you,” I said, and he followed me to find more shotgun shells from the drawers.

“We should probably tell Kaitlyn we’re going out to the radio hut. They’re probably freaked,” Ryan spoke as we grabbed as many shells we could find.

“Yeah,” I agreed. “Okay, yeah, let’s go.”

Ryan went to open the door, while I got ready to storm out and shoot this bear before it could attack us. Once the door was open, I rushed out and quickly checked both sides like I’d seen in the movies, making sure there was no one around.

Ryan was not impressed when he followed me. “Yeah, we should probably leave that with Kaitlyn,” he said like I’d just done something stupid with the gun.

I rolled my eyes as I turned to face him. How was I supposed to prove myself if no one was giving me a chance to prove myself?

“Do you think she really needs it, though?” I asked.

“Uhh, she needs it just as much as we do,” he said.

“She’s staying in the lodge, we’re going out there,” I reasoned.

“You literally just said there might be something dangerous in the lodge,” he said.

“When?”

“Like twenty seconds ago!” he said, pointing at the door we came out of.

“Okay, sure, but that’s because I really wanted a gun,” I said.

“Just give her the gun, man,” he said in a tired voice.

I glanced at my gun and sighed. “All right. You’re right…” I muttered.

“Hey we still have mine,” he said, trying to cheer me up. “If you’re extra nice to me, I’ll… I might let you hold it.”

Oh, no. Not my immature ass…

“Don’t write a check that your ass can’t cash,” I said before I could stop myself.

I was ready to get yelled at for not taking things seriously.

“My ass has got quite the bank account,” he replied smoothly.

I laughed lightly at his words, but it died away quickly since we weren’t alone anymore.

Kaitlyn approached us. We both turned to look at her when she stopped and put her hands on her hips in a very disapproving manner.

“Am I interrupting something?” she asked, and since neither of us had the guts to reply to her, she scoffed in disbelief. “We’re in a real pickle here, guys, so you better start acting like it. Did you call for help or were you too busy flirting?”

“The phone went dead,” Ryan said. “We were just coming to tell you guys we’re heading to the radio hut and see if we can contact somebody over there.”

“Great. Just great,” she muttered, crossing arms over her chest. “So it wasn’t you who screwed up the power?”

“No,” I said.

She stared at us in silence, then sighed again. “Great… This is unbelievable…”

“We found a gun for you. And enough shells to protect yourself in case someone or something gets in the lodge,” Ryan said, and gestured at me to give the gun to her.

I looked down at the gun, still very, very hesitant to give it away. I really didn’t like the idea of walking all the way to the radio hut in the dark forest…

Ryan rolled his eyes, sighing lightly, and gave his gun to Kaitlyn. “Here. Stay in the nurse’s office and keep it quiet. We’ll be back as soon as we can.”

“You better hurry,” she muttered. “And stay focused.”

Ryan nodded, and after he gave her his shotgun shells, she walked away. I had the feeling neither of them was happy with me. I sighed, feeling discouraged.

Ryan grabbed me by my arm and led me to the exit.

“You and your damn puppy eyes…” he muttered to me.

My mood came back up a little. “What? I was going to give it to her.”

“Yeah, sure,” he grunted, and let go of me when we stepped outside.

I glanced at him as we made our way down the stairs. He was still annoyed with me, but at least he wasn’t angry with me. I stopped at the bottom of the stairs, and so did he. I couldn’t let him be annoyed with me, so I gave the gun to him.

“Chin up, big guy,” I said as he took it. “It… I wouldn’t really know what to do with it, okay. I trust you.”

His eyes softened, but he didn’t reply to me as he watched me with squinted eyes.

“‘Oh, thank you so much, Dylan, you’re so generous and handsome!’” I said playfully and started walking. “Yeah, no problem, don’t mention it.”

He let out a long, defeated sigh before following me into the woods.

Chapter Text

-Dylan-

As we made our way toward the radio hut, Ryan stayed silent apart from the occasional annoyed breaths he was letting out. I let him be annoyed with me if that was what it took for him to keep himself together. Besides, talking probably wasn’t a good idea at that moment. We were better off not alerting anyone in the forest – whatever it was that was doing all these things.

But when we could almost see the pool house and the cabins, he let out a deep sigh, his annoyance gone, and glanced at me.

“So the radio hut has like an actual radio?” he asked. “I thought it was just, like, for your morning announcements.”

“Oh yeah, yeah. It used to be more of an actual radio station, actually. Um. You know, I mean, it is still , technically, but nobody brings their radio to camp anymore,” I explained.

“Yeah…”

“It’s weird, actually, that there used to be kids with their radio and their portable CD player and everything, and… You know, nowadays, everything we need is on the phone, but Mr. Hackett takes it on the first day of camp so that we’re not “distracted by technology”.”

That feeling that I was being watched returned…

“Technology… It giveth and it taketh,” Ryan spoke, pulling back my attention before I could start looking over my shoulder. “So is… Is that something you want to go into?”

“Camp radio?” I asked in confusion.

“No like, uh… DJ’ing. Or music. Something,” he said.

“Oh! Um… Yeah I mean I like music, but… I think I want to major in um… Quantum physics,” I admitted carefully.

“Wait, what?” he asked, chuckling.

I laughed lightly as well. “Yeah…”

“Uh… You don’t really seem like a… science guy,” he said hesitantly just as the cabins and the creek came to our view.

“Oh yeah. I mean, you know… not… not here,” I said, feeling awkward.

Ryan stopped on the bridge crossing the creek and turned to face me, looking amused. “I… I’m sorry, I’m so completely fascinated by this. What do you mean by not here?”

“Not here at… camp,” I said, suddenly feeling even less courageous. I mean, I’d acted someone else the entire summer… “I do that at home, and then here, I um…”

“You’re a wise… wise-cracking smart-ass?” Ryan suggested with a smirk.

I laughed a little. “Uhh, that’s a little harsh, but um–”

“No?” Ryan asked, and the fact that he was smiling and joking made me feel much better. I wasn’t even sure why I thought he’d get mad at me…

“Okay, so maybe I was a little nervous when I arrived in an uncomfortable social situation and I overcompensated a little bit by making a bunch of jokes. And then I slipped into a sort of stylist, nihilist thing and uh, yeah, it just kind of stuck…”

“You played into it,” Ryan said, nodding.

“Yeah, I mean people kind of… enjoyed the blasé Dylan…” I said, meeting his eyes.

“And do… do you enjoy the ‘blasé Dylan’?” he asked.

“Nah, yeah, like, you know, whatever man. It’s pretty cool… It’s fine..” I played around, making him laugh. He actually laughed …

“Do you like ‘physics Dylan’?” he asked.

“Um, I like ‘Dylan Dylan’, and… Yeah, I mean, I think that it’s not just one thing that determines what a person is,” I said.

“Hmm,” he agreed with a nod. “Well, it’s nice to meet you, Dylan Dylan. I’m Ryan Ryan. Well actually, I’m ‘let’s get the fuck out of here Ryan’.”

“Yeah I like him. He’s… That makes a lot of sense,” I said, and we crossed the bridge.

Ryan continued walking toward the radio hut, but I saw something weird on the ground behind the pool house, on the pathway continuing into the forest. The full moon was so bright it was easy to see around, and even in the distance, I had a feeling I knew what it was.

And it made me nervous.

Ryan noticed me making my way closer to the pool house and followed me in silence. We both could already tell what lay on the ground behind it. We stopped by the corner of the pool house to stare at the bear trap, all set and ready to hurt someone.

“Whoa…” I breathed out, grabbing a branch from the ground.

I stayed back and threw the branch in the trap, setting it off. The loud sound coming from it when the claws snapped shut made shivers run down my spine.

“Something like that could really take your hand off,” I muttered, feeling even more uncomfortable now.

“What is this doing at a kid’s summer camp?” Ryan asked in disbelief.

“I don’t… I don’t know man… It wasn’t here over the summer. I mean, if it was then we would’ve noticed that, right?” I asked him.

Meaning someone had brought it there. The hunter Jacob ran into? But this place was off limits from hunters, right?

I didn’t like this… I didn’t like this at all. Now we could see it, but if it had been a few feet to the left, hidden in the grass…

“Well, whatever it was trying to catch… It can’t now,” Ryan spoke, his voice and expression ominous.

I thought about Abi’s drawing…

Fuck, we needed to get out of here.

I followed Ryan when he continued his way to the radio hut at the back of the area. I tried to fight back my urge to stare at the dark forest because if I did, I immediately started seeing eyes and figures in the dark. I could almost hear something out there, hidden by the shadows… And I could feel eyes on me, watching… waiting… The random sounds of animals, the owls and the wolves in the distance, didn’t make the atmosphere any less spooky.

I suddenly couldn’t stop thinking about Abi’s drawing…

As I kept peering around like crazy, no matter how hard I tried not to, I spotted something in the big tree in the middle of the cabins. Something small was shining in a hole left by a fallen branch a long time ago. Did someone leave their belongings…? I knew I was better off following Ryan so we could get to the safety of the radio hut, but my curiosity won, so I made my way to it.

It was a tiny gray bottle the size of my thumb. It looked very old, with a wooden cork and everything. I couldn’t see what was inside, and I definitely wasn’t going to find out, but I took a sniff.

“Ugh,” I breathed out in disgust. “What in the name of voodoo doo-doo is this?” I muttered and put it right back – the stench was nasty.

Whatever it was, I was pretty sure I’d never seen that before, and all I could do was to add that in our growing list of ‘what the fuck is going on?’.

Ryan noticed I wasn’t following him and returned to me. I decided not to mention the bottle. It was probably just a prank left behind by Jacob or something. I so really wanted to believe so, but I had a bad feeling…

We hurried the rest of the way to the radio hut, which was spookily illuminated by the red light in the radio tower right next to it. It had never bothered me before, but this night… It reminded me of all the blood I’d already seen tonight.

And then I noticed the massive claw marks on the wooden wall leading up to the roof. Now those marks I could understand. They belonged to a big fucking animal, but they weren’t there this morning. Which meant there was a big fucking animal somewhere close by. If only that was our biggest problem at that moment… I snapped a few photos of them. Once we’d get the fuck out of there, I’d look them up and let Chris know he had an animal problem.

And Abi’s drawing crossed my mind again.

No. No! I shook myself mentally. This whole night had gotten me so spooked I wasn’t using my head anymore. I was smarter than this. The hunters probably had chased the animal here, and drove it up the radio hut. They had left the bear trap behind in case it returned. They had left that small bottle in the tree to either force the animal out of the campsite, or lure it back here where they could shoot it. The smell coming from the bottle had to be some… I don’t know… Elk urine or something?

Fuck, I felt so much better already. Sure, Abi’s drawing still freaked me out, but… The girl was attacked in the dark forest. She was probably too shocked to understand what really attacked them.

Once we’d have a better connection, I’d look up the claw marks. It was probably just a cougar or a fucking bear, after all.

“All good?” Ryan asked, waiting for me by the stairs.

“All good,” I said with a nod, trying to hold on to my newly found calmness.

Because everything had a reasonable explanation. Everything had a reasonable explanation, for fuck’s sake! We all were just spooked, that’s all. We’d be laughing at all of this in the morning.

If only I still didn’t have that bad feeling…

Chapter Text

-Ryan-

Dylan and I stepped into the radio hut, and I realized I’d not been in there even once this summer. I’d heard the place got wrecked during winter after one of the windows got broken and animals found their way in, but Dylan had spent days cleaning up the mess. It was pretty clean, but…

“Whoa, this place is kind of a dump, huh,” I said, peering at all the stuff Chris must’ve brought here. It was more of a storage than a radio station.

“Okay, when I was a camper here, it was barely working,” Dylan said, and the tone in his voice told me I’d just offended him. “It hadn’t been used for years and it took me a really long time, actually, to get this place cleaned up and looking the way it is, so, I’m sorry if it’s not up to your standards, but I’ve been putting in a lot of TLC, okay?”

“Okay, okay,” I said, raising my hands as a sign of truce, amused by how animated his little rant was.

“Let me get this set up,” he said, making his way to his radio equipment, and sat down, “All right…”

While he did his thing with the radio, I looked around and spotted Chris’ tools, the wrenches and hammers and boxes full of nails. “Anything over here we can use?” I asked him.

“The power tools? No. Um… That’s… Mr. H. wanted more storage, so… It’s kind of how he lets me keep the station going,” Dylan explained like there was something embarrassing about it.

“Gotcha,” I said.

There was a chainsaw too, and I wondered if we could use it to protect ourselves, but I guess it wasn’t awfully handy to keep dragging it around. At least we knew where to find it if we needed it.

I fucking hoped we didn’t need it. We would get a hold of someone who could help us, then get the hell out of here.

“So, how far does it go?” I asked Dylan, stepping closer to him.

“Oh, um… Well, it was designed to just broadcast to the PAs around the camp for announcements, and to, you know, portable radios and whatever. So, I think the range is about… a mile.”

A mile…? It wasn’t exactly what I wanted to hear, but I guess it is what it is. Better than nothing.

“How do you even know all this stuff?” I asked him.

“I just kind of picked it up,” he said casually.

“The tech- technical stuff has always been a little, uh… hard for me to get a handle on,” I admitted, stepping closer.

“Well, if you’d like, I could show you the ropes,” he suggested, again so casually…

“Like a class?” I asked, partly joking.

“Yeah, it’s easy. Like climbing,” he said.

Climbing, huh…?

“Sign me up, teach,” I said with a smile.

It was still somewhat hard to let it sink in that Dylan was interested in quantum physics. But at the same time, it made sense. For one, he had joked about having a higher IQ than the rest of us, and I never could tell if he’d actually been joking. And two, he was intelligent. Even behind his lame humor and silliness, I could always tell he had brainpower.

And the fact that he was a science guy made him even more fascinating. He had so many sides in him, and I suddenly wanted to find all of them.

“Anyways, this thing is going to need a bit of power up…” he said, reaching for an old, rusty antenna thing. “But that’s where this comes in.”

“Dust magnet,” I said when he blew dirt off it.

“It’s supposed to be a signal booster. It’s kind of janky looking, but it’s worth giving a shot,” he said.

Anything he thought was useful… I walked over to him and watched while he continued setting up the equipment. It was old as fuck… Probably twice as old as we were.

“So, we can actually talk to people with this thing?” I asked.

“Yeah, well, it’s not a two-way radio. So, um… you know, we can talk, but then the best we can do is switch it over to the receiver and see if anyone broadcasts anything back, which is unlikely, but…” he trailed off.

“Well, I mean it is what it is, I guess,” I told him, trying not to show too disappointed. It was the only thing we got, so…

“Yeah… So what should I say?” he asked me.

“Uh, just like… make it sound urgent,” I told him - he was better with words, after all. I was better off leaving that to him.

He leaned closer to his microphone and turned the thing on.

“Hello! How’s it going out there? This is- uhh… W-we need help. This is… uhh… We are counselors at Hackett’s Quarry summer camp, and there’s been a horrible accident- attack. Some stuff’s bad here.”

A bit stuttery, but so far, so good.

“We need your help. There’s a swarm of bears and they are everywhere–”

I turned to stare at him.

“– and there’s these hunters too and they seem to be shooting at the bears, but also at us, which is not good… And a few of our friends are hurt, and, um, we are in desperate need of help. So please – there’s vicious bears and, uh, we don’t know what to do, so please–”

He turned to look at me while he talked. I only glared at him.

“–come help us. S.O.S…. This is an emergency. S-save our ship. Come on down, please help us.”

He finally shut up and turned off the radio. He sat back up, looking at me.

I wanted to strangle him.

“Did I do good? Was that…?”

The look on his face was genuine when he asked that, so I chose not to strangle him.

“Swarm of bears?” I repeated what he’d said.

“Yeah…?”

“Herd of bears,” I said, correcting him.

“Yeah, I’ve heard of bears, but…?”

“Oh my God…” I muttered, turning away from him before my need to strangle him returned.

“All right, I’m- I guess I should switch this over to the receiver and see if we get anything back,” he told me.

See if we’d get anything back? We weren’t getting anything back! If by some miracle someone heard all that, they’d think it was a prank at best!

But I tried to stop being frustrated. He’d done his best…

“Yeah, okay. I’m going to keep an eye out while you do all this… techie stuff,” I said, unable to hide my disappointment completely, so I turned my back to him and made my way to the window.

“Okay, yeah, sure,” he replied, acting like he’d not noticed the change in my mood.

I stopped to stare into the dark yard, but it didn’t take long before I saw movement in the bushes further away. At first I thought it was a rabbit, but even in the shadows of the cabins, I could tell it was bigger than that. It stepped out of the bushes, but it was still too dark. I couldn’t tell what it was. A… boar maybe? No, it was skinnier than that… It moved like a… coyote?

“Check it,” Dylan suddenly said, sounding excited.

There was a voice coming from the radio. Dylan gave me a proud smile. He actually did it…

“…lodge… I got a ping on the radio but no response,” the male voice spoke through static, and I almost got excited. “I’m going to head to the station and check it out.”

“What? Did he say lodge?” I asked.

Dylan never mentioned the lodge or the radio station.

“Where are the other counselors?” the voice continued speaking, and my heart dropped.

“I don’t know… Hold on…” Dylan said and turned back to the radio.

“Two males in the radio shack near the cabins… Another couple… unaccounted for… Copy that. Out. Out.”

For a moment, we could only stare at each other. The voices were too hard to tell apart due to the static, but it was clear we heard two men talking to each other.

And they knew exactly who and where we were.

“Hole shit, they’re talking about us!” I said, breaking the freezing silence.

“Fuck, fuck, fuck…” Dylan muttered, panicking as he turned back to his radio. “What the fuck?”

“H-how?” I asked.

“Because we just told them on the fucking radio! Fuck!” he told me, his voice rising.

I just stood there, frozen, trying to think. The other one had to be that big guy who shot off his finger. The guy who had tried to drag Nick away. Maybe the other one was the hunter Jacob mentioned.

And it was clear they were not friendly.

We should’ve thought about this… But how could we have known those men had radios too? Radios that could pick up our message?

“They know where we are, man…!” Dylan told me.

Right. Right…

“We can’t stay here,” I said calmly, but Dylan was still panicking. “Hey, hey! Let’s… Let’s stay calm, okay? Let’s… Let’s go find Kaitlyn and everybody,” I told him soothingly.

“Okay,” he said, getting up from his seat, calming down a little, thankfully. “Yeah, okay…”

I followed him when he hurried to the door. He yanked it open. I suddenly remembered the animal I saw. Probably because it stood right in the middle of the yard, facing us, growling. The moonlight shone on it, though I still couldn’t take a good look at it.

But I could tell it was not an animal I had ever seen. It was big, and definitely not a boar or a coyote. It was almost… Human. But not human at all.

Just like in Abi’s drawing.

With a loud, scared yell, Dylan slammed the door shut and held it closed with his body, then turned to look at me.

“Why didn’t you tell me there was something out there?!” he whispered.

“I… I… I wasn’t sure, man…” I stammered.

“Fuck… What the fuck was that?” he asked me.

“I have no idea!” I whispered back.

Dylan took a deep breath, then carefully retreated from the door. We both were silent as we listened but couldn’t hear a thing. When I moved closer to the window to see if it was still out there, I heard a light growl. It was still there…

No… It was climbing on the roof. We both turned to look up and saw light clouds of dust falling from the ceiling as the beast walked across it.

“Um, Ryan…?”

I hastily shushed at him, gesturing for him to stay silent. The beast was right above us. It knew we were there, but could it hear us through the roof? Probably.

“Is it a bear…?” Dylan kept still talking.

“I don’t think bears can jump like that,” I muttered back, slowly taking my shotgun off my shoulder and aiming it at the sounds the beast was making.

I hesitated. I wanted to shoot it, but with no clear shot… The ceiling would probably take most of the impact, too… I couldn’t risk it. Maybe if we waited out–

Sudden sounds coming from outside the hut alerted us both. It was coming from the cabins. Were there two of them??

“What was that? What is that?” Dylan asked, getting more panicky again.

I hurried to the window and saw something much worse than a second beast.

Kaitlyn, Abi, and Nick were out there.

“Fuck,” I said, getting panicky as well.

“What?”

“Kaitlyn, Abi, and Nick. They’re coming up the path,” I told him.

“Oh shit…” Dylan breathed out.

“They’re coming toward us. We… We… We got to warn them! Um… What about the PA?” I asked, trying to think quickly.

“Up top? Yeah, okay,” he said and hurried back to his radio.

“Yeah, yeah, we can tell them to hide or something,” I said.

Just when he sat down, the beast on the roof slammed hard against the roof right above him. Dylan jumped back and quickly retreated from the corner, swearing in fear. The beast must’ve heard him.

But we had to warn the others… I pointed my gun at the ceiling as I hurried to the radio, trying to be silent.

“Uhh the…”? I muttered, staring at the equipment without knowing how to send out a broadcast.

“Uhh… Hold the button!”

I hit the first button I saw. It was the right one.

“Kaitlyn! Get into a building now! Do not come up here!” I said loudly, hearing my own voice echoing outside in the campsite. “There’s an animal outside the radio hut, get in- Just get in a cabin now! Go! ”

The animal howled loudly above us, aggravated by the broadcast.

“Oh, fuck, dude!” Dylan swore, pacing back and forth while I hurried to the window.

I was just in time to see Nick’s back vanish behind the closest cabin as they hurried to the door.

“They’re gone,” I told Dylan, who looked relieved.

But the animal had now fallen silent. I pointed my gun at the ceiling again, trying to figure out where it was. I heard a door getting slammed shut outside. Good. The others were now safe. We waited for a moment, but nothing happened. The animal was either staying still, or it was back on the ground where we couldn’t hear it.

“What now…?” Dylan whispered.

“Okay, is there anything we can do?” I asked out loud.

“I don’t know. I- I don’t know!” he said and continued pacing.

So did the beast on the roof. I was getting nervous now that the situation was sinking in, and the beast was clearly trying to find its way in. It wanted to kill us. It was determined, otherwise it would’ve left already.

“It- It’s just an animal, right? Maybe we can scare it off?!” I said, my voice getting higher by each word I said.

“Uhh…” Dylan breathed out, then came to a halt in front of me. “Well… Yeah. I mean if it… if it has a hearing… like a dog. Maybe we… we can play, like a… like a really high-pitched feedback loop and just blast it, and… and I mean, it would hurt like hell. But, you know…” he trailed off, looking at me.

“Do it!” I said without hesitation.

“Okay,” he said, and returned to the radio. “Okay… Come on, Dylan… Let’s do this…” he mumbled to himself while I made my way back to the window.

I listened to his muttering while keeping an eye out for our surroundings. Nothing was moving in the yard, but that didn’t mean the beast was alone.

“Come on… Almost…” he said, his voice getting frustrated.

“Hey, Dylan… Just take a breath,” I told him soothingly. “I’m sure you can figure it out.”

“Okay… Yeah.. Right…” he said, nodding and breathing slower. Then he glanced over his equipment. “There’s something missing. What’s missing…?”

The beast attacked the roof again, but couldn’t do much damage. We both stared up as the noises quieted down, then Dylan turned back to his radio.

“Oh crap…” he said, drawing my attention. “It pulled the wire.”

I looked at what he was looking at. There, right below the ceiling, I saw an unplugged wire. There was a tiny hole in the wall, and the connecting wire was about to fall out of it.  

“Fix it. I’ll cover you,” I said, turning back to the window. I waited, listening… Finally, the beast moved away from Dylan’s corner. “Do it now! Go, quickly!”

He didn’t waste a second, and climbed on the desk, and tried to reach for the wire that was about to fall outside. The guy was tall, but he was struggling to reach it. But he almost got it. His fingers were already touching it… He got it!

The ceiling burst down above him. I didn’t even have time to blink when the beast had already grabbed his hand. Its face was the ugliest thing I’d ever seen. Like a wolf’s but without fur. Its massive teeth were sinking into Dylan’s hand as it tried to pull him through the hole.

Dylan screamed, struggling back, kicking the ceiling every time the beast tried to pull him up.

“DYLAN!” I shouted, completely frozen in fear.

“FUCK! OW! HELP! HELP ME! OH MY- OH MY GOD! HELP ME!”

“WAIT! WAIT! WAIT! JUST- Oh shit…”

I forced my body to move, and aimed my gun at the beast, but I couldn’t take a shot without shooting Dylan. I hurried closer, but still no clear path to shoot. But thankfully, he was able to free himself, or the beast decided to give up.

Dylan jumped down from the desk, but fell on his knees, then lay down in pain and fear. He was covered in blood, and more was streaming out from the deep wounds in his palm. But it wasn’t the blood I stared at. His veins… They were quickly turning black all over his arm, just like Nick’s…

“Ah fuck… ah god! What is this?! Make it stop!!! Make it stop! Make it stop! ” he shouted, his voice cracking as he begged for my help.

But I was in too much panic to know what to do.

“What do you want me to do?! What do you want me to do?!” I shouted back, my heart racing like it was about to give up.

“Oh fuck it’s spreading! You have to cut it off! Cut it off! Cut it off!!”

“Shit! Fuck!” I said, stepping back in distress, my voice so high it hurt my ears. “Okay-okay-okay just… just hang on, hang on…”

I looked around and stopped to stare at the chainsaw. Something big, nasty, and horrifying settled in my stomach. It got worse when I glanced at my shotgun.

Holy fucking shit… Holy fucking shit…!

Was I really going to…?

Dylan cried out in pain at my feet. “Fuck …”

I looked down at him. Our eyes met. He was silently begging me to do it, to help him. To stop it. Whatever it was… I trusted him. He was the smart one.

Shotgun was quicker, but messier. The spread would make a number on him. So… chainsaw.

I pushed all thoughts out of my head when I put my gun away and hurried to take the chainsaw instead.

“Are you sure?” I asked, begging he would say no after all.

“YES! FUCKING DO IT! JUST FUCKING DO IT!” he yelled at me while I powered the chainsaw.

I tried to brace myself when I stepped to him, pressing my foot on his arm to keep his hand pinned down. I felt… I wasn’t there. My body moved almost on its own when I brought the saw down… Down to his wrist. I just stared at his fingers without breathing… The air was suddenly filled with blood, and Dylan’s scream became louder than the chainsaw. Everything turned red… I saw nothing but red droplets everywhere… My face, my clothes… it all turned wet.

The saw hit something hard. The floor. It must’ve hit the floor.

I brought the saw up, then stopped to stare at his lifeless hand… severed from his body. I couldn’t see the floorboards under all the blood… That horrible feeling in my guts became worse. My ears were ringing so loud I couldn’t hear Dylan’s whimpers anymore. My body turned cold, getting covered in cold sweat. My vision turned gray…

And I… I… Oh god… No… No, no, no, no, no! What did I just do…?

What the fuck did I just do?!

“THE WIRE! Get the wire! Get the wire!” Dylan shouted, slowly gaining my attention.

“What?!”

What the fuck was he talking…?

“Get the wire… The thing. Get it,” he spoke, fighting to stay conscious while he rolled on his back, pointing at the hole in the ceiling.

Wire…? Wire… Wire! Fuck! The beast was still there, trying to get in through the hole it made to grab Dylan! And the wire was right there, both ends now hanging low.

“On it!” I said and put the chainsaw away.

“Plug it… Plug it into the thingy…” Dylan mumbled, becoming more and more delirious.

I returned to him and grabbed his uninjured hand, bringing it to his uninjured arm. “Keep pressure on it!” I said while trying not to look at…

Look at what I’d done…

I hurried to climb on the desk, not caring that the animal was right above me, tearing up the ceiling to get to us. I moved quickly as I plugged the wires, then jumped back down before the beast could get me.

I turned to Dylan, waiting for him to tell me what to do, but he only stared back at me, his face pale, almost passing out.

“What do I do? What do I do?!” I asked, about to panic again because he wasn’t saying anything.

“The button! The button!” he only said.

I assumed it was the same one. I pressed it.

And the loudest, the most horrific screeching sound I’d ever heard started blasting through every speaker the camp had, forcing me to cover my ears. Dylan tried to do the same, but… only with one hand.

I hurried past him to look out the window, and saw the animal running away, disappearing into the forest.

“It’s working… It’s running away!”

A second later, the speakers let out a different screeching noise, and the world fell silent, except for the ringing in my ears. I lowered my hands and turned to look at the radio.

“Ah, we blew the speaker…” Dylan muttered.

“Did the trick,” I said, and turned to look at him. “Nice work, Dylan.”

He laughed at my words, his eyes closed. It was a tired, pained laugh… I could only stare at him. His laugh died away, and he let out a deep breath, turning his attention to his hand. No, to his… severed wrist.

“Oh fuck, my hand,” he said, staring at the bloody stub.

“All right, all right!” I mumbled, looking around. There had to be something… A first aid kit! There was a first aid kit! “Just hold on!”

“Why did you do that?!” Dylan shouted at me, and I came to a halt, my heart nearly freezing in my chest.

“You told me to!”

“That was a bad idea…” he said, his breathing heavy.

What the fuck did I do…? How could I…? But I did what he asked! I did… I cut it off…

I cut his hand off.

I’d listened to a panicking boy who was going into shock and cut off his hand because… Because of a small bite.

What the fuck did I do…?

I forced myself out of that horrified realization and grabbed the first aid kit before hurrying back to him. He was barely conscious now. I couldn’t tell if he knew I was there. He lay immobile on the bloody floor, his breathing raspy and painful. I watched his face, his pale, sweaty skin, trying to force myself to look at what I’d done.

Slowly, I lowered my gaze to his bleeding wrist. I wanted to cry at the sight of it. I did that to him. I’d lost my mind and cut off his hand without thinking…

I frowned when I noticed black liquid slowly oozing out of the stub. It was… thick. The black veins in his arm were disappearing. What the fuck was that…? No fucking infection looked like that! But… as I watched, there wasn’t blood coming out anymore. When the black stuff was all out, his wrist didn’t continue bleeding. The whole cut area was covered in the black stuff, so maybe it was… sealing his wounds?

I brought the first aid kit closer and cleaned him to the best of my ability. I couldn’t get all the black stuff off his wounds, but I wasn’t sure if I even wanted to. Maybe it was keeping him from bleeding…

What the fuck was going on in here…?

“Dylan…?” I spoke his name carefully once I finished wrapping his wrist with a bandage. “Hey…?”

“Hmm…?”

“We need to leave,” I told him gently. “I need you to wake up.”

“I… It hurts…”

“I know, but we need to leave. That thing… It could come back,” I told him.

“Fuck…” he only said, trying to move.

I turned to look at his hand. I couldn’t touch it. I couldn’t even look at it. But I couldn’t just leave it there on the floor. There was a small bag in the first aid kit, filled with bandages. I pulled them out, then turned back to the hand.

I took a deep breath before I reached for it, my hand shaking. When I felt the cool, lifeless skin, my own hand jolted back. I tried again. I couldn’t leave it here… When I finally picked it up, I had to hold back my need to throw up. When I put the hand in the bag, the edges of my vision had turned blurry and gray. The ringing in my ears grew worse.

I closed the bag, then my eyes. I took several deep breaths, but didn’t feel any better.

“Ryan…?”

I looked down at Dylan, who was slowly gaining his strength.

“We need to go,” he reminded me. “We uh… We need to…”

“Right… Right…” I whispered.

I helped him up, but he was barely able to stand. He was so pale… Almost blue. Little by little, he came to just enough so we could leave the radio hut. But before we did, I took the bag that was now turning red. I stared at it.

“I’m sorry, Dylan,” I whispered. “I’m so sorry…”

“Don’t… let’s just leave…” he mumbled back, swaying so hard he had to lean against a wall.

I nodded and put the bag safely in the first aid kit, which I put back on the shelves. It was made of metal, so it should protect the hand from critters… until we’d come back for it.

“Let’s go,” I said, and turned my back on it.

Chapter Text

-Dylan-

“God… fuck… ah… shit…”

Holy shit…

“You… all right?” Ryan asked as he helped me get down from the radio hut.

I fought hard to stay conscious, but holy shit… Holy fucking shit…

“Yeah… yeah… let’s just… get the hell out of here…” I mumbled and gasped for air.

The world kept spinning around me. My insides didn’t want to stay inside. I kind of understood the pain, but at the same time, I felt like I was being crushed from every direction, which also made me feel numb. For now. I assumed it was happening because I was very, very close to passing out.

Holy… fuck…

“Kaitlyn!” Ryan shouted as we made our way closer to the cabin they were in. “We need to leave!”

I nearly fell on the sandy pathway because the damn world kept spinning and wobbling so hard. But I guess the fresh air helped, because little by little, I was able to gain control of my weak legs, and by the time we reached the cabin, I was able to stand on my own. Not well, but still.

But I knew not to look down at my… yeah… I wasn’t quite ready to face that just yet.

“Kaitlyn! Hurry up!” Ryan shouted again as we waited for the three of them to come out.

I heard noises… dragging sounds… They probably had blocked the door with everything they could move. I wanted to look over my shoulder to make sure that the beast… that fucking thing… wasn’t anywhere near us. But I still had to focus on breathing, and I had to close my eyes for a moment to stop the world from spinning… I was still so weak… I was getting cold, and my entire body started trembling almost uncontrollably.

Finally, the others stepped out of the cabin, looking around nervously. Kaitlyn didn’t waste much time getting down to us, but Abi and Nick followed her much more hesitantly.

“Is it safe?” Kaitlyn asked in a hushed voice.

“I think we’re okay for now,” Ryan told her as we continued walking.

More walking… Dammit… But we had to get out of here. That… thing… was probably going to come back soon.

I could still see its eyes… The image of that thing was printed on the back of my eyelids. I could still see it bursting through the ceiling to grab me. I’d never seen anything so mad before… And the pain when it bit me… I thought it bit my whole hand off.

I… I kind of wished it had, because what Ryan did… What he had to do…

The sound of a chainsaw and all that blood…

I shivered and forced it out of my head. I was slowly feeling better, so I had to keep those images out of my head and try to stay calm.

“We ran into one of those hunter guys,” Kaitlyn told Ryan as we walked down the path.

“Ah crap…”

“Chased us out of the lodge,” she continued to explain why they’d come up here. She seemed a little shaken, too. “I think we lost them on the way up here though. You got a message out?”

“I think so,” Ryan said, but I think we both knew it was a very long shot.

They just didn’t need to know about that.

“What the hell is going on up–” Kaitlyn began speaking in frustration, but her eyes landed on me. On my… arm … specifically. “Oh my god, Dylan, what happened?!”

“Oh, um… I’m okay. I mean… I’m not, uh… But it’s… it doesn’t… doesn’t hurt,” I muttered, finally feeling courageous enough to look at what was left of my… wrist.

Ryan had done a good job bandaging it, and I was kind of surprised by how little blood was seeping through. But one small glance was enough, and I looked away before I would faint.

“Okay, you’re in shock,” Kaitlyn told me with an abnormal amount of panic in her voice as she stared at my… stub. “Holy fucking shit… Did that… thing… do this?”

“No… Well… Sort of… It… it…” Ryan stammered.

Maybe this was another thing they didn’t need to know about. Not now.

And he was saved from having to explain what happened in the radio hut. A loud sound of a shotgun interrupted us.

We all froze to look around, and I was sure I wasn’t the only one with a racing heart. That sound came somewhere really, really close, like right behind the cabins. We really shouldn’t have frozen like that, but… It didn’t seem like we got shot at. At least no one reacted like they had.

“Kaitlyn, where’s your gun?” Ryan asked her.

“I lost it. One of the friendly locals wanted to say hi,” she told him, her voice turning angrier.

So the hunters stole it from her? Fuck… We only had one gun left, then…

Whoever was shooting, they did it again, and again, we flinched in fear. This time, it came even closer. And I thought I heard a large splash, like something big had fallen into the outside pool up ahead. That… That did clear my head quite a bit. Probably the adrenaline was kicking back in, but I didn’t feel like I was just about to pass out anymore.

Suddenly, a young woman ran past the poolhouse just behind the cabins.

“What the fuck…?” I breathed out as I watched her running away from us.

“Did she shoot at us?” Kaitlyn asked in concern, but it didn’t look like it.

It was too dark to see the woman clearly, but she definitely had a shotgun. She was wearing black clothes, and her long blonde hair was in a ponytail. That’s all I could see before she jumped over a low brick wall that surrounded the pool and vanished behind it.

“Who’s there?!” Ryan shouted after her.

Whoever she was, she didn’t seem to care about us. Abi and Nick were the most courageous of us and ran toward the pool to see what was going on. I really didn’t want to know, but at the same time… What if that girl got that beast? Whatever it was that fell in the water, it sounded big. Maybe we were safe now?

My fucking curiosity was winning. Kaitlyn glanced at me when I stepped closer to her.

“Who was she?” I asked, without really aiming my question at anyone.

“Should we follow her?” she asked me.

I let out a deep sigh and ran after Abi and Nick at a slower pace, with Kaitlyn and Ryan on my heels. My body was still weak, but my step was surprisingly steady now. But the wrist… The pain was finally kicking in… Fuck me… Ah, fuck me…

And fuck, when I reached the brick wall and saw the pool behind it…

There was a lot of blood.

Abi and Nick had already climbed over the wall and stopped to stare at the water. Abi backed away when she noticed the blood. I hesitated, but I followed them. I tried to keep an eye on our surroundings, but… that water… I couldn’t really look away…

There was a body somewhere in that blood…

Kaitlyn stopped a few feet away from me. “Aw, shit, Dylan! What is that…?” she asked, like she didn’t already know.

Then the body floated slowly up to the surface. Abi gasped in fear and retreated from the pool.

“Oh my god…!” she whispered with wide eyes and hugged Nick so she didn’t have to look at it anymore.

After that, silence fell. The rest of us could only stare at the immobile body… It wasn’t that beast…

It was a girl.

I felt sick, but I couldn’t look away. She was completely still, her face down in the water, her body eerily pale. There was nothing we could do anymore. The girl was already dead, shot or drowned or both. She was only wearing her underwear… That made me feel even worse. Something sick was going on here…

We needed to find Jacob and Emma and get the fuck out of here.

Kaitlyn took a careful step closer to the pool.

“Is she, like… one of those hunter dudes?” she asked slowly.

“I don’t think so,” Ryan said with a pained voice.

I glanced at him. He was unable to look at the girl. There was pain in his eyes, too…

“Should we… do something?” Kaitlyn asked carefully.

“What can we do? She’s dead,” Ryan said, his voice weak.

“I mean… with the body?” she said, gesturing at the girl in the water.

Ryan reacted very strongly to the word, body. Like that word had caused him physical pain. He almost closed his eyes like fighting back tears, then took a deep breath, forcing himself to stay calm.

“That’s… Kaylee Hacket,” he said, his voice dead now.

I turned to stare at the girl, unable to breathe.

No… Kaylee…? How…?

But if Ryan said it was her, it had to be… I just couldn’t understand how? She wasn’t supposed to be here anymore! But… it was her. The body build was the same, and I recognized her hair.

How…?

“Mr. H’s daughter? I thought she went home with her brother,” Kaitlyn said.

“Kaylee, yeah,” Ryan said in that same dead voice that scared me a little. “I thought so too.”

“Oh man, poor Kaylee…”

“Nick…” Abi suddenly said in a weird voice, gaining all of our attention.

I couldn’t tell what was wrong. They seemed to be simply holding each other, but then…

“You smell so good,” Nick muttered in her ear and held her tighter.

Uh, really not the right fucking moment…

“You all right there, bud? Maybe dial it back a bit, huh?” Kaitlyn asked sharply.

Nick took half a step away from Abi. There was something wrong with him. Like, physically wrong with him. His eyes… They looked almost… dark. Like he wasn’t himself anymore. He didn’t even look like himself anymore.

“Fuck off, Kaitlyn,” he said, his voice low and angry, then pulled Abi back to him so he could…

Was he sniffing her neck?

“Nick… What are you…?” Abi asked, trying to push him back.

“I want to taste you…” Nick replied, holding onto her even tighter.

“Hey!” Abi said sharply and pushed him harder, but he refused to let go of her.

Both Ryan and I stepped closer to them, ready to grab Nick if he didn’t let go of her. It didn’t look like he was going to let her go.

What the fuck was going on…?

“Come here…” Nick muttered when Abi pushed him back again.

“Nick, what the hell!” Abi asked. “Get off!”

Ryan was about to grab Nick, but Abi had had enough.

“I said get off !” she said angrily and pushed Nick as hard as she could, sending him to cool off into the water.

We all stopped to stare at Nick, who hit the bottom of the pool. No one was in any hurry to help him   up. The way he’d acted was damn creepy. But why…? That… That really wasn’t like Nick at all. Why the fuck did he want to… Did he really want to taste Abi?

What the hell fucking fuck was going on here?

“…Nick?” Abi called to him quietly when he wasn’t coming back to the surface.

But then he did, and man, he scared the fuck out of me. He screamed and thrashed around like the water was boiling hot. He was tall enough to stand in it without his head going below the surface, but he still kept falling back into the water like something was holding on to him…

I was scared. We all were. None of us felt brave enough to reach for him in case he’d pull us under the water with him.

“Are you okay?!” Kaitlyn shouted over his pained screams.

“I just wanted him to stop…” Abi said in fear as he watched him.

“Nick! Dude!” Ryan tried to get his attention, his voice worried.

And finally, Nick stopped screaming and stood up. He calmed down and looked up at us, reaching to us like asking for help. But he wasn’t all right at all. He said nothing, only groaned in pain like a… Like a zombie. His eyes were wide, like he was scared to death. At least now his face had turned back to normal. He looked more like himself again.

Abi was still distressed, so while Ryan offered to pull Nick out of the water, Kaitlyn gave her friend a soothing smile.

“Hey… hey… It’s okay. You’re okay,” Kaitlyn gently spoke to Abi, but she shook her head and turned to watch Nick with sad eyes.

“I got you. I got you…” Ryan told Nick while he pulled him out of the water.

Nick lay down on his back and wrapped his arms around himself. He was trembling like crazy, like he was freezing to death.

“What did I do?” Abi asked almost in panic, and timidly kneeled next to Nick, and slowly reached to touch his arm.

“I… I don’t know,” Ryan said in confusion.

Abi pulled her hand back immediately after touching Nick. “He’s so cold,” she told us.

“Okay,” Ryan said, trying to take the lead again, but he, too, was shaken. “L-let’s get him in the pool house. Dry him off.”

I nodded. Kaitlyn and Abi followed me to the changing room door while Ryan helped Nick up from the floor. He had to help the guy inside without our aid – none of us really wanted to stay close to him right now.

I stayed by the door and watched as Ryan helped Nic lay down in the corner of the changing room, while the girls went to find towels to make him comfortable. Nick still stayed silent and kept moaning and spasming… There was no light, but I could see his face wasn’t as normal as I thought it was. His veins were growing bigger…

His eyes met mine, and I immediately looked away. They reminded me of… of that thing in the radio hut…

“Keep everyone inside.”

I jumped and turned around to see Ryan standing next to me.

“W-what are you…? You’re not going anywhere, are you?” I asked in a slightly panicky voice.

He shook his head, then looked out through the doorway. “I can’t leave her there,” he whispered, his eyes on his dead friend in the pool, and stepped past me.

“Oh…” I breathed out. “Do you need…?”

“No. You should rest,” he said without looking at me.

I nodded again, even though he couldn’t see me.

I let the door fall closed, but I didn’t go sit down. Instead, I slowly made my way to the closest window, and watched as Ryan stopped to stand on the edge of the pool. I wanted to go help him even though he told me not to, but… It was Kaylee. He knew her better than any of us. That girl was very close to him, so I assumed he wanted to bring her in alone.

I let out a breath, then another. My body begged me to go lie down, but I stayed still. Ryan didn’t want me there, but I still wanted to give him company, even if there was a wall between us.

He slowly entered the pool, and even slower, he made his way to Kaylee. He turned her around and carefully picked her up in his arms. Silent tears fell on my cheeks as I watched him stand there in the middle of the pool, alone. He held her so gently against his chest without moving…

I knew he was crying…

I gritted my teeth together to keep myself together and looked down to give him a moment alone.

But my eyes landed on my bloodied wrist. I carefully brought it up so I could finally face it. The sound of the chainsaw and the growls of that mad beast returned… That black stuff I’d seen traveling through my veins scared the shit out of me.

My hand was gone because of it. Ryan cut off my hand to keep that stuff from getting me. I had all the reason to freak out, but I kept myself together, ignored the pain spreading in my wrist, and looked back at Ryan, who was bringing Kaylee inside. I took a deep, calming breath and went to open the door for him.

I had to keep myself together because I was still alive, and at that moment, I understood that staying alive had just become a privilege in this godforsaken place.  

A/N

Hello and sorry for the longggg wait! I was supposed to take a break from this story because I had an opportunity to make writing my fulltime job and I took it, but the break was definitely not supposed to be this long =') I'll try to pick this back up and continue updating somewhat regularly again! I realllly missed this story <3