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The camp was quieter after Geoff left. His departure had sucked a lot of the joy out of almost everyone, leaving the entire cast feeling just a little more depressed than usual. Bridgette was sat with Gwen, Trent and Leshawna in the dining hall, quietly sobbing into a soggy bowl of slightly stale cereal, while Lindsay and Heather wisely stayed in their cabin dorm.
The rain had begun not twenty minutes after Geoff left, dumping itself on the campgrounds for hour after hour. It wasn’t quite heavy enough to risk the place flooding, but it was certainly enough to further drain the mood of the entire place, bringing with it a frosty frigidness where Geoff had once been warm. Not even Owen could cheer everyone up – and he wasn’t attempting to, keeping to his own cabin room and out of the endless rain.
That left only Cody, Duncan and DJ in the boys’ cabin of the Screaming Bass. Cody and Duncan were quietly reading from Mansfield Park together, keeping their voices down to leave DJ alone.
DJ was perhaps the worst off. Immediately after the bonfire ceremony, he’d all but sprinted away, finding Heather and handing her his letter so she could get it mailed off, before sliding into his bunk and staying there, not moving once.
He’d missed breakfast, and with lunch fast approaching, it looked as if he wouldn’t rouse himself enough to stumble over for that either.
Cody and Duncan shared a look, feeling the guilt eat away at them. They’d been just as much at fault for Geoff’s departure as DJ – perhaps even more. They’d made a deal with Heather in the first place, making themselves just interesting enough for Heather to manipulate into surviving the ceremony. While Geoff had been… slow at times, he’d still been a great part of their team, and now he was gone.
“We should do something,” hissed Cody.
“Like what?” hissed Duncan back. Both of them looked up, watching as DJ rolled over just a little more in the bed to face the wall. Cody frowned, his eyebrows knitting together as he studied DJ’s back for several minutes.
“We need to cheer him up a bit,” Cody replied. “He’s our friend, and it sucks to see him like this.”
“And,” pressed Duncan, smirking a little as he saw Cody blush, the red creeping up from his neck until it tinged the tips of his ears.
“He’s a powerful teammate and we need him at full strength,” muttered Cody, shrinking a little bit more into his book. Duncan barked out a laugh – finally stirring DJ.
“What’s so funny?” snapped the teen.
“Just a line in the story,” Duncan lied smoothly. “The characters Edmund and Mary are arguing over distances for no reason, agree to walk around the whole forest and then go off on a different walk altogether!”
“Isn’t Mansfield Park meant to be a bit dour and about morality?” asked DJ slowly, remembering back to when he’d been forced to study it.
“It is,” admitted Cody. “And it’s one of Austen’s less comedic works – but she still manages to sneak in plenty of her usual brand of snarky humour! Noah and I were actually talking about it—”
“Before or after you kissed him?” sniggered DJ. Cody glared.
“I accidentally kissed him on the ear. ONCE! One time, and no one lets me forget it! Not even this big lug!” He pointed behind him at Duncan with his thumb. “I mean seriously! I’ve kissed Duncan at least a dozen more times – and yet he gets no shit for it.”
“Duncan can throw me through the window with ease,” DJ reminded Cody. “And he got his knife back. I don’t want to wake up to all my clothes being shredded thank you!”
Duncan sniggered, dragging Cody into his lap and forcing his boyfriend to put the thick book down.
“I promise I won’t – as long as you don’t try and make fun of me. Got it?”
“Got it!”
“Cut the intimidation, Duncan,” groaned Cody. “Now come on, let’s do something to pass the time. Cards?”
“No!” DJ physically jumped up, as if the idea of losing at cards to Cody for the next six hours was that unappealing. Cody visibly wilted, then grinned.
“Okay, how about a round of the raindrop racing game?” Duncan raised an eyebrow, while DJ lit up.
“Really?! I used to play that all the time back home! I’ll pick the best raindrop you can find.”
“Bet you mine will be better,” smirked Cody.
“I guess I’ll join too,” sighed Duncan, dodging Cody’s elbow as he did.
The three lined up at the window, gazing out into the rain as it continued to pour down, droplets splashing against the ground and dripping down the overhang.
“I pick that droplet,” Cody said, pointing to one near the top.
“Then I pick this one!” DJ retorted with a small smile, pointing to another further to the right.
“That leaves me with this droplet,” Duncan finished, pointing to a final rain droplet not too far from the windowsill.
They waited a moment, then with a sudden jolt, all three started to move at once, sliding down the glass pane and picking up more droplets as they went. Duncan’s stalled suddenly, then Cody’s slowed and then DJ’s stopped – and then they were all moving again, zipping their way down and leaving tiny rivulets behind, winding their way downwards.
“Oh! Oh! YESSSSS!” cheered DJ, as his droplet hit the base of the pane first, followed closely by Cody’s and then Duncan’s. “I won! I won! You lost, I won!” he sang, dancing a little where he stood, shimmying his arms and legs around a bit.
“Not fair,” grunted Duncan. “My droplet had more in the way!”
“You just don’t know how to pick them,” snorted DJ.
“You really don’t,” agreed Cody. “Everyone knows to never pick a droplet by the window frame cause it will gravitate over to the frame and be destroyed.”
“Dude, I’ve never played this game before,” Duncan grumbled. “If we were spray painting tags or dismantling bikes – then I’m your guy. But not this. This is…”
Rather pathetic, Duncan finished in his mind. The kind of game kids with few friends play. And knowing what he did about Cody’s childhood, it was a near guarantee that he’d spent hours by the window, watching droplets fall. DJ too – he probably played the game with his mum because she was all he had.
“…not something I ever played,” Duncan finished lamely, trying his best to hide his cringe.
“That’s ok dude,” grinned DJ. “We’ll teach you all the tricks!”
Duncan couldn’t help but smile at his friend’s enthusiasm, scooting in a little closer to the pair so Cody and DJ could explain all about the game they’d once played on rainy days; they played at least three more times, and Duncan even won the last one!
The delinquent would probably never admit it to anyone, but he didn’t hate sitting there and betting on raindrops falling down the windowsill with friends, wasting away the morning by trading jovial barbs and sharing embarrassing stories.
They were still talking aimlessly when they decided to mosey on over to the dining hall for lunch.
On days like these, with no challenges and no incentive for either Chris or Chef to be on set, the dining hall was open use. And while the kitchen had to remain spotless, it was free for any of the campers to use. DJ was the king of the kitchen, whipping up gourmet meals using what few scraps Chef left in the fridge and cupboards. And as usual, on day like these – when the rain fell and the campers swarmed the dining hall for refuge from the downpour – everyone was there, Gwen quietly brewing tea in an electric kettle while Owen raided Chef’s ‘secret’ snack stash for junk food to share with everyone.
And when DJ arrived, everyone piled into the kitchen together (bar Heather, who had elected to take a shower instead) and quietly helped DJ make lunch. Today’s menu consisted of a massive pot of Bulgar Pilaf – a Middle Eastern dish that DJ whipped up because Chef Hatchett had left several kilos of lamb and cracked wheat in his stores – edible food nearing its use-by date.
Chef always left food that was nearing its expiration date in the kitchen when the campers had to cook for themselves, as though ensuring they always had some food.
It wasn’t much – the bare minimum, if anyone were to be honest – but it was better than Chris, who seemed to forget about them the minute the cameras stopped rolling for the night.
They ate their lunches quietly, before setting themselves up in the dining hall to spend the afternoon, pulling out Snakes and Ladders from in an old cupboard and sitting down around it to play. It was peaceful – not in the traditional sense; nothing was peaceful when Leshawna, Duncan and Owen were involved – but in a sense of the nine teens letting the world slip by. They played the game for well over an hour, being only somewhat interested while really using the time to tell stories from their lives before arriving on the island.
Leshawna recounted the time she had gotten into a fight to get her youngest cousin’s favourite toy back from some bullies, which was met with cheers and grins and Duncan looking a little nervous at how explicit her explanation was – she even recreated several of her fighting moves! It said a lot about why she was able to battle Heather so well.
Bridgette and Lindsay both had similar stories – both had won a competition (Lindsay a fashion-designing contest, Bridgette a surfing tournament) and were rightly proud of their achievements.
“I spent all night sewing that dress!” Lindsay boasted. “It’s like, one of the things I’m best at! I love to sew – one day, I’m going to be a star fashion designer and runway model!”
“It wasn’t easy,” Bridgette recounted, “after all, it was a mixed-gender tournament, and every time I got up to surf, some ass with a tattoo would wolf-whistle at me. So I destroyed them all at surfing!”
And then it was DJ’s turn to share.
“My dad… isn’t around,” DJ admitted quietly, “so when I was younger, Mama took on everything. She had two jobs, she cooked, she cleaned – she did everything for me. But what I remember most was the times we spent in the kitchen together. She taught me to make chickpea roti first – it’s my favourite meal, but I can never quite make it as well as Mama can.”
“I wouldn’t say that,” grinned Cody. “After all, you are the best chef I’ve ever met.”
“Aww, thanks,” said DJ, blushing just a little at the comment.
Duncan and Cody wandered away from the group not long after that, leaving DJ with the girls and Trent.
“He’ll be back to his cheerful self soon… hopefully,” Cody mused.
“Yeah. I hope so too. Having him depressed is bringing down the whole camp,” Duncan agreed. The rain had lightened to a steady drizzle, creating a gentle haze that settled over everything and brought an ethereal quality to the woods that surrounded the camp. Taking Cody’s hand, Duncan led the pair onto one of the many trails, the couple not caring about the rain that steadily soaked through their clothes.
“This place looks so much nicer when it rains,” Cody said with a gentle smile. “All the flowers open up, and it just feels so much less…”
“Like Chris’ personal torture chamber for us?” finished Duncan. The couple broke into laughter, stopping for a moment by the fallen trunk of an old tree.
Further into the forest, the terrain grew rougher, and the pair stopped by a babbling brook. Raindrops fell all around, bursting as they hit the ground. The high canopy directed the rain into specific patches, a steady dribble hitting a single, smooth stone that jutted out of the steam. The couple sat down on a patch of dry ground under the largest tree, Cody sliding into Duncan’s lap and pulling the delinquent’s arms around his waist so he could snuggle in as they watched the world meander by, trading quiet banter and musing about the rest of the game.
“Who do you think will win?” asked Duncan.
“Probably you,” replied Cody easily. “Or maybe Heather. The crew are really gunning for her to keep stirring up drama. Apparently, she’s pushed the ratings right up – so they’ll keep her around somehow.”
“Thanks for the confidence,” chuckled Duncan. “I can see myself getting to the final four. I’ll bring you with, of course – but I won’t promise that I’ll let you win.”
“I wouldn’t let you sacrifice yourself for me anyway,” snorted Cody. “When we make it to the final four, we’re competing for that money.” The two grinned at each other.
“You know, I see Leshawna doing well,” Duncan said after a bit. “She’s got to be Heather’s biggest enemy, and those two are probably going to either take each other out, or team up to be the most unholy alliance in this game.”
“Don’t even joke about it!” sniggered Cody. “Those two would be terrifying!”
And even as raindrops continued to fall all around, Cody and Duncan didn’t mind, enjoying a moment to themselves hidden away in the forest, able to talk and kiss and cuddle without any judgement.