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“No balls!” hollered Sirius, throwing himself off the second story of the rickety pontoon they had rented.
As Sirius intended, James indignantly followed, landing nearly on top of him.
Remus grabbed the boat’s frame from the driver’s seat as it adjusted severely to the change in balance.
Naturally Peter followed and naturally they all began yelling for Remus to do the same. After what he thought was a very convincing act of hesitation, he canonballed in, barely splashing any of them.
The green water was a relief with the midwestern sun beating down on their way in. Sirius had nearly burned his ass off on the dark vinyl seats before anyone could warn him.
They playfully tried to lightly drown each other for a while before James and Sirius got back on the boat to take turns attempting a gainer and thinking of creative ways to misuse the slide. Remus and Peter got out too, just to lay down on the top level.
“Do you think we should keep an eye on them or something?” asked Peter.
“Maybe just you.” said Remus, already beginning to doze off.
“Hey, don’t fall asleep up here or you’ll look like a boiled crawdad in an hour” He warned.
He was right of course, but the radiating heat from all directions felt delicious. He could feel it beginning to dry his hair already. And they had woken at the asscrack of dawn to take James’ pickup to the lake before all the rentals were gone. All the passing Fourth of July partiers were rocking him to sleep with their wakes.
He pulled his towel out from under him and over his head as protection. The nostalgic smell of lake water and diesel in the plastic carpeting sealed the deal and he was out.
Peter sighed and left him to it.
Eventually Sirius came and got him for lunch.
“What’d I miss?” he asked, stretching and assessing the damage. He was only slightly burned, save for a foot that had stuck out, and sweating like a sinner in church.
“Mostly me being gorgeous I think, and also James almost getting a concussion, but that’s it.”
“Well I better get up then.” He said grinning and followed with a peck on the lips.
“I hope you’re prepared to drive 3 hours and a hundred miles down here next year Wormy, even when you’re a big shot engineering traitor.” He heard James as he was getting off the ladder.
James and Peter had their sandwiches about together by now and Sirius started on theirs.
“Of course I will. And you’re the traitor, there’s hospitality at Purdue too.” He pointed an accusatory potato chip at James.
“But what there’s not-” Sirius interjected, slapping ham onto wonder bread, “is anything to fucking do.”
“You’re right, IU is a party school, Padfoot” Peter answered sarcastically, and chomped down on a ruffle dismissively.
“You say that like it’s a bad thing” he shot back.
By now Remus had cracked a Coke and woken up enough to join in.
“I’m sure they have beer pong and fake IDs in West Lafayette too.”
“Nothing like this though.” James pointed out while looking across the lake at the forested banks of the cove they had parked in off the main drag.
Turtles sat on knobby branches that stuck out of the water near the shore. A school of bluegills passed in front of them and a blue heron sat watching them in the shallows. The sound of the cicadas rose and fell as if performing for the sudden attention.
“Yeah” Peter admitted, eyes darting discreetly to the other three.
“Cornfields have a certain charm I guess” Sirius said sarcastically.
Remus noticed Peter’s nerves. “Well don’t worry, you’ll forget all about us in a year,” he ribbed while taking his finished sandwich from Sirius.
“Yeah all your friends will probably be horrified to know your high school friends are a bunch of hippies from a liberal arts college” Sirius added, taking a giant bite.
Peter chuckled a denial and crumbled a chip over the side of the boat to watch the bluegills swarm.
“Imagine we come up there to a party at your engineering frat and they won’t let us in.” said James, grinning.
“And when you tell them you know us they’ll be all ‘oh Mr. Peter! But this one said he studies history!’”
continued Sirius in a British accent, wide-eyed and tilting his head toward Remus.
“‘And those two are holding hands’”, James stage-whispered, also in the accent, gesturing discreetly at Sirius and Remus and they all laughed.
“Well I don’t think they’re British up there” Peter said sarcastically, dusting his hands.
“They better not be. Cause this is GOD DAMN AMERICA!” Sirius jumped up and yelled across the lake in the direction of the other boats.
“FUCK YEAH! USA! USA!” James followed, throwing an arm around Sirius’ shoulders and pumping his fist. Some strangers passing their cove below wake speed heard them and returned the chant and pumped their bottles back at them.
When they were out of view they sat back down again.
“I’m sure there’ll be assholes at IU too. The business school is like half the population.” Peter reminded them.
“Yeah I guess there’s dicks everywhere.” James granted.
“And normal people everywhere,” Remus countered.
“Hopefully not too many.” Sirius countered back.
He had finished his sandwich in a disturbing number of bites and was already standing again.
“Alright give me one to ten more chances at the gainer and then we can head back. I’m sure your mom and dad are already missing me, Prongs.”
Remus smiled wryly and settled into the driver’s seat again to watch. They would need to get back for the barbeque and fireworks before long, and before long after that summer would be over and the rest of their lives would begin. It wasn’t comfortable, being on the precipice of everything. But being around these three was, and he could live with that for now.