Fandom I K N O W A P L A C E \\ Camp Camp Roleplay // 1x1

[TarantulaHawk]

His cough was woke Abby up, considering the fact that she had been in a very light sleep to begin with. Her eyes fluttered open and she was automatically assaulted with the feeling of exhaustion. Even though she only slept for maybe an hour, she was still weirdly wide-awake but also very tired at the same time. She sighed as she sat up, running her fingers through her snarled blonde hair. Then she stood up and made her way over to Max. She noticed his panic right away, a sight she had seen when she looked in the mirror most days. She sat on the edge of the bed next to him.

“Hey Max,” she said softly, as to not wake David, “you’re okay, hon. You’re in the counselor’s cabin, remember? You’ve got a fever.”

She hated seeing him so panicked, it was a weird site for somebody who was usually so aggressive and mean. And he was also just a kid and didn’t deserve to feel that way, even if it was caused by sickness. She gently took the rag that had fallen and watched him for a moment longer, eyebrows furrowed in concern.

“I’m gonna get this wet again.” She told him before getting up and heading to the bathroom.

As she got the rag wet once more, she glanced at her reflection. She looked awful, really. But she didn’t care much since she was inside the cabin and the only two who could see it was David and Max.

She came back out and sat next to him again, carefully putting the rag on his forehead for a moment and then rubbing his cheeks and neck with it to remove some of the swet and cool him down. He looked bad still, honestly, and she wasn’t sure what he had. Probably just a forty-eight hour bug or something. She sighed, hoping that neither she nor David came down with it next.

 

[Pilot-66]

Max tensed and looked over his shoulder when he felt the bed shift beside him and heard a voice. He looked up at Abby skeptically. Some instinct within him yelled for him to straighten up and snap out of it now that there were eyes on him, but his muddled mind–still fuzzy with weird dreams and fever–just couldn’t process the demand. Instead he just focused on making out her muffled words. Counselor’s cabin. Yeah. That he remembered. Sort of? He just hoped the walls didn’t start leaking poisoned kool-aid or some bullshit…

The bizarre thought made him vaguely aware of the fact that he should have been weary of the blonde-headed figure next to him. He reared his head back when she reached out for him, but eased when she only picked up the rag. Confusion blistered in his mind at the kindness in her voice. He’d been expecting more nightmares not a few gentle words and concern. He couldn’t decide if that was better or worse. He just…knew his gut that something about this felt weird. For both of them.

Max turned on his side to watch the woman vanish into the bathroom. When she was out of his sight, he let himself relax and dropped his chin back down to rest on the pillow beneath him, grateful for the chance to rest without having to puzzle together his frazzled thoughts. He didn’t remember closing his eyes or falling asleep, but the next thing he knew he was waking up to the sound of someone sitting next to him again.

He winced away from the cool touch of the rag at first, but eventually eased and cracked one eye open to look up at the figure doting over him. Blurred by sleep, he thought he recognized the gentle touch and concerned gaze from years ago. Max’s squinted up at her, his expression clouded with a mixture of uncertainty and…more than a bit of hopefulness. “Mom…?” He ventured a little skeptically, though the usual matured callous edge was missing from his voice.

 

[TarantulaHawk]

Abby had the rag against Max’s cheek when he spoke, And she sure as hell didn’t expect what came out of his mouth to ever come out of him in the first place.

“Mom…?”

At first, she was hit with this wave of shock. Max surely hadn’t meant to call her that, did he? No, of course not. Max didn’t like her at all, let alone enough to call her that. But then her heart dropped into her stomach and she could feel her eyes begin to water, which she wiped away with her free hand. Even though she knew he was calling her that out of complete sickness confusion, she couldn’t help but feel saddened by it. She never got the chance to be called that and the word was much more powerful than she had expected. Especially coming from a child. It had so much more of a hold over her than she wanted it to. For the briefest of moments, she almost wanted to let him call her that and she wouldn’t correct him for it. But she knew that wasn’t the right thing, so she managed a little smile instead.

“No, Max, it’s Abby.” Her voice was soft and shaky, and her eyes were getting a little misty again as her heart came back to its normal place in her chest.

Telling the truth didn’t make her hurt any less.

“I-I’m gonna see if we have some medicine I can give you to make the fever go down, or maybe make you sleep, okay?” She went over to the table, where the first aid kit was resting.

As she opened it and wasn’t facing anyone, she let her tears flow a little before she wiped them away again. She had to focus. A mistake of a kid who was sick shouldn’t have hurt her so much. After a moment, she turned around and looked at David, wiping her tears. She needed him to make a run to the store for some things, but she didn’t want to wake him. After a moment, she forced herself to gently shake his shoulder.

“Hey, David?” She said gently.

 

[Pilot-66]

Max watched the woman’s face go pale with shock. His brow lowered, trying to furrow, but he never quite managed the expression as he gazed quizzically up at her in an attempt to understand the look on her face. He must have said the wrong thing. Again. It’d only been one word, though what could she—

“No, Max, it’s Abby.”

He blinked slowly. Alarm and hostility flared in his chest at the name, but looking up at the patient smile above him, he couldn’t really figure out why. He blinked once more and disappointment slowly started to quell the fiery rage sparking within in. His emotions still didn’t make a lot of sense to him, but he was conscious enough to try and instinctively hide the hollow ache that’d opened up in his chest. Max looked away from her, not bothering to acknowledge the explanation she gave before standing up and leaving him be.

Unaware of the teary eyes watching him, David slept on, his tall lanky frame still curled awkwardly into the armchair. He didn’t seem to hear as she approached and despite the gentle care with which she roused him, he still bolted upright at her touch. Green eyes flicked up to her, a mixture of unfiltered fear and dread flashing across his gaze for a moment before he recognized her and visibly eased.

“Oh. Good morning.” He greeted, his voice rough with sleep but still airy enough to be a complete contrast to the expression he’d woken with. He yawned and slowly unfurled himself from the chair, his joints stiff from the awkward bend he’d slept in. The redhead glanced over to the window to get an idea of the time before turning his attention urgently back to Max. When he’d last woke up to check on the boy and freshen the rag on his forehead, he been asleep but seemed like he felt awful. Judging by the way his small frame shivered now, David guessed he hadn’t improved much since then.

“…He’s still not feeling so swell, huh?” The counselor frowned and slowly pushed himself up to his feet. He reached up, twisting his neck and kneading one of his shoulders to try and work a sore spot out of his spine. Even though he could tell Abby had probably just finished tending to him, a part of him wanted to go over and sit with Max anyway. He looked so forlorn.

He stayed where he was though. He didn’t want to disturb Max too much and keep him from sleeping. David sighed and turned to glance at Abby at his side, though his worry only doubled when he studied her. She looked about as miserable as Max did. She’d been asleep a while ago when he’d got up to check on things, but he could tell she probably hadn’t gotten more than a hour of rest, if that. “…Are you alright? I can take over for a while.”

 

[TarantulaHawk]

“Maybe I should go to the store,” Abby suggested after a moment of silence, “you... are you okay?”

She had a feeling that the expression David woke up with could’ve mirrored the way that she woke up most mornings. It was true panic and fear and she didn’t really know what to say. Or even if it was her place to say anything about it. He just looked so frightened. And she didn’t like that look on David, because it made her feel the same way. And she honestly felt like she had too many emotions going on at the moment and really didn’t need more to crowd her mind.

“No, he’s not much better,” she shook her head, Max’s identity mistake echoing in her mind and making her heart ache a bit more, “he’s still pretty hot.”

She knew that she wasn’t going to be able to forget what Max said, even though it was an accident and caused by the fact that he was so sick. That was a hard thing to forget, a kid calling you ‘mom’. At least, it would be for Abby. She hung on the what people said more than a lot of people probably would, and it was all because she was sort of obsessive over memories. And that was one that she wasn’t sure if she wanted to keep or not - it wasn’t like she got to chose. Her brain would do it for her.

“Hm?” She looked at David and then blinked, but nodded. “Yeah, I’m good. Little tired, but nothing I can’t deal with. I can keep an eye on Max.”

Maybe it was what happened before he woke up, or maybe it was the way that Max seemed to think of her, but she wanted Max to actually understand that she wasn’t going to do anything to hurt him. And she had a feeling that helping him while he was sick might do that a little bit, even just to the point of him not assaulting her verbally all the time. She hated conflict more than she hated... Pretty much anything, really. But who could blame her?

 

[Pilot-66]

David was quiet for a moment as he studied Abby. She looked tired, sure, but…he couldn’t shake the feeling that there was more to her doleful tone than just fatigue. She seemed rattled. Like her night had been plagued by far worse than things than sleeplessness. He opened his mouth, reaching for words to make sure she was really okay but the right thing to ask never came to him. He knew last night’s revelations were probably still sitting heavy on her shoulders, and what could he offer to that?

After all, finding out such a dark truth about someone important to you wasn’t exactly the sort of thing a person just…shook off. He knew that. Of course he knew that.

Feeling awkward and powerless in the silence, David closed his mouth again and let his eyes drift away from her, eventually they lifted again to focus back on Max. He watched the boy shiver for a moment before picking his head up a bit. Maybe be there were at least a few things he could do for now…

Finally starting to shake the fog of sleep from his mind, David remembered hearing Abby mention the running to the store and he even remembered her asking if he was…okay? He wasn’t sure why though. He knew he’d been a little startled to be suddenly woken up but he hadn’t made that much of a scene. Had he? Mind prickling at the thought he forced himself to focus.

“You don’t have to go anywhere.” The redhead piped up, turning to look at her with one of his signature smiles painted across his freckled face. The expression was warm and genuine, but still a little subdued by the weight of his concern for her and Max—and he didn’t try to fight that. Not now. “I’m awake now!” He assured, then gestured over to the window, “I’ll go fire up the old Camp Mobile and head into town while you stay with Max~”

The redhead crossed the room to check the first aid kit that Abby already had set out on the table. Most of it was pretty basic stuff and honestly aged far more than it should have been. A few individually wrapped pills sat in one corner of the old box, but he didn’t know if he trusted it enough to give it to Max and he doubted it was child doses anyway. “Let’s see, we need something for the fever, something to help him rest,” he held a hand up, ticking off each of the items on his fingers as he listened to them, “maybe some soup and crackers…? He’s got to get his strength up again…”

David voice trailed for a moment before he blinked over at her, “Uh, am I missing anything? Do you…need anything?”

 

[TarantulaHawk]

“That’s a good idea,” she nodded at the soup comment, “make sure it’s light, like chicken noodle or something. Don’t want him throwing up everywhere.”

And she looked at him at his question and she smiled a tiny bit, “Nah, I think I’m okay. But thank you, David.”

She hated the smell of vomit. She had smelled it enough times in her life to know that it was something she tried to avoid as much as possible, even if it came from herself.

“Actually... maybe some cough drops too?” She presses curiously, glancing over at Max, “He hasn’t been coughing enough to really need cough syrup, but the drops might help when he sleeps or is too tired to stop the cough.”

She went over to Max after a minute, feeling his four head with the back of her hand and then her wrist to doublecheck. She really didn’t need a thermometer to tell that he was still running a massive favor, and the flash across his face was making it even more obvious. She crossed her arms for a minute, watching him and his shallow breathing. For a kid, he seemed like he was dealing with a lot more than even she was. And even when sick. Then she looked at the clock.

“We have about two hours before the campers start waking up.” She muses.

 

[Pilot-66]

David nodded along resolutely as he listened to Abby’s suggestions. He worked quietly to put everything he’d pawed through back into the first aid kit, then closed the old container with a quiet snap. He looked back at her in time to catch the brief smile she gave him as she assured that she was fine. The redhead nodded, meeting her expression with a small smile of his own, but he couldn’t help feeling a little disappointed. He knew it was silly, but…after the night she’d had, he wished there’d been something he could do for his co-counselor. Even if it was just some little errand.

Pushing the thought aside, David turned and headed over to the bathroom so that he could at least brush his teeth before heading into town. He’d grab a shower later, once Max had his medicine and was a little more comfortable. He left the door cracked open so he could still hear as he readied himself. Catching Abby’s suggestion about cough drops from Max, he brightened, as grateful for her input now as he had been last night. “Can do!” He called out, his voice muffled by the toothbrush yet chipper as ever.

After he’d finished brushing his teeth, the lanky counselor gave his face a quick wash and at least tried to comb down some of the wild hairs sticking out around his head. He eventually gave up when a couple of licks of hair refused to stay down and wandered back out into the cabin, joining Abby at Max’s bedside.

“We have about two hours before the campers start waking up.”

David gave a tiny wince but was quick to flash a grin back at her. “I’ll take care of it when I get back.” He assured, “It’s been a while since we’ve let the kiddos have a free day and the weather’s supposed to be great, so today’s as good as any! I’ll make sure they get a good breakfast then get them set up outside.”

Of course, He, Abby, or the Quartermaster would still have to duck out and check on them every now and then and keep an eye on the activities field through the window, but at least letting everyone preoccupy themselves would free them up to tend to Max. It might even do the other campers some good, David realized with a spark of hope that shone in his eyes. A day to relax and just play might help lift their spirits after the art camp disaster at the start of the week!

“And don’t you worry, Max…” David turned his sights back on the boy, reaching out to adjust the rag on his forehead and ruffle his hair gently, “I just know you’ll be back out there with your friends in no time~”

Worry prickled through him all over again when Max’s only response was to curl away from him. No scathing sarcasm. No cursing.

Feeling more hurried than before, David turned back to Abby and reached to pull his cell phone out of his back pocket. He checked the battery on it before holding it out to her, “Ah–heh–the signal in town is worse than it is up here…somehow.” He explained, “It might take a few tries but…we have to let his parents know he’s sick. Can you try and reach them for me while I’m out? All the parents should be in my contacts.”

He wished he didn’t have to add anything else to Abby’s plate, but…
They didn’t have a lot of choice.

 

[TarantulaHawk]

"Alright," she nodded, and then looked at him, "we can both take turn checking on things."

She didn't mind that. She knew that Max needed help right now and would rather be inside, but if it was supposed to be a nice day, she wouldn't mind going out every once and a while to get some air that wasn't polluted by sickness. The thought made her wander to a window and open it a bit, even though the frame resisted a bit and squealed as she pushed it open.

Abby looked over as David did his best to try and reassure Max, frowning at the boy's lack of response. That was never a good sign. But he was sick and she knew that took a lot out of anyone, especially kids. It took absolutely everything out of kids and it was frightening, to say the least.

She looked up at him as he handed his cell phone to her. She took it, a little frown on her face a bit more. She, however, nodded understandingly and stared at it for a moment. "Of course. Not a big deal."

How did she address parents? What the heck were Max's parents named, or better yet, what was their last name? Her frown lightened a bit when she heard a soft noise from Max - a little exhale as he shifted a bit in the bed. She knew that she would have to interact with parents at some point, but she had never done it before. Like she had said, she had never worked with kids before and she was a bit intimidated by the task given. But she'd do just fine. She had to, anyway.

"Go on and get that stuff," she told David, managing a little smile in his direction, "I'll take care of the sickly child. And maybe take a shower in hand sanitizer."

She did feel sort of gross from dealing with Max, knowing that his sickness could very well be contagious and she did not want to get sick any time soon. She would not be able to do her job and she wouldn't let David put up with her when she was sick - annoying, even to her, was the first word that came to mind when she thought of the last time she had been actually sick from an illness.

 

[Pilot-66]

David looked up from the cell phone to Abby. His grin cracked into a full rueful smile when she mentioned bathing in hand sanitizer. “Aheheh, guess I should start figuring out how hazard pay works…” He toyed back briefly, glad to hear a touch of humor back in her voice—and, honestly kind of enjoying the moment of reprieve from the responsibilities crowding around them.

Knowing he needed to get going, though, David finally turned away and headed for the door. He plucked the car keys up off of the table as he passed it, hooking his finger through the keyring and giving them a little twirl before catching them in his hand. He pulled the cabin’s door open and stepped outside, but paused to look back at Abby over his shoulder. “Take care of yourself too, Abby.” He called, “You try and get some rest too…I’ll be back before you know it~!”

With that, he turned and closed the door behind him.

About twenty minutes after David had left, a passing breeze swept around the cabin, rattling the leaves in the trees outside and spilling fresh air through the window that Abby had opened. Max cracked an eye open, dazed to discover that he’d apparently fallen asleep again. Max curled onto his side, grimacing at how sore his shaking shoulders were, but he fought to lift his head and glance around the cabin. The morning was a blur of vague memories and muddled words. Even now, the noises of the cabin sounded muffled. Like something was clogging his ears, but he knew it was quieter now than it had been.

David was gone, he realized after a moment. For a heartbeat, panic struck him. He’d…left. He’d left him alone with her. With Abby. Fury boiled in his gut, almost as hot as the constant simmer just beneath his skin, but there were other feelings too. Guilt. A hollow feeling. Disappointment? He felt like he should have known better—but why?

Max furrowed his brows and groaned, letting his head flop back down as he buried his face in the pillow, trying to block out the flurry of nonsense in his head. He shivered harder as another chill swept over him and eventually he was too tired to think anymore.

After a second, he turned his head so that he could breathe. He glanced over to Abby, relieved that the flurry of feelings didn’t come back this time, but his attention focused on the familiar shape in her hand. A cellphone. He blinked, slowly recalling David’s voice mentioning his parents.

“Don’t bother…” He croaked out, “They won’t answer…”

 

[TarantulaHawk]

Once David left, she quickly hopped into the shower and wash her self down really quick. She was mainly showering because she didn’t want to get sick. When she got out and got dressed properly, she found yourself staring at Max again. It was just something about him that she couldn’t quite place. It wasn’t a familiarity or anything, but he definitely did remind her of herself and it was sort of uncomfortable.

Because she hadn’t eaten anything yet and her stomach was starting to get irritated because of it, she went over to her drawer and grabbed a granola bar. She needed something in her system because she was up so early, and chewy granola bars were good anyway. It was a better breakfast than she probably be able to have that day because she’d be so preoccupied. Not just Max being sick with preoccupy her either, because she was going to have to take turns going to check on the kids once they were awake and having the free day. And on top of that, she had a lot on her mind.

She grabbed the phone off the table and looked through David’s phone to find a contact labeled “Max’s Parents”. Creative. But just as she was about to dial it, she was greeted by the sound of Max’s voice from the bed. She turned around to look at him for a minute and then sighed.

“I have to,” she shrugged, looking at him, “part of the job.”

Whether his parents answered or not, she was still gonna have to give them a call. So she did. She pressed the dial button and then put the phone up to her ear. She was patient, but eventually she was left with the option to leave a voicemail and she did.

“Hi, this Abby,” she said, taking on a lighter, more professional tone, “a counselor at Camp Campbell. I’m afraid Max has gotten pretty sick and I called to let you know. Please return this call whenever you have the chance! Thank you.”

When she hung up, she looked over at Max with a little shrug and a smile. She set the phone down and then sat on her bed. She was easily starting to piece together that Max’s parents weren’t the best people. She got her clues from the way that he acted in the way that he talked about them, and the way that he talked to other adults. But she couldn’t expect every kid to have good or even attentive parents. It was just part of life.

 

[Pilot-66]

Max gazed across the room at Abby as she shrugged him off. His usually sharp gaze was dull, though rather that was completely to blame on the fever or not was a little skeptical.

He frowned when she pressed the call button and watched as she held the phone up to her ear. He held her gaze for the first few rings, eventually having to look away to cough roughly into his fist, but he looked pointedly back at her as soon as he’d finished. Sick or not, now that he was little more away he was determined to pin her a ‘told you so’ as soon as he heard her leaving a voice mail.

And yet, somehow all the energy seemed to drain out of him when Abby finally started speaking in the annoying tone adults always used when leaving something for his parents. Another shiver shook him. Fuck it…

Max pulled his eyes away from her and let himself lack back tiredly on the mattress. He curled into a tighter ball, shifting onto his side so that he back faced Abby. He knew what would happen next. If anything more was going to happen at all. He laid in silence for the next few minutes, staring at the wall on the other side of David’s bed.

And then…David’s voice buzzed over the surface that Abby. The screen lit up as a bird whistle tone sounded. It took his addled brain a moment, but he knew that noise—it was David’s text notification. But, his parents never texted… did they?

Something stirred in his chest. Max picked his head up and glanced slowly over his shoulder back at Abby and the phone.

Unbeknownst to Max, he was right. Although the text arrived mere moments after Abby had set the phone down, the text flashing across the screen appeared to come from an unknown number rather than any concerned parents. The message was brief but strangely ominous, especially contrasted against the light morning woodland scene David used as a wallpaper:

‘First Warning’ The two words scrolled across the screen a few times before the phone went dark and idle again.

 

[TarantulaHawk]

Abby heard the notification tone and stood up, going to grab the phone in hopes that it was Max’s parents. However, what she was greeted with was something that made her almost uncomfortable. What was that supposed to even mean? Hopefully it was a wrong text or something, because it was thoroughly creepy and she almost wanted to ask David about it when he got back. She wasn’t sure if she would though. After all, it wasn’t really her place to ask what was on somebody else’s phone.

With a sigh, she put it down on the table again and went over to Max, looking at him. “Here. I’ll take the washcloth for a bit. I think the breeze should keep you cool enough.”

She took the washcloth off his forehead and went to the dirty clothes hamper, tossing it inside before sitting down on her bed. “David is gonna get some soup. You gotta get a little bit of food in your system.”

Despite talking about making Max better, her mind wasn’t there with her mouth. She was more concerned about where the text message came from. It seemed awfully cryptic. And she really hope that it was a wrong number so that way she wouldn’t have to worry too much. She couldn’t imagine David doing something to need a warning of any kind.

 

[Pilot-66]

Max’s brow flattened as he watched Abby set the phone back down on the table top. Feeling like an idiot and to tired to wrestle with the indignation flaring through his mind, he turned his head back around and let himself curl back up onto his side. He kept his back to Abby, even when she approached his bedside and took the rag from him.

He didn’t answer her when she spoke to him, though he did curl his lip a bit at the mention of food. Even if his head did spin every time he moved, he just didn’t have much of an appetite. The boy screwed his heavy eyelids shut, trying to drown out the sound of her voice. Eventually sleep started to tug at him and—despite some nagging sense that he shouldn’t around Abby– Max let himself slip away to unconsciousness to avoid the clutter of fever and emotions churning inside him.

About an hour later, the janky puttering of the station wagon’s engine pulled up outside the cabin. A few moments later, David creaked the cabin door open, carrying a couple of plastic backs in his hands. “I’m back,” He called cheerfully, but kept his voice low when he glanced over and realized Max was out cold again. They’d have to wake him up soon for his medicine, but he didn’t want to bug the boy until they had to.

Shutting the door behind him with the toe of his boot, the redhead carried his armload of supplies to the center table and set them down. “I spoke with the pharmacist at the general store,” He mused as he started plucking items of the bags and setting them down on the table top, “She said if none of the other kids are sick yet, Max probably isn’t contagions. Last I saw, everyone else looked fine. So, I’m sure we’ll all be just fine~!” It wasn’t a guarantee of course, but, he was hopeful. He… didn’t really want to think about what they’d do with a camp full of sick kids.

“Oh,” David piped when he reached into the next bag. He pulled out a box of the chewy granola bars that Abby kept the cabin well stocked with and handed them off to her with a grin and a shrug, “I know you said you didn’t need anything, but…these are kind of a staple for you so I wanted to make sure we were allll stocked up!”

He went back to digging the medicine, cough drops, and soup cans out of the bags before balling them up and walking over to drop them into the recycle bin he kept in the cabin then walked back to stand next to Abby with his hands on his hips. He shot a glance over at Max to check on him then looked back down to his co-counselor, “Did you have any luck with his parents…?”

 

[TarantulaHawk]

Once Max passed out again, Abby occupied her time with just sort of tidying up the cabin a little bit and plucking away at her ukulele. It was the little things that kept her mind off of the awful things, but that text message still made her head rattle uncomfortably. There was just something so off about it that it almost made her worry for David’s safety.

So when David came back to the cabin unharmed, she was instantly a lot more relaxed. It was kind of funny that she was that worried about him, but it wasn’t often that people got cryptic text messages like that. At least, she hoped it wasn’t. She hadn’t had a phone for years, after all.

When David mentioned the granola bars, she had to smile a bit. “Thank you. That was nice of you.”

It really was. But it was also surprising that somebody else paid attention to what she ate, let alone remembering the kind of granola bars she liked. She didn’t mind it though.

“No,” she sighed at the mention of Max’s parents, “they haven’t called back and didn’t answer.” but then she raised an eyebrow and grabbed his phone, handing it to him, “you did get a super weird text, though. Kind of creepy, actually.”

She hated that it sounded like she went through his phone or something, but she didn’t. It had just popped up after calling Max’s parents and she didn’t really know what to do about it. David would know better than her.

 

[Pilot-66]

“No, they haven’t called back and didn’t answer.”

The usual smile faded from David’s face. He let his hands fall back down to his side and sighed. His eyes found the floor for a moment before lifting back up to Max—his heart breaking a little more as he listened to the boy’s rattling breath. At this point, he couldn’t say he was surprised by the silence, but…he’d hoped Max’s parents would have at least been concerned that their son was sick.

David pulled his eyes away from Max and looked back to Abby when she held his phone out to him and mentioned a text that he’d missed. That was strange. The only person who ever texted him was Gwen and unless she was raving on about another one of her romance novels or TV shows…he couldn’t imagine why she’d send him something creepy.

“Really?” He reached out and took the phone from her, glad to let his curiosity distract him from his worry for a moment. He turned the phone on and flipped through the screen until he found his messages. He skimmed over the only new text there. First Warning?

David arched an eyebrow at words. For half a heartbeat, he was ready to dismiss the oddity as one of the campers pulling a prank on him, but…how could they? They were all asleep, none of them had phones, and the usual culprit was sick in bed. Then who?

Mr. Campbell
The thought gripped his mind like a vice.

David’s fingers tightened around the phone case as he stared down at the words, green eyes flickering nervously back and forth over the screen. Remorse struck him first, nearly barreling him over with guilt and shame for the way the man had looked at him the last time they spoke face to face. For a moment he was eleven again, ashamed and weary of the scolding words and the disappointment laced within them. Then the fear crept in. Subtle as it had always been but just as potent.

What the heck had he been thinking? What was he doing? He’d been so angry with his mentor the last time they had spoken in person. He’d tried to apologize in letters ever since and mend bridges, but…of course he’d crossed a line. How could he not have? A sudden panic tightened his throat. He should–

Max coughed somewhere behind him, drawing him out of his tunnel vision.

David blinked and briefly glanced over at the boy before looking back to his phone. He…he had to be wrong about this. There was no way it could be Mr.Campbell. He was in jail-–hopefully learning from it and using the time to improve himself as a person!—but…still in jail. It couldn’t be him and, well, he’d heard nothing else since taking over the camp. Why would this come up now? Out of the blue?

It was obviously just a mistake. He almost wanted to laugh at how badly he’d spooked himself over nothing, but…the residual panic ebbing inside of him wouldn’t let him. His gut was still knotted over itself and his head was light from the rush. He tried to shake it from his mind. He didn’t have the time for it or any of his lingering questions. Max needed him and so did the other campers. That much he knew with unshakable certainty and he clung to that.

“Oh, I–huh,” He cleared his throat to fix the quaver in his voice, “I don’t recognize the number.” David finally spoke and was relieved to be telling the truth. He didn’t recognize the number. Which he hoped was just more proof that he was overreacting. He forced a smile back onto his face, “I should probably let them know I’m not who they’re looking for, right? Don’t want anyone to miss something important!”

Gripping the phone in both hands he typed out a quick response. Hi there! I’m sorry, but I’m afraid you’ve got the wrong number. Have a wonderful day!

He swallowed dryly as he sent the reply off then shoved the phone back into his pocket. Cutting his eyes away from Abby, he turned back towards the supplies on the table, eager to be doing something to settle himself back down. “Hey, uh, which do you think we should do first?” He picked up the box of medication and flipped it around to skim over the label, though it was hard to focus on the small print, “Try and get him to eat or give him this medicine?”

 

[TarantulaHawk]

Abby watch to David quietly, observing how his expression barely changed while thoughts ran through his mind that she didn’t know about. Through the little changes, she saw stress and worry and maybe even a little bit of fear. But his words were nothing like she thought they were going to be. Especially when he went through those kind of emotions in front of her. But she didn’t ask. It wasn’t her business, she figured.

“Probably a good idea.” She nodded and then frowned, crossing her arms, “I wonder what that was all about.”

She really did want to know. It wasn’t common for her to get curious about things, as she had sort of been taught to just mind her own business. But she wondered why David got so nervous, especially over what was apparently a wrong number. But why would somebody give a warning to David? He was such a good person and she couldn’t imagine him doing something that would permit such a threatening message. She had to be overthinking it.

David’s voice brought her back quickly and she looked at him, and then the bag of things. “Let’s try to get a little bit of food in him. Giving him the medication alone could make him throw up.”

Abby grabbed the thermometer off the table and went over to the bed, sitting down on the side of it and very carefully shaking Max’s shoulder. “Hey, Max? David’s back. We’re gonna get you some food and then some meds and then you can go back to bed. I need your temperature too.”

 

[Pilot-66]

Grateful to have something to do, David had gone right to work helping Abby with Max. It had taken some coaxing, but eventually, he’d managed to talk the boy in eating. Max had only managed half the bowl, but that’d been enough to get his medicine down and put him back to sleep—though he’d still had little to say and seemed a bit out of it.

When the sun had risen a little higher in the sky, David volunteered himself (probably a little too enthusiastically now that he was thinking about it) for breakfast duty. With Max taken care of, he had started to feel a little calmer about the text, but…the words always found a way to snake back into his mind if he was ever still and quiet for long enough, so he’d been desperate to surround himself with the campers and tasks.

After breakfast, he’d explained to the gang that today was their free day and had encouraged them to do whatever it was that made them the happiest. Most of them had been all too happy to have the day to themselves. He’d made sure to set some rules and boundaries about how far they could go and then helped Dolph and Preston haul a few boxes of supplies out onto the field for their interests. After all that, he had spent another good five minutes having to convince Nurf that giving people wedgies was, indeed, NOT a camp-friendly activity.

Once everyone was settled and toiling away on their projects or hard at play, David had gone back to the cabin to trade roles with Abby to let her get some fresh air. He’d seen her off chierrily as ever, but after she’d gone, he’d nervously checked his phone again to see if the unknown number had sent any other strange messages…but there had been nothing. That was good! He’d tried to tell himself as he sat in the silence with Max, but anxiety still prickled in the back of his mind the longer he’d sat there. Eventually, he’d tried to call Max’s parents again, just hoping they’d somehow missed Abby message from earlier but he had only ever managed to reach their voicemail too. He’d left a second message, but when the couple hadn’t called back within the next ten minutes, David had finally scrambled up to his feet and started to clean the cabin meticulously, all the way down to the grooves in the wood panel floor. He’d tried to look less conspicuous whenever Abby returned to trade jobs with him, but in the back of his mind (and with a little guilt), he knew he’d kind of just…hurried out. With a smile and a spring in his step, sure, but hurried out none the less.

Now, as the sky was starting to darken with the golden amber hues of late afternoon and nothing more had come of the text, David was finally starting to feel a little more like himself. And he wasn’t the only one.

“This is so fucking stupid…” Max groused as he turned his spoon over in his soup. He was up and sitting at the far end of the table in the center of the room, still seeming tiny without his hoody but he didn’t look anywhere near as pitiful as he had been. His eyes were clear and as sharp as his tongue again, though he’d been strangely subdued around Abby. Not polite, by any means, but to David’s relief he hadn’t lashed out at her since waking either. “Why can’t I just go back to my tent already?”

“Oh, come on, Max~!” David chirped and beamed a smile at him from across the table, “You know you need at least one more night of good rest to make sure you’ve shaken that fever. Besides! I think it’s pretty great that we all get to share a nice meal together!” The quartermaster had taken over looking after the kids for the past few hours and was now serving the rest of the campers dinner in the mess hall so that he and Abby could make sure Max didn’t push himself too hard now that he was up. It’d been David’s idea for them all to share dinner together though, since Max’s parents still hadn’t bothered to return their calls or check on him. (From a safe distance, at least. Even if Max didn’t seem contagious or even sick anymore, it was no reason to press their luck too much.)

“No, it’s annoying.” Max bristled, lifting his head to glare at the both of them. His eyes bounced between them before landing on Abby. His gaze was hard, but not quite as cutting as had been for the past week or two. Eventually, he looked back down to his meal, brows furrowed. “Also, nothing that comes out of that cafeteria qualifies as a nice meal. Or even food for that matter…” He stated matter-of-factly.

 

[TarantulaHawk]

She hated to admit that she was glad she was able to go outside, but when David had come trade places with her, she quickly left the building and started observing the children. They were doing a lot better since the whole art camp thing, and most of them weren’t really fighting anymore. It was nice to see everybody getting along for once. Or at least, getting along the way they usually did. She was just glad nobody was causing problems at the moment and that she was able to just take a breath or two.

In the back of her mind, she was still thinking a lot about Daniel. She couldn’t help it, though she really wished that she didn’t have to think about him. But it was almost ingrained in her body to think about him whenever something went wrong or whenever somebody brought up almost anything. Maybe it was the fact that Daniel was pretty much the only solid human being in her life for so long, as she didn’t have any contact with her parents and friends that she made in the foster system and in the group home didn’t really try and contact her. Daniel didn’t try to contact her either, thank God, but there really wasn’t any way for him to do so. That was one of the things that kept her from getting a cell phone, now that she had the money to do so if she wanted.

It was a pretty simple day, and by the time that the sky had begun to change colors, She was back in the counselors cabin and feeling a lot better. And it seemed that Max was feeling that way too, because his attitude was starting to come back. She sort of wished that it would stay away, but that was just part of her Max was and she couldn’t change that.

As usual, David was speaking cheerily about how nice it was to eat together, and Abby wasn’t really surprised. Though in the back of her mind she sort of wondered if he was okay. She wondered that about a lot of people. Then she looked at Max as he made his comment about the inedible food.

“Okay,” she chuckled, poking at the food in front of her, “I agree with that one.”

It was probably the reason that she very rarely ate with David and the rest of the children. She always defaulted back into the cabin and grabbed a water bottle and a granola bar before she went to bed. Honestly, that was probably the reason she wasn’t gaining any weight either, and she still looked sort of unhealthy. But she didn’t really mind just the granola bar for dinner. She had gone with less before.

 

[Pilot-66]

“Now, now. It’s not all that bad you guys.” David tried to sooth both of his dinner companions as they trashed the mess hall and its output. He glanced down and tested the potatoes on his plate with his fork warily. Even he couldn’t deny that he’d taken as little a serving as he thought he could get away with without hurting the Quartermaster’s feelings.

A part of him could already feel Max getting ready to point that out around a mouthful of noodles, so he chimed in before the boy could, “Buuut! You’ll both be pleased to know the camp’s contract with the old one-star food delivery company we’ve been using is running out soon! In a week or so we’ll be able to buy from a different company. So, I’m sure the Quartermaster will be able to really spice things up!”

“Wait,” Max blinked, “You’ve been feeding us old food?”

“Well, not old exactly, but…the cafeteria did used to be one of our budgeted areas…”

“This whole damn camp is a “budgeted” nightma-–” A steady knock on the cabin door cut Max off mid-sentence.

Eager to sweep the current conversation under the rug, David brightened and bounced up to his feet, “I’ll get it!” He just hoped if their visitor was the quartermaster, that the old man hadn’t been listening to for too long. He reached out and tugged the door open, putting on his best smile as he started a greeting, “Hell…oh?” His voice trailed off when he saw a stranger standing in front of him.

The woman in the door was middle aged and well dressed in a black polo shirt and khakis. She stared into the cabin from behind a pair of thin copper frames, her gaze professionally distant and unimpressed. Behind her stood a heavy-set man with dark eyes. He was wearing the exact same outfit. He looked considerably younger than his female companion and a bit gruff. Especially standing next to someone as well put together as the woman was.

“Mr.Greenwood?” The woman asked, letting her gaze slide up towards David.

“Um, yes?” David ventured skeptically, “Can I help you?”

“We’re with the American Camp Association.” The woman explained, her patience seeming thin, “We were scheduled for an inspection today. We were supposed to meet at the camp entrance and walk the grounds from there?”

David felt his stomach drop to his feet. That was today?! Of course! It was Thursday! But between last night’s revelations, Max illness, and the text message he’d completely forgotten. He briefly wondered with if these were the people who had texted him a warning, but no, he had their contact information saved to his phone. Their number would have shown up. That was still a mystery. One he really shouldn’t be thinking about right now, he realized.

“R-right!” David stammered, already feeling his face starting to redden with embarrassment. “I’m so glad you could make it! I’ll—here, let me give you the grand tour–”

“There’s no need.” The woman interrupted him cooly, “My apprentice and I have already conducted our inspection on our own. Now we simply need to go over our findings. Do you mind if we come in? It’d be best if we spoke with all you and your employees at the same time anyway.” Her gaze drifted from David towards Abby.

“Oh, uh…” Knots started to tie his gut. As the camp’s owner, he thought he’d be dealing with this part of the job alone. It was bad enough he’d forgotten, but guilt raked at him too when Abby was suddenly dragged into this. Especially after he’d kept the camp’s dire state a secret since her hire. “Of course.” He stepped aside to let the two inspectors enter the cabin. With his back to the inspectors he flashed her a pained apologetic look, his usual smile twisted into a nervous grimace by his nerves. “I’ll be right with you, just let me get Max settled…”

“Do you usually conduct your business in front of the children?” The woman asked.

“What? No, no!” David waved his hands anxiously in front of himself, giving a nervous little laugh, “Max here’s just been feeling a little under the weather, so we’ve been keeping a close eye on him…” As he spoke he helped Max move from the center table over to his own desk. He briefly considered calling the Quartermaster to come get him, but the curiosity and interest that lit Max’s eyes told him that things would probably just go smoother if he let him stay. No matter what he did or where he sent him, he knew that Max would hear all of this one way or another. David's heart sank a little. This wasn’t how this was supposed to go…

“Very well.” The woman agreed begrudgingly then turned her sights on Abby while David handled Max in the corner, “My name is Maria Hargrove. This is my associate, Mr. Abbot. He’s in training and will be quietly observing this process to learn.” The hefty man took a seat at the table after he’d been introduced. He still said nothing but was looking around the cabin curiously.

“Might I ask who you are, Miss…?” Maria trailed expectantly in search of a name as she studied Abby, “As well as your credentials or related work history?”

 

[TarantulaHawk]

Abby felt bile raise in her throat when David mentioned that the food happened to be 'budgeted', but she couldn't really get angry with him for a few reasons - it was fresher food than she ate most of the time and it kept the kids full and semi-happy. It wasn't like the food was rotten or anything. She hoped, anyway - rotten food could easily be used in recipes and she wouldn't put the Quartermaster past using rotten food.

She was about to try her hardest to not laugh at Max's comment, having to agree a little bit with the camp sort of being more of a budget camp than a summer camp, but the knock startled her about as much as it did David. As David opened the door, the sight of two strangers made her curious and worried - their obvious professionalism made her straighten up her posture and adjust her hair and whatnot, making sure she actually looked like she was doing her job; things had been a tiny bit relaxed the two days because of Max's sickness.

But then they spoke and she was automatically wrought with confusion. American Camp Association? Inspection? Abby looked at David in a slightly distressed manner when she noticed his sudden panic. Why didn't he tell her inspectors were coming around? Maybe he just forgot. Things had been rather crazy and everyone forgot something once and a while, but she felt a pang of what could have been upset at the fact that he didn't tell her something so important. But she had to put it aside as the two strangers stepped inside.

Abby found herself making eye contact with the woman, Maria Hargrove as she introduced herself, and her partner. He seemed much younger and a little more curious than he did actually worried. That was a good sign, right? Abby glanced at David and noticed that his worry was getting a little bit worse. But when the attention was diverted to Abby, she did her best to put on a rather customer service sort of smile as she always did. Abby had grown up a liar because she had to be. So she hoped that her talent for doing so hadn't faded away.

"My name is Abigail Morris, ma'am," Abby almost winced at the sound of her actual name, as it sounded strange and very rarely ever came out of her own lips or someone else's, "and I have an extensive work history in many jobs, though working with children is definitely a new thing for me. I've always wanted to, though, and David was nice enough to offer me a job alongside him."

She didn't exactly lie, but she didn't tell the truth. She knew it wasn't exactly a nice gesture from David, but one because she knew he was worried about the life of a stranger before they got to know each other past their first names. She had always wanted children, but never really imagined herself working with them. Her name was really the only thing she hadn't tried to twist for her, and their, own benefit.

 

[Pilot-66]

“Abigail Morris,” Maria nodded slowly, taking a seat at the table alongside the man she’d introduced as Abbot. As she seated herself, he handed her a plastic clipboard he’d been carrying around. The woman took it from him, her meticulously manicured nails clicking against the plastic as she did. She flipped through a few of the documents on the front of the clipboard and jotted down the name.

With Max settled at his desk, David wandered back over to the table and took a seat next to Abby. He’d managed to fight a polite smile back onto his face, relieved to hear that Abby didn’t sound too terribly rattled, though he still wished the inspectors would have left her alone. This shouldn’t have to be a part of her job.

“Heh, My apologies for missing the meeting time…” David cleared his throat as he settled next to his co-counselor, “I just, with Max sick, it got away from me and–”

“Water under the bridge, Mr.Greenwood.” Maria held up a hand to quiet him, though the cold authority with which she spoke hardly matched her sentiment. Abbot finally looked back to the clients, his attention focused.

“Now, onto the camp…” Maria let the papers on her clipboard fall back down as she skimmed over her notes. “With Campbell's assets frozen, you’re operating this Camp alone, correct? No outside funding? No sponsors?”

“Well, none yet.”

Maria noted that down on her papers. “And are there anymore new employees?”

“No, Ma’am. It’s just the three of us and a dozen happy campers out here~” David tried to swing his arm a little to show his enthusiasm, “But the Camp Campbell family is always looking to grow!”

Maria didn’t respond to his sunny optimism. Just wrote another note down on her clipboard. “We wanted to compliment you on the state of the shoreline. It’s looking much better than it did this winter. The piers are vastly improved and you are entirely up to code. The Camper’s living quarters are also looking much better. I’m relieved to see you’ve taken care of the safety violations and that the trees are trimmed accordingly—well done.”

David’s spine straightened as he sat up in the chair next to Abby. Weight lifted off his shoulders as pride swelled in his chest. “Thank you!” He beamed, the grin across his face finally feeling a bit more natural. He could this. He knew could!

“I’m afraid that’s where my compliments have to end, however.” Maria sighed, knocking him back down. She glanced down to the clipboard in front of her. “All of the following are still not up to code or standards: Mess Hall building, storage building, transportation, trails, trail markers, camper’s showers, counselor housing, mailing room…” Maria droned on, listing a dozen more problem sights before going into grueling detail about the necessities missing from each one. By the end of the list, David had sunk back into his seat somewhat, eyes on the table as he nervously adjusting the bandanna around his neck.

“And that brings me to the campers. They’re out of control. For example, we observed one boy holding down and attempting to stab another no less than three times today. A young girl ate worms and another was playing pretend science with harmful chemicals that he got from God only knows where.”

“Pft. Don’t let Neil hear you say that. He’ll lose his shit.” Max quipped from his corner, he seemed to be enjoying this somewhat as mischief glinted in his eyes, “…Actually, no, never mind. Go ahead. I wanna watch.”

Maria glanced at him, “and that is all to say nothing of the manners displayed today…” She commented scornfully. Turning her sights back on David and Abby she pressed on, “I’m not even clear on what curriculum or activity campers were supposed to be following today. Could either of you explain that?”

 

[TarantulaHawk]

Abby was very nervous right away when the woman shut down David's happiness. She was about business, wasn't she? She must have cared more about codes and things than she did the kids. That seemed to be how she worked. What a shame. She wished that people understood that places like that weren't just about keeping things up to code, and David did the best that he could on his own - she watched the kids a lot of the time.

The no funding comment made her worried on top of already having many worries. David was really just doing it with his own money? Why was she being paid then? Her heart sank a little bit. Because David was all-too willing to make sure she was accommodated. In the beginning, she wouldn't have worried about him, but now she did. She liked being paid more than anything. But now she was willing to give up most of her pay. It would help him more.

Though the compliment about his work on the docks and a few other things brought her smile back a little bit more. He was working hard on everything to make sure it worked properly and was safe and Abby was glad that he busted, well, his ass to get things done. But her happiness faded out as the woman listed things that they needed to have done because they weren't where they were supposed to be. She glanced at David as he slowly seemed to sink down at the mention of everything to get done.

She felt awful. Why hadn't she been helping him? Why hadn't he said anything? And the campers.... Yikes. She knew they were out of control. Abby shot a quick glare at Max when he opened his mouth, warning him to try and keep it shut from then on. She didn't need Max making everything worse.

"Normally they aren't nearly that bad, and we're very sorry you had to witness them being.... that way." Abby apologized, frowning a bit and then doing her best to smile, though it was tense and still very nervous, "Well, today, due to the fact that David and I had to take turns watching Max because he's still a little sick, we let them have a free day. A free day is when the kids are encouraged to follow their own passions and just enjoy a day to have fun doing what they want." and then she tacked on, "Though we will be having a stern talk to those who were.... Well, causing damage to others and whatnot."

 

[Pilot-66]

“Uhhehehe, well, you see…” David started slowly, trying to wrangle his scattered thoughts and guilt to form an appropriate and professional sounding response, but to his surprise Abby spoke up first. He glanced over at her as she spoke, relieved and grateful when she found eloquent words more easily than he could in the moment. Horrible as he felt to have dragged her into all this blind, he couldn’t help but feel grateful for her presence now.

Maria turned her cold eyes on Abby. Her fingers tapped lightly against the edge of her clipboard as she listened to the explanation. The woman’s eyes gave nothing away, but her painted lips pressed together in a thin line as she weighed Abby’s words unhappily. “Free day?” She pressed, pinning Abby to her seat with an unblinking stare and a thinly veiled condemning tone, “One child gets sick and you think that warrants allowing the rest to run wild? Their parents could have just let them out in the yard and street for that kind of care. Camps should provide order and structure. That is what our clients pay for. Not “free days”, Miss Morris.”

“It was my idea,” David insisted hastily, trying to reel the inspector’s wrath away from Abby. She’d helped cover for him when he’d done nothing but draw a blank. The last thing he wanted was for her to have to take his blame too. He wanted to explain that parents usually arrived to tend to and take their children home for a day or two to rest while they carried on at camp, but…he glanced over at Max. The abandonment he’d faced today had been enough. The boy didn’t need to hear it spoken in front of strangers too. Instead, David looked back at the inspectors and reached up to scratch sheepishly at the side of his neck, “I’m sorry. We’ll be more prepared next time and, like Abby said, we’ll talk to the campers.” Pulling his hand away from his neck, David flashed the inspectors a grin as he tried to lighten the souring mood. “Usually they’re well behaved and great kids, really! Buuut…we do encourage freedom of expression and creativity around here, ” he threw his arms out to the side enthusiastically as he spoke, “So I’m sure they just got a little carried away with that today. Heh, you know how imaginative kids can be with their games! We’ll make sure to go over safety rules with them again, don’t you worry. In fact, I’ll get started on the presentation tonight~!”

Maria studied both of the counselors silently for a while before relenting and closing her eyes for a moment. Finally, she drew a short breath and reached up to pluck the thin frames off of her face and set them down on the table slowly. “Look, Mr.Greenwood,” She spoke more frankly, skimming over her notes a moment longer before lifting her eyes to the lanky man, “I understand that you weren’t allowed back on the premises until the start of summer, so you haven’t had that much time to address our concerns. I can also see that you are trying…but–the missed appointment, the unattended children, the remaining violations–this is a poor first impression of your skills as a business owner and leader. For the sake of these children, their families, and your employees, I can not in good conscience write this off as anything else. Regardless of where your heart and intentions lie.”

David slowly pulled his arms back down to his side and ducked his head. His green eyes fell down to the table top as he tried not to catch any of the gazes in the room. Shame and guilt burned under the surface of his skin and tinted his face, but the sensations paled in comparison to the desolate pang that surged in his chest. None of this was supposed to happen to like this. He could do this! He knew he could! He had to…He just needed more time.

In the corner of the room, Max sat up in his chair. He’d spent the past few minutes giving Abby a flat challenging stare after she’d tried to hush him with a look, but now it was all he could do to watch the scene unfold with raised eyebrows. David was in charge of this place now? He knew Cameron had gotten hauled off after parent’s day, but he’d half expected that the guy was out and off doing his usual bullshit again while David covered the camp for him as usual. But, he’d had no idea the redhead actually owned the camp now. He glanced over at Maria. Honestly, everything the woman was saying was true. He’d been screaming it for years. This place was a shit show, but…he caught himself trying not to frown when he saw David more or less shriveling under the scorn.

Maria spoke again after a long silence, leaning forward in her seat to pick up her glasses and place them back on her face. “After everything that’s happened, you have to know that you’re fighting an uphill battle to even keep this place standing, and frankly, I can’t even begin to understand why you choose to.” She stole a glance around the cabin before settling her attention back on David, “but…you managed to convince the court and committee to give you this opportunity nonetheless. I won’t undermine that by condemning this place tonight. However, If you’re serious about this, then I suggest you start lacing up your bootstraps. You’ve only got one shot at this.”

 

[TarantulaHawk]

Abby winced a little at how the woman addressed her, but she understood what she was saying, unfortunately - the parents weren't paying for that sort of thing. They paid to have their kids sent to camp to keep them occupied (though it was beginning to be obvious, with how Max's parents weren't even answering their phone, that some of the parents dropped their kids there because they simply didn't have the attention span to pay attention to their own children).

When David piped up, covering her tail with admitting who's idea it was, she wanted to argue. She didn't care much about being talked to like the woman had, as it was something she experienced as a child from many adults and sometimes even from adults she worked with in her odd jobs. But she knew David just wanted to keep her from feeling bad and feeling the woman's irritation - it was justified, but still honestly frightening. She listened carefully to what David had to say and she knew she would have to give another talk to Nurf about not stabbing or cutting people, which would put her own life on the line.

But when David finished speaking, the woman removed her glasses and something about the gesture made Abby's stomach twist almost painfully. Such a parental sort of move that it made her visibly uncomfortable - she shifted a bit and then listened to what the woman had to say, sparing side-glances at David worriedly. The way that David looked so guilty actually, physically made her chest hurt. She knew that he was busting his ass, but she hadn't realized just how hard he was working and why.

But then the woman spoke again and Abby did the paying attention for David, though she knew he was listening to her and just... she couldn't read the expression on his face, actually. Abby felt her stomach sink a bit when the woman mentioned that she wouldn't condemn the place right away. She didn't know whether that made her feel better or even worse about what David was going through. She watched the woman and listened carefully. After a moment, she glanced at David and then nodded once.

"We understand the importance of the situation, ma'am," Abby spoke, though her words were very carefully chosen because she had a lot going on in her mind at the moment, "and we are truly sorry this is how your first impression went of not only the camp, but of us. We will be doubling our efforts to get everything done properly and on time, as well as making sure the children are properly entertained and taken care of."

She shot David a look. Literally. If she had to get on a damn roof and patch it up, she was going to be facing her fear of heights. If they had to hike into the woods for hours every single day and put markers on trails, she'd buy herself a pair of boots and do it herself and give the man a break. She'd spend as much of her time as she could to help him out, even if she had to go to bed late and get up early.

She wouldn't let him do this alone.

Again.