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Fandom Qᴜᴀʀʀʏ ᴀᴛ ᴅᴀᴡɴ, 𝙝𝙤𝙧𝙧𝙤𝙧. [IC]

MOOD: Play it cool, Lei

OUTFIT: somethin cute, probably with paint stains

LOCATION: The Lodge
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MENTIONS: N/A


INT: Lou ( spareparts spareparts ) & Zarina irregular-neptune irregular-neptune
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TL;DR Trying to act cool, Leilani starts setting up in the arts room when Lou walks in to introduce Zarina.
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leilani
better run for the hills, run for the hills, run
With the videotape tucked away in the bottom of her bag, Leilani made it into the arts & crafts room just has a few counselors made their way into the main lodge area. Most likely those who stayed and visited after Jonathan's speech had wrapped up. A small pang of guilt tapped at Leilani's heart; maybe she should have stayed back too? Visited and caught up with those she hadn't seen since last year. Would it make her look suspicious? Surely not, right? Surely they knew Leilani itched to be in a creative space.

Surely nobody had any idea that she and Renee had been in an intimate relationship before she disappeared.

Right?

Realizing she had been standing still and staring at the table in front of her for a few moments, Lani shook herself back to reality, eyes darting around the art room as she recollected her thoughts.

This slowly dissipating thoughts were shooed out of her brain at the sound of a familiar voice. Lou's voice rang out in the colorful room, causing Lani to quickly spin around. A familiar and a not familiar face were met with Lani's lit-up face. It was a natural reaction that Lani had, as soon as she saw anyone at camp. She had been attending most her life, it would be hard for her to not greet every face with a smile.

To be fair, Lou was more than just a face to Lani. Lou, like many others at Evergreen Camp, was a friend of hers. The memory of their first meeting ran through her mind; working together to help get a stray dog back to their owner. From there, they befriended each other through her favorite venue of friendship; her art! When they were both just campers, Lani always caught Lou peering in on her paintings with a glimmer of curiosity in his eyes. It wasn't long before her warm and inviting presence welcomed him to join her, being more than willing to teach him a few things she knew about painting. They may not have been the best of friends, but Lani always treasured any and all relationships she made through her love for art.

Lani's eyes shifted to the unfamiliar face as Lou introduced "Zarina".

"Lovely to meet you, Zarina! I'm Leilani! She didn't even think twice that her voice and demeanor might have come across as too bubbly and bright, she just slipped right in to her usual, Camp Evergreen self, "I'm one of the arts & crafts leader! Lou mentioned he's showing you around, are you a counselor this year?"

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liberty f.




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Liberty's smile threatens to fall as Isla confirms they're in cabin two. . . together. Guess I'll just sit on this for now, literally.

"Hm, I don't believe we have ever shared a cabin together. Hope you don't mind that I take one of the bottom bunks." It's not a question, but a suggestion. Liberty had a habit of using the beds as another table, storing everything currently in use on the mattress with her — no good would come from the postcard slipping between the cracks of the mattress and wall, landing in someone else's incapable hands.

Eyeing the girl before her, Liberty thinks, the right hands. There's a pang of guilt that accompanies the thought, but she knew better than to dwell on feelings for longer than necessary.

"Hi, Liberty."

Her brow ticks in annoyance and she forces herself to acknowledge Ricky, tilting her chin ever-so-slightly in his direction. There were plenty of other counsellors at this camp she tolerated much less than him, but Ricky had the uncanny ability to set her on edge — annoyed by his happy-go-lucky attitude. Especially now. "Ricky. Didn't notice you were here." A surprising side-effect to their indifferent relationship; Ricky seemed to reside permanently in a blind-spot, just out of the picture.

How to escape this...?

Liberty's eyes scan the room briefly, landing on the obnoxiously large clock hanging just before the hallway that leads to the arts and crafts room. "Looks like we'll be late for dinner if we don't head out now." She wraps her arms around herself, warming her shoulders with her hands as the warmth of the afternoon sun begins to pass quickly, replaced by the familiar chill of night. "Isla, walk with me? I'd love to hear what you were up to this past year. . ." She trails off, feeling quite silly not being able to find a more approachable way to tip-toe around the elephant in the room. "If you don't mind."

Purposefully ignoring Ricky, Liberty turns her body towards the exit but keeps her gaze on Isla, awaiting their decision.





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  • rowan




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    Rowan didn’t pay Marquis’s weirdness much mind, only because he was so locked in on the papers and the questions swirling in his mind – and the barrage of questions both of his friends were asking him. He wasn’t sure the answer to any of it, as his mind struggled to clutch for any answer to what the papers meant and why they were just… laying in the middle of the camp for him to find. Wasn’t this private information? Paige’s private information? Who was just throwing it on the ground? Was he supposed to find it?

    His mouth twisted into a frown when Marquis suggested that Paige and Renee were being targeted – not because he didn’t believe it, but because he did. It was only logical because why else would they both disappear together? And why would nobody have found them yet, a year later?

    At Marquis’ suggestion to take the papers to any of the Evergreens, his grip tightened on the papers. It wasn’t that he didn’t trust them, but a bad feeling in his gut told him they probably already knew about the papers and wouldn’t have appreciated him finding them. He liked Isla, but he didn’t want to bombard them with questions when he knew they were still grieving in their own right.

    “Hmm…”
    Rowan responded to Riley’s question curiously. Paige’s absent year had been before they had started dating – they were still talking, but Paige hadn’t been very responsive that year, with only a few calls and letters between them. Rowan had always wondered if it’d had anything to do with his and Lou’s catastrophic fight just the year before…

    “Honestly, I think s-”


    Rowan was cut off by the door opening and quickly shifted his attention to the person entering – it was Reese, likely here to claim his bunk and seemingly surprised the three of them were in here. At his comment about “book club” Rowan realized the folder was still out in the open and he closed it, not trying to be standoffish but not willing to share the information with the entire camp lest rumors begin to spread about Paige’s possible stint in rehab.

    Paige might not be his girlfriend anymore, hell, she probably wasn’t even alive, but he still cared for her despite their final fight, and he didn’t want people whispering about her, even if, especially now, he wanted to figure out what had happened. He swallowed the lump in his throat and tried to act nonchalant and moved to slip the folder into his duffle bag.

    “It’s really n-”
    he was starting to say as Kayden walked into the cabin. What was this, gathering of the burnouts? It’s official, there were far too many people in the cabin right now; he'd been interrupted one too many times and his head was hurting from trying to process the information he’d found. He had to get out of there.

    Rowan shrugged at Kayden’s question and said,
    “Nah, I was just getting ready to leave.”


    He stood and zipped his duffel bag up with the folder inside before shoving it underneath his bed. Then he waved his hand at his compatriots,
    “Don’t get too crazy without me.”


    Then he nodded at Riley and Marquis, inviting either of them to walk to the Dining Hall with him, as the hour of dinner was drawing near and, as counselors, they probably shouldn’t be late.
    “You comin’?”


    Without waiting for either of their responses, he left the cabin to head to the Dining Hall, his mind swimming with questions. Why had Paige never told him about the threatening note? Were there more? Who would threaten her? It surely wasn’t another Evergreen, right? On top of that, with all their fights about Paige’s drug problems… why had she never mentioned going to rehab?






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JC walked past Rowan ( irregular-neptune irregular-neptune ) on his way to the cabin. He wasn't well liked by most, but Rowan earned him a glance, albeit a cold one. No words were exchanged on his part and he continued on his way to the cabin. He stared at the door for a while. Back here again... JC scowled. This place was his escape from home. Why didn't he feel that way? He begrudgingly kicked the door open, bags in tow and tossed them onto the first empty bed he found. He'll finish unpacking later. For now, there was brief respite. And dinner. That too.

JC walked over to the bathroom and splashed some water on his face. At least out here, the water was cold and fresh. The musk of the old walls, the cobwebs in the corners, and the mold in the cracks. That's what he missed. For all the horror of last year, there were still the fond years that came before. JC took off his glasses and looked in the mirror, studying the black eye decorating his face. Liberty hasn't mentioned anything, which he supposed he should be thankful for. Neither did Levi, Marquis, Rowan, or anyone he saw that day for that matter. Good. He put the shades back on and saw himself out. These would be annoying when the sun went down but for now, this would have to do. JC turned towards the door again and walked out, massaging his knuckles as he went. His dad had a hell of a jaw.

At the dining hall, he saw plenty of old faces. Not many of them liked him but you didn't need to make friends to go fishing. Not too many of them anyway. There were a few whose company he didn't mind. His mind wasn't occupied with that though. There was someone he needed to speak with. Lou ( spareparts spareparts ). As much as he dreaded the conversation, it had to happen. JC was not going to buy from BB anymore.
 






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Riley's head turned in surprise at the sound of the door opening. Once she saw that it was just Reese she relaxed before glancing back toward the folder Rowan held. Would he want other people to find out about this? Surely not. They didn't even know if their theory about Paige going to rehab one year was true and as much as Riley didn't care for the Evergreen she knew it also wouldn't be fair for rumors to spread about a dead girl who couldn't defend herself or explain what actually happened.

She tossed Reese a forced smile but it slowly dissolved as their eyes met and Riley knew he saw right through her, probably through all three of them. From his perspective, they definitely looked suspicious, and the way Rowan immediately shoved the folder into his duffel bag didn't help the situation. Still, it wasn't Riley's secret to tell even if she was close to Reese.

Her smile fell and she swallowed trying to think up an excuse but before she could speak the door opened again and Kayden walked into the cabin causing her eyes to nearly roll. Why were so many people suddenly so interested in coming into cabin four? It was a miracle Reese or Kayden hadn't walked in while they were openly talking about Paige and her theoretical addiction.

Riley stood when Rowan did, there was no way she was staying and getting interrogated by Reese or Kayden on what was going on and she also didn't want to leave her best friend to walk to dinner by himself when he had just learned sensitive information about someone he still cared for and she could practically see his brain buzzing with questions he likely would never get answers to, not unless he asked Paige's only surviving family members and even if he did would Mr Evergreen and Isla be willing to tell him the truth? Or would they lie to him to protect what little reputation Paige had left in camp?

"Yeah, yeah I'm coming," Riley answered, though in retrospect it didn't matter as Rowan headed out the door before she could even finish her sentence. She shook her head with a sigh before she gave Reese a quick wave bye. They'd have to catch up after dinner it looked like, she wanted to know if he was still having trouble with his filmmaking or not because there was no way she was going to let one crappy school ruin him going after his dreams.

She pushed past the door and jogged down the steps to catch up to Rowan faster. "Rowan- jeez slow down a bit would you!" Riley called out with a huff of air. When she finally caught up to him she gave him a sympathetic look but decided not to bring the file up directly. "You ran out of there pretty fast. Want to talk about it?" She matched his pace, falling into step with him before looking ahead. "Or we can just walk in silence if you want and I can pretend like nothing is bothering you."






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"Go ahead. I prefer the top bunk, anyway." Isla smiled at Liberty, clasping their hands behind their back and continuing to rock on their heels, eyes scanning the room absentmindedly while she and Ricky talked. If one could call the icy interaction they had 'talking'. Ricky acknowledged her purely to be polite and Liberty responded in kind, but the way her brow ticked told Isla everything they needed to know- She was annoyed by him.

Isla's gaze stayed on Liberty, head tilting curiously. She could almost see the gears turning in the other woman's mind as she tried to figure a way out of this. It seemed Liberty decided to pick her as the scapegoat.

"I didn't realize how late it was, but you're right," Isla followed Libby's gaze to the comically large clock on the wall, nodding, "I wouldn't mind walking with you. It isn't often we get a chance to talk."

Turning to Ricky, Isla could only offer an apologetic smile, "I promise we'll catch up later, okay?" She gave him a light pat on the shoulder, "I'll see you later, Ricky."

Isla turned, glancing at Liberty and gesturing with a small nod to the door, "Let's get going, Little Bird."





♡coded by uxie♡
 
MOOD: comfortable, curious, & hungry.

LOCATION: camp evergreen; dining hall.
basics
INTER.:
riley kelson and ramona blake, mentions juliette.

TAGS:
mi casa mi casa + lvcid lvcid

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TL;DR the girls are catching up with each other over dinner, talking about how they are and if they heard of lingering wolves. ya'know, the usual.
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dinner time
connie levine, ramona blake, & riley kelson.
Dinners at camp were an interesting—and at times messy, in a literal and figurative sense—affair. Kind of like family gatherings, from what Ramona could recall about them.

She didn’t exactly have many memories to draw from—there’d only ever been two, both when Mona was still very young and had yielded disastrous results. There was a reason their family was small, keeping to themselves.

Elena Blake may have been distant and apathetic, but she came by it honestly.

Cooper Blake was no different as of late. The arrival of his pre-teen years had scared off the once-warm and affectionate little boy he’d been, and in his place was a gangly twelve year old that thought having an older sister lowered his coolness factor in the face of his friends. Even now, he blatantly ignored the smile Ramona sent his way as he sat down at the opposite end of the table, as far away as he could manage while still adhering to the seating chart.

Mona glanced away, the corners of her mouth slipping down and dark eyes falling to where her hands rested on the rough wooden surface before her.

Meanwhile, slipping out the wooden doorframe of Cabin Three stood an uncertain Connie Levine, but not before casting one last backward glance at the dufflebag that sat atop her bare mattress. Part of her didn’t want to leave what she found alone while her consciousness was telling her to run while she still could. The inanimate object held so much power over her after discovering it in a place where she would lay her head all summer: She wanted to figure out why it had been forgotten there in the first place. But she didn’t have all the pieces to the puzzle and there was no one she could trust yet to willingly hand it over. It was a situation to sit on until the right opportunity crossed her path.

As she stepped down towards the bottom of the stairs, she lifted one hand to shield her eyes from the abrasive rays of the sun that crept towards the horizon line. It seemed to shine its brightest as it came closer to wishing Camp Evergreen a good night, and while Levine enjoyed a nice day to wallow in, being a counselor came first. Dinner was closing in and there was no time left for her to stay leisurely about her pace.

On her walk towards the Dining Hall, Connie found herself spotting more familiar faces trekking their way towards the same destination they were all expected to be at within the next few minutes. And habitually, she found herself cherry-picking which of the few she prayed wouldn’t be sitting at her table for the next hour. Yet, the more she let her gaze linger on the moving groups, it was safe to say that it would have been easier to list the counselors she didn’t mind. Not for any personal reason but solely due to the fact that the majority came with some baggage she wasn’t ready to bear hearing about.

In the midst of her stride, Connie heard a pair of campers hustling up towards her side, slowing down their walking pace to match her own once they were further up to face her.

“Hey Connie, ‘member me, Jack??! I was kayaking with you and Leon last summer!” the boy had said as he bounced on the balls of his feet and let his lanky arms swing at his sides. Almost missing her because of his height, a smaller girl who’d look to be about 11-years-old stood quiet beside him, looking at Connie with curious eyes yet staying tight-lipped. The counselor found herself throwing her a kind, reassuring smile saved just for the kids she worked for before speaking.

“You can’t really forget the kid that tries knocking his friend off with an oar. You gonna keep your hands to yourself or do I gotta sit you beside me this time?” Connie asked half-jokingly, a wider smile that flashed a row of teeth tugging at the corners of her lips at Jack’s laugh of remembrance. She was feeling more lighthearted than ever at the moment, the piece of stained glass long forgotten. Even as she found herself holding the door open for the kids, it didn’t quite falter until she found herself walking towards the bulletin board.

“Naw, I’ll be good this time, I swear. Mom says I have to ‘“Make a good impression for Katie’”. Whatever that means,” he shrugged to himself, earning a deserved punch to the shoulder from her now. Connie found herself stifling at laugh as she turned to the laminated paper tacked to the board.

In response, she had said: “Well, prove that to me by giving your counselors an easy time for the next hour, okay? I’ll see you ‘round.”

She watched as they picked up speed and ran to the nearest table before turning her attention back to the bulletin. Her eyes scanned the list until she found her name above two other familiar ones. Ramona Blake and Riley Kelson. At the familiarity of one name, Connie found herself letting out a sigh of thanks. Riley was part of the select few of counselors she could still stand to be around and that wasn’t doing the girl justice. If anything, she could confidently say that she counted her as a friend.

Ramona was different, however. A name not entirely personal to her life yet still a better candidate than anyone else she could think of.

The universe had decided to be nice to her this time around and Connie found herself standing a little straighter—carrying her head a little higher as she walked towards her table—with the absence of a weight she was burdening since she first dropped off her bags. Dinner wouldn’t be too bad, it seemed.

In the meantime, Rowan and Riley parted ways and Riley found her pace slowing down as she began passing the cabins. She wasn't in that big of a rush to get to dinner, she didn't even know who she would be paired with and the idea of having to sit through a dinner of small talk with counselors she was potentially not friends with was not her favorite idea. At the very least she would finally be able to see some of the kids she’d developed a close bond with over the years.

Just as she was about to pick up her pace a noise alerted her towards the woods. Riley came to a stop, turning her head and looking towards the tree line with a puzzled expression. She could have sworn that she’d just heard something. Riley glanced around herself. There was no one else around that she could have asked to verify if she’d actually heard something or not. Then the rustling noise happened again confirming that she was, in fact, not going crazy. What was that? An animal? A person? Could have been some kid who was trying to skip dinner.

As a counselor she knew that if it was a kid she had a responsibility to bring them out of the woods. All the other counselors would have been heading to dinner so there was no way that if a child was out there that an adult was with them.

She made her way to the edge of the treeline. Looking around she squinted her dark eyes. Far off in the distance she swore that she could see..something. The mass was so far away and with the sun beginning to set it made it hard to tell if it was a person or an animal. Still, there was no way she’d be able to forgive herself if it was a kid that continued deeper into the woods and got lost so with a huff of air she began walking in the same direction. As Riley got further into the trees she noticed a pair of footprints. So it’s definitely someone out here then..She continued on the path, following the prints before they abruptly came to a stop. Her brows furrowed in confusion and Riley started to look around to see if whoever the footprints belonged to maybe changed course but she found nothing. What the hell? Riley had been traversing these woods for over a decade and she had been hiking with her father for years before that. Needless to say she had enough experience to know that tracks didn’t just abruptly disappear like this. Not unless there was something that caused them to wash away or cover them.

Riley lifted her hands to her mouth. “Hello?” She called out, eyes scanning between the trees for any sign of life. “Is anyone there?” She tried again but received no answer in return. Now she really felt like she was going crazy.

Making her way out of the woods Riley decided to jog the rest of the way to the dining hall, only slowing down once she got closer to not look out of place or suspicious. There was no way she wasn’t the last counselor at her table to arrive. Speaking of tables Riley took the time to look at the bulletin board with all the seating arrangements. She lifted a finger and scanned down the columns until she found her name feeling a wave of relief wash over her at the two names she saw along with hers. Connie and Ramona. Two people Riley could confidently say she considers to be friends.

Maybe the universe didn’t have it out for her after all.

She made her way over to table three, waving to a few kids who noticed her, and smiling at others that she recognized from previous years. As she approached the table she took a seat. “Hey Mona,” She greeted before turning her gaze to Connie. “And Connie.”

Ramona’s head raised at the sound of her friend’s voice, lips turning upward in greeting. “Hi,” she returned, gaze sliding to follow Riley’s as she glanced at the third member of their table, blinking like she was noticing Connie’s presence for the first time. Mona shifted in her seat, moving to allow space for Riley to join them. “How was the first day?” She couldn’t speak on the matter much herself—she’d spent most of it alone, tending to plants. Not that the brunette was complaining, but it made her opinion of the camp’s official start somewhat biased without having to deal with the chaos of campers or Jonathan’s heartfelt speech to welcome everyone back.

The cacophony of over a hundred different voices bouncing off the walls of the dining hall couldn’t disturb the comfortable silence Connie had chosen to wallow in as she walked towards table three. She was almost there now, her eyes settling on the familiar sight of Ramona, sitting in her own place next to the gathering campers—going back and forth between offering a smile to anyone who noticed and fiddling idly with her own hands that rested on the glossy surface.

More tension seemed to roll off her shoulders at the confirmation that there would be nothing to disturb her as slid into an empty chair, offering a subtle smile back to Ramona in case she would have caught it. Soon after, Connie’s attention turned to Riley, who arrived not long after she did with the bravery to break the silence.

“Hey Riley, Ramona.. ‘S good to see you again,” Connie greeted, flicking her gaze back and forth between the two as Ramona continued the conversation. ‘How was the first day?’ she had asked them, forcing Connie to relive the memory of what happened at the amphitheater earlier today. It resurfaced whether or not she wanted it to—the image of Juliette’s disturbingly smug smile as she wiggled three fingers at her in mockery, jabbing her core and deflating any attempt at positivity Levine had tried to maintain for the summer. She had to fight the urge to roll her eyes.

As the question lingered for them to answer, Connie debated internally—should she lie, should she tell the truth, or should she avoid the subject entirely? While the silent battle waged in her mind, a warm scent caught her attention. It pulled her toward a large pot she hadn’t yet noticed sitting on their table, a black ladle resting strategically beside it. Question forgotten.

She lifted the lid, and steam rose instantly, curling against her face as the condensation dripped back into the stew below. It looked decent enough, chunks of sliced carrot, potato, and meat swirling in a broth. On the side, a fresh loaf of bread sat neatly on a platter, the crust golden and, seemingly, crisp. The combination would be enough to fill their stomachs for the evening, Connie not one to complain. If anything, she’d stick to dipping the bread in the broth, softening it just enough to prevent the bread from stealing the saliva from off her tongue.

Replacing the lid, she let her gaze wander back to the campers—some caught up in animated conversations while others watched with thinly veiled curiosity that mirrored her own. Finally, she turned to Ramona and Riley, waiting for an opening in their own conversation before speaking again.

“You guys ready to eat?”

Riley easily slid beside Mona nudging her with her arm as she did so playfully. “My first day was pretty uneventful.” It was a small white lie but a lie nonetheless. Riley didn’t think it was her place to talk about what Rowan had found out about Paige, nor did she want to bring up what she saw in the woods. How was she supposed to explain that she swore that she’d heard and saw something out there but when she went to see what or who it was the tracks it caused just stopped? It seemed better to just keep her mouth shut about it and leave it alone.

Did Riley have anything else she could possibly talk about instead? She remembered seeing, and hearing, JC go at it with Levi when she first went to the amphitheater but the thought of her ex made her want to roll her eyes. Levi was the last thing she wanted to talk about right now and Riley was sure that at least Mona was on the same boat as her. Though that also left Riley with nothing else to discuss so she shrugged her shoulders. Honestly for this camp she would take a peaceful first day as a win.

‘You guys ready to eat?’

Connie’s question reached Riley’s ear and almost immediately she was overtaken by the smell of food. When was the last time she had eaten? She could vaguely remember packing a few snacks for her trip here but her last actual meal hadn’t been since early this morning. Needless to say Riley was starving. She stared at the large pot hungrily. “Yeah I could eat.” Looking around she took notice of the three bowls placed near the edge of the table for the three of them and reached over to grab them. She placed one down for each of them. “I saw that Juliette’s the cook this year so hopefully this is good.” Riley had never seen her cook before but she was hoping (and praying) that if she had been switched from her typical role as a lifeguard that it must have been for a good reason.

At least one of them had had a decent day. The way Connie evaded Ramona’s question didn’t go unnoticed by her, but she couldn’t bring herself to pry, thinking back abruptly to her own mishaps in the few hours they’d been there. The carrots in the flooded sink, the lack of help at the garden, the journal…

Mona had forgotten about the book she’d found and stashed away in her dresser drawer. Again, she told herself it was probably nothing, but for a moment, as she glanced between the two girls currently in her company, she contemplated asking about it, snaking the topic of wolves into their conversation as subtly as she could manage in case either of the others knew anything about it. It couldn’t hurt, right?

Instead, Ramona turned her attention to the pot of stew sitting invitingly before them. As the lid was pried off, suddenly it was all Mona could think about. Her typical day-to-day diet consisted mainly of quick, easy-to-make meals, most of which came out of a box or a bag in the freezer, and she couldn’t remember the last time she’d had something this filling—she’d evidently been missing out, if the way her stomach churned was anything to judge by. She could even excuse the fact that it’d been concocted by Juliette—Leon had been in the kitchen with her when Ramona had made her swift exit, and the mere idea that he’d been there to supervise and prevent any…mistakes on the blonde’s part was comfort enough.

“Only one way to find out,” Mona said, giving a brief shrug at Riley’s words before reaching for the ladle. She spooned some of the stew into her own bowl before offering to do the same for the others. Even if it wasn’t particularly good, Ramona had never considered herself a picky eater—she could down just about anything.

Gradually, the din of the dining hall began to die down as campers and counselors alike lessened their overlapping chatter in favor of chewing.

Ramona swallowed. If she was going to ask any questions, she needed to do it in a way that wouldn’t raise any eyebrows of those brazen enough to eavesdrop. “You know,” she started, “I think I read something somewhere about wolves moving into this area. That’s weird, right? I wonder if we’ll have to cut back on the hikes this year…”

It wasn’t a lie, technically-speaking.

Despite Ramona redirecting the conversation, it still wasn’t good enough to erase the thought that had snaked front and center into Connie’s mind—Juliette had cooked the food she would have to eat if she didn’t want to deal with an empty stomach and bad attitude for the rest of the night. Great.

“Thank you,” she muttered gratefully, carefully sliding her bowl in front of her. Before sitting down, she allowed herself to drag the platter of fresh slices of bread towards the center where it now sat at everyone’s reach. She began by ripping a piece of bread that she picked for herself from the platter, listening carefully to what Ramona had to say as she dipped it into the still-warm broth. “You said wolves?” she had asked, taking a hesitant bite afterwards before lifting her head to meet their gaze.

Honestly speaking, Connie wouldn’t have been surprised if a stray few found themselves trekking towards camp. Establishing a summer camp in the middle of the woods didn’t suddenly change the fact that it was still their habitat. It wasn’t out of the ordinary, but it sure was a safety hazard to everyone here now. It would mean way less outdoor activities for children to burn off excess energy with and maybe even a shorter summer session. The thought didn’t exactly sway as good or bad in her eyes—especially now that Jonathan ensured to add thicker security for them.

She just didn’t want to see anyone else get hurt.

Before her mind could wander to Paige again, Connie continued: “It would suck if they actually started wandering close to camp grounds, but I mean.. Anything to keep the kids safer. We can’t afford any more accidents.” If Ramona had read the news of wolves closing in, part of Connie wondered if Jonathan had already known about them as well. If it was a real, growing concern, was he doing anything about it? Did they even feel the need to address it at all? She thought over these questions in silence as she looked between the two other counselors again—occasionally poking at the chunks of meat floating in harmony with the vegetables—and making sure the kids had their fill as well.

“But at least we have the new curfews. It’s a decent start, I think.”

Riley reached for the soup ladle before she poured herself a heaping serving. At the very least it looked appetizing so hopefully it would taste decent as well, she really didn’t want to go to sleep with a disappointed stomach. Grabbing a piece of bread she tore off a piece before dipping into the warm broth. “Wolves?” she repeated before placing the piece of food into her mouth. Surprisingly, it actually tasted pretty good. Not the worst soup she’d ever had but also not the best- exactly what someone would expect from a camp cook. “That’s not really surprising to me.” Riley continued once she swallowed.

After all, it was still their home. Just because Johnathon Evergreen had purchased the land to set up his camp didn’t change the fact that the forest and woods themselves still had animals inhabiting it. Wolves broke off from their packs in search of their own territory every day, even if they had steered clear of the land before now it had always been a matter of time before some showed up. Riley just hoped that no one got hurt as a result. Perhaps that was another reason why extra security measures had been brought in this year, not that they really helped when they weren’t even at camp yet.

When the conversation shifted towards the curfew Riley couldn’t help but to send Connie a look that read ‘You sure about that?’ before looking back down to her bowl. She swirled her spoon around, mixing up the contents before opening her mouth to speak again. ”A curfew is nice but let’s be honest. Not everyone is going to stick to it.” Between counselors who thought they were above the rules to kids who just didn’t like to listen- hell some kids would ignore the rule just to be little shits, someone wasn’t going to need Johnathon’s warning and potentially get themselves hurt.

It was a scary thing to think about. Renee and Paige’s disappearance still felt like a black cloud looming over Evergreen camp and Riley wondered if it would ever go away or if anyone who came to the camp from now on would be forced to live with the constant reminders of what happened to them.

“As long as people don’t go out into the woods by themselves from now on it should be fine.” It might have been wishful thinking but what else could they count on right now? Wolves typically tried to avoid civilization anyway so with enough luck they probably wouldn’t even get anywhere near close to camp.

Ramona’s eyebrows furrowed. “That’s true,” she agreed. Not only had both girls made good arguments, but they didn’t seem at all bothered by the sudden presence of wolves. She’d simply read one too many Nancy Drew books as a kid, searching for mysteries in places there weren’t any to find.

“I guess, if we need to, we could always employ the buddy system, but let’s be honest. Anyone that sneaks off alone into the woods at night is asking for trouble, wolves or not.”

She could think of several counselors off the top of her head that would do such a thing, not to mention campers.

Mona glanced down the table, eyes finding her brother again. Would he? Rebellious streak aside, he had to know better, right? She certainly hadn’t raised Cooper to be reckless, but he was going to make his own decisions regardless of what Ramona thought was best for him.

“I’m sure we have nothing to worry about,” Mona decided, forcing a smile.

Yet, she’d lingered on the subject long enough to lose her appetite. Ramona shoved what was left of the stew-soaked bread in her fingers into her mouth before pushing aside her half-empty bowl and wiping her hands on the front of her denim shorts.

While Ramona pushed her bowl away in obvious disinterest, Connie was surprised to find that she hadn’t abandoned her own yet. In the moment, her hunger betrayed her simmering distaste for Juliette. Since picking up the spoon, she hadn’t set it down, and now was polishing off the last bite of bread while her bowl sat nearly empty, save for two lonely chunks of potato. Despite her feelings, Connie couldn’t deny that dinner had done its job, leaving her comfortably full—a small satisfaction she wouldn’t admit out loud.

Wiping at her lips with a crumpled napkin, she chimed in again. “Let’s just hope no one’s stupid enough to try it, given what’s happened.” Her mind flashed to the look Riley had given her earlier—a glance that made it clear she wasn’t fooling anyone, least of all herself. Counselors would be out of a job at Camp Evergreen had the children displayed enough trust and acknowledgement of the safety standards to be left alone to their own devices. But they couldn’t be, especially with their curiosity for the unknown potentially leading them into dangers that lurked in the shadows.

But her coworkers? They knew better. Or at least, they should. Ignoring the new curfew rules Jonathan had set wasn’t just reckless—it was asking for trouble. And Connie had no patience for those her age who went looking for it.

She found herself letting out a quiet huff, pulling pulling herself from the grip of her internal musings. Her gaze wandered to the clock on the wall, its red neon digits blinking 7:10PM. Twenty minutes left until dinner officially ended and she’d have a window of free time before they were all expected to head into their cabins. Levine wasn’t sure how she’d spend it—maybe something spontaneous would spark her interest. Or perhaps she’d end up doing a quick perimeter check to make sure no one was foolish enough to wander too close to the lake or slip past the boundaries of the camp. There was always a stray kid or two eager to test their limits, reveling the thrill of being where they shouldn’t.

But memories made on the edge of risk weren’t worth the risk.

As the last of the table finished their meals—Ramona and Riley included—Connie stood, instinctively tidying surfaces of the table within reach. She swiped at the stray bread crumbs and instructed the campers to do the same after they stacked their bowls into a neat pile to be cleared later. With everyone pitching in, Table Three was soon cleaned and its occupants were ready to head off in their separate directions.
code by valen t.
 
MOOD: Liberty (bemused), Reese (amused), Zarina (confused), Marquis (concerned)
basics
COLLAB BY:
lostbird lostbird Maverick. Maverick. Wyll Wyll irregular-neptune irregular-neptune
tags
TL;DR Zarina meets the other counsellors. Liberty overshares. Marquis loses his composure. Reese remains the funniest one at the table.
tl;dr
THE DINING HALL
marquis solis, liberty fallon, reese hendricks, and zarina korrapati.
Taking the lead, Liberty strolled to the front door of the Lodge and held it open for Isla to exit the building first, stifling a sigh as other campers took advantage of her rare moment of courtesy by rushing out of the door, shoving each other playfully and barking out, “thanks Liberty!”

With great effort to not roll her eyes, Liberty lets the door slip closed and strolls across the camp with Isla. It starts as a comfortable silence before it dawns on her to be polite ─ that something needed to be said in light of the tragedy last summer. “I truly hope you have been doing fine over the past year, Isla. Despite the grief Renee caused, I never would wish this to happen to you, or her.”

It was foreign to find the right words for the situation. Liberty was used to reading about tragedy in history, war crimes, upsetting slights in the political world of royals ─ this was all too personal. Uncharted territory. With an uncomfortable swallow, Liberty links her arm with Isla’s, hoping the small and unnatural contact was enough connection to get her point across. “It must have been hard, I am… sorry you went through it. No one should.”

The Dining Hall comes into sight and Liberty’s relief is palpable. Enough connection for me. She releases Isla’s arm and walks the rest of the way by their side, ever-so-often casting an unsure glance at the still lake. She had the chance to corner Leon at the end of last summer, their thoughts echoing each other: they’re at the bottom of the lake. They have to be. Shifting her eyes to Isla, she searches their face and wonders if they believe it, too.

With no chance to dwell on that, Liberty takes the four steps up the Dining Hall and enters, pivoting around to scan the bulletin board. Marquis Solis, Reese Hendricks, Liberty Fallon, and Zarina Korrapati. Her head tilts, Zarina?

“No luck for us,” Liberty turns to Isla and waves a farewell. “See you at the cabin.” Book club would start tomorrow night after dinner, tonight would likely be spent curled up in one of the armchairs at the cabin and finishing her own book… and finding a nice hiding spot for the postcard currently burning a hole in her back pocket.

Leaving Isla to her own devices, Liberty locates her table and takes her seat beside a camper ─ the girl immediately leans against her arm, spent and exhausted from the introductory day and, no doubt, the journey to Easthallow. For the second time in the past ten minutes, Liberty wraps her arm around the camper in comfort. “Lucky we have a curfew, hm? You will be in bed before you know it.”

From across the room, Reese’s eyes narrow, and then roll. After he’d scanned the board outside the dining cabin, he had let out a sigh, a heavy breath through hollow lungs. Despite the no-smoking rule on camp grounds, his throat felt rather tight, and the soreness annoyed him.

He swallowed. It felt like he’d been breathing through his mouth in his sleep last night. Or screaming.

Riley and Rowan’s quick departure had annoyed him, though the half-hearted wave from Riley had encouraged him to hold his tongue and let them leave. That and the fact that they seemed freaked out, and though Reese was curious, he’d rather not get involved in distressing emotional affairs—which, being at a summer camp, was an ambitious goal.

Marquis had been summoned with them, but now Reese knew the other man would likely show up once more at his own table, since they’d been assigned together for dinner. Reese had shrugged when they’d all left Cabin 4, not caring to chase them down. He’d never been one to follow when people left him, not even now.

Reese had spotted Liberty as soon as he’d entered, and he’d used her golden hair as a guiding beacon through the throngs of children and staff all bustling through the dining hall. As he watched her sit down, he walked towards her, hands in his jean pockets, careful not to crush the loose cigarettes he’d stored in there.

He caught the tail end of Liberty’s comment as he sat down opposite from her. He plopped down heavily and let out a groan. He’d missed the curfew announcement at the welcoming.

“Since when is there a curfew?” he interrupted in lieu of an introduction, shifting in his seat before meeting Liberty’s eyes. He tilted his head toward the camper next to her. He didn’t know much about kids, but he figured no kid wanted to go to bed early. Of course not. At least, he never had. “And since when are we lucky for it?”

Marquis had taken the out offered by his friend when leaving the cabin and so had also left the cabin in much of a rush, not wanting to be the only person stuck around to the questioning of what the three had been talking about.

He was still notably freaked out by everything that had happened in the Cabin. The Summer Camp that he knew and loved all of a sudden felt like a Scooby-Doo Mystery - he always hated that show - and he wanted nothing to do with that. He just wanted to camp with friends like they’d had every single year. He worried that two terrible camps in a row would ruin camp for everyone forever.

He’d needed a little more time before getting to the dining hall because he wanted to try and get everything he had seen out of his head - he hadn’t even had the chance to tell Rowan and Riley about the…whatever it was that he saw. Was that something he should tell them? Surely, with what all three of them had seen, they wouldn’t think he was crazy, right?

Arriving at the dining hall however, he was met with yet another unfortunate sight. “...you’ve got to be kidding me…”. As whatever you want to call it would have it - luck, fate, God, Mr. Evergreen - he was now sitting on the same table as the person he had run away from only a couple minutes ago. Relax; breathe. It’s dinner. There are others around, there are campers around, surely he’s not going to bring it up. Let’s just enjoy dinner. He consoled himself with those words and it did little good. But, at least, a little good was something.

He made it to the table a minute or two after Reese arrived, waving to both of them with a gentle, albeit half-hearted, smile. “I don’t know about you two but I’m ready to eat!” The sentence was punctuated with a short and light chuckle, shaking his head as he sat down. He knew that He’d need to address what happened in the Cabin otherwise it might sit bitterly with Reese and he’d rather not have that.

He turned and offered and apologetic and ever-so-slightly bashful smile at Reese. “Sorry about ding-dong-ditching you like that. Well…you were the ding-dong and I was the ditch, but you get the point.” He needed a lie. One that was believable and also would be easy to use to deflect any further questions. “The three of us had been planning a surprise later on in camp and we hit some bumps in the road.” He almost said that they were planning a surprise for before dinner - that would have better explained the rush - but they also might have asked him to share what the surprise was since they’d missed the chance and there was no more surprise to ruin. He couldn’t have that because he didn’t actually have a surprise.

It seemed like a suitable enough lie. He could always come back later on, when he’s had the chance to think of a believable lie for the surprise, and tell them that because of the bumps in the road, the plans fell through.

Zarina was mildly disappointed when the others told her that dinner had assigned seating, but she was a little thankful that she’d be able to meet some more of the counselors before the night was over. She hated feeling out of place, so the sooner she could put names with faces, the better.

She parted ways with her newfound friends after finding their respective tables and nervously approached her own – as she got closer, it seemed like the others were already there and knots formed in her stomach. She’d been surprisingly outgoing so far – but that had really just been a matter of latching onto the first person she met and following him around all day. Meeting new people always made her a bit uneasy, but these counselors seemed nice from a distance – they at least were smiling and chatting, unlike a couple other tables that housed counselors looking like they’d rather be anywhere but there.

For a split second, she agreed with the sentiment – it was like lunch on the first day at a new school, trying to find a seat at a lunch table. The agony of how to approach, how to introduce yourself without being painfully awkward. Except that at least here, the seating was already picked out for her. She had yet to decide if that was better or worse…

As she approached, she took a deep breath and then smiled through her fear, trying to put on an easygoing air as she approached and gripped the chair she planned to sit in. “Hi! My name is Zarina, mind if I join you guys?”

Quis’ ears perked to the sound of someone else approaching the table and he turned to look at them. In all his years at the camp, he hadn’t seen her before and so figured she was a new counselor. Good; she could be his ticket out in case the others had any follow up questions they wanted to ask about his surprise.

He met her smile with a big, bright smile of his own. “Ah, newbie.” He pat the empty spot beside him, gesturing for her to take a seat. “I seem to recall seeing your name on the board so I don’t think whether we mind or not has anything to do with it,” he joked. “I’m Marquis, the fun one. Liberty over there is the camp mum that we love so much. And Reese is the future Steven Spielberg. Looks like you lucked out with table choices…and camp choices in general honestly.”

One of the campers looked like they were going to say something about “lucking out with Camp Evergreen” but a warning look from Marquis shut that down immediately.

Liberty quirks a brow at Marquis, lips tilting into a smirk. “Camp mum? I suppose cleaning up after everyone else's mess would earn me that title.”

She turns to regard Zarina properly, giving the girl a quick once over and decides to hit two birds with one stone by answering Reese’s question. “I’d expect you to be a bit quicker on the upkeep Reese. Of course there’s a curfew when two of the most important girls in Oregon State are missing.” She points at the chair beside her, making eye contact with Zarina. “Sit beside me, not Marquis. He’ll talk your ear off all night.”

Dropping her arm from around the camper, she makes a shush-ing gesture at them before reaching for a bowl and ladle for the stew. “And we are lucky for the curfew, Hendricks. All of us. Jonathan Evergreen and the local police force have absolutely no leads about the girls. Do you want to be the next person with their face printed on a missing poster, pinned up for thousands of miles, wasting all of that paper?”

Zarina laughed a little at Marquis’ joke – obviously they didn’t have a choice, but would it have been rude to just come over and plop down next to them? She honestly didn’t know, but either way these counselors seemed quite friendly, so maybe they wouldn’t have minded. She started moving to sit next to her invited spot next to Marquis, but then Liberty chimed in, patting the spot next to her. This led Zarina to have to make a choice, unfortunately.

Ultimately, Liberty was on the same side of the table as Zarina and Liberty looked cool, like someone Zarina might be friends with. She gave Marquis an apologetic look as she took Liberty’s invitation and sat down.

She listened to Liberty talking about the curfew and ‘missing people,’ and wondered if it would be appropriate to… ask what she meant? Zarina knew only surface level information about what went on at camp last year, maybe skimming an old article that mentioned missing girls, but past that…

“So… should I be worried about anything?”

Liberty throws a casual glance around the rest of the table, waiting for someone to acknowledge the elephant in the room but her pent up impatience to discuss the tragedy reaches a boiling point now that she’s back in this environment, around the same people that went through this… tragedy with her. She rests her chin in the palm of her hand─balancing on her elbow, and catches Zarina’s eyes.

“Last summer, Jonathan Evergreens’ daughters went missing at camp. No one, not even law enforcement, has any leads about what might have transpired.” Liberty drops her voice to a murmur, moving slightly closer towards the new girl to block out the nosy ears of the other campers. “Could be a serial killer, an accident on the lake, went missing on one of the umpteenth trails around these woods.” She sways her head back and forth as she lists out the endless possibilities and stops to give Zarina a secret smirk. “Or one of us did it. Personally, my money would be on JC if I had to guess. Anyone else?”

She straightens to address Marquis and Reese, daring them to list their own suspects amongst the other counsellors.

“Libby…”, he tried getting her attention to get her to stop when she had first mentioned people going missing, but his voice was too quiet and Zarina cut him off anyway.

This was bad, this was not the time, place, atmosphere or occasion to talk about this. It also most certainly wasn't the welcome he wanted to give the new counselor - even more so for the new campers on their table.

“Well,” he started his response to Zarina's question, wanting to reassure her that everything would be fine. But Liberty got to it first, cutting him off yet again. “Easy, Libby.” His warning went ignored, practically unheard. He could see the discomfort on the face of the counselors.

“Liberty!” This time he slammed his hands on the table and stood up, his voice silencing most others in the dining hall. It was a tone that nobody had quite heard from Marquis before - a tone that most certainly caught a few off guard.

His breathing was elevated and his eyes held a fury of emotions. However, looking around at how much attention he'd drawn, he simmered down. “I'm sorry…” he first offered to the herbal assembly, then focused on his table - very specifically and deliberately not Liberty - “I'm sorry…I shouldn't have lost it like that.” Be cleared his throat and only now did he look at Liberty.

For the second time since sitting down, Liberty quirks a brow at Marquis’ outburst─barely containing her smirk of amusement. Oh? A tough guy all of a sudden? She deliberately ignores the stares of others in the Dining Hall boring into her back, refusing to drop her gaze from Marquis as he attempts to settle down.

“What got into you? You know better than that. Or, at least, the partner I knew knew better than that…”

His gaze moved to Zarina but he angled himself so it was clear that he was talking to everyone. “What's important is that that's not going to happen this year. We're all going to keep each other safe, right?” His bright, bubbly and encouraging smile had found its way back on his face. “Come on. Lay year is gone and we've learned from it. Let's not allow it to ruin this year, okay?” As he spoke, he tossed Liberty a, very clearly, disappointed look before his gaze swept across the rest of the table.

“Of course it won’t happen this year, Marquis. Because Jonathan Evergreen introduced a curfew.” She leans across the table to ruffle Reese’s hair briefly, calling back to his earlier remark. “Lucky us, right?”

With great care, Liberty pivots her gaze to Marquis and speaks with intent. “However, I think the better question is what has gotten into you, Marquis. So agitated… if I didn’t know better, I might think you were hiding something.” She stands from the table and finally decides to glance around the room, careful to mask her expression into something blank and disinterested, hiding her shock at Marquis’ outburst and more importantly, his questioning of her character. Liberty Fallon, infallible.

“Welcome to Evergreen Camp, Zarina. I rescind my words from earlier─Marquis is quite the bore.”

Appetite gone, Liberty strolls out of the Dining Hall with every intention of finishing off her book in the comfort of her cabin─and hiding the postcard before she’s interrupted.

Reese’s jaw had been dropping lower and lower with each sentence that Liberty had spoken, and now that she had left with one last jab at Marquis, a guffaw of laughter escaped him, his eyes wide.

“Jesus,” he muttered, his smile disappearing behind his cup as he raised it to take a sip. He shook his head upon placing it back on the table. “Guess Lib was having Marquis for dinner. Another camp kill.”

He turned his gaze to Zarina, feeling a touch of sympathy that he wouldn’t allow to travel to his face. He shrugged one shoulder. Since Marquis had handled introductions, he opted out of a handshake.

Marquis had sat there, stewing over the madness that had just happened. That wasn’t the Liberty that he knew and it bothered him. Had been bothering him. However, it was at Reese’s laughter that he couldn’t take it anymore. He huffed and offered an apology to Reese, Zarina and the others at the table before sliding out of his seat and walking quickly after Liberty. Something was up, that much, he knew.

“You’re gonna love it here, Zarina,” he said, punctuating his sentence with a slight chuckle that seemed to spit sarcasm. “We’re a big family. Once a year reunion, a meeting of flesh and blood. Kind of like a massacre.”

He smiled again, with genuine humor this time, and lifted a leg up on the space next to him, resting his elbow on his knee. He kept his fork in his hand, twirling it between his fingers, his gaze flitting downward to trace the swirls etched into the wooden table.

Zarina was drawn in a bit by the clandestine way that Liberty told her the story of the Evergreen daughters. While it made her a bit nervous, both the fact that someone had literally gone missing at the camp she was now working at and the unhinged way that Liberty was saying it. The way she was so ready to blame one of the other counselors and not just the natural causes that it could be.

Before Zarina could even say anything, the first counselor that spoke to her – Marquis – blew up after his warnings were ignored. Zarina bit her lip when she noticed all the other counselor’s eyes on them and tried to make herself look a little small – she didn’t want to be known for being in an argument in the dining hall first thing… she really didn’t like being in the spotlight. She knew they weren’t looking at her exactly… but it was hard to feel like they didn’t see her.

Liberty addressed her again, and Zarina didn’t even open her mouth to respond before Liberty stormed out of the dining hall. She glanced over and gave a slight chuckle at Reese’s comment, “Well, I’m used to having a big family, so I already feel so at home.”

She looked back down at her bowl of stew. Her family wasn’t quite so dramatic, however. As they tried to continue with dinner despite the awkwardness, Zarina wondered what exactly had she gotten herself into, and if it was too late to go back to her host family…
code by valen t.
 
MOOD: Leon (Resigned), Isla (Calm, and confused), Juliette (Mischievous)
basics
COLLAB BY: lostbird lostbird angel doe angel doe anyasjoy anyasjoy
tags
TL;DR Leon is resigned by the uproar. Juliette is thinking less than savoury thoughts. Isla is trying to just get by (clinging to a thread).
tl;dr
THE DINING HALL
leon macmillan, isla evergreen, and juliette yorkes.

Leon carries one of several pots of stew out onto the Dining Hall tables, affronted with the vegetable mixture and beef. It turned out alright, he wouldn’t assume his cooking would win a michelin star anytime soon but it was passable, and more importantly, nutritious for the young campers.

“Watch your head!” He cautions table three, carefully setting down the pot of stew. “Still pretty hot, eat responsibly and eat well. Busy day tomorrow for you lot.” And Leon would be damned if he had to clean up puke during sports because a camper decided they ‘weren’t that hungry’ only to run around on an empty stomach and fumes.

He looks over his shoulder where Juliette is placing her own pot of stew down at… their table, he reads the laminated sheet on the table before him. Isla Evergreen. Oh boy, he reaches up and rubs the back of his neck to soothe his nerves. I have to say… something. And how would that go? ‘Sorry your sisters, uh, died?’ Leon may be an only child, but if those words were spoken to him then… then what? He just didn’t know─anything, anymore. There wasn’t a handbook on how to act when the people around you suffer a devastating loss.

More importantly…

Leon beelines towards Juliette, placing a hesitant hand on the small of her back and bending to speak in her ear. “Isla is at our table with us. Want to swap with someone else?” He wasn’t entirely positive the eldest Evergreen sister would take to Juliette’s transformation kindly, instead finding offence in her Renee-ness. They were going through their own issues, he couldn’t expect Isla to understand the girl before him learning how to handle Renee’s disappearance and grief in her own way. Not when it was their sisters missing. “Say the word, Yorkes.”

A bundle of nerves coursed through the blonde as she exited the kitchen with a pot in her hands, the dining hall bustling with campers and counselors all around. I hope this is okay, she thought, placing the boiling pot on the nearest table to her. A stew on the first day wasn't something she would typically choose, but it was a start for her as the new cook.

It took a while for Juliette to notice Leon's sudden shift beside her. She raised an eyebrow at him as she returned to the table, holding a few spices and condiments she'd grabbed from the front. "Who's lucky enough to sit with us?" she asked, gravitating towards him easily, her hip jutting out as she tracked the laminated note on the table. Oh, that makes sense. A small part of her wanted to laugh at his expense, realizing Leon was nervous about Isla being around her. However, the other part of her shrank remembering that the word Evergreen is associated with the older sibling. What a cosmic joke today turned out to be.

She felt herself relax when Leon called her Yorkes, a habit of his that she was beginning to not mind. She broke away from his embrace, her smile small but genuine. "It's just Isla, Leon," she shrugged. Most people knew they weren't nearly as bad as Renee; even Paige had her off days. "I'm at the table with you, aren't I? I'm sure we'll be okay."

As she took her seat, Juliette made sure to pointedly ignore a few campers who addressed her as 'Yorkie,' something she supposed she'd have to get used to—an imprint of Renee left behind for others to pick up. She bit the inside of her cheek, drumming her fingers against her thigh as she felt an itch to do something with her hands. "Oh!" Juliette suddenly stood up, startling a few nearby campers who were unlucky enough to be sitting beside her. "I'll start serving right now—I’m sure Isla wouldn’t mind." And that's exactly what she did, forming a line of bowls passed to her one by one, filling them up before handing them to Leon to serve the rest. She quickly pointed to the plate of bread in the middle of the table, explaining that it should be evenly split among the group—sharing is caring after all.

The dining hall began to grow louder as more people arrived, the noise around Juliette blurring into one. She couldn't help but wonder... how was Isla doing, anyway? She recalled how early it was that morning, walking back to camp with Leon the following day, the two sisters missing, and how Isla looked worse for wear as Jonathan rushed her out. "Besides, I wonder how she’s doing. It’d be interesting to know why they came back, wouldn’t you agree?" We both know what we saw.

Isla was distracted as they entered the dining hall. The interaction with Liberty just moments before had been both comforting and unsettling; they weren't sure what to make of it. While they appreciated the sympathy, from Libby it felt off. They hadn't been very close in past years, if at all, and Isla was sure that hadn't miraculously changed in the time since they last spoke.

With a sigh, she scanned the bulletin board until she found her name right beside one 'Leon Macmillan' and 'Juliette Yorkes'. What a fun combination. Isla rolled her shoulders back, taking a deep breath before making her way to the table. Upon arrival, she noted how Juliette was already serving the food, "Hm. This looks good." Isla sat down across from Leon and Juliette, reaching over and helping pass the rest of the bowls to the hungry campers.

"I'm doing fine, by the way," Isla met Juliette's gaze as they took a bowl from her with a small smile, "This camp means a lot to my dad and it means a lot to me. I love teaching the campers. That's why I came back." They shrugged, setting the food down and clasping their hands together in their lap. As the campers started to dig in almost immediately, Isla sat there without making any motion to eat.

"How have the two of you been?" Her smile widened and she looked at both counselors calmly, "I see you've made quite a drastic appearance change, Juliette. I almost didn't recognize you." An innocent observation, and something that had initially caught Isla off guard. The first time she saw Juliette she remembered how shocked she had been.

For a moment, Isla had thought that perhaps her sisters were back; wishful thinking, of course, but she was surprised by the hope she still had that Renee and Paige might be alive. It stung much more than Isla anticipated, but she couldn't let something as trivial as that bother her. So, instead, she did her best to ignore the glaringly obvious similarities.

Hiding a grimace, Leon pivots his body to the side and assists the final camper with their bowl. He felt the same way. Juliette’s change in appearance was more than a surprise─it was unnerving. He couldn’t reconcile the blonde woman in her baby blue tank with the red-headed girl who wore Resident Evil sweaters.

“Glad to hear you’re doing fine, Isla─” He clears his throat, hating how his voice went up an uncomfortable octave as he spoke their name. “My summer has been spent washing Levi’s laundry and begging him to eat. He’s been more disorderly than usual since the break-up.”

At the mention of his boy, Leon quickly scans the room for him and stifles a sigh. Late, again. He does a quick check for Riley and his disappointment morphs into something else. Panic, almost. The last thing he needed was his and Riley’s secret being exposed before having the chance to tell Levi himself. On that thought, Leon sits heavily between the campers and casts a quick glance at Juliette, wondering what she, what everyone would think of Mister Responsible, Leon MacMillan, doing his best friend so dirty.

Juliette felt herself jump slightly against the table, nearly dropping the ladle when she heard Isla's voice chime in. "Oh, Isla, just on time." She returned a small smile, sitting back down before flashing a look towards Leon that basically read, I'm so fucked! She didn’t know what to say or where to start. How are you doing? Do you miss Renee as much as I do? Juliette swallowed the lump in her throat, biting back her words as she picked up her spoon and stirred her bowl. She nodded along to what Leon was saying about Isla doing fine, but she doubted it would sound genuine coming from her. Instead, she decided to listen to their conversation, waiting for the right moment to jump in.

When Isla mentioned their reason for returning, she saw the perfect opportunity. "I'm sure we aren't the only ones who miss your little swans," she said, and a couple of campers listening in agreed happily. Juliette allowed herself to ease into the conversation.

Isla's smile widened at the mention of her origami swans, tucking a strand of hair behind her ear, "I wasn't aware they were so popular, but I'm happy to hear that."

It wasn’t until her recent appearance was brought up that Juliette froze beside Leon. Yes, her new look: the clothes, the new attitude, and most noticeably—the ginger hair, now replaced with blonde locks. She suddenly felt the urge to play with her hair but held back, opting to smile tightly at Isla instead. "Just felt like a change was needed; orange was so last year," Juliette mumbled, the mention of her former hair color getting under her skin despite her attempt to brush it off. Was this gonna be something she was gonna have to deal with all summer? Luckily, the conversation shifted thanks to their new supervisor. "Is that so?" she said, propping her elbow on the table and angling her body to face Leon, a genuine smile forming. "You and Levi in a room together, Jesus." She shook her head, her smile growing as her shoulders shook softly with laughter. "I pity whoever is stuck with you guys this summer—oh god."

Leon wags his brows at Juliette playfully, knowing he and Levi’s shenanigans were the hot topic by the end of summer. “Pity us instead. No one understands our humour.” He eats a spoonful of the stew, making a ‘mmm’ sound in surprise. Not awful, considering.

It wasn't hard to see that the topic of Juliette's appearance soured her mood, so Isla let it drop. As curious as they were about the change, they had a feeling it would only make her more upset. It wasn't worth ruining a perfectly good conversation over something so trivial.

"Oh, goodness," Isla let out a quiet laugh, "I hope the others in your cabin got a warning, at the very least." She absentmindedly stirred the food in her bowl with her spoon, not sure where else to take the conversation. That said, Isla was grateful they hadn't immediately gotten into the whole 'I'm so sorry about what happened to your sisters'. Clearing her throat, she looked at Juliette, "So... What have you been up to?"

Juliette let out a laugh at Leon's comment, her smile brightening as it always did around him. She felt a sudden urge to do something reckless, even in front of Isla, but she knew they wouldn't understand—no one would, to be fair. Instead, she rolled her eyes playfully at Leon before turning her attention back to the meal they had prepared together.

Just as she was about to eat, Isla asked her a loaded question…what has she been doing this year? Juliette cleared her throat, grabbing her glass of water and taking a sip, stalling for time to come up with something clever to say. "Uh, nothing much. Took a gap year to, um, process some stuff lately." She hesitated, unsure how to admit that she no longer found joy in fiddling with wires—or in most of the things she used to enjoy. "What about you?" she asked, shifting the focus back to Isla.

Leon averts his eyes at Juliette’s words, opting to swirl the stew around his bowl absently as the air thickens into something heavy and loaded. He hadn’t processed any of his feelings from last summer, instead allowing the guilt to make a home in his chest. It helped nothing as Isla sat across from them, living proof of the tragedy that took place under his watch.

Appetite effectively gone, Leon sets his spoon down and leans back in the seat─his gaze settling on the table ahead of him where Thomas is. We should hang at the Sunspot tonight, Leon muses, his mood immediately lifting as he thinks of him and his boys having the chance to hang together again. Once Levi shows his stupid face.

Isla barely managed to stifle the sigh that escaped them, still stirring the stew around in their bowl, "That sounds like a good way to spend a gap year. I hope it went well." They weren't sure what else to say to that, truthfully, but they genuinely hoped Juliette was alright.

"I spent a lot of time dealing with personal issues and the like. I focused a lot on my art and teaching," Isla replied, smiling at the campers as they got her attention to show her something, "But I've been looking forward to coming back here. It's a good distraction, despite everything that happened." Maybe that wasn't the right thing to say, but then again... there would never be a 'right' thing to say. Not after what happened.

Isla could feel the tension in the air, they could see guilt in the way Leon carried himself and spoke to them. Juliette was no different, though they weren't sure guilt had anything to do with the way she was acting. Before Isla had the chance to change topics, someone else did it for them. An outburst from the typically sweet Marquis that made their eyes widen.

Juliette felt like a hypocrite, to say the least, choosing to stir her spoon around the bowl instead of eating the damn thing. "Yeah, sure, in a good way," she huffed, letting out a snort and doing her best to resist the urge to roll her eyes. A gap year usually never means a good thing, especially so soon. "I'm sure I'll figure it out," she said sarcastically, hoping Isla would pick up on it.

She listened to Isla explain their reasoning for coming back, and although Juliette understood where they were coming from, she still found it strange, to say the least. She had a feeling this wasn't Jonathan Evergreen's decision—no way he'd take such a risk bringing them back. Just as she was about to reply, she noticed Isla's eyes widen, followed by Marquis rising from his seat a couple of tables down from them. The hall grew quiet as everyone awkwardly avoided eye contact, the campers at their table eagerly trying to wrestle out of their seats to see what was going on.

It sounded like Marquis and... maybe Liberty? An argument? A disagreement? Who knows, because it immediately died down once it gathered attention. She was content, to say the least, that their table didn't rush into the drama, especially with the last Evergreen sitting right in front of them. She sucked her teeth, offering a faux headshake before turning her gaze away from the outburst, her eyes landing on Leon. He looked... surprised—and she couldn't help but agree. Even she was on her best behavior.

"Hey," she started, her hand closest to him reaching out to gently hold Leon still. She offered a small smile, her eyes flicking between Isla and him. "I'm sure it was nothing," Juliette tried to sound convincing—it was only the first day, after all. "Guess you have your work cut out already, huh?"

Juliette tried to make light of the situation, but it was hard to do so, knowing it was a very odd reaction. I wonder what happened. Marquis snapping is very unlike him.

“Yeah, you said it.” Leon heaves a sigh and taps her hand reassuringly. He expected some tension, but not so soon. “I’ll handle it. Finish up and I’ll come help wash the dishes afterwards.” Flashing both of them a half-hearted—albeit mocking salute—Leon rises from the table and starts making towards where Marquis and Liberty are, stopping short as he notices Levi standing up from his own table, staring hard in the direction of the commotion. Oh boy.

Isla returned the salute with a small smile, “Good luck, Supervisor.”

This had to have been the most awkward dinner of all time and Isla sincerely hoped going forward all the meals would be different from this. She hated the way people tiptoed around her, not knowing what to say in regard to what happened to her sisters. She knew coming back here was a... choice, so she knew it would be like this to some degree. The only thing Isla didn't consider was how much it would actually bother her.

Isla finally let themself sigh, running a hand through their long hair before turning to help the campers start the cleanup. There was little they could think to say in response to either Juliette or Leon. It felt like they had been walking on eggshells around them the entire time, it made having a real conversation impossible.

"Juliette," Isla started while she gathered the dishes, "I hope as time goes on it becomes easier to talk to one another. This was the most uncomfortable interaction I've had in a while." There was no anger or malice in her tone, it seemed as though she genuinely wanted to break the ice so future interactions didn't go as poorly as this one had.

"And I apologize for bringing up any sore subjects. Tell me outright the next time I say something you don't like."
Juliette watched Leon walk off, and the table fell into an awkward silence once he left. Just us now—hope it isn't too weird. She quietly picked at her food, feeling eyes flicker between her and Isla, heightening the tension of the unspoken elephant in the room. She could sense irritation coming from the former Evergreen, and Juliette wondered if she was acting too suspicious herself.

She took a moment to collect herself, watching the campers at their table gather their things and prepare to leave. It struck her that she did, in fact, have to clean the dishes. Gross. As she mentally prepared herself for the amount of work she had cut out for the night, she heard Isla call her name. She was at a loss for words, caught off guard by the mention of how awkward things were.

"We just were never close like that, but maybe it can change with—" Juliette swallowed her words, awkwardly pushing her hair behind her ear as she tried to quickly fill the space. With Renee gone, maybe things could be different. But how much of that was true to her? Renee may be gone, but she was still very much here with Juliette. "Sorry," she blurted out quickly, rushing to grab the bowls as she helped Isla clean up their table—she still had a few more to pick up after. "I have some dishes to clean, and I'm running late, but..." Juliette paused, her hands gripping a couple of bowls that threatened to spill from her grasp. It's not like Isla is Renee, so why was she freaking out? "I'll keep that in mind—no eggshells or anything. Promise."

"Alright, thank you." Isla murmured, smiling politely. It wasn't hard to tell that Juliette wasn't being entirely truthful, but it did no good pointing it out. It wasn't a big deal and frankly, Isla didn't care; whatever happened, happened.

Juliette knew she was lying. A liar with nothing good to say. "You don’t have to apologize, though. It was just a question, I’m a big girl," she added, with a weak attempt at a laugh, pulling the bowls to the side as she helped a few campers scurry out of the dining hall. "It’s, uh, good to see you though. I’m sure your dad was surprised that you came back." It was bait—to see if Isla would give her insight into whether this was her decision or Jonathan’s—and boy, was she curious.

The next question made Isla raise a brow, looking at Juliette out of the corner of their eye as they gathered the rest of the dishes. Of course she would want to dig into this. I may as well entertain this a bit...

"Yeah, my dad was surprised. He didn't want me to come back, not after what happened to my sisters," Isla shrugged, "I get why, but he knows how much I love my work here so he was understanding." A part of her still felt somewhat guilty for so adamantly pushing to stay here- she hated causing extra stress for her dad. There was no going back now, though.

Interesting, she thought, new information to keep for herself. It appeared Jonathan hadn’t expected Isla, which only deepened Juliette's confusion about why she’d come back. Feeling curious, Juliette turned to face Isla briefly, a twinkle returning to her eye as she tilted her head slightly, her gaze wandering over the last Evergreen. She looked... fine? Her outfit was cute, though not something Juliette would wear. But she remembered what she’d seen that day—Isla looking worse for wear, being rushed out with their dad while her sisters were missing.

"I know what I saw, Isla," Juliette gestured to her own body with a weak shrug. The scars, I know they're there. "You don’t have to hide them—though, cute little bear rumor." She snorted, leaving the table behind as she clutched the bowls against her chest, placing them on the front table where the condiments were. She had a lot of tables to clean, and right now, all she wanted was to be left alone. "Super cute outfit, by the way." She tossed her hair to the side and flashed Isla a tight-lipped smile, nodding her chin toward her. "The grunge look totally suits you."

Juliette dragged the trolley to the stairs leading up to the kitchen. Just before she was about to leave, she quickly called out to Isla. "Nice seeing you, though, Isla! Catch you later, bestie." With that, Juliette headed up the stairs, the bowls back in her arms, placing them in the nearest sink.

Isla blinked, staring after Juliette, "What is she on about?" They couldn't help but laugh, running a hand through their hair and shaking their head. She's being absurd. I'm not hiding anything and I look better than she does.

Oh well- not much to be done now. Isla would have plenty of chances to deal with Juliette, better to leave her thinking she got to her.
code by valen t.
 
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TLDR: Lou was pleased to be with Zarina and Leilani [ sunshineysoul sunshineysoul ] at dinner, enjoying their company and different perspectives, especially after feeling isolated and jaded. However, the evening turned frustrating due to a poorly chosen seating arrangement, making the three men at table 6 wish for a simpler, more comfortable meal. Rowan was grappling with mixed feelings over a threatening letter, feeling conflicted about addressing it. Morgan was preoccupied with his own thoughts and emotions, notably about Rowan and Juliette [ anyasjoy anyasjoy ], and ended up approaching Rowan with a mix of hesitation and intent, despite his inner turmoil. Morgan startled him with a hand on his shoulder, voicing he wanted to speak with Rowan privately after dinner. Rowan, intrigued but unsure, agreed to meet up later. As Rowan shifted his focus to dinner, Lou was approached by Eva, who placed a troublesome camper named Sidney between him and Rowan. Sidney quickly revealed he got in trouble for getting into a fight with another camper. At dinner, Sidney awkwardly mentions Rowan's past relationship with Paige, making Rowan visibly uncomfortable. JC, arriving late, notices the tension and hints at a need to discuss things with Lou later. JC engages in small talk with a camper, Brandon, while Sidney expresses his frustrations and anger towards another camper, Duke, who broke up a fight involving him and the other camper Brandon. Lou tries to maintain order and diffuse tension, but the atmosphere remains strained as everyone settles into dinner. As the young camper Sidney starts to call out Brandon from across the table, a disturbance involving Marquis yelling at Liberty disrupts dinner, leading Rowan to comment humorously on the situation. Lou finishes his meal and decides to go for a smoke, inviting Rowan to join him. Rowan accepts and they exit the dining hall.



tldr
COLLAB BY:
Coyote Coyote [JC] ; irregular-neptune irregular-neptune [ROWAN] ; spareparts spareparts [LOU] ; Letho Letho [MORGAN]

INT:
collab by
LOCATION TABLE 6; THE DINING HALL
location
TABLE 6 ; DINNER TIME
lou van royen, rowan bishop, jason carver, + morgan delaney

Lou wouldn’t have minded sitting with Zarina and Leilani at dinner; they were both pleasant company. Their interaction brought a sense of elation he had long forgotten, reminding him of the enrichment that genuine friendship can bring, even from semi-strangers. The past few years had been challenging, and by isolating himself and pretty much only spending time with Levi, he had grown jaded about others. While he valued Levi’s presence and the comfort of being at par with each others emotional states, he realized he’d missed the refreshing presence of different perspectives, especially from femininity.

Contrarily, the night in store for Lou might as well be nothing short of stifled rage and malaise–a stark contrast to his wholesome getaway earlier. Into the dining hall, he walked side by side with the two girls–happy to hear them take over the conversation with their excitement, adding his own bits and pieces to the mix. When they’d parted to their own respective tables, Lou resisted the urge to sneak away and get his food elsewhere. If it weren’t for the most ill-chosen seating arrangement he’d ever seen, perhaps one of those slapdash burgers at a dive bar in town–a tall glass of tapped lager to pair–wouldn’t have sounded so damn good.

Rowan hadn’t realized how quickly he’d been walking, so he slowed down to let Riley catch up to him. He almost wished he’d left without inviting anyone – wanting a few moments of silence before dinner, but not wanting to ice Riley out because he cared for her and her input was valuable to him. But he didn’t even know if he wanted to do anything with this information… What would it matter anyway? One threatening message wasn’t exactly something to call the police about…

He shrugged at Riley’s question, not really wanting to address it, and walked on ahead of her. He wasn’t trying to ice her out, but his head was too clouded with information to say much about it right now. Maybe after dinner, they could sit down and discuss it but… what was there to really discuss? A threatening letter didn’t mean the person murdered Paige … it didn’t mean they didn’t.

As Rowan entered the dining hall, he noticed it was already quite bustling – a lot of the kids were wandering around, waiting on their seating, and a couple of the other counselors were milling about. He glanced at the bulletin board and almost groaned out loud. Whoever was making these assignments seemed like they were trying to torture him. Could he not eat or sleep in peace?

He took an excruciatingly long walk to the table and tried to hide his irritation. There was really no need to start drama so early… but he couldn’t stop the rising anger in his chest as he remembered the last time he’d seen Lou. The letters he’d read last year between him and Paige were always in the back of Rowan’s mind, seared into his eyelids. As he took his seat he tried to avoid Lou’s eyes on him and hoped that dinner would just end quickly.

For Morgan, the dining hall was familiar territory. Well - he supposed the same was technically true for everyone, really, seeing what the building's main purpose was and all... But this was also where he taught his classes, and so he felt justified in thinking that way.


Right there and then, just the fact that it was indoors helped a lot, too.

To be honest, he was glad that it was already time for dinner. Though he wasn't feeling all that hungry, admittedly, he couldn't say it wasn't the perfect opportunity for him to catch Juliette - without needing to go searching around the camp or wait for her by her cabin. Still, Thomas's advice had stayed in his head; yes, he definitely wasn't planning to approach her until after the meal.

As people filtered into the dining area, Morgan made sure to check the bulletin board first for any additional instructions... Ah, yes; like those ones - the seating arrangements. He quickly found his name under table four... And wasn't that interesting. It seemed like he would already be spending more time with Thomas... And with Leilani as well, which was always pleasant.

Alton, on the other hand...

Well, in any case, he had some ideas for how to deal with that situation, maybe, hopefully. Or - who knew? Perhaps everything would just be... Back to normal?

... Unlikely, but possible.

Morgan's eyes still automatically scanned the rest of the paper, noticing Juliette at table five - potentially useful information - and then... Then his heart suddenly committed a thoroughly unnecessary leap. Had he not been so used to it by that point, he would have probably felt more irritated with it; as things were, he simply drew in a deeper, heavier breath... Settling for being disappointed with the hopeless organ instead.

And now the idea was in his head, too; how wonderful.

He left the board alone at that point; it had already caused enough damage and he had a table to get to... But as he walked, he found his attention inevitably drawn towards another spot in the room. And there he was; the source of all of Morgan's... Well, all right. Not all of his problems, he couldn't be that dramatic, even within the safety of his own mind.

The source of a lot of confusion and heartache, though.

Rowan.

His gaze lingered. Morgan was self-aware enough to note that it usually did - and yet he did not have it in him to stop it, no matter how exposed it made him feel. Was it... Really such a stupid thought, though? After last year, surely, they had to be... Friends. Right? Casual friends. And Rowan hadn't exactly ignored him back at the amphitheatre...

As he remembered that part, Morgan could almost feel his shoulder tingle.

It took him a second or two to realize that he was walking in the wrong direction - and... He did not correct himself. He did actually have a question for Rowan, too, now that he was thinking about it - so this was fine. It... Made sense. Even if it could potentially change his plans about Juliette a bit...

His hand was moving before he even knew it - gently, carefully settling on Rowan's shoulder to get his attention... And the heat there almost surprised him. He really didn't touch people often, especially not lately... Then again, whenever he did, it generally didn't make him feel so light on the inside - in a way that was somehow both terrible and so nice at the same time.

... And now he couldn't just leave it at that.

"Hi," he said, tilting his head slightly to the side, making his hair shift a bit with that movement... And then glancing away - because they were not alone there, and the other counsellors nearby deserved at least a greeting, an acknowledgement... In the form of a nod and a subtle smile.

Lou and Rowan - at the same table...

Not his business.

Rowan had only been sitting there for a few moments, lost in his own thoughts – thinking about Lou and Paige, thinking about the threatening letter he’d just found. He didn’t think there was a connection, but his mind was running wild with every possibility… he finally dared a glance at Lou, who at the moment was looking away, and he felt uncomfortable being this close to him. Maybe when JC got here, he could ask him to switch…

Suddenly, Rowan felt a hand on his shoulder and flinched, not expecting the sudden touch from behind.

“Shi- shoot,” he caught himself before swearing in front of the campers and looked up at the person who was now talking to him. Oh. Morgan. “Sorry, you scared me.”

He wondered what Morgan wanted enough to talk to him before dinner – he didn’t think he remembered seeing Morgan’s name on their seating chart? Although if he was it’d be at least a bit better than sitting with just Lou and JC. But Rowan didn’t really know Morgan – not that well, though they’d been roommates last year and… well, there had been the night that Paige had disappeared.

“Hey, dude, what’s up?”

A flinch - and just that alone was more than enough for Morgan's hand to immediately leave Rowan's shoulder... To lift, at least, and hover in the air for a second or two longer, his fingers curling - as he hesitated.

That was... Fair, though. Just like he didn't generally invite physical contact, he obviously couldn't expect others to welcome it from him, after all... And, all right, perhaps approaching from behind hadn't been his brightest idea yet, either.

"Sorry," he said as well, his voice a bit more quiet now... Even as he did his best to keep his expression unchanged, his body language - as relaxed as it could be, all things considered.

At least he had a lot of experience with that.

And there, with Rowan's question, came the hard part - actually explaining what he was doing. A quiet, more cynical voice somewhere at the back of Morgan's head immediately supplied that it would have liked to know that, too... But he ignored it for the moment, leaving most of the overanalyzing for later - or at least honestly trying to.

"A thing or two," he said, which wasn't vague at all... At the same time finally raising that unsure hand to brush back some of the pale hair that had fallen over his shoulder moments before - tucking it behind one ear now. "Do you have plans for after dinner?"

Morgan was ever the mystery to Rowan. It seemed that the other man always spoke in riddles, whether it came to the more out there beliefs he had or everyday conversation. Rowan often thought that Morgan’s outlook was… refreshing, albeit sometimes a bit confusing – he himself didn’t tend to read into things more than face-value. However, right now, he didn’t know the level of patience he had to figure out what Morgan wanted, his thoughts going elsewhere…

“Um… not really, do you need something?”

Rowan didn’t know if he was down for hanging out, but… the thought of his very full cabin with Lou at the center convinced him that, whatever Morgan had in mind, he’d probably be down.

Morgan wasn't stupid - nor was he blind. In fact, he understood that he had a tendency to go in the opposite direction of that - towards seeing too much, whether something more was there in the first place or... Not. In most cases, his feelings - or his ability to quickly notice and subconsciously connect facts, as his father had suggested once - were right. In some... In some, perhaps he overthought.

He didn't believe he was doing it right then.

Based on the tone of his voice, on his body language... Rowan was not comfortable there. And probably either surprised or confused or... Best case scenario, distracted. Which... All right, Morgan knew he had that effect on people - he just didn't want to right then. It gave him pause now, made his smile perhaps dim a little... Changed the look in his eyes into something harder to decipher - something caught between knowing and resigned, and yet certainly not surprised.

He might have... Miscalculated before. But then again, even if he had assumed wrong, it didn't suddenly make him need to talk with Rowan any less...

"Yes," he still replied, not looking away, keeping his gaze on Rowan's eyes, and yet remaining very aware of all the people around them. He couldn't possibly speak here - so... So it was reasonable to want to do it elsewhere. It was justified. "I have something to tell you - to ask you, maybe. Just... Somewhere more private."

And as he spoke, Morgan's fingers slowly slipped out of his hair - but he also remembered to finally fix his smile, shifting it back towards something warmer... Even if that look in his eyes did not disappear.

Rowan offered a small smile to Morgan, noticing a slight shift in his body language but unsure why. He hadn’t meant to be cold to him but when he was anxious or overwhelmed he tended to distance himself more these days. When he didn’t, he found himself in more trouble than it was worth. He still wasn’t sure what Morgan wanted, but his curiosity had been piqued now. “Yeah, sure, just come find me after dinner!”

From the opposite direction, he noticed Eva approaching out of the corner of his eye and gave Morgan a final small smile before turning his attention fully back towards the table where a couple of the campers had begun to file in. He tried to not look in Lou’s direction, but he had the feeling that their interaction would be inevitable.

Oh - a smile.

Not a huge one, of course; Morgan honestly wouldn't have expected it to be... Hells, he hadn't exactly thought that he would get one at all. But... He liked that one. He especially enjoyed the fact that it was meant for him... And while he wasn't quite pathetic enough to let himself be distracted by it, he certainly saved it in his memory for future appreciation.

And the easy agreement that followed? He couldn't honestly say that it didn't make his heart beat a little faster again.

"All right. That's - perfect," he said, fighting the urge to add a thank you to it as well... Especially since Rowan's focus was clearly drifting away from him already. A good luck was his second thought - but he avoided that one as well... "I'll see you then."

And if that last part was added in a much more quiet tone - a softer one... Well. He didn't truly think Rowan was still paying attention anyway, and so he was not expecting a reply - he just didn't want to leave without saying goodbye.

He honestly couldn't even tell what he was feeling as he took a step back, then another - finally turning... Retreating towards his own table. But... He supposed it could have gone much worse. Probably. Right?
Repressing the anxiety, Lou grit his teeth and walked the dreaded path towards the table. Before he’d reached it, Eva softly touched him by the shoulder–turning him around.

“Hey, Lou, I have a camper here who’s being a bit troublesome with some of the others–mind if I put him in between you and Rowan for tonight’s dinner?”

Lou nodded, unaware he’d be sitting that close with the guy to begin with. “Sure thing.”

Eva parted ways with the both of them and Lou took his seat at the left of the boy. The kid didn’t look older than 13, wearing a black t-shirt with the Dead Kennedy’s on the front and unnecessarily baggy denim cargo shorts.

Before he’d even scooted his chair in, the boy looked directly at him–”Who are you?”

“Lou. Who are you?”

“Sidney.”

“Mind if I call y’ Sid?”

“I guess.” The camper put his head down on the table, “I can’t sit with my friends because I got in trouble.”

Lou paused.

–“Well, I didn’t “ get in trouble “–Okay, basically, I pushed this kid in the lake because he tripped me. I almost fell in the lake too, and then we got into a fight. And I guess I kicked sand in his eye or something.”

“And then, you got in trouble.” Lou offered, burying a smile so as to not give the kid total satisfaction he’d found it amusing.

“I guess.” Sidney sulked. “This food better be good. My brother told me the food was good when he went here.”

Rapid fire with this kid, Lou thought.

As Sydney lowered his head again, Lou took the opportunity to glance at his old rival, who pointedly avoided eye contact. At least the kid would be seated between them, though there was no mistaking the sour energy emanating from Rowan, a presence that Lou couldn’t ignore.

His mind flashed to their last meeting, a rather violent affair. The brief, uncomfortable silence was grating, so Lou decided to break it first. "Sidney, this is Rowan."

“Hi… Wait, aren’t you the guy who was dating Paige before she… disappeared?” the spritely kid asked, his hands mimicking the dispersal of smoke. Lou sucked his teeth to suppress his reaction to the painfully awkward comment, "Not appropriate right now, Sid."

“Sorry. I’m just bored. I didn’t mean anything by it.”

JC took his time meandering to the table. The truth of it was, he wasn’t too eager to converse with the table’s residents but food was food and he would like to eat sometime soon. Eventually, he finished brooding and decided to walk over to the table.

"Sidney, this is Rowan."
“Hi… Wait, aren’t you the guy who was dating Paige before she… disappeared?”

Great timing. JC’s face didn’t change. Did well enough at poker to hold his own but his face paled a bit upon recalling that fact. He found himself glaring at Lou pointedly without saying a word in greeting. Lou knew him well enough to get the message though. They needed to talk.

He turned to look at Rowan, narrowing his eyes as if to fish for information about how much he knew of Paige, ultimately frowning a bit before looking away. Maybe they had a thing going but his inability to protect her left a foul taste in his mouth. So, he opened with something people normally wouldn’t expect from him, “How you holdin’ up?” JC asked Rowan, giving him a look from behind his darkened shades.

Rowan was trying to be friendly with the kids who were quickly taking their seats around them – giving them a smile, asking them questions – “How’s settling into your cabin been?” After a few moments, he reached for the ladle and dished himself and a couple of the kids some stew. He only tuned in to what this kid was saying halfway through his ramble about the food.

He hadn’t even realized they had been quiet until he’d heard Lou say his name and he looked up, realizing that he was introducing the camper – Sydney – to him, a bit shocked (and irritated) that Lou was acknowledging him at all. Rowan started to give the camper a friendly smile until he opened his mouth.

He blinked hard, quite taken aback by the question, any ease that he’d adopted in the past couple of fleeting minutes had vanished and Rowan tried to keep his cool. He knew that kids just had questions and curiosity was a hell of a thing. He wouldn’t have had any tact during his time at camp – hell, he didn’t have any tact now. He swallowed any biting words he had and answered the kid’s question, “Um… yeah.”

He glared at Lou a bit for drawing attention to him, then glanced down at his stew, trying to dampen his sour mood – it wasn’t Lou’s fault that this kid had a loud mouth and while there were a lot of things Rowan was irritated with that were his fault, was it really in his best interest to start pissing off someone who he’d have to sleep in the same room with?

Rowan glanced up at JC’s question and shrugged, trying to keep his feelings down. Well, I haven’t gotten a full night’s sleep in the past year… “I’ve definitely been better but it’s kind of nice to be back. It’s… different. But I’m glad for the routine.” Last year, he would have been at a table with Paige and there would have been virtually no tension in the dining hall. He stirred his stew dubiously, sure that if he took a bite it would just be yet another painful reminder of Paige’s absence.

Lou tried to avoid looking at Rowan as he spoke, feeling a wave of relief that the guy wouldn’t be directly in his line of sight. Instead, he found himself face-to-face with JC, who had just taken his seat at the table. Their eyes briefly met, and JC’s sharp glare conveyed a clear message: there would be a need for later discussion. Great. Uncertain of the exact meaning behind the look but sensing its discomforting significance, Lou chose to avert his gaze, focusing instead on the other side of the table. His eyes wandered down a row, then another, and another—until they struggled to adjust to the watercolor painting of bobbing heads in front of him. There was only so much the eyes could do to distract a person, when a conversation within earshot tends to take over after disassociation stales out.

Rowan’s response to JC’s question unsettled Lou, who resorted to cracking his knuckles beneath the table—a nervous habit he relied on when escape wasn’t an option. Obviously, Rowan was not okay–a reality that gnawed at Lou despite their long-standing antagonism since their early days at Evergreen. Their shared history haunted him in ways he couldn’t fully articulate, or perhaps he was simply unwilling to confront it. Lou remained silent, making an effort to disguise himself as just another counselor waiting for the first meal of the summer session. That’s all it was—a waiting game–as it so often became for him.

JC stared for a moment, then scoffed. Bullshit. But he didn’t say it. Rowan got the message clearly with the way JC curtly dropped the subject.

“Hey, JC!” one of the older campers approached.

“How’s it going, little man?” he nodded at the kid and held out his hand for him to smack.

“Seen any tracks out there?” his name was Brandon. One of the more athletic types at camp and eager to join JC in the outdoor activities.

“Still have to go out and check the trails but the best we’ll get are rabbits during the summer. If we’re lucky,” JC shrugged. “Practice bow any over the winter?”

“Hell yeah, I got a buck with my dad last October,” Brandon smiled, “Eight pointer, he was awesome.”

“That’s awesome, little man,” JC offered him a fist bump, expressing excitement in spite of the sting he felt upon hearing Brandon’s recollection. Those sorts of memories were just that. In the past. He couldn’t remember the last time he and his father enjoyed a hunt together. Instead, JC took to gathering himself and asking, “You in this table?”

“Nah, I’m over there today,” he said.

“Well, stay out of trouble. We can’t catch nothin’ in the creek if you’re busy sweeping the shed,” JC nudged him.

“I hope there aren’t any hornets in there,” Brandon jeered.

“You and me both,” JC patted his shoulder and sent him off before turning back to the rest of the table.

Sidney fidgeted in his seat, watching JC interact with Brandon while subtly signaling Lou. The tension between the kids was palpable, evident in their sharp, sidelong glances, and it felt like things were on the verge of escalating. Fortunately, nothing further occurred, but Lou could sense the intense glare Sidney was directing at the back of Brandon’s head as he returned to his seat just one table over.

“Why’re you dogging him like that?” Lou addressed Sidney.

Sidney, clearly eager to explain his frustration, rolled his eyes. “That’s Duke’s best friend. The kid I threw into the lake. He’s the fucker who broke up the fight.”

“Aye—” Lou interrupted, “Watch your mouth, dinner’s here.” Plates of food were being distributed across the tables. “You can handle your gripes without resorting to insults, y'know.”

Sidney shot Lou an irritated look, then glanced at JC and Rowan. “I’m surrounded by old people, and this food looks like shi—, crap.” He corrected himself quickly, prompting a smirk from Lou.

“Haha, it could be worse. Foods food,” Lou scoffed, dipping his spoon into the stew and taking a bite. It’s....well..I don’t know what I expected from Juliette.

Sidney said nothing, eating his meal with hast.

Rowan didn’t like the tense looks that the other counselors were giving him. He hadn’t tried to give a non-answer to JC’S question, but he honestly didn’t care what JC or Lou thought about him, he just wanted to get through the summer. He almost regretted coming back. Either way, he was here now and had to grit his teeth and bare it.

He took a few bites of stew while JC spoke to a camper – the stew was just okay, nothing like Paige would make. Or did his memory just put everything in a positive perspective? Maybe he shouldn’t be too harsh to Juliette, though he didn’t know what her whole… deal was this year, she was certainly trying.

He listened as Sidney talked about the other camper, snorting at his comments about the other camper and glancing at Lou. He once made similar comments about the other man. The kid just kept going on. Rowan didn’t like to correct the campers’ language – it felt kind of lame, but this kid sure had a mouth on him. Rowan had, too, back in the day… he seemed to almost remember being in the same position that Sidney was in. Except now, he was the old person and he was still having similar problems…

Suddenly Sidney seized a moment to provoke Brandon, as if the idea had been simmering since Brandon first made his exit. “Hey Brandon, tell Duke he’ll regret it if he tries to mess with me again!”

Just as Brandon was about to respond, a loud thump from a few tables back cut through the cafeteria chatter, plunging the room into an unsettling silence.

“LIBERTY!” a deep voice bellowed, the roar echoing with the thud.

Lou immediately recognized the voice as Marquis's. He glanced up to see the tall man standing straight as board, his face set in a tense scowl before he sat back down, visibly apologetic. The two boys froze, their attention shifting to the disturbance at table 2.

“Hey, whatever you guys have going on can wait until tomorrow,” Lou spoke with a gentle firmness, his eyes signaling both boys to put their dispute on hold. The boys fell silent, and Sidney relaxed his previously tense shoulders. The kid kept his head down, a satisfied grin playing on his face.

Rowan’s thoughts were interrupted by sudden slamming at one of the other tables and he jumped. Looking over his shoulder, he realized the person yelling was… Marquis? At Liberty, of all people. He was honestly shocked that Marquis was yelling at all – he was ever the soft spoken people pleaser, who tended to try to smooth situations over when it came to yelling. He wasn’t usually the one to begin the yelling.

He couldn’t hear everything that either of them said, but he quickly got the idea that it had to do with the sisters, and the safety of everyone at camp now… and as Liberty stormed out of the dining hall, he sighed. If this was the first night, what did this summer have in store for them?

“At least we weren’t the first ones to get into a fight this year…” he joked to Lou. There would still be time for that…

It was clear that dinner had run its course. His gaze drifted back to table 2, where he noticed the new girl he’d met–Liberty quickly exiting beside her seeming to make a beeline out of the dining hall. The expressions on the other’s faces told a story without words. Typical Liberty move, but what was Marquis’s role in that? Or maybe Reese with his offbeat humor. Lou didn’t want to dwell on it; he was sure it would be discussed once everyone returned to their cabins.

It amused him how many of these faces he had grown up with, watching them evolve into who they were now. Despite his four-year hiatus, Lou felt that there was no way much had changed. Even Juliette, with her new look and attitude, had to remain true to her core no matter how much she might be trying to lie to herself. Time goes by, but certain traits endure—it’s just human nature.

Lou caught Rowan’s eye and tried to suppress a smile before letting out a scoff. Day one huh.

“Right?” Lou said, raising his eyebrows as he looked back at Rowan–sarcastic in his banter. “Something’s off.”

Lou’d had enough of dinner. Plainly, he offered, “I’m goin’ out for a smoke. Y’ smoke reds?”--the cigarette box already out as he tucked the chair back into the table. Rowan accepted, to his surprise–following him out of the dining hall. He tossed a quick nod JC’s way, and at Sidney who looked at him expectantly, “Cigarettes are disgusting!!”

With the cigarette now placed between his fingers he raised it up, “Got that right.”


code by valen t.
 
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!EVENT

minajesty minajesty CONGRATULATIONS!
You've received a random Guidance Totem.

PLAY WITH FIRE: Rowan unceremoniously drops a match on the cabin floor and the flames erupt.​
 
MOOD: Tense, Cordial ; Everyone is thankful nothing blew up

LOCATION: Dining Hall
basics
MENTIONS:
evermoon evermoon hotsauce hotsauce anyasjoy anyasjoy lostbird lostbird
tags
TL;DR Surprisingly calm and cordial interaction between people who don't have the best of opinions of each other plus Ricky. Thank you Ricky.
tl;dr
table one | Dinner Time
kayden wade, clarisse lowell, ricky sanford and levi jackson ft. leon macmillan
Ricky was not exactly excited for dinner, but he was glad to be free of Liberty’s grating presence. She had an annoying habit of flat out ignoring him unless she was forced to acknowledge him. Thank god for social rules, he supposed. At any rate, he headed toward the dining hall with a bit of cheer, knowing that with how many of his peers he had befriended, he was probably going to be spending time with some people he liked at every event. Too bad Isla wasn’t one of them, but he would surely see more of her throughout his time at camp.

He was unsurprised to find that he was the first one in his group there. That morning aside, Ricky was more or less punctual. He liked to be on time so he could greet everyone else with his characteristic good cheer. Once he had seen that Clarisse and Levi were assigned to the same table as him, he was happy that he could have some time to chat with them, even if the his friends would not be thrilled to sit next to each other. He was even happy to see Kayden, who he hadn’t been close to in a while. In the aftermath of what had happened with the Evergreen sisters, Ricky was determined to strengthen some of the looser ties he had at camp this year, and that included being friends with Kayden again. So, though he doubted his tablemates would get along, he was more than happy to spend time with each of them. He only hoped that they would call a ceasefire long enough that they could have a civil evening. Surely that wasn’t too much to ask?

While he waited for the other counselors to arrive, Ricky started talking to some of the children. There were some he recognized from previous years and some he didn’t, but the kids who recognized him looked glad to see him. He had always been a popular counselor with the kids who went to camp due to his cheerful and social nature, and this year was no exception. So he hammed it up and cracked some jokes with them while he waited, asking them about their years and school and such as well. Out of the corner of his eye, he kept watch for a friendly face that would announce the arrival of one of the other counselors assigned to his table. He was determined that tonight would go well, or at least passably. Everyone was going to get along, or Ricky was going to do his level best to make them. So he waited patiently for someone else to arrive.

It wasn’t long after that Clarisse entered the dining area. It was just her luck that Kayden and Levi were at the table with her; she usually didn’t mind eating with the other counselors but nowadays, she felt iffy… like it was waiting for a time bomb to explode. Still. just because she was dreading having to eat with two out of the who knows how many people she would rather not be around didn’t mean she would be tardy on purpose. Besides, Ricky would be there, and if there was anything he could do besides sports, it was keeping the peace. As long as she focused on him and the kids, it would be fine, right?

Depressing thoughts aside, she took a deep breath before heading to the table with a smile and a wave. She greeted the campers first and their joy from seeing Ricky just seemed to multiply— sports counselors always seemed to have the privilege of becoming beloved among the more active and extroverted campers. She patted the heads of a few before nudging Ricky with her elbow. “Already getting chummy with the campers ahead of us, huh?”

Levi and Kayden weren’t there yet and she had to suppress a sigh of relief. It would do her well to have some time to prepare herself mentally. “Yorkes cooked, didn’t she?” She asked as she reached over to the pot to open it. The overwhelming smell of nothing permeated through the air and she felt a pit in her stomach. Juliette could cook, right? That was why she was reassigned to the kitchen. “Aha, beef stew on the menu. Should be good.”

Ricky beamed as he saw one of his closest friends at camp approach. Man, he had missed seeing Clarisse, despite the two of them keeping in contact between summers. But he was always like that, excited as a puppy upon greeting his friends. As Clarisse spoke, he suppressed a snicker. Yeah, he did enjoy being one of the popular counselors, wearing the kids’ approval like a badge of honor. There was something wholesome about a bunch of random kids looking up to you like a sibling (and Ricky did have younger siblings, which perhaps explained why he was so good with kids).

At the mention of the food, his curiosity was piqued. He wouldn’t exactly say he was confident in Juliette’s cooking ability, but he didn’t like to assume the worst, so he figured that she was chosen for a reason. If it were Ricky, he figured he could have made something pretty good, provided he didn’t get distracted and accidentally burn down the kitchen (an incident that had only once been close to happening, and not one he was anxious to repeat).

“Yeah, I hope so!” he responded optimistically. “Beef stew is pretty hard to screw up, I’d think. Worst case scenario, I’m sure we have condiments somewhere.” Ricky shrugged.

Clarisse nodded with a light chuckle. “Yeah, it is one of the simpler dishes.” She leaned in, lowering her voice so that the campers wouldn’t hear them over their own chatters. “Not that extravagant for the first night but, well, it is her first time as the camp cook.” How she got the position was not good to think about but what had happened, happened, right?

Ricky’s optimism was extremely contagious. Maybe she should give Juliette the benefit of the doubt when it came to her cooking. Maybe it tasted better than it smelled and they could just add things into their stew if it was really that bad. Though, the campers might not have some nice things to say— they were young with a lot less filter from their brain to mouth, and they were such stellar examples of being exactly that.

She looked around for a moment when she pulled away. “Condiments should be at the back. I can go back and get some in advance so we don’t have to fight the other counselors for them.” There should be more than enough for every table to go around but it would be too congested at that point.

Ricky grinned, nodding as she spoke. “That’s a great idea!” He paused for a moment, realizing that he shouldn’t jump to conclusions that they would need condiments. The stew was probably fine, after all. “Well, it shouldn’t hurt, at any rate. Just make sure you get some red pepper flakes, please!”

It was well known amongst his friends that Ricky would put red pepper flakes on almost anything, he loved them so much. He had felt they had saved a dish more than once, and maybe if Juliette’s cooking didn’t live up to the previous camp food, red pepper flakes could save it. “And I won’t lie, if I were the cook, I’d probably make something simple on night one, too. Just to test the waters.”

“Yeah, yeah, I’ll get you your red pepper flakes. I swear you have your own bottle stashed somewhere in there.” She remembered how it was something that stuck even outside of camp. She had tagged along with Paige when she went grocery shopping and pointed at the condiment and mentioned how she had to ask her father to put some extra stock in the camp just for Ricky.

She hummed. “Yeah, I guess so. Everyone likes a solid beef stew and the chances for anyone to be allergic to it is pretty low.” Clarisse could agree with that. At least it was a balanced, nutritional diet and it was a good option for the more sporty kids (and counselors like herself and Ricky). “Okay, I’ll be quick.” She gave Ricky a pat on the arm before heading to the back of the kitchen where trays of condiments had already been set up. She made sure it was all complete, and amusingly Ricky’s request was already placed on the tray for their table and returned to their table and set it up next to the pot.

“Looks like Levi and Kayden got held up.” Clarisse said as she looked to the entrance and found no traces of them. “Should we let the campers start? They look like they’re going to devour the stew straight from the pot.” She whispered to him as she gestured to the eager campers.

Ricky was thrilled to see his request being fulfilled. He had specifically asked Paige to get more red pepper flakes in the past, a request which was usually granted because otherwise he would eat through them almost concerningly quickly. But if the stew really did turn out to be bland, a pinch (or two or three or seven) of red pepper flakes could help. As Clarisse addressed him, he glanced at the entrance as well. Hm. Hopefully the two of them were alright. If they didn’t show up in the next several minutes, he might hurry to the cabins to check on them. But more than likely, they had just lost track of time.

Ricky deliberated Clarisse’s question for a moment, noticing that the campers’ eyes were drawn to the stew, even if some of them glanced away self consciously when he noticed. Yeah, they were definitely hungry. While Ricky didn't like starting the meal without them, he also didn’t want the kids to have to wait for tardy counselors.

“Yeah, we should probably let them eat,” he decided. “It’s not their fault that Kayden and Levi are late.” He chuckled at that, throwing Clarisse an encouraging smile. Surely everything would be fine once they arrived, and things were going pretty well currently. “But just in case the kids really love the stew, we should make sure there’s enough left for Levi and Kayden.”

“We’re just starting with one serving. I’m sure the two would have enough.” She reassured him before turning to the campers and moved to put the lid aside. “Well then, you heard Ricky. Go ahead and get your fill. Remember, one by one, there’s enough stew for all of us and more. If anyone has any trouble getting their stew, you can ask one of your fellow campers or the counselors to help.”

With that, she stepped aside and watched as the campers fell into a line to get their stew. While keeping an eye on them, she stood next to Ricky. “So, how have you been?” They were in contact sporadically throughout the year but opening any other topic felt too raw and, frankly, Clarisse didn’t want to deal with that so soon. Or ever, preferably.

“I’ve been pretty good,” Ricky responded, glancing back from watching the kids get their fill out the stew. “Finally finished my degree, which is nice. And my friends and I are thinking of recording an EP soon. Apparently the bassist’s uncle has a place we can use.” He smiled, trying to keep things light. In all honesty, he had been doing pretty well the past couple months. The lingering aftermath of the disappearances was still there, of course, but repressing things was addictively easy. And when he didn’t think about it, he could pretend that nothing was amiss at all. But he hadn’t been as close to either of the sisters as Clarisse had been with Renee. Though he wasn’t about to bring that up for obvious reasons.

Instead, Ricky merely asked, “How about you?” He really did want to know how she was doing and hoped she was genuinely doing better than she had been previously. Part of why he was so excited to see her was to confirm that she was real and there and alive. Even though he logically knew that she was going to be there, seeing her was still nice.

Before she could respond, Kayden appeared at the table. “Sorry I’m late,” he said, glancing around at the table. Half the campers already there he knew well enough, and he doled out a high-five or two before it dawned on him he actually needed to sit at his table. He hadn’t been too bothered by his table assignment, save for Clarisse— and even that was preferable to some other options.

He chose, after a moment, to seat a few seats down from the other counselors, closer to Ricky than Clarisse. Buffered by kids if it got awkward, but close enough to talk otherwise. “I miss anything important?” He asked.

Ricky looked over as Kayden entered, glad that the other counselors were showing up. Finally. But he couldn’t be too mad; he’d wanted to be friends with Kayden again, so his tardiness gave Ricky an excuse to talk to him if nothing else. He flashed a nonchalant smile at Kayden and waved as he greeted the other guy. “Hey, man!” he said brightly. “And not really, but Clarisse and I started serving the stew to the kids. Hope you don’t mind.” With this, he tugged at his shirt sheepishly.

Her relaxed posture around Ricky completely disappeared when Kayden joined them. Whatever response she had to her friend would remain unknown as she nodded in agreement to Ricky’s statement. She debated whether to speak or not, knowing that any sort of action could spark something. They didn’t talk much but the silent judgements were almost as clear as day between them.

“The campers are finished so you can get yours too.” She decided to say as she motioned towards the pot as she got her own fill. Clarisse was about to say something else but decided better of it. “And the condiments are there.”

“Don’t let the kids starve on my account,” he said, before reaching the hot sauce among the condiments that Clarisse had pointed out. “Just because I’m late doesn’t mean they should starve.”

He poured a generous amount of bottle into his bowl before turning to the others. Clarisse was… really, no friend of his, but he liked Ricky. There was a certain guilt he carried for how he’d let their friendship drift away when they were still campers.

“So…,” he started, as he stirred the sauce into his stew. “How were your years?”

Ricky watched, curious to see if the hot sauce improved the taste as he loaded his own stew with red pepper flakes. Though that wasn’t out of character for him, since he more or less added red pepper flakes to everything that didn’t already have them. “My year’s been good for the most part,” he responded cheerfully. “How about you?”

It shouldn't have been a surprise that Levi showed up ten minutes late to dinner—anything to avoid whatever half-ass meal Juliette had slapped together and called it a day. As he walked through the doors of the dining hall, he was immediately hit with a cacophony of noise. Counselors bustled about, some heading to the front to grab condiments, while others flitted between tables, exchanging a few words before moving on. Levi's mind wandered, wondering if he could catch Liberty for a quick chat, to make sure things weren't... weird after how abruptly he'd left earlier.

With that thought, he made his way toward the bulletin board, his somewhat good mood soured once he saw where he'd be sitting for tonight. Seriously? Clarisse? Levi's eyes rolled skyward as he processed the seating arrangement. Ricky wasn’t a bad option—actually, Levi had been looking forward to some banter with him—but even the thought of Kayden had him groaning internally.

"Fucking... boring-ass table," he muttered under his breath. "Just my luck." Levi took a moment by the board to collect his bearings before making a beeline for table one. He noticed they had already started eating what appeared to be some sort of soup—or maybe stew? At least he didn't have to feel guilty about holding everyone up, small blessings.

"Sorry I'm late, got caught up with a few things," he said, flashing a quick smile as he playfully ruffled the hair of a few campers he remembered from his days as head of the music department. His interaction was brief but warm, a reminder of simpler times before Renee ruined well—everything else. He did his best to avoid the elephant in the room, the uncomfortable tension back full speed once he realized the only open seat was right next to Clarisse. For fuck's sake.

Keeping it together, Levi grabbed a bowl and poured himself a serving before taking his seat, the look of annoyance already creeping onto his face. "Well, well, well, if it isn't Miss Lowell," he drawled, lazily stirring his stew with little intention of eating it. "Sports have been looking much livelier since you left." His tone was light, but the sarcasm was hard to miss. "Oh, and by the way—thanks for the free position."

Clarisse wondered what God she had crossed for the only open position in the entirety of the table be next to her— and for Levi to be late. She reached for some of the condiments to add to the incredibly bland stew. “Levi.” She greeted with a stiff nod and she prayed for that to be the end of the interaction— but it didn't. Levi kept speaking and her patience wore even thinner.

“Mhm, I'm sure you can finally put that height of yours to use filling up my position.” She responded with a shrug, seemingly unbothered by his comment. Did she miss being a sports counselor? Of course, it had been her passion for so long. But she wasn't keen on letting Levi have the satisfaction of a reaction. “Surely, your previous position has taught you a lot about coordination. You'll need it.”

Huh. Well, that was kind of weak, if not sad. Levi didn't even flinch at her reminder that he was no longer part of the music program; it was something he was content with now, a choice he made on his own—totally not because of Renee.

"I’ll manage perfectly fine, thank you," he replied. The immature part of him suddenly wanted to ruin the vibe of dinner by bringing up the fact that he no longer had to worry about Renee ruining another interest of his, but he held his tongue. As he watched the campers happily chatting among themselves, he realized he didn’t have it in him to sour the mood anymore.

He quietly ate his soup, praying for time to pass just a bit quicker. After a while, the fight in him faded, and he mumbled, "How are you...holding up?" With your best friend being gone and all.

The question caught her off-guard and even Levi— especially him— could tell. So used to being on antagonistic terms that hearing some form of care was something alien to her. It was enough to cause her to get her off her rhythm, an honesty that was only seen so many years ago when they were still friends coming out.

She turned back to her soup, swirling her spoon in it. “It's… been okay.” Clarisse replied as her eyes roamed across the campers. Once she was sure that no one was listening, or looking at them, she turned back to Levi and gave him a tight-lipped smile. “Gotta be, y’know? They're not exactly keen on me doing nothing.” There was that bit of spitefulness in her otherwise indifferent attitude towards her parents.

Levi felt his jaw tighten slightly at the mention of Clarisse's parents. Whatever was going on, it didn’t sound good, and he didn’t want to be a jerk by bringing up her family when he had his own issues to deal with. The things you do for family. He gave a small nod, contemplating whether it was worth going for seconds and risking an upset stomach. "Hope it gets better," he said, leaving it at that, knowing there was no need to push the conversation further. He was only making small talk to set a good example for the younger campers, and that was about it.

"I heard a bunch of kids are asking about playing softball this year," Levi mentioned as he ripped a piece of bread in half, dipping one side into his soup. "Think you could stop by once we play? I'm sure Ricky wouldn’t mind the extra pair of hands helping out, right?" It was the first time he acknowledged Ricky, giving a small smile to appear welcoming.

"Oh, uh, hey, Kayden," he added, awkwardly trying to avoid the fact he forgot that Kayden was at this table as well. “Maybe…pass the salt?”

Ricky nodded as he was addressed, paying attention to the conversation as he acknowledged Levi with a smile. “You know I wouldn’t,” he replied, adding even more red pepper flakes to his stew. He’d added some salt and pepper as well, but the stew might as well be half red pepper flakes at this point. “I always love to have more hands on deck for activities. Plus, Clarisse and I are like a well-oiled machine at this point.” He chuckled, shooting her another grin. It wasn’t news that they’d been working side-by-side for a while.

The awkward yet easygoing atmosphere caused Clarisse to slip into a more comfortable state. “If you needed a ballgirl, you just needed to say.” Realizing almost immediately that she was still talking to Levi, she just prayed the joke would land without offense. She went back to eating her stew and wondering how many condiments she had to pour into the damn thing for it to feel worth the nutrients. She cleared her throat. “But, um, yeah. I'll help if you need me to. Wouldn't miss it for anything.” It was a chance to be with Ricky too and that was always enjoyable.

From further down the table, Kayden jerked at the sound of his name. It took him a few seconds to process it had even been said before he looked up. He’d gotten too caught up in his conversation with one of the kids about one of the field trips they’d taken this year, to the point that’d he’d somewhat forgotten the other counselors were here. “Sure man,” he said to Levi after a few beats, grabbing the shaker in front of him and reaching down the table to pass it off. Levi was another one of those counselors he knew well enough to have simple conversations with, but was by no means close to. To be honest, there was a sea of people at Evergreen he could say that about. Levi was fine, really, if he didn’t say something to piss him off. There were worse people to talk to.

Plus, with Clarisse sitting here, he certainly wasn’t Kayden’s least favorite counselor at the table.

“How’re you?” He asked as he handed over the salt shaker. “Have a good year?”

Levi felt himself relax beside Clarisse once Kayden replied, feeling a bit silly for assuming things would go downhill at this table. Instead, the vibes were... well, nice? Normal? Drama-free? Nah, scratch that. He knew with the right words, this table could ignite like a moth to a flame.

"Spent the year with Leon, actually," Levi said, easily washing down the aftertaste of the soup with a glass of water. "He's good company, so it was definitely a good year. What about you guys?" He put the glass down next to the salt that he asked for, untouched.

“Definitely worse company to be found,” Kayden agreed— and, with the best of effort, kept his eyes from flicking to Clarisse. “My year was… quiet, I guess. Not bad. Spent it working at a shop my friend’s dad runs. I’m glad to be back, though.”

He looked down into his bowl of soup, less bland than he had feared. “I didn’t think we’d be open, to be honest,” he added, voice dropping towards something closer to a mumble.

“Yeah, I get what you mean,” Ricky responded with a sigh. “But it is nice to see everyone again, though. I missed you guys.” He took another bite of soup after the admission, always the one to be earnest about his care for the others. Because he really did care about them, and seeing everyone together again did make him feel a little comforted somehow. “Do you guys have any plans for tonight or is it just chill time before lights out?” He genuinely hoped that no one would break curfew, though maybe it was due to more superstition than anything else. He didn’t usually go out of his way to break the rules, but he didn’t necessarily always follow them either. But in light of the disappearances from last year, he was going to be following the curfew rule more strictly than he would have previously.

“Don’t think anyone expected it to be. I didn’t think it would even be allowed.” Clarisse chimed in, though her gaze was firmly on her soup bowl. Anyone who would take a closer look would find that she had her brows furrowed for a moment, still conflicted on how good of an idea it was to have the camp re-opened. Still, what has happened, happened. After the fifth time of procrastinating eating the stew, she just abandoned the spoon to tip the bowl into her mouth and drink the rest of it all before letting it rest on the table.

She turned to Ricky and shook her head. “Unless something comes up, I’ll probably just patrol around the campsite to make sure the campers aren’t sneaking out too.” Because heaven knows campers wouldn’t be bound by the rules either. Clarisse had regularly broken a couple just because she could when she was younger but it was probably for the best if they followed the curfew for the night. It wouldn’t do them well if a camper, or another counselor, disappeared into the darkness.

Levi thought about how Kayden was right—why did the camp open back up to begin with? Jonathan Evergreen lost two of his own children; that should be enough for him to pack this dump up and become a helicopter parent for the rest of his life. He swallowed, hearing the conversation pass around the group, and kept to himself. It wasn't his place to make a comment on Mr.Evergreen's odd behavior, although he really did want to talk about it. It wasn't until he heard Rickey ask if anyone had plans tonight.

Levi wasn't sure if it would be wise to let others in on what he had planned later, opting to act casual instead. "Might crash early," he said, glancing around the dining hall to see if he could catch Leon real quick after dinner. The meal was coming to an end anyway, which wasn't as bad as he had thought it would be. "The first day is always such a drag." Levi noticed some commotion a couple of tables down, but his mind was elsewhere. "Tomorrow is when the fun begins."

Ricky nodded along as the others spoke, glancing at each speaker in turn. He finished up his dinner as he listened; it wasn’t the best meal he’d ever had, but red pepper flakes helped liven up anything. And living with his parents, he’d had much worse cooking before. So he wasn’t as bothered by it as he noticed some of the others were. At Clarisse’s statement about patrolling, he furrowed his brows. It probably was a good idea to make sure the campers weren’t getting up to no good. Normally, he was one of the more lenient counselors, not caring about kids sneaking off after lights off so long as they were smart about it and he trusted them not to endanger someone. But this year, things were different. Though Clarisse could surely handle herself, he would be damned if anything happened while he was around. And seeing as he didn’t have any plans himself, he might as well join her.

“Do you mind if I join you on patrol, Clarisse?” he asked, glancing over to her. “Might make it a bit less boring. Besides, there’s strength in numbers.” He smiled, running his hand through his hair.

She agreed with Levi’s assessment that the first day was always the most boring. Activities started tomorrow which would really liven up the place. That was when Ricky spoke and Clarisse looked surprised at the offer at first before nodding. “Yeah, that’s fine with me.” It did make sense. If there was something or someone out there, it might be for the best not to wander around alone. Two pairs of eyes were better than one after all.

“I’m sure someone is trying to throw something together for the first night,” Kayden added. “Campers and staff. It’ll probably be good to have you two out there to stop anyone from getting themselves in trouble.”

He paused for a moment, his thoughts spinning backward as he thought about the disappearances from last year. Despite the theories some people had, Kayden had always been of the opinion that the two of them had gotten lost in the woods and fell victim to something out there– exposure, more than likely, and eaten up by animals to hide the evidence. The thought of some thirteen year-old kids wandering off into the forest and meeting the same fate sent a chill down his spine.

“But I’m with Levi on this one,” he finished. “Tomorrow is going to be a full day of campers acting like they’ve forgotten every rule here, and I do not want to be half-asleep trying to stop a bunch of teenagers from pointing arrows at each other, personally.”

Levi noticed Kayden's pause, and he had a feeling he knew what Kayden—and everyone else—was thinking. Instead of jumping in to say anything though, he took a moment to glance around at the other tables before checking the time.

"Glad to see everyone agrees with me." Levi stood up, sliding his chair back as he half-heartedly stretched, letting out a sigh. "We should keep that mindset—that I'm always right." He chuckled softly, shaking his head at his lame attempt at a joke, then gestured toward the other campers and staff members who were starting to leave the dining hall. Finally, time to catch up with everyone else.

"Anyways, dinner wasn't so bad. Even our table manners were spot on," he remarked, thinking back to how he had been quick to judge the situation he was put in, especially when he saw Clarisse at the same table. But he knew that time would tell—one of them would definitely slip up first.

Clarisse couldn't help the smile on her face at Levi’s attempt to joke around, but it was clear that this peaceful, if awkward and tense, situation was coming to a close as others were beginning to leave. She nodded in agreement. “Mm, we actually might be stellar examples as counselors.”

Just as Levi was about to ditch his table, he heard shouting a couple of tables down. He didn't react at first until he realized it sounded like Marquis and Liberty going at it. Holy shit, I need to get in on this. With a gleam in his eye, he turned to the others at his table and shrugged. "Should we... do something?"

She stood up, keen on making sure that the table would be left spotless when Marquis’s voice practically silenced the entire hall. Clarisse followed Levi’s gaze and they couldn’t see much of what happened but for Marquis to have spoken up… “It doesn’t look like they’re going to stir trouble.” Clarisse carefully said as she turned back to Levi. “Not all of us.” She finally responded to his inquiry. Cornering them with way too many people would not be ideal unless they wanted it to get messy.

Ricky nodded at Clarisse’s response, attention focused on this new interaction. It was unlike Marquis to make a scene like that, which made Ricky curious to know what exactly was going on. But he didn’t want to add to the scene by standing around and staring. “Yeah, no need to draw more attention to whatever’s going on there,” Ricky agreed, crossing his arms. “I can make sure the kids do what they’re supposed to so this scene doesn’t give them any ideas.”

"Yeah, but—he yelled at Liberty in front of everyone. What the hell is he thinking?" Levi didn’t have any issues with Marquis, but it seemed like such an overreaction that he couldn’t help but feel mildly annoyed on Liberty’s behalf—and for the whole dining hall, too.

He listened as the others responded, with both Clarisse and Ricky agreeing that it wasn’t worth adding to the commotion and that it should be left alone. Levi shook his head; he felt like they wouldn’t understand. "It’s just something he wouldn’t do. Something’s up. I’ll catch you guys later."

He was about to leave to talk to Marquis when he caught sight of Liberty leaving the hall. His instinct was to immediately follow her, but he was stopped by Leon.

Deviating, Leon quickly intercepts what could become an even bigger scene and places one arm around Levi’s broad shoulders and rests his free hand on his back. “Levi! How did I not notice you all day with how abnormally tall you are, huh?” His voice is loud, obnoxious and self-serving for the rest of Levi’s table. Dropping his voice low, he cautions: “Not here and not now. Sunspot tonight, yeah? You, me and Thomas.”

He pats Levi’s back once, twice. Hoping the motion relaxes him from spiralling into an uproar on Liberty’s behalf—Leon had the sneaking suspicion that whatever it was between them the first summer they met, before Riley entered the picture, still lingered after all this time. Speaking up for the rest of the table, Leon comments, “I hope you guys are enjoying mine and Juliette’s stew! We won’t be accepting criticisms at this time.”

As much as Levi wanted to chase after Liberty, he easily accepted the distraction in front of him. "Where the fuck have you been?" Though the argument was still on his mind, Levi gave in and hugged Leon briefly before wrapping his other arm around his shoulder, pulling him close. He leaned down to hear Leon whisper about the Sunspot, and the familiar feeling of contentment returned as he looked forward to what the night would bring. "Gotcha." He gave a brief nod, trying not to look suspicious, before Leon addressed his table.

Thankful for Leon’s presence who managed to diffuse Levi’s attempt, Clarisse gave him a more genuine smile. “My rights to free speech are being challenged right now.” She huffed but went back to collect the bowls that were still left around by some of the more unruly campers who were too excited and left as soon as they were able. “It was alright, thanks for cooking. Extend that to Juliette if you see her.” Her eyes flashed to the exit for a moment before shaking her head. “And, um, I’ll ask Liberty about what happened later. If… If you want, Levi.” She offered. He seemed particularly worried and Clarisse figured that if she could help, she might as well. It was something that concerned the camp after all.

Levi was stunned into silence by Clarisse's offer, his arm slipping off Leon's back as he stared at her, a bit dumbfounded. "You’d do that?" He raised a brow, curious if there was an ulterior motive, but quickly gathered himself. Levi eased down, letting out a brief sigh before flashing Clarisse what was probably the first genuine smile from him all day. "Thanks, uh, Clarisse. I’d appreciate that a lot."

He noticed others beginning to gather their things and leave, and Levi didn’t want to be too obvious about their plan to ditch everyone else. He gently nudged his elbow into Leon’s side, jerking his head slightly to signal that the dining hall was clearing out. Let’s scram.

Leon feigns hurt at Clarisse’s words, putting a hand to his chest in faux-shock. “We worked hard on that stew. No shenanigans whatsoever.” His lips pull up into a secret smile as he recalls his attempts to get Juliette to break her tension. “See you guys bright and early tomorrow! And you—” Leon releases his hold on Levi to somewhat carefully slap the back of his head. “Let’s get outta here you big brute.”

Pulling away from the table with Levi in tow, Leon searches the Dining Hall for Thomas and tosses his head in that direction, signalling Levi to follow.

Clarisse offered Levi a nod but didn’t meet his gaze as she continued cleaning up. “I’m sure you did and the campers definitely appreciated it.” Overstatement considering how much leftover stew she was pouring into an empty bowl so she could stack them all up to return to the kitchen. “See you tomorrow. Have a good night.” She called out before looking at Ricky and Kayden. “I’ll clean up. You two can go ahead.” It was better than doing nothing at all; talking with Liberty could wait until much later.

Ricky hesitated at that, not sure whether he wanted to just ditch her. On one hand, it would be nice to have a bit of free time before lights out to catch up with some of his friends, but he wasn’t sure who already had plans, since the counsellors could be quite cliquey at times. On the other hand, he would feel bad leaving Clarisse to clean by herself, despite her offer. But despite his indecision, he did want to spend more time with Kayden. The two hadn’t truly been close for a long time, and this was the year to repair friendships. Ricky had decided that he would be trying to be the best friend he could to everyone, and that involved working to fix his previous friendships that had fallen into simple acquaintanceship.

“Okay, thanks Clarisse,” he responded with a grin. “Tomorrow I’ll clean up.” He was not about to walk away without a way to repay her for even the small kindness. Ricky was all about paying it forward. Speaking of kindness, he figured now was as good a time as ever to work on his friendship with Kayden. He turned to the other guy with a smile. “So, any big plans for this camp session?”

After echoing him in thanking Clarisse, Kayden turned to meet Ricky’s gaze. The grin the other boy wore managed to both put him at ease and make him nervous. Kayden wasn’t blind to the fact that he was the main reason they weren’t really friends anymore. Ricky had been one of several casualties when he’d decided friends at camp weren’t worth having anymore. He’d felt justified in that as a teenager, hearing whispers around camp weaving stories of his exploits and stints in juvie, but he was old enough now to know better. Writing everybody off over it, no matter how involved they may or may not have been, had been childish. Especially Ricky, who was too nice to swat a mosquito even if it bit him.

“Mostly just making sure we all survive a crop of brand new kids learning how not to point a bow at their friends,” he replied with a shrug. “Making sure none of them do anything else stupid. And maybe actually talking to other people this summer instead of spending two weeks holed up alone at the archery range. What about you?”

Though Ricky had spoken to Kayden expecting an answer, he was still happy that Kayden responded to him in a way that continued the conversation. He had been hurt when Kayden had originally stopped talking to him, but he figured that Kayden had needed his space at the time. Maybe now he was ready to fix the friendship, which made Ricky immensely relieved. It was much easier to be friends with someone who was also trying to befriend you.

He chuckled lightly at the response, feeling strangely careful, like the friendship was made of glass that might break if he made the wrong move. He didn’t want to scare Kayden off, after all. Ricky wouldn’t tiptoe around his former friend, but he would be making sure not to be too enthusiastic, lest that drive Kayden away again. “Honestly, my only real plan is to make this the best camp session I can. What that entails yet, I’m not completely sure. I’m not working on it, though.” He shrugged. “If you’ve got any ideas on specifics, I’m all ears!”

“Not getting in anybody’s way might be a good start,” Kayden replied, glancing back to the table where Marquis and Liberty had been sitting. “It seems like everybody is on a hair trigger this year.”

And that was just Liberty and Marquis, he thought to himself. If the two of them were off exploding at each other, what about somebody like Rowan— someone whose stake in what happened last year was built on genuine connection, not just being present at camp that summer, or the shared years they’d had here as kids?

“Very good idea,” Ricky agreed with a nod, glancing back at Marquis and Liberty one last time in concern. He may not like either of them, but he couldn’t help but wonder what had happened between them and hope things were not as bad as they seemed. “Starting fights isn’t usually my style, anyway. As long as we get through the session without a hospital trip or any major property damage, things should be okay, right?” He shrugged, trying to brush off the nerves that the strange energy at camp was giving him. “Alright, I told Clarisse I was gonna make sure kids are following the curfew, so I’m gonna make the rounds now. You’re welcome to join me if you want.”

Kayden glanced down at his watch before he shrugged. “It’s only half-past seven,” he said with a shrug, standing from his chair to leave. “And I could stand to get a lap or two in, so I might as well. Where were you thinking of starting?”

Well, maybe it was a bit early to start on curfew duty, but it wasn’t as if Ricky had other plans. He was happy to go off of ideas from others instead of wander aimlessly. Besides, if he started early, he could sleep sooner, right? “Probably somewhere like the lake. I was thinking of leaving the areas closer to the cabins and the more populated spots until later. Plus that way I can get some extra steps in if I do a little walk around a larger area like the lake anyway.” He glanced at Kayden for his opinion, a rush of warmth filling his chest at the thought the other guy wanted to spend time with him. Maybe this really was his summer to work on his friendships.
code by valen t.
 



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Arriving at the dining hall, Thomas held back a smile as he watched the kids bubbling and bouncing around with excitement. The chatter raised the sound level of the room to one that some would consider annoying and loud but Thomas was willing to give kids grace to be kids. This was the side of him that he refused to let others so - the side of him that still melted at the youth and innocence of kids. Sometimes, it felt as though adults could stand to be a little more like kids.

With a quick scan of the room, it didn't take long for him to spot his table and he made his way over to them. The first thing he saw immediately formed a deep frown on his face. It was the one thing he absolutely refused to stand for. One of the older kids on his table had decided it would be a fun idea to pick on one of the younger and smaller kids. There was some shoving and some name calling that he was certain David - today's bully - would certainly call playful. But Thomas wasn't playing around about this.

He walked up behind David, a large, intimidating shadow falling over the smaller person. The size difference was enough that David was entirely swallowed by Thomas' shadow, even as he slowly turned around to see who was standing behind him. He opened his mouth to say something but Thomas raised a finger to silence him.

"We'll be having none of that."

The camper, feeling bold - for whatever reason - decided to talk back. "Or what? You'll send me home? Counselors can't do that."

Thomas shook his head and offered the easiest of smiles. "Send you home? No, no. No fun in that. I'll just make this your worst summer ever." He crossed his hands over his chest confidently and met the camper's gaze. "Try me. I dare you." The camper seemed not so eager to test his luck, which only made Thomas smile more, gesturing for David to look at the person he had been bullying. "Now apologise".

To say Leilani lost track of time frequently would be the understatement of the year. With an artist such as her, it was the normal way of things, to get so wrapped up in whatever task or project at hand that time was irrelevant. After getting to know the new camper, Zarina, that Lou introduced her to, she spent some time organizing and tidying the art room. No, it may not have been physically painting a canvas or anything, but Lani definitely felt it was tangentially some form of art; making organization from the chaos? That was poetic or something, right?

The time seemed to fly by; what started as Leilani just organizing a few of the cabinets and the supplies within them quickly became a deep clean and reorganization zen time for Lani. Before she knew it, her eyes drifted up to the clock and saw it was time for dinner. Her head fell back in defeat; she was halfway through pulling out all the supplies, running them through a quality check before shuffling them all back to their respective resting places within the room. As much as she wanted to stay there, ignoring all other complicated feelings related to a certain daughter of the summer camp owner, she knew she had to be at dinner. All counselors were required to attend since all the kids were required to attend. With all her willpower, Lani grabbed her shoulder bag and headed for the dining hall.

Nothing could stop the smile that rose to her eyes as she stepped into the dining hall. The energy in the room from all the young campers, almost buzzing with excitement as they chatted amongst themselves. Lani couldn’t help the nostalgia that rushed through her as her eyes landed on random groups of kids. This is what she had to remember, the kids all laughing and talking with each other. This was why she was there in the first place; not for Renee, not for the art, but to brighten up these kids’ days.

Leilani thought back to when she was a regular camper at Evergreen. It was always the one place she could truly be herself; a free spirit with the drive to create. In her own home, her father swatted at any and almost all of her creative bouts, silencing her around every corner. Her father was always such a restrictive, conservative man, asking her how she was ever going to serve her future husband if all she did was draw.

An involuntary shudder broke her from her spiral as she regained her focus on the campers. This wasn’t for her, it was for them.

After a few more minutes of looking around the room, Leilani figured it was time to find her seat. She quickly pivoted around, still standing at the dining hall entrance, and looked for her name and table.

Table Four: Alton, Thomas, Leilani & Morgan

Fun! Leilani enjoyed the other counselors listed at her table; she considered them her friends! Certainly this would be a fun time for everyone, right?

As she weaved her way through the crowded maze of tables and chairs and restless children, there were a small few campers who couldn’t wait any longer. A particular pair of best friends rushed over to Leilani and surrounded her with a big hug. Claire and Massie, two campers that were in one of her very first groups as a counselor, had seen her as soon as she entered the room and couldn’t wait to come see her. They gushed about the art they did at school, how they couldn’t wait to learn more from her. Truth be told, Leilani was close to tears, but she masked them well with that “light-up-a-room” grade smile of hers as she quickly squeezed them both before sending them back to their table. She gave a wave to the counselor at their table, as if to say “Sorry for the interruption”, Leilani couldn’t help that she was such a likeable counselor now could she?

Finally making it to her table, she was greeted with Thomas! It seemed they were the first ones to arrive. Thomas seemed to have been getting on to one of the campers; a bigger, older kid who was defiantly staring down the counselor, while a younger camper had his big, doe-like eyes. Clearly the victim. Leilani ushered the younger camper to come sit beside her, as to give a buffer between the two kids.

“Now, what do you think they’re serving for dinner, hm? I’ve got my money on hot dogs!” Her voice was soothing, and yet somehow bright as well. It was almost as though her words were as bouncy and happy as her persona, “They’re fast, they’re easy, and it’s hard to go wrong,” She tried to strike up a conversation with the younger camper, while Thomas seemed to deal with the antagonist of it all.

Thomas caught Leilani in the corner of his eye and gave her a good-natured wink; the closest thing to a hello he could muster as waving required too much moving and he was currently talking to one of the campers. Of all the people that could show up on the table at this moment, he was glad it had been Leilani, she’d be good at handling the other half of this conversation.

“I…I like hotdogs,” came the kid’s mild-mannered response, voice meek enough to be held on a cloud. However, the more he talked, the more he seemed to open up to Leilani. He went on for a little bit about the other foods that he liked and why he liked them - seeming to focus a lot on corn.

Seeing that part of the conversation being handled, Thomas turned his attention back to the kid that had started all this in the first place. Thomas scanned through the list of campers he’d gotten to know looking for the boy’s face. In doing so, he realised that the boy’s face was unknown to him - and Thomas was good when it came to faces, even with such a vast sea of campers. The other kids also didn’t seem to circle around this one much.

“You’re new, aren’t you?” The camper seemed surprised that Thomas had said that with such certainty, at which Thomas simply shrugged. “I’ll let you off the hook once and once only because you don’t know how things work here.” He gestured with his thumb over his shoulder at Leilani as he continued, “You’ve got the two coolest counselors in this camp at this table. We’re going to expect you to be cool too. And cool here doesn’t mean making it known that you’re bigger and stronger. That’s for kids. You should be better than that.”

The camper was no longer looking at Thomas. Rather, he seemed to have taken a keen interest in counting the number of dust particles on the ground as his gaze was fixed intently on the ground, arms shoved so deep in his pockets they threatened to rip them.

“You wanna go settle down and stop acting like a child so that we can all enjoy dinner?” The camper nodded solemnly and Thomas smirked. Good, he thought. He didn’t want to get any sterner with the camper. The other campers seemed to have been getting slightly uncomfortable and he didn’t want to be noted as the strict counselor. Thankfully, some of them knew him from the previous year and so there was not much worry there.

He walked over to Leilani and the camper that was by her side, ruffling the camper’s hair and giving him a little encouraging wink - Thomas communicated through winks a lot. He leaned down and whispered to Leilani but did it in such a way that the others on the table would be able to hear what he said. “You tell anybody in camp that Thomas actually has a heart and I will deny anything that happened here.” A couple of the campers chuckle at this. He looks up at them and glares, playful smile, tugging at his lips as he points in their general direction as well. “That goes for you rascals too.” Even more laughed now, but they all nodded and he smiled back at them.

He enjoyed the time hanging out with kids. He’d never admit it to anybody but he enjoyed their innocence and youth - before the world taught them all the nasty things it had in store for them. He’d do what part he could to protect that innocence and youth. It was the one soft spot that, even through the hard exterior he put up, he couldn’t deny having.

He’d done his job of making the campers - even the one that had formerly been seen as the bully - laugh, he’d done his job. With that, he moved to take a seat at the table, on the other side of Leilani to keep up casual conversation with the campers on the other side of the table. He paused mid-sentence as he realised that they were two counselors short - they were being outnumbered here. “Oi, Leilani, you seen Morgan or Alton anywhere around?”

The moment that Alt walked through the doors of the lunch hall, all these memories came back to him in a sickening flood. He pulled his bottom lip in and scraped his teeth across it, anchoring himself to reality. A quick glance over the seating chart had him at the table with Thomas, Lani, and Morgan. Honestly, it could have been way worse.

He did a quick scan for them, and his eyes caught Morgan first. Immediately, his gaze narrowed. ”The fuck,” he uttered under his breath. Morgan hovered over Rowan, his hand briefly touching the other counselor’s shoulder before pulling away. The entire thing smacked saccharine in the worst way. Alt had let his feelings be known at the end of summer last year. While he was pretty sure he burnt–no incinerated–that bridge, it still hurt to see this, especially from Morgan. Alt tried to swallow down the nausea of regret, but it was hard. Honestly, it put him off from actually eating. He told himself to forget it. He knew he wouldn’t.

Alt approached the table, checking his watch as he did so. He was on time. Lani and Thomas were just overachievers. He recognized a few of the campers from last year, and there were a few that he hadn’t seen before. ”Is this seat taken?” he asked one of the campers sitting next to an empty chair.

She snapped off a quick “no,” before turning her head to see Alt. ”Wow, what happened to your face?”

”What happened to your manners?” he bit back.

She pulled away and muttered an apology under her breath. Alt sat down next to her anyway. ”I fought a bear and won,” he whispered to her. She chuckled, and whatever tension had been forming, dissipated.

He then glanced at Lani and Thomas. ”Hey,” was all he could muster out. ”I saw Morgan over there.” He gestured vaguely.

Morgan still hadn't quite decided how he felt by the time he reached his own table. Realistically, he knew that the interaction had been a... Fairly normal one. Nothing out of the ordinary had been said or done, nothing much different from how he had talked with Rowan in the past... Which could be seen both as a good and a bad thing, of course, depending on how one wished to look at it.

And yet...

Even if Rowan had seemed so distracted and lost interest in him so easily, he also most definitely had said yes to the idea of meeting up later. Perhaps out of curiosity - or maybe because he was simply friendly like that... But beggars couldn't be choosers, and Morgan was certainly going to take what he could get. Besides, he did have an actual - innocent - goal in this, too. There was no reason for him to be feeling this... This anxious and guilty already.

... Nor this elated for sure.

Then again, his heart had never chosen to listen to him on this matter before, so why would it have started now?

At least the dinner shouldn't be too bad, he decided, between Leilani and Thomas... Even if he still couldn't tell what Alton was going to be like that year. Morgan didn't want to judge him for... What had happened. What had been said. Hells, he really couldn't - as none of it had even been directed at him in the first place... But he was still - curious. And... Perhaps a bit worried.

Both about Alton and about... What his presence could cause.

Even being perhaps the tiniest bit late like this, it was still easy enough for Morgan to find a free spot near his fellow counsellors - and he smoothly slid onto the bench by their table now, unable to stop himself from smiling subtly. He was fairly sure that he had just caught his own name being mentioned there - and, all right, that was fair, as he could see everyone else was already present...

"I'm here, sorry," he said, letting his gaze roam the table first... Before it quickly escaped for just a fraction of a second - certainly no longer! - towards the spot where he had been standing merely a moment ago. How annoying - that just that alone was enough to make his heart skip a beat... "I needed to talk with someone first. But - hello. Lovely to see you all again."

And though he said that and he meant it, Morgan wasn't actually looking directly at any of them at that point, wasn't focusing on them - though he still had them in his field of view... Leilani and Thomas, perhaps, more so than Alton, but still.

Alt figured that if he just went through the motions and played the part, that he’d be fine. But sitting here, amongst everyone, really made him feel like an imposter. And with that feeling came the bubbling vitriol planted in his gut. Everyone seemed to have moved on, but not him. He was stuck here as if trapped in some Twilight Zone style time loop where he had to endure the same people doing the same thing—over and over and over again. That only became more prevalent as Morgan sat down, a shit-eating grin smeared all over his face. This was someone that Alt actually liked, and here he was resenting him. Was he jealous of the other counselor? No. Yes. No. Yes. It seemed like Alt had to endure all the pain for everyone else to get what he wanted. No medical school. No kindness. No respect. No love.

“Lovely to see us? You seem really sad to see us, Morgan.” Alt scowled. “Or more importantly, really sad to leave someone and be with us. Sorry, none of us can entertain you.” He gestured around the table.

That sort of greeting was one thing that Morgan definitely hadn't expected - and in that first moment he almost felt like he must have heard it wrong. His head still immediately went up, turned to the side - towards Alton, to check and judge his expression...

... Oh.

Those... Were very characteristic scars. Morgan had seen ones like that before - both in pictures and in person... Burns weren't all that uncommon, after all, even if the pattern here did look rather unusual - climbing Alton's face as it did... Truth be told, in a way, it was sort of... Aesthetically pleasing. Something to paint, perhaps.

He couldn't exactly imagine receiving injuries like that, though.

The surprise and confusion distracted Morgan for just a second - but as more words followed that initial remark, his attention quickly returned and refocused. His brow furrowed a bit, though only for a moment - before he reminded himself to shift his expression back towards something more neutral...

"It's all right, we're meeting after dinner," he heard himself say in a fairly pleasant tone, even though he could already tell that it was probably a very bad idea. He just... Couldn't quite make himself stop. "Right now, I am all yours. Don't worry."

Alt caught what Morgan was staring at, and he fought the urge to slide a hand over his face. Not that that would help, his right hand was more-or-less the same. He’d ignored the fact that he could catch the crumpled edges of his burnt flesh in his sight. A marring on his cheek that he hadn’t gotten used to.

He raised a brow at what Morgan said. He carefully curated the next sentence in his head, and then his mouth vomited whatever the hell it felt like. ”For fuck’s sake Morgan, it’s the first night. You’re already being an absolute fuck boy.”
... What was that supposed to mean.

Well, all right - Morgan couldn't claim being naive enough not to get it... And yet the fact that Alton had chosen that insult, specifically, annoyed him more than the idea of being insulted in the first place... Even if, truth be told, it also sounded ridiculous enough to almost make him want to laugh in surprise.

He didn't, of course; he didn't like where this was going, even if - deep inside - he was aware that he might have poured some gasoline on that fire.

Leilani’s eyes bounced between the two newest arrivals at the table, the tension they brought with them was palpable, almost suffocating even. And just in case Lani was overanalyzing the tone, Alton went right on ahead and said his true feelings about Rowan. Leilani’s eyes widened a bit before a reflex of a smile popped onto her face.

Before he could respond in any way, however, Leilani's voice broke through the tension - and Morgan's eyes instantly switched towards her on the other side of the table, unblinking and focused. She was... Certainly right about that part, though he also didn't exactly need to be told about it; and not just about the campers, but... About the presence of everyone else nearby, too.


”Alt, there are young ears present!” she did her best to whisper-yell towards him, but there was no use hiding any spoken words from the campers; them and their young ears heard everything. Leilani quickly looked at the rest of the campers, who seemed to be a little too invested in figuring out the counselor drama. She had to figure out some kind of distraction, or this was going to be an entire shit show.

”I know! Let’s have an ultimate rock, paper scissors show down!” She leaned in toward the middle of the table, trying to mirror the excitement she wanted from the children. ”Everyone pair up with someone sitting next to you, and we’ll play rock, paper scissors. As you beat people, you start finding other winners and knocking out competition until you’re the last man standing!” She saw them get slightly less engaged at the all-too-basic rules of a rock, paper, scissors tournament. She needed some stakes…

”Whoever wins gets my portion of desert!” Leilani’s eyebrow cocked up in a bit of a gotcha moment. As soon as the reward registered in their little minds, their eyes lit up and they began splitting into pairs. The campers were distracted and Leilani’s curiosity was spiking through the roof. She shot Thomas a look before subtly cocking her head towards Alton, silently begging to keep Alton occupied while the kids battled. Leilani quickly and swiftly slid in to the seat next to Morgan, holding up her hands in a rock, paper, scissors readied stance.

Alt’s attention shot to Lani as she panicked and then handled the situation with the fluidity of a mother lifting a car off her baby. He met her eyes and mouthed “Sorry” and ”Thank you” He let the tension die at that moment and helped the kids pair up even though they were giving him incredulous looks. As if they were going to run to Mr. Evergreen and repeat those words pronto. Alt really needed this to go well to be able to fulfill his community service.

While Morgan was not afraid of having a conversation with Alton, he definitely didn't like the idea of doing that in front of an audience.

And so he simply stayed silent for the moment, letting Leilani direct the flow of this entire situation - and keeping his gaze on her while she made her suggestion. His head stayed held high, his shoulders - straight, and while he did his best to appear relaxed, he could feel the familiar tangle of cold anxiety in his chest, somehow light and heavy at the same time.

If nothing else, he was grateful to Leilani for the distraction. Well - not a distraction for him, but for the campers, that was... And as the kids, encouraged by the potential of winning a sweet prize, began to turn towards each other, Morgan carefully released a long, slow, barely audible breath.

The hope for a moment of peace did not last long.

Thomas caught Leilani’s gesture and didn’t even need to look to see who she had gestured toward. Oh she owed him one for sure, absolutely no doubt about it. Thomas didn’t particularly mind Alton, but of the people on the table, he would definitely be in the bottom 10% that he’d want to play with and would most certainly have been the last on the list amongst the counselors on the table.

Denying a sigh, he turned and made his way to Alton, his characteristic smile on his face as he approached. From the tiny bit of Leilani that he heard on his way over to Alton, it sounded like she was trying to get to the bottom of this. Thomas had no such intention. However, he would never say no to free dessert. Wait a second…was there even dessert or had Leilani just played them all?

He shrugged. He could deal with that later. For now, he had a game to win.

Even before Leilani moved towards him, Morgan could already tell what the idea there was; the look she sent Thomas really told Morgan everything he needed to know. Soon, she was sitting right next to him, though, raising her hands for the game... And, honestly, what else could he do - but shift in his spot as well, pulling one bent leg onto the bench to face her and lifting his own hands?

”So, Morgan, care to tune me in on whatever’s happening between you and Alton? It’s clear there’s some bad energy between the two of you.” She began speaking to her friend, pretending to play rock, paper, scissors to help keep the kids busy.

"You might have to talk with Alton about that," he said quietly, intentionally keeping the tone of his voice fairly neutral, perhaps even on the lighter side - to accompany the ghost of a smile on his lips. He didn't intend to start anything there, after all... And if his - from the lack of a better word - secret was to ever come out, then he wanted that to happen on his own terms, at least. "Like I said, I just needed to ask someone to meet with me after dinner, that's all."

He... Had a good enough guess for what the main problem was, admittedly. He couldn't honestly claim that he had no idea. But... He still didn't think he had done anything wrong there - anything that wouldn't have been justified, especially after last year... And as he kept his gaze on Leilani's hands now, as if paying attention to the game despite not putting much effort into trying to win, Morgan very strictly told himself to ignore the pang of - entirely irrational, of course - guilt.

“Square up, Altie. I’m getting that dessert.” Thomas had also been wondering why Alton had made the…bold decision to come back after his explosive and unforgettable end to the last camp year, but he figured - if it was a topic to bring up at all - now was not the time to bring up something that could potentially be problematic. Not around the kids, at least. After all, of all the things Alton had said last year, Thomas had gotten off fairly easy. Maybe because last year was his first year and so Alton didn’t have much on him?

He had chosen not to question Alton on why he was back, but Thomas was still just petty enough to let Alton know that he hadn’t forgotten and he wouldn’t be getting off easy. “I bet you’ll remember who I am after a tragic rock-paper-scissors defeat,” he chuckled. There had been no malice behind the words - after all, Thomas didn’t much care what others thought of him. If anything, he preferred to be able to fly under the radar. He’d only said anything for the amusement of seeing how Alton would respond.

Once he’d gotten them sorted, he’d been paired up with Thomas. ”I’m sorry. Do I know you? Are you new?” Alt asked, feigning innocence as Thomas threw back the insult he’d given to the other counselor last summer.

The guilt from causing this entire scene led Alt to lose the Rock-Paper-Scissor match on purpose. ”I don’t do desert, anyway.” Alt said, weirdly placating Thomas. It was honestly the least he could do for Lani—and just Lani.

Thomas laughed at Alton’s comment. It wasn’t clear whether Alton was saying it as a joke or to get under his skin - maybe even both - but it bounced off Thomas like a rubber ball. “Yeah, well you’ll probably forget about me once camp ends, so no need re-introducing myself.”

He walked away from Alton to one of the campers that had also won their match and started a small streak. Unfortunately, he got knocked out pretty quickly after that - only getting four people deep in his streak before losing.

He performed a flawless demonstration of a defeated victor - clutching his chest, arm on his head, the whole shebang - before plopping back into his seat. He let the moment rest for a little bit before he got back up - figuring that this moment when the kids were distracted by Leilani’s little ice breaker, would be a good time to get their food ready.

As they went around playing their games, Thomas grabbed one of the campers that had lost and asked for help with handing over the plates and putting them in front of where the campers would be sitting.

At the smell of the food, several of the campers that had lost began making their way to the table but Thomas made sure that they didn’t start eating before the others were done and a winner was declared. Once everyone was back at their seat, Thomas took a deep, flourishing bow as he stretched his hand over the table. “Dinner…is served.”

Truth be told, Morgan had no interest in winning this game - not even the first stage of it against Leilani. Oh, not because he felt like he should let her - or anyone else for that matter - win for some noble reason, no, even if he knew a camper should be their final victor. It was more that... After Alton's last comment, he supposed the children might be more comfortable playing with Leilani than with him - and, admittedly, perhaps he also wished to avoid getting any curious and insensitive questions from them.

And so he only pretended, putting enough effort into it not to make it look too easy - but ultimately leading to Leilani's victory. The one problem with that quickly became obvious; it seemed like Alton had just lost his own match against Thomas as well... And that left the two of them dangerously without anything better to do.

... Morgan very quickly made himself busy with watching over the campers' games.

Soon, he noticed Thomas starting to take care of the plates for their table - and his initial urge was to go help with that... But there was already a camper working on it as well, and Morgan wasn't so certain that he wanted to put himself in a position of having to potentially answer Thomas' questions. Maybe he didn't honestly believe that it would have come to that, no; Thomas didn't appear to be... All that interested in what had been said, after all. And yet...

Well, better safe than sorry.

Even without his assistance, however, the table was ready relatively fast - and around the same time a winner also emerged, one terribly pleased in the way that only a child could be over something so innocent and - technically - meaningless. Morgan could admire that, in a way... In fact, he almost felt jealous of that kind of joy himself.

At least the arrival of food was a perfect distraction - continuing the freedom bought by that little contest. Morgan wasn't naive enough to think that his conversation with Alton had been forgotten that easily... But at least nobody mentioned it again right then, quickly focusing on the food and some casual discussions instead.

All in all, it definitely could have been much worse... If nothing else, their issues hadn't been loud enough to get the attention of the entire room - which not every set of counselors could apparently say at the end of dinner.



 






liberty f.




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Attempting to remain composed and unbothered, Liberty takes the Dining Hall steps one at a time. Of all people, she never expected Marquis to yell at her over something so trivial. Zarina had the right to know the hell-scape she was entering, because what was Jonathan thinking by allowing new people to attend the summer camp only a year after his own daughters' disappearance? It wasn't too late for the girl to pack her bags and go home before the session truly begins.

Darkness blankets the sky, the summer weather keeping it at bay long enough—the string lights and lanterns sparked to life around 7:00PM, illuminating the path from the Dining Hall to the Village. She's about to press on down the path towards the Village, taking only a few steps when the door swings open suddenly behind her and she hesitates before looking back, already knowing its him.

With a tight-lipped smile, Liberty turns to face Marquis. "Come to apologise already? That's more like the Marquis I know." Her brows lift as her eyes dart to the Dining Hall, the surprise evident. "Not whatever that was. Clearly you're hanging around Alton too much. Guess I'm next in line to tell everyone what I really think." Should I start with you? Liberty wants to snap, but has the good sense to shut her mouth before saying something that wouldn't even be true. Their dynamic at camp was one of few she had treasured, a welcome reprieve from the bullshit that came through med-bay day after day.

It was frustrating to admit to herself that the entire thing was quite rattling. If not amusing at the same time. Liberty stares past Marquis' shoulder as the Dining Hall becomes louder, people standing up and gearing to leave. She crosses her arms, peeved she would no longer have a private moment to herself in the cabin to hide the postcard from prying eyes. Fuck, Liberty looks skyward in a suppressed eye-roll. What was she to do now—sleep with it? Ramona was bound to be in her cabin again, as always, and the girl was as perceptive as herself. Annoyingly so.

"Can we make this quick?" Liberty, ever the irritable one, fights the urge to turn and leave Marquis standing there.





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    spareparts.




















































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    ROWAN & LOU








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((Note: Thoughts will be green and italicized while speech will be green and bolded.))​

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The Caretaker

Marquis
Solis

His expression from earlier in the evening is gone and he looks to be back to his usual self now. However, there is still a very clear expression on his face: concern. He was concerned about a friend. His concern sat deeper and deeper into a frown. Her words stung. He knew of her tendency to occassionally get an attitude, but never with him. They could always be real with each other. He didn't know this Liberty.

He watched curiously as frustration radiated off her, even as she looked to the sky, only for her gaze to fall back to him with all the more attitude. In the dining hall, she had simply been out of pocket. Now, she was being objectively dismissive. Dismissive of him. This was new to him. However, he kept his expression as tender. He'd been masking pain and loneliness so long that it was second nature to him. Her words hurt but his expression only showed concern - not for himself, not for Zarina, not even for the campers. But for the person standing in front of him.

"Hey, part-" he cut himself off. That term was reserved for the Liberty he knew, the Liberty he'd spend all day catching up with in the med bay. "Hi Libe-" He cut himself off again. Now that felt too cold. He sounded ridiculous, wanting to talk to her and not even being able to get past greetings. It was truly a poor showing - never had he ever imagined that he'd be struggling to figure out how to talk to Liberty. Talking to her was the one thing he'd always been able to do. So, this is how much can change in a year, huh? Maybe this camp isn't going to be everything I had hoped it would be. Maybe coming back was a mistake after all. Of course people would have changed. His own thoughts weren't doing him any favors and simply prolonged the silence and deepened the awkwardness between them. He had chased her out all this way, he might as well say something. Anything. He sighed, resting his hands on his hip before looking her in the eyes, skipping the formalities and cutting straight to the point.

"Who are you?" The question wasn't asked with malice or spite or anger. If any tone could be attached to it, it would be sadness. "Who was that girl in there? I'll always apologise to partner in crime Libby when I'm wrong, but I'm not even sure that's who I'm talking to." His eyes searched her for any reaction at all, even as he continued speaking. "I know a compassionate Liberty; a Liberty that I could always trust to be a voice of reason..." his tone dropped a bit, his next words carrying all the weight of the concern he felt. "...a Liberty who could always be real with me. And I haven't seen her all day today."

He crossed his arms and took a step back, wanting to keep all of her in frame. "So tell me. Who are you and where is that Liberty? Because I miss her." He knew part of it may have been his fault. After all, after what happened last year, he just...disappeared. He cut himself off from everybody. Maybe this was her anger at him disappearing. Maybe it was something else? He really had no way of knowing. All he could do was hope that this Liberty in front of him still knew him and trusted him well enough to share where she was at, just like the old Liberty did.


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Ramona raked the last bit of bread crumbs on her side of the table into a napkin, the voices around her converging into a discordant hum in the aftermath of Marquis’ outburst. It was nearly impossible to distinguish one sentence from another, but it made no difference to her—Mona’s mind was miles away as she watched Lou exit the dining hall with Rowan.

She’d spotted his name on various lists around camp, but seeing Lou in person after all this time was something else entirely. He seemed to have grown taller, somehow, in the four years he’d been away, but he still had a boyishly unruly mop of hair—perhaps the only thing that had remained from the Lou she’d called a friend. For someone that had been such an integral part of her life when they were children, he’d been awfully scarce since camp had started back. Really, Ramona shouldn’t have been that surprised—people changed, got new companions, and suddenly, she wasn’t nearly as important to them as she’d naïvely assumed herself to be before.

It wouldn’t be the first time that’d happened.

Mona’s fist clenched at her side, crumpling the crumbs into their paper prison.

Campers bustled past the girl, signaling the end of dinner. Instinctually, her eyes searched the crowd of exiting kids for her brother, tossing her trash into a nearby garbage can on her way outside. It wasn’t until she noticed Cooper heading away from the Village that Ramona hurried to catch up, grabbing his shoulder.

“It’s getting late,” Mona started. “Don’t you think you should hang here?”

Cooper rolled his eyes. “You’re not Mom.”

“Yeah, I know. I actually care about you.” Ramona released her grip on her little brother in favor of crossing her arms. “Just don’t go in the woods, okay? A lot of wild animals come out to hunt at night: cougars, foxes…wolves—”

“Oh, my!” Cooper clapped a hand over his mouth in faux concern, though the façade quickly fell back into mild disinterest once more. “I can take care of myself.”

Mona was given no opportunity to argue further as Cooper jogged off to join his friends without so much as a backwards glance. She frowned, staring at his retreating figure. Maybe he hadn’t been going to the forest prior, but had she implanted the idea into his stubborn head? Telling kids his age not to do something only made them want to go through with it even more—they liked to test their limits, see how much they could get away with until they were finally caught.

Conversation wafted on the warm evening breeze from the fire pit, along with glowing embers floating into the darkening sky.

“You know, I saw Renee come out of the woods the morning she went missing. It was super early, too—she was sacrificing her precious beauty sleep for something.”

Ramona hadn’t initially intended to eavesdrop, but at the mention of Renee’s name, she couldn’t help herself.

What was Renee doing out there?

Mona had no time to contemplate her actions when her feet, having finally achieved free will, carried her closer to the group: a small gaggle of campers, all of them inclined towards a freckled girl with long, strawberry blonde braids—presumably the previous speaker.

“Did you talk to her?”

Several heads swiveled toward Ramona as she joined in the chatter.

“No,” the girl replied, her tone implying that the answer should’ve been obvious. “Why would I do that?”

“So, you don’t know why she was in the woods?”

The camper scowled. “No.”

Mona scoffed. “Well, if you’re gonna sneak out of bed, at least make it worth the risk.”

She stormed off, whispers of “What’s her problem?” and “She’s so weird,” fading beneath the usual din of Evergreen Camp as Ramona put more distance between the gossips and herself.

Perhaps it was a good night to turn in sooner than what most people her age seemed acceptable—despite all of the unanswered questions she’d faced that day, one thing was certain: her mind desperately needed rest, especially with the promise of another busy morning looming on the horizon with the setting sun.

































nocturnal me



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Liberty's frown deepens as he trips up on calling her partner, calling her Liberty—too unlike him to be so informal and detached. She watches impatiently as a war wages in his head in how to address her. He probably wants to lose his temper again, she decides. Because she doesn't imagine the hurt etched into the lines of his face as she spoke harshly to him, but what more could he expect from her after that stunt inside?

"Who are you?"

She gawks at him.

"Who was that girl in there? I'll always apologise to partner in crime Libby when I'm wrong, but I'm not even sure that's who I'm talking to. I know a compassionate Liberty; a Liberty that I could always trust to be a voice of reason... a Liberty who could always be real with me. And I haven't seen her all day today." Marquis crosses his arms, mirroring her stance with a step back. "So tell me. Who are you and where is that Liberty? Because I miss her."

At some point, Liberty's bottom lip had found its way between her teeth—she worries it for a moment longer, wondering how to approach the situation without lashing out in the face of his apparent concern. Must she really spell it out? I'm not infallible, Marquis. I'm allowed to be negatively impacted by everything, too. Could go either way, but she wasn't in the mood to dwell on what the disappearance of two headaches had caused her over the year. The worry in the pit of her stomach when signing up to return to camp. She was loyal to the camp, yes. But more than that, she was loyal to herself and that included finding out the truth.

Liberty drops her arms, not wanting to appear defensive. "Fine, I'll be real with you." She lifts her hand and holds up her forefinger. "Renee and Paige are dead—sorry, missing." She corrects the word with an accompanied eye-roll because who really believes they're alive? Another digit. "New faces are here and so sorry to offend you, but I think people should know what they're walking into here." Another one. "The campers have their own conspiracies about what's happening and, as crisis-aid, I don't believe it's very productive to let them believe Renee Evergreen has been living in the woods for eleven months. What if one of them decides to go looking, hm? I much rather they be afraid of a very real threat and exercise caution rather than be stupid and suffer the same fate they had." A fourth finger. "And—why the fuck are we all dancing around the truth? God, Ricky is barely tolerable most summers but he's still smiling as if..." She trails off, noticing the Dining Hall door opening with a stream of campers and counsellors pouring out in droves.

There was so much more, but it dies in her throat. Her lip returns to her teeth at the happy expressions of the campers, pushing and shoving at each other, not a care in the world and she wants to scream at them. Go straight to your cabins. Don't come out. It's not safe here, won't be until the truth of Renee and Paige comes to light—exactly what she intended to find out.

She hesitates, wanting to show Marquis the postcard in her back-pocket. Paige was content to be away. She felt as if her own father was hiding something. In the summer that Renee began to spiral more out of control than usual. But there's too many people and Liberty can't be sure who to trust anymore, especially after Marquis' own uncharacteristic display of his temper.

Clearly, there's trust that needs to be repaired and that won't be solved tonight.

Leon, Thomas, and Levi stroll out next and she doesn't miss how their eyes wander over to them. This is why she left early. She hated being under others' scrutiny, that was her job. She crosses her arms again, feeling the walls building back up brick by brick. "I am sorry, Marquis." She relents, biting back her stubborn insistence to defend, defend, defend. "But I'm not in the wrong for having an opinion."





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isla evergreen




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Isla exited the Dining Hall having planned to retire to her cabin for the night, but the voices of Marquis and Liberty caught her attention and her ears pricked at the mention of her sisters.

"Renee and Paige are dead—sorry, missing."

Hearing someone vocalize that made Isla stop in their tracks, pausing and turning their head to look at the two. It wasn't as though Isla hadn't thought about the fact that their sisters were most likely dead- everything Liberty was saying made perfect sense. Frankly, they understood and agreed with her reasoning behind whatever it was that happened. The stab at Ricky was... unnecessary and likely came from whatever personal feelings Little Bird had about him, but aside from that she wasn't wrong.

Isla didn't linger, however, not wanting to eavesdrop any longer than she already had. There was the ghost of a smile on her lips as she turned and began her walk to the village; the sooner Isla got to her cabin, the sooner she could collapse into bed and disconnect for the day.

It was on her way to the cabins that Isla noticed something in the dirt, blinking curiously she crouched down and picked it up, turning it over in her hands a couple of times, "What...?" It looked like a totem, but Isla hadn't known them to have anything like this at the camp. As she continued down the path, she brushed off as much dirt as she could before arriving at her destination. The last thing Isla wanted was to track dirt inside the cabin; they may be in the wilderness but that didn't mean they had to make a mess of their sleeping quarters.

(isla will enter the cabin in the cabin 2 group post)





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JC found himself giving Marquis a smug grin at his outburst. There was a newfound respect for the man, he had to admit. Suddenly, Marquis wasn't nearly as irritating as he used to be. Soft, sure, but there was a fighter buried in there somewhere. Well, Liberty could bring the worst out of anyone - that's just who she was. If JC wasn't so fed up with her himself, he might've jumped into Marquis' corner but just as quickly as the outburst happened, the temperature cooled once more. He sighed, rolling his eyes at the man's return to tender people-pleasing. Maybe he expected too much. JC returned to his food but found Lou and Rowan departed.

"Huh..." he mumbled and stuffed a few extra bites of his plate before making himself scarce as well.

It took some time to search for Lou. There were plenty of campers about and private places were tricky to come by but alas, his efforts were rewarded when he spotted the man heading off to the cabins. JC grabbed him by the wrist.

"Tsk tsk," he clicked and nodded in the direction of one of the hiking trails through the woods. "We need to talk," his voice was low and steady. When there was enough space between them and camp that JC felt they weren't going to be heard, he spoke.

"Thought about a lot, Lou," JC said, looking at him, "About last year. I won't bring up the shit that happened between you and Paige... but it still makes me sick." He shook his head and paused.

"I'm cutting BB off," he put it bluntly. "He's not gonna like it," his jaw clenched as they walked. "But I'm done. I'm not his pusher, and I'm finally free from Renee's grip. I'm calling the shots now, got it? And what I say goes. And I say no more drugs. No more booze in camp. Got it?"

JC gave Lou a hard look up and down. "I gotta clean up and so do you. I'm gonna need a clear head if I'm going to pick up where I left off before the snow buried this place. Leads are all cold and the police closed this shit up but I'm not done looking for them, dead or alive."

spareparts spareparts
 








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    QUIS & LIBERTY




♡design by miyabi, coded by uxie♡
 
MOOD: Leon (drunk, & stupid), Thomas (bashful), Levi (content, feeling responsible)
basics
MENTIONS: marquis, riley, johanna, & renee
tags
TL;DR Leon is quite literally stupid, tripping over his own secrets. Thomas reveals a secret. Levi is... responsible? And in his feels.
tl;dr
THE SUNSPOT
leon macmillan, thomas mode, and levi jackson.
CONTENT WARNING: excessive drinking.

Winding through the campers rising from their tables and heading for the exit, Leon stalls until Levi is shoulder to shoulder with him. “I missed you, man. You should move in permanently with me. Wasn’t the same at home without you and your mess.” Though Levi was a miserable roommate in the beginning, affected by the sudden break-up with Riley, it ended up feeling the perfect amount of right in time, lounging around on the couch and watching television, the few times Leon managed to convince Levi to leave the house with him and do something more productive than wallowing in self-pity.

Levi felt his mood improving by the minute, and he knew it was because of Leon. He didn’t know what it was, but Leon could effortlessly lift anyone's spirits—it was incredible, if not a little annoying how he could do it without even trying. "I’ve missed you too, man," Levi’s words were hushed, soft, meant just for the two of them.

He huffed at the mention of his ‘mess,’ knowing Leon was full of shit. "Hardy har har, we get it, I was acting like a 'hermit,' which is still a lame-ass nickname, by the way." It felt strange, being unbothered by joking about the breakup. He also wished he could go back to that year when he wasn’t such a miserable roommate to be around, even though things got better toward the end. "Maybe we could...see how this summer goes. Permanent this time." It freaked Levi out a little, how much he meant those words, and how much he was looking forward to the possibility of bunking with his friend outside of camp.

Finally spotting that annoyingly unkempt dark head of hair, Leon jerks his head in Thomas’ direction. “I don’t know about you, but I need at least one night of irresponsible drinking with the two of you before tomorrow comes.” And he’s forced to supervise every single activity. Show the newcomers around. Check in with Eva about any fires that need putting out.

At the mention of drinking, Levi felt excitement bubble up inside him. Finally, he thought, the wait was worth it. It would be nice to catch up with both Leon and Thomas. Even though Levi wasn’t usually one to be curious, he did wonder what those two thought about the camp reopening, especially so soon. Surely it wasn’t just him feeling uneasy.

An uncomfortable feeling washed over him for a split second as his eyes darted toward the windows of the dining hall, the woods looking more daunting than ever under the shadow of the night sky. He wanted to voice his concerns, especially with the recent unease he’d felt about the woods, but he had a sneaking suspicion that Leon needed this more than anyone. With that thought, he followed after his friend, silently hoping Thomas would be good company at this time of night.

Approaching Thomas’ table, he claps his shoulders with both hands. “I want to go at least one session without hearing you sing at the opening ceremony. Now get up, we’re heading to the Sunspot.”

Thomas’ shoulder muscles tightened under Leon's grip, his breath catching as his entire body prepared for a fight. However, the voice that followed it was one he knew well and one he'd never think of fighting.

He smirked, a smug grin lighting his features as he looked up at Leon. “Careful now. You almost got swung on.” He slipped out from his chair, standing to his full height and stretching. He knew what the three of them heading to The Sunspot meant and he had absolutely no objections.

“Plus,” he started as he finished his stretch, “We all know that my little performance was and is the best part of that ceremony. Camp just wouldn’t be camp without it.”

He was a heartbeat away from mentioning how his opening performance was as much a part of Camp Evergreen as Paige and Renee, but - for so many reasons - he decided against it.

Not this again, Levi thought, recalling how that little stunt Thomas pulled at the amphitheater made him want to drink first thing in the morning. He crossed his arms as he leaned against the door of the hall, not entirely proud of the fact that he was slipping back into old habits. "Just stick with the entertainment. Music was always my specialty anyway," he joked, but did he really mean it?

Thomas bowed and stretched out his hand, gesturing for Leon and Levi to walk ahead of him. “After you, ladies”.

"You're calling us ladies with that hair?" Leon twirls a lock of Thomas' almost shoulder-length hair around his finger as he moves past him, accepting the invitation to take the lead. "Smells like conditioner and hair product to me. Don't lag behind!"

Levi snorted, “conditioner and hair products are literally your thing.” He couldn’t help but recall the time he’d woken up to Leon’s indie music blasting, watching him dance around his bathroom while using that brand of hairspray that always made his head spin.

Crossing the Dining Hall in large strides, he dodges the campers scurrying around and applauding the ones that were thoughtful enough to take their plates to the back kitchen and ease the load on Juliette for washing up. He rubs the back of his neck, feeling some guilt for leaving her with the brunt of it while he went to drink. Just for an hour... or two. Something to help with the edge. Time to catch up with his boys. That's it.

Outside the Dining Hall, his gaze catches on Liberty and Marquis on the path towards the Village—her arms are crossed as she stares intently at Marquis, his back to the group. "What was that about, by the way?" He looks over his shoulder at Thomas and Levi, prompting them to look the same direction. "You hear anything Thomas? Our table was too far away."

Thomas threw a glance over towards where Marquis and Liberty were standing, a smirk plastering itself on his face. Part of him was proud of Marquis for finally growing some balls and standing up for himself. Or, standing up for something at least. However, he didn’t feel a need to comment as he didn’t know what the situation was about. “Nah. Didn’t hear anything. Was too busy playing scissors, paper, rock to care. Dominating in scissors, paper, rock actually.”

He interlocked his hands behind his head, walking beside Leon nonchalantly and not sparing Liberty and Marquis a second glance. Whatever it was, they were both big and grown enough to take care of it by themselves.

Levi trailed behind the two, keeping his distance to let them catch up. It was only fair, after all, since he’d had Leon to himself, even if it was just for a brief moment. As they walked toward the village, Levi caught sight of both Marquis and Liberty. He scoffed when he heard Leon ask Thomas what was going on and decided to cut in.

"Marquis yelled at her, Leo. The whole hall went silent." He shook his head, "maybe I should meet up later, see if Libby’s alright." Levi paused behind them, his hand on his neck, staring at Marquis' back with a mix of confusion and annoyance.

Thomas’ ears twitched at the sound of Levi’s voice, and he looked over his shoulder, peeking at Levi through the window created by his bicep and forearm. His smirk grew as he could see the annoyance in Levi’s eyes. He couldn’t let the chance slip by. “I don’t know, bud. Quis ran after her pretty quickly. Almost seemed like a…y’know…couple fight.”

Levi shot a glance in Thomas' direction, annoyance barely covering how he felt. "You don’t want to go there, Mode." He knew Thomas was teasing, but it wasn’t working—hook, line, sinker, unfortunately. "Don’t piss me off—you’re just Leon’s 'rebound' of a friend." He huffed the words out, arms crossed against his chest, before tearing his gaze away from Thomas to steal a quick peek at Liberty and Marquis. He's full of shit, you know this, he thought, shaking his head as he nudged his shoulder between the two as he walked passed.

"Hey, guys. Come on. We are supposed to have fun tonight and you're both starting this a touch too early." Leon veers off the path heading to the Village, intending for the one leading straight back to Easthallow Town. He peeks at Thomas, apologetic. "You're not a rebound. Levi hates sharing. Isn't that right, Shaggy?" A fond touch leaks into his voice at the nickname, compensating for the mocking grin spreading across his face.

"At least people at this camp are getting action—more than what you can say."

Leon's face threatens to fall, thinking of exactly who he is getting action from. Tonight would be a good time to say something, with enough alcohol in the both of them to simmer Levi's probable anger and his own nerves of being honest. But—he needed an escape from reality, not to spend the night grovelling for forgiveness. Next time.

Thomas simply laughs off Levi’s comment about him being a rebound friend. He didn’t care whether it was true or not. For him, he considered Leon a friend and that was more than enough for him, regardless of what anybody else thought. “Don’t worry, chief. If he thinks calling me a rebound friend is enough to get under my skin, he must really have forgotten who he’s talking to.”

Hallows Trail finally begins to taper off, showing a longer and more wider path that leads directly to The Sunspot. With lanterns to guide the way, Leon takes four large strides to catch up to Levi and put an assertive hand on his back. "I demand you have fun this evening. No wallowing allowed, you did enough of that over the year."

For a moment, Levi felt bad. He knew well enough that this was what Leon needed—a break from responsibility with just his friends. It stung a bit though. He just wished it still meant something special between the two of them, and not Leon needing others to keep up with him. Levi wondered, Was I really that much of a shitty, miserable friend since the breakup with Riley?

He first felt Leon rush to catch up with him, his hand resting on Levi’s back, oddly grounding him. “Yeah—about that,” Levi swallowed, walking down the trail that led to the designated spot. Was I a shit friend? Is Thomas more fun? Is this even wise? Instead, Levi said, “I demand at least two bottles for myself, you can blame Thomas.” He snorted, letting out a laugh, before booking it down the steps and taking a seat. It felt warm out, and eerily quiet.

As Leon went to catch up to Levi, Thomas lagged behind, hands in his pocket and gaze fixed on the sky. He was fine to let them have their moment. He couldn’t help but think back on the times they had spent together last year. Keeping up his act was hard, it was draining. Last year, at least he could let it down around these two.

However, things may be different this year. He wanted to drop the walls, to drop the smile, to drop the charm. But, in the back of his mind, he wondered if this was still the safe place he knew. Letting those thoughts float around, he stood at the top of the stairs, eyes closed now as he breathed in the warm air. He got one of those “gut feelings” that Morgan was talking about earlier. Camp this year was going to be rough.

"That's the attitude I want to hear my friend!" Leon bounds down the rest of the trail at Levi's heels, making for the hollow tree stump where he stashed the alcohol. He pulls out a twelve-pack of beer, and holds both the whiskey and coke bottles by their stems in one hand. "Hopefully this lasts us..." he lifts them up, considering the amount. "At least the next two hours."

Taking a seat on one of the hollowed out logs beside Levi, he extends the whiskey and coke—fully aware of his preference for something hard, rather than working up to it. Leon, however, had a weak stomach. Needing the buffer before getting too lost in the drinks.

"Thanks, man," Levi said, accepting the drink and immediately taking a sip. Lukewarm, he thought, wishing he'd brought some ice. Still, it will do the job. He leaned back lazily, letting his gaze wander around their makeshift drinking spot. His eyes landed on the drinks resting beside Leon.

"No doubt this should be enough," Levi muttered to himself, knowing full well it wouldn’t take much for the alcohol to start hitting, especially after a long day. He stretched out his legs, the weight of the night settling over them as they prepared to drink and, hopefully, let loose for a bit, especially him.

"Thomas—weak or hard?"

Thomas’ eyes slowly opened, taking in the evening sky above him, at the mention of his name. He was more here for the company than for the drinks and so, with a decompressing sigh,

He let his gaze meet Leon. He shrugged casually as he made his way down the stairs, taking each step like he had a lifetime before needing to take the next one. “Whatever you’re having. I’m not picky.”

Reaching the bottom and joining Leon and Levi, he stretched his arms out and proceeded to gracelessly flop on the ground, grateful for the soil around the tree being soft enough to cushion his landing. He looked up at Leon, winking playfully like he had done with Leilani, once again not able to be bothered enough to move his hands.

“My hands are too comfy in my pocket. Just pour it in my mouth for me. Ahhh-” he left his mouth open - much akin to how it would be if he was getting a dental checkup and simply trusting that Leon would actually hit the target.

Chuckling at Thomas' antics, Leon wrestles a beer out of the twelve-pack and pops the cap open on the brick grill Hugo had installed three years ago at Leon's request. The man had fought against it, arguing with Eva for an entire summer; no good would come from grilling in the woods—no harm so far, he smirks as he moves towards Thomas, lining up the bottle carefully before slowly tipping the liquid into his open mouth.

He paused, waiting for Thomas' to give him the go-ahead to continue. "Come on, man. Surely this is close to waterboarding, no?" He glances back at Levi, an expression of mirth painting his features. "Am I gonna get in trouble for this?"

Levi quirked an eyebrow as he watched the two. "No sippy cup for Thomas, guess you're shit out of luck," he teased, a smirk tugging at the corner of his lips as he glanced over at Thomas. Seeing the mirth in Leon's eyes, though, made Levi want to playfully return the gesture. He patiently waited for Leon to turn his back, casually doing a faux stretch in their direction. It totally wasn’t his fault—or on purpose—that Leon happened to trip. Oops.

The beer bottle slips from Leon's grasp as his ankle is swept from under him. His body tilts so quickly he barely has time to twist his body to land on his shoulder, hard—at least the wind isn't knocked out of him. "Levi, you dipshit—" Leon quickly snaps his head to Thomas, where the beer bottle lays just beside his head. Lucky bastard.

Thankfully, Thomas had his eyes open when Levi “accidentally” tripped Leon and so he saw the disaster coming. He wasn't able to stop the beer from pouring all over him, but he was able to move his head out of the way just before the bottle turned him into a unicorn.

"Damn, way to go, Thomas! Wasted a perfectly good beer." Levi couldn't resist laughing, his snort breaking through as he watched the scene unfold. Leon's dumbfounded expression only made it better, as well Thomas since he quite literally looked like a wet rat with his now-soaked shirt—it only made it funnier.

Pushing to his knees, Leon gestures to the bottle and gives the problem child a look that clearly says: what the fuck. But a smile pulls at his lips, at Levi's petulance and casual jealousy. "Never have more than one child. They'll easily know who the favourite is and be as annoying as you."

Thomas’ eyes narrowed at Levi, before his lips pulled into a smile that could only be described as fiendish. “Good one, champ. You really got me there.” He slowly nodded his head as he stood up, stretching a little bit once he was at full height. Mischief now radiated from him like heat from a bonfire. He slowly walked toward Levi, hands up in peace.

"Dude," Levi chuckled, raising his hand in a mock surrender, the gleam of mirth bright in his eyes as he followed Thomas’ movement. "You're looking a little worse for wear there, buddy." His smile lingered, enjoying the ridiculousness of the moment.

“Relax. Not here to fight. Leon would hate for you to get beat up tonight. But…” His hands came down and wrapped around Levi, pulling him into his beer-soaked shirt, so that now, they Both smelled like beer. Thomas knew that Levi was bigger but he already got his arms locked all the way round in the hug. “Leon, you getting in on this?”

"Ugh, seriously?" Levi choked out a laugh, not at all minding the fact that he was forced into a crushing hug. I do kind of deserve this, he thought as he felt his dark Thrasher t-shirt get soaked through. He managed to rip himself away from Thomas at the threat of Leon joining in, not at all interested in the tag-team.

"Don't—I swear, Leon," he warned, though his words lacked any real threat. He caught his breath, playful nudging Thomas away before returning back to his seat. "Fuck," he huffed out a laugh, shaking his head before taking a sip of his own drink. "We're so juvenile. Think that's why we're all single right now?"

Leon’s laugh dies in his throat. Fucks sake. New beer in hand, he pops the cap as he had done before and thrusts it into Thomas’ chest. “Here.” He sits heavily beside Levi and plucks the whiskey from his grasp, taking a leisurely drink and thinking, weak stomach be damned. The malty flavour goes down smoothly and he pulls a face at the intensity. “Shit’s strong.”

Hmm, might have to keep an eye on him, Levi thought, his eyes tracking Leon's features before he cautiously took his own drink back. "Easy, tiger. Don't want a repeat of you getting sick and Thomas and me carrying you back to Marquis." He shivered, recalling how close of a call that had been with Renee lurking around, clearly uninvited.

“Pfft. I would’ve been fine.” He was a horrid liar and he’s tempted to dodge Levi’s question altogether, but there’s some truth to his words when he says, “I know why I’m single.” Johanna’s flirtatious nature left an empty pit in his stomach at the end of every day, feeling unimportant as her eyes flitted this way and that. “Think you’ll finally wrestle the truth out of Riley this summer?”

Thomas raised a brow at Levi’s comment about them being juvenile and single. He had no idea what Levi was talking about. “If juvenile is another way of saying “the beloved life of the party, then yes, I am rather juvenile. As for being single, I’ll have to know that I’m single by choice.” The statement came from a place of pride, evident in the way he crossed his arms over his chest, however, he also believed it to be mostly true. “Most girls are more stress than they’re worth.” He would never admit it but he refused to let Levi wallow in self-pity and regret. “Take that Riley girl, for instance. Sure, she’s kinda hot but look how much grief she caused you,” he gestured at Leon. “Entirely not worth it. Now look at you. You actually have a personality again.”

Despite Levi’s earlier reminder of his trip to the med-bay with slight alcohol poisoning, Leon takes several gulps of the whiskey as Riley is mentioned again. If he’s drinking, then there’s no need to mask the expression on his face that reeks of guilt. Hopefully the others just ignore the painfully obvious tenseness radiating off his body, reflected in his white-knuckling of the bottle and pinched shoulders.

Thomas couldn't help but glare at Leon as he began drowning himself in alcohol. Leon had said that he just wanted to have a night to drink between the three of them but, for the most responsible one in the group, he was acting pretty damn irresponsible. His eyes narrowed further. Something was wrong here. He couldn't figure out what it was quite yet, but it had at least given him reason to pay a little more attention to Leon.

Levi listened to Thomas' so-called "wisdom,” pointing out how girls could be stressful. His own thoughts were loud as his eyes sneakily trailed toward Leon, lingering on the man beside him for a second before hastily looking away. Being in the questioning phase proved to be more stressful than just ‘girls,’ it seemed. He tried not to flinch at the mention of Riley, especially at the poorly placed comment about her being ‘hot.’ She isn't someone for you to worry about now, anyway. He glanced down at his stained converse, the flash of Liberty crossing his mind for a moment. Levi felt himself ease as he exhaled, huffing out a laugh that sounded a little too strained. His shaggy hair flopped around lazily as he peeked up at Thomas through it.

"Thanks," he said sarcastically, rolling his eyes before sitting up in his makeshift seat. "You're making it sound like I was a total bore, which—not true."

From the corner of Leon’s eye, he noticed the sudden jerk of Levi’s head and finished his gulp of the whiskey to follow the movement. What’s that about? “Not a total bore.” He reassures, grabbing the coke and uncapping it with sloppy hands. Damn. Already? “You went through shit. Not entirely your fault it ended.” He was more than aware of how neglectful Levi had grown towards Riley, she said as much to him in private—but if Levi felt he couldn’t confide in Riley, then there was no chance he would be spilling those secrets himself, even with the urge to defend his best friend.

Thomas opened his mouth to say something about Levi not being a total bore, but just being a general annoyance, but Leon beat him to it, having something considerably more positive to say. It was probably for the best anyway - he wasn't the best at being sensitive and delicate when it came to telling someone that they'd been a dick, no matter what the reason was. Somehow, Thomas got the feeling that that line of conversation would not have ended well.

He walked over to where the drinks were, pulling off his damp shirt and tossing it off to the side as he did so. He had no problem smelling like beer, but he didn’t enjoy the feeling of wet clothes on his body. After taking a few drinks from the beer, he made his way to a closeby tree, propping himself on it as he looked at the other two, both of them looking like they’d just been tossed around in garbade. He shrugged. Whatever they were thinking about, they’d share if they wanted to. He wasn’t going to pry. “Yeah, not worth it. But when I do find one that’s worth it…ouuu, you two should prepare to be sick of me. “

Unbelievable. Levi was beginning to wonder who it was going to be this time, doing something as stupid as taking their shirt off, glad he lucked out this time around. He raised a brow at Thomas with a playful grimace, eyes flickering to Leon, as if to say: Can you believe this guy?

"Yeah, sure, I'll keep that in mind. Poor sucker," he joked, flashing Thomas a genuine grin to show he was only teasing. "Enough about 'relationships,' though, let's have some fun." He stood up from his seat, raising his hand high as he propped one leg up where he had been sitting, bottle in hand.

“Fun huh?” Thomas hummed. “I had to take off my shirt before you realized that you wanted to have fun?” He teased. A more mature person would have moved on without saying it even if they thought it. However, Thomas never claimed to be mature.

"I say we play a little 'Never Have I Ever.' This time, I won't pussy out. Who wants to go first?"

Chasing the thickness coating his throat with a few gulps of coke, both of his eyes closed as his head swims with the familiar fuzziness he had been craving. He opens one eye to take in the state of Levi, and thinks, you will pussy out. But swallows his final swig of coke and holds out the drink, wanting to trade it for the whiskey. “I volunteer. Never Have I Ever… lied to law enforcement.” He guffaws, recalling what it was like in the interrogation room. “Y’know Officer Jones complimented my hair? Fuck, too funny.”

“Bullshit.” Levi stared at Leon in disbelief. “He told me to get a haircut. Wasn’t he bald?” He gestured toward his own head, his hair wild and unkempt like his attitude.

Funny, besides the glaring elephant in the room. But the reality of that situation is faded compared to how it felt walking into camp that morning. A small, dull, distant reality. Leon smirks and waves his outstretched hand at Levi, requesting the whiskey—finally making the difference he needed. “Hand it over already, Murdock.”

Murdock, huh? Yeah…this might be a problem. For the amount of time that Leon had suggested the three of them staying out, his tongue has gotten far too loose, far too quick and they might run into a problem if they didn't do something. It wouldn't be a good look for the camp supervisor or whatever fancy title Leon went by now.

“At least my hair isn’t two sizes too big.” Levi rolled his eyes at Leon, quickly taking a sip to answer the question before handing the bottle to his friend, giving him a hard stare that basically said slow down.

Leon raises his brows in return with an impish smile and glady takes the bottle. “You’re jealous—it’s synonymous with Levi. Did I lie…?” His head falls back, searching the sky for an answer and taking a gulp of the whiskey anyway. “Nope. I didn’t lie. Thomas did you really laugh? I couldn’t believe it when Jonath—” He hiccups. “Told me. Defended the shit out of you, man.”

Although Levi felt like he was getting a little tipsy, he was nowhere near as gone as Leon, which made him a little concerned. Shouldn’t have handed him that whiskey, fuck. "Hey, maybe slow—" Levi froze at Leon’s hiccup, his words spilling out about the rumor involving Thomas and what happened at the police station. He risked a glance toward Thomas before turning to face his friend, tempted to shake him silly. Instead, he chose to laugh to play it off, nearly choking on the coca-cola as he downed the soda. Wiping the residue on the back of his hand, he placed the empty can on his seat.

"Who didn’t laugh or lie to the cop?" Levi lied, saving face for the sake of Thomas, though he didn’t know why. It wasn’t like Thomas would care, or even burn Leon as a friend right here, right now. "He was shady to begin with, Officer whatever," he ended with a shrug, half-tempted to grab the bottle from Leon. “Made an enemy out of me the moment he dissed my hair. Dick.”

Thomas had thought - at least hoped - that Levi had also noticed how far gone Leon was. That in mind, he almost jumped out of his own body when he saw Levi hand Leon the whole bottle. Unfortunately, he was too far away at his little tree to stop the exchange, but he started making his way over quickly, trying to minimize damages as much as he could.

He managed to make it all the way to bring right in front of Leon before the big question was asked. There were many things he could say. There are many things he could do. However, he was stuck because he hasn't expected the question to come from Leon. Levi, maybe. Anybody else, certainly. But not Leon.

He was stuck for long enough that Levi spoke up on his behalf and, surprisingly, in his defense. Thomas looked up and Levi and gave a quick, acknowledging nod of gratitude before grabbing the bottle from Leon. “That's enough for now buddy. You got some sobering up to do.” He was caught between answering the question or not. On the one hand, Levi had given him an out - which likely meant that Levi himself didn't want to go there. On the other hand, drunk Leon was just tactless enough to keep asking until an answer was provided and that would be annoying to deal with. All things considered, it was probably best to wait and see if Leon would bring it back up. In the meantime, he may be just drunk enough to be easily distracted. “Come on. Hand the bottle over. It's your turn on Never Have I Ever anyway.”

Levi took pride in a lot of things, and being observant was one of them. He stood by the side, new drink in hand, and watched as Thomas approached their little circle. He hoped Thomas knew Leon didn’t mean anything by the question, and he appreciated the curt nod the other gave him nonetheless. Keeping to himself, Levi watched as Thomas took the drink from his friend. It wasn’t often that he sided with Thomas, especially when Leon was involved, but—“He’s right,” Levi chimed in. “Don’t you have people to introduce around tomorrow?” He vaguely recalled whispers of newcomers arriving late. Although curious, he wasn’t one to feed into bullshit and rumors and just hoped they were chill.

Leon frowns as the bottle is ripped from his hands. I’m nowhere near done with it. However far gone in his drunken state, he wasn’t stupid and he catches a hint of annoyance in Thomas’ demeanor. He shrugs, playing as if he doesn’t care in the slightest that the source of his relief is now effectively gone. “Fine, ask away. Get as personal as you want, buddy.” He flashes a waning smile at Levi. “Do your worst.”

Where he stood, Levi worried the night was about to take a turn for the worse, but when he caught the faint smirk on Leon’s face, he knew he’d been assuming. “That’s a lot of power you’re giving me, Leo,” he smirked back, eyes dark with mischief as he toyed with different questions to ask.

Thomas heard the mischief in Levi’s voice and immediately knew that he was about to start losing brain cells. A tipsy Levi getting excited about being given a lot of freedom was a recipe that spelled disaster in, quite literally, every conceivable way. It was in moments like these that he was glad to be the most sober one among the three. After all, he had a habit of being cautious whenever alcohol was involved because he needed to be careful about what he said in certain spaces…including this one. Not that I don’t trust these two…but I also don’t fully trust them either. Come to think of it…is there anyone I can say I trust? Connie maybe? Wait. What am I thinking? Crap, the alcohol’s starting to get to me. Better slow it down.

Pacing around slowly, he let the suspense build. “Hmmm,” Levi hummed, dragging it out before finally saying, “Never have I ever… had to take a walk of shame. Don’t pussy out, losers.” He made it a point to show that he didn’t take a sip, making it clear as day that, yes, he was indeed a whipped man.

There wasn’t much to do here for Thomas. Something about being bullied for three-quarters of your life and then trying to spend the last quarter like you don’t care about anything or anyone doesn’t exactly leave much room for sec, nevermind walks of shame. The furthest he’d ever made it with a girl was some passionate making out. However, he got the feeling that Leon and Levi didn’t need to know all that. He could just simply not drink and convince them that he wasn’t shameful about it.

Leon holds his hand out for the drink. “No choice but to drink, I’m afraid. Johanna was relentless and—” the end of last summer comes to mind, although there were no regrets to be found there. “Yeah, hand it over.” He clears his throat, uncomfortable, until another more vivid thought comes to mind. He stares up at Levi, incredulous. “Drink, actually. Dumbass. You don’t remember when we were campers?”

"Leon." Levi flashed a pointed look in the idiot's direction before briefly glancing at Thomas. "You're so fucking dumb," he groaned quietly, his drink loosely held in one hand as he stared up at the night sky. "There was nothing shameful about that—at least, not on my end." Levi sighed, surprised he had to spell it out. Maybe Leon remembered it differently? He eyed the bottle, still mostly full. Rules were rules, after all. With a resigned shake of his head, he handed it over, the stern look returning to his face, though it was more for show than anything serious.

I am dumb. Clueless, to be more accurate. Leon swallows in the face of his best friend's honesty, struggling to sort through the haze in his mind to find the appropriate words. “Didn’t mean it like that, Levi. I was inexperienced, ‘ats all.” He struggles to tear his gaze off of Levi, but he does as he reaches for the bottle, immediately bringing it to his mouth. Unable to stop at the first gulp, he takes three more for good measure and, surprising even to himself, hands it back to Levi. With a slight slur of his words, Leon says, “No shame on my end either.”

Levi sighed in relief once the bottle was back in his hands, flashing Leon a look of approval. "Didn't think so," he mused, huffing out a snort as he gestured toward Leon, a memory sparking in his mind. "You were red in the face and everything."

Leon stares at the ground for a long hard second, dejected. Wasn’t alcohol supposed to suppress negative energy? He only felt more and more like a boy playing at being an adult, wondering what Paige saw in him to believe he was deserving of the Supervisor role over her sister.

Shaking off the sudden change in his mood, Leon chuckles and lifts his head. “In fact, I’d do it again. Might get you out of your slump—” He reaches out to playfully swat at the back of Levi’s knee, causing his balance to buckle.

"You're shit out of luck, I'm afraid." Levi wasn't entirely sure where this year would take him, but he hoped that by the end of it, he’d find himself in a better place with Liberty—somewhere beyond this endless limbo. Suddenly, a swat at the back of his knee made him stumble slightly, though his height saved him from embarrassment. Jackass, he thought, rolling his eyes as he watched Leon pace around the campfire, unlit.

No. Oh no. They’re flirting aren’t they? Thomas could tell that the brain cells were no longer present with the two of them. And, if they were, they weren’t speaking very loudly. All of a sudden, Thomas got the impression that being the most sober person in this group specifically wouldn’t end well for him. Something told him that things only got weirder from here.

He glanced at the whiskey bottle, knowing that a quick solution would be to join them. He’d need to chug a lot in order to get there quicker, but he definitely could get up there with them. It would make it less painful to watch this Hallmark movie flirting going on between the two. He takes the bottle back and stares at it long and hard. You’re a bad decision aren’t you? God, you’re such a bad decision… He brought the bottle to his lips and began chugging.

His throat burned and he wanted to spit out the drink and cough life back into his throat but he was on a mission - get drunk fast. The bottle didn’t leave his lips for a few seconds and when it did, he was completely out of breath and struggling to get it back, eyes teary and throat burnt. He had made many terrible choices in his life, but the immediate swaying effect he started to feel made it evident that this was clearly one of his worst.

It was noticeable the shift in their drunk leader, and Levi acted impulsively. "Come here, you idiot." He placed his hand on Leon's head, tilting it toward him before planting a kiss on the side of Leon’s head and ruffling his hair until it looked just as shaggy as his own. "Mwah," he obnoxiously dragged out the sound, finding it ironic that this was coming up after all these years. He pulled away and gave Leon a playful shove, raising his drink to his mouth and taking a couple of gulps. "That didn't count," he pointed at the bottle, making it clear he wasn’t drinking to the question. "Who's next, anyway? Thomas, get your ass over here."

Leon laughs as Levi tousles his hair, decidedly ignoring the way his cheeks flush.

At the kiss, Thomas was glad that he had decided to take a drink. PDA was never really his favorite thing, especially playful, drunk PDA where he was very clearly the third wheel. Somehow, he didn’t believe that that was the initial plan for all of this.

However, now, he had the crucial decision to make - does he say something that would most definitely get them more drink, something to get himself more drunk, or something to allow all of them take a breather.

Given that he’d just taken a good few gulps out of their whiskey supply, he figured that it would probably be best if they all took a breather, so he tried to think up an easy one. However, after his little stunt with the whiskey, thinking wasn’t exactly something he was excelling at right now, so he ended up saying the first thing that came to mind. “Neverrrr have I ever…been whipped enough to tell…to tell someone I love them”. Getting that out was a struggle, standing was a struggle. Perhaps he overdid it just a little bit. “I mean…” a short, unexpected chuckle bursts out of him, sounding almost self-deprecating, “Never told that to a soul, not even Renee.”

Luckily Leon no longer had his drink in hand, or he'd have dropped it without the assistance of Levi's stray foot. "Renee?" He all but blubbers, putting a closed fist to his mouth to hide his slack jaw surprise. "Wait a minute—say that again. Renee?" He shares a look with Levi, hoping he heard that right—or, didn't hear that right. Too drunk to make sense of his own emotions at the thought of Thomas and Renee.

Jesus. Jesus.

Renee? What the-

Levi paused, tilting his head to the side as he mirrored Leon's confused expression. "Uh, Renee? Seriously?" It was a can of worms he had no desire to open, disturbed that even someone in his close circle would associate with Renee after all the summers of dealing with her needless attention and god complex bullshit. Gross, he thought, deciding to leave it at that. Raising the bottle to his lips, Levi mumbled, "A different question, please," before taking two decent gulps, shaking his head as he pulled the drink away.

“Renee? Wait…no!” He stood up straight, almost as if he had been tased and, for a brief moment, any effect the alcohol had on him was gone, his adrenaline burning right through it as the fog in his mind cleared.

"Uh, cats out the bag on that one." Leon laughs awkwardly, rubbing the back of his head briefly before swiping the bottle away from Levi. "Gimme that, I gotta drink." Tilting his head back, Leon takes a languid gulp of the liquid, satisfied that the burn in his chest has simmered into a distant throb. Barely noticeable. Of course he uttered those three little words to Joey. He stops drinking long enough to give Thomas a puzzled look, a serious question dawning on him suddenly. "And you laughed?"

Not that I think you did it, man, but... Leon wants to add, but his hiccup cuts it off. Hoping the look in his eyes translates his sincerity and concern.

Thomas felt his walls going up, he felt his guard getting tighter as he got more and more uncomfortable with the situation. I knew it had been a bad idea to take such a big drink. It was a bad idea to drink at all…it’s a bad idea being here. The truth was already out of the bag and so lying was no longer an option. But, he could at least hope to avoid digging himself deeper. “Listen, whiskey has me saying crazy things. Nothing happened between Renee and I and nothing was ever going to happen. She was on far too much of a power trip to ever look my way. She was barely ever more than a thought.”

His own words were cutting him up. He may be able to convince Leon and Levi that he meant them and that Renne meant nothing to him. But he knew the truth and would always know the truth. “And yeah, I laughed. Everyone’s saying it, so what the hell. Let the story be that I laughed! Not like people would believe if I said it wasn’t true, so to hell with it. If anything, I’d have been laughing at the fact that I ever entertained the thought. Maybe laughing in relief, realizing that I just dodged a bullet. Same way I’d be laughing now if the stupid whiskey didn’t have me so messed up.” He wasn’t quite shouting or yelling, but his voice was elevated enough that it carried ever so slightly. His breathing was also elevated, not enough to be heard in panting or seen in his shoulders, but enough that he felt the dizziness from not taking in enough oxygen.

He let out a puff of air and threw himself on the ground, looking up at the night sky, taking in the moon, his next words coming out barely above a whisper. “What’s so wrong in laughing the pain away, anyway.”

Chewing on his lip, Leon's concern only grows at Thomas admission. "Dude... Why didn't you tell us?" No point denying now. He looks to Levi and thinks, well, maybe that's why. Frown deepening, Leon takes one last gulp of the whiskey and hands it back to Levi, thinking he might need it right about now. After everything. "Scratch that. Get over here, idiot."

Thomas narrows his eyes at Leon’s approaching figure, alarm bells going off in his mind. “Hey! No! Back off! I swear, I bite!” He threw every warning he knew about at Leon but the boy was unrelenting, just continuing his march toward Thomas. Thomas, on the other hand, shrunk into a shell-like posture, clearly not loving this but, for some reason, also not pushing Leon away.

Lowering himself beside Thomas, he throws an arm around his shoulders—less carelessly than he normally would. It's awkward, unlike their usual brief hugs. Comforting wasn't a common thing needed at the Sunspot, but then again, this summer was different from others. "Don't try and deny it now. We heard you and... well, I won't say anything about it." The right thing to do would be to alert Officer Jones about the secret relationship. Maybe even tell Jonathan Evergreen. But it'd be irresponsible as a friend and Leon was evidently not above keeping secrets.

Thomas groaned, a low, audible groan that rolled a while in the back of his throat. He propped his knees up and sunk his head into them, in a futile attempt to shut out his feeling, Leon, Levi, the world, everything. However, that worked about as well for him as barking worked for a cow. Sighing in defeat, he peeked his head up, ever so slightly, glaring at Leon from the corner of his eye. “I hate you so much right now…”. Despite his words, there was the tiniest shadow of a crack of a smile pulling at the corner of his lips.

Renee doesn't care about anyone, Levi thought. She made that clear all on her own. It was probably why he felt so out of touch in the moment—despite Thomas being his friend some days, he couldn’t help but think he was an idiot for taking his chances with a girl like Renee. Wanting to brush aside the bad air, Levi forced himself up from his makeshift seat and shuffled forward toward the rest. "Leon's right, secret’s safe with me." And, oddly enough, he meant it. He didn’t mess with rumors or pry into people’s private lives—he preferred to quietly judge from afar.

Thomas saw Levi start walking toward him and his eyes grew wide. “Please…please don’t join this madness. I’m dying already with just one hug”. Despite his theatrics and protests, Thomas still didn’t do anything to push Leon away or to stop Levi from getting any closer. It wasn’t necessarily that he wanted or even needed the hug or the comfort. However, he’d been fighting on his own for so long that a part of him wasn’t quite ready to reject the offer to not feel like he’s on his own for once.

"Ahem." He clears his throat, smiling through tight lips. "Another question, then? Never Have I—"

Howling cuts him off, somewhere between the Sunspot and Easthallow. Closer than usual.

Raising his eyebrows in surprise, he leans forward and lets his arm drop from Thomas' shoulders. "Wolves? This close to camp?"

“Relax, Champ. They’re friendly wolves. Here, watch this.” Thomas leaned until his back was flush against the floor and his gaze was locked on the night sky. Cupping his hands around his mouth, he made a loud and long howling impression; an impression he’d spent some time working on, actually - he’d used it to prank a couple people during late nights and loved the reactions.

Leon warily gets to his feet, amused by Thomas’ howl. He mimics the motion Thomas had done, with both hands creating a wind tunnel—prepared to give his best awoo back to the wolves a touch too close to camp, making a quick mental note to inform Eva tomorrow morning, when the the wolves howl back from a much closer distance, so close that Leon startles and swears, “Shit!”

Wide-eyed, he looks at both Thomas and Levi. “Uh, it might be time to pack up boys.”

While the two had fun, Levi paused, an uneasy feeling holding him eerily still. The sound of the howling was close, a little too close for comfort, and he knew Leon agreed. "Agreed. We clearly overstayed," he joked lightheartedly, trying his best to keep things at ease—for himself or the rest, he hadn't the slightest clue. He picked up on the cue to leave, grabbing the empty bottles before shifting his gaze toward the fireplace, unlit. "Shame we didn't get to light a fire. Probably for the best." Maybe with the fire, they would have missed the howling, scaring them off.
code by valen t.
 
Last edited:
dinner clean-up


the crew
C
larisse made a mental note to remind the campers that they had to clean up after themselves— the only thing they had to do was deposit their bowls and utensils to the front and some couldn’t even do that. It made cleaning up even more of a hassle than it already was. But putting her body on autopilot as she grabbed an empty bowl and stacked it on top of an ever-growing pile then moving them to the wash bin was good for her. It gave her time to decompress from the dinner.


It had surprised her that nothing happened but that didn’t mean it wasn’t taxing. She would be more than happy to just crash in bed but a strange energy crawled underneath her skin— forcing her to move. Anxiety, that was what it was. She just had to work the energy off. Helping out here and then going on patrol later would definitely help out with that. The conversation with Liberty surely wouldn’t be that bad and reporting to Levi was a problem for tomorrow Clarisse.

She absentmindedly moved from table to table to collect the leftover items and headed up to transport them to the wash bin. She tried to think back on who would be in charge of cleaning up after everything. Her mind slowly churned back to working conditions as Paige’s face flashed in her mind. How tired she looked but had a grateful smile anyway when Clarisse would help out when she had free time.

So that only meant-

“Yorkes.” Her tone was clipped as she nearly ran into the cook— the one in charge of everything that happened within the dining hall including its clean-up. Of course she would be here. How could she have missed that fact? Clarisse felt a lump in her throat upon seeing Juliette Yorkes up close for the first time since her transformation. It was worse than she had first thought from the glimpse she had seen earlier in the day. Not quite a spitting image of her best friend but close enough. Too close. It made her dizzy and sick but she held her ground.

All these dishes and just one staff member—who made this list? Juliette thought, the feeling of whatever was still washing over her as she placed the dishes into the closest sink. Dinner had been so awkward, and it didn't help that Isla kept pointing it out. What did they expect me to do about it? "Hey, sorry, your sister literally bullied me my entire time at this camp." She paused by the sink, the sound of running water filling the silence, her hands covered in soap.

But you wouldn’t want it any other way. Juliette swallowed, momentarily frozen in place as she became lost in her thoughts, consumed by them. Any attention was good attention—that’s what Renee had taught her, and now it's all she’s stuck with. Shaking her head, she pulled herself out of her thoughts, rushing to catch up with the dishes. It wasn’t until she heard footsteps coming up the stairs that her interest piqued. Did Leon come back already?

"Yorkes."

Oh. Juliette paused by the sink, squeezing her eyes shut as she scrunched up her nose in annoyance, fighting back the instinctive flinch at the clipped tone. Perfect, great, fantastic—Renee's old best friend, yippee. "Clarisse," she muttered, quickly setting down the bowl in the sink and drying her hands on the nearby cloth. "To what do I owe the pleasure?" Her voice matched Clarisse's, clipped and cold, her lips pulled into a tight little frown. She was convinced she’d be having a conversation with Connie by the end of the night with how things have been going recently.

Turning to face Clarisse, Juliette immediately noticed the girl’s tense posture, just... staring at her. Juliette raised a brow, her defenses snapping into place as she crossed her arms over her chest and shifted her weight to one hip. "Uh, can I help you?"

Clarisse didn’t respond for a moment longer, letting the tense silence sit comfortably between them before she slowly gestured to her arms filled with the used bowls and utensils. Gently, she placed them down the wash bin which, thankfully, allowed her to tear her eyes off of Juliette— and for that moment, she could pretend that everything was fine. That it was all a freak hallucination.

“I was going to…” She gestured towards the plates, pointedly avoiding her gaze. “Thought it was a lot and I should help out. Since I had nothing to do.” There was no need to lie in this instance really. Regardless of who was behind the dining hall operations, Clarisse genuinely wanted to help with lessening the load and make the process a little bit faster. She wouldn’t really be a halfway-decent fellow counselor, right?

She took a deep breath and looked back at Juliette. This is a mistake, her brain helpfully chanted over and over again. You’ll regret this. After all, every single time she looked at her fellow counselor, words seemed to cease to exist in her brain. It was hard for it not to when some stupid part of her wanted to believe that her best friend was somehow there. That stupid, pathetic, hopeful part of her and Clarisse knew that it would turn into something uglier.

“If you need a hand.” She belatedly added like an afterthought but Clarisse forced her tone to be more amicable. Earlier had already been too taxing and she didn’t want her first talk with Juliette since their last interaction to be something completely negative.

"Oh...you didn't, um, you didn't have to." Juliette awkwardly watched as Clarisse shuffled around the kitchen, the bowls hugged to her chest before she placed them down near the wash bin. She could sense the shift in the air, the unspoken elephant in the room clearly being her new look. Please, please, don’t make me explain it again. I’m sick of being a natural ginger, that's all. She bit the inside of her cheek, swallowing before taking a few steps backwards to give Clarisse some space to breathe and move around freely.

I should offer a hand maybe? Instead, Juliette found herself curiously watching Clarisse, her eyes tracking the girl’s movements. Clarisse didn’t seem to be holding herself nearly as strong as Isla had earlier at dinner, and that made Juliette wonder if the thought of Renee being gone was eating her up too. "You... used to do this with Paige, if I remember correctly," she said, recalling faintly catching the two in the dining hall during a break, when she had stopped by to grab some water before heading back. She’s not here. You don’t have to wait around.

Juliette felt her frustration bubbling up, annoyance simmering at the fact that literally anyone else could have walked up those stairs, it just happened to be Renee's oldest friend unfortunately. But as she glanced at Clarisse, already looking like a kicked puppy, that annoyance ebbed. No fun in tormenting someone who’s already down.

Swallowing her biting words, Juliette glanced out the window at the moon slowly peeking out. She inhaled deeply and exhaled, softening her tone. "Thank you, I appreciate it a lot." She stepped beside Clarisse, turned the tap back on, and grabbed the dish soap, politely offering it to her. "They still haven’t learned that only assigning one staff member for the cook is insane. Whoever made this list has never stepped foot in a kitchen before." Juliette kept her voice gentle yet confident, trying to maintain a sense of calm and normalcy between them.

Clarisse merely shrugged at Juliette’s attempt to dissuade her from helping— courtesy, probably. She was thankful for the space, her body relaxing now that she wasn’t directly looking at Juliette and had room to move. Questions were lingering in the air, ones she could easily grasp and throw at her fellow counselor, but she’d rather spare them both the pain of calling it all out.

“When I didn’t have anything to do, yeah. It’s… a pretty daunting job.” She was surprised Juliette even remembered. It had just been an unspoken deal between herself and the younger Evergreen, one that was born out of a not-so innocent reason too. Making Clarisse focus on another job entirely to avoid her getting into physical conflicts was Paige’s specialty— and cleaning had been one of them.

She let out a breath she didn’t even know she was holding when Juliette finally uttered her gratitude, acceptance. Clarisse took the dish soap offering and began to scrub away at her side of the bowls. “Should bring it up to Leon. Have some kind of rotation in here to help you with the dishes.” She wondered who would even be happy to get this kind of assignment. Then, an idea popped in and she couldn’t help but snicker. “Or, we can suggest having campers help out with the cleaning. It’ll teach them some manners.” Clarisse gestured to some of the bowls that still had some residual meat in them, which she had to dispose of first before cleaning the bowl.

After a beat of silence, Clarisse continued when she knew she shouldn’t. “Didn’t take you for a cook, honestly.” For a moment, the remark about the soup and the insane amount of condiments they had to add was at the tip of her tongue but the more rational part of her mind practically screamed at her to stop. “Change of pace?” It sounded like a safe enough question in her head.

All Juliette could think about was how odd she felt. This is so strange. Renee wouldn’t believe this. Standing side by side with Clarisse, of all people, wasn’t something she ever expected to happen, let alone so soon. Yet, for the moment, she wasn’t opposed to it. Nodding as she listened to Clarisse, she squeezed a generous amount of soap onto the sponge and quietly set to work, scrubbing the bowls to perfection. She knew she’d have to hand-dry them afterward, but that didn’t bother her—especially if Leon was planning on stopping by later.

As she worked, her thoughts flickered back to how surreal this moment was, the silence between them feeling both heavy and light at the same time. If Renee were here, she'd probably have some cutting remark, Juliette mused, shaking her head slightly at the thought. Please don't ruin this right now. At the mention of bringing up the lack of staff to Leon, Juliette shook her head, followed by a shrug. "I don't want to put that pressure on Leon, at least not now after the outburst at dinner." She tilted her head, deep in thought. "Did you catch what it was about? I never thought Marquis had it in him," she mused, curiosity piqued by the altercation. She made a mental note to bring it up the next time she saw him.

A muffled laugh escaped from her at Clarisse's suggestion about having the campers help out in the kitchen. Juliette brought the back of her hand to her mouth, eyes bright with amusement. "Oh my god—could you imagine? That’d be a job of babysitting and cleaning. No thank you." The warmth of the water felt soothing as she moved on to the utensils, a smile still in place.

Once the laughter settled, Juliette found herself feeling more at ease, not as tense as she had been, worried she’d have to defend or explain herself right off the bat. "Oh, trust me, I’m not," she snorted, her eyes drifting to the side where an open book lay, displaying tonight’s recipe. "I didn’t—" want Renee to win in the end, I want to find her, figure out what’s been happening, and bring her home. "Y-yes, yeah. You said it." She nodded quickly, forcing a shrug. "Lifeguarding wasn’t open this year. Might as well take 'new year, new me' literally." Juliette froze as the words slipped out, her hands pausing under the warm water. "Sorry, um." She shook her head, eyes closing briefly as she gathered herself. Don’t ruin this.

"It’s been rough," she admitted softly, her voice more subdued. "Inside and outside of this camp."

This was surprisingly… nice. She didn’t expect them to get into a verbal shouting match suddenly but having this sort of peaceful moment was all Clarisse could ask for. Maybe some higher power out there was looking after her and the camp, and a small part of her wondered when it would cash in for letting her have such calm interactions with people she really shouldn’t have. Or, maybe I’m just expecting things to go wrong when I shouldn’t be. She had always been the pessimist of the group despite her reckless behavior. A coping mechanism to easily deal with negative outcomes really.

“Mm, no. I was planning to ask Liberty about it later.” She admitted as she set aside another bowl to the drying rack. “And… yeah I don’t know. I guess he just got fed up? Being nice all the time has got to be tiring.” Clarisse wouldn’t rightly know; doing the right and moral thing of being a good person was a challenge and a half in her position. It was so much easier to just succumb to your impulses. In any case, she couldn’t even say she knew Marquis well enough. Once upon a time, she thought she did but life always loved its little surprises when it came to secrets and relationships. “But, uh… Ricky offered earlier. To help with this tomorrow. Said he owed me for staying behind so you should strongarm him into helping.”

Juliette laughing caught her off-guard and her eyes snapped to her involuntarily. Her mouth dried at the sight of it but her mind caught up a second later and she came to a realization. Oh, she doesn’t laugh like her. There were certain quirks to people’s mannerisms that most people would not notice or be able to copy very easily but Clarisse had spent a long time observing her late best friend. Juliette still laughs like herself. Clarisse's lips quirked up, her eyes softening for that moment. Huh, she’s prettier like that. Her thoughts continued. She didn’t usually have the privilege of hearing the chef laugh. Didn’t think she was missing much without it really but Clarisse could admit when she was wrong.

“It’ll be your very own event. Though, I feel like we’d end up with more broken items than we can afford.” Of course, there were good kids out there in that camp. Even if they were unruly, most of them can even be convinced with a few bribes here and there. Then again, that was more effort than what it was worth.

This wasn’t the first time Clarisse heard Juliette stumble over her words, losing confidence as a conversation went on mostly due to Renee’s overbearing presence. But she would be a hypocrite to point it out so she averted her eyes back to the task at hand. Might as well take 'new year, new me' literally. Literally indeed. Clarisse wanted to press at that moment, the feeling of antagonism of Juliette’s new look resurfacing.

She’s trying to replace me. You know that. Clarisse felt her heart drop to her stomach as that familiar voice intruded into her own mind space. Renee was always right about these kinds of things, social situations had been her battlefield all her life. Reading into people and their motives? She had that down pat even when they were just teenagers. But Juliette’s soft admittance tore away the rising anger she was experiencing, silencing Renee’s voice as anger was replaced with sympathy.

Clarisse wouldn’t dare say she understood Juliette completely but maybe, just maybe, this wasn’t an attempt to take Renee’s place, but rather an odd way of coping with her loss. Be everything as it may, Renee had been someone Juliette took notes from for better or for worse. “That’s… well…” I can understand that. Finding reasons to go on was difficult after the disappearances. Some part of her was comforted that she wasn’t the only one heavily affected by the incident that wasn't direct family. Another part felt guilty for feeling that. “I’m sorry.” She uttered first, genuine and understanding. “I… think I know how hard it was. Considering, y’know…” She vaguely gesticulated, moving her hands to brace against the sink. “Being forced to move on. Forced to keep going like nothing happened. I get that and… I’m sorry. For not checking in.” I didn’t know she meant that much to you honestly.

Being observant had its perks, and Juliette quickly caught on to Clarisse's lingering gaze. She tried her best not to make a big deal out of it—or make it obvious that she noticed. Renee does that, she thought, curiously tilting her head as she allowed her thoughts to wash over her. She always watched, and I pretended not to notice.

"I might have to take him up on that offer. It gets pretty lonely up here, just alone with your thoughts." And boy, did Juliette spend a lot of time with herself. "Thanks, though," she quickly added, realizing a bit late that she was in an unusually cheerful mood with the amount of gratitude she was handing out.

Feeling awkward, Juliette timidly brushed a loose strand of hair away from her face, tucking it behind her ear. That familiar, intense urge to do something with her hands returned, and she hastily began adjusting the butterfly clips in her hair—baby blue, like the tank top she was wearing. Was it the fact Clarisse was watching her a little too closely? Did she see Renee, when she looked at me?

The water was still warm against her skin, the heat starting to sting her hand. Slowly, Juliette pulled them away from the tap, her movements almost automatic as she stepped aside to retrieve a fresh cloth, grateful for the distraction. "You don't have to say sorry; we both know you had it way worse." Honesty is the best policy, she supposed, her fingers tightening around the cloth momentarily before tossing it aside.

She returned to the sink, eyes flickering downward at the way Clarisse was gripping the counter, grounding herself back to reality. "Hey, it's—" Juliette made a gesture to reach out but hesitated, Renee's scolding echoing in the back of her mind. "It's not your fault, or responsibility." Her voice was soft, but firm enough to make the point clear. They weren't close—not at all—and it was because of Renee. She meant the world to me.

Being a cook sounded terrible when Juliette put it like that. Clarisse couldn’t imagine spending hours upon hours alone with only her own thoughts. Or well, she could and that was the problem. Nothing good ever came out of being alone with one’s thoughts— and it wouldn’t be that much of a stretch to think Juliette felt the same. There was an offer on Clarisse’s tongue, feeling too generous, too close, and she swallowed it back. This was an atmosphere she didn’t think would last beyond this particular time. An anomaly.

And, yeah, Juliette had a point. Clarisse didn’t want to think about the time directly after the disappearances. The suffocating feeling, the need to do something, be something— the months passed by like she was in limbo. Still, Clarisse let out a deep sigh. “It was easier with people around.” She mumbled as she turned the sink off. She fell silent for another moment. Or, it was easier when you had other people to worry about.

She shook her head, throwing Juliette a tight-lipped smile. It didn’t reach her eyes at all; instead, everything about her was just tired. “But, yeah. You’re right. You’re not my responsibility.” But I need someone to be. She cleared her throat. “Can’t change what already happened, right? At least we’re both here now.” Still. However, the more she looked at Juliette, she wondered if the old ginger she once knew was still with them.

The topic was getting uncomfortable, that much Clarisse could realize by herself with the way her skin crawled. Too vulnerable. Don’t let anyone hold that over you. Right. Divert the topic while it was still early. Clarisse had already spoken too much. For someone who was normally so quiet, the words spilled far too easily. But, well, deep inside she already knew why that was the case with Juliette.

“Anyway, looks like we’re almost done. Just drying, if you want to put these away immediately.” Back to the task at hand was surely the best way to move on.

"It was." It was a strange feeling, agreeing with Clarisse, given their unique history. "Easier, I mean. With people." Her voice was odd, reminiscing about the past, what she had—what she lost. She swallowed the ever-growing lump in her throat, taking a brief breather before forcing a smile back on and returning it to Clarisse. All is well.

It threw her off guard for a second, seeing how they both somewhat mirrored each other in that moment. Renee, probably, she thought. Guess I wasn’t the only one who had to watch out. With how she spoke, acted, and looked, it made sense to her that Renee was overbearing to her closest friend too. "At least we're both here now," she repeated, humming her words out while staring back slightly in awe. She didn’t often get to see this side of Clarisse, and she understood why Renee kept her under her thumb.

Juliette didn’t miss the way the air shifted, and she pulled herself away to quickly glance out the window—just needing space from everything. It was suddenly becoming overwhelming, thinking about, well... the past. She shivered at her thoughts, her eyes glancing down at the loose strands of her new blonde hair. I just wanted a change, I swear.

The sound of quick feet caught her ear just outside the window, and she took a moment to glance out to see what was going on. She spotted a flash of blonde hair and someone with darker hair, blurry—but still able to make out the fact—

A noise died in her throat as she backed away from the window. "Um, actually, don’t worry—I can handle the rest!" she quickly bit out, stepping to at least stand somewhat in front of Clarisse. "I think Mona and Liberty are here—although I have no clue why." Her mouth twisted into a frown, and she crossed her arms against her chest. "Do you mind... maybe telling them to scram?" She wasn’t ready to see Mona. It still stung, a can of worms she didn’t want to open right now. "Tell them the kitchen's closed. They used to pull this shit all the time when Paige was around."

With growing annoyance, Juliette shot a heated glance at a pen on the board, snatching it along with a sticky note. "Actually, it wouldn't be fair. Wouldn’t want to cause any drama for you on the first day—knowing Mona," she mumbled, making sure her spelling was correct and precise.

Don’t even think about it. < 3

Satisfied with the note, she handed it to Clarisse and nodded towards the stairs, picking up on the unmistakable sound of footsteps down below. "Hey, before you go—I just wanted to say thanks, quickly. I didn’t... hate this." Juliette forced herself to calm down, not wanting to ruin the mood. "Catch you another time."

The moment had been broken successfully— though, Clarisse supposed she had to thank Ramona and Liberty for their timely arrival. She even picked up on how Juliette seemed uncomfortable, panicked even. She recalled something about Juliette and Ramona and, well, Clarisse wasn’t privy to the details of what happened to them. Only that something did and it did not end as well as it should have.

She listened as Juliette rattled off instructions, not all too keen on confronting them herself. It really didn’t take a detective to find out why this was so Clarisse just absorbed the information to be relayed. However, before she could bid her farewell to send the message, the cook went on to grab a sticky note and began writing. A defense for her old friend was on her lips. Ramona had been one of the few people she truly did miss hanging out with and she wanted to say that relaying a message wouldn’t put Clarisse on Ramona’s hit list but she kept silent. Juliette likely didn’t want to hear that.

“Right.” Clarisse received the note and she closed her hand without even taking a glance at what was written on it. “And yeah. It was nice.” She looked around, the familiar feeling of awkwardness creeping into her without permission. So, for some reason or another even Clarisse couldn’t explain, she raised a hand and patted Juliette on the head. “Have a good night, Juliette. Take care of yourself.” She pulled back, turned around, and headed straight out of the kitchen.


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Fantasy Murder in the City of Devils- IC
fantasy magic modern
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strawberryspiral
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