Realistic or Modern Woe and Whoa!

smolfluffball · Jun 23, 2019

Admittedly, he knew it would be like this.

Julian Foster was not a boy that liked to be outdoors. He didn't hate it, per se, but he was much more an indoors type of guy. He didn't like the risks that came with being outdoors. He could get sun-burnt, or bitten by a bug, or stung by a bee, or his allergies could act up due to pollen. He hardly ever had problems with pollen, but he hated getting sniffly noses, and he just knew that being stuck at this camp would end up making his allergies react. There were flowers scattered around the camp grounds, along the edges of the dirt paths, and there were flowering bushes near all of the wood cabins. He'd seen bees fly to and fro, and he'd spotted a couple of butterflies flicker between different flowers. Spreading the pollen around. He hadn't packed any allergy medicine in his suitcase and wondered if the counselors had any in their medical cabin. They probably did. This was a camp for children, and they wouldn't want to endanger a kids life by not carrying around the right medicine. He'd try to sneak some later, just in case he needed any. He was sure counselors wouldn't notice a couple of pills missing.

If it wasn't enough that this camp was an outdoor activities camp, it was also a camp primarily aimed towards children. Like, middle school and younger. Which meant that he was the single oldest camper. The counselors were possibly close to his age, but he wouldn't know, because he hadn't really spoken to any of them. They seemed nice, he guessed, but he wasn't interested in all the fun things the camp had to offer. He was interested in being back home with his friends and family, enjoying his summer break the way he wanted to. His parents hadn't been aware that the camp was geared towards younger children. They had gotten a flier in the mail and decided to send him to the camp, to the Sunny Squirrels Camp, so he could experience a real summer camp before he got too old to. That, he thought, was complete bullshit. He had experienced real summer camps before, ever since he was eleven. They were arts camps, usually theatre camps, but those still counted as a summer camp. They were camps, that happened over summer. He had tried to explain this to his parents, but they had just smiled and asked if he would just go this year. He eventually caved, because, whatever, it wouldn't hurt him. Probably.

He was regretting it now, though. He had hoped, just ever so slightly, that there would be at least another person close to his age at this camp. He had been wrong. Perhaps one of the counselors was, but he was rather wary to talk to that one in particular, because he was far too cheerful and cute. He had also thought that a couple of campers had been around his age when he had first arrived, but after he'd overheard the two of them gossiping about middle school drama, he quickly veered away. He wasn't interested in talking to middle schoolers. He had tried to put that part of his life out of his brain for good. Too much bad had happened in those years. He really didn't want to even come close to reliving them.

The worst part of this all was, honestly, probably the kids. He didn't dislike kids - he actually got along with them quite well, usually. The main problem he was having with them was the gossip and whispering about him, and the giggling and running away whenever he walked near them. It was like they all had some secret they were hiding from him, which was damn near impossible, because they all had been at camp for exactly one day. There hadn't even been enough time for secrets about him to be made, or rumors about him to be spread. Of course, because he was dressed in all black and hadn't said practically anything since he arrived, there was the possibility that the kids were afraid of him. He did hope that wasn't the case. He didn't want a bunch of kids to be scared of him. Did they not understand that, just because he was dressed edgy, they could say hello to him?

Well, they couldn't do that now, because they were all being rounded up to go through orientation. Since they all had come at different times yesterday, the counselors and camp leader had decided to just let them sit around the campfire and get to know each other. Julian had, of course, sat underneath a tree, with his hood pulled up over his beanie. He had tried to blend into the shadows, and he had managed to succeed last night. Today, however, he didn't think that would be the case. It was bright out, early morning, and he was dressed in all black against a bright green background. So, he did what any edgy teenager would do and ran away a soon as the counselors called for the other kids to come together.

He was now sitting under a pine tree, which was something dark that he hoped would hide him. He didn't think anyone had seen him, and when he heard the counselors say they'd go to the mess hall first, he let out a sigh. Good. They were leaving. He could just wait by the pine until they all came back, then he could blend in with everyone and pretend like he had been at the orientation all along. It was a foolproof plan.

Except, it wasn't foolproof, because he heard a twig snap to his left. He didn't look back and just looked to the right, towards the lake. If he was quiet, maybe whoever it was wouldn't notice him. He wasn't exactly hidden in the pine tree, granted, but he thought that he was hidden well enough. He hoped he was, and he also wondered who exactly would be coming this way anyway. Didn't all the camp counselors go off to show the kids around? Could it be the camp leader, coming to check on him? God, he hoped not. Oh, or what if it was that cute brunet with the atrocious fashion sense? Jesus, he really hoped it wasn't him. He didn't know how he'd even be around that guy. He heard another stick snap and held his breath. Whatever. Whoever it was, he'd be able to handle it. He was an actor. He'd be fine, even if it was the guy he was kind of scared to talk to. Julian Foster could deal with a cute summer camp counselor, totally.

cadence · Jun 27, 2019

This, without a doubt, was going to be the best year of his life. After begging and begging (and begging and begging and begging), Mickey St. Germaine had finally managed to convince the infamous Leander Jones to let him be a counselor for Sunny Squirrels Camps. The camp was practically heaven, the boy thought. Somehow, Mickey knew it was his destiny to be a counselor at the camp. The job was calling to him from the moment he entered the camp as a first grader; it pulled him in like a siren's song. And finally, finally it had happened. It had only taken the kid weeks of begging. He had offered up every single thing he had on him; exactly four dollars, random soda caps, so many sauce packets, a mini screwdriver, three packets of candy, two marbles, and, well, the list only goes on from there. He had even offered up his first-born child! Mickey St. Germaine was desperate to become a counselor. No, scratch that. Mickey St. Germaine was desperate to suck-seed.

Somehow, it had happened. It was the second day of orientation. His second day as counselor. Mickey couldn't control the boyish grin that spread across his face, dimples on each of his cheeks and a glint in his eyes that only reflected how excited he was to be there. He glanced at himself in the mirror, standing in the bathroom of the meeting room. He had to look absolutely perfect. The first week was all about making impressions and he knew the exact impression he wanted to make. He wanted his entire being to scream Squirrel Spirit. And all it took was a single glance in the mirror to know that he had achieved this goal. He smiled fondly at the dancing squirrel camp shirt he wore, marked with the slogan "We're NUTS About FUN!" Mickey had a giggle just about anytime he read it - that, accompanied with the infamous dancing squirrel. It was gold. Pure gold. He wore his favorite army cargo pants and ankle boots. As great as he looked, he was missing something. "Oh, yes!" He exclaimed aloud, lifting his index finger before digging in his many pockets to find the item that would absolutely sell his look. He let out a satisfied hum when he found them, quickly tying back his unruly mane of hair into a ponytail. And then, he added the finishing touch, sliding the two acorn bobby-pins he had found at a flea-market into his hair. "Stunning," he told himself, shooting himself finger-guns with each of his hands and giving himself a wink before he made his way out.

The first day had been all about introductions. The campers gathered around the campfire - all 54 of them - and told their name, their age, and one fun fact about them. It had been quite fun! For Mickey, at least, who genuinely enjoyed listening to every single child talk about themselves. The second day was intended to give everyone a brief tour of the camp and a basic rundown of how an average day would go about. Mickey made his way to stand with the other counselors, making sure to stand by the girl he had grown particularly close with over his previous years at camp. She was tall and blonde and easily the one person he was closest with there at camp. She had been one of the older campers during his last couple of visits as a camper. The girl, Jessie, seemed to have noticed the brunet walking over, because the moment she saw him, his mouth parted and ready to speak, she spoke up. She knew good and well that Mickey would talk and talk for hours if he had the chance. "I only counted 53 kids," she told him, eyes wide and slightly concerned. This wasn't the first time this had happened by any means. Last year, one of the kids simply didn't wake up and ended up sleeping through the entire orientation. Again, Mickey opened his mouth. Jessie interrupted. "That emo kid isn't here. Paul says he thinks he saw him walking towards the woods or something. We want you to go find him."

"Well, gee, golly. I mean, I guess I have no choice," he said, his tone rich in over-the-top theatrics. He was trying his best to sound reluctant - like he wanted to do anything but talk to the kid. But, really, he wanted to talk to the kid more than anything. He had noticed him at orientation on the first day. It was hard not to, actually. He stuck out like a sore thumb compared the bright-clothing clad children that surrounded him. He was determined since then to befriend the blond, no matter what it took. Having to look for him now was the perfect opportunity. The squirrel gods had worked a miracle, he'd say! He knew his acorn pins were a good find. "I guess I'll go find him," he added with a feigned sigh, shaking his head. "But I'll have you know, I'm going to hate every second of it!"

By the time he had finished speaking, the young man was already pushing himself out the wooden door, grinning at his own lame sense of humor. Of course he would have loved to talk to the kid. The other counselors probably knew that and had given him the task for that reason. Mickey just loved to talk to people. He walked out of the building in stride, making a bee-line towards the main entrance to the woods. Surely, he wouldn't have gone far. It wasn't exactly safe to go into the woods alone. There was the risk of wild animals, tripping, falling into the water... A lot of things, actually. He grew a little worried at the thought, hoping he would be easy to find. He began to search at the very entrance of the forest, circling around all of the trees large enough to hide someone behind. Thankfully, Mickey had noticed a small glint of black from the corner of his eye, figuring it must be him. He seemed to be nestled behind a pine tree. Sincerely hoping it was him, Mickey cautiously approached, taking slow steps in the odd case it wasn't.

"Boo!" He said when he noticed that it was, speeding up a bit to take a step directly in front of the other. He wasn't sure why he was skipping out on orientation, but he just wasn't going to have that. Sunny Squirrels was just so much fun, he really couldn't even tell why he'd want to miss out. Laughing at himself, he peered down at the other, squinting a bit at the morning sun in his eyes. "Hi! Remember me? I'm Mickey. I'm a counselor," he said 'counselor' with pride, buffing out his chest a bit. "I was sent to come and get you. What're you skipping for anyway? This camp is the best camp in the entire world and you're gonna miss out on all the fun!" He bent over, extending a hand for the kid to lift himself up with if he chose to. His regular, joyous smile never ceasing to leave his face for a moment. He was excited to get him back with the others, after all. He wanted him to have just as much fun as he did every time he was a camper. "Let's go," he urged, nodding towards the mess hall with his head. "I hear they're making waffles."

smolfluffball · Jun 27, 2019

The twigs kept snapping and snapping, until, suddenly, the brunet boy appeared in front of Julian. Despite his attempt at startling the blond, Julian just stared at him in disbelief. He looked insane, or, dare he say, NUTS. That was all Julian could think, even as the counselor introduced himself as Mickey. His shirt was the stupid, absurd, childish dancing squirrel he had seen on the banner for the camp when he came in yesterday. All the counselors wore it, but it looked especially ridiculous on this dude, who was tall and lanky. His hair looked like a mess, and in it was- Oh my God. He had acorns in his hair. Where would someone even get those? They looked rather cheap. Had this guy made them himself, to get the kids to laugh or something? Julian really hoped that was the case, because he would just be so completely amazed if this Mickey guy was wearing them just for fun. God, that would be so dorky.

When the counselor said that this camp was the best camp in the entire world, Julian couldn't help but scoff. No, it wasn't. This camp might be the best camp in the world for little kids, but it certainly wasn't for older, angsty teens. He scowled at Mickey, then leaned further back when he held a hand out to him. Okay, yeah, no. That wasn't happening. Julian whacked his hand away, leaning against the tree, trying to disappear into it. He knew he should have stayed far away from this guy. He was too cheerful and sunny, and his stupid acorns were just. God. He was starting to wish he'd climbed up a tree, gone into the lake or hid in the outhouse. He couldn't handle overly cheerful people because Julian always knew they were hiding something, and he didn't trust them.

His fingers pulled at some grass and he bunched his shoulders up, still scowling up at Mickey. Why was he even over here? Didn't he have to go with the other counselors to show the kids around? Had the other counselors noticed he'd been missing and sent someone to find him? He guessed that was good, attentive, of them to do, but he just wasn't in the mood. He just wanted to be left alone by his tree to mope. "Why don't you leave me the fuck alone?" Julian cocked an eyebrow, rubbing the torn up grass between his fingers and watching it fall to the ground. "I'm trying to enjoy the nature," he spoke sarcastically, looking Mickey over, "and you're ruining the view."

cadence · Jun 27, 2019

Mickey couldn't help but be a little offended by the black-clothed kid who sat pinned to the tree in front of him, he smile faltering just slightly at his behavior. He had scoffed when he said the camp was the best in the entire world! He stared at him like he was a crazy person! He didn't know why he was being such a sour-puss. Sure, orientation wasn't the most fun thing in the world. Sure, the kid was older than all of the other campers and was probably feeling a little out of place. But that didn't mean he couldn't have fun! He certainly wasn't going to have fun just by separating from everyone else and hiding behind trees the whole time. He just took a quiet breath, reminding himself to smile and think happy thoughts. He was determined to befriend the guy - determined to make him have fun and enjoy his stay at camp. He would do anything it took to accomplish that.

Things weren't going exactly as planned, though. He half expected the other to read his thoughts, agree to be his friend, and then carry on all happy and joyous like all of the other campers. But no. The kid whacked away his hand! He gasped a bit, his mouth hanging open just slightly. He stood quietly for a moment, stunned and hardly able to process that fact that this kid really seemed to not want to be there. As much as he tried to understand, he just couldn't. But again, ever persistent, he brought his hand back out, inching it towards the other's face. He bit his lip as he did, practically begging him to just take his hand, pull himself up, and head to the mess hall with everyone else. He hadn't though, and before Mickey could even stop himself, his index finger was pressed against the other's nose. A normal person would have been embarrassed, but Mickey just laughed to himself, making a "boop" sound before removing his hand. If the kid wasn't going to get up willingly, Mickey would just have to use his skills: annoyance and bribery.

"Ah, ah, ah," he scolded the other when he cursed, holding up a disapproving finger. He wasn't going to allow himself to show his offense at being told to leave him alone. "Sunny Squirrel Rule #3: no potty mouth!" Mickey had memorized all of the rules during his second year at camp. The camp was intended to be family-friendly and it was his job, as counselor, to make sure everyone was following the rules. He then sighed again, looking over the other with his hands on his hips. "You have ten whole weeks to enjoy nature," he told him. There would be hikes, and canoeing, and scavenger hunts, and campfires, and so many other ways for him to enjoy the woods. "Well, campers aren't allowed to be unsupervised. So, if you really wanted to stay, I guess I have no choice but to stay with you." He shook his head, feigning disappointment just as he had with Jessie. It would probably annoy the other, but Mickey would actually quite like to sit and talk with him. He wanted to be everyone's friend and there was just something about this boy in black that drew him in.

smolfluffball · Jun 28, 2019

Julian noticed the smile on the counselors face falter, but he just crossed his arms. Good. He wouldn't be the annoying type who didn't let anything bother him. He watched as Mickey took a quick breath, then rolled his eyes when he smiled again. Ugh. Maybe he would be exactly like Julian had thought - stubborn and always cheerful and never bothered. Seriously, it was impossible for a person to be like that. It wasn't healthy. Whenever he had to act like a perky, cheerful character, he always felt so drained afterwards. He couldn't even imagine what it'd be like to be cheerful and smiling all the time. Wouldn't someones face muscles hurt?

He inhaled quickly when the counselor booped - yes, booped - his nose. Holy shit. There was no way this guy was real. That was so silly and childish and friendly. Julian himself was a touchy kind of person, but to just boop someones nose when you didn't even know their name? God, he couldn't imagine. The guy must have had no shame, though, because he just laughed and pulled his hand back. Okay, well, he at least got that message. Maybe Julian had sunk far enough into the tree that he was starting to disappear. He hoped so. He really, truly wanted the brunet to leave. He was too dorky and cute and annoying, and Julian really wasn't in the mood to deal with any kind of cute guys or annoying problems. He didn't even know how old the dude was, actually. It's not like the counselors said their ages when they introduced themselves to the campers. That was pretty unfair, now that he thought about it. He wouldn't bother to ask, though, because he didn't really care that much. But he was curious. He'd try to figure it out. Maybe there were papers lying around somewhere with their ages on it.

"No potty mouth." Julian repeated, dead pan. The dude held his finger up and scolded him like a child. That was... wow. Okay. He was serious. This was kind of amazing. Actually, was this Mickey guy just pretending to be like this? Because that was the only thing that made sense. He couldn't be for real, standing there with his hands on his hips. Wait, hold up, what did he say? He knew about the ten weeks of suffering he'd have to endure, and, whatever, that would be fine. Mickey even said he'd have plenty of time to enjoy it, which was a valid point, and that slightly bothered Julian. Don't actually make a valid point and ruin the delivery of the line. But he said he'd have to stay with him because campers couldn't be unsupervised. Yeah, no, that couldn't happen. He didn't know how he'd manage a conversation with someone like Mickey. God, seriously, how was he even supposed to reply? Right around now was when he was starting to seriously regret taking on this dumb persona. He hadn't gotten anytime to practice with it, or develop the character at all. Well, whatever. Improv worked.

Grabbing at grass again, the blond rolled his eyes. "I don't need a fucking babysitter," he started, tossing the grass at Mickey. "I'm the oldest camper here, ain't I? It's not like I'm going to catch these asshole trees on fire or anything, you know. I don't have a lighter, or a knife, or a gun. I can be left unsupervised." He air quoted the last word, but dropped his hands and looked towards the mess hall. "But I am hungry, so could you be a nice camp counselor and go get me some waffles? I'll be a good boy and wait here for you. I'm shy and don't feel like saying hi to the lunch lady, ya know." He leaned back and looked Mickey over again, then adjusted his beanie and leaned back against the tree. "So help me out, okay? I ain't gonna runaway anywhere. There's nowhere in this hellhole I could hide anyway."

cadence · Jun 28, 2019

"No potty mouth," Mickey repeated as well, nodding his head in confirmation. He could already tell this kid was going to be ... something else. He had already broken two rules on the second night, after all! He used a naughty word and he had snuck off to be by himself. As complicated as he was sure he would be, Mickey didn't mind that much. In fact, he welcomed the challenge. It was his first year as counselor, after all! He was going to conquer any obstacle thrown at him and he was going to suck-seed this month. It was his dream to suck-seed. He wanted it more than anything in his life. He wasn't going to let a potty-mouthed kid ruin that for him! No way, Jose! He grinned to himself, feeling rather determined after his internal pep-talk.

His smile was only short-lived because it fell again when the kid proceeded to curse. He visibly cringed each time he used another word, a total of three times. "First of all, I'm not your babysitter," he insisted, his voice remaining upbeat and positive despite the fact that this kid was really beginning to drain his spirit. "I'm your friend," he corrected, smiling his infamous dimpled grin. "Second of all, the trees aren't buttholes. They are very nice trees, I'll have you know!" He let out a heavy sigh, moving his hands from his hips to be shoved deep in the pockets of his cargo pants, ignoring the fact that there were things in his pockets that prevented them from going in all the way. "We aren't allowed to leave you alone no matter what. It doesn't really matter if you're gonna do anything bad or not. You're not the one we're worried about." He paused for a moment, staring at the other with wide eyes. "It's the ghosts," he whispered playfully, mocking a tone of warning, his hand cupped around his mouth as if it were a secret shared only between the two of them. He just laughed after, though, giving himself away. Obviously ghosts didn't exist.

If Mickey was anything, he was a people-pleaser above anything else. When the kid told him he was hungry, asking him to be a nice counselor and get him some waffles, he just nodded enthusiastically. "Of course I will!" He told him, giving him two thumbs up. He was counting on the other to stay there, not even realizing for a moment that maybe he wasn't being that honest. He spun on his heels almost immediately upon being asked, walking to the mess hall with a grin on his face. This was a break through, really. The kid had asked a favor of him! That practically meant he thought he was his friend. Mickey couldn't have been happier as he walked into the mess hall, making his way to the very back of the line. He might even grab himself a plate of waffles! Sharing breakfast with the kid sounded like the exact thing he needed to make him feel welcome at Sunny Squirrels Camp. It was a flawless plan. Flawless.

smolfluffball · Jun 29, 2019

Holy shit. The counselor actually fell for it. After he had said, and I quote, "We aren't allowed to leave you alone no matter what. It doesn't really matter if you're gonna do anything bad or not," he literally left Julian alone by the tree. He left a kid, a camper, alone. After he specifically said he wouldn't. Can we just acknowledge this for a moment? This happened. Mickey left a poor, innocent, grumpy, angsty child alone. I'm calling him out, personally.

Julian let out a snort as soon as Mickey got far enough away, then stood and looked at the asshole tree. Yeah, no, he was out. He was finding somewhere else to hide. He didn't care that there might be ghosts in the woods, even though Julian did believe in phantoms and the like. He was actually a little bit superstitious and have never said Bloody Mary three times in the mirror, on the off-chance that she actually came to his house to haunt him and his family. He'd seen enough horror movies to know not to fuck with a ouji board, but he also doubted that the camp would actually have ghosts. If the camp did have ghosts, then they surely wouldn't be out in the early morning. Ghosts were more night-time creatures, he thought, so he had nothing to worry about right now.

He moved away from the tree after looking around to make sure there weren't any other counselors nearby, then darted across the way to a cabin. He knew this wasn't the mess hall, as he had watched Mickey go off one way, but he figured he could hide in this cabin for now. Maybe the brunet counselor wouldn't think to look in here, Julian thought, after peering through the door window. He grabbed the handle and pulled the door open, then quickly peeked inside to make sure no one was in. After he made sure the coast was clear, he stepped in and closed the door behind him, scanning the room. Huh. It looked like an office, or the counselors cabin, or something. Okay, it was almost definitely not a good idea to be in here, but he had wanted to know how old the counselors were so... There would probably be information in here. Actually, he specifically wanted to know how old Mickey was, because he was cute and annoying and Julian was worried he would develop a crush. And he didn't want to crush on someone who was older than him again.

After he pulled the curtains closed over the window, he went to the door to see if it could lock. Damn. It didn't have any kind of locking mechanism. Of course it didn't. Well, whatever. He'd try to find the papers quickly, then duck out again before Mickey could find him. He went to a filing cabinet near a desk and opened the top drawer, then saw it was full of files for the campers at camp. Oh boy. What goodies could he find in here? He flipped through them until he came to his name, then he pulled it out and opened it. They didn't have a lot of information; just his name, age, hobbies and where he'd come from. Oh, and his parents contact information, put under Emergency Contact. He wondered how they had figured out his hobbies, then realized it had most likely been his parents telling the counselors about him. Ugh. He put the file back in the drawer, then opened the second drawer. This one had a lot of names he didn't know, but he picked a random one from the back and flipped through it. Carol Thompson. Nineteen. She was born in 1979, which was weird. The picture they had of her didn't look like any of the counselors he had seen, so he put the file back, assuming it was probably a former counselor that they hadn't removed from the cabinet.

He kept flipping through the folders, taking in names and ages and appearances, until he picked up Mickey's and narrowed his eyes. Here he was. The curly haired, acorn pinned, cheerful, cute boy. Julian flipped open the folder and immediately his eyes caught on his full name. Michael St. Germaine. What the fuck. That was such a cool name. Why did he go by Mickey? Why not Mikey, or Mike? Was it for the kids? He looked at the picture of him, then saw his age. Oh. My. God. He was sixteen, and he was born September 28th. Julian was exactly two months older than him. He wasn't expecting that, to be honest. He looked back towards the door, then grabbed a couple other files out of the cabinet and pulled the desk chair out. He sat in it, then set Mickey's file on top of the desk, which resulted in a solid shmack. The kid had a big ass file, which Julian figured meant that he'd been coming to camp often, or he was a troublemaker. He doubted the second option. The brunet seemed to eager too please to be a problem child. He flipped a page, then picked the file up and leaned back in the chair, putting the bottoms of his feet on the edge of the desk.

cadence · Jun 29, 2019

The line for waffles, thankfully, took no time at all. Within minutes, he was passing through the line, scooping a couple of waffles onto each of the plates he had grabbed. He went through as quickly as he could, desperate to sit down with the other and get to know him a little more. Befriending the campers wouldn't be too difficult, he had a feeling. But the kid - who Mickey realized he didn't know the name of - was going to need a little more pushing. They were on the right track, though! After all, he was in line to get the two of them waffles. Asking for favors was like the unspoken rule of friends. You wouldn't ask a stranger for waffles, would you? He didn't think so! He brought his tray over the small little table with toppings, setting his tray down while he grabbed the essentials. He stuffed small packets of butter in his pockets, hoping the warmth would make it smooth. He grabbed the glass of syrup and drowned his waffles in it, absolutely needing the sweetness. But he didn't know if the blond wanted syrup on his, so he grabbed a little sauce bowl and poured some inside of it. He was all set! He had really outdone himself, he noticed, content with all of the stuff he had managed to grab. Discarding the tray, he picked up their two plates and began making his way back towards the pine tree.

"I'm back!" He called when he was within distance, holding two towering stacks of waffles in his hands and eager to sit down and eat with the other. "I brought waffles!" He explained, beginning to circle around the trunk. "I didn't really know if you wanted syrup so I-" He trailed off when he noticed that the eyeliner wearing kid wasn't there anymore, his face pinched in a look of confusion. Maybe he had been called away, he wondered. He hoped that was the case. He could really use some other friends during his stay! Still, he couldn't feel a bit disappointed by the fact that he was gone. He was really looking forward to getting to know him! He tapped his foot in thought, wondering if it were best to hunt for the kid or to to assume he had made another friend and left. Letting his need to befriend everyone control him, he decided to look for him. He began to look around, lifting a plate of waffles into the sky to shield his eyes from the sun.

Mickey looked near the lake. Then, he double checked the mess hall. Then, he look in all six of the cabins. By the time he was rolling around the counselor's cabin, Mickey was really beginning to lose hope. Their waffles were no longer steaming and his syrup-drenched ones were entirely soggy now. He just hoped the kid wouldn't mind a cold waffle whenever he found him. Sighing, his breath a mixture of doubt and anticipation, he opened the cabin door the best he could with a plate of waffles in hand, bumping it open with his hip. Needless to say, he hadn't exactly expected the kid to be in the counselor's cabin. He wasn't supposed to be in there, after all. The counselor's cabin was meant for ... Well, counselors. Mickey had only bothered to check simply because it was in the order of buildings he was searching. Next would be the rec hall. And then the mess hall again. And then the storage cabin. He looked at the boy, wide eyed and suspicious of whatever he was doing with - was that a file?

He cleared his throat loudly, walking over to the desk behind which the boy sat. He set the plates down at the edge of the desk, gently pushing the other's feet off of the desk. That was just impolite, he thought. He didn't say anything about it, though. Instead, his full attention was on the file that the kid held in his hands. His file. He could recognize his bright and colorful crayon scribbles from a mile away. He felt a twang of happiness at the fact that Leander kept all of his letters over the years, but in the moment, he mostly felt panic. "I brought waffles," he told him, gesturing towards them with his hands. Still, his eyes never left the file.

"What are you doing with that? Why are you in here? You're not supposed to be here." He spoke very quickly, looking like a deer caught in headlights. He wasn't really sure why he was so freaked out about the fact that he was reading his file. He was a good person! He hadn't done anything bad in his entire life. Oh. Oh. Mickey really hoped he wasn't looking through his file to have a reason to get him fired. Oh, God. There was that time ... He had been about nine years old ... Oh, no. The color immediately drained from his face at the thought. Suddenly, he was very thankful that he had set down the plates of waffles, because his hands began to sweat and fidget. He nervously shoved them in his pockets, continuing to stare at the kid with a look of concern. "I didn't do anything wrong, I swear! You need to put that file away! I'm innocent, completely innocent. Just please - please put that away. Please."

smolfluffball · Jun 29, 2019

When the handle started to turn and the door was nudged open, Julian didn't even bother to look up. He knew he'd been found even as Mickey cleared his throat. He flipped a page up in his file, not caring enough to look up at the counselor. He had hoped, just ever so slightly, that Smiley wouldn't find him. He'd been left alone for longer than he had thought, so he assumed Chipper McGee had just given up and gone off to do his other counselor duties. He could see now that that was wishful thinking. As Mickey came towards the desk and removed Julian's feet from it, forcefully, and without asking for permission, he glanced at him. He hadn't said anything yet, which was slightly confusing and a tad bit concerning, but he noticed that Mickey's eyes were fixed on the file. Huh. Interesting. Why would he be worried about him reading it? Wouldn't it show, he didn't know, some kind of curiosity or something towards the camp, or whatever?

As soon as Mickey started to speak, very rapidly, Julian cocked an eyebrow. Hmm. He looked panicked. Julian looked back at the folder, frowning. He didn't think he was in trouble, and when he noticed the brunet start to fidget, he looked back at him, still frowning. This could be a lot of fun. Mickey started spouting off nonsense about being innocent, and Julian forced himself not to smile. Don't give him an opening like this. He always enjoyed teasing his friends by scaring them, and even though this counselor wasn't his friend, this was a perfect opportunity. The most perfect opportunity, really. The counselor looked absolutely terrified. He looked like he'd just been caught red-handed, and Julian had to briefly wonder what it is this guy could have done that would get him so nervous. He was too cheerful and smiley and, for God's sake, he was a camp counselor at a children's camp. He couldn't have done anything wrong, right?

Narrowing his eyes at the folder, he scanned the page he had turned to. It was crayon doodles. There was no way this guy had done anything wrong in his life, at all. But, he was freaking out, and Julian couldn't resist. "I'm not convinced you're completely innocent, Michael," he said, looking back down at the file. He sighed and shook his head, making eye contact with Mickey. "I didn't want to believe it when the guys back at base told me, but looking at you now," he looked Mickey over, "you're acting too suspicious. So..." He closed the file and set it on the desk, then brought his hands together and placed them on top of the file. Like a cop interviewing someone. He was doing a good job at pretending to be.. whatever he was pretending to be. A cop? A detective? A spy? He had no idea, but he was having too much fun to care. "I'm sorry to say, but you're our prime suspect. Why did you do it?"

This, Julian knew, was absolutely ridiculous. He was obviously joking, but he'd changed his demeanor and expression to be much more serious, so Mickey probably wouldn't even notice. It was really too funny, though. Mickey looked terrified, with wide eyes and his hands stuffed in his pockets, and he seemed to really want his file back. Anyone would be suspicious if someone, if a camp counselor, acted like that. Maybe Smiley McGee was actually hiding something. If he was, he was doing a very bad job at playing nonchalant. Julian actually didn't even think Mickey was trying to act innocent. He just seemed like he was a nervous mess, who'd been caught, and who didn't know how to handle it.

cadence · Jun 29, 2019

Michael. The kid had called him Michael. He visibly cringed, making an 'ech' sound in disgust. Michael was such a boring name. It sounded like it belonged to a middle-aged man and he was not a middle-aged man. The kid could think of about one hundred people named Michael. He absolutely hated it and seriously hoped the blond wasn't going to make a habit of calling him that. He didn't really have time to scold him, though. He was digging through his file! He was probably going to find his report under his form from his second year. He was going to find out about the one thing that could probably get him fired from the thing he cared most about in the world! Oh, God. Why had he been such a bad nine year old? Were the ducks even worth it? Was it worth losing his job because of ducks?? He mentally cursed nine-year-old Mickey for being such a horrible kid. He should never have fed those ducks!

Mr. Eyeliner was sitting in a really frightening pose, reminding him of the villains he sometimes saw in the TV shows he liked to watch. Was Eyeliner actually a villain? Was he sent there to absolutely destroy his life? God, Mickey wouldn't doubt it for a second. He wondered who had hired him. Who was so intent on ruining his life? He dismissed the thought, continuing to stare at the blond with his file, his eyes remaining as wide as they had before. Mickey let out a nervous squeak when Eyeliner informed him that he was the main suspect. He brought his hands out of his pocket, wrapping them around himself in a vain effort to hug himself. He needed comfort, really. His deepest, darkest secret was going to be exposed on the second day of camp? Geez.

"I had to do it!" He eventually surrendered, his voice rather shrill and still containing panic and fear. Maybe if he just confessed and got this over with, Blondie would listen to him and not feel compelled to tell anyone else about his discoveries. Leander already knew, of course, but he had probably long since buried the memory. Oh, God, if he found out ... Mickey was dead meat. "It was the ducks fault, okay? They were just ... so cute! And so hungry. I had to feed them. I just had to, okay? I understand that I shouldn't have stole anything and I'm sorry! Just please... Please don't tell Leander. I can't lose this job! It's the best thing that's ever happened to me. I made some bad decisions as a kid, but I'm better now! I swear."

Mickey could feel himself on the brink of tears. He probably would have cried if it weren't for the fact that Eyeliner was a camper. He never cried in front of the campers - ever. But, man, he was so upset at the moment. The idea of losing his job was absolutely horrible. He willed himself not to cry at the thought, hoping the fact that he sounded so incredibly panicked and that he had confessed would be enough to convince Eyeliner not to report him. He had even spread out his hands, holding them up a bit so Eyeliner could see that he meant no harm at all. He just wanted to keep his job was all.

smolfluffball · Jun 29, 2019

He surrendered. His voice came out incredibly high and squeaky, and he was still freaking out. Julian stared at him as he told his story about ducks and feeding them. Holy shit. Was he joking? That was his big secret? That was what had made him so nervous? Julian had though that Chipper McGee had done something serious, like breaking Sunny Squirrels rule #3 or staying up too late, or whatever a camper could do to get in trouble at this kids camp. But stealing food? When he was a child? And he was worried about losing his job as a camp counselor over it? That was probably the least horrible thing anyone could do at a summer camp, but this guy was worried he'd get fired over it.

It was too much. Mickey, this poor counselor, looked like he was about to cry. Julian couldn't help it - he laughed. The poor guy was scared he'd be fired because he stole food to feed some ducks! Jesus, how could he not laugh at him? He quickly covered his mouth when he realized how loud he was, then dropped his eyes immediately to the folder in front of him. Oh no. No, he couldn't laugh. He had an appearance to keep up, and laughing at this guy totally didn't fit with his persona. His cheeks were warm, but he kept staring down. Okay. He could recover. He didn't know how he could, but he needed to. He'd just ... play it off.

"Uh." He removed his hand from his mouth and shook his head, not looking directly at Mickey. "Shit. Okay. That's obviously not what I was talking about." He leaned back in the chair, tapping the folder. "I was joking." He said, smirking. He looked around the cabin, then took a breath and let it out slowly. Relax. He needed to distract Chipper McGee from his stupid laugh. "So you stole food from ducks when you were a kid? How badass." He leaned forward and moved the plate of waffles closer to him, picking it up and setting it on top of Mickey's folder. He poked them with his finger, frowning. "So, you fucked up as a kid and," he gasped, "stole some food from camp! That's pretty scandalous, Michael." He shook his head and tapped the edge of the plate. "If Leander finds out you'll get fired?" He smiled, looking at Mickey. "You probably shouldn't have told me that. I could use it against you." He picked up a waffle and waved it in the air, frowning. "Also, my waffle is cold. I demand two new hot ones."

cadence · Jun 30, 2019

Was Eyeliner laughing at him? Laughing was exactly the villainous thing a villain would do. The psychopath must have found the situation quite humorous! Ruining his life over something horrible from his past. He frowned a bit, wondering what the laughter could mean. Was he actually a villain? It was possible but the blond didn't exactly looked like a villain. Under all of the black he wore, he actually looked quite cute and friendly. Did he find the horrible things he had done as a kid amusing? He dismissed that thought; nobody was that terrible. Looking at the blond, he tried not to think much of it. Besides, he was covering his mouth and looking like he was really trying to take back the fact that he had laughed. He probably felt bad. He simply continued to stare at him, his brown eyes wide with concern. It didn't matter to him whether the boy was laughing or not. Well - it did a little. He still wanted him to have fun at the camp, even if he really was some evil villain hired to ruin his life. But, for now, all that mattered was the fact that Eyeliner literally held his fate in his hands.

Apparently, Eyeliner was only joking. Well, it was good to know that he wasn't actually a villain. He was a really good actor, though. He smiled at the thought. He would be absolutely perfect for campfire ghost story reenactments! He decided to ignore the fact that Eyeliner was breaking Sunny Squirrel Rule #3 at this point, only cringing slightly each time he cursed. He supposed if Eyeliner was willing to keep his horrible secret just that - a secret - that he would be willing to let a few naughty words slide. He let out a breath that he had been unconsciously holding, keeping his eyes on the other. He gasped a bit when the boy had the audacity to call stealing from the mess hall and feeding wild ducks as a child badass. "It wasn't - you know, that. It was horrible! I'll never forgive myself and you shouldn't either." He stared at the other with his jaw open when he called him scandalous and that he could use this knowledge against him, wondering if maybe, in fact, he actually was a villain who planned to manipulate him into doing whatever he wanted. "I know it was scandalous!" He admitted, voice raised again. "You can't tell anyone! I'll do anything, you just can't!"

When he told him that his waffles were cold, demanding two hot ones, he nodded almost immediately. He really would do anything the guy wanted if it meant he would keep his secret. "Yes, sir," he told him, giving a playful salute, even though his face wasn't exactly as playful as it usually was. He immediately turned around, ready to sprint to the kitchen and have him his waffles as soon as possible. As soon as he got to the door, though, he spun on his heels, looking at the other behind squinted eyes. Wait a minute. Last time he had left to get him waffles, he had disappeared. He was pretty sure there was a high chance he would do it again. "Can you come with me?" He asked, hugging the door frame and tilting his head just enough for his bangs that weren't pinned back to fall into his face. Even if the kid was probably evil, he still wanted to be his friend. And, if he came with him, it would only ensure that his waffles stayed hot! It was a win win for both of them, really.

smolfluffball · Jun 30, 2019

When Chipper McGee said he would do anything Julian wanted, he fought the urge to smile. Oh. Oh, that was a dangerous power. Don't give that to someone you barely know, Mickey. Julian wouldn't probably do anything with that advantage, but it was something he would keep in mind for later. He personally wasn't one for blackmailing people, because it made him feel weird and slimey, so he would just... shelf it for later. Probably never. He was tempted to say he wouldn't tell anyone, but when Mickey moved towards the door, he decided against it. This guy was going to do anything he wanted, wasn't he? Because he found out his secret. Julian didn't really like how that felt. He didn't like having some kind of dark secret, according to the brunet, over the poor guys head. He got up from the desk chair and grabbed the waffle plates, stacking them on top of each other, then moved towards Mickey.

"I checked you're age, Mr. Counselor. I'm older than you, so you shouldn't treat me like a kid," he said, frowning. "And, you know, it's not like I'm going to tell your boss or whatever about your badassery as a kid. I was a pretty bad kid myself, so I don't think it's very right to, I dunno, out you, or whatever." He shrugged, balancing the plates in one hand and moving around Mickey to open the door. "Though, I'm just an unfortunate punk who got sent out to a children's summer camp, so what do I really know." He stepped out of the cabin and squinted into the sun, but then turned back and held the plates out to Mickey. "You get to carry these, Duck Boy, since I'm a camper and my job is to have fun."

cadence · Jun 30, 2019

"Oh?" Mickey hadn't expected Eyeliner to be older than he was. He was a counselor, after all. It just felt better if he were older than all of the campers. But he was a counselor two years earlier than most, he recalled. And Sunny Squirrels Camp let campers up to age eighteen stay with them, even though it wasn't very common that older kids stayed. He made some sort of a humming sound, supposing he could be a little more lenient about the rules if Eyeliner was, in fact, older than he was. He could let a few naughty words slide - if they weren't in front of the younger campers, that is. Now that he knew he wasn't going to hold his secret over him, he was back to his usual smiley self. "How old are you?" He asked, curious, wondering how much older than him he was. "Oh, and Mr. Eyeliner? What's your real name? I've been calling you Eyeliner in my head and it's not very fair that you know mine and I don't know yours."

Once they had both stepped outside, he grabbed the plates from the other's hand without protest, agreeing with what he said completely. All he wanted was for every single camper to have constant fun. If not having to carry plates of waffles was fun for him, he would do it. Mickey didn't bother rushing to the mess hall like he formally planned. In fact, he walked much slower than he usually would have. The slower he walked, the more time he'd get to get to know Eyeliner - and that was one more step to becoming his friend. "You're going to have fun," he said after a moment of silence, responding to what he said earlier about being signed up for a children's camp. Mickey was pretty sure he would have fun, anyway. They did a lot of fun things; he just had to take the time to enjoy it. "The first couple of days are kinda slow, but we have lotsa things planned. Tomorrow, I'm pretty sure we're playing capture the flag," he told him, the excitement clearly evident in his tone. It was usual for team-building games like capture the flag to take place during the first week. It was fun. Sunny Squirrels took their games very seriously.

smolfluffball · Jul 1, 2019

The counselor seemed to be a better mood after Julian said he wouldn't be a jerk about his secret, which was good. Honestly, Julian preferred Chipper McGee over Scared Oh No. Even though Mickey was all smiles and all about the camp, and Julian didn't want to be at the camp, it would be easier to deal with a happy guy than a nervous guy. Plus, it wasn't like Julian really wanted Mickey to be wary of him or scared he'd spill the beans about him stealing food to feed the ducks. When Mickey called him Mr. Eyeliner, he almost laughed. Almost. He managed to hide it by looking away and coughing, but he shook his head and looked back at Mickey. "How did you know my real name?" he asked, wide-eyed. "Damn. I thought the papers put me down as Julian Foster. My parents have failed me again." He snapped his fingers and sighed, shaking his head again.

After Mickey took the plates from him and the two started to walk towards the mess hall, Julian tried to think of what to say. He wasn't doing a good job at being an edgy, angsty teenager going through some teenage rebellion. He had to try harder. Fight the system. Spray paint the walls. Throw food at ducks, instead of feeding them. Something. He needed to do something, or else he might actually enjoy talking to Mickey, and that didn't seem like a very good idea. The dude was a cute dork, and it was just a summer camp thing. Julian didn't really want to have a summer time boyfriend or anything like that, because he was more a long-term type of person. Well, maybe there was a possibility, but... He'd have to wait and see. He didn't even know if Chipper McGee was into guys. Speaking of summer camp things, Mickey said something about capture the flag, and Julian felt a smile tug at his lips. He forced it down and instead frowned.

"You're pretty sure that we're playing capture the flag tomorrow?" Julian asked, stuffing his hands in his jackets pockets. "That sounds real convincing, Duck Boy. Who even likes to play capture the flag? You know, the one time I played it, the stupid competition ended in all out war. A girl broke her arm. Another one had to go to the hospital." He grimaced. "It wasn't a fun time. Think I could sit it out? Ain't really in the mood to, ya know, get attacked by a bunch of kids or anything." He wasn't telling the truth, but he mostly wanted to see what Mickey's reaction would be. The few times he'd played the game had been quite fun, and the team he was on usually won. He couldn't let that be known, though.

cadence · Jul 1, 2019

"Wha-? There's no way your name is actually Eyeliner," he said, looking at the other in disbelief. But the kid's eyes were wide and he looked relatively serious and Mickey couldn't help but wonder if just maybe it actually was. It wasn't until the kid - Julian, he now knew - mentioned his parents putting his 'wrong' name on the file that he understand he was joking. He laughed, again, once he knew it was a joke. "Julian is a nice name," he told him, meaning it. It may or may not have reminded him of his favorite character from the Madagascar movie, though. "Julian, can I ask you a very serious question?" Without waiting for a reply, he asked anyway, his voice completely serious. "Do you like to move it, move it? Because I, personally, like to move it, move it." He laughed at his own joke, nudging the other in the arm as if to ask 'get it?'

Mickey stopped in his tracks when Julian asked the dreaded question - who even likes capture the flag? He gasped, staring at the other as if he had just offended his ancestors. "Everyone likes capture the flag, Julian." He said it in such a tone that suggested he actually believed it - and honestly, he kind of did. Capture the flag was always a lot of fun at Sunny Squirrels. He placed his hand that wasn't carrying the waffles on the other's shoulder, looking him dead in the eye. "You absolutely cannot skip out. It is war, Julian. War." If Mickey's team lost... he would be crushed. He would need all the hands he could get in order to ensure winning - and that just meant that Julian had no choice but to join him, really. He wasn't going to miss out on having one of the tallest, oldest kids at camp. He would be vital. He removed his hand when he was sure Julian understood how serious about the game he was, his feigned serious expression fading into his usual grin.

"It will be fun," he assured. "Nobody is going to to break their arm or end up in the hospital." Probably, anyway. "Er, knock on wood."

smolfluffball · Jul 3, 2019

Oh God. The counselor laughed. He laughed before, but this time he had laughed at something Julian said. He laughed at one of his stupid jokes. Julian bit the inside of his cheek to stop himself from breaking character. He was starting to hate himself for taking on this annoying persona. If he didn't have to be constantly frowning and grumpy, he actually thought that he might get along with Mickey. Though, the dude was gullible and too energetic and cheerful, which would bother Julian in the long run. Maybe if he got to know the counselor better he'd be able to figure out if he was always like that or if he was just like that in front of the campers. Maybe he'd even start his own small investigation to figure out Chipper McGee. He'd have to be subtle and careful to not watch him too much, because then Mickey might notice and ask him what was up, and that seemed like a very bad idea. Honestly, the entire plan seemed like a bad idea, but it was summer and Julian didn't care that much. He'd be able to deal with whatever the stupid camp threw at him, even if it was a cute counselor and some annoying middle school kids.

When Mickey complimented his name, he felt his cheeks warm. Ugh. He always liked getting compliments, but he didn't like getting compliments from guys he thought were attractive. He didn't want to misinterpret what they said or get ahead of himself. He looked back at Mickey when he started talking again, but then physically recoiled when the counselor nudged his arm. It wasn't because of the invasion of privacy, although that might have kind of freaked Julian out, because he couldn't deal with cute guys who liked to touch him. It was because he referenced it. The cursed movie. The movie his family teased him about. The stupid joke that didn't die in his house. He wanted to move it move it out of the entire conversation, out of the entire camp. He wanted to take the joke and catch it on fire and watch it burn. He couldn't believe this counselor, this cute guy with curly hair and an annoying smile, was referencing the worst thing in his entire life.

He was trying to figure out exactly how to respond to the stupid joke, but then Mickey stopped walking. Julian looked at him out of the corner of his eye, and then he said it. Everyone likes capture the flag. Of course he said that, and of course he believed it. Because he was Chipper McGee, and because people couldn't dislike any summer camp activity, according to him. Julian shrugged off his hand and took a step away from the counselor, hoping that he'd get the message to not touch him casually like that. He didn't really like it; it made him feel shy and nervous. "Three things, Duck Boy." He held up three fingers. "First, I fucking hate that move it move it joke. It's the literal bane of my existence. You have no idea how many times my siblings have teased me for it." He dropped his fingers, sighing. "Don't you dare tell the kids about it, or I will break Sunny Squirrels rule #5. On you. And, also, seriously. I don't want to get involved in a war. Capture the flag is dumb, stupid and childish," he took a step away from Mickey, "and nothing you can say or do will change my opinion. I'm not going to participate, and you can't make me." He looked Mickey over, frowning. "Even though you're taller than I am, I'm still older by two months, and you should listen to your elders or something. So that means you should let me skip out."

"Also, third thing." Julian stuffed his hands back in his jacket pockets and bunched his shoulders up. "Don't invade my personal space. I have a thing about being touched by cute- Uh, strangers. Cute strangers. Fuck." His cheeks were burning. "And brunets with curly hair and problematic smiles and acorn pins ." He tried to recover from his slip of the tongue, and looked away from Mickey. Jesus Christ, he wasn't acting edgy at all. He was acting like some stupid nerd pretending to be emo. He needed to do better and not be distracted by this guy. "So, like, fuck off, or something. After we get waffles. I'm hungry."

cadence · Jul 4, 2019

Eyeliner didn't seem to like being touched. He recoiled, jerking his arm away when he had nudged him. He uttered a quick 'sorry,' not intended to upset him in anyway. He even frowned a bit when he shrugged his hand off of his shoulder. He had to remind himself that not everyone was as immediately touchy-feely at first. As disappointing as it was. Mickey had always been touchy-feely - it didn't matter whether he knew the person or not. The next moment, though, he was back to his normal self, smiling wildly at Julian at the mention of siblings. "You have siblings? Cool. What are their names? How old are they? How come they didn't come to camp?" Mickey was absolutely jealous of anyone who had siblings. Growing up, he had always wanted some, but his parents insisted that he was enough of a handful. Looking back, they were probably right. Mickey supposed that sometimes he could be a little crazy. His smile fell again just slightly when Julian threatened to break Sunny Rule #5 on him, raking a nervous hand through his very, very messy hair. "Sheesh, okay." That was a bummer. Mickey thought his Madagascar joke was hilarious.

Mickey wasn't positive how to react to the second thing, so he just let his mouth hang open a bit. He had insulted one of the greatest games ever invented. And he tried to pull the 'respect your elders' card. Mickey was a sucker for it, really. He was a sucker for respecting everyone in general. But when Julian put it that way ... did he have any other choice? "Okay," he eventually said again, trying his best not to sound too disappointed. Blondie was going to be a tough nut to crack. If anyone could crack him, though, Mickey knew he could. He tended to crack just about everyone. He either annoyed the snot out of people until they gave into his love, or they avoided him like the plague. The latter was obviously not a preference. He really quite hoped the cute-yet-edgy camper would not run away from him.

The brunet's face lit up to that of a very, very joyous expression when Julian said he was cute. He sounded like he was trying to play it off; that he was embarrassed for the slip in the first place. But Mickey heard it anyway and what's said is said. "You think I'm cute?" He asked almost instantly after Julian finished speaking, turning towards the other so he could give a dramatic swoon and a flutter of his eyelashes. He ignored everything he said about curly hair and acorn pins, focusing solely on the fact that Mr. Edgy Pants apparently thought he was cute. He continued to grin, flaunting the fact. "Well, how am I supposed to leave you alone after I know that?" He sped up a bit, turning around for a brief moment so he could look at Julian and wink, blowing him a playful kiss. "Let's go get those waffles." Nearly as soon as he had turned around, they were at the entrance of the mess hall. He bowed a bit, opening it for the blond. "My liege," he said dramatically, gesturing inside with his arm.

smolfluffball · Jul 5, 2019

Holy shit. The counselor ran his hand through his hair, and all Julian could do was stare at him. God, that motion was so distracting. Guys with hair that could be pulled back into a ponytail were too attractive, and Mickey could absolutely pull his hair back if he wanted to. Julian averted his eyes quickly, reaching up and pulling his beanie down. Bad. Bad, bad, bad. It wasn't fair that Chipper McGee was totally cute. Julian really kind of hated it, because he was starting to think he was majorly screwed. He didn't want to be majorly screwed and develop a stupid crush on this stupid smiley idiot. Seriously, he'd only been here for two days but, already, he found some cute guy. He was pathetic. What would his friends say, or his siblings? They'd tease him. They'd say he was too soft and a hopeless romantic, even though he wasn't actually either of those things. Really, it wasn't his fault that he liked people.

But, no, he didn't like this counselor. He wouldn't get a crush on him. He'd fight off his feelings with everything he had, because liking the guy seemed like a really bad idea.

He was thankful for the questions Mr. Smiley asked about his siblings, although he was a tad bit annoyed he'd mentioned them. Julian was to blame, of course, but he still had wanted to remain somewhat mysterious to the camp. Having siblings made him about fifty percent less mysterious, according to him. "Arthur is seventeen, and Victoria, we call her Vic, is the same age as me. We're twins. She's annoying. Arthur is annoying, too." He frowned, wondering if he should answer Mickey's last question or not. He guessed it didn't matter. "They didn't come to camp because Art is at a training camp, he plays soccer and junk, and Vic got a part time job at an ice cream shop. Thank God they didn't come." He rolled his eyes, not looking at Mickey. "I bet they'd hate this camp as much as I do." And they'd totally ruin my image, he added to himself.

When Mickey beamed at Julian saying he was cute, he blushed and bit his lip. God, no, see. That wasn't fair. How was that fair? Nothing about the smiling idiot was fair. Mickey even swooned, and Julian had to bite back a laugh. Man, this guy was really testing his ability as an actor. He almost broke character so many times today, and he was way better than that. He inhaled through his nose and let it out when Mickey blew him a wink, shaking his head. He needed to get his composure again. Maybe he could convince Mickey to go get the waffles by himself. He probably could. He walked through the door, ignoring Mickey's added flare. He appreciated it, but he had to relax.

The mess hall was devoid of any campers, and Julian went to sit on one of the tabletops. He tapped his fingers on it, watching Mickey. "Think you could get me some waffles, again?" he asked, frowning. "Since mine were cold and I'm freaking embarrassed and need some time to, like, not die. Ya know how it is." He shrugged, adjusting his hood, not looking at Mickey. "I won't run away anywhere, because you'll just hunt me down again. I just want like a minute of space or I will snap and possibly catch a tree on fire."

cadence · Jul 5, 2019

Mickey's mouth made the shape of an "o" when Julian told him he had a twin sister, looking at the other with wide, amused eyes. "You have a twin? That's so cool, dude. Who's older? Is it true that twins are psychic? Like, can you feel each other's pain? That would be wicked cool. I've always wondered. I actually had a friend in elementary school - he wasn't my twin, obviously - but he broke his arm during recess and I cried more than he did. I could feel his pain and we weren't even related. Neat, huh?" He decided to ignore the blond's comments about how he was glad they didn't come and that they'd probably hate it. He didn't like to think about anyone hating the camp. It really was the most fun place in the entire universe and he was determine to have Julian enjoy it at least a little bit. Three camp-hating kids would be too much of a handful for the young counselor. "Have you ever broken a bone?" He then asked, having opened up an entirely new topic of conversation for the two of them.

He was a tad bit bummed out to see all of the other campers had left the mess hall since he had last been in there. He supposed they had moved on to their cabins. Well, it also worked out, he thought. He could really get to know Eyeliner even more if there was nobody in the mess hall to interrupt the two of them. What a perfect opportunity! He beamed at the thought, following the black clad kid to the table he decided to sit at. Instead of taking a seat on the table as Julian did, he simply stood there. It wasn't very nice to get your butt germs all over the tables on which people ate, but he didn't say anything about it. Eh, everyone had already eaten anyway. The custodian would have to come by and wipe everything anyway. He decided to let it slide, leaning against one of the tables opposite him.

When Julian yet again asked him to get waffles by himself, Mickey was a little suspicious. He squinted his eyes just slightly, listening as Julian gave quite a few reasons why he should. Honestly, Mickey wouldn't have hesitated to grab him waffles before, but after he had heartlessly abandoned him the first time, he couldn't help but be a little wary. The kid made a compelling case, though. Mickey really valued the trees and didn't want Julian to set fire to them at all. And apparently he was embarrassed and wanted to die. He frowned, hoping some waffles would cheer him up. "You don't even have to ask!" He assured, his voice chipper. He was eager to please Eyeliner, after all. He'd do literally anything he wanted in order to make his stay at the camp a fun one. He pushed himself off of the table, making his way through the line again. This time, thankfully, there wasn't a line of kids to wait behind.

He grabbed one of the trays, a dull shade of blue, and set it down. He made sure to glance through the small window of the enclosed room to make sure Julian wasn't going to leave again before pushing the tray through the line. The food ladies were still there; they had begun to pack things up, tossing the extra waffles into the trashcan. Mickey was glad he had made it in time. "Mrs. Doris! Mrs. Beth!" He called, his tone polite and loud. Each of the women had their backs to him, throwing stuff away. Mickey smiled politely when Mrs. Doris turned around. She was a short, stout lady who always loved talking with Mickey when he went through the line. He had been in a rush that morning, so he hadn't had the chance to say hello. Which was quite a bummer, by the way, because Mickey really liked talking to Mrs. Doris as well. She always told the funniest stories about her cats. "Good evening, Mrs. Doris! You're looking as lovely as ever! I really love how you styled your hair net. You look like a pirate!" He took the time to check on Julian again, surprised that he was still there.

Mrs. Doris chuckled, shaking her head at the boy. He was always complimenting her and talking to her and she really quite liked it, even if he did talk her ear off anytime she responded to him. She waved her hand, dismissing his compliments but still looking relatively flustered. "And your acorns are lovely, dear." Giggling, she tilted her head a bit. "Why aren't you with the others? What can I do for ya?"

"Oh, yes!" Mickey had nearly forgotten what he had come for. "If it isn't too late, I need two plates of two waffles, please. I'm trying to get this kid to enjoy camp and he wants waffles," he explained. "Oh, and extra hot, if you can! He likes them hot. The last ones I brought were too cold, I think. They have to be perfect. I really, really, really want him to like it here." He grinned stupidly when he finished his rambling, looking at Mrs. Doris who looked somewhat shocked. She didn't argue, though. It didn't take a genius to tell Mickey was very passionate about his job and genuinely wanted everyone to have fun. She made him two stacks of steaming waffles, setting them on his tray, wishing him luck and a good day. "You too, Mrs. Doris! I'd love to stay and chat, but I've got to get going. Goodbye, Mrs. Doris! And you too, Mrs. Beth!" Holding the tray in one hand, he waved at each of them before stepping out into the main seating area, grabbing butter and a bottle of syrup on his way back to Julian's table. He grinned when he set the tray down, proudly putting his hands on his hips. "Two hot waffles just for you."

smolfluffball · Jul 14, 2019

God, the counselor could talk and talk and talk. He had asked Julian about his sister, and then proceeded to change the conversation to something else entirely in the span of about ten seconds. Julian tried to think of what to answer, but then the cute brunet agreed to go get him waffles and left. Okay. Cool. So he had managed to convince him to leave him alone, so he could try to process what was happening. So he could manage to relax and get his composure again, because he really needed to regain it. He watched Mickey move towards the entrance to the lunch line and let out a sigh, reaching up and taking his beanie off, then ruffling his hair. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath, then held it in for a couple of seconds, then slowly released. He shook out his hand and squeezed his hat, then put it back on his head and fixed his bangs, rolling his shoulders when his hair was back in place.

He put his hands against the surface of the table and leaned back, looking through the opening in the lunch line to see how much longer Micky would be. He saw that he was talking to the lunch ladies and sighed again, then drummed his fingers against the table. He couldn't believe that Mickey had heard him say he was cute, but he needed to put that thought out of his brain, because it was not helping him keep up his act. He also hadn't really disliked that the counselor had touched him so much earlier, although he had been rather harsh about that and had threatened to fight Mickey if he tried again. That was a good thing. That was keeping up the edgy, angsty persona he needed to maintain. What else did he have to do? Be pessimistic and unpleasant and rude, right? Ugh. Julian was not like that at all, and the thought of him being rude to the cheerful counselor made him frown.

When he saw Mickey move out of the corner of his eye, he cleared his throat before he came over and let out another breath. He scowled, then looked towards the counselor when he came back with two steaming waffles, butter and syrup. Man, the guy was being so nice and helpful. Julian really didn't want to be mean, but he couldn't break character again. "You know, I actually changed my mind." He looked at the tray, frowning. "Pancakes would have been better." He sighed, then reached behind him and grabbed a plate of waffles. He set it on his knees and grabbed some butter, smearing it on his waffle. "But I guess I'll eat these, since this stupid camp doesn't have any pancakes. Actually," he grabbed the syrup and pointed it at Mickey, "this camp doesn't have pretty much anything. Like, what even is there to do around here beside die in the sun?" He rolled his eyes, opening the syrup and squeezing it onto his waffles. "Probably nothing very fun. All kinds of stupid, outdoorsy junk, right? Like bonfires or swimming or, what? Ghost stories?" He started to cut his waffle with his fork, still frowning.

"Oh, and you talk a lot. Like, too much. You should probably learn to shut up." He looked back at Mickey, taking a bite of his waffle. It was nice and crunchy, how he liked them, but he just narrowed his eyes at Mickey. "And to answer your idiotic questions about Vic..." He took another bite, chewing slowly. "We're probably psychic. I think she's been getting my distress signal this entire time, so maybe she'll come to take me away from this camp tomorrow. God, that'd be really fucking great."

cadence · Jul 17, 2019

Julian wasn't content with the waffles after all. And Mickey had made sure they were made hot and steaming specifically for him. He frowned slightly, moving his hands to grab the tray and bring them back into the kitchen. "Oh, I can probably see if Mrs. Doris will make you some pancakes!" He offered, really desperate to have the kid enjoy camp. If it took pancakes, Mickey would make it happen. The next moment, though, Julian said waffles would do. Mickey audibly sighed, relaxing a bit. This kid was a handful, that was for sure. It was almost like he was pretending to be this edgy fun-hating kid on purpose. He seemed so intent on making sure he didn't have fun. Mickey really couldn't understand why someone would do that. Sunny Squirrels Camp was literally the best place in the whole wide world - no, the universe - and he couldn't understand how someone could have anything but fun. Mickey was kind of hurt, to be honest. Julian not liking camp was ... Honestly personally offensive.

So, he did what he usually did. He turned his frown into a smile, not wanting to confront any negative emotions. He was supposed to be happy, happy, happy, after all. Even when he was confronted with a person who made him want to be a tad less happy. "Excuse you, Mr. Grumpy Gills!" He said, dramatically putting his fists on his hips and leaning towards the guy. "There are tons of things to do at Sunny Squirrels. Yes, "outdoorsy" things," he said, making air quotes with his fingers. "But it's not junk! We have rafting, and horseback riding, and swimming, and obstacle courses, and crafts, and sports, and bonfires, and s'mores, and hikes, and ... We have a lot do things, okay?" He let out some sort of a defeated sigh. He guessed Julian wasn't the outdoorsy type. The camp got kids like that every now and then. All they wanted to do was stay inside the cabins ... It was so sad. "It's a lot more fun if you actually try and enjoy it," he whispered, this time his tone was lower and less upbeat than it had been before. He finally took a seat across from the other, stabbing his waffle with his fork. He wasn't all that hungry anymore, but Mrs. Doris had worked so hard to make them, he took a bite anyway.

Trying to remain happy and positive was proving to be a difficult task. He stopped chewing his waffle when Julian told him he should learn to shut up, face turning the faintest shades of red when he did. Did he talk too much? Mickey really didn't think he did. He supposed the kid might have been right though. "Sorry," he apologized immediately, making a mental note to talk less when having conversations with the guy in the future. Not that his mental notes ever did him any good - he just had the worst memory. He slumped down, a bit disappointed. This wasn't going well at all. Usually, people got more excited after Mickey talked to them. His happiness tended to rub off on people... But not this kid and it was really beginning to crush his spirits.

He didn't comment on Julian's remark about his questions being idiotic. Heck, he tried not to comment on what he said at all. Apparently he talked too much and Mickey was desperate to do anything the kid wanted. He couldn't help but say something when he said it would be great if his sister came and swept him away the following day. That just wasn't true at all! It wouldn't be great. Why would leaving the happiest place in the universe be a great thing? It just didn't make sense! "You'll have fun," he swore, really hoping it was true. "Play capture the flag with us tomorrow, I'll prove it."

smolfluffball · Jul 18, 2019

The counselor had called him Mr. Grumpy Gills, then had leaned far closer than Julian would have liked him to. It wasn't really that big a problem, really, but when Mickey started listing off what stuff there was to do at camp, Julian actually listened. Horseback riding, really? And obstacle courses? Those didn't actually sound that boring or terrible. Heck, even crafts sounded like they could be fun, depending on what they made. They probably wouldn't make anything very impressive, because the camp was for children, but Julian was curious about what they might make. He almost responded to what Mickey said, but then realized he was saddened by his personality. Uh. He hadn't expected that. The guy seemed stubborn and stupidly happy, but Julian felt his heart thud against his chest when he sat across from him and stabbed his waffle violently.

He bit his lip and watched Mickey, cutting his own waffle up quietly. He needed to do something to fix this, right? Because Mickey seemed really sad now, and he hadn't really meant what he said about him shutting up. He even apologized for it, which surprised Julian. Was he really that easy to defeat? He took a bite of his waffle and chewed it, looking across the cafeteria. Maybe he had stepped on a landmine or something by telling him to shut up. He hoped he didn't. He didn't want the counselor to be all mopey and quiet now, honestly. He enjoyed his stupid jokes and his smile and his enthusiasm for the camp. Julian knew he could enjoy the camp too, if he wanted to, if he opened his heart to it. If he tried, like Mickey had said. He took another bite of his waffle and watched Mickey out of the corner of his eye, feeling cautious.

"Uh," he cleared his throat, "you don't have to take that so seriously." He frowned and looked away, tapping his fork against his plate. "Sorry for being a dick," he mumbled, glancing at Mickey. "It's just, ya know, the sun and me? We don't get along. And I'm sixteen and don't really want to be surrounded by a lot of children. Especially middle schoolers, because they give me flashbacks to when I was a cringey twelve year old." He took another bite of his waffle, not looking directly at Mickey. He didn't really want to say anything more, honestly. Mickey had mentioned the capture the flag game and he seemed to be really into it, and since Julian was apologizing, he let out a sigh and decided to comment on it too. "And, I guess I could try to enjoy that game tomorrow. But you have to prove it to me, that this camp can be fun, because I'm still skeptical." He tried for a smile, but then dropped it and ate his waffles silently.

It was still just the second day of the summer camp, but he'd already upset one of the counselors. Would they report back to his parents? Did they even do that? He knew his parents wouldn't care, because they had made an agreement before he left home, but it would still be embarrassing. He knew his siblings would laugh at him if they found out he'd gotten in trouble at a dumb summer camp for kids - at Sunny Squirrels Summer Camp. Man, he really didn't like how alliterative the name of the camp was. If it was on a swamp, it could be Sunny Squirrels Summer Swamp, which would just be terrible. He scraped some more syrup on his waffle pieces and finished the last two bites quickly, then spotted a trashcan near one of the doors. He turned his attention back to Mickey and set his plate down on the table, then leaned forward and rested his elbows on his knees, cradling his head in his hands. "Can I go, or are the other campers still on their orientation?"

cadence · Jul 20, 2019

"Oh, uh, I didn't think you were being a ..." Honestly, Mickey couldn't think of a word to substitute 'dick.' All of the alternative words were bad as well. Not as bad, but Mickey didn't want to say 'penis' or anything related. He wasn't going to break any Sunny Squirrules, even if he was only trying to comfort someone who apparently thought they were the treacherous 'd-word.' "You know, that." As if he hadn't been offended or upset at all, he was once again back to his usual happy self. Sure, Julian hadn't been the nicest person so far. He used words Mickey didn't like and insulted the camp so many times and even kind of insulted him, but he did apologize and that was all that mattered to Mickey. He wasn't the type of person to hold grudges and treat people differently based on their attitude anyway. "You're forgiven!" he assured, hoping the fact that the guy was apologizing meant he might be a little more open to actually trying to have fun. Mickey was aware of the fact that Sunny Squirrels was, in fact, intended for younger children, but there was still fun to be had! He, for example, had fun every single day at camp. And he was sixteen! Just like him!

The messy-haired counselor began to eat his waffles with more enthusiasm after that. Julian was going to try and have fun at the game tomorrow. Mickey had to prove the place could be fun, but the kid really wasn't worried about that. "The children are great," Mickey informed, not knowing why the blond wouldn't want to spend time surrounded by them. He loved each and every one of them and most of them loved him just as much. He was the fun, silly counselor, after all. That was something he was proud of. "But I'm sixteen!" He reminded, grin wide and lopsided. "You can always hang out with me if you don't want to hang out with the younger kids." Mickey saw absolutely no flaw in this plan. "Don't worry, though. You're gonna have fun." Mickey then tried to adopt a serious tone, beaming at Julian the entire time he spoke. "We here at Sunny Squirrels take capture the flag very seriously. I'll make sure you're on my team so you'll have someone your age. Seriously, though, I promise you'll have so much fun. It'll knock your socks off." He then hummed, tapping the top his fork against his chin a few times. "Not just at capture the flag, either. The whole camp is super fun. You'll never forget it."

Mickey had to dig around in his many pockets before he was able to find his phone so he could see the time. Unfortunately, it was about time orientation was ending. As much as he would have liked Julian to stay around and talk, he apparently wanted to go and Mickey couldn't find any real reason to keep him around. "You can go," he allowed, shoving his phone back into one of his pockets. Not the same pocket he found it in, either. The kid never put things back in the same place, therefore making any time he actually needed something a fun game of Where Did I Put It This Time? He stood up once he had finished his last bite of waffle, collecting both of their trays and stacking them on top of each other. "I'll take these," he said, giving Julian a small wave of his hand. "Go, have fun. I'll see you around!" He gave Eyeliner a thumbs up before spinning on his heels, bringing both of the trays to the kitchen so neither Mrs. Doris or Mrs. Beth would have to do extra work and grab them.

For the rest of the evening, Mickey spent his time playing ball with some of the kids in the main field. It would be the last day where there was no specific schedule in order so, for the most part, kids could do whatever they wanted for the remainder of the day as long as they were able to be seen by the counselors. Until it was time for the campers to go to bed, Mickey was outside playing whatever game the kids decided. They changed their mind often, after all, and Mickey had probably participated in ten different games before it was time to turn in. Even though he was having a lot of fun, he couldn't help but look forward to tomorrow. Mickey was determined to make sure Julian had fun. Eventually, it was time for everyone to retreat to their cabins. Mickey, much to his dismay, had to sleep in the counselor's cabin. Because he was a junior counselor, he wasn't allowed to supervise the campers just yet. Honestly? It sucked. When he was a camper, he really enjoyed staying up past the curfew and talking with the others. But apparently a sixteen year old couldn't legally supervise sleeping children. He tried not to be too upset. In just a few years, he could do everything the more experienced counselors could. He looked forward to that day. Mickey St. Germaine was determined to be the best counselor Sunny Squirrels Camp ever saw. It might take a couple years, but there was no stopping him.

🐿

🐿

Breakfast the following day was an absolute mess. A mess that Mickey had absolutely not been involved in. At all. Children screamed and yelled and loudly chattered among themselves about the very intense capture the flag competition that was taking place directly after everyone ate. Ever since he and the other counselors had woken up the campers that morning and teams had been assigned, Mickey had been doing everything he could to get his group of campers excited. And, he must say, he had succeeded. He had dubbed their team the Sunny Squarriors, and by the time he had gone around asking his group to show their excitement, every single kid in his group had been changing "Sunny Squarriors" again and again and slamming their silverware against the tables. Everyone except Julian, of course. A few times while he had been excitedly chanting, pumping his fist into the air a couple of times, Mickey had met the other's eyes and urged him to join in. He hadn't, but Mickey decided to let it slide, focusing his attention on maintaining their status as the loudest table in the mess hall.

Finally, finally, the little alarm on the watch Mickey decided to wear that day went off, signalling the time for breakfast to come to an end and the games to commence. "It's time for WAR!" He shouted in the loudest, deepest voice he could manage, pumping his fist as far into air as he could. After he shouted this, the screams of his team only got louder. Children of all ages eagerly shuffled out of their seats and, as quickly as they could manage, turned in all of their trays. Just as Mickey told them to do, they never once stopped changing "Sunny Squarriors" until after they had gathered outside, being led to a quieter area near one of the volleyball nets by Mickey himself. In the moment, he hadn't even noticed a certain blond sneak away from the group. His only focus was getting his team of twenty-seven to a quieter area so they could discuss the game plan. Oh, and so he could put war paint on everyone. Was it really a game of capture the flag if they didn't seriously treat it like war? No.

"Alright, Squarriors!" He called once they had reached the net, hand still lifted in the air so none of the younger children would get lost on the walk over. "Line up if you want face-paint!" He shouted, cupping his hands around his mouth. As expected, every kid lined up in a single file line. Any kid who did not want to put on face paint was not a kid Mickey could trust. Probably, anyway. It just wasn't right. Once everyone had lined up, he stuffed his hand into the orange fanny pack he wore to find the small container of paint he had brought from home - specifically for capture the flag purposes. Before he could paint everyone's faces though, he had to do his counselor duties and get a head count. He walked beside the campers as he counted them off. Twenty-four... Twenty-five... Twenty-six... By this time, he had reached the very last kid in line. "Well, that's odd," he said aloud, taking off his Sunny Squirrels baseball cap to run a confused hand through his hair. He scanned the line to see if he could tell who was missing. Mickey was pretty good with faces, after all. So, it didn't really take long to figure out Julian had been the missing person. Figures. He let out a deep sigh, walking back to the front of the line to hand one of the older kids, a twelve year old, his can of face paint. "Start painting people's faces," he told him, gingerly placing the can in the kid's hands. "This can is my lifeline, okay? Please do not destroy it. My heart? It will be broken. I am counting on you." The kid seemed happy enough to be in charge of something and he nodded enthusiastically. He then began to walk back towards the mess hall, hoping he could find Julian along the way. Maybe he got lost. Mickey hoped that was the case and not that he was purposefully avoiding it. "Don't do anything bad," he told all the kids, perking a brow to try and look menacing even though his grin suggested he was anything but. "I'm watching you." He put two fingers against his eyes before stabbing them towards the kids, turning around when he was sure they all got the message.

He put his hat back on once he had turned around, adjusting it atop his head. Once again, Julian was hiding. No, he told himself, reminding himself to look on the hopeful side of things. He was lost! And he needed Mickey to come and find him. He most definitely was not purposely hiding. Not at all! Grinning at his newfound confidence in his probably false belief, he set on his way to find the other. Mickey knew the camp like the back of his hand. All he needed to do was look in any possible place someone could hide - no, get lost in - along the way from the mess hall to the volleyball nets. That wasn't a difficult task at all. There was a storage cabin, a couple of trees... Well, that was it, really. Unless, of course, Julian had managed to find himself in the actual woods. Mickey greatly hoped that wasn't the case. There were bears and lakes and all kinds of trouble Julian could find himself in if he wasn't careful.

He looked behind the few places he could think of in order. First, a tree. Julian hadn't been there. Then, the storage cabin. Julian hadn't been there either. Mickey was beginning to think maybe he had just completely run off by the time he reached the last two trees. Maybe the whole thing he said the night before about Vic coming to get him was actually true. At this point, his confident grin had melted into something a little more unsure and forced. Nonetheless, he remained determined to find the black-clad camper. He put his hands on the trunk of the second tree, slowly peeking around the side so that, if Julian was hiding behind it, he could hopefully take him by surprise. To his own surprise, the blond had been behind the tree, and Mickey broke into yet another grin. "Boo!" He exclaimed, circling the tree so he was standing in front of Julian again. Just as he had during orientation only the day before. Mickey had a small feeling of deja vu, but he shook it off. "Did ya get lost?" He questioned, tilting his head just slightly. "We're about to go over the game plan! Come on," he urged, nodding towards the remaining campers with his head. "I don't want you to miss out on all the fun." He spun on his heels, expecting Julian to be following behind him. When he hadn't, he turned around, urging him to follow with a wave of his hand. "Let's go," he said, his voice sing-songy. "We're wasting time!"

smolfluffball · Jul 29, 2019

God, he really hated this morning.

Normally Julian was a morning person. He loved to get up in the morning and listen to the birds chirp, and he liked going out early to get his tasks done so he could relax the rest of the day. He loved breakfast foods and loved going to his local cafe to sit and watch people; it was always a nice start to his day. However, this morning at Sunny Squirrels Summer Camp was far from a nice start to his day. It was bad enough that he'd been woken up by children screaming in his cabin, but now there were children also screaming in the cafeteria. Loudly. He literally couldn't handle it. It was obvious they were the loudest table, as was clear from the looks the other counselors were tossing at Mickey, but the brunet didn't even seem to notice them. He was too busy screaming Sunny Squarriors to pay attention to how obnoxious he and the other kids were being, and it was really starting to drive Julian insane.

After the counselor had told all of the kids it was time for war (which Julian couldn't help but roll his eyes at), the edgy teenager decided to escape the madness. He had said he would try to enjoy the game today, but if the kids were going to be screaming non-stop, he didn't think enjoying it would be possible. Kids screaming drove Julian insane, unless it was because they were genuinely scared or having a lot of fun with something. These kids, though, were just screaming to be loud, and he hated that kind of screaming the most. He had managed to get away from the cafeteria before the children had left and had, once again, found a tree to hide behind. He hoped Mickey would be too busy with the children to worry about him. But, his hope was soon dashed, as he heard Mickey speaking nearby. He hit the back of his head against the tree he was hiding behind, mentally cursing the entire world.

Mickey was talking about face paint, and Julian really hoped he'd be able to get further away soon. He didn't like that he could hear Mickey and the other kids so clearly. That meant they were too close, and if the counselor realized he was missing, he would be found quickly. He didn't want to be found. He wanted to try to get somewhere further away, somewhere where the annoying counselor wouldn't find him. Julian didn't want to spend any time alone with the counselor if he could help it, really. It was stupid and dangerous, but because the counselor was cute and determined and cheerful, the thespian knew he'd be doomed if he got to know Mickey anymore than he already did. This was just a dumb summer camp adventure, and he didn't want his dumb feelings to act up and throw everything out the window. Plus, he didn't even know if Mickey liked guys, or if he was even single, or anything. It would just be a bad idea.

When he heard Mickey tell the kids not to do anything bad and that he'd be watching them, Julian knew he was fucked. Of course the counselor noticed he was missing. Of course he would, because he was so determined to have Julian enjoy the game today. God, why had he even said he would try to have fun today? What in his brain had convinced him that would be a good idea? His stupid fake persona was already starting to rub away, and he couldn't have that, ever. He moved further around the tree, hoping to stay out of sight if Mickey walked by it. He was silent for a couple of moments, listening for any sign the counselor was approaching him, and then he heard a door creak open. Was that the storage cabin? The kids were close to it, so looking in there made sense. Thankfully, Julian had been smarter than to hide in there, after what had happened yesterday. He wasn't going to hide in a cabin again, not after he had been found so easily just the other day. He was quiet for a bit longer and crept around the tree some more, but then Mickey's head peered around the tree and he frowned. The counselor said boo, probably to try and surprise Julian, but the blond just stared at the curly haired menace.

He listened silently, with a frown on his face, as Mickey asked if he had gotten lost and almost made a snarky comment. Of course he hadn't gotten lost. He never got lost in his entire life. He was purposefully hiding. You would think that the counselor would have figured that out, after the two times Julian had gone to hide yesterday, but apparently not. As Micky spoke, Julian tried to inch further away from him, but then Mickey did the unthinkable and turned away. Julian took it as an opportunity to bolt, but as quickly as he'd turned away, he turned back and waved a hand, in a follow me gesture. Julian stared at it, feigning a completely appalled face.

"You think I'll go out there with all those screaming monsters and volunteer to be trampled over during this war game?" he asked, aghast. "Absolutely not." He shook his head, trying to move further away from Mickey. "I don't have a death wish, and you can't actually force me to participate. I know I said I'd try to have fun, but, I'm sorry. Screaming kids are not fun. I would rather take whatever punishment kids get for misbehaving for breaking a Sunny Squirrels Rule. Seriously." He looked around the tree, towards the kids. One of the older ones was putting face paint on the others, which was kind of cute to watch. He glanced back at Mickey. "They'd probably have more fun without me. I'm a total buzzkill, and, god, who knows? I might even say a swear in front of them and tarnish their innocent souls!" he said, gasping. He didn't really mean it - he wouldn't actually curse in front of the kids. He was smart enough to sensor himself like that. He was just trying to say something to get Mickey to leave him alone.

Realistic or Modern Woe and Whoa!

Dork #1

in a quiet garden

Dork #1

in a quiet garden

Dork #1

in a quiet garden

Dork #1

in a quiet garden

Dork #1

in a quiet garden

Dork #1

in a quiet garden

Dork #1

in a quiet garden

Dork #1

in a quiet garden

Dork #1

in a quiet garden

Dork #1

in a quiet garden

Dork #1

in a quiet garden

Dork #1

in a quiet garden

Dork #1

Users who are viewing this thread

Similar threads