Saturday
Did I intend to have the best week of my life that week? Did I even think that the week was going to be fun? No and no. But what did happen, I'll never forget. When I look back it feels like a big dream but it did actually happen and I'll never forget it. My family decided to go to a family camp in California, a whole week of staying in a tiny cabin with my parents and my bitch of an older sister. What was I expecting? Not much honestly. Disgusting food, annoying little kids, counselors that are too perky for their own good, the like. Each age group was split into different programs, they had one for the smallest kids, then one for 9, 10 year olds, pre-teens, and what's considered the best program at Fox Hill, the teen group. Anyone aged 14-18 could participate, and we did all sorts of high adventure and water front activities, while the younger groups sang songs and performed skits.
The teen group had a separate building. It was a little lodge that was a bit old and run down, but at the same time quaint and inviting. There was a chair swing inside, a couple of windows, and some chairs and benches lining the walls. The doors were large sliding squares on the porch, and they were heavy and hard to maneuver. The outside used to be white, but was now peeling away. Past teen groups had been allowed to paint the walls on the inside, and there were names painted all over them. We had what we started to refer to as meetings in the teen lodge every morning, where we'd decide what we wanted to do that day, (three things, morning, afternoon, evening/night). Then after the final event we'd meet back in the lodge and discuss the day. It all sounds slightly cliche and corny, but it really was a great experience.
So, on Saturday night, we had our first meeting. There were probably about 30 kids or so, just about evenly split boys and girls. Most everyone in the teen group had attended Fox Hill the year before, so my sister Rachel (17 years old) and I were the only newbies. Our counselors were Jack and Dani; Jack was 22, tan, muscular, typical Californian. Dani however was from London. She was 21, with long brown hair, twinkling blue eyes and a great smile. Rachel gravitated towards the group of girls who were sitting on one side of the room, while I sat on the other side with the guys. Before she did though, she whispered to me, "Nathan, as long as we can keep it a secret, we're not related ok?" I rolled my eyes and nodded; my sister tried as hard as she could to stay separated from me, although I wasn't complaining.
Of course, being teenage boys, most of them were late. Although there wasn't exactly a set time for the meeting, they should have known they needed to be there. They finally all came filing in, but one in particular caught my eye. He was... Breathtaking? Exhilarating? Words can't exactly describe it, but my heart started to pound as he took the last available seat. Next to me. Comparing us in my head, he was probably about an inch taller than me, with curly brown hair, and chocolate brown eyes. His skin was tan, but not to the point of being orange or sunburnt, and his nose was small and adorable. Not just his nose though. Everything about him was adorable.
I knew I couldn't let it get to my head, because it was obvious that he was straight by the way he acted with his friends. He was a typical teenage boy: perverted, crude, loud. But there was something different, something I couldn't put my finger on. It was almost as if he were... uncomfortable with himself. Like something about him was a little bit off, almost as if he felt he didn't belong.
So, Jack and Dani introduced themselves, said a couple things (Dani's accent was like music washing over my ears) and then we went around the room and introduced ourselves. Rachel, of course, didn't mention anything about me being her brother, but I didn't mind. When it had come almost all the way around, some of the girls started whispering and losing focus, probably talking about what boys they thought were cute. I heard a couple "Eew him?"s and one or two "Shut up!"s, but it was mostly concealed by their whispering. So, the boys just continued to introduce themselves. Finally, there were just two of us left. Me, and-"Hi, I'm Peter, I'm 16, and this is my third year at Fox Hill." Now I knew his name and age. It was a start. I was 15, so we weren't too far apart. I introduced myself, "My name's Nathan, I'm 15, and this is my first year."
"Well welcome to the club you two! Do you know each other?" I looked at Rachel and she shook her head. "No, we don't" I replied awkwardly. "Alright then... So! The rules!" Everyone groaned, and Dani jumped up out of her seat. "Come on now, its not that bad! Just a few old ones and a new one! Simple!" Jack laughed. "Thanks. Alright, here's the basics. 1. No violence, name calling, bullying in general. We're all here to have fun, lets make sure that happens! 2. Try to attend every meeting you can. You don't have to come to each event, but I highly suggest it because they're all fun! 3. Try to make as many friends as you can. I know most of you know each other from last summer, but we have two new campers. Show them some love! Dani, you wanna take the new rule?" "Gladly! Ok, the new rule is this: No purpling!"
We all exchanged puzzled looks. "Sorry let me explain further. Boys are blue, and girls are red. Lets keep it that way! No purple!" One of the girls raised her hand. "So basically, no dating or relationships or anything?" Dani nodded. Jack stood up again. "Alright, I want everyone to talk for about 15 minutes, catch up, introduce yourself to the new kids, stay at least 15 minutes and no later than midnight! See you all at the morning meeting and make sure the last one out turns the light off!"
The two of them left the lodge holding hands (great example for the "no purpling" rule) and we were left to discuss with each other. I guess I tend to gravitate more towards girls, but because my sister was talking to them I decided I was stuck with the guys. It wasn't so bad; I got to talk to Peter for a little bit. "So, Nathan, this is your first time here. Where are you from?" I smiled. "Maine. Came all the way out here because my parents are insane." He laughed and his eyes twinkled a little bit. "What are you looking forward to the most?" I shrugged, honestly it all sounded good to me. "Hey, well, if you ever need someone to talk to, I'll be around!" I grinned and he turned back to the rest of his group. There were two girls who weren't with the others; they seemed to have there own little group. As I walked over to them, I heard some whispering from the boys group, and when I looked back they had split into a few smaller ones. Peter was talking to two others and they seemed like they were arguing.
The two girls were named Jenna and Teri, and they were a lot of fun. They were both a little bit quirky, but who doesn't have their quirks? I know I certainly did then, and I probably still do now. Jenna was 15, and Teri was 16, so they were my age as well. Teri was from Oregon, close by but not too close. Jenna came all the way from Florida, although I was a little bit confused as to why she didn't go to a camp there. She explained that Fox Hill was one of the best camps in the country. It was Teri's third year, and Jenna's second. We almost instantly hit it off; we talked until about 11:30 when there were only a few people left in the lodge. Most of the boys and all of the rest of the girls had left, leaving just our newly formed trio and a few boys, including Peter. Jenna and Teri left, but I wanted to see what would happen if it stayed. I sat down and checked my phone, yawning as I saw the time: 11:45. Peter walked over and said, "Uh oh, that wasn't a yawn was it? I was talking to the guys, and though most of them were a little bit reluctant, we've all agreed that you can come with us on our Saturday night prank! We try to do one on Saturday night and on Friday, which are the first and last nights. Kid like you seems smart, maybe you can help us think of a new prank, something thats never been done before!"
I smiled and nodded. "I may have a few ideas. You'll have to tell me what you've already done." He frowned a little bit. "It's mostly been lame stuff: breaking into the cafeteria and putting up stupid fake flyers, scaring people inside their cabins and then running before they catch us... Harmless stuff really." I smiled again and he said, "You've got some kind of look in your eye. What are you thinking?" At this point, three other guys had come over and looked at me expectantly. "You'll see," I said slyly.
I told them my idea as we walked, guiding them in the right direction as they didn't know where they were going at first. We were headed toward the docks, where all of the canoes, kayaks and paddle boats were. My idea was to stack all of the paddles on one boat and push the boat out into the lake. It would be difficult to get the boat back without the paddles. Everyone thought the idea was brilliant, when really they probably just never put much thought into it.
So after I finished explaining, we all separated into little walking groups. Peter and one of the other guys that he had been arguing with earlier, Ryan I think his name was, were up in the front with me behind him. Johnny and Steve walked behind us; I think Steve was the other that had argued with Peter. As I walked, a few surprising things happened. First, Johnny and Steve started messing with me; putting my hood up, trying to trip me, stupid stuff like that. As annoying as it was, it almost made me feel like I was part of the group.
But it got even better. It was about midnight, so it was dark and we couldn't see very much. Peter and Ryan seemed to be suspiciously close to one another, and after Peter whispered something in Ryan's ear, Ryan... grabbed Peter's hand? They started walking even closer to each other and I looked back at Johnny and Steve for context. Steve came up and out his arm around my shoulder. "I'm guessing you're a little bit confused." I nodded my head, not exactly knowing what he meant. "Alright then, I'll tell you. Peter and Ryan are both gay, and they've been dating since two summers ago. I'm straight and Johnny's bi. Any questions?" I shook my head again and he patted my shoulder. "Good because that was slightly awkward." I laughed and he retreated back to Johnny, whispering something in his ear and making Johnny laugh. I was a little bit surprised due to my earlier judgement of Peter, as I had assumed that he was straight. Obviously I was mistaken.
Most people would be bothered by all of the whispering, but I was just happy that they trusted me enough to give me THAT I formation. I watched Peter and Ryan walk hand in hand, whispering things in each others ears. Ryan started getting louder, almost to the point where I could hear him. Peter glanced back at me, and then whispered something in his ear, making Ryan look back. I raised an eyebrow and kept walking, not quite sure if they were talking about me or not.
Peter whispered something else and Ryan shook his head; he then replied quietly again. If only I could hear their conversation! I picked up my pace a little bit; although I've never been too fond of eavesdropping I wanted to make sure they weren't talking about me. All of a sudden, Ryan yelled, "That's is, you're such a man whore Peter! I'm so done with this right now!" Then, to my surprise, he punched Peter in the face, kicked him in the back of the leg and pushed him off the main path, onto the grass. Peter groaned exasperatedly and sat up, rubbing his jaw where he'd been hit and the underside of his knee.
I rushed over to him, wondering why he wasn't yelling at his boyfriend, or even surprised as to why he did that. I heard Johnny say "Just keep walkin kid," as he and Steve passed, but I ignored him. "What the hell was all of that about?" Peter smiled and shook his head. "Don't worry, it happens all the time. In fact, I think he went easy because you were here, so... Thanks I guess!" Oh my God, I thought, Peter's in an abusive relationship. "You can't just let him do that to you though!" I held out my hand to Peter, and he took it as I helped him back up to his feet. "Nathan relax. Everything's ok, I promise. Ryan... He just has a bit of a temper ok? Nothing to worry about." I shook my head again, noticing the growing bruise in the side of his face.
"Maybe we should get you back to your cabin. That bruise looks pretty nasty." He sighed. "Are you sure you want to miss the prank?" I smiled. "There's another one on Friday night right? I'll be there then. But right now, I don't know how well you can walk." Peter laughed. "That's one of his favorite places to get me Nathan, my legs are really strong at this point."
Nevertheless, he had to lean on my shoulder as we stumbled back along the path, away from the docks and back toward the cabins. Every so often he would look at me and smile, and I couldn't help but smile back. When he smiled, it was like the world slowly slipped away until it was just the two of us. Each time I had to remind myself, Nathan, he has a boyfriend. Don't try anything! But that little encounter did teach me one thing, and it was that Peter was definitely gay. As much as that made me happy, I had to remember that he was taken. I couldn't help feeling uneasy though; it seemed like he had no idea that his relationship wasn't as it should be.
We got back to his cabin and he fished through the pockets of his jeans and sweatshirt and finally found his key, wiggling it around in the lock until it clicked and the door swung slowly open. He hobbled inside and turned around, beckoning me inside. I closed the door behind me and he held a finger up to his lips. "Mom's sleeping," he explained in a whisper. I nodded, locating the fridge in his cabin.
The cabins at Fox Hill weren't nearly as bad as I thought they would be. There were different sizes: Couple, Family, and Party cabins, (Couple could fit 2, Family 4, and Party 8.) each cabin had 2 bathrooms, one with and one without a shower, and also a kitchen with a fridge and toaster oven. He sat down on a comfy looking couch and I crossed to the fridge, grabbing a few paper towels as I passed the holder. I wrapped some ice in the towels and gave it to Peter, who graciously held it against the bruise, wincing at first but relaxing after a minute.
I sank down on the couch next to him, exhausted from staying up so late. At this point it was around 12:30, and I realized that my family was going to kill me for breaking my 11 o'clock curfew. I turned to Peter, but he spoke before I could. "Your family is probably worrying about you," he said, almost as if he had read my mind. I smiled and nodded; the smile melting away as his did, our eyes making full contact. He started to lean in and I stood up abruptly, making him jump back and press the ice back against his jaw. "Well, uh... See you tomorrow..." I said awkwardly. He nodded and looked away.
As I walked to my cabin, I replayed the events of the night in my head. As I prepared for bed, all I could think about was Peter, his chocolate brown eyes, his curly brown hair, the perfect curvature of his lips. He had almost kissed me! And HE was the one who initiated it! I hadn't even had my first kiss, for it to have been with Peter was a newly discovered dream. I had to remind myself though, he had a boyfriend. And not one I wanted to cross either. I still felt so bad though, Peter deserved better than Ryan. I would be so much better than him. I smirked to myself as the Taylor Swift song, "You Belong With Me" popped into my head. I couldn't help what I was feeling, and it was completely natural and normal too. I had never had any experience when it came to relationships, but somehow I knew; I would never be as interested in anybody as I was in Peter.