hi i have decided i want to be a camp
counsellor, so i'm channeling that into tuggoffelees.
basically misto and tugger are counsellors. you never would've guessed, but they're dating
misto pov
i check my clipboard for the fifth time, and lead my group of 6 campers to the archery range. this'll be fun. nine and ten-year-olds with arrows.
there's supposed to be another group there, since there enough bows and targets for 12. god i hope it's tugger's group. of course, we have to use 'camp names.' mine is sparks; creative, i know. tugger's is chaos, which is quite accurate, if i do say so myself. (hi please appreciate me. chaos is a synonym for muddle and 'there's nothin i enjoy like a horrible muddle!'
the leader of archery is called arty but her real name is melissa. her big, genuine smile is contagious. all my campers- and myself- are all smiling.
"welcome to archery, cabin 7!" mel says cheerfully. "as soon as the second group gets here, we'll get started, but first we're going to go over some safety. come on over." she waves her hand comically over her body, walking to the wood board titled "Archery Rules!"
i've heard this speech a thousand times, but mel never fails to make me smile. my campers follow her to the rule board, where mel recites and explains every one.
i really hope the second group is tugger's. please let it be.
i look down the hill to see a group of kids sprinting to archery, with my idiot boyfriend yelling "run!!" like a military governor. jesus christ, what have i gotten myself into? but more importantly, what the hell is he doing?
melissa waves at tugger and some kid immediately asks her "is that your boyfriend?"
she ignores the question. "alrighty! now that chaos' cabin is here, who can tell me what rule #1 is?"
tugger drags himself up the hill, panting heavily. "sorry i'm late," he half laughs, half breathes. "one camper didn't want to go, then i told him whoever beat me to the range got 10 'cool points'."
"it's fine. mel was only on rule #2-"
"- don't walk in front of another shooter." he finishes. i give him a sideways look, nodding slowly. "very good. 10 cool points for you."
tugger smiles, and gestures to the picnic table a few feet away from the rule board. by now the kids are learning how to pull back the bowstring. "want to sit?" he asks.
"sure."
tugger plants himself on the table part, his feet on the bench part. i shoot him a look that says 'really?'
he smirks and pats the space next to him. i roll my eyes and sit beside him.
by the time the dinner bell rings, the campers have somehow managed to get an arrow all the way into the cluster of pine trees behind the net we have. i refuse to walk through those trees. i guess we lost an arrow.
•••
i just had to convince one of my campers to eat more than three strands of spaghetti.
i've been stealing glances at tugger, but so have all the giggly girls. i know they're almost 15 years younger than us but i'm really jealous right now.
one of the female counsellors who has cabin 3, june, notices me fuming, and tells the girls "he's taken, you know."
one of the girls looks like she's about to cry.
"are you his girlfriend???" one girl asks, incredibly offended.
june hesitates, glances at me, and says "sure."
i chuckle to myself and look down, trying to hide my smile.
the camp director, matt, stands on a chair, cupping his hands around his mouth. "can i have everyone's attention, please?!"
all the leaders immediately stop talking and try to get the campers to listen.
"if you're finished with supper go to your cabins and meet at the flagpole at 7:00 for the nighttime game!"
all of us counsellors smack the table energetically. like apes. or summer camp counsellors.
as soon as matt finishes what he's saying, the entire room stands up, and all we can do is hope our kids remember which cabin they're in, and that they don't get lost.
•••
"the game tonight is going to be kinda like hide-and-seek, but in the woods, so wear bug spray if you have it, and dark clothes so you can blend in," i announce. really, we're not supposed to give spoilers of what the game is, but i'm not dealing with 10,000 bug bites. "if you need bug spray, i have some."
i lead all six members of cabin 7 out to the flagpole. we're the fourth cabin there, but tugger's cabin still isn't here. typical.
the game is basically capture the flag, but the 'flags' are the counsellors and the kids have to catch us and bring us to their 'base.' if all 10 of the leaders are caught, the team with more of us wins, but if time runs out, the counsellors win. i know the perfect hiding place, though.
"the game starts when you hear the bell." matt says in a finishing sort of tone. i smirk, knowing what's coming. none of the kids move. "i repeat. the gam starts when you hear the bell. meaning you should probably start running!"
i stand as fast as i can and sprint into the woods, tugger on my heels. it's the 8th week of camp, with a new set of kids every week, and we've played this game every 3rd night. tugger and i know exactly where we're going. we hear the bell. the game has begun. almost instantly, we're completely concealed by trees and foliage.
suddenly, we hear a voice. "there's chaos!"
tugger and i stop in our tracks, scanning the trees.
"there." i whisper, pointing to the small group of boys who are probably the hot-shots at their schools.
"go." tugger says, pushing me gently and taking off.
we don't lose the kids for about a minute. i kept looking back, until finally...
"they're gone." i mutter, propping myself against a tree.
"it's about time, jesus," tugger murmurs back. "they're in my cabin and— are we out of bounds?"
i look around. "no, we haven't passed the creek yet."
"right, right." he whispers. tugger, having caught his breath, takes my hand. "shall we?" he says in a terrible british accent.
"yes indeed we shall!" i reply in an equally as horrible accent. i bring his hand to my lips and kiss the back of it, like a proper gentleman would a lady.
i can't tell if the red gracing tugger's cheeks is from running or me. i'd like to think it's because of me.
we walk quietly, taking a sharp right at the one tree that has the rabbit hole at its base. finally, we reach our tree. it's easy enough to climb, but not so easy that the kids can get to us— or see us.
tugger has his branch and i have mine. just kidding. the tree forks out into three, tugger and i nestle ourselves between them.
he snakes his arms around my waist, and puts his head on my shoulder. "i missed you." he whispers, so quietly and calmly.
"i missed you too." it's only been since the morning game, but it feels like... longer than that.
i feel him smile against me. we stay like that, frozen in place for a few moments, eyes closed, listening to the peaceful melody of nature.
tugger pulls his head back, and i instinctively turn my head to look at him. his eyes soften, he whispers "can i kiss you?"
"mhm." i hum, tilting my head a bit.
he leans forward and his lips meet mine. the moment, however, is very short-lived, as we hear footsteps running towards out tree. i start to pull away, but tugger presses his forehead against mine. "don't move." he breathes, only so i can hear.
i keep my eyes closed and focus on listening to the campers below. they run straight past us. only when their footfalls become very distant do i move. tugger sits up once again, but still has his arms securely around me.
he smiles, eyes flitting to my lips once, which makes his smile grow even more. the redness on his cheeks is definitely not from running this time.
"what?" i whisper, grinning too. "we've kissed plenty of times, what makes this time so special?"
"i- i don't know. there's just something about being alone in the woods with you; it almost feels... like we're being naughty."
"that's an... interesting word choice." i remark, a blush of my own creeping onto my face.
•••
at the campfire, no one really pays attention to anyone but themselves, the singers, or the fire, so tugger and i always sit next to each other. when everyone starts to get really sleepy, he'll put his arm over my shoulder, which eventually turns into me resting my head on his chest.
"alright campers. if you have prescription medicine before bed, go to the nurse, you guys know the drill. otherwise, sweet dreams." matt says, clearly very tired himself.
tugger and i stand up, helping each other. all the campers take no notice. i stand on my tiptoes and kiss tugger once again.
"goodnight, my love." he whispers in my ear.
"goodnight."
hello yes i really hope you liked this because i had a lot of fun writing it