Rock Climbing Conundrum

Chapter 2: Right At Home

"This is certainly better than sleeping in a tent..." Max said, sitting on what would usually be David's bed. "Yeah, well I wanted to give one of the campers a little break from sleeping outside every night." Gwen replied. "But...Why did you pick me?" Max asked. "You could have picked anyone else like Nikki or even Space Kid." He was a mix of both grateful and confused. Why would Gwen offer him out of all the campers such a luxury with how shitty he acts towards people. "Well, Max. Because I have a heart." Gwen said folding a throw blanket on her bed. Max shuddered at the string of words. She sounded just like David, but not oozing with positivity. Max simply laid back on his temporary bed and was lost in his train of thought. I wonder what Nikki and Neil thought about this change, but his mind went back to "Ah who cares."

Meanwhile, Neil was alone in his tent, it felt weird not having Max around, but he also felt a strange sense of peace. Maybe this could be a great way for him to focus on his science studies without any further interruptions. So without hesitation, Neil reached for his backpack and pulled out a notebook and pen. "It's been a long time, old friend." He muttered, opening the notebook. But before the pen could touch the paper. The tent flap opened. "Hey, Neil!" A shrill voice greeted. Neil knew that voice. It was Nikki. "...Hey Nikki." Neil replied in a unimpressed monotone. "What brings you here?" He asked. "I heard Max was staying at the cabin this week, and I thought you might be lonely." Nikki said before dragging in her sleeping bag. "Your new roommate has arrived!" She announced proudly, leaving Neil dreading the next several days. Sure, he liked Nikki as his friend, but the thought of sharing a tent with her was daunting. Neil preferred to not be interrupted while picking his brain to take notes of his recent studies, while Nikki was a lot more loud and obnoxious, which to Neil, defeated his entire motivation to study. "Nikki. I don't know if you know this, but I haven't studied in ages!" Neil exclaimed. Nikki just looked at him as if she was just learning the English language. "...You really aren't getting this, are you." He sighed. Nikki still continued to stare at him blankly. "I don't want you sharing a tent with me, ok?!" Neil finally admitted, causing Nikki's expression to turn from blank to slightly hurt. "W-Why not?" Nikki asked. "Because... I prefer to study alone. In a quiet setting!" Neil explained to the best he could. "Couldn't you study when Max is here?" Nikki suggested. "I think you missed a word in that last sentence: ALONE!" Neil replied. Nikki was obviously hurt, but she reluctantly respected Neil's wishes and exited the tent with her sleeping bag. 

"Alright, you little shits. According to the schedule, we're supposed to have a campfire this evening before we hit the hay." Gwen announced as she stood by an unlit campfire. The kids emerged from their tents, Nikki dropping her sleeping bag. Her eyes BEAMED when she heard about the campfire. "There better be smores involved!" She exclaimed before making her way to the other campers. "Yeah, there will be." Gwen said. "Let me just get a few things from the cabin real quick. I'll be back in a minute." She proceeded to return to the cabin to grab some of the essentials for the perfect campfire. But once she entered the cabin, she noticed the supply closet was open. "Oh shit did I forget to close this earlier?" Gwen panicked as she made her way towards the closet. She checked all the shelves and saw that the marshmallows were missing! "Don't tell me Nikki got a hold of those..." She groaned. "....You needed these?" Someone said from behind, Gwen turned her head to see Max holding an empty bag in one hand and a marshmallow in the other. "Max....What happened to the marshmallows?" Gwen asked sternly. "Shouldn't take too long for you to figure that out." Max shrugged before tossing the last marshmallow in his mouth. Gwen could already feel her blood come to a boil, so she checked the shelves again. "And what about the graham crackers?" She questioned. "Wouldn't recommend em." Max responded. Gwen's one eyelid began to twitch, "....The chocolate bars?" She managed to speak, just slightly above a whisper. "...Delicious." Max said. "GOD DAMMIT MAX!" Shouted Gwen, but she stopped herself. "This is fine... I can easily disappoint the campers again." She said in a sarcastic voice disguised as an overly pleasant tone. "Seriously. I didn't know we were having smores tonight!" Max said, and for once he was actually being genuine. Gwen seemed to detect the sincerity in Max's tone and decided not to dwell on it. "...It's fine. I'll have the Quartermaster go shopping in the morning." She sighed. 

Meanwhile, the other campers were waiting outside for Gwen to return with the equipment. "Are we gonna freeze to death tonight?" Asked Space Kid. "Space Kid. If we were gonna freeze to death, we wouldn't be forced to sleep in shitty tents!" Neil replied. "I can already taste the smores right now." Nikki mused, practically drooling. Gwen and Max returned to the group empty handed, with the exception of a lighter. "Sorry, kids. The smores have been pushed to tomorrow's evening activity." Gwen said, the kids moaning in disappointment. "Care to do the honors, Max?" She questioned, handing Max the lighter. "With pleasure..." Max said. He held the lighter to the wood and was able to start the fire. "...And I'm going to bed. G'night everyone." Max said before tossing the lighter back to Gwen. She didn't really know what to do since she didn't plan ahead for a case like this to happen. "Uhhh....Does anyone know a good campfire song to start us off with?" She asked nervously. 

Back in the cabin, Max climbed into bed while his friends enjoyed the campfire. But before he could close his eyes, he noticed something was missing. Max crawled to the end of the bed and looked around, but he managed to find the item he had been looking for. "There you are, Mr. Honeynuts!" Max said, pulling out a stuffed bear from under the bed. He looked around to make sure no one else heard him, not like anyone really cared. Max sighed and tucked himself (and Mr. Honeynuts) into bed and dozed off in a matter of seconds. After the campers were dismissed to their tents, Gwen returned to the cabin and noticed Max sleeping peacefully while holding his plush companion. "Goodnight, you little shit." She whispered before turning off the lights and retreating to her own bed. "Wait until he hears what I have planned for tomorrow..."