Scouts Vs Zombies

Third

"Are you awake in there?" My tent begins to unzip after the sound of Carter's voice.

"Dude, she could be changing in there." Ben says before all goes silent and I wonder what they're thinking. I flick off my light and shut my book. I follow the two boys down the same path I came from.

"Why isn't Augie coming?"

"Have you met him?" Carter rolls his eyes.

"Hey come on." Ben nudges him. "He's not really the party guy."

"You guys think he's a loser? Not good enough to bring to a party?"

"He's our friend, but not the one you'd bring to a big party." Ben shrugs.

"I guess so. But what if he wakes up?"

"That's what I was asking." Ben and I look to Carter who seems to have all the answers.

"Look, if Chewbacca was fucking big foot in our camp he still wouldn't wake up."

I laugh until Ben points out something on the ground. "That's Rogers knife, he doesn't leave anywhere without it."

"So he was here." Ben picks it up.

"Okay so, he went back home, he changed his mind."

"Frank would never leave anything Dolly Parton behind." I look at the knife shining in Bens hands.

"The only thing that's wrong here is us talking about this."

"Dude look at his prints. His foot was dragging like he had a limp."

"My mom's going to be pissed." I scratched the back of my neck.

"Okay, hurray for your mad tracking skills, can we just go? Please?" Carter grabs the flashlight from Ben and walks ahead of us towards the lot.

We walk up to a car which must be Bens as he hops into the drivers seat, Carter in shotgun and me in the back. "I just think something really bad happened to him." Ben brings Frank back up.

"Dude, he is sitting at home,dressed up as Dolly Parton, singing show tunes, relax."

"Okay, I've gotta agree on that one." I laugh and Carter turns to look at me with a happy nod.
The car lights flick on to reveal a sad looking Augie. Before anyone says anything, we are out of the car in a second.

"I thought we were best friends." Augie asks with an expression that says, "I know you lied".

"We are. We're coming back." Carter tried to calm him down.

"Really? After your party?"

"You know about that?"

"Everybody knows about the senior party, Carter. Even a loser like me."

"Augie, don't say that."

"Why not? That's what you guys think! Don't worry, Rachel. This isn't you're fault, you're only going because you're crazy about Carter."

That is not how I would put it.
I shake my head "no" in a blush panic as Ben and Carter both look back at me, Carter with surprise on his face.

"Wait, we don't think you're a loser." Thankfully Ben changed the subject.

"Ben, just tell him."

"Carter, no."

"Yeah, tell me Ben."

I watched the whole thing unravel in front of me. Best friends for years, letting everything go and there's nothing I could do about it. Carter tells Augie that they're quitting scouts and Augie looks like his heart was just ripped out of his chest.