Camp Yorktown

Arts and Crafts

     I waited on the porch for a while, steeping in my newfound feelings for my bunkmate and an altogether emotion flood. The others stampeded back at some point, and Lafayette started yelling at me for Alex and I ditching Hercules and them. I apologized, and warned the two that Alexander was sleeping. I grabbed his notebook and we crept inside the cabin, quietly changing into pajamas and brushing our teeth. Lafayette was scrubbing vigorously at some stubborn eyeliner with a makeup wipe when I climbed in bed, and I placed the picture of Lafbaguette on our shared nightstand before falling asleep in seconds.

I awoke to the sound of something crashing. Lafayette screamed a curse word in French, and I jumped out of bed. Hercules had lazily flung an arm over the railing of the top bunk, and thanks to his freakishly large build, had brutally shoved Alexander's bedside lamp onto the ground. I breathed a sigh of relief that no one had fallen from a bunk or something, and looked out the window to see early morning sun and a drowsy Thomas Jefferson giving us the finger from his respective window. 

"Well, we're that cabin now..." I groaned and swished the curtain shut. Hercules was being vigorously scolded by Lafayette for murdering a lamp, and Alexander just looked plain confused. There was no getting back to bed now, and after a regretted look at the clock up on the notched wood walls, I stretched and climbed into my cargo jeans and tennis shoes, throwing on my new camp t-shirt. I tried to tame my wild curls into a ponytail, while Lafayette was being a mirror hog. Alexander was running around with no shirt on, wondering where the hell his suitcase. I didn't mind. Hercules was mouthing dirty words at Jefferson through the window, before I drew the curtains again and led him away. 

We headed out to breakfast, ignoring the fact that it was about 7 in the morning and camp was deserted. Luckily, the cafeteria staff apparently didn't need sleep, and was already diligently serving breakfast. Alexander had traces of dried tears on his cheeks, and I resisted the urge to hug him. The others were here, and besides, I was too awkward for that. I plopped down at a table with a plate of spongy eggs and limp bacon with cranberry juice. Seeing as the others were a lot slower than I was in the lunch line, I stuck my earbuds in and turned on Newsies. There was something about that musical that made waking up at 7:00 AM during the summer so much more bearable. Bobbing my head  along, I picked up a pamphlet left by someone at dinner the night before. It read Stitching and Embroidery Workshop! The inside told me that it was in the Arts and Crafts cabin at noon every Tuesday and Thursday. Hercules sat down across from me, and asked to see it. I parted from my Newsies as he read the front, and a giant grin appeared on his face.

"Hey, do you think I'd be able to start something like this?" I was surprised. Hercules Mulligan looked like the least likely person to be interested in Arts and Crafts. I replied, "I mean, yeah, maybe. On what?" 

"Tailoring." 

Lafayette and Alexander finally finished being picky in the line, and came to sit down. Hercules was reading the pamphlet front to back. Lafayette seemed to be teasing Alexander about something in French, and Alexander was a bright pink. Lafayette looked over at me every so often, and I pretended not to notice. Hercules was still examining the pamphlet, and then suddenly said to the rest of us, "I'm gonna try to get permission to hold a tailoring class, guys." Laf and Alexander looked over, and Lafayette exclaimed, "That's amazing, mon amie! I know Washington'll let you, he knows that you have mad tailoring skills." Hercules smiled even bigger about that, and Alexander muttered, "I expédier.", and it was Lafayette's turn to blush. 

We chatted a bit more about things like how Lin Manuel Miranda's works should be required literature in every high school, and who's schools had LGBTQ+ support groups. Then a girl who looked exactly like Peggy who had to have been Maria and her friends walked in, and then more and more people. We were long done with breakfast, so the Revolutionary Crew headed back to the cabin to decide that to do. 

"I'm going to Washington's office about the workshop."

"I'm trying my hand at archery." 

"There's a journalism club meeting in the common."

They all turned toward me. I didn't know what I was doing for the day, so of course some gut reaction popped out of me.

"Where'sAlexandergoingI'llgowhereheisandalsohiseyesand-..." Oh my reptilians, John. You blew it. Real smooth.  I felt my face flush and I grabbed my sketchbook and ran out.

I don't know where I was going, but I ended up at Angelica, Peggy, and Eliza's cabin. I banged at their door, and a bored-looking Angelica opened it. I ran inside. Bewildered, the other two sisters looked up from re-touching their toenail polish. I slumped down against Eliza's bedframe.

"Hello...?" Eliza looked down at me from her perch, and Peggy looked very concerned. Angelica sat next to me on the ground and crossed her arms. 

"I have this turning-massive crush on Alexander, and I just totally babbled on about his eyes there and also he caught me drawing him yesterday and please help me I've never really had a crush on anyone before????" Eliza just looked stricken, and Angelica nodded sympathetically at me. Peggy said, "Well, we already knew that!" I replied, "Huh?", and Peggy giggled. 

"It's quite obvious, isn't it girls?" They both nodded, but Eliza spoke. "I used to like him. For almost 5 years. Eventually I just gave up. He never looked at me the way he looks at you, John." I felt pretty damn bad then. Angelica simply said, "So grow a pair and confess your feelings. He obviously feels the same way." Peggy swatted at her in disapproval. She chimed in, "So you ran away from the rest of the group and they're probably really worried about you right now? Hell, Lafayette has probably called upon the French Army as a search party by now." Oh yeah. I kind of forgot that I ran away in embarrassment. I heaved back up. "Okay, thanks girls. Appreciate the hiding place. And oh," I added, tapping Eliza's knee, "You'd look better with a winter color. It compliments your eyes." With that, I opened the door and found myself face to face with Alexander Hamilton.