Just Different

Chapter 3

Rob laughed as Mike chased after him. He ran side by side along Brad as Joe and Mike chased them, holding loaded water guns. The grass was moist with dew as he ran through it. The cool hair hit his skin, making him shiver a bit, but he didn't mind it, he was having fun.

Fun. He didn't actually think about it during the first week he had been in the new town. He had lived with his terrible step father for years, taking in all sorts of abuse. He never had any friends back at his old school. People new Rob was gay. People avoided him. 

But here, here he had a clean slate, a fresh new start. No one knew about him or his past. And for the first time in years, he was happy. 

The cold wet spray hit his back and he yelped. "Gotcha Rob!" Joe shouted happily behind him. He heard Brad mimic his actions as Mike shot him down with water. 

"I'd say a round two, but I'm exhausted," Mike laughed, breathless.

"Yeah," Joe agreed, nodding. "And a lil' hungry too."

Brad's face lit up. "We should go to the shack. Rob hasn't been there!"

"Oh yeah!" Mike beamed and began walking, water gun still in hand. "Follow me you guys." He shook his wet hair out and marched through the thick grass of the clearing.

"The shack?" Rob asked, raising an eyebrow. "What's that?"

"Only the best place on Earth," Brad grinned as he motioned for Rob to follow. "You'll love it."

The boys lead Rob into the thick underbrush of the small woods, marching over the small bushes.  Rob was still wondering where they were taking him. He felt lost in the thick growth of plants. After a few minutes of walking, Rob realized they were following a small, thin trail. It was very thin, almost invisible, but it was enough for a person to shimmy through it. The underbrush cleared up, but the group was still surrounded by trees. Moments after, the trees began to spread out and a small clearing revealed itself. 

Rob's eyes widened as he saw the small cabin come into view. The cabin seemed so well built to be called "a shack". It almost looked like a small home. 

"This is our little hiding place," Mike announced, looking at the cabin.

"Wow...It's so..."

"Awesome, majestic, cool," Joe grinned.

"Pretty much," Rob chuckled, still in awe. "Did you guys find this, or...?"

"I helped my dad and my brother build it. Around the summer before we all started high school." Mike looked back to the cabin and walked up to the tree against the small building. He uncapped the water gun and poured the water onto the base of the tree. Joe did the same with his.

"Come on in, we have a few towels in here." Mike waved him over. "We even have electricity. Not very strong, but just enough to light up a room when we need it."

"And a heater or a fan," Brad added.

"We still need to work on adding wi-fi," Joe said jokingly. 

Mike unlocked the cabin and pushed open the shabby door. Rob was still taken back by what he saw. There was a small sink up against a wall, a counter accompanying it. A little portable stove was on the counter. A small white table was folded up and against the wall. Five white, plastic chairs were stacked and placed in front of the table. 

A mini fridge and cooler were on the other side of the room. Rob had a feeling they had food stashed away in there. "Come check this out."

Mike lead Rob to a doorway with thin curtains acting as a barrier. Mike pushed it and Rob looked around the bigger room. There was a small built in closet in one corner of the room. It was open and Rob could see it filled with blankets, sleeping bags, and towels...just as Mike said. Next to the closet was a large bean bag. another table was up against the wall, but it was smaller and square, and blue. There was a portable heater next to the table. The room was otherwise quite empty.