Two Sides of the Same Coin ( camp camp )

Memories

Max woke to the sun breaking through his tent. Blinking blearily, the boy sat up and looked around. God he had the worst headache... damn. The memories flooded over him in a sudden rush. Daniel, the house, the sweet liquid. Oh god, what had happened?!

Ignoring the pounding agony inside his skull, Max scrambled out of the tent and into the daylight. Nothing was different. Everyone was off to mess hall, not a care in the world. Wildly his eyes darted around until they fell upon Gwen. She seemed dazed, but he didn't care.

"Gwen! Fucking- Gwen! What the hell?!" Roughly he grabbed her arm and yanked her away from the group. "Max! What the fuck do you want?" "What do you mean "what do I want"?! Do you not remember last night?! With Daniel?!"

"Max... I have no clue what you're talking about."

The worst thing in that moment was the sinking pit in his stomach. Like a heavy stone had been dumped in it, his knees went weak. No. No way. "Daniel! Remember? We found his cabin, with the dead body? Gwen come on don't fuck around!" She had to remember she had to!

But again, Gwen shook her head. "I don't have time for your shit Max. Sure Daniel was a bit creepy, but the dude left a while ago and I haven't seen him since."

No matter what he tried, Gwen couldn't remember anything. She just gave him a blank, and frankly quite annoyed stare. Eventually rhe woman got sick of it and waved Max off, heading to the mess hall for a job she despised.

But why? There was no way she'd forgotten so quickly! Trauma like that doesn't just disappear overnight! Somehow, though, it had. That was terrible, seriously it was. Now he'd lost his one reliable ally.

Wait.

That's exactly what Daniel wanted. For Max to be alone, to sound like a lunatic when he tried to tell anyone. Well jokes on Daniel, since Nikki and Neil still knew what was going on. With a grin and renewed enthusiasm, he marched into the mess hall.

Nikki and Neil sat at their usual table. But they looked a bit... blanker, than usual. Neil was tapping a pencil against the wood and Nikki had her face scrunched up in concentration. It was like the girl was trying to grasp something just at the tip of her tongue.

That sinking feeling return to Max as he slid along the bench next to them. "Heya guys!" "Hey Max." They chimed together. He swallowed hard. "So, about the deal with Daniel... I think I may have found something huge! Something that could take him down!"

"Daniel? You mean that weird guy who turned out to be a religious freak or something? What about him?" Neil asked, looking a tab bit bewildered and irritated. "What do you mean "what about him"?! Do you not remember anything?" The sinking pit grew deeper and threatened to swallow Max whole.

His friends shook their heads. "Max, he got poisoned then went off in an ambulance. He's gone. But speaking of remembering..." Neil trailed off, still looking frustrated and confused. "I feel like I've forgotten something. But I don't know what." "Me too! Everyone, actually." Added Nikki. "It's weird."

Alright, now Max was horrified. There was no doubt that Daniel was behind this. But how the hell did he do it? Erasing memories was some scifi shit that shouldn't be possible. Then again, he managed to brainwash a whole camp in a matter of minutes with a sauna that came from god-knows-where.

"Yea that's freaky. I uh- I gotta go!" Max scrambled out of the mess hall, ignoring the worried calls of his friends. He didn't stop until he tripped and skidded into the grass near the woods. Panting and shaking, he slid down against a tree. What the fuck was this? Is this what Daniel meant?

While Max sat there, holding his stinging knee and feeling hopeless, a shadow loomed over him. "Max? Are you okay? I saw you run out of the mess hall!" The ravenette clawed himself upright against the tree, heart beating so fast he could barely tell where one beat ended and the next began.

"Ah! D-david, what the fuck!" "Hey! Watch the language Max. Now what's wrong?" For a moment, the boy wrestled with himself. He could tell David, or keep his mouth shut. Surely... surely David would listen right? He was oblivious and almost stupid sometimes, but he trusted Max! Right? Worth a try.

Taking a deep breath, he began to speak. "It's about Daniel. And I know, I know, I complain about him alot. But he scares me David! What he's doing to you scares me too! You're different. You're angrier and meaner and sometimes it feels like you want to hurt me! What if-" He swallowed. "What if Daniel's doing this to y-"

"That's enough!" David snapped. Instantly, Max shut his mouth. "Again, Max, really? What have you got against Daniel?! He makes me happy! I adore his company! He's not going to hurt any of you, or come close. I'm tired of you constantly trying to turn me against him. What is wrong with you, Max?! I love him! I love Daniel!" The longer he spoke, the wilder David's arm gestures became. His green eyes were wild, cruel, and devoid of any sort of sympathy. Like a wild animal.

Max panicked. He was so, so scared. With a yelp, he turned on his heel and ran for it. For the second time that day, shouts rang after him. And for the second time, he ignored them. Far and away his legs carried him. The light woods became dark, with only soft sunlight dappling against the ground between each towering pine tree.

It should have been beautiful, a momento to how breathtaking nature can be. But to Max it just felt like a million Davids. Standing silently, watching him struggle. Making him feel like he was weak, and easily crushed.

Eventually his lungs couldn't take the torture anymore, and Max collapsed. He curled up on the pine needles, heaving to regain the breath in his chest. Once he could see straight again, Max stumbled to his feet and looked around. He'd been blindly sprinting, and frankly had no idea where he was. Great.

Turning, he started back the way he came. Hopefully that'd get him to camp. Now he had alot of time to think, to reflect. And to over analyze that twig snap he'd just heard.

This was gonna be a long walk back to camp.