chasing rubies (lashton)

1. the lizard from tangled

A/N - hiiii it's been 47363 years since i've written a lashton fic and I'M SO SOrry

one night i was casually scrolling through tumblr and i saw a certain post (how do u link stuff on wattpad) and my mind literally went into overdrive and this is loosely based off that post.

also, side-note, the title is a song by Hudson Taylor :-) Not sure how often updates will be but they hopefully will be pretty consistent since i have most of this pre-written yay

anyway let's DIVE IN SHALL WE

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Duck duck goose turns into a bad idea when all of the children picked as geese end up slipping more often than not. The grass in the rec field is still a little damp and muddy from the night before and everyone knows that, so it isn’t really a surprise that everyone’s falling. But when Dylan trips onto a rock and ends up bleeding, Ashton decides it’s time for a new, safer game. Perhaps a game that won't require a first-aid kit.

They settle on a game where everyone says something they like that begins with the same letter as their first name — which, in Ashton's opinion, is a great way to get everyone to introduce themselves. The game doesn't go over very well with the kids, it’s kind of dull, but it's all Ashton can think of in a short amount of time.

The rec field is crowded with kids and worried parents, clinging onto their children like they'll never see them again. It's usually like this for the first hour, when the kids are dropped off. All of the counselors are forced to wait in the rec field for their campers to arrive before heading up and claiming bunks in their assigned cabins. With so much time to spare, the counselors have no choice but to preoccupy the kids with games. 

When the final fourth camper arrives, Ashton breaks up their game of Extreme I Spy (it's no different than regular I Spy except for the fact that it has the word "extreme" in front of it) and everyone collects their luggage so they can begin trekking up to the cabin. They weave their way up the dirt path through the forest slowly, Dylan complaining every few minutes about how his knee still hurts while Tanner consistently tells him to stop whining.

Dylan (who, according to the game, likes dogs) seems to be the outgoing one in his group, always having something to say. Tanner (who likes tigers) is the kid that never really got past the age of five, asking Ashton questions about every fucking thing in the universe. Ashton doesn't know the answer to a majority of his questions, but that doesn't stop Tanner from asking them. Him and Dylan seem to get on from the start like peanut butter and jelly, which honestly has Ashton worried about what to expect from the two of them. He knows they already have pranks prepared for the girls and he can only hope they’ll forget about them. The last thing he needs is their group ending up in trouble.

Brandon (who likes basketball) is a bit of a flirt (if a 13-year-old can even be described as one). Ashton saw him in the rec field shooting girls glances from across the field, sometimes even daring to greet a few of them. Young love: what a beautiful thing. 

Josh (who likes jellyfish) is the quiet one in the group who seems to be captivated by the idea of secluding himself. And there's nothing wrong with that, it's just that Ashton knows it's going to be hard trying to get him involved in activities when the kid would much rather read a book. On the other hand, when Ashton told his campers to gather up their bags, Josh was the only one that heard him the first time, meaning he's keen on paying close attention to instructions. That's a huge relief for Ashton; Dylan and Tanner are plenty of work for him as it is.

It is Ashton’s first year as a counselor and to say that he’s worried is a bit of an understatement. He didn’t truly realize how scared he was of children until the week before camp, and by that point it was far too late to back out. He’d already been assigned a group and designed his nametag (which he was quite proud of) and, though he considered it, it wasn’t like he was going to randomly injure himself to conjure up an excuse. He had more dignity than that.