Camp Direction

Chapter 13

A/N: I'm so, SO sorry! I know it's been almost a month since I've updated, but I've had school, and to top it off, I couldn't think of anything to write. But, today, I saw how many I reads I had, (THANK YOU FOR THE 10K) and it inspired me :) 

The kiss you'll read about is on the sidebar, kay?

Enjoy! :)

“Wakey wakey…” Harry said, poking Kate’s cheek. It was one in the afternoon, and the poor girl had fallen asleep on the couch in the mess hall. Harry sat next to her sleeping figure and swept her blonde hair away from her face, fighting the urge to kiss her awake. “Come on, Kate. Wake up.”

“Five more minutes…” she murmured, shifting from one position to the other, facing the back of the couch. Her shirt had ridden up a bit, so the skin on her hip and back were visible. Harry smirked, knowing exactly what to do.

He used his long, slender fingers to gently glide them across her skin, and then began tickling her. She shot up in a second, fighting off fits of laughter and pushing Harry’s hands away at the same time.

“Are you awake now?” he asked, as she sat up and adjusted her shirt along with her blonde hair.

“Yes,” she laughed, swinging her legs off the couch and standing up. Harry stood up along with her, staring around the empty mess hall. “How long was I asleep?”

“About three hours…” Harry grumbled, staring down at the ground. Kate’s eyes widened and she placed her hands on her hips like a scolding mother.

“Three hours!? Why didn’t you wake me?”

“Because I knew that Tara had kept you awake all night with her coughing fit,” Harry answered, wetting his chapped lips with his tongue.

“Where is anyone, anyways?” Kate asked, pulling her hair out of the messed up bun and letting it rest on her shoulders in waves.

“Pretty sure they’re all at the lake,” Harry answered, as he held the door open for her to walk through. She thanked him and they walked out of the mess hall side by side down the trail. Harry stuffed his hands in his jean pockets and stared out ahead of them, squinting from the sun.

“How’d you know Tara was having a coughing fit?” Kate asked, stifling a yawn. One of her campers had gotten sick and had been coughing all night. Kate had fallen asleep in the mess hall when she had brought the young girl to the nurse’s office.

“Most of your campers fell asleep in the canoes,” Harry said with a laugh. “By the way, they sent Tara home.”

“They did?”

“Yeah,” Harry said, as the lake. Celine and Liam were unusually happy and were splashing each other in the shallow end, while Zayn and Penny were in a nearby canoe, racing with Niall and Tori. Louis and Jenny were building small sandcastles in the sand, the rest of the campers scattered all over, either in the water or just playing around.

“Aye! It’s cold!” they heard Niall yell from his canoe in the middle of the lake. Zayn had just splashed him with his canoe paddle, soaking him from head to toe. He stared at Tori, who was completely dry, and wondered aloud, “How are you still dry?”

Tori shrugged, rowing away from Zayn and Penny’s canoe in case they splashed again. “Water doesn’t like me.”

Niall smirked at the back of her head, considering she was at the front of the canoe, and he was at the back. He reached over and tackled Tori with a hug, sending her screaming with laughter.

“S-Stop! I’m getting wet!” she shrieked.

“See, water does like you!”

“Oh, shut up, Niall!” Tori replied, as he began tickling her.

Harry and Kate sat in one of the chairs set up at the shore, and watched the whole situation unfold. They began laughing as Niall and Tori’s canoe flipped over, sending them falling into the water. Harry turned to face Kate, who was half asleep as she watched them.

In an effort to keep her awake, he said, “So, Kate, tell me about yourself.”

She turned, giving him a sleepy smile. “There’s not much to tell.”

“Oh, come on,” Harry said, sending her a caring smile, and wanted to say, a beautiful girl like yourself definitely must have a story, but instead, he said, “how about we go for a hike? Beautiful weather today.”

“Hm... Okay,” Kate said, getting up. She and Harry walked around the lake to the trail that would lead up the mountain, where they would soon be taking the campers for a night hike and stargazing. “How about you tell me about yourself, Harry?”

“Well…” he started, picking up a large stick and using it to poke the dirt as he walked, “I’m eighteen years old, and I’m in a band… Hm… I’m single, my favorite fruits are bananas, oh, and I have a fondness for cats.”

“Is that true? I mean, I thought the whole ‘cat’ thing was a hoax,” Kate said, stepping a bit closer to him as a growl escaped from the bushes near them.

“Yeah, I guess,” he said, sighing. “I have a cat back home, his name’s Dusty.”

“Cool,” Kate said, gripping his white t-shirt as they walked.

“Something wrong, Kate?” Harry asked, as he stared down at her pale face. “Kate? Katherine?”

She shakily pointed ahead of them, and Harry turned to see what was scaring her. When he saw what it was, his eyes widened in shock. It was a bear, with its back turned to them.

“Oh-okay, Kate, we need to lay down, okay? Can you do that for me?” Harry whispered, his heart racing. Kate nodded, as he held her hands. They lay down on their backs, and Harry asked, “Do you want me to hold your hand?”

She nodded again, as he laced his fingers with hers. Harry’s grip on her hand tightened as the dry leaves around them made a crunching sound as the bear walked towards them. They both closed their eyes, knowing they had to pretend to be dead for the bear to leave.

Kate nearly gasped as she felt the soft nose of the bear on her forehead as it smelled her. Harry narrowed his eyes to slits and looked at the corner of his eye to see how Kate was doing, and nearly jumped up when he saw the bear sniffing her. But after a few minutes, the bear ran off in the other direction, disappearing behind trees.

“Harry…” Kate said, her voice shaking with fright.

“Kate, it’s okay, we’re alive,” Harry reassured her, as they stood up. Tears were pouring out of Kate’s eyes as her body shook. Harry arched his eyebrows, staring at her. “D-Do you have anxiety attacks?”

“M-Mild ones,” Kate answered, her hands shaking.

“It’s okay, calm down,” he said, taking her hands in his. He placed her shaky palm his cheek with his own hand and said, “See? You’re alive, I’m alive. That bear didn’t do anything.”

Harry pulled Kate into a hug as she cried, and he rubbed her back to calm her down. After a few minutes of sobs and tears, Kate pulled away, staring into his eyes. Harry bit his lip, and placed his left hand on the back of her head, running his fingers through her hair for a moment.

“Harry?” Kate said, as they got closer.

“Yeah?” he said, his lips brushing against hers.

“Thank you,” she whispered, before kissing him.