Fandom I K N O W A P L A C E \\ Camp Camp Roleplay // 1x1

[Pilot-66]

“Sure thing!” David glowed, looking up at Abby with a grin as she stood and started to dismiss herself from the table. He turned his attention back down to the forms in front of him as she disappeared behind the bathroom door. He let himself relax a bit when he finally heard the old pipes squeak to life. Good. At least the plumbing seemed to be holding up around here—passingly, at least. Even if the water never quite got hot, they had consistent fresh flowing water. So, that was one task he could probably put off for a while. Which was good because the piers, the Mess Hall, and the Camp entrance all needed to look their best before the first inspection…

David caught himself staring blankly down at Abby’s employment paperwork as he mulled over and tried to mentally plan out his work hours. He blinked and shook his head to clear his thoughts when he realized he’d spaced out. Oh, what was he doing? It’d be fine! He’d figure it all out and get it done as he went. Forcing himself to focus on the task currently in front of him, David signed off a few more sheets of the employment documents. When he’d finally finished all the paperwork, he stood and ventured back to his nightstand. He slid the lower drawer open again and filed her paperwork away with all the other documents he was now responsible for.

With everything put away, he closed the drawer and started to stand, but paused when he saw the corner of the old Memories corkboard peaking out from behind his bed. “Oh, there you are!” David chimed, reaching behind the bed to pull the corkboard out and brush a bit off dust off the corner. He looked over the pinned photos and trinkets with a broad grin. Just seeing last years campers got him excited for the adventures awaiting them this year—and it was all just a day away now!

His smile faltered a little though when his eyes fell across some of the older photos with tinged and torn edges. Silence fell over the cabin, the distant hiss of the shower seeming to fade and blend into the quiet. He reached up slowly, hesitantly even, and pulled a couple of the more personal photos off the board, looking them over closely before opening the top drawer of his nightstand and gently placing them inside. He repeated the process until the only aged photo that remained was the old group shot he’d taken with his camping troop as a kid.

With the new organization done, David stood and carried the corkboard over to its usual place on the wall by the door and hung it up. He gave it another once over, thinking for a moment before blinking and digging into his pocket for the receipt to the pizza that he and Abbyy had shared. He tacked it up into one of the new blank spaces on the board, putting it right between a construction paper pamphlet for one of Preston’s plays and his old ‘Max + Positivity = Sucess’ note. He’d have to dig out the old polaroid tomorrow so that they could get an updated group picture to add to the board.

Taking a step back to admire his work, David felt the corners of his mouth turn up again as he held his hands to his hips, “Perfect.”

He looked over his shoulder when he heard the bathroom door click open and saw Abby clamoring out of the bathroom in a hurry. He winced inwardly at her rush. Maybe the water situation wasn’t as taken care of as he’d thought…? It’d seemed okay when he’d used it, though.

Deciding to try and not worry about it for now, David turned back to his nightstand and slid the top drawer shut before facing her with all his usual mirth. “Feeling better?” He asked, then snapped his spine up straight when he realized something, “Oh, right!”

He crossed the room again, ducking into the tiny laundry room for a second. He came back out a few seconds later, carrying a pile of neatly folded sheets, a pillow, and a fluffy green comforter. “These are all yours~! Just pulled them out of the dryer so they should be nice and fresh. You’ll never get that oak smell out completely, but pft–,” He rolled his eyes, still grinning ear to ear as he offered her the arm full of bedding, “–Who would want to? Right?”

The blankets were as fresh as he promised, still a little warm from the dryer. The smell of the cabin had indeed sunk deep into the fabric, but the scent of fresh soap mingled evenly enough with it to keep it from being overpowering.

 

[TarantulaHawk]

She blinked, the panic-y feeling ebbing away when she realized that David was still in the cabin. Right. "Y-Yeah, I do. It's amazing what being clean can feel like."

She wished that was a joke or something, maybe even a snarky remark. But it was the truth. She had gone weeks without being clean before. She had been through times where she had to take paper towels and wet them down and scrub at her skin to get rid of the dirt so that way she looked okay hygiene-wise to be going to work. She had gone through times where her hair had been so greasy that she had to wash it multiple times before it even started to look normal again. It just felt wonderful to be able to wash away the grime and strain from her life for a while.

Abby looked back at him when he offered her the blankets and whatnot. They all looked very soft and comfortable. She took some carefully and with a little smile. Honestly, she never thought that she did used bedding that looked so nice. She inwardly cringed at that realization and focused more on what he had to say than her own thoughts.

"Thanks," she said, carefully setting it on her bed and then moving her belongings to the floor - she'd probably unpack eventually, "and wood is a nice smell, anyway. I won't mind."

She had certainly smelled worse than oak or pine or any other sort of earthly scent. And she knew that the longer she stayed there, the more comfortable she become with the smell. It would certainly be weird to be in an environment that actually smelled good. She didn't really mind that, though, because why would she?

With a little sigh, she decided to put her bed together properly; the sheets, then the comforter and the pillow on top of it. She liked the shade of green that it was. Deep and rich. Then, she focused on unpacking what she was going to be wearing the next day - she had one pair of faded blue jeans ans brand new (actually second-hand) gray and white sneakers she had only worn once. That and her new camp counselor shirt. She laid it all out in a neat pile at the end of her bed and stared at it for a moment.

She was honestly hoping that this job would last. She had no idea what she would do if it didn't.

 

[Pilot-66]

David nodded as he handed the sheets and things off to her. As soon as she’d taken them and started setting up her bed, he smiled at her natural acceptance and ease of the cabin’s charms. Even going so far as to call it nice. “Exactly!” He agreed, swinging his arm forward with giddy emphasis, “You wouldn’t believe how long it took me to convince Gwen how great it is…and that twenty-three cans of Lysol definitely wasn’t going to be enough to cover it and was generally a bad idea.” He spoke with the hint of a chuckle in his voice, but his lungs and the back of his throat still kind of burned every time he remembered the incident.

While Abby made her bed, David turned back to care of a bit more laundry, adding another load of linen into the washing machine before stepping back out into the main room. He glanced over at Abby again, raising a brow slowly when he saw her lingering at the foot of her bed and staring down the change of clothes she’d set out. He moved over to her slowly, glancing between the tension on her features and the outfit on the bed for a moment before settling his focus on her and offering a small smile. “Don’t worry,” He assured in a voice that was a little more subdued than his usual tone, his words somehow sounding more earnest despite being less animated, “You’re gonna do great, Abby.”

The lanky counselor gave her a smile for a few seconds longer before turning away and heading back to his side of the cabin, “Well! All that’s left to do now is try to get some sleep before the big day tomorrow!” All the buoyancy in his voice seemed to be back in full swing as he paused by the middle table pick up the clipboard and pen they’d been using earlier so that he could put them away in their proper spot.

“Unless there’s something else you needed or wanted to ask?” He offered with a glance back over at his new co-counselor.

 

[TarantulaHawk]

She had to smile slightly at another reassurance from him, which was certainly not the first time that evening she had been comforted with words. Even though his words were more likely genuine than not, she still had a hard time believing that someone actually cared about her success. It seemed... Odd. Almost uncomfortable, actually, as it made her think of the only other person who had acted that way with her. She shook her head. If she kept thinking about him, she'd have nightmares for sure.

"Huh?" She murmured as she looked over at David, then shook her head, coming back to a proper place in reality, "No, no questions here."

She plopped down onto the bed and laid-back. She expected it to be a lot more uncomfortable than it actually was, but then again, her body's standards of comfort were actually pretty low. That bed made her feel like she was a queen or something. As she laid back, she smiled a little and put her head on the pillow, glancing out the window at the darkness of the forest beyond the buildings of the camp. Everything felt like a fairytale, or like she was dreaming constantly or something like that. Nothing felt real. Or maybe that was just what she thought because she was tired. After a moment, she slid underneath the covers and looked over at David with a little smile.

"Goodnight, David." She said lightly, glancing back out the window before turning onto her side toward it.

 

[Pilot-66]

“Okie-Dokie, then.” David turned away from her to put the office supplies up as Abby settled into her own bed and lost herself to her thoughts for a while. David busied himself with going around the cabin and turning off all the extra lamps he’d lit earlier. He’d just reached the last of them when Abby spoke again.

“Goodnight.” He answered with a flash of a grin over his shoulder before he cut the last of the light off. The cabin plunged into darkness, but the moonlight from the window provided just enough light for one to find their way around without bumping into too many things.

David slipped off to the bathroom and changed into his sleepwear before venturing back out and crawling into his bed. He took a little while to settle under the sheets, but once he had he caught himself smiling up at the woodland beyond the window as well. Then his eyes fell back down, lingering over the chipped edge of the nightstand’s upper shelf for a few seconds. He drew a long breath, then rolled over onto his side, forcing his eyes to close for the night.

–

The night passed slowly and restlessly, as they so very often did, but for today at least, David was willing to chalk that up to excitement. Today was officially the first day of Summer! He woke with the sun and slipped out of bed as quietly as he could. He moved into the bathroom to shave and wash his face, brush his teeth, and change into his uniform as quietly as he could—something he was well practiced at by now since Gwen had never been much of a morning person.

Once he was dressed and ready for the day, he carefully stepped back out into the main room and made his way to the main table where he scribbled a quick note down for Abby,

Good Morning!​

​

Thought I’d let you get a bit more sleep before your big day. I’ll be in the Mess Hall, it’s the big building next to the flagpole straight across from here, you can’t miss it. Drop by for some breakfast. Kids should be here around 9!​

​

-David​

Leaving the note behind in the middle of the table, David slipped outside and drew in a lung full of the fresh morning air. Despite everything, it felt so good to back out here. With a smile on his lips and a spring in his step, the lanky counselor followed the dirt path up to the Mess Hall and unlocked the front doors.

He flipped the lights on as he entered and headed straight back for the kitchen. He’d done what he could to restock their cooking supplies and made sure to arrange for fresh weekly supplies when it came to food. That was something Mr.Campbell had always downplayed, much to his chagrin, but…at least now he was able to do things the way he thought they should be done. Of course, there’d probably be no talking the quartermaster out of making his usual mashed potato special five times a week, and that was fine…he supposed, now they’d just have other–fresher and definitely more nutrional–things to go along with it!

Humming quietly to himself, David got to work using the new utensils and pans to prep breakfast for himself and Abby since the QM and kids would have eaten in the city before making the long drive up to Sleepy Peak. It wasn’t long before the aroma of fresh scrambled eggs and sizzling bacon wafted their way out of the Mess Hall just as the sun was finally starting to rise above the treetops.

 

[TarantulaHawk]

When she awoke, she was covered with a thin sheet of sweat. She never slept without nightmares, or memories of her past coming back to haunt her somehow. But she hated when she woke up feeling like that. Sweating in her sleep with something she could honestly live without. She laid there in bed for a few minutes, rubbing her eyes free of sleep and she hoped that she didn't look too bad. After a moment longer of staying in the warmth of the bed, she sat up and stretched her arms above her head. Her joints cracked lightly, signaling that she had slept pretty damn well. She wasn't surprised. Sleeping in a bed was much more comfortable than sleeping on the floor or on a bench or something like that.

As Abby got out of bed, she spotted the note that was on the table. Carefully did she walk over, trying to ignore the creaks from the floorboards, and snagged the note. A little smile made its way onto her tired face. David was honestly a saint, and she had a feeling that she would never see him any other way. She carefully folded up the note and walked over to the trash bin, tossing it in there lightly before heading to the bathroom with her change of clothing for the day.

The first thing she did when she got into the bathroom was brush her teeth. She hated the taste of morning breath and she imagined that it wouldn't be very pleasant for anyone that would end up near her. She then took a wash rag and dampened it, using it to wipe away the sweat from her body that had built up through her night of comfort and mental distraught. After making sure she was free of sweat, she applied deodorant and got dressed.

"I’m a semi functioning human, but I’ve done pretty well so far," she sang to herself as she left the bathroom, digging into her little bag for a hairtie until she found one, "Sure I slept in 'til, like three, but I made a great cup of tea, so that’s one gold star for me."

She put up her hair, and she never had needed a mirror to do so. She had been doing it for so long that she sometimes forgot what her hair looked like when it was down. But she didn't really like it being down. It was too puffy and it was disgusting when it was greasy, which was most of the time.

Then, she headed outside, thinking of the directions given to her by David as she looked for the mess hall, continuing to sing - "I might forget your birthday, I might not even know your name. But if you tell me a secret, it’s as safe as it can be..."

She smiled when she found it finally, pushing open the door and stepping inside. The smell of food attacked her nose the second she got inside and the feeling of being triumphant in her search swelled in her chest a little.

"So that's one gold star for me~"

 

[Pilot-66]

The toaster behind him gave a short ding just as he finished plating up the eggs and bacon. Without missing a beat, David swung around and added a piece of toast to each of the plates, still humming to himself as he worked, though he stopped short when a new melody drifted in from the dining hall, accompanied by the squeaky hinges of the Mess Hall’s heavy doors.

“So that’s one gold star for me~”

David couldn’t keep a grin from spreading across his face as he listened. It was going to be nice having someone else so musically inclined around the camp. While Gwen could sing–quite well actually–she’d never quite…uh, appreciated…the art of a good campfire song, so they’d been unfortunately few and far between the past few years. But maybe now, between the two of them, they could show the kids what a good, old-fashioned, technology-free, camp out under the stars was supposed to be like. Nothing but clear skies, wind in the trees, all the smores you could eat, and simple music with friends. His heart swelled at the idea. Oh, they were going to love it!

With a new spring in his step, David gathered up the two plates he’d prepared and shouldered his way past the kitchen’s swinging door. “Gooooood Morning, Abby~!” He greeted, practically swinging into the dining area to meet her, “You’re right on time! Breakfast just finished cooking.”

He set the two plates down on one of the nearest wooden tables. He had loaded both of the plates down with a hearty breakfast that was–admittedly out of habit–shaped like a couple of smiley faces; two eggs, sunny side up, forming the eyes and few bacon strips serving as the upturned mouth.

“Let me go grab the coffee. You go ahead and dig in!” The redhead beckoned with a wave before turning on his heel and vanishing back into the kitchen for a few seconds. He came back out with two white mugs, a few sugar packets, and a fresh pot of coffee in hand. He set the mugs down, pouring them each a cup of coffee and handing Abbys hers first before glancing over at the nearest window and walking over to open it up. Just to air the building out a bit. He’d spent most of yesterday afternoon cleaning the place up, but it still felt a little stuffy after a year of no use.

David sat down in front of his own breakfast, taking a moment to enjoy the passing breeze and the warmth of the sun as it cast long flickering shadows across the marred surface of the table. “So!” He finally turned his attention back to Abby and picked up one of the sugar packets too add to his coffee, “How are you feeling? Excited to meet the kids? I know I can’t wait to finally show you around!”

 

[TarantulaHawk]

She honestly could have laughed at how honestly happy he seemed to be at all times, especially that early in the morning. Abby wasn't a happy morning person or a late riser. She was usually somewhere in between the two options and woke up around nine or ten on her own and she had always been like that. It was also pretty helpful because if she had to get up earlier than that, she usually could do so with a little earlier of a bedtime for herself.

"Good morning," she yawned, her hand flying up to cover her mouth as she did so, and then it dropped as she sat down and he put the plates down - the smiley face was adorable, honestly, "I'm guessing you slept well."

As he dashed off to retrieve their coffee, something she hadn't had in ages, she did begin to eat. She loved eggs and bacon. Honestly, breakfast kind of was her favorite food time; even in the afternoon or one in the morning in a small, hole-in-the-wall diner somewhere. The eggs, she found, were perfectly cooked and she really took her time eating. Home cooked meals were not something she had a lot. Well, ever, actually, but she imagined the frequency would increase now that she was working at a camp. She liked the idea of being able to eat actual food that didn't come from some cruddy gas station or general store.

When David offered her the mug, she waited for him to pour coffee in it and then took it with ease. She grabbed a couple of sugar packets and emptied them in the steaming, dark brown liquid, carefully stirring it around with the spoon she wasn't using to eat. After a moment, she took a sip. Bitter, but sort of sweet at the same time. Just how she remembered it. Coffee was another luxury item that she could never really afford on her own. At least, not the decent stuff.

"Well," she sighed softly, smiling a bit more awkwardly than she realized, "I'm... Scared? Yeah, that seems like a good word for it. I've never worked with kids before."

That was the thing she was most genuinely worried about. Kids were kind of... More jerkish than they were when she was one. And more attached to their technology. Would their technological withdrawals make them hate her or attack her? Or would they just be rude because they thought they could get away with it? She dropped her hands to her lap when she realized how bad they had started to shake.

She did not want to have an anxiety attack that early in the morning.

 

[Pilot-66]

David dug into his breakfast as he listened to Abby struggle for and eventually find the right word to answer with. He sunk down a little in his seat as he watched the thin smile on her face falter slightly with her nerves. His eyes fell to the table when she drew her arms in close to herself. He wasn’t certain, but he thought he might have seen a bit of a tremble in her fingers…

“Well, some can be a little rough around the edges.” The redhead reached out and wrapped his hands around his coffee mug, trying to find the right balance between honesty and reassurance, “A few of them are just…dealing with a bit more than the others…” his voice trailed for a moment, green eyes turning away from her and focus on the window again before he carried on, “and they’re kids, so you know, they say and do dumb things for attention or to shield themselves…” David’s fingers closed more tightly around the ceramic in his hands and he reflexively pulled the cup closer to his chest.

After a heartbeat or two, he pulled his gaze away from the window and turned back to her with his usual smile, “But, really–I know every counselor probably says the same thing–but, they’re good kids. Last year they even pulled together this old bonfire tradition to cheer me up, even though they didn’t really want to do it to start with…” He took a sip of his coffee and chuckled at the memory, a new sort of warmth and pride settling over his voice and easing his shoulders, “They made it their own thing. It was even better than what I had in mind.”

He decided not to mention the gasoline fire that’d started shortly after that touching moment. After all, that was just…an honest mistake on Max’s part. On that note, David blinked and reached up to rub the side of his neck over the yellow cloth of the make-shift bandana he wore. “Oh, uh heh, while I’m thinking about it… when they get here, maybe just let me handle the introductions with Max at first? We’re uh, still working on his language…”

Shaking his head to move past it, he straightened up in his seat again, grin broadening and lighting his expression as he focused on her, “But don’t you worry, Abby! We’ll get you up to speed in no time~! The kids are gonna love you!” Setting his coffee aside, David picked his fork back up to tackle the rest of his breakfast. He lifted one finger off the fork to point across the table at her as he added, “And you just let me know if it’s too much and you need a break in the cabin every now and then. I’ll tag in to handle the kids! We’re a team now~”

 

[TarantulaHawk]

"Well, I expect the bad behavior," she chuckled a little, taking a small drink of her coffee before continuing to speak, "they're kids. Usually most parents send their kids to camp because they don't want to bother with them. That sounds awful, but I've seen it happen before."

She had only been in public schooling for a little while, because she didn't really have a stable home. But the school did she had been at the longest, when she was twelve years old, was a private school full of a lot of rich children. Now, those rich children didn't exactly understand that their parents didn't really love them because they were giving them gifts over and over again. She remembered them boasting about going to camp excitedly, then when they returned, they would talk about it and how amazing it was, but also how their parents never wrote them letters. Of course, Abby had grown up to realize this. When she was little, she comforted them and said that their parents must have just been busy.

When David mentioned a child named 'Max', she nodded. "Alright. Probably for the best."

Abby wasn't somebody who used foul language a lot, but she was human and occasionally it would slip out. But nothing to the extent that some children would use bad language and the idea of a child cussing more than an adult was kind of scary. But she knew it happened a lot. The idea of a frequently foul-mouthed child made her wonder a little bit more about Max. Surely his parents wouldn't let him say awful things all the time? Maybe he just did it at camp to rebel.

At David's words of encouragement, she had to smile a little bit. "I hope so. It wouldn't be good if they didn't, I have a feeling." Her joke was soft spoken as she cradled her coffee cup between her palms. And then she looked at him with a slightly wider smile, "The same goes to you, David. Working with kids all the time must be exhausting. If we're a team, that offer goes both ways. Okay?"

 

[Pilot-66]

“Yeah…” David shuffled a little uncomfortably in his seat when Abby mentioned parents using the camp as more of a three-month daycare than an enrichment to their child’s lives. It wasn’t an easy thing to agree to. Less than a year ago he was certain he’d have tried to coax her out of such a mindset, but…so much had changed since last year’s Parent’s day. His convictions most of all—but he wasn’t going to let that dampen the summer. Not by a long shot! “Buuut, that’s what we’re here for!” He sat back up, chest puffed out and eyes aglow with enthusiasm, “To make sure our campers have the time of their lives!”

He quieted back down after that, listening attentively as Abby spoke. When her smile finally broadened at his reassurances, David grinned back and gave her an enthusiastic nod when she reminded him that she be there for him as well, “You got it!”

For the next half hour or so, David did his best to fill the morning with small talk in an effort to keep Abby’s mind off her nerves as they waited for the kids. When they’d finished eating, he’d taken the time to show her to the back of the Mess Hall while he cleaned up the dishes. He pointed out where she could find extra snacks or drinks if she or one of the kids ever needed anything in-between meal times. He showed her where the broom closest and cleaning supplies were as well since the two of them would likely be cleaning the Mess Hall a couple of times a day between activities and meals.

Eventually, the sound of tires rolling up on the dirt path made David’s head snap to the doors. “They’re here!” He piped with enthusiasm, waving for Abby to join him as he hurried over and threw the Mess Hall doors open with zeal, “Helloooo, Campbell Campers~!!!” Most of the kids were already off the bus, gathered in a small group next to the flagpole. David’s grin managed to widened further as familiar faces turned to glance up at him and Abby in the doorway, “Who’s ready to have the best summer ever?!”

None of the kids answered his greeting. Most didn’t even bother to give him more than a passing glance before their attention fell on Abby. “Uh…” One of the kids stared, but before anything more could be said, a rough voice spoke out over everyone.

“Ah, great. Who the fuck are you?” A young boy with dark messy hair stepped down off the bus’ last step. His brows furrowed as he eyed Abby suspiciously while he reached up and adjusted the backpack strap on his shoulder.

“Watch the language, Max.” David wished that wasn’t the first thing he had to say to him this summer, but he did his best to breeze past it as he turned his smile to Abby and held a hand out to her, “Everyone, this is Abby! As of yesterday, she’s our newest co-counselor, so I want you all to give her your warmest Camp Campbell welcome and–”

“Yesterday?!” Max interrupted with an incredulous scoff as he turned his glare on David, “You gotta be shitting me! Did you even do a background check on her? We do NOT need another cultist trying to kill us all!”

The redhead gave a nervous laugh, “Heh, C’mon Max. Daniel just had an accident, and…I—that only happened once.”

“Twice.” Max corrected, his expression and voice dulling to passive anger as he watched David flash Abby an apologetic smile. “Literally in the same day.”

“Ooo-hooo!” The dark-haired boy's expression didn’t change as a flash of green flew off of the bus and brushed passed him. A young girl in overalls sped up to Abby, somehow crawling forward on her hands and toes like an animal as she bared a toothy grin at the woman, “New meat, huh? You know what that means. We gotta sort out a pecking order–”

David’s shoulders tensed at the words. Remembering what Niki had done the first time she'd met him, David quickly put himself between Niki and Abby, lifting his palms up in front of himself to try and settle down the green-haired girl, “Ah, Niki!? No dominance biting, alright?”

While his friend occupied David, Max shoved his hands into the pocket of his blue hoody and strode forward until he stood a few feet away from Abby. “…Sooo, what are you really?” He squinted, “Satanist looking for sacrifices? Serial Killer? Scientologist looking for kids to abduct and convert? Just so you know we killed the last guy who tried to start shit.” He added the last threat with a small smirk. In truth, Max was pretty sure Daniel was still alive in a prison somewhere...and they’d only gotten out of that whole thing because Daniel was a fucking idiot who poisoned himself, but ehh…this lady didn’t need the finer details. Just the point.

 

[TarantulaHawk]

Honestly, the small talk that David provided actually did sort of keep her occupied mentally. She didn't really have any experience with just trying to talk to somebody in a situation that wasn't tense or her just doing the job. But it was kind of nice. Also, being able to have a brief tour of where everything was happened to be very helpful. She was sure that she would have to ask questions about where things were occasionally, as she didn't have the best memory, but she would eventually learn and she knew that very well. She didn't have to worry about saying the wrong thing to David, she realized, and she had a feeling she would enjoy this job more than she did others, even though she couldn't really figure out why she had that feeling. Maybe it was because she was more comfortable than she had ever been before, even though she still had plenty anxiety twisting her stomach about.

At the sound of the bus tires driving through the dirt path that they had once taken to get to the camp, she felt her intestines twist even more and she wondered when they would lose circulation from doing so many acrobatics inside of her body. David seemed so enthusiastic about seeing the campers, how he flung his arms about as he excitedly welcome to them. But Abby was very concerned automatically when the kids didn't really respond. And her concern and anxiety only got worse when one of the kids pointed her out. But even though his foul language and almost authoritative resistance was quite scary, she noticed something. He reminded her of someone she knew before. A long time ago, though, and that person had been gone since she had been forced to grow up.

Abby gave David a look of concern when the young child mentioned occultist being the previous counselor. It made sense why Max was then concerned about the fact that she could have been dangerous. She would have been concerned about that too if she was a camper.

Her eyes widened slightly when he mentioned a name she recognized. It had a heavy air around it and it made her choke up. But it couldn't have been the person she thought it was. Everyone had the same name at some point and she was bound to eventually find someone with that name. Honestly, she was surprised that she hadn't encountered someone with the name before. And the one she knew hadn't gone that far with his religion.

She didn't think so, at least, but it had been a while since she had seen him.

Her attention was quickly torn from Max, David, and her thoughts of fear as a young girl rushed up to her. The words out of her mouth were slightly threatening and Abby wasn't quite sure what to do but put her hands up, palm out, shaking. She glanced at David confusedly as he put himself between the girl, Nikki, and her. "Dominance biting?" She mumbled to herself with a frown.

But she was, again, torn from the situation when Max approached. He spoke about how he wanted to know what she was, what she was going to do to them. With a little smile, she managed to respond. "I'm just... Me, I guess. I don't want to hurt anyone. I'm here to help David out." and then, she sighed, "And I know you probably think I'm stupid, but I'm not as stupid as you think. David would never let you kill someone. Seriously."

Maybe he would. Honestly, she didnt know anything about David. She spared the red-headed counselor a glance out of the corner of her eye. She literally trusted him because he gave her a job. She didn't have the best track record when it came to trusting the right people, she had to admit, but it happened.

"Max, seriously," a boy approached them both - lanky, with curly brown hair and a slightly uncomfortable look on his face that Abby felt like was always there, "just because we have a new counselor doesn't mean they're going to kill us. Even though statistically speaking, they have a high probability of it."

 

[Pilot-66]

Max studied Abby as she answered his question, one brow raising slowly and skeptically when she got frank with him about not being stupid enough to buy his threats. So, she was going to be one of those adults. One that tried to level with him on things. Eager to nip that idea in the bud, he shrugged up at her unceremoniously and doubled down on his insults with an almost bored tone, “Well, you gotta be some kind of stupid if you really think David has control over anything that goes on around this camp…”

The boy turned his head, looking over his shoulder as Neil approached and tried to placate the situation like he normally did. Max opened his mouth to argue the point, but stopped short to grumble when David dropped a hand on his head and ruffled his hair. He reached up, clawing the offending hand away.

“Neil’s right, Max. I know making new friends can be scary, but you’ve got nothing to worry about! I think you and Abby are going to get along just fine.” David bent his back to lean down and smile at the boy, glad to have settled Niki down rather quickly so he could get back to monitoring the whole group, “After all, look how well you ended up getting along with these two!” He beamed, gesturing to Neil and Niki as the green-haired girl walked over to join the boys. The three of them hardly went anywhere without each other last year and they seemed to have already grouped back together on the bus ride over. “Let’s just give it some time, okay?” The lanky counselor urged, giving one of his more relaxed smiles as an unspoken reassurance that he didn’t expect Max to warm up to Abby instantly---just to try.

Max reached up, smoothing his hair back down as he glared up at David. His brows furrowed as he read the man’s expression, and for a moment pale green eyes cut back at Abby as if he had more to say, but instead, he just rolled his eyes and dropped his hands back down into his pockets, “Whatever.”

“That’s the spirit!” David glowed with praise, practically springing back upright as he grinned down at Max for a second before turning and striding over to stand under the flagpole as the camp’s faded flag cast a flickering shadow down over their gathering. “Alright, kiddos! Who’s ready to help me teach Abby our tried and true Camp Campbell salute and pledge before we start our orientation tour?” The redhead snapped a hand up to his forehead, holding only his ring finger down in a spirited salute. Out in the crowd, only space kid saluted along with him.

Despite being used to the normally obscene hand gesture being thrown around like it was nothing out here, Max couldn’t keep himself from sighing and slapping a hand over his face.

“Come on, campers. It’s not Orientation day without everyone’s participation~” David held the pose.

“Uhhh, we’ve all been here before though…?” A young girl with glasses pointed out politely but skeptically.

“Yeah,” The largest boy in the group agreed, “We’re kinda just expecting to pick up where we left off, so…” He reached out, knocking over one of the other kids before quickly uttering some sort explanation about how he owned her a shove from last year before he turned and started leading the way towards the camper’s tents. As if on cue, the other kids all picked up their bags and followed his lead, eager to reclaim their old spots and tent-mates.

“Uh, guys wait–I—” David dropped his hand back to his side and stammered after them. Quickly he shook it off and turned to Abby with an almost sheepish grin, "I guess I’ll just give you the tour as we walk!” Not missing a beat in his usual optimism he added, “We pretty much covered the Mess Hall already anyway!”

As the last of the kids started marching their way deeper into the camp, David turned and followed behind them, not wanting anyone to wander into any construction and get hurt in an accident. “Looks like we’re headed for the Camper’s tents right now. That’s right outside the cabin so we can make sure everyone’s safe and tucked in after lights out. Heh, guess everyone’s just itching to unpack and settle in.” He turned his head to look over at her, “Uh, if you have any questions along the way just let me know!”

 

[TarantulaHawk]

In the beginning, she didn't have any questions. Everything seemed fairly simple. She was going to be a camp counselor and she was going to help David with whatever she could. The first few days we're actually pretty good. The kids all seemed to be well-behaved and she didn't have any problems. However about a week and a half in was when she realized that she was far in over her head and really should have just taken the option to be homeless instead of helping him. Abby had never been cussed out by children, she had never had things stuck in her hair, she had never had her clothing ripped, her knees skinned, and her sanity tested every single hour of every day. she had also never realized how rough kids were to deal with. She really and truly hoped that not every child in the world was like that, or should have to remind herself that having children in the future just wasn't an option for her own personal health.

The kids were currently making macaroni art, a small activity that she figured they would stay calm for; at least for a little while so she could go into the counselor's cabin and cool herself off. It was a rather warm day, and she had put on deodorant of course, but she really needed to go and apply more. So once she had them sat down and got them going, she quickly left the mess hall and headed over to the cabin.

The moment that she flung open the front door, she was greeted with nice, cool air. There was no air conditioning inside of the cabin, but it was still much warmer than the eighty degree weather that they had going on outside. She shut the door quickly behind her and then ran to the bathroom, making sure that she still looked okay. Of course, she didn't look okay at all, and was quite messy - her ponytail had fallen almost all the way out of the hairtie, she had slight armpit stains in her t-shirt from the cheap deodorant, her arms were covered in band aids from various injuries she had sustained through the recent week, and she was shiny with sweat. She needed to fix herself up.

As she walked over to her bed to grab her deodorant and an unstained shirt, she spotted the other camp counselor. Another thing that she had realized since she had been there, was the fact that she had never met such a hard worker. And Not only was he a hard worker, he was a constant optimist with a smile on his face. When he wasn't helping her with the kids, he was repairing something in the camp. Currently, she saw him working on the pier, reparing planks. And he was still sort of smiling, but she could tell that the work was taking a huge toll on his body and that wasn't fair to let him do that alone.

So, once she changed her shirt and apply deodorant and fix herself up again, she left the counselor cabin and walked over to the pier, glancing over her shoulder a few times to try and listen in to the mess hall to make sure that the kids weren't actually causing chaos yet. She approached David with a small smile, already feeling her lower back getting sweaty from the sun.

"Hey, David," she said easily, looking at him, "need a hand? I think I've got ten minutes tops before the kids start another riot."

 

[Pilot-66]

The first week and a half of Camp had gone…pretty smoothly, David thought. Sure, there had been arguments and fights to settle, a couple of pocket knives confiscated, and more than a few of Niki’s animal friends to chase off, but hey! There’d been no fires, no crashed vehicles, and so far Max hadn’t tried to sneak off the campgrounds with his friends in tow (though his language and attitude were still a work in progress). All in all, David felt…pretty proud of how things were going under his leadership. It wasn’t perfect yet, but, by the end of the Summer–gosh darn it–he was sure it would be!

It was that idea that kept him going. Every spare moment he got–be that early in the morning, late at night, or now in the middle of the day while the kids were doing inside activities–he worked diligently to get the camp repaired and cleaned. He only had a few days left before the Camping Committee's first inspector came, and he was determined to ensure that all the safety violations that’d been pointed out before were corrected in time for the first inspection. If he had the time, he wanted to get a new coat of paint on everything too. Just to make the best first impression. Then maybe he could start work on the cabins and trail makers, then—

For about the third time that day, his wandering mind cost him.

David missed the nail he’d been aiming for and accidentally dropped the hammer’s head down on his thumb. He let out a short yelp, yanking his hand back and dropped the nail he’d been trying to hold in place. He shook his head vigorously, trying to chase away the pain throbbing in his thumb. He stopped flailing around after a few painful seconds and turned his hand over to evaluate the damage. Somehow he’d yet to draw blood, but his thumb and couple of other digits were starting to flush red and purple with bruises. Oh boy, he really needed to cut the daydreaming…

Hearing footsteps behind him, the red-head glanced over his shoulder to see Abby approaching him. “Hey there, Abby~!” He piped up with all his usual fervor, dropping his hand back down to his side and forgetting about it for the moment.

The counselor’s grin broadened when she mentioned the kids. He was thrilled to hear that they were behaving, at least for now. Maybe they were finally starting to settle in and get into the camping spirit! He glanced down at the edge of the pier when she offered her help and felt his shoulders ease subconsciously, “Actually, if you wouldn’t mind grabbing me those extra planks and some more nails from the Quartmaster’s shed, that’d help a lot.” He let himself fall back into a sitting position to rest for a few minutes, his smile not at all betraying the ache in joints and muscles or the weight of eyelids.

He glanced back up to her with a grateful smile, taking a moment to wipe his forehead with a forearm, “I’ve only got about six more planks to replace and then I’ll be right back in the fun with you guys, I promise.” He assured, knowing that the kids could be a bit of a handful to handle alone. Even if just for an hour. “After all, tonight’s our first big camp-out of the summer! I wouldn’t miss it for the world~!”

 

[TarantulaHawk]

"I can do that." She nodded, then chuckled a little bit. "No worries. I think, maybe, kinda sorta, I have them under control."

She was feeling pretty confident about that day and how well the children were behaving. She had learned that the kids were very rarely peaceful for long when they did behave, so she really had to pick up the pace and get back to them. But she felt so bad for just leaving David to do all the hard, manual labor. She worked there too, you know?

After a moment of staring at his slightly bruised fingers, she focused on grabbing him the boards. She stumbled a little when she grabbed them and quickly toppled over, sending the boards clattering to the ground and onto her lap. With a huff and an embarrassingly red cheeks, she picked up the boards again and brought them over to David. She carefully stacked them on the ground when she set them down, and then she turned away again, but this time to head to the Quartermaster's shed to look for nails.

She quickly reached the shed and flung the door is open, beginning to dig through the objects in order to find him some extra nails. But she wasn't really thinking of the task at hand. She was thinking about David. She knew that he was a hard worker, she had seen that from day one. She also knew that he was lively, but how could one be so energetic when he hadn't really slept? She had witnessed him get up a lot earlier than he needed to many times to work on the camp, and she had a feeling that it was starting to affect him a little bit. His bruised fingertips looked pretty painful and she had noticed that he was a little more distant than usual, even though that happy-go-lucky smile was still on his face every single time he smiled or looked at somebody.

But then again, even though she really wanted to ask him if he was okay, she had a feeling that it wasn't her place to ask. She didn't like it when people try to pry in on her business when she wasn't feeling great, sometimes, so she would do her best to try and give David his personal space. Besides, they didn't really know each other that well and she probably could have just been over reacting to the whole thing.

Once she came to that shaky and still fairly unsettled conclusion, she actually managed to focus enough to find the nails. she grabbed the tin can that they were in and walked it back out to David, setting it down right beside the boards that she had brought him.

"There you go," she nodded, "more nails and more boards!"

 

[Pilot-66]

David’s grin somehow managed to spread further across his face–almost completely hiding the faint bags under his eyes–when Abby mentioned having the kids (mostly) under her control. It was great to hear that confidence. Just a week ago, she hadn’t been sure she could do this job at all. Now, after a few hiccups, she was getting her footing. A bit of pride swelled in his chest, easing his heavy shoulders. “I knew you would!” He chimed approvingly.

As she turned to grab the planks he’d asked for, David gave an appreciative nod and set back to work, prying up one of the old splintering planks from the pier. He paused when he heard wood clattering and glanced over to see Abby had fallen over trying to pull the supplies down. He winced and opened his mouth, about to ask if she was alright, but she’d scrambled to her feet before he could. Ah jeeze, maybe he should have just asked for the nails…Abby was so unusually small, he always found himself subconsciously worrying about what physical sort of job tasks he asked of her.

Shaking off the thought, he set back to work while she ran off to the Quartermaster’s cabin. He’d managed to get two more old boards removed by the time she came back and set the can of nails down next to his work space. “Thanks!” He beamed up at her, taking a moment to toss the old rotten planks aside before grabbing one of the new ones she’d brought him, his aching legs beyond grateful that he no longer had to get up and go gather things himself.

Abby was nothing short of a Godsend.

That went for helping with the kids too. If it hadn’t been for her patience and willingness to tackle some of the camper’s daily activities alone, he was certain he’d only have a quarter of all this done. He just hoped…it wasn’t at too great a cost on her behalf. She seemed a lot more confident these days, but he knew that there had been moments where the kids wore her thin. He’d done his best to try and keep them from being too rowdy and offer Abby every chance she needed to get away and breathe—he’d promised her that much after all—but…hopefully it was all starting to get a little easier for her?

“So,” He started slowly, taking his time to line up one of the fresh planks on the pier before hammering the first nail into it, “How are you liking it here? I know there’s been some unique…a-heh, challenges, but it really seems like you’re getting the hang of everything! And I just know you’re gonna love tonight’s camp out! Everyone always seems a little more relaxed afterwards,” He offered that almost as a reassurance, considering how…energetic…some of their campers were. “I think it helps them settle into the camping spirit. Plus, getting out in this fresh air always does wonders~!”

 

[TarantulaHawk]

"It's.... Really nice, actually," she admitted, rubbing the back of her head and sitting down near him, looking over at him and his work, "I mean, the kids are absolutely crazy most of the time, but I kind of expected that anyway. It's also nice to be in the woods instead of the city for a change, I can tell you that much."

Abby had been born in the city, raised in the city, and her life fell apart in the city. Maybe that was just a sign that the country was a better place for her. And it had been quite the exercise, dealing with kids and running around the woods all the time. But it was making her healthier. The bags under her eyes had gone away, she was getting a slight tan (very slowly) and she even found herself sleeping better at night and with less nightmares. Despite the fact that she had to use tons of mosquito block, deal with bratty and energetic children, and got sunburnt all the time, she found herself really enjoying it all.

"A camp out does sound nice." She admitted, smiling a bit more.

But her smile was really there to mask the fact that she was sort of worried about David. She could notice things about people that they wouldn't really notice that often about themselves, or things that other people didn't usually notice about them. So it was no secret to her that he was absolutely exhausted. Not just from dealing with kids, but from all the physical labor he had been putting himself through. It was really worrying her, especially because he was pretty much in charge of the entire camp on his own. That had to be one hell of a job for somebody like him.

"Hey, David," she said carefully, her eyebrows furrowing together, "I know it's none of my business, but... Are you okay?"

 

[Pilot-66]

Still wearing a small smile, David watched as Abby took a seat on the riverbank to chat with him for a bit. He’d started to turn his attention back to the deck repairs, but her praise of the camp quickly distracted him. The redhead looked over at her, a lightness welling up in the center of his chest when he realized she…wasn’t being sarcastic. Sure, he’d thought she’d seemed a little more at ease these past couple of weeks, but hearing it from her was another thing entirely. Camp Campbell really did help…

“I—That’s great!” He blurted out, straightening his back and sitting up a little on the deck as new energy suddenly flowed through him. The smile on his face felt easier than it had in days. He turned back to his work with fresh vigor and laid the next board in place, beaming as much to himself as he was her as he hammered a couple of nails down, “I just KNEW you’d love it here!”

David only glowed more at her enthusiasm for the night’s camp out, but before he could share his own excitement she surprised him, her tone suddenly a lot more guarded and…concerned?

“Are you okay?”

He blinked at the question and turned his head to look over at her for a seconds before managing a response, “Me…? Yeah! Of course!” He answered with nervous laugh, then turned quickly back to his work, reaching for a fresh plank and fumbling with it for a moment to fit it in place on the dock, “Just….day dreaming about those smores and campfire songs later, heh.”

His skin prickled as he tried to pretend he wasn’t lying to her. She probably knew he was, though. That’s why she’d asked. The realization made him squirm. He was terrible at this…he always had been. But…it wasn’t a complete lie, he tried to remind himself. If he could just pass this first inspection and get the camp running up to code by the end of the summer, everything really WOULD be okay.

In the back of his mind he knew there was definitely…more to it, but—
David hammered another nail into place, letting his concentration on the task distract him.

 

[TarantulaHawk]

His response made her frown a little bit, her eyebrows knitting together. He was really struggling to keep it together. She could tell because she had been there before, and it was one of the worst places to be emotionally. He was trying his hardest to keep a smile on his face and she appreciated that, because that alone was one of the harder things to do when someone was falling apart like that. Again, she had been there, and it was awful. In a way, she respected him for keeping that grin going the best he could, but on another hand, she knew how bad it was for someone to do that.

"Well," she sighed, getting to her feet after a moment of watching him nail another board down, "I-I know we don't really know.... each other past our first names, but don't feel bad if you... Well, feel bad, David. Okay?"

She couldn't believe that she was actually offering him somebody to talk to if he was really not feeling well. Maybe it was because she had been there and so she pitied him for feeling that way, and maybe it was also the fact that when she was down on her luck, she never had anyone to talk to. She had a feeling that it was guilt. She would feel guilty leaving him to his negative feelings.

As she shook the thought away, she sighed. "I've gotta get back to the mess hall. Who knows how crazy they've gotten in there without me." She started to walk away and then stopped after a second to add, "Come on in when you're done, okay?"

 

[Pilot-66]

David scrambled to try and think of something to say so that the brief silence between them could be filled with more than the drumming of the hammer, but…nothing ever quite came to him. Not in time anyway. Abby spoke first, offering to listen if he ever needed someone, and…offering a bit of reassurance too, “don't feel bad if you... Well, feel bad, David. Okay?”

He blinked and looked up at his co-counselor, realizing with a bit of shame that he’d more or less told Max the same thing last year in the pizza parlor. Jeeze, what kind of role model was he supposed to be if he didn’t even practice what he preached? And to apparently be so obvious about it? He glanced to the side when he felt his cheeks and the bridge of his nose flush a little with embarrassment…as well a little flustered appreciation for Abby’s sudden kindness. Extremely few people had kind words for him these days.

Green eyes flit back to Abby when she started to dismiss herself with a mild concern over what the gang had gotten up to during her absence. He was about to go along with the change of subject, but he held his tongue when she paused and glanced back at him to dote a little. The ache in his joints and his hands wailed in agreement with her ushering him back indoors for at least the rest of the day once the dock was finished.

“No need to worry about me, I’ll be in soon~” He promised light-heartedly, then paused for a second before adding more candidly, “and…thank you.” He smiled, though for once, the expression didn’t completely fill his face. The gesture was just as genuine as his starry-eyed response to her actually enjoying the camp had been.

 

[TarantulaHawk]

She smiled a little bit at his thanks, knowing that he probably really did appreciate her stopping and making sure that he was okay, even if he denied the truth a little bit. She couldn't get all mad about it because she probably would have done the same thing in his shoes, and she had done a similar thing in the past many times. She was just glad that she finally had the courage to make sure somebody else was okay for once, to ignore the thoughts that told her they were fine.

She was slowly but surely, getting better.

When she reached the mess hall, as she thought, everything was kind of a mess. Kids were throwing the macaroni, some of them had glued their hands together and so on. So she began to tackle each problem as it arose, something she learned actually worked really well in her short time there at camp. The first person she had to worry about was Nicki, who was trying to get people to dare her to eat more than one box of uncooked macaroni. It took a little convincing, but she finally calmed down and focus on something else instead. And then she had to focus on Nurf, who was sort of attacking Preston and trying to glue the macaroni noodles to his skin. And as she went from problem to problem, out of the corner of her eye she noticed that Max was glaring at her. That wasn't unusual, but it still unnerved her sometimes.

"Okay, everyone," Abby said after a moment, blowing some of the hairs that escaped her ponytail out of her face, "let's start cleaning up. We've gotta get ready for tonight!"

"It's just some stupid camp out," Max shrugged, leaning against the wall as the other kids went about their business, "why does it even matter?"

Abby was quiet for a minute and then she sighed. "It just does, Max. Okay?"

Max rolled his eyes before getting up. She knew he wasn't going to help clean or anything, but even if he was up and doing something else other than glaring or patronizing others, that was fine with her.

 

[Pilot-66]

David turned away quietly after Abby left him with a smile. He kept himself busy with finishing up the dock, working quietly and diligently to try and finish the task as quickly as he could so he could get back to helping her with the kids. All the while, the weight on his shoulders somehow lighter and heavier all at once. Some part of him felt a little guilty for dragging Abby out here only to concern her a couple of weeks in. Having caught her down on her own luck, he’d hoped to have helped her…not add to her worries, but…well, they were a team now. He’d said so himself.

He shook the thoughts away as he hammered the last of the new planks into place. Once he’d finished, he gathered his tools and walked back to the shore. Securing the bucket of nails under one of his arms, the counselor turned to admire his work. He grinned at the sight of the unstained and perfectly sanded dock before him. It hadn’t looked this good since he was a camper! For a heartbeat, the sight made him feel like a kid again, lingering by the shoreline and bouncing stones across the water’s surface before lights out, quietly hoping that—

David’s fingers curled reflexively over the lip of the bucket as he cut himself short.
Oh, what was he doing daydreaming anyway? He had camp activities to get to right now! It was up to him to ensure the kids had their own memories of this place. The best ones!

Stirred into action, the redhead gathered up all of the supplies and tools he’d been using and carried them up to the Quartermaster’s cabin. Even if his back ached, it felt good to be on his feet and walking around again. He felt a new spring in his step when he heard the kids laughing in the mess hall. There was some brief screaming and what sounded like threats from Nurf, but the calm that followed assured him that Abby had it all under control.

Good. That’d give him just a bit longer to get things set up for tonight and wash himself off after toiling under the sun for a few hours.

He pulled an axe out of the corner of the Quartermaster’s storage and hefted it over his shoulder before turning and heading out to where they’d be holding their camp out tonight. They already had a small collection of firewood ready to go, but he knew they’d probably need more before the night ended.

He spent about twenty minutes chopping up a nice pile firewood and carefully stacked it up in a kid-safe low pile before stepping back and wiping his brow with the sleeve of his shirt. He took a second to glance over the soon-to-be campsite and smiled to himself. Despite the shortness of his breath and his screaming muscles, he was excited to get everyone back together again under the stars.

David was quick to run the axe back to the supply shed and lock it behind him. He was even faster about popping into the counselor's cabin and showering the day’s work off him, barely taking any time at all to realize how tempting his bed looked as he hurried past it towards the door.

He left the counselor's cabin behind and pushed open the Mess Hall doors. The smell of fresh food (and QM’s not-as-fresh potatoes) wafted over him as he entered. Dinner was only just being served after everyone had helped clean up after craft time and a few kids were already seated at the tables and chowing down.

“Good Evening Campbell Campers!” David greeted boisterously as he entered, not an ounce of his fatigue evident as he spoke. He paused briefly to get Nerris and Harrison to stop trying to levitate their silverware and focus on eating then headed up to the kitchen window to help get everyone served. “Who’s ready for the big night, huh~?”

 

[TarantulaHawk]

By the time that David came into the mess hall, she was sitting on a bench next to Dolph, chatting as he ate - she wasn't really hungry, as her thoughts were lingering and doing uncomfortable things in her mind. despite the little kid looking uncomfortably like Hitler, he was actually a very good kid. He liked art a lot and she used to as a kid, so that was what they talked about mainly. But she also had noticed the kids sitting alone a lot during activities and how other kids would simply glare at him when he let out some sort of exclamation, almost always completely harmless and just annoying. So, she found herself talking to him more. She was good at giving those company who needed it, and that was what she did her best at - it wasn't fair to sit alone, it wasn't fair to not have friends.

She looked up at David's announcement and smiled, unable to help herself. She was ready, that was for sure. She really needed a break from trying to round up all those kids, and she knew that David needed a break from... Well, literally everything else because he was so busy constantly.

"I am!" Space Kid exclaimed happily, grabbing his tray and looking up at David with big, excited eyes. "I get to see the stars and space!"

"I just want to go to bed." Max grumbled from between Nikki and Neil - the bags under his eyes proved that comment to be uncomfortably fair.

"Yeah, me too," Neil rolled his eyes as he poked at the food on his tray, "I have some experiments to run before lights out."

"Well, I'm ready!" Nikki was bursting with energy and so was her mouth, with mashed potatoes, "Night time is always the best time! There's creepy stories, cool animals, and all kinds of other things im forgetting!"

 

[Pilot-66]

"You sure will," David agreed with an enthusiastic smile down at Space Kid, "Forecast says there shouldn’t be a cloud in the sky so you'll be able to point out every constellation for us!"

The lanky camp counselor took a moment to help hand out the last of the dinner trays to Ered and Preston, then looked back over his shoulder in time to catch Max, Neil, and Niki's mixed comments. He paused, taking a small plate of food for himself before walking over to join the trio at their table.

"Don't you worry kiddos, we'll have plenty of fun,“ he looked at Niki with that comment then over to Max and Niel, ”and…experiment running??? Without staying up too late. I promise." He reached out to ruffle Max’s hair, but paused remembering just how much he hated that. Not wanting to lose what progress they’d made, he settled for resting a hand very briefly on Max’s shoulder instead, giving him a smaller quieter smile before he settled down at the table. Max rolled his eyes at him but didn’t say anything else, just picked over his food.

It bothered him a little bit how restless Max looked. It wasn’t exactly unusual (especially this early in the summer), but—

Well, he hoped maybe drifting off under the stars with the rhythmic crackle of a campfire and surrounded by good company might help give him a more restful night. If nothing else, maybe it’d give him a chance to check in on Max a little more personal with the other campers out for the night. With a creeping sense of guilt, he realized he hadn’t really been as present for Max–and all the kids–as he’d have liked this past week. Especially not after the whole parent’s day fiasco…

Shifting uncomfortably at the thought, David tried to lighten himself and the room back up as he glanced over at Abby and grinned. “Tonight will be even more special than usual! It's been a while since we’ve been able to hand out a fortnight badge! I’d say Abby’s earned hers by now. Who wants to help me present it to her later?”

“Jesus, she’s just here for the paycheck, David!” Max finally bristled at him from across the table, “Don’t drag this fucking camp out thing longer than we gotta with more of your weird camp traditions.”