·˚ ༘ 𝓑𝐘 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐒𝐔𝐌𝐌𝐄𝐑 | NAGI SEISHIRO
hello… fellow friends… I may have ghosted yall and I’m KINDA sorry about that. 😢 I have no excuse rather than bed rotting and sleeping in! This story is to make up for the weeks ive been gone and I’m working on the Otoya series still! 😳
Relationships were such a pain for you, none of them ended entirely the way you wanted to. You always believed that maybe the next guy would definitely be better. I mean you were young, you had to enjoy your life while you were at it. No matter how many times a guy broke your heart, that never stopped you from hoping for the next to be better. How could you? You were a lover girl who had enough love to share with the entire world.
It wasn’t entirely difficult for you to catch the attention of a guy. You were breath taking, how can someone not resist you? And that’s what worried your parents. Because the amount of times you introduced them to your new boyfriend they found it concerning how many relationships you’ve been in. Not that they didn’t mind how their daughter attracted the hearts of many guys… but the fact the after results seemed painful to watch. Whether you got cheated on or broken up with, you only locked yourself up in your bedroom and cried until you convinced yourself that "you'll never get into another relationship.” But yet get into another relationship. How can you resist!? The love of your life was out there.. somewhere.
Which worried your parents more than it should. How could they sit and watch their daughter get her feelings hurt? Well, they found a solution. They decided to send you to an all girl summer camp for the summer. Maybe this’ll prioritize yourself rather than focusing on boys.
So when that day came, your mother told you to pack your things a few days before and drove you straight to some area that had buses prepared for different teens. You convinced yourself it will be okay! Because new faces equals new opportunities. You knew damn well this wouldn’t stop you. What if suddenly you happened to catch feelings for a girl? Well Mom, this was entirely useless.
“Mom… is this necessary…” You muttered as you clutched your bags in your arms.
Your mother only nodded, “Of course. It’s for the best! You girls these days need to learn how to worry about other things rather than being with boys!”
You gasped, “Mom! That's not fair! I’m still young—let me explore different people. How else am I going to get married if I can’t be in a relationship?!” You argued.
“I don’t care whether you’re in a relationship or not. Me and your father are worried about the after effects of these boys! You know how worrying it is to see that you’re not eating because some guy broke your heart?”
You pouted because you knew she was correct. Well besides this summer camp thing. “God whatever.” You said as you turned your head to face the different variations of buses for teens. “Mom… what bus is mine..?” You asked worryingly.
“I don’t know sweetie! I have an appointment in an hour for my hair… so I wish you the best and take care! I love you—“ She said before stepping on the gas pedal and driving off before you could even respond.
You stepped away before she got to run your foot over. Now, you were left alone surrounded by multiple strangers who looked as lost as you were. Without thinking you decided to wait in this extremely long line—hoping it’ll lead you to your bus once you ask one of the camp counselors.
The line took a while, as you stood there for thirty minutes, worrying that your bus had probably left. Before you knew it, you were now at the front of the line, face to face with a male counselor.
“Hey! I am Kentaro… I’m sure you’re as lost as the other people!” He laughed nervously, trying to be as friendly as possible. “Is there anything specific you need? Directions—Perhaps to your bus?”
You stared at his careless expression, it seemed he was forcing himself to act ‘friendly’ towards the teenagers. “Yeah… I was told—“
“Kentaro!” A voice shouted nearby as an angry woman came stomping towards our way. “You never cleaned the bathrooms or what?! Some guy got bit by a snake and now he’s being sent to the hospital!”
You stood there awkwardly, all you wanted to do was figure out what bus was yours.
“Kimi, calm the fuck down!” Kentaro groaned. “I’m busy here. I’ll do that later.” He said as he looked back at you. “As you were saying?” He asked, ignoring the loud woman beside him.
“I-I wanted to know which bus was for the all girls one?!” You shouted, hoping he would be able to hear your answer.
He hissed and shoved his hand at the woman, “I’m terribly sorry for her rudeness! Uhh… that bus should be—“ He yelped as the woman grabbed him from his hair before pointing to some… bus. “Third bus, to your right!” He shouted before he was brought down to the ground.
You sighed as you walked to the bus he mentioned. Third bus to your right. You entered it slowly before you stood in the middle and realized this was indeed not the right bus because there was a mix of guys and girls. Before you were able to turn back the bus driver shut the door and began to drive off. Unsure what to do, you didn’t want to embarrass yourself and cause a huge ruckus in the bus.
This shouldn’t be bad right? You were sure it shouldn’t matter if you accidentally got in the wrong bus. Maybe it was fate.
“Hey! Sit down! It’s dangerous to be standing up!” The bus driver yelled from the front as you stood there confused. Unsure where to sit, especially since there were multiple spots empty you panicked as everyone stared at you.
“W-Where to sit…?” You muttered to yourself as you continued to walk towards the back until someone grabbed you by your arm and forced you to sit down.
“Huh—“ You yelped, as you forcefully sat on the leather seat. You stared at the white haired guy who ignored the fact he helped you. “Oh, thanks I guess.” You said, cheeks pink from embarrassment.
“Ah… don’t worry. It was pathetic watching you just… stand there.” He said as he stared out the window, not caring any further.
Pathetic? How rude. You only scoffed before placing your bag in-between your legs. “God, this was going to be a long ride.” You thought to yourself.
Thinking about it, what would you tell your mother once she finds out her little plan didn’t work? ‘Sorry, they sent me to the wrong bus mom!’ She’d probably think you had done it on purpose. Well, she won’t know if she finds out.
Lost in your thoughts, you wished you sat beside the window—to stare at the view. But you only got a few glances here and there. You couldn’t lie but it was nice seeing the mountains and the lakes from there. But then your eyes drifted onto the drooling guy beside you, who was fast asleep. You weren’t sure but you assumed most of the people on this bus were fast asleep. But thinking of sleeping just made you tired. You closed your eyes for a moment in hope to take a small nap.
Hours went by before you knew it. You had your head laid against his shoulder. Now, of course there was someone who was watching this from behind. A certain rich fellow.
“Wow, why does Nagi attract all the pretty girls?” The purple haired guy said to himself out of pure spite and jealousy. “Oh, his girlfriend is so going to be pissed once she finds out her boyfriend already replaced her, lmaoo.”
The ride went on quietly. But then the ride came to an end once the bus forcefully stopped. You jumped at the sound of the bus braking. Realizing you had slept through the entire two days. Blinking multiple times, you also realized you slept on someone comfortable. You looked up at the white haired guy who was already looking at you with a tired look.
“Holy fuck! I’m so sorry.” You quickly stood up and apologized.
“No big deal. I didn’t realize it once I woke up…” He yawned as he scratched his head, not seeing the big issue.
“Oh, it is a big deal Nagi!” A voice said from behind. “What if Misa saw you all cuddled up with another girl?”
You stared at the purple haired guy. “Nagi?” You muttered softly.
“Hm?” Nagi looked at you before turning back to the other. “Reo I doubt she’ll know… plus not like I give a shit about her. Dealing with her is such a hassle. She complains when I sleep on her, why would I date someone who won’t let me be comfortable?” He sighed as he glanced at you for a moment. “Ah, do you still need something?” He asked as he stared at you.
“N-No! I’m sorry… I’ll get going.” You said, moving your arms around—face pink from embarrassment. You grabbed your bag and immediately headed to get off the bus.
“Weirdo…” Nagi said as he sighed before plopping back on the seat.
Reo laughed nervously, “Nagi… don’t be rude. She’s really pretty—especially when she’s in the sun.” He shook his head. “Maybe we could be friends with her.”
“Ah, I guess you’re right. The sun has been on her face for the entire trip… I suppose she is pretty.” He shrugged before grabbing his own bag. “I don’t mind being friends with a pretty girl.”
Reo never expected Nagi to change his mind on you immediately. This was surprising, especially the compliment.
"How embarrassing!’ You thought to yourself. Not only that but in front of two hot guys? Good job Y/n. You stood beside another group, waiting for the counselor to yell out any instructions.
“Hi! It’s great to see you all. I’d like to begin by counting you all. Please get in a straight line.” He said waiting for each and every one of you to line up. Once you all did he began counting. “2, 4, 6, 8, 10—11?” He said confusingly. “Oh dear, that shouldn’t be right.”
You froze, afraid he’d find out you weren’t supposed to be there. But thankfully the counselor decided to let it be.
“Not that there's an issue but bunking may be the actual problem.” He took a deep sigh, “Okay! Please get into equal groups—if there’s an issue with your bunk mates, please let me know before…”
Everyone seemed to be all buddy up with someone, which meant you were left alone. You stood at the side waiting for instructions. “Um… sir?” You said as all eyes faced to look at you. “I-I don't have a group.”
The counselor frowned, “Figured that'd be the issue… would anyone kindly accept this lovely lady into their group?”
“Reo, didn't you want to be friends with her…? Claim the spot before someone else does.” Nagi whispered to Reo, as Reo nervously stood there because he wasn’t the only one who agreed to be friends with her!
“WE WOULD GLADLY TAKE HER! Haha…!” Reo interrupted the other group before they got the chance to speak. “It definitely won’t be an issue with us!”
Everyone stared silently at him, judging his outburst. “Okay… guess it’s settled.” The counselor muttered. “You three could have the cabin near the lake, since it’s the biggest.”
“Thank you very, very, very much sir!” Reo smiled as he saluted.
The counselor nervously laughed and walked away. “Kids these days are weird.”
You stood there, unsure whether to walk first. “Oh, thanks for choosing me.” You said.
“No big deal, Afterall Nagi had eyes on you!” Reo said.
Your eyes widened and drifted to Nagi who stared at the sky. “Eyes… on me?”
“Reo, you’re putting words in my mouth. I just wanted to be friends with her.” Nagi sighed as he began to head to the cabin.
You and Reo stared at each other before deciding to get moving as well. “Well what did you guys come here for?” You asked Reo.
“Honestly, I just wanted to be away from home. Nagi on the other hand… his girlfriend insisted he should come because he’s constantly on his damn Nintendo switch.” He sighed, shaking his head. “So, I decided we both should attend the same place.”
“Are you two like best friends?” You asked.
“Yeah! I like to assume we are.” Reo said excitedly. “What about you?”
“Um, it’s quite complicated. My parents thought it’d be nice to distance myself from boys.”
Reo raised a brow and laughed, “Boys? But… you’re in a camp with boys.”
“Um. I got on the wrong bus.” You said.
“Ah! So you’re the extra person! Maybe this was fate?!” He said, teasing you.
“I’d gladly appreciate it if you don't shout that out… it's already embarrassing enough.” You sighed as your eyes remained on the taller one, ahead of you.
“Ah sorry!” Reo said as he rubbed his head. “Well, I hope we become good summer camp friends, huh?” He nudged you with his elbow.
“I really hope so.” You nodded.
“I’m not too sure about him though, he doesn’t like the heat. And knowing camping, it's going to be extremely hot. But at least we’re near the lake.” Reo chimed.
“Ah fuck, I didn’t bring any swim-wear.” You cursed, “You don't think I'll get in trouble if I swim in my underwear?” You asked.
This question caused Nagi to slightly glance back to what you two were talking about before opening the cabin door. Reo on the other hand looked flustered at such a question.
“Um! I’m not sure. I doubt they’d care, anything is technically swim wear if you think about it!” He said, as if he quoted something out of a book. Reo then followed behind Nagi as he also entered the cabin, while you carefully peaked inside and was immediately amazed by how neat the furniture was.
Inside the cabin included a kitchen, which was quite cool–since you were expecting to make meals outside or something. But what made you frown was the fact there were only two beds, luckily one bed seemed to be extremely bigger than the other. Oh god. What in the female main lead type of bullshit was this? Maybe they wouldn’t mind sleeping beside each other and you’d gratefully take the smaller one.
“Ah, it seems like there's two beds.” Reo said as he dropped his bag on the wooden floor. “Oh! How rude of us. What's your name?” Reo asked.
“Oh, I'm Y/n.” You replied as you also dropped your bag.
“Well Y/n, to not make you uncomfortable, you could take the smaller bed and I’d share the bigger one with Nagi.” He smiled.
“Hah?” Nagi, who had already made himself comfortable on the bigger bed, said astonished. “I have to share with you?”
Reo stuttered, trying to not take any offense from it. “Excuse me? Who else would you be sharing the bed with? I really hope you didn’t mean to share it with her now, Nagi.” Reo scoffed.
Nagi’s eyes landed back onto you, “Oh, right. Forgot she was here…” He sighed. “Sorry, hope that didn’t make you uncomfortable.”
“Don’t worry, it's settled.” You smiled nicely and picked up your bag from the floor and threw it onto your bed. “Its quite a little dirty here.” You muttered as you walked towards the kitchen and stared at a dead cockroach on the floor, then headed towards the bathroom, almost screaming from the terrifying sight. “God, I’m not living in this shit hole.” You said as you slammed the bathroom door.
“It possibly can’t be that bad–”
“It is bad Reo. I’m not letting this slide!” You insisted as you rummaged through the closet and the cabinets. Luckily you managed to find a broom and some cleaning supplies.
“Ah… are you insisting we… tidy up?” Reo nervously asked.
“Yes, we’re cleaning. Right now.” You commanded
Nagi opened one eye as he heard the word ‘clean.’ It reminded him of a certain someone he knew a while ago. One thing that terrified Nagi more was being productive, so he immediately pretended to be asleep.
“I-I don't know Y/n, maybe it's best to leave it as it is?” Reo insisted.
“What? Have you never cleaned?” You asked, raising a brow as you held onto the broom.
“How rude to ask me that!” He paused before continuing. “But, I haven’t. I usually let the maids do it.” He said shamelessly as he examined the spray bottle.
“Oh so you’re a rich kid? Figured. Well starting today you’re going to use your own arms and legs to clean—and I won’t take no for an answer!” You threatened.
“Yes ma’am.” His voice died as he began to laugh manically in his head. Not once in his life has he been forced to clean, and it was irritating him a lot. He then turned to Nagi who was laying there like some princess. Reo walked towards Nagi and grabbed him tightly from his shoulder. “Nagi… we know you’re not fooling anyone. Get the fuck up. If im doing this then you’re doing this—we all know i’m the one who should be laying like some princess.” He said under his breath, glaring at Nagi.
Nagi on the other hand felt true fear. He slowly turned towards Reo with a terrified look, as he nodded. Now, the three of you worked your ass off to get this cabin nice and clean. You found it relieving, well for the most part because the other two were clearly pissed and bored off their mind. But they couldn’t refuse—who knew you’d probably kill them and hide their bodies somewhere lmao.
It was quite odd for three people to spend their first days cleaning a cabin, especially since everyone else was outside doing activities or out exploring. After an hour or so, the cabin was now spotless and capable of living in.
“Wow guys, we did such an amazing job.” You said eagerly, completely ignoring the two bodies on the ground who sighed in exhaustion.
“Save… yourself Nagi—” Reo said before his soul left his body. But it was also too late for Nagi because he was gone.
You shook your head in disappointment. “You both are so dramatic, how about we take a swim near the lake under the bridge?” You asked. Reo stood up relieved, while Nagi sat up straight.
“Lake!? Hell yeah!” Reo shouted.
“Lake? Isn’t that… far?” He sighed as he rubbed his head.
“Nagi, it's only like half a mile.” You muttered.
Nagi groaned as he stared at the bed, wishing to sleep. “Whatever.”
“Oh hell yeah, lake here we come!” Reo shouted as he technically ripped his clothes off and had a pair of swim shorts prepared beneath his normal clothes. The swim trunks were a bright purple, well, that says a lot about him.
“Well at least we know someone is prepared.” You said before you threw your shirt off and took your jean shorts off, throwing them on the bed. You did mention earlier how you never brought swim wear.
“A-Ah! Y/n! You can’t just do that!” Reo shouted as he covered his face that was all pink.
You scoffed, “Okay suddenly it's wrong when a girl does it huh? You’re acting stupid, it's not like I'm naked.” You punched Reo on his arm.
Reo swung his arm around, insisting you to back away. “Get away! Nagi back me up here!” He shouted. But Nagi was in another world as he stared at your figure. Okay, but why was it a huge deal? He had a lot of magazines filled with girls, so did it shock him that much to see something like this in person?
“Nagi? Hello? Earth to Nagi?” Reo said as he waved his hands in front of Nagi’s face. Nagi immediately zoned back in before standing up to take off his shirt and just remain in some regular shorts.
“Stop making a fuss Reo, let's just hurry before it gets late…” He muttered as he walked past you, not wanting to make eye contact.
“O–Kay…!” Reo said as he looked at you awkwardly before following. You then followed behind the two, holding three towels because it seemed neither of them remembered to bring them.
The walk wasn’t far in your opinion but surprisingly the other two kept up with you pretty well, it wasn’t difficult to find the direction to the bridge. Afterall, it was the path near your cabin. So much for it being ‘close.’ By the time you three knew it, you arrived at the bridge.
“Pretty empty, no?” You said, as you looked down from the bridge.
“Guess so, but hey! That's better for the three of us because that means we have the entire area for ourselves.” Reo said as he stood on the edge of the bridge.
“Reo is going to die.” Nagi blurted out.
“Nagi! Don't say that!” You said, but in reality you agreed. “Reo, be careful you’re going to fall!”
“Hey, even if I do—I’ll land straight into the water.” Reo said as he walked recklessly on the edge. “See, perfectly fine! Oh shit–” He said as he lost his balance.
“Reeoo!” You shouted as you lunged on the edge and grabbed Reo with his leg as he dangled off. “Are you stupid!?” You said, slowly slipping off the edge.
“Y/n! Just let go! It wont be safe if you go down with me!” Reo exclaimed, “It’s not like I'm going to die!”
You figured he was right, it was pretty stupid to continue to hold on to him but you still weren’t sure. “Nagi, help me pull this idiot up.” You whimpered as your feet slowly left the wooden floor.
Nagi was too busy staring at a dragonfly that flew around his head to listen. “So annoying…”
Before you knew it the weight of Reo pulled you down, which led you to scream Nagi’s name. “Naaagiiiii!!” You shouted as you began to fall.
Nagi’s attention shifted onto the situation. Once you yelled his name, he immediately grabbed onto your leg but Nagi forgot to hold onto the edge which led him to fall down with you two. Yours and Reo’s shouts echoed down to the bottom, while Nagi completely accepted his fate and closed his eyes as a tear strolled down his cheek. Then followed a huge splash. A few seconds later the three of you rose towards the surface with loud gasps. Reo’s body completely floated up fully like a dead fish.
“Holy fuck!” You said as you wiped the water out your eyes, looking at Reo’s body spinning in a circle. “Maybe it wasn’t a good idea that we all fell on Reo…” You said.
Nagi shook his head, water droplets hitting your face. “I’ll tell his parents he passed away peacfully… I could finally use his money for my video games.”
Reo’s body immediately jolted back to life once he heard that comment. “I always knew you were fake.”
You laughed at the comment, which made Nagi stare at you. He genuinely never saw someone so full of life.
“Well, since we’re in the water now, let's play mermaids!” You insisted.
“Mermaids? Can I just be the manatee?” Nagi muttered as he let his body float.
You rolled your eyes, “I guess. Reo can be the shark!”
“Me? A shark?” Reo scoffed as he ran his hand through his wet hair. “I think I should be the mermaid and you could be… the mermaid's servant.”
“Oh you little shit.” You said under your breath as you began to swim to Reo while he laughed while swimming away—Nagi still was floating on his back not caring.
The three of you spent hours in the water till sunset, it got dark pretty quick so you figured to hurry up before you all got lost. By the time you three arrived, it was extremely dark around the camp area, you all rushed into your cabin to dry up and get changed.
Later, Reo then somehow convinced you two to stay up and watch a horror movie.
“A movie… this late?” You said, running your hand through your blown dried hair.
“Cmon, dont be a party pooper. It wouldn’t hurt to watch ONE movie.” He said as he held onto the remote.
Nagi, who was slowly dozing off, sat on the bed; back pressed on the wall. “Mm…”
“I doubt he even wants to watch it.” You said, sighing.
Nagi then threw a pillow at Nagi to wake him up. “I don't know, he seems fine to me.” He said as Nagi jumped and then yawned.
“A movie…? I don’t care.” Nagi said softly.
You rolled your eyes and sat next to Nagi, “Lets watch it from here then.” You said, as Reo smiled before also sitting next to you. But not even half ways through the movie the two of them fell asleep–snores filling the room. You stared at the TV completely annoyed, Reo’s body then rolled off the bed and onto the ground. You gasped at the sight, questioning if you should wake him up, but before you could do so, Nagi’s entire body laid on your lap which made it troubling to tell Reo. You tried to push Nagi off without waking him up but he only groaned and wrapped his arms around you.
“N-Nagi—“ You whispered loudly, blushing, trying to push him off but it was no use. Was this really how you were going to stay for the entire night? You stared at Nagi’s sleeping face and admired each feature. You then removed a piece of his hair out of his face then realized how weird you were acting. Quickly keeping your hands to yourself you hit the back of the pillow and laid flat and sighed. You then turned off the TV and slowly drifted to sleep.
At first you still weren’t completely used to living with two boys you accidentally met less than twenty-four hours ago, but you’re slowly realizing that they're nowhere near as weird as you’d originally thought. If anything, they're both idiots in completely different ways.
But the next morning, breakfast began earlier than you’d like, especially considering you barely slept after Reo somehow convinced you two to watch a movie long after lights out. But by the time the counselors started knocking on cabin doors, you were barely able to keep one eye open as you lazily followed the smell of food toward the dining hall, only to find Nagi already sitting at one of the tables with his hood pulled over his head. You hoped things weren’t going to be awkward since he technically was all cuddled up with you last night.
You quietly sat beside him without saying anything, earning a confused look from Reo as he arrived moments later carrying three trays of food.
"I figured neither of you would've grabbed breakfast yourselves," he says proudly before setting everything down.
You and Nagi stare at the gray lump sitting in the middle of the plate. "...What is that?"
You poked the meal with your spoon, cringing at the sight. "This is not fucking Oatmeal. It looks so... depressed."
Reo snorts so loudly that several campers glance toward their table, while Nagi simply looks down at his own bowl before shrugging.
“No, Nagi! Don’t eat it! You’ll die!” A laugh escapes before you can stop yourself. This caused Nagi to glance over for a brief second.
After breakfast, the counselors divided everyone into teams for a scavenger hunt around the campgrounds. Naturally, Reo immediately treats it like some million-dollar competition despite the grand prize being nothing more than extra dessert after dinner. "We're winning this," he declares confidently.
You raised an eyebrow, "...You're taking this way too seriously."
"You don't understand. It's about the principle." Reo said.
"But," Nagi mutters as he shoves the map into Reo's hands. "Its also about the cheesecake.”
"I guess dude." Reo said confusingly.
Before long, the three of you wandered into the forest with absolutely no idea where you’re going. Reo insisted he knew how to read the map despite holding it upside down for nearly five minutes before you pointed it out. "...You've had it upside down this entire time."
"No, I haven't." Reo said, stressing out.
You grabbed the map and pointed directly at the area. "Ninety degrees isn't the correct direction, Reo!”
"I was just… testing you." Reo pouted as he snatched it from you.
Nagi watches the argument for a few seconds before quietly sitting down against the nearest tree. "I'm tired."
"We've been walking for fifteen minutes." Reo said.
"Fifteen minutes is a lot." Nagi sighed.
You stared at him in disbelief. "You can't seriously be taking a break already." Instead of dragging him back to his feet, you simply sat beside him while Reo continued wandering around the trail searching for clues that probably aren't even there anymore.
You had always been around people who believed conversations needed to be filled every second, but sitting next to Nagi was different. You both simply watched the trees sway overhead while distant voices echo throughout the forest.Eventually you broke the silence. "So..."
"Do you actually like camping?" You asked.
Nagi thought for a moment. "...Not really."
You looked at him confused. "Then why'd you come—besides the fact your girlfriend and Reo insisted?"
"Thats technically it. I mean, I didn’t care that Reo suggested I should go but my girlfriend signed me up without even letting me answer." He said.
This made you blink. "...Seriously?"
"She said it'd be good for me." He groaned as he stretched his legs outwards.
"And?" You paused before continuing. “Has anything changed?”
"I'm still waiting." He stared at the ground, eyes low.
This made you laugh again. "You know... I kind of expected your girlfriend to at least be here with you. Since it was kinda her idea too"
"She told me she doesn't like bugs." Nagi replied.
"...That's it?" You wanted to at least believe there was another genuine reason.
"She also said I'd probably embarrass her."
The smile on your face slowly faded away. "That's... kind of mean."
Nagi shrugged as if it's the most normal thing in the world. "She says stuff like that."
"...Doesn't it bother you?" You said out of concern.
"I don't know." He genuinely doesn't since he's become so used to hearing comments like that that they've stopped sounding strange.
You quietly looked down at the dirt beneath your shoes. "I think it'd bother me if my partner said that to me.."
He glances toward her before muttering, "I know you wouldn't say stuff like that."
"Huh?" You looked at him with confusion.
"You don't… um, get embarrassed about me." Nagi continued
"...Should I?" You joked.
"I'd rather you didn't." He said as he looked at you with a frown.
You only smiled at his puppy face. "I wasn't planning on it either way."
Neither of you noticed how naturally the conversation keeps going after that. Somehow you’d move from talking about camp to favorite snacks, then terrible movies, then games they'd wasted entire weekends playing. At some point Reo finally returns after getting completely lost himself, only to find the two of them still sitting beneath the same tree exactly where he'd left them. "...You guys have literally been here this whole time?"
You pointed towards Nagi. "Well, he refused to move."
"I was conserving energy." Nagi said.
"And for what?" Reo crossed his arms.
He paused as if he thought of a good answer. "...Walking later?”
Reo sighs dramatically. "I've been blessed with not one but two idiots."
"We're not the ones who held the map upside down." You threw a rock at Reo’s face.
Reo raised his arm to protect his beautiful face, “Ow! I said it was a test!"
"It wast, you’re a liar!” You said throwing another.
Later that evening, everyone gathered around the campfire after dinner. Campers crowded around the flames with sticks full of marshmallows while counselors tell stories that aren't nearly as scary as they think they are.
You carefully turn your marshmallow over the fire until it's perfectly golden. Just as you’re about to take a bite, it disappeared. You slowly turned your head to see Nagi chewing it "...Did you just steal my marshmallow?"
"You couldn't make your own?" You said as you glared at him.
"I didn't want to." He said softly, mouth filled with marshmallows.
You stared at him for several long seconds before letting out an exaggerated sigh. "You're unbelievable."
"Can I have another?" Nagi asked but you just stayed quiet. "...Worth asking."
Instead of getting annoyed, you laughed and handed him another marshmallow. "Fine. But you're making this one yourself."
He looks down at the uncooked marshmallow in his hand before looking back at you. "...Can you make it?"
You rolled your eyes. "Oh my god." You groaned.
Now came Monday, oh how amazing that was. Instead of waking up because the counselors knocked on the cabin door, you woke up because somebody was arguing. Who the fuck argues this early?
"...You're literally back in." Reo said
"You've been awake for five minutes, Nagi." Reo sighed as he shook his head. “Get the fuck up!”
Reo interrupted. "So why are you already back in bed!?"
"I got tired." He yawned.
You slowly opened one eye only to see Reo standing at the foot of Nagi's bunk with his arms crossed while Nagi had somehow crawled back underneath his blanket despite breakfast being in fifteen minutes. Luckily, you slept alone this time. Which meant his problem wasn’t yours.
Reo looked like he's about to lose his shit. Which made you bury your face into your pillow to hide your laugh. You didn’t realize you were smiling until Reo pointed directly at you. "You too! Get the fuck up."
“I-I didn't even say anything!” You snorted, hiding under the covers. “You sound insane.”
Reo growled as he stood there like an upset mother. “You don't know how it feels to live with him everyday!”
By the time the three of them finally reach breakfast, they're among the last campers to arrive. The counselors don't look particularly happy about it, but after hearing Reo explain—very dramatically—that dragging Nagi out of bed was extremely difficult they decided not to question it.
The rest of breakfast passes the same way it had the day before. Reo complains about the food despite eating every bite.
That morning's activity was canoeing. The counselors paired everyone off before anyone got to choose, leaving Reo with another camper while you and Nagi were handed a canoe together.
Reo immediately protests. "No, no. He's gonna make her do all the work."
Nagi didn’t even bother denying it either. "I probably will."
You sighed dramatically before muttering an "It's fine, I'll survive." You should have known you were immediately going to regret those words because the second the canoe touched the water, it was obvious neither of you knew what you were doing.
"Hm?" He hummed, as he took up the majority of the space.
"We're spinning!” You shouted as you gripped on each side of the canoe.
"I noticed." He muttered, clearly not giving a shit.
"...Shouldn't we stop spinning?!" You panicked.
He sighed, "...Probably."
Neither of you moved, then the canoe completed another slow circle.
"Nagi!” You said in a panicking voice. "I think we're going backwards."
He glances over his shoulder. "...We are." He looked at the paddle, "...Should we fix it?" Then at her.
You laughed nervously, unsure if you should trust him. Too distracted in your own thoughts, you accidentally dropped one end of your paddle into the water. "Oh my god."
"What?" Nagi asked as he continued to move his arms forward to get the canoe moving forward but it only continued to move backwards.
"You're actually useless." You sighed as you just sat there. Somehow, after nearly fifteen minutes of arguing over which direction they were facing, they managed to ram directly into Reo's canoe.
"What are you DOING?" Reo shouted, as he stood from his canoe.
"I don't know!" You said. “I lost the other paddle so Nagi is doing everything.”
Reo began to reach to your guy’s canoe to help. “Nagi, give me the fucking paddle.”
Nagi only looked at him as he continued to row. “No.”
“Nagi. Give it to me.” Reo said through his teeth as he forced himself onto Nagi.
You only stared in disbelief as you saw Reo reach over to your Canoe while his legs were still on his. You could see his canoe drift and tilt slowly.
“Guys…” You muttered. “Guys!” You said again before Reo’s canoe tilted upside down, leaving half of his body in the deep water. “Reo, don’t hold on! You’re going to make us fall in!” You shouted but it was too late. The collision tips every single one of them into the lake which the counselors rushed over expecting something serious had happened.
Instead, you resurfaced back to the surface with laughter. Coughing out the water you had swallowed. Then followed the other two, as they coughed out the water.
“Nagi, this was your fault!” Reo immediately started accusing Nagi of this accident.
Nagi simply floats on his back, completely expressionless. "No one told you to hang onto our canoe..."
“Oh fuck you.” Reo muttered before attempting to drown Nagi.
The three of them spent the next several minutes splashing each other until a counselor finally whistled at them to knock it off. As they climb back onto the dock, Nagi catches himself staring at you. The way your eyes scrunch up when you laugh makes him realize he hasn't heard someone laugh like that around him in a long time. It's… nice. But realizing he’s being weird, he immediately looks away.
The afternoon was mostly free time. Some campers decided to play volleyball while others wander around the trails or head back toward the cabins. Reo disappeared after hearing there's apparently a basketball contest hidden somewhere near the main lodge, leaving you and Nagi sitting beneath one of the large oak trees overlooking the lake.
Neither of you said much, but eventually you pulled out a deck of cards from the pockets of your hoodie. "Wanna play?"
"You literally just have to use your hands." You said.
"I guess." He said as he sat at lunch.
You decided to teach him a simple card game your dad used to play with you whenever the power went out at home. Nagi surprisingly lost multiple times, you couldn’t say he was bad, it was just because he stopped paying attention halfways through each round.
"You’re not even paying attention." You sighed as you placed your cards on the ground.
"I keep getting distracted." Nagi said as his eyes followed something.
You rolled your eyes. "By what?"
"A squirrel." He muttered before focusing back onto you "It kept climbing that tree."
Without thinking, you reached over and brushed a tiny leaf out of his messy white hair. The movement is so natural that neither of you reacted at first. You then froze. "...Sorry."
"There was... never mind." You said embarrassingly.
He absentmindedly touched where you brushed his hair before shrugging. "...Thanks."
That evening, after everyone finished dinner the counselors decided to host a game of capture the flag. Of course, Reo treated it like an Olympic event. Within five minutes, Reo had somehow convinced you to sprint across the field while he created a distraction. You barely make it halfway before tripping over a tree root, collapsing into the grass with a groan.
You huffed as you looked up to make sure no one had seen that. "Oh, come on."
"Are you alive?" Reo shouts as he comes running to you.
"I think so!" Before you could stand, a hand appeared in front of you.
You looked up to see Nagi. How did he get here so fast? "...Thanks."
He pulls you to your feet before dusting a few blades of grass off your sleeve. "You okay?" He asked.
"Yeah." You smiled. "I've fallen in front of people before. No biggie.”
"That's... concerning." Nagi muttered.
"It happens more than you'd think." You tried to convince him.
Tuesday morning came much easier than the previous two days. Maybe it was because you had finally gotten used to sleeping on a mattress that felt like it had been stolen from a prison. Either way, waking up to the sound of Reo complaining had somehow become part of your morning routine.
"...I seriously don't understand how someone can sleep this much." He said..
You slowly blinked your eyes open before lifting your head off the pillow. Across the room, Reo stood with both hands planted on his hips while glaring at the larger bed.
Nagi hadn't moved an inch. The blanket was pulled over his head, and from where you were laying, you genuinely couldn't tell if he was still asleep or simply pretending.
"You know he's ignoring you, right?" You mumbled, rubbing one of your eyes.
"I know he's ignoring me," Reo sighed dramatically. "I'm choosing to believe he'll eventually feel guilty."
Nagi's muffled voice came from underneath the blanket. "I don't."
Reo stared at the lump beneath the covers for several long seconds before slowly looking toward you. You couldn't help but laugh as you pushed yourself off the bed, stretching your arms over your head before walking toward the kitchen. The cabin had already started feeling lived in compared to when the three of you first arrived. Yesterday's wet towels were hanging outside to dry, someone's shoes had been abandoned near the front door, and a deck of cards still sat on the coffee table exactly where the three of you had left them the night before.
You opened one of the cabinets before letting out a disappointed sigh. "We're almost out of cereal."
Reo immediately walked over. "What? Already?" Reo said as he turned to the only suspect. "Nagi." Reo called.
"...I only had four bowls." Nagi said.
You slowly turned toward him. "...Four?"
Nagi shifted on the bed. "I was hungry."
Reo pinched the bridge of his nose. "I don't know why I'm surprised anymore."
"You should've hidden it." Nagi argued.
"I SHOULDN'T HAVE TO HIDE CEREAL." Reo shouted as he yanked the covers off of Nagi.
You leaned against the counter, laughing quietly to yourself while watching the two argue over something so unbelievably stupid that it almost didn't feel real. If someone had told you a week ago that you'd be standing in a cabin listening to two boys argue over cereal, you probably would've laughed in their face.
Not long after breakfast, everyone gathered near the center of camp where today's activities were being explained. The counselors stood near a large wooden board covered with maps while teenagers slowly gathered around, some still carrying half-eaten breakfast sandwiches in their hands.
One of the counselors clapped loudly to get everyone's attention. "Today's activities are split into two groups! Half of you will be heading out for the hiking trail, while everyone else will be participating in the low ropes course. After lunch, you'll switch!"
Several campers immediately groaned.
"Hiking?" Reo muttered. "I thought this was supposed to be summer camp, not military training."
"Aren’t you athletic," you pointed out.
"Yeah, but what's your point?" Reo asked.
"That's... you should have gotten used to this."
"It's different." Reo said as he stood straight.
Nagi looked toward the trail disappearing into the forest before quietly sighing. "...Too many trees."
You stared at him. "Well, yes. We’re near a forest.”
The hiking trail itself wasn't particularly difficult. It mostly consisted of dirt paths winding between tall pine trees while counselors occasionally stopped to point out different plants or wildlife. Most campers walked in groups, talking amongst themselves as they made their way uphill.
Without realizing it, you had somehow ended up walking between Reo and Nagi. Every now and then Reo would wander ahead to talk to another camper before eventually jogging back to the two of you as though he'd forgotten where he belonged.
"You know," he suddenly said, pointing toward a large rock near the path, "I bet I could climb that."
You looked at the rock. "Okay but why?"
Nagi answered before Reo could. "Attention."
Reo gasped dramatically. "I do not crave attention."
"Ninety percent of your personality is craving attention." Nagi said."
You laughed so hard that you accidentally stumbled over another fucking tree root. Before you could catch yourself, someone lightly grabbed the sleeve of your hoodie.
"Watch where you're walking." He simply nodded before continuing forward as though nothing had happened.
By lunchtime, everyone had returned to the main campgrounds. The counselors handed out sandwiches before allowing everyone nearly an hour of free time before the afternoon activities began. Most campers immediately ran toward the lake and others started a volleyball game.
You sat beneath one of the trees with your lunch balanced on your knees while absentmindedly picking at your chips. Nagi quietly sat down beside you.
"You're surprisingly easy to be around." You said, munching on your chips.
He looked at you. "Is that a compliment?"
"I think so." You answered. "At first I thought you’d be some type of asshole.."
"What?" Nagi said quickly.
You let out a small laugh, “Nothing.”
Another comfortable silence settled between the two of you before he quietly reached into his pocket. "...Here."
He held out a small packet of gummies. "You kept looking at them during breakfast."
You blinked. "You... saw?"
He looked away, "Yeah, it seemed like you probably wanted them."
"Nagi." You said after elbowing him. “You're weird. But... thank you."
He shrugged. "No big deal." To him, it genuinely wasn't. But to you it was strangely thoughtful. Someone had actually remembered something so small about you. You weren't sure why that made your chest feel warm. Maybe you were just reading too much into it, so you quietly accepted the candy before convincing yourself not to think about it anymore.
Looking at the area, most of the campers scattered the second they were done with lunch, some sprinting toward the lake while others immediately claimed the picnic tables closest to the shade. You, however, decided absolutely no intention of sitting around dozens of loud teenagers while trying to eat. A gentle breeze drifted through the trees, carrying the sound of distant laughter and counselors yelling at someone to stop climbing onto the dock.
A few minutes later, Reo came jogging back toward the two of you carrying three ice creams he'd somehow convinced one of the counselors to hand over.
"There you guys are!" he called out. "Seriously, every time I turn around, you two disappear together."
You and Nagi looked at each other for half a second.
"I don't know," Nagi answered honestly.
Reo sighed dramatically. "You've done it like... four times already."
The next day had gone by so fast. For the first time since arriving at camp, you woke up before either of the boys. The cabin was surprisingly quiet. No Reo complaining, no Nagi pretending to be dead… Just the faint chirping of birds outside and the occasional sound of waves gently hitting the shore.
"...Weird." You sat up slowly before looking across the room. Reo was somehow sleeping diagonally across the bed, practically hanging off the edge because Nagi took up most of the space.
Speaking of Nagi, he looked exactly the same as he had every other morning. Blanket pulled halfway over his face, one arm hanging off the mattress, and completely motionless.
You stared at him for a few seconds. "...Is he breathing?"
Curiosity got the better of you. Quietly climbing out of bed, you walked over before crouching beside him. "...Nagi?" Silence followed afterwards. "...Nagi." Still nothing. You frowned before carefully poking his shoulder, and yet there was still nothing. "Okay that's actually concerning."
Leaning down slightly, you held the back of your hand beneath his nose. A warm breath brushed against your skin. You sighed in relief. "Oh thank god."
"...What're you doing?" He asked, eyes still closed.
You nearly screamed as your entire body jerked backward before you lost your balance, landing flat on your back with a loud thud. "Ow!"
Nagi lazily opened one eye. "I was breathing."
"You looked dead!" You argued, looking all flustered.
"I get that a lot." Nagi said as he turned to look at Reo who was still asleep beside him.
"You couldn't have said something before I embarrassed myself?" You mumbled, finally getting up
"I wanted to see what you'd do." He yawned.
You stared at him in disbelief. "...You're actually evil."
"Mhm." He closed his eyes again. "I appreciate it though."
From the other side of the bed came an exhausted groan. "...Can you guys be quiet..." Reo slowly pulled the blanket over his face. "...Some people are trying to sleep."
You and Nagi looked at each other. Then simultaneously looked at the clock hanging above the door. It was almost ten.
You blinked. "...Breakfast definitely ended."
Reo sat bolt upright. "WHAT?"
After getting scolded by one of the counselors for oversleeping, the three of you were handed whatever food had been left over from breakfast before being sent toward the main field where today's activities had already begun.
Unlike the previous few days, today wasn't centered around one event. Instead, different stations had been set up all across camp.
Archery, volleyball, bracelet making, fishing, painting, even a small stand where campers could rent bikes for an hour.
"Finally," Reo sighed dramatically as he looked around. "Freedom."
One of the counselors overheard him. "It's called scheduled free time Mikage!”
"It's freedom!” He shouted back. The counselor only shook her head and muttered something under her breath.
You couldn't help but laugh. "This actually looks fun."
Reo immediately grabbed both you and Nagi by the wrists. "Okay! Rule number one."
"Are there rules?" You asked, confusingly.
Reo smiled brightly. "There are now!"
He pointed dramatically toward the field. "We split up for one hour."
"You heard me." Reo said.
"Because if we spend every second together, we'll have nothing to talk about later." Reo stated.
Nagi rolled his eyes and looked around before saying, "...That doesn't make any sense."
"Nagi I makes perfect sense.” Reo claimed.
"No it doesn't." Nagi pointed out.
Before either of them could argue any further, Reo shoved the camp map into your hands before sprinting toward the bike rental stand. "I'M GOING BIKING!"
"...He's gone." Nagi scratched the back of his head.
The two of you stood there in silence watching him disappear. Eventually you looked over to Nagi. "So..."
"...What do you wanna do?" You sighed
Nagi looked around. "...Something that doesn't involve running."
"I guess bro." You joked.
The two of you wandered around camp with absolutely no destination in mind. Every now and then you'd stop to watch another activity before continuing along the dirt paths that connected each area together. At one point, you passed the arts and crafts cabin where several campers were painting small wooden birdhouses.
"I wanna do that." You decided.
Nagi looked inside. "Why?"
"Because they're cute?" You added.
"No more from you." You warned as you grabbed his wrist before he could continue walking. "C'mon."
Nagi allowed himself to get dragged. "I don't know how to paint." He admitted. "...Seems difficult."
"It literally isn't." You scoffed.
"You'd be surprised." Nagi shrugged.
Five minutes later the two of you sat beside each other at one of the long tables covered in paint. Yours already had flowers beginning to take shape and Nagi's was completely white.
"You haven't painted anything." You said as you wiped your palms against the table.
"I'm thinking of what to paint.” Nagi lied as he played with the paint brushes.
"You've been thinking for ten minutes." You added. "What could you possibly be thinking about?"
You bursted into laughter. "You don't know what color to use?"
"There are too many." He replied as he stared off into the distance.
Shaking your head, you dipped your brush into a container of blue paint before gently drawing one small stripe across the roof of his birdhouse. "There."
"...You painted it?" He asked.
He stared at the blue line for several seconds. "...Looks nice."
"It would look nicer if you actually finished it." You said, pointing out.
"You've been hanging around Reo too much, always making me do things." He pointed out as he touched the wet paint.
"Wow, okay." You said, as you rolled your eyes.
By the time the two of you finished, yours and his hands were covered in little spots of paint.
Nagi quietly stared at your face."...You have paint."
"Hm?" You hummed as you touched your face with your clean finger. You ended up rubbing the wrong spot.
"...Here?" You questioned, based on his expression it seemed you weren’t getting the right spot. You frowned. "I'm trying."
Before you could smear even more paint across your face, he reached over. His thumb lightly brushed against your cheek before pulling away. "There."
You completely froze and he looked at the blue paint now covering his thumb. "Got it."
He simply wiped the paint onto a napkin as though nothing unusual had happened.
Your heart was beating much faster than it probably should've been. You immediately looked away before he could notice. 'He's just being nice.' You told yourself. 'He literally has a girlfriend.' So why did your stomach feel all weird?
After lunch, you finally found Reo again. He was sitting on a bench eating shaved ice while somehow talking to three different campers at once. "There you guys are!" He said excitedly, “I made some friends. Reo looked between the two of you before smiling to himself. "You know..."
"I leave you alone for one hour and yet somehow you're still together."
You blinked. "We just..." You looked toward Nagi. "Didn’t know what to do, so we stayed by each other.."
Nagi nodded, not seeing the big deal Reo was trying to make. "Mhm."
The rest of the afternoon was spent chatting with Reo’s new friends. It wasn’t until Nagi got bored and fell asleep on the bench. Reo had to excuse himself early to take Nagi back to the cabin. You followed behind them both into the cabin and laid on your bed before falling asleep.
The next morning you, Reo, and Nagi sat in the dining hall. Teenagers ran between cabins with towels draped over their shoulders and counselors shouted schedules from the main lodge. You weren't entirely sure what it was until one of the counselors casually mentioned it during breakfast. "Tomorrow's our last full day, everyone! Make sure to enjoy yourselves before heading home on Friday afternoon."
The dining hall immediately filled with a mixture of cheers and disappointed groans. Some campers looked excited to finally sleep in their own beds again. Others already looked upset that camp was almost over. While you quietly stared down at your tray. "...Already?"
Across from you, Reo let out an exaggerated gasp. "No way."
"We've literally been here forever." Reo claimed excitedly.
"It's only been a few days." You added.
"It felt like a month." Reo grunted.
Nagi lazily stabbed at his eggs with a plastic fork. "...Time's annoying. It goes too fast when you're having fun."
You and Reo slowly turned to look at him.
"You just admitted you're having fun!" You and Reo said at the same time. You laughed quietly into your drink while Nagi simply sighed, clearly regretting speaking in the first place.
The morning activity was announced shortly after breakfast. It was a relay challenge. Just a series of ridiculous games scattered around camp where teams earned points by completing different tasks. One station involved carrying buckets of water without spilling them. Another had campers attempting to walk across wooden planks tied to their feet. One even required blindfolding a teammate while another person shouted directions.
Reo's eyes practically sparkled. "Oh, we're winning this."
"We're absolutely not," you answered.
"We have me." Reo chimed.
"We also have Nagi." You added.
Nagi raised one hand. "I'd like everyone to lower their expectations."
The first few games went about as well as expected. Reo tried way too hard and you somehow kept getting distracted. Nagi contributed the bare minimum while somehow still succeeding. By the time everyone reached the blindfold challenge, your team was somehow sitting in third place.
The counselor smiled. "Okay! One person wears the blindfold while another guides them through the course."
Before anyone could volunteer Reo shoved the blindfold into your hands. "You trust me, right?"
You slowly looked at him. "...Not even a little."
"What?" He looked at you with confusion.
You stared at Reo for a moment, "You'd absolutely walk me into a tree."
"I would never!" He gasped.
The counselor looked toward Nagi. "Looks like you're guiding her."
"Hm." Nodded his head in agreement.
You carefully tied the blindfold around your eyes before immediately realizing how much you hated not being able to see. "Okay..." you muttered nervously. "I'm ready."
"How can you trust him, but not me!?" Reo asked.
The whistle blew and you cautiously took one step forward. "Nagi? Where am I going?"
"...That's not helpful." You replied as your arms stayed in the arm.
"Sorry." There was a short pause. "Three steps."
You followed his instruction, they were surprisingly calm. Whenever you hesitated, he'd simply repeat himself without sounding annoyed. By the time you reached the end of the course, the counselor clapped. "Great job!"
You pulled the blindfold off before blinking against the sunlight. "That wasn't so bad."
"You almost walked into a bush," Reo informed you.
After lunch, everyone was given nearly two hours of free time. Some campers immediately headed back toward the lake while others started another volleyball game near the field. Reo disappeared the second someone challenged him to basketball.
Leaving just the two of you again. You honestly weren't even surprised anymore.
"You know..." you said while slowly walking along the dock. "I think Reo's trying to get rid of us."
Nagi looked over. "Probably."
"You don't mind?" You said looking at him.
He shrugged."...Not really."
The wooden dock creaked beneath your feet as you reached the very end, where the water reflected the afternoon sun like tiny pieces of glass. You sat down first, letting your legs dangle over the edge. Nagi sat afterwards.
"...Can I ask you something?" You mumbled, staring at the water.
"What is it?" He insisted.
"Do you think we'll all stay friends after camp?"
Nagi didn't answer immediately. Instead, he watched the ripples spreading across the lake after someone jumped from the bridge in the distance. "I think so."
"...Really? Even when we all go home?" You added.
"...Yeah." He finally said.
You smiled to yourself and another quiet moment passed. "I don't really have a lot of friends." The words slipped out before you could stop them. "...Actually," you corrected yourself with a small laugh, "I have friends." You looked down at the water. "I just never really keep people around for very long."
"I get attached too easily. I always think people are gonna stay." Your laugh came out quieter this time. "But they usually don't and I learnt that the hard way.”
He looked at you. "...I'll stay."
"As your friend." He said it so matter-of-factly that it almost sounded obvious. "You don't seem... difficult to be around and I don't mind talking to you. Especially since you make camp less boring.”
You quickly looked away before he noticed how warm your face had suddenly become. 'Stop it.' You silently scolded yourself. 'He has a girlfriend and you're doing it again.' You hated how quickly your heart attached itself to kind people. It was exactly why your parents had sent you here in the first place. You promised yourself you wouldn't do this again. Yet here you were, sitting beside a boy who already belonged to someone else. The thought made guilt settle heavily in your stomach.
So you decided to stand up, “We should probably find Reo!”
Nagi looked up. "...Okay." He stood beside you without another question.
Neither of you mentioned the conversation again. But for the rest of the afternoon, you found yourself becoming painfully aware of it. That's all this was ever supposed to be.
Friday morning didn't begin with yelling. Or smoke filling the kitchen. Or Reo threatening to throw Nagi into the lake for refusing to wake up. You slowly opened your eyes before instinctively glancing toward the larger bed across the room. It was empty.
"...Huh?" For a brief second, panic settled in your chest. Where'd they go? You pushed yourself upright before hearing muffled voices outside the cabin window.
"...Told you she'd still be asleep." Nagi said.
"I wasn't betting against her!” Reo hissed.
"You literally said she'd wake up after us–"
"Shut it!" Reo interrupted.
Curious, you pulled the curtain aside. Just outside, Reo and Nagi sat on the small wooden steps leading up to the cabin. Reo had somehow managed to get breakfast early, balancing three paper plates across his lap, while Nagi leaned against one of the porch posts with his hood pulled over his head despite the warm morning.
You smiled to yourself. Seeing them already waiting outside made something warm settle in your chest. After quickly brushing your teeth and throwing on a hoodie, you stepped outside. "Morning."
"There she is!" Reo grinned. "Sleeping Beauty finally decided to join us."
"I wasn't even asleep that long." You mumbled sarcastically.
Nagi quietly held out one of the paper plates. "...This one's yours."
You blinked. "...You guys got me breakfast?"
Reo looked offended. "Excuse me."
"I got you breakfast. ME.” Reo said.
Nagi nodded once. "I carried it."
You laughed before sitting beside them on the porch, accepting the slightly cold pancakes resting on the paper plate. "Thanks."
"No problem," Reo smiled.
Nagi simply nodded before taking another bite of his own breakfast.
Today's schedule was surprisingly empty. Since everyone would be leaving after lunch, the counselors decided to let campers spend the morning however they wanted. The lake was open, and so was the basketball court.
It was essentially one last chance to enjoy camp before everyone packed up. Reo stretched his arms over his head. "So..."
He suddenly grinned. "We do everything."
"Everything?" You asked, heart dropping.
"Everything." He repeated. "Nagi?"
"...Sounds tiring." Nagi answered.
Reo immediately wrapped an arm around his shoulders. "Too bad."
The next several hours somehow turned into complete chaos. The three of you rented bikes despite Nagi insisting he'd probably crash. Well, he did like twice. The first time, he'd simply forgotten to turn and the second he'd been distracted watching a squirrel.
After bikes came volleyball. Or… what could loosely be described as volleyball.
Reo actually knew how to play, and you tried–but Nagi spent most of the game standing in roughly the correct position while occasionally hitting the ball back completely by accident.
The counselors had brought out coolers filled with sandwiches and bottled water while music quietly played from a portable speaker nearby. Groups of campers laughed together, exchanging social media accounts, promising to stay in touch after camp ended.
You watched them for a moment. "They're all exchanging numbers."
You picked at the wrapper around your sandwich and ignored him.
That afternoon, the counselors announced one final tradition before everyone returned to their cabins to finish packing. It was a group photo and every camper gathered near the lake while counselors attempted the impossible task of getting several dozen teenagers to stand still.
You found yourself squeezed somewhere between Reo and another girl you'd met a few days earlier. Just as the counselor raised the camera—Someone lightly tugged your sleeve.
You turned and Nagi stood a few feet away."Come here."
"You're too far." He admitted.
You looked around. "There's no room."
"There is." He pointed toward the small gap beside him.
"...Oh."You quietly slipped through the crowd before standing next to him.
The camera flashed, capturing one final picture.
Later that evening, after packing most of your belongings, the three of you found yourselves sitting on the dock one last time. The sun hung low over the lake, painting the water shades of orange and gold. You hugged your knees against your chest. "...I'm gonna miss this place."
Reo nodded. "Me too, even the terrible food."
"The food wasn't THAT bad." You laughed.
Nagi quietly looked out across the water. "...I'm gonna miss not having responsibilities."
You laughed. "Of course that's what you'll miss."
"...And you guys." He said afterwards.
The words came out so quietly that you almost thought you'd imagined them. You slowly turned toward him. "...Really?"
"Mhm. You've made camp..." He paused. "Better?"
Reo burst into laughter. "That is the nicest thing I've ever heard come out of your mouth."
Nagi frowned. “Stop being weird."
You couldn't stop smiling. You wished tomorrow simply wouldn't come but you knew it would. You just weren't ready for it yet. Everyone dragged their luggage toward the buses and people were hugging goodbye.
Reo is somehow carrying three duffel bags because he insisted he was "strong enough." You were helping another camper zip their suitcase.
When the counselors began to yell at campers to get to their seats, Reo immediately threw himself into the window seat at the back of the bus.
"I get carsick." Nagi whined.
"You don't even get carsick?" Reo looked confused.
Reo shushed Nagi, "You've never ONCE gotten carsick."
You rolled your eyes and sat on the seat in front of Reo “You two are unbelievable."
The counselor counted over the amount of people on the bus to make sure no one was missing,
“Nagi, who are you sitting with?” Reo immediately asked.
You turned to face Reo, “With you, no?”
"He'll sleep on me." Reo shook his head.
"...Isn't that your best friend?" You asked, quite unsure. Looking at Nagi he was still unsure where to sit. “It's okay, you could sit next to me.”
The next few hours went by. Unlike the ride there, nobody was awkward anymore.
Reo keeps mumbling to himself how hot it was every thirty seconds. Eventually Reo also started to make everyone play stupid games. "If you had to eat ONE food forever."
Nagi shrugs. "...Whatever's easiest."
"...That's such a Nagi answer." Reo sighed. "What about you?"
You thought for a second. "Probably strawberries."
Reo points dramatically. "Wrong."
You turned to look at him, "There isn't a wrong answer, dumbfuck."
"There is." He proudly said "You didn't pick pizza."
"I don't even like pizza that much." You said as you scratched your head awkwardly.
"...Who ARE you?" Reo said dramatically.
It was now lunch time and the buses stopped at a small rest area. It was nothing special. All it had was just vending machines, fast food and bathrooms. You decided to buy a drink but Nagi was staring at the vending machine. "What's wrong?" You asked as you walked beside him.
"It ate my dollar." He said with a frown.
You look at the machine. "Did you press the button?"
You sighed and took his silence as an answer. "Oh my god." You pressed the button and his drink fell.
His drink falls and he crouches down to pick it up. “Thanks."
Later that evening, the sun starts setting outside. Most people were asleep, especially Reo since his snores were extremely loud. You both watched the scenery pass outside. You didn’t realize you'd been staring at Nagi until he quietly spoke. "You okay?" He asked. "You've been quiet."
"Just thinking." You mumbled as you looked down towards your hands.
"About?" He questioned further.
You sighed before giving in. "Tomorrow."
Another silence followed. "I don't really wanna go home." The words leave your mouth before you can stop them.
"Neither do I." Nagi replied as he held onto your hand.
You smiled a little as he held onto your hand. “Really?"
"Mhm. It's kinda nice here." He said.
"You mean camp?" You tilted your head in curiosity.
"No." He answers honestly. “Us."
You blinked multiple times, confused if he was being honest. “Us?"
"You." He immediately realized how that sounded. “I mean..." He scratches the back of his neck. "...Hanging out with you and Reo."
"Oh, yeah.I liked that too." The conversation ended there with you, especially because you didn’t want to make it more awkward than it already was. Your eyelids began to feel heavier than usual, so you told yourself you'd only close your eyes for a minute, but without realizing it your head slowly leaned sideways against his shoulder.
The moment you fall asleep Nagi looked at your sleeping form, he refused to move but he knew he probably should have. His arm began to go numb–creating an uncomfortable feeling on his shoulder. If Reo woke up, he'd definitely make fun of him. But you looked peaceful, so he stayed exactly where he was.
About twenty minutes later, Nagi slowly reaches into the overhead compartment. The night is starting to get cold and he quietly decides to pull out your blanket from your backpack and carefully unfolds it to drape it over your shoulders.
The ride home had somehow gone by both incredibly fast and painfully slow. You weren't even sure when you'd fallen asleep again after resting against Nagi's shoulder the night before, but by the time you woke up, the bus had already begun slowing down as familiar streets replaced highways. The sun had barely risen and most of the campers were still asleep, their heads leaning against windows or awkwardly slumped against backpacks scattered throughout the aisle. Just the soft hum of the engine as it rolled toward the parking lot where dozens of parents were already waiting.
You slowly stretched your arms before rubbing the sleep from your eyes. "We're here already?"
Reo yawned loudly from behind you two. "I would've preferred another six hours."
"You slept through half the trip though?” You said.
"A guy like me needs more than that.” He scoffed.
"I disagree." You smiled to yourself.
The bus finally came to a complete stop and everyone began to stand one at a time. Duffel bags were pulled from overhead compartments and counselors shouted reminders not to forget anything. Parents were already outside eagerly searching each bus window for familiar faces.
You couldn’t describe the scene but it was extremely chaotic.
“Whose blue backpack is this?"
“Don't leave your trash behind!"
You laughed quietly as you reached above your head to grab your backpack. Before your fingers could reach it Nagi had already reached it for you.
"Oh." You accepted the bag from him. "Thanks."
"Mhm." He slung his own backpack over one shoulder before lazily stretching.
Reo had already started pushing toward the front of the bus. "C'mon! I wanna get off before everyone clogs the stairs."
"You literally are everyone," you called after him.
Within minutes, the three of you stepped off the bus. The morning air felt surprisingly cool after spending nearly two days inside. Parents stood everywhere, hugging their kids while others loaded luggages into their cars. Counselors tried their best to organize everyone despite the growing crowd.
The three of you simply stood there unsure where to begin first until Reo broke the silence. "Well."
"Guess this is it." You laughed softly.
Reo frowned, "Don't make it sound like we're dying." He grinned before wrapping both you and Nagi into one incredibly awkward hug.
Neither of you had enough time to react but you tried to get out of his grip. "Reo!"
"You guys are my camp best friends now, well besides Nagi since I’ve known him for a while.” He muttered awkwardly. Eventually he let go before dramatically wiping an imaginary tear from his eye. "I'll allow you both to miss me."
"I would rather not." Nagi deadpanned.
Reo blinked. “You're actually the worst."
You couldn't stop laughing. God, you were really going to miss this. You reached into your hoodie pocket before freezing. Of course, your phone. How could you forget to exchange numbers? "Wait."
"We never um,” You glanced between the two boys. “We never exchanged numbers."
Reo laughed. "Oh my god. How did we forget?"
Nagi pulled his phone from his pocket. "Here."
Just before any of you could unlock your phones—A counselor called out from across the parking lot. "Reo Mikage!"
Reo turned around. "Huh?"
"Your driver is looking for you!" The counselor shouted.
He looked toward the opposite side of the lot where a familiar black car had already pulled up. “Seriously?"
The counselor nodded. "They've been waiting."
Reo sighed dramatically. "Give me like... two minutes!"
The counselor simply pointed toward the growing line of cars. "Now."
"...Great." He looked back toward you. "We'll do it in literally one minute."
"It's not like we're disappearing!” Reo laughed as he jogged off towards the car. Leaving just you and Nagi. You looked down at the phone still resting in Nagi's hand, you knew this was your chance to grab his number. “Guess we should actually exchange numbers this time."
"Yeah." He unlocked his phone. Before either of you could type anything— "Nagi!" The voice cut through the crowd. The voice was bright and excited.
You instinctively looked up and saw a girl was weaving her way through the parking lot toward the two of you, practically running.Before Nagi had a chance to react—She threw her arms around him. "Oh my god, I missed you!"
His phone slipped back into his pocket on instinct as he awkwardly caught himself from stumbling backward. “Hi."
She pulled away just enough to cup both of his cheeks. "I swear, this was the longest week ever."
You stood there frozen. This was extremely awkward, especially because it suddenly felt like you shouldn’t be here. You didn’t want to be rude, she was his girlfriend afterall. Of course she'd be excited to see Nagi. Of course she’d hug him from how long she’d been waiting for him.
But somehow seeing her standing right in front of you made you realize that this was never going to happen. Your eyes drifted towards Nagi, based on his expression he looked confused and surprised. Like he hadn't expected everything to happen so quickly. Yet, his attention stayed entirely on the conversation in front of him. He hadn't looked back at you yet but you knew he didn’t have a reason to. You were fully aware you were only his friend, but the thought hurt more than you wanted to admit.
You quietly tightened your grip around your backpack strap and convinced yourself it was okay and this would happen. But nothing about this was unfair, nothing about this was unexpected. You'd developed a crush on someone who was already taken.
That wasn't his fault, it wasn't hers either. So no one was to be blamed besides you. You smiled to yourself and remembered your mother was probably waiting for you.
"Guess this is goodbye." You said it so quietly that nobody heard. It was clear he was occupied at the moment, so you muttered your goodbye and left quietly. Turning around, you slowly walked toward the parking lot, weaving between families until you spotted your mother's car waiting near the exit.
She smiled the second she saw you. "There you are!"
You smiled back. "Hey, Mom."
"How was camp?" She asked.
You looked back one last time, you didn’t want to tell her that the entire time you were at camp, you got on the wrong bus. So you shrugged and decided to not mention anything that was related to Nagi and Reo. The crowd was too big now, so it didn’t matter. “It was fun!" You said, as you threw your backpack into the backseat of the car.
Your mother smiled. "I'm glad."
You climbed into the passenger seat before gently closing the door and the engine started moments later. As the car slowly pulled away you looked out the window with a frown. All they’d ever be but memories. Just… memories.
Nagi’s girlfriend was still talking, something about school. Or about how boring the week had been and about a restaurant they should go to later.
Nagi nodded automatically. Only replying with “mhm’s, yeah’s, and okay’s”
Then he felt something off. Nagi had looked around and saw you were gone. Panic grew, “Where's Y/n?" He said worryingly.
His girlfriend blinked. "Huh?"
He looked past her shoulder and toward the buses. Then toward the parking lot and the crowd, but you weren’t there. “She was just here." He said as he turned in a slow circle.
Reo suddenly jogged back over. "Okay! My driver's wai—" He stopped. "...Where's Y/n?"
Nagi looked at him. "I don't know."
"...Wasn't she with you?" Reo asked in confusion.
The two of them looked around at the growing crowd.
Reo frowned. "She probably went to find her parents."
Nagi nodded. “Probably." Still he couldn't stop looking.
Maybe she'd gotten stuck in the crowd. Maybe she was saying goodbye to someone else. Maybe—There. A car slowly rolled toward the exit and through the passenger window he caught a glimpse of her.
Nagi didn't answer, but before he even realized what he was doing—he stepped away from his girlfriend.
"Nagi?!" She said as well.
He started walking into the crowd just to reach you in time. The walking then turned into running—people turned to look as he weaved through the crowded parking lot, narrowly avoiding rolling suitcases and families trying to load cars.
"Wait!" The word left his mouth before he'd even thought about it. The car kept moving until he reached the road just as it turned the corner. The car was now gone. You were gone.The morning suddenly felt still and he stared at the empty road for several long seconds.
Reo finally caught up beside him, breathing heavily. “Nagi, you okay…?"
Nagi didn't answer. His eyes remained fixed on the road you’d disappeared down.
This entire week, you had made his life more enjoyable. Nagi expected it to stay like that. Why couldn’t you be a little more patient?
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