Thanks, anon! Here’s a bunch of people being terrible in some au I just thought up I hope you like it :’)
Oh, yeah - David is Oz, Angélique is Sey and Riley is Zea because they insisted on being there as well
send me a pairing and a number and I’ll write a fic!
She seems sort of boring, at first.
Well, not boring, but very decent, with her sensible hiking shoes and the small cross charmnecklace resting in the hollow of her throat. Her name is written in roundedletters on the nametag they’re all being made to wear – Angélique, with alittle sun drawn in the corner. (David tried to draw a crocodile in the cornerof his own, but it looks more like a blob than anything else.)
Still, the only reason that he notices heramong the other summer camp counsellors is that she’s very pretty, all tight black curls and smiling eyes and frecklesdotting her warm brown skin. She’s wearing a summery blue dress that’s quicklyexchanged for a yellow camp T-shirt tucked into denim shorts after everyone hasreceived their instructions.
They’re on the same team – which is to say,they have to supervise the same gaggle of overexcited kids, they themselves underthe supervision of Arthur (“call me Mr Kirkland”) and his ever-present clipboard.He seems surprised that David is back for another year, but only raises hiseyebrows, which are somehow even bigger than David’s own, and doesn’t sayanything about it. Their little group is completed by David’s friend Riley.That’s a first. For some reason, they were always split up before.
“Yeah, I pulled some strings,” Riley says inthat innocent way of theirs, before going to introduce themself to Angélique.(David swears one day Riley’s going to land himin jail and he’ll never even know what for.)
They meet ‘their’ kids, a dozen hyperactivethirteen-year-olds who are still convinced the summer camp is cool (it’llprobably be the last year of that) but not so much that they should actuallylisten to what their counsellors tell them. It all ends in a lot of shouting.David can practically feel himself going hoarse, but he also gains a lot of satisfactionfrom watching Arthur’s eyebrows crinkle ever more.
Poor man. He probably wishes he had a real job.
David accidentally catches Angélique’s eyewhile he’s busy suppressing laughter at the supervisor, and she bites her lipwhile grinning, gaze flicking to Arthur and back again. The man is turning vaguelyred now, and it doesn’t look like it’s the sun causing it – yet.
Ah, so she’s a little less decent than hethought, then. Good. He might need to get to know her a little better.
They have their first excursion right away onthe first full day of camp, taking the teens into the surrounding forest toplay some games that end with people being pushed into mud or hiding in trees(that last group including David) and Arthur covered in ants. Angélique can’tstop laughing even while she helps him bat them away.
David has to tell them that they can’t showertonight, and is understandably mobbed by mud-caked kids. (He didn’t even tellthem that he is allowed to wash.)
“You’ve got a little…” Angélique tells himwhen he joins the counsellors for dinner, as she gestures vaguely at her own face.
“Yeah, I’m moisturising,” David jokes,grimacing when he wipes his forehead and his fingers come away muddy. Angéliquelaughs and hands him a paper tissue.
Later, when they’re watching the celebratory we-survived-the-first-day-of-campcampfire burn out while Riley and Arthur herd the kids to their cabins, Davidtells her about some of the weirdest things that have happened in previousyears, including the time last year when he and Riley discovered that a very Romeo and Juliet-type romance had sprungup between two teenagers from their respective groups, and they decided toprotect them from the rest of the counsellors. (They all hated the two of themby the end. Maybe that’s why they’vebeen put together now, with the new recruit.)
“I think that’s why Arthur was so surprised I’mback this year,” he adds, grinning as Angélique laughs brightly. Her eyes aresparkling in the firelight, and they look very deep.
“Well, I’m glad you are,” she replies. Shebites her lip, absently grabs her necklace, and shakes her curls out of herface. “I think it’ll be fun, this week. And the kids seem to love you.”
“The feeling is entirely mutual,” he assuresher. “Except on the kids’ parts. I hate those little arseholes.”
She laughs again, and David keeps grinninguntil he goes to bed and Riley thwackshim over the head with a pillow. Although Arthur eventually appears to tellthem to stop their ‘utterly childish’ pillow fight, he decides it’s been a muchbetter first day than he could have expected.
The second day is much the same, except that theyhave an outing to the sea, where Angélique demonstrates admirable surfing skilland also that she looks very good in a bikini top and boardies, and whereArthur Mr Kirkland does, in fact, get sunburnt, this much to everyone’shilarity. While he sits in the shade and grumbles, hiding his face behind hisclipboard, Riley, David and Angélique lead the kids in a chaotic game ofCapture the Flag that eventually devolves into Angélique’s and David’s groupsganging up on Riley’s, because (as always) Riley has come up with a strategythat’s far too serious and complicated and apparently includes booby traps on thebeach.
David is running from some children withAngélique when she trips over one such trap and sprawls on the sand, gettingtangled in ropes.
David’s brain practically screeches to a halt. Sheswears. And not entirely mildlyeither. That is about the opposite of what he expected from her – seemingly mild-mannered,most likely religious Angélique Verlaque.He stops running to look at her, all sandy curls and yellow fabric and waytoo much damn skin.
“You kiss your fucking mother with that mouth?”he asks, almost in awe.
“No,” she says, still struggling, “butsometimes I kiss yours.”
“What the h—”
The kids take him down, Riley looming over himlike a malevolent god as he falls to the sand.
Worth it.
Later, he and Riley form the rear of the groupas they walk back to the campsite. There’s still sand all over him, but Davidfeels fucking amazing.
“Riley,” he tells them, and takes theexasperated sigh he receives in answer as a sign to continue, “I’m in love.”
“Because she told you she kisses your mum?”
“Don’t you see, mate? She’s perfect. She’s the perfect woman.”
“Because she told you she kisses your—”
He throws his hands up. “No, because she can keep up with me, Riles. She doesn’tmind, you know…”
“Your terribleness?”
He takes a breath. Releases it. “Yeah, basically.”
Riley chuckles. They’ve been dealing with Davidlong enough themself to know what he means. David knows he’s a chaotic man, andprone to saying things he really hasn’t thought about (sometimes, justsometimes, he doesn’t like that about himself) but not a lot of people manage tostick around once they know that. Angélique, maybe, could. The signs are good.
“Excellent,” Riley says. “I’ll prepare a shoveltalk.”
“I’m honoured, mate.”
“For you,Dave. That poor girl.”
“I take offense to that.”
“You deserve it. Don’t worry, I have all thereasons why outlined in the speech I’ll give at your wedding.”
The kids have to prepare dinner for everyone,and it turns out surprisingly good (because Riley distracts Arthur so he can’t ‘help’and Angélique actually does help) soit’s another good evening. They leave them to a spirited game of truth or darewith some of the other counsellors keeping watch around nine in the evening,and David goes to take a much-needed shower.
When he exits the cubicle, not wearing a shirtand still fumbling with an uncooperative zipper, he catches Angélique’s eyes inthe mirror over the row of sinks. She’s brushing her teeth.
“Hey,” he says, stilling. She quirks hereyebrows, leans forward to rinse her mouth, and then turns to him.
“Hi.” She presses her lips together. “Ah,David, I wanted to say sorry about that thing I – that thing I said. About yourmum.”
He smiles, letting his zipper be. “Don’t worryabout it. I’m sure she’d be flattered.”
“Good to know.” Her dark eyes very quickly flitdown his chest, but she meets his gaze again after a second. “She isn’t single,is she?”
“Ha, no, she’s not, sorry to disappoint.” Heruns a hand through his damp hair, watching through his eyelashes as Angéliquetakes a deep breath and swallows.
“Too bad,” she says, leaning against the sinks,back arching. “Any other family members you can recommend for swearing at?”
Briefly, David thinks about his brother, whopretends to be scandalised every time someone uses a single swear word (but he’sheard him talk to his schoolmates) and his sister, who is not allowed to swear(but he’s heard her talk to herschoolmates and damn).
“Me, maybe,” he says. “If you’re not opposed to,y’know, swearing at men.” He doesn’t think she is, but she’s full of surprises,is Angélique. Well, he’s only known her three days, after all. Who knows whatother interesting things he can learn about her.
“I’m not picky.” She shrugs. Then, she laughs,arms crossing. Her necklace glints in the bright lights in the bathroom. “Youshould have seen your face, though!You’d think I was propositioning you, David!”
Then, suddenly, Riley’s voice from the otherside of the mirrors. “Can you two get a room? Jesus Christ.”
Angélique does flinch at that last one, justslightly. David resolves to stick to God-less swearing from now on. (Oh, fuck,he’s already in deep.)
“Thanks, Riles!” he calls. “They’repropositioning me for you, I think.”
“I absolutely am, and you better get a damnmove on, mate,” Riley replies. The bathroom door opens and closes, and Davidgrins down at Angélique, who is looking very intently at him. Her eyes haveflecks of green in them in this light.
“Problem?” he asks.
She just says, “Oh, fuck it,” and reaches forhim, wrapping a hand around his neck and resting the other against his chest. Hequickly shuts up altogether.
(His mum, David later reflects, is definitelymissing out with regards to being kissed by that mouth.)
(He’s very glad that the kids are determined torepay him for the Romeo and Juliet situation from last year, although he couldhave done without the extensive alarm system they set up to warn them everytime Arthur is approaching.)
(Also, Riley’s shovel talk is terrifying. Theirbest man speech at the wedding even more so.)
