It's Not Easy Bein' Green
"What's going on here?" Neil asks as he enters the tent he shares with Max one late afternoon in July. It's a Saturday, which are usually Neil's favorite days because it's the one time a week he gets to choose what he wants to do instead of being at David's never-ending, enthusiastic mercy.
Neil had been on his way to the sorry excuse of a "science camp" that Camp Campbell provided when he had realized he'd forgotten his tools back in the tent. Neil had expected to find Max still asleep (as that was the smaller boy's usual choice of activity for a Saturday), but was surprised to find that not only was Max awake at 3pm on a Saturday, but Nikki had turned up as well.
"What. the. fuck. are you two doing?" Neil asks again with emphasis on the cuss as he takes in the scene before him.
"What the fuck does it look like Neil," replies Max with his usual sarcastic tone. Both he and Nikki are sitting on one of the tent's two bunks. In one hand, Max holds a comic, which he doesn't look away from as he responds and the other is in Nikki's grasp. Nikki cocks her head as she greets her tall friend.
Neil continues to stare on in horror as Nikki, with her free hand, dips a small brush into a little container of lime green nail polish. Neil watches with a look of pure anxiety as the bottle wobbles precariously on the sheets. He also notices, with disdain but again not surprise, that the two are sitting on his bed.
Internally, Neil curses his mother once again for getting him solid white sheets and not the checkered ones he originally requested which would've hid any spilled nail polish easily.
"Neil if you're gonna be weird about this, then you should go and do your science thing or whatever," Max says dismissively. "Nikki. Page." Nikki releases his hand and leans over to turn the page for her friend. "Thank you," Max adds curtly.
With Nikki's movement, the nail polish shimmies with even greater force. Neil tries to steady himself. Fuck. Damn it. Just had to have the white sheets, didn't we, Karen?
"Yeah, " Nikki continues, "If you think boys having painted nails is weird, well, then go take your toxic masculinity somewhere else."
Max finally looks up from his comic and eyes Nikki. She smiles, "What? That's what my mom said when Dad wouldn't let my little brother have a butterfly on his birthday cake last year."
Max smirks, returns to his reading and doesn't say anything else.
The three are quiet for a moment as Neil continues to watch Nikki paint Max's nails with rising levels of disgust.
"Damnit," Neil finally says. He stalks towards the two and pulls the small brush from Nikki's hand, "She's not even staying within the nail line!" Max laughs at that. He tosses the comic to the side and pats the space on his other side.
"What? So you think you can do better?" Nikki challenges with narrowed eyes.
"Oh! Oh I know I can do better," Neil retorts with the same level of intensity. He abandons the tools he'd been clutching on Max's bed, and pulls himself up onto his own bunk. Neil grabs Max's painted hand and assess the damage. The fingers from Max's thumb to his middle finger are coated in thick green polish.
"God, it looks like you were fingering Kermit or some shit."
"Gross," Max snorts.
"What's fingering," asks Nikki but the two ignore her.
"Do we have any polish remover?"
Nikki shrugs, "I dunno. Max and I just kinda went to my tent and stole the stuff off Ered's dresser."
"She probably has some," Neil replies, not bothered by his friend's thievery. "Nikki, go back and look. It should be a clear bottle with a black twist top."
The blue-headed girl crosses her arms at the request, "And why should I? You interrupted Max and my thing and you won't let me paint his nails."
Neil groaned, "Ugh. I'll let you paint mine. Now go!"
Satisfied, Nikki hopped off the bed and dashed out of the tent. As the little door flew open, Neil could see that sky had begun to darken. How long had he been in here talking to Nikki and Max? The tall boy shrugged, eh fuck it. Science Camp wasn't going anywhere and he could not let Max walk around with such horrendously painted nails.
In the distance, the boys hear David call for dinner. Neither stirs from their position on the bed.
"So you guys do this every week, huh?" Neil asks after a moment. He begins to paint Max's clean fingers with slow, straight strokes.
Max shrugs, "We do this like every other Saturday, usually when you're at Science Camp."
"But I never see you wearing polish?"
"I always wash it off before it hardens. I don't mind them painted, but uh, Nikki doesn't do the best job."
The two chuckle awkwardly. With his comic completely forgotten, Max watches as Neil finishes the first coat of his pinkie finger. Finally, Neil breaks the silence and asks, "Why don't you guys ever invite me?"
Max shrugs and rolls his eyes.
"Honestly? We didn't think you'd want to do it. It kind of became a thing for us to do while you were doing your science stuff." Neil's struck by how soft Max's voice has gotten. He stops painting and turns to face his friend, "Shit man, we didn't mean to make you feel excluded."
"I don't feel excluded!" Neil retorts quickly. He blushes, his expression flustered. They're quiet again. His outburst clearly stating that he felt very, very excluded.
"The doors always open, man," Max says after a while, "We'd be happy to have you. My nails would thank you."
They share a laugh. Neil finishes the two fingers and Max returns to his comic book. The familiar sound of Nikki running on all fours sounds from outside. She enters coated in dust and grime, but she has a small saddlebag around her torso. Inside are an assortment of nail polish colors, remover and cotton balls.
"Ered says we can use her stuff anytime we like. But she wants us to ask next time."
"You guys didn't think to ask first?"
Nikki giggles, "Act first and ask questions later. That's how Max and I do nails." The overall-clad girl takes in Neil's handiwork and grins, "Oooh! Those look great Neil! Mine next!"
Neil smiles in spite of himself. Nikki hands him the remover and a cotton ball. The two nails he painted shimmer in contrast to the three Nikki had done. Neil looks over the nails sighs and quickly removes the polish from all five fingers, "You know what? Fuck it. This isn't your color. Let's try the black."