"Milka, you're a genius! Come on, Dogen!"
It was a simplistic statement, but it touched Milka deeply. Living through insults from her abusive mother, compliments were rare treats. She treasured the accolades she received from her peers, and Elka had always been kind to her.
As Elka followed her lead, Milka scurried away from Vernon and hobbled across the bridge. She turned visible when she realized Vernon was still painfully searching for them all back in the cabin area, where the participants clearly were not, but Vernon insisted they were present. Milka glanced over her shoulder, watching Vernon carefully at the end of the bridge and waved to Vernon when he saw her. As he darted after her, Milka grinned mischievously to herself and scampered away. She turned invisible as she darted towards the woods, and Vernon groaned, demanding she make the game fair.
Milka giggled, revealing herself and ducking into a cave. She knew Vernon would not follow, fearing the bear inside. She rendered herself clear, bypassing a sleeping bear and resting against the cave wall when she flinched.
A presence gripped her. She sucked down a gasp, jerking to attention when an equally startled cry echoed in the cave. Behind her, the bear grunted, snorted, and fell back asleep when silence resumed.
"So, you decided to hide out here, too?" Elka asked, and Milka nodded, revealing herself. "Smart thinking again. I doubt Vernon will come in here. I already punched him when he tried tagging him."
Giggling to herself, Milka replied, "He's surprisingly fast. He chased us all the way from the cabin area."
"I know. He's been like that since last year. He's kinda like a tagging master, but he's definitely going to avoid the bears at all costs," Elka said, shivering and rubbing her arms. "Sheesh! Does it have to be so damp and chilly in here? This camp really needs to upgrade."
"Like how?"
"Oh, you know, with proper protection from bears and locking off the caves. I mean, it's fine to sneak around the forbidden woods, but letting these caves be so open is just deranged," Elka replied, waving her finger. "Last year, I heard some kids got eaten by a bear, and Oleander laughed and sneered they deserved it."
"Y-yikes!" Milka covered her mouth, yelping and glancing around in hopes the bear did not hear.
"Don't worry. The bears will wake up if you try impeding on their territory. Since we're relaxing, it won't bother us," Elka said, grinning, and Milka nodded, returning her smile. "Oh, anyway, I was with Dogen just now, and mind if I vent?"
Milka shook her head, leaning against the damp cave wall as Elka raked her fingers through her thick blonde hair. She peered down the rocky corridor, almost expecting for the bear to awaken and snarl at them to leave. However, before she could listen more closely for the bear, Elka uttered an irritated groan.
"Dogen's nice and all, but he vegged out when I was talking about Nils. I had to get away when that annoying new kid so rudely invaded our privacy," Elka snapped, crossing her arms and turning her nose to ceiling. Grimacing when a water droplet landed on her nose, she cursed under her breath and quickly wiped her nose with her ascot. "Anyway, Nils has been a complete creep."
Milka tilted her head, inquiring to know more.
"Well, he's hit on every single girl here, and he's relentless. Lili, Phoebe, and he even made that gross Yoo-Hoo comment to you online," Elka moaned, resting the back of her palm to her forehead. "I just can't get Nils to be normal for once. I keep telling him my visions of us being together are a billion percent true, but he won't listen!"
Milka pursed her lips, fiddling her fingers and nodding sympathetically. She had an interest, too, in a boy who seemed to only want to remain friends. Quentin was much more enamored with Kitty while Kitty was more concerned with Franke. Despite her meager attempts, Milka knew Quentin only wanted to remain friends. Franke and Kitty had already brutally bullied her for her affection towards Quentin, leading to those feelings waning under their cruelty.
"Did you know we confessed our love to each other outside of the lodge last year? It was so romantic," Elka recalled, sighing only to smash her foot against the cave wall, "but he ruined it by acting like a lout and flirt!"
The bear roared briefly down in the cave, earning Elka and Milka's immediate fear. They leaned away, prepared to dash off only for the bear to groan, dozing off. When they heard the bear's shuffling stop followed by snoring, the girls sighed and lowered their heads.
"Sorry. God, I hate bears," Elka grumbled, crossing her arms.
"Don't let Mikhail hear that," Milka warned, paling.
"I won't. That bear kid's annoying, too, but what do you think? What should I do? I mean, I'm happy with James, but...well, the relationship is a bit one-sided. I do all the work, and JT, um, might not be my type," Elka admitted, sheepishly scratching the back of her head.
Milka scratched her cheek, closing her eyes in thought. She knew JT and Elka made a less than adequate couple. In her honesty, she did not know what they had in common to spark the relationship. To make matters more awkward, Elka had previously threatened Chops into staying away from JT, and JT was more interested in maintaining his friendship with Chops. It was a painfully construed "love triangle" from her observations.
Yet, Milka still felt terrible for Elka despite the ruthlessness she exposed to Chops and JT. Milka knew Elka was a victim of love's manipulations, and as someone who also experienced twistedness from romance, Milka gently reached for Elka's hand. Quietly, she laced her fingers around Elka's hand, and hearing Elka hum in confused wonder brought deep red to her cheeks.
"M-maybe, maybe, um, your relationship with JT isn't the best. If you want, uh, we can date," Milka offered, shifting from side to side, "to see if something is there b-because, if I can be honest, I don't think staying with JT is good."
Elka's mouth opened as if in slow motion, and she took in Milka's words. She understood her relationship with JT had been a way to make Nils envious and desire her, which left a budding feeling of regret in her chest. JT was a nice boy, but he was uncomparable to Nils, and his choice in friends was undesirable. Everything she did was to make Nils jealous and feel the same pain she endured.
Yet, Milka was her genuine friend who always tried looking out for her. She never harmed Elka or tried manipulating her in any manner They were sweet friends who enjoyed each other's company and gossiped. Pursuing a relationship had never crossed her mind, but gazing at Milka's bashful expression tugged at her lips.
"You know, I wasn't really interested in JT. He deserves someone who genuinely likes him," Elka admitted, shrugging, "so, I think you're right. It might be time to try something new rather than flinging myself back at that pig, Nils."
Stifling her startled cry, Milka reflexively tightened her grip on Elka's hand. "R-really?"
"Yeah! You know what? Let's go stick it to Kitty and Franke. We're gonna make romance bracelets, which are much better than stupid friendship bracelets," Elka offered, matching Milka's bright smile.
Bobbing her head eagerly, Milka laughed only to wince when the bear roared. Finally having had enough of their chatter, the bear emerged from its private cavern. Hunkering down as the girls screamed, the bear bellowed and charged, chasing the newly-made couple out of the cave and throughout Whispering Rock.