Max sat by himself on the pier, watching as Lake Lilac began to settle in for the night. Speaking of which, this was the reason he was out here instead of in there in the Mess Hall. Tonight was the night the Lake Lilac Summer Social was being held, an annual lake-wide dance where all members of the camp surrounding the titular lake got together and basically hung out when they weren't at each other's throats. This was why Max opted to duck out when he got the chance to, which was luckily due to David and Gwen (but mostly David) worrying about making this particular party a perfect one. He wasn't necessarily fond of social gatherings like these (they were worse than even cult functions), the reason being as an attempt to keep his front as the cynical of the campers. A hint of idealism began to seep through the more and more he hung out with them, particularly his two best friends the moment they arrived at the hellhole. Neil, while annoying and usually sadistic, was technically the brother he never had. Nikki, meanwhile, was basically a big ball of sunshine with a sparkle of magically delicious rainbows.
When Max thought of Nikki, he thought of that day. Specifically, the day where the campers were paired together in an activity that involved channeling their inner parenting skills to take care of their eggs. Him being paired with her was a perfect example of the "opposites attract" cliché. As she opted to love and take care of the egg, he opted to neglect and set aside said egg, even suggesting to leave it in a box and let strangers take care of it. He admitted to her in secret that he didn't mean it, but rather he just vented at just the wrong moment; he went on to say that he enjoyed that particular Saturday and only criticized it in his façade. He would never forget that day...
…and neither would Nikki.
"Hey, Max."
Max yelped and jumped a few inches before turning to face Nikki herself. He was currently thanking God that it was nighttime, for she couldn't see the impending blush that colored his face.
"Oh, uh... Hey, Nikki. I thought you were gonna have the mess hall swarming with bees."
"Oh, yeah, I was, but...it wouldn't be much fun without you."
Well, shit. Max thought to himself as his blush became heavier. Nikki approached her friend with curiosity lacing her facial features.
"So what you are doing out here by yourself?"
"Besides ridding my sweat of the excess sweat of hormonal preteens because of this stupid dance?" Max joked before donning a more solemn expression, "I'm just...reminiscing."
"About what?"
"About...what happened this summer."
"Mind if I join you?"
Max faced Nikki again, this time with a look of bewilderment before relenting upon noticing that she was wondering if she had done something wrong. "Sure. Go on ahead." Taking her place beside him, they both watched the silent serenity of Lake Lilac for a few blissful moments until she got the nerve to continue the conversation, albeit with sincerity.
"So...what were you reminiscing about?"
"Oh, well...a lot of things, I guess. But definitely not that time when we were forced to take care of their stupid egg." Max made the mistake of pointing out a suspiciously specific detail located in his aforementioned reminiscing, which made Nikki see right through his little lie. It didn't anger her as much as it amused her, seeing as she giggled as the memory of that particular day came rushing back to her full force.
"Max, are you still mad about that day? Because if you are, I stole a gun from Mr. Campbell's vault that time those foreign exchange campers came to visit."
"No, I'm not mad, I'm just..." Max found it incredibly difficult to express his feelings to a mutual friend (let alone a crush), but soldiered on nonetheless. "It was one of the few times I was actually happy, despite my best interests."
At the mere mention of that, Nikki was suddenly all ears. She sat up straight and shifted closer to him. "Go on."
"Okay. I...had a rough childhood. Unlike you, who had a mom looking after you, I had nobody. No mom, no dad, no guardian. The closest I ever had to that last one was David and Gwen, and even they make mistakes from time to time. However...they were better than nothing. My actual parents saw an opportunity to lift a burden off their shoulders and they took it. They dumped me and ditched me at this camp when they got the chance. From that moment on...I guess it left an impact on my outlook on life."
He was met with silence not soon after and he turned to find her with watery eyes. "Uh, Nikki? You okay?"
She didn't say anything in response. Her actions spoke louder than her words, as you do. Case in point, she lunged at him with a hug in mind before engulfing him in it. He stumbled backwards but regain his footing long enough to process what was happening right now. "Whoa, Nikki! What's the big idea?"
"Max... I had no idea. I'm so sorry."
With Nikki beginning to mutter relentless apologies, Max had to say anything to get the message through her. "H-Hey, Nikki... It's not your fault. You couldn't have done anything, anyway."
"But I should've!" Nikki snapped before continuing to hug a continuing reassuring Max, "If I had known anything about your life until now... Wait, was this because I didn't see you on Parents' Day?"
Max internally cringed, realizing that he hadn't confided with Nikki the special Parents' Day that ended up with David and Gwen taking out for pizza. "Well... Technically, yes, and that's okay. I guess I've gotten used to it by now."
"Still though..."
"Shh, Nikki. It's not your fault. Besides, if they hadn't sent me to this hellhole of a camp, I wouldn't have met you...and Neil."
Nikki pretended not to notice that little slip-up and broke away to face him eye-to-eye, "Really?"
Max cracked a small smile and nodded, "Really."
A soft silence (save for the faint rippling of the lake) followed, as both of them attempted to figure out what to do next. However, they knew one thing: their respective eyes looked nice. Suddenly, a particular memory of Nikki's mother expressing her love for her father came rushing back to her full force. Remembering exactly what she did, she tilted her head, closed her eyes, gently puckered her lips, and leaned slowly towards Max. The Indian boy himself was greatly taken aback by his friend's sudden actions, but not enough to be horrified or disgusted by them. Case in point, the question he asked in subsequent action.
"Nikki, what the hell are you doing?"
"Uh..." Nikki began to blush and thank the heavens above that it was nighttime as well before scrambling for an explanation, "My mom did it with my dad?"
Oh, bless this adorably naïve girl... Max thought to himself. He shook his head while chuckling under his breath, much to the confusion of Nikki. "Are you trying to kiss me? Because if so, you're not doing it right."
"No, no! Max, I wasn't trying to... Wait, what?"
Max tilted Nikki's head in the opposite direction than before and placed a cool pair of lips onto her own. It seemed that all time had crawled to a stop as they both relaxed into the moment. As they closed their eyes and held each other's hands, they couldn't help but get the feeling that romantic music was left on in the background. A minute or so later, they both broke off the kiss and, opening their eyes, gazed into their respective partner's.
"Uh...sorry?"
Nikki only giggled in delight and placed a soft peck on Max's blushing cheek. "It's okay. I'm okay. Are you?"
Max only flashed Nikki a rare genuine toothy grin, "Sure. For lack of a better word, I'm...okay. But I'm thinking we should keep this between us. Just in case."
"Got ya," Nikki winked in understanding, "I'm not like some people who kiss and tell. People like Sasha... Thanks, Max."
Max returned the favor and kissed Nikki on the cheek just as she did to him before...before he realized something very important.
"Hey, shouldn't they crowning the King and Queen of the Summer Social by now?"
Nikki perked up with a gasp, "Oh! You're right! Let's go!"
Max watched as Nikki sped off before he chuckled, shook his head, and trailed behind after her.
The usual attitudes of Max and Nikki changed drastically, a few days having passed the Summer Social. They attempted to revert back to their usual behaviors, but everybody caught on quite quickly. However, they preferred keeping their opinions to themselves while discreetly investigating at the same time. True to their word, the two children in question kept the secret hidden from their fellow campers out of fear that they would be teased about it. Both of them waited until the following Friday at nighttime to talk about the incident.
When they met outside, they remained silent for the next few minutes. Neither knew what to say.
"So..."
"So..."
"What now?"
"What now, indeed? I don't know..."
"Well, for one thing, we can't keep avoiding this."
"Avoiding what? It was just a kiss. One kiss, Nikki."
"One kiss that we both certainly enjoyed..."
"Which isn't the point."
"Then what is, Max?"
"I... I still don't know."
Max and Nikki then just sat there. Staring at the moonlight while thinking about what to say next.
"So..."
"So..."
"Did you enjoy the kiss?"
"... Yes. I was shocked at first, but it didn't take long for me to...enjoy it."
"Good."
"Why are you asking?"
"... Because I enjoyed it, too."
"I know, but why are you asking?"
"Oh, I just wanted to make sure."
"Yeah, ok."
. . .
"Do you want to do it again?"
"NO! Uh, I mean... Sure?"
They both turned toward each other and waited until the sparks flew once again. Indeed, that familiar feeling began stirring around in their stomachs as they gazed longingly into one another's eyes. Struggling to get into the same position from last Friday night, the kids felt the feeling from before increased tenfold and knew exactly what was going to happen next. Hesitant to lean in a little more, they finally planted their lips together, shuddering at their sudden contact. They eventually eased into their embrace, tilting their heads in order to get settled in a more comfortable position and clasping their hands together to admire the other's smoothness.
After a few fleeting minutes, Max and Nikki separated and drew heavy gasps while gazing into each other's eyes. A brief exchange of laughter occurred before they sighed in content and glanced away in embarrassment.
"That was nice."
"Yeah. It was...something."
. . .
"Do you want to do it again?"
"YES! Uh, I mean... Sure?"
And so, against their better judgments, their make-out sessions continued every Friday night (as well as the occasional Saturday), with the rest of the interactions not pertaining on either days being limited to nothing more than causal small talk between best friends. Nevertheless, their recent changes in behavior was still a hot topic amongst the campers, home and away. Their patience wearing thin and their annoyance turning into that of anger, prompting them to take drastic measures to ensure nobody would find out their dirty little secret.
It worked...for the most part.
Ered was just residing in her tent, scrolling through her iPhone while reminiscing about a fond memory with her newfound friend as the star. After all, it was Nerris who pulled her out of her coolness funk. For that, she was in her debt. But anyway, she was watching her dads kick some serious ass when her eyes caught notice of what appeared to be the silhouettes of her fellow campers. It was specifically Max and Nikki, but she didn't want to assume. Her ears perked up when they latched on to something that resembled something secret and decided to follow them.
Following their voices until they reached the cliffside, Ered ducked behind a tree and watched the two talk discreetly under their breaths, ensuring their secret conversation would remain as such. After a few insatiable moments, the two of them eventually kissed once more, catching the adrenaline junkie off guard and leaving her jaw agape. She couldn't gasp in shock, though, as it would immediately give her location away. As much as this was a pure comedic gold mine, she couldn't help but smile in pride that the little shit found someone he could call his own...not counting Counselors David and Gwen.
Making sure her camera had her flash off, Ered took a couple of gossip-worthy photos before she turned tail to retreat. Silently heading back to her tent as quick as possible, she checked the pictures and smiled in satisfaction.