"Shit…" I muttered after coming out from the tent and sitting on a log beside Mushi.
"What's wrong?" Nigel asked me.
"I forgot my lighter"
"Lighter? What for?"
I raised the cigarette in my hand to show him
"Wait a minute!" Abby said, "I thought you quit smoking!"
"I started again" I said, "But I do it in small doses this time"
"Why don't you light your cigarette on the bonfire?" Hoagie laughed.
I leaned over a bit to do what he said but Mushi pulled me back.
"Wally, no! You'll burn your face off!" She said. Then she took a marshmallow and put in on a stick. And after holding it over the bonfire, she raised the flaming marshmallow for me. "Here you go, sweetie"
I lit my cigarette from the flame on the marshmallow she held up. "Thanks" I said.
"Wow" Lizzie said to us, "That's kinda sweet""And when she says sweet" Nigel added, "She means in your version"
Mushi and I smiled at them and then at each other. It's been three weeks since she and I got together and things are still going great. I've grown to become fond of her and she and I are now acting like a real couple. Our relationship was still "fake" but that didn't stop us from bonding well. Also, our make out sessions were no longer empty. We actually had connections in our kisses now.
"It's great that we decided to go camping" Lizzie said and she lay in Nigel's arms, "Isn't it a beautiful night, Nigee?"
"Yeah it is" Nigel smiled.
"You two are so cute" Mushi said to them. "Wally, I should have a nickname for you too!"
"Forget it" I said. I glanced for second at everyone in the circle and my eyes passed Kuki. She was leaning on Chad who had his arms around her but she wore a grim expression on her face. I knew why. She was jealous of Mushi and me. I don't know whether she knew of the jealousy or not but I didn't care. As long as I know she's jealous, I'm good. Yes, it's true. It's been weeks but I still find Kuki's jealousy very amusing. It was her turn to suffer.
"Here you go, gorgeous" Mushi offered me a marshmallow.
"I don't want it" I said.
The smiled on her face turned into something more of a scowl. "Eat it" She demanded.
"No"
"Eat it now!"
"Shut up!"
"Fine…asshole"
"Bitch"
"You know" Hoagie joked to Abby, "In their language, that means 'I love you' and "I love you too'"
Everybody laughed. Lately all jokes related to me and Mushi involved phrases like, "In their way, that is…" or "By that, they mean…" or "In their version…" Mushi and I knew perfectly well what they meant. We both didn't know how it started but people who knew of our relationship called us "The Bad-ass Couple". Apparently, my well-known reputation as a rebellious tough guy made good chemistry with Mushi's reputation for being a charming but mischievous player. So, we were known as two "trouble-makers" in a relationship. But despite all that, Mushi and I never paid attention to our little reputation. All we cared about was having fun together.
"Smoking is so gross" Lizzie remarked.
"Well I'm a pretty gross person" I smiled at her.
"Can I try it?" Mushi smiled at me.
"Try what?"
"Smoking. Can I try?"
"Sure"
Before I could do anything, Kuki snapped at her. "Mushi, smoking is bad!"
"Leave her alone, Kuki" I said, "You may be the older sister but she can do what she wants"
I could tell that everyone, excluding Lizzie and Chad, was shocked at what I just said. I just shut Kuki up. They were all oblivious to the fact that I was over her.
"Wally, maybe you shouldn't let Mushi smoke" Nigel suggested.
Before I could reply to him, Mushi stood up for her self. "You guys treat me like a little girl" She said, "I'm thirteen. I'm a teenager now and I can smoke if I want"
I laughed at everyone's speechlessness. "You guys got told off by a pre-teen!"
"Stop calling me that!" Mushi smacked me on the head.
I didn't stop laughing at her and she just continued to hit me violently but playfully.
"You are so cute" She kissed me.
"You guys, we're right here! Don't do that in front of us, you nasty!" Abby said.
"Fine" I laughed, "We'll save it for the tent"
"Wally!" Mushi snapped playfully as I continued to laugh, "That is so inappropriate! My sister is right there!"
"I don't care" I continued to laugh. I didn't act like that with Mushi because I knew that Kuki was watching us. I acted like that with Mushi because I liked her. She's a fun girl. She and I got along well.
"Come on, Wally" She said, "Let me try a cigarette"
She reached out for my pack of cigarettes but before she could even touch them, I wrapped my arm around her waist and pressed my lips against hers. I kissed her so intensely that she actually bent back with my arm as her only guide. For fun, I blew cigarette smoke down her throat. I was laughing when I let go. And after coughing for a while, she started laughing too.
"That was sick, Beatles" Abby said.
"It's okay, Abby" Mushi said, "I think he's cute" And she kissed me on the cheek. I smiled at her while I took another wisp on my cigarette.
"Now let me try" Once again she reached for my pack.
But then I stopped her. "Use this" I said and I held up my cigarette. For some reason, I wouldn't let her lips touch anything that my own lips haven't touched. Gently, I held the cigarette and placed it on her lips. And she took a wisp. I smiled as I watched her blow the smoke out.
"What do you think about it?" Lizzie asked her.
"It's not bad" She said and she turned to me, "Can you do that thing where the smoke forms a ring?"
Without saying a word to her I puffed out the smoke, forming rings with them. She giggled in amusement and I smiled for making her happy. By now I'm so fond of Mushi that her amusement has become my amusement too. She and I were now a couple.