Please take a few minutes to offer up a prayer or a positive thought for Mari today. She's been through an excruciating last few weeks and deserves all the good energy you can send her way.

One of the Guys (1/1)

"This one has showers and a pool and basketball courts and a game room." Dylan handed Steve a brochure from a local campground. "I mean it's nice and everything but it's not like real camping."

"I vote for that one," Danny said without even glancing at the brochure.

"Just ignore him." Steve looked at the glossy picture on the cover that showed about 200 people gathered around a bonfire. "This does look more like summer camp which isn't really what I had in mind."

"Of course not." Danny adjusted his sunglasses. "You'd rather we helicopter drop into the middle of the forest and have to hunt and kill our own dinner all the while fighting off bears who want us as their own next meal and drinking water from whatever muddy stream we can find."

"There are no bears in Hawaii," Steve and Dylan said simultaneously.

"Fine." Danny huffed. "Whatever deadly thing that lives in the forest and is just waiting to feast on our unsuspecting bodies because we've invaded its territory."

"You're so dramatic." Steve tossed the pamphlet on top of the others that had been discarded for various reasons. "Why are you even here again?"

"Because despite my best efforts I have been unable to get you to give up on this ridiculous 'let's go for a whole week' camping plan of yours and Chin said Dylan has been doing research and has come up with a bunch of possible places to carry out this hairbrained scheme so when I found out he was coming over to discuss them today, and that literally everyone else had plans, I figured I better get involved so we don't end up camping on the top of an active volcano."

"Actually, there's a place on the big island that offers that." Dylan grinned.

Danny pointed an accusing finger at Steve. "Do you see what you've done to him?"

Before the familiar bantering could get going Dylan presented a printout from a website detailing the option he thought would work best for their needs. "This place has private campsites like we're looking for but it also has showers, a small food store, and a first aid station near to the entrance to the park in case you need them."

Steve looked at the pages. "I've never camped there but I've heard a lot of good things." He studied the stack of information Dylan had collected and researched and was impressed by the teenager's preparation. "You've clearly put a lot of thought into this and if you think this is the best one then I say let's book it."

Dylan beamed with pride. "Ok."

"Awesome." Danny rolled his eyes. "I can hardly wait."

Chin arrived to join the planning session just as Steve, Danny and Dylan were finishing up lunch.

"Want a burger?" Steve asked. "I can throw one on the grill."

Chin took a seat. "No, thanks. I met Leilani for lunch on her break."

"I was just getting ready to ask Uncle Steve about the side trip." Dylan's eyes sparked with excitement.

Steve placed the lunch dishes on the outdoor counter. "Side trip?"

Dylan had a great idea," Chin said proudly. "He suggested … well, I'll let him tell you."

"There are some really nice campsites on the north end of the park close to the lake," Dylan said. "That way we'd be close for swimming and fishing."

Steve and Danny nodded.

"But I was also thinking …" Dylan took a deep breath. "There are some areas not too far from there that are for what the park calls 'rugged camping'. The website said they 'provide a more intense hiking experience' and 'bare bones primitive camping'." The teen had read the words so often he'd committed them to memory.

"I was thinking that since we're gonna be there a whole week, maybe anyone who's interested could hike up to one of the more remote areas and spend one night there." He looked at Steve hopefully. "Uncle Chin said he's in and Cody said he would be too. Casey said she might be. What do you think?"

"I think that's a great idea," Steve replied.

Danny rolled his eyes. "There's a shock."

"Mom said we'll probably have to sneak out of camp while Angie is distracted by a cookie," Dylan chuckled. "Because if she knows we're going somewhere where there will be lots of climbing she'll want to come."

Steve's face held a look of unmistakable pride. "She probably would."

"I think it goes without saying I won't be a part of this little side expedition of yours," Danny groused. "Someone has to stay at base camp to wave in the rescue helicopters."

"You can give it up, Danny," Chin said. "I told Dylan your secret."

"What secret is that?" Danny looked at Chin who just smiled but said nothing then looked at Dylan who was trying hard to stifle a laugh. "What secret?" he demanded.

"Uncle Chin says you don't hate camping nearly as much as you pretend to," Dylan said.

Danny huffed. "Your Uncle Chin is wrong."

"He said there are a lot of things you hated before you moved to Hawaii but you've lived here so long now you actually like some of them but you just won't admit it," the teenager continued.

"Uncle Chin has taken one too many falls off his motorcycle without a helmet," Danny said stubbornly.

"Admit it," Steve said. "You had fun last time we went."

Danny held on. "I make no such admission."

"Fine then," Steve said. "Stay home if you want."

"I … I can't do that." Danny sputtered. "I promised Kaitlyn I'd go."

"We can explain it to her," Chin offered. "I'm sure she'll understand."

"Maybe," Danny said, clearly scrambling. "But I wouldn't want to miss Angie's first camping trip. "Or DJ's."

"And?" Steve said leadingly.

"And what?" Danny asked gruffly.

Steve rained an eyebrow and waited.

"And ...fine … as it turns out there's a chance … a slight one but still a chance … that I like the taste of hot dogs cooked over an open fire," Danny admitted.

Steve cocked his head to the side. "Annnnd?"

"Fine." Danny crossed his arms over his chest. "I've been looking forward to s'mores since the first mention of going camping again."

"I knew it!" Chin raised his hand and high-fived Steve while Dylan looked on in amusement.

"Guy code rules are in effect here, Dylan," Danny warned. "Not a word of what I just said leaves this deck."

"Don't worry." Dylan was thrilled with the idea of being included. "Your secret is safe with me."

THE END

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