Chapter 3 - Canoeing
"Hey Pasha, aren't you going to eat?"
"Da, I just vant to get some vater first."
Hikaru watched as Pavel joined the queue of children in front of the water and juice dispensers. He continued to eat his chicken and lettuce salad, chewing slowly, his eyes fixed on Pavel's sandwich next to him. Someone could steal it if he wasn't careful. Pavel eventually sat back down and tucked in, smiling shyly at the Japanese-American.
"You didn't hawe to vatch it like a havk."
"I know, but I did anyway. Scotty was eyeing it."
"Oh, zen zat's okay." Pavel giggled and drank his water. "Did you know zat drinking vater vhile eating is bad for your digestion?"
Hikaru tilted his head. "Then why are you drinking it?"
"I von't be able to chew zis dry bread ozervise."
"Fair enough," Hikaru shrugged. "We've only got a few minutes; you might want to hurry."
"Hurrying…"
They finished their lunches just in time, as the teachers stood and told them to get to their next rotation subject. Hikaru grabbed Pavel's hand and dragged him down to the lakeside, chasing after the rest of their group. Pavel tripped over a stray branch and began to fall, but Hikaru grabbed his arm to steady him. Giggling, Pavel jumped on his friend's back and Hikaru ran the rest of the way, Pavel squealing with delight as they reached their target. He almost slipped as Hikaru stopped, but he managed to get down safely.
Jim grinned at the flushed and panting boys and Hikaru winked back, beaming. That was fun!
Group 2 and Nyota straggled along, hair plastered to their faces from the showers they'd had. The girls looked a bit disgruntled and Nyota moved to stand with Pavel and Hikaru, crossing her arms and pointedly ignoring Jim.
Pike and George surveyed the fourteen children in front of them. "We're canoeing now," Pike said. "We'll separate into pairs and pick a canoe, a lifejacket and a paddle. I'll let you work this out."
There was immediate confusion as people raced to grab partners. Hikaru grabbed Pavel, Nyota grabbed Spock and Jim grabbed Bones, leaving Scotty to partner with Pike. Christine grabbed Carol, Khan grabbed Gaila and Keenser grabbed Ayel, leaving Nero to partner with George. With the pairs sorted, they each got a lifejacket (zipping it up) and a paddle, standing with their partner beside their chosen canoes.
"Get your canoes into the water and do your best to get in," George ordered. Hikaru immediately pushed their canoe in, as it was the closest to the water, and vaulted in, landing heavily on the seat. He held out his arms and Pavel waded knee-deep into the water, allowing Hikaru to pull him into the canoe. His legs were brown with mud and they both laughed.
"Come on, let's paddle," Hikaru enthused. "I'll go right, because I'm right-handed, and you go left, because you're left-handed."
"Da," Pavel agreed. They sat in their seats and brought their paddles to their side, beginning to propel themselves forward through the murky lake water. Behind them, the rest of the students were doing their best to follow, clumsy with the unfamiliar motion of the paddle.
"I'll bet they thought I only fenced," Hikaru snickered.
"Maybe I should take some canoeing lessons too," Pavel said from in front of him. The person from the front acted as the navigator and short distance obstacle-avoider, while the person behind was the muscle and decided the overall route. As Pavel had sharper eyes and a quick hand it was up to him to avoid any obstacles that they were approaching and make quick decisions about manoeuvring. Hikaru was bigger and stronger and had a better grasp of canoeing, so he set the pace and provided muscle to get them on their way.
They paddled in a circle, waiting for everyone else to get in the water. Keenser and Ayel seemed to be having trouble moving, seeing as they were both so small, and Hikaru set a course for them. As they approached, Pavel flung out the handle of his paddle, which Keenser caught and used to lock their canoes together.
"You guys having trouble?" Hikaru asked.
"We can't get the paddling right," Ayel said quietly. Hikaru smiled and demonstrated the correct way to paddle, encouraging Ayel (who was on the left side) to have a few goes. Once Ayel had it right, Pavel pushed them away and they paddled along unhurriedly.
Pike and Scotty were moving across the lake, George and Nero following. Hikaru noticed this and nudged Pavel with his foot, waiting for the boy to spin around before pointing at the retreating figures. Pavel grinned and the two shot off after the others, quickly overtaking them all. The canoes moved up and down the lake as the students got the feel for their canoes and the different type of movement. Hikaru and Pavel were easily the best and they amused themselves by watching Khan and Gaila arguing and generally being dysfunctional.
They were called into a group together, connecting their canoes by holding the paddle of the person next to them. Hikaru and Pavel were squashed between Pike and Scotty and Jim and Bones.
"Okay, we're going to play a game of tag!" Pike shouted. "You'll all separate and I'll pick a pair to be it! That pair has to tag everyone from the other group within ten minutes, and if they fail it means a win for the other team. If they tag everyone, they win."
They separated and Hikaru and Pavel drifted away from everyone, sitting relaxedly. "The pair that's it is Khan and Gaila!"
Really, there was nothing to worry about. Those two were such a bad team that they didn't get anyone by the time ten minutes were up. Hikaru and Pavel didn't even have to move from their comfortable position.
After two more games, both of which Group 2 won unfortunately, they were playing a game of canoe polo. They had to get the ball through the enemy goals without getting tapped and if they were tapped they had to give the ball to the other team. Group 1 won that because they communicated. Hikaru and Pavel were the stars of the team and scored the most goals of anyone with their quick movements and reflexes.
At last it was time to take their canoes back and drag them onto the lakeside. They all squelched quite muddily up to the cabins to shower and put on fresh clothes before afternoon tea. To Hikaru's delight, they had two hours of free time before dinner. He and Pavel went back to the cabin with Ayel, being forced to strip off to their underwear outside where everyone could see them. Hikaru went first and brought out a towel for Pavel and Ayel to strip off behind, knowing how shy the two were. His shower was brief and just long enough to get the mud out and he called Pavel in next.
It was getting chilly outside, so he dressed in jeans, joggers, a button-up shirt and a knitted jumper his mother had made for him. Combing his hair so it was out of his face, he rummaged through Pavel's bag and got out his sketchpad and drawing case. Pavel was really good at drawing, for a ten-year-old anyway, and Hikaru loved to watch him draw while he was classifying plants. Hikaru loved botany and plants, and Pavel often sketched vegetation to make his friend happy.
Pavel had put on jeans and a hoodie and took his sketchpad from Hikaru, waggling a finger in disproval. "You knov not to touch my stuff," he grinned.
Hikaru playfully hit his shoulder. "Come on, let's go sketch and classify." He took his botany book and he and Pavel rushed from the cabin, closing the door so Ayel could shower in peace. They marched away from the cabins and found themselves at the edge of a grassy field where dozens of boys played a game of soccer. Hikaru led the way into the nearby scrub and they settled a short distance from the boys playing soccer, nestled between two tree stumps. Pavel leant back against one stump, sketchpad on his lap and frowning at the scene in front of him.
"Should I drav ze canopy or ze stump?" he asked, rolling his pencil between his lips. Hikaru examined the stump across from them and the canopy above it, smiling gently.
"You should do both," he said, "like a wide shot."
"Zat vill take time. I don't knov if ve hawe zat time."
"If you start now you'll have more time."
"Good point."
Pavel quietened and began to roughly sketch the scene in front of him, tongue pressed between his gap-tooth as he drew careful, purposeful lines. Beside him, Hikaru flipped leisurely through his botany book, searching for a matching description with the plant in front of him. The two boys remained like that for ages, disturbed only by the soccer ball hitting the ground in front of them. Pavel cried out in alarm and cowered behind Hikaru, sketchpad lying forgotten in the leaves.
"Hey!" Hikaru shouted, grabbing the ball between his feet. "Who was that?"
Jim came bounding through the bushes and skidded to a stop, almost falling over. "Sorry! One of the guys kicked it a bit hard…" He took stock of the two boys and his head tilted curiously. "What are you guys doing?"
"Well, we were sketching and reading before you came bursting in," Hikaru said pointedly.
"I apologise," Pavel said quietly, resuming his original position and pulling his sketchpad close.
Frowning, Jim took the ball and bounced it once. "I'll leave you to it."
"Yeah, thanks."
Once he was gone they returned to their tasks until the bell for dinner rang. They had skipped afternoon tea and were regretting it now because their stomachs were growling like crazy. Hikaru took Pavel's sketchpad and his book back to the cabin, telling the younger boy to go and save him a seat. Whistling, Hikaru hopped to the cabin in the waning light, wishing he could see the sunset. Unfortunately the trees were too thick to see anything beyond the darkening orange sky. He put their things back in the cabin and ran to the dining hall, pushing his jumper sleeves up over his elbows. Everyone was already inside by the time he arrived and he quickly joined the line of students waiting for food. There were sausages and vegetables and Hikaru took an average helping before casting his eyes over the plastic tables. His gaze was caught by Pavel's waving arm and he quickly joined the young Russian, Scotty and Keenser with dinner.
"What have you guys been doing?" Hikaru asked, squeezing sauce over his sausages.
"Oh, Keenser an' I were workin' on designs for a wee robot we've wanted to make for a while. Hopefully, once we're done, it'll move and everythin'."
"Zat sounds fun," Pavel said eagerly.
"Well wha' were you lads doin'?"
"Ve vere sitting avay from everyone else and Hikaru read his book vhile I sketched."
"Are ye any good?"
"I zink so, I hawe finished ze sketch I vas vorking on today. You can look at it if you like."
Hikaru ate quietly while Pavel and Scotty chatted about something or other. He had hoped that Pavel would cheer up in a Camp atmosphere and he was right. At school Pavel was quiet and submissive and it was good for him to come out of his shell a little. It might have something to do with the group of good people they were with, or that Hikaru was in his cabin. Hikaru was Pavel's best friend and they were rarely seen apart.
He remembered how they'd met. Two years previously Pavel had arrived from Russia, a scrawny eight-year-old in a Grade 5 class when most of the others were nine or ten. He was frightened and small, hiding at the back of class and out of notice. Often he was the target of bullying. Khan had been picking on him when Hikaru happened to pass by and step in, saving Pavel from the tall boy. Both Pavel and Hikaru were sent to the Principal's Office then and Hikaru had never left Pavel alone for one day since then, even coming to school when he was sick just to keep his friend safe. When Hikaru was around, Pavel was safe, and that made him happier than anything else.
Smiling, Hikaru finished his food and leant back in his chair, patting his stomach appreciatively. "That was nice," he sighed, burping to emphasise his point. Pavel giggled and he too burped, his cheeks flushing a delightful crimson.
Dessert was apple crumble, which they ate with gusto, and it was almost six o'clock by the time they were finished. Pike announced that they were going to watch a movie before bed, Hoodwinked. Most of the students groaned at that, wishing they could watch a more grown-up film instead of a kid one. But they were kids and would be treated like that until they were older. Hikaru stifled a sigh and played with a loose thread on his jumper, twirling it between his forefinger and thumb.
They were told to get their sleeping bags and come back ready for the movie. A few people secretly brought chips and lollies, sneaking them past the teachers. Pavel and Hikaru settled down with Jim, Bones, Scotty and Keenser to the side. Hikaru leant against the wall and Pavel curled up in his lap sleepily, unfocused eyes staring at the screen on the wall to their right. He was asleep before the movie was halfway through.
It was late when it finished and the children were tiredly picking themselves up after their big day. Hikaru gathered the sleeping Pavel in his arms and carried him back to their cabin, ignoring the pointed looks that Jim sent their way. He laid Pavel on his bed and waited for Ayel to come back before turning off the light and going to bed.
He was asleep within minutes.