Hello all! Here's my miracle of an update before family obligations, work, and school consume me again. This chapter will be a flashback from mostly Gretchen's perspective the night she got stood up on a 'sham date' with Edward for a cheap joke. Anyway, I would just like to thank you all for your continued support on this fic and I hope you all enjoy the chapter. :)

1 year earlier

(Gretchen's POV)

I just kept running into the woods after I 'lost it' a little at camp when I got back.

Because Patsy just HAD to see me when I got back and HAD to ask me, "Hey, how did it go?"

And I didn't even answer since all I did was do the first thing I could think of to try to make me feel better by yelling 'ASSHOLE' at the top of my lungs and throwing a row boat into the lake. But, then I still felt like crap and I just didn't want to be around my friends to have them find out that Edward snubbed me for a date.

Even though I'm pretty sure I gave that away after I did that back at camp just now.

After I sat at that stupid diner in stupid Prickly Pines for TWO STUPID HOURS waiting for that stupid jerk to show up and… AGH! DAMMIT! THAT TWO-FACED, LYING SON OF A…

Right then, and just when I thought I couldn't feel any more embarrassed and stupid, I tripped and totally ate it into the dirt like a total idiot.

And I just… stayed there.

I couldn't move. I didn't want to move.

Ugh… what's the point?

I was an idiot that 'took the bait' of a total jerk who was probably just looking to get back at me for beating him in the arm wrestling tournament. Just because I thought he was cute and had a stupid little crush on him since I was 11…

Agh, dammit...

I'm such an idioy.

I grit my teeth and scrunched my eyes as I tried to hold them back and get a freaking grip over myself and my stupid feelings, but… I couldn't. I felt the tears coming and I couldn't stop them.

Look, I'm a Langlade and my dad would be giving me so much flack right now if he saw me cry, especially if he knew I was crying over something as dumb as some stupid guy snubbing me for a date.

But, I don't give a damn.

My dad's not here to give me crap, no one else is here, and this day sucks! I just kept laying there and still straining to hold tears back despite it being pointless since they just kept coming.

I just stayed there and occasionally grunted and slammed my fists on the dirt in frustration… until I rustling coming my way that made me 'snap out of it'.

I tried to wipe the tears from my eyes a little as I jumped to my feet before saying in defense, trying and failing to hold back a slight 'sniffle', "Who's there?!"

I kept hearing rustling as I put up my fists and looked around, pretty much giving myself whiplash and lockjaw from how hard my teeth were clenched right now as I kept looking around me, pretty much demanding, "AGH! Dammit! Who's there?! I swear if you even try to sneak up on me I'll kick your!..."

I was about ready to throw a punch when I saw someone step through the brush until I saw who it was.

Clam.

Sure there was a part of me that still kinda wanted to throw a punch at him anyway, but right now… I've had enough of stupid Bean Scouts right now.

He just stood there with that dumb grin on his face that he's always had since I met him, even though that was pretty much the only thing I recognized about him anymore.

Considering Clam went from being that short, annoying mutant whatever he is to this walking tank who went through a growth spurt in every direction over the past 2 years.

I mean, yeah I know Clam's a rhino and he's the only rhino-anything I know or even met period, but still… he definitely 'fit the bill' of a rhino now as far as I'm concerned.

Much to my annoyance if you ask me since that little freak just had to be almost taller than me now and as much as I hate it… he's stronger than me now.

I would've won the arm wrestling tournament this year if it wasn't for him! And I didn't want to deal with him right now either as I narrowed my eyes and directed, "Clam? What the heck are you doing here?!"

He just kept grinning as he gestured behind him with his thumb and said, "Tree."

Then before I could even say anything else, he turned and crouched down slightly as he scrapped his right foot on the ground a couple of times before just taking off in a dead sprint until he charged head first into a pine tree, making the tree shake violently to make a crap ton of pine cones fall off after he headbutted it. His front horn looked like it got stuck in the trunk of the tree for a second until he ripped his head away to dislodge it, leaving a huge scrape behind on the tree.

He looked back at me with his big stupid grin again as he said with a thumbs up, almost like he was explaining why he did whatever the hell he just did, "Head rush!"

I just stood there and gave him the most confused and annoyed look I had at 'what I just saw'.

Ugh, frickin' weirdo.

Eventually, I let out the most sarcastic scoff I had and rolled my eyes as I snapped, "Look, just… ugh, just beat it, Clam! I've already had enough of you stupid Beans messing with me for one night. So, just get lost already!"

I was even about to turn and walk away since the last thing I wanted was to be around Clam or just anyone right now.

But, right as I was about to start stomping off in the woods to try and be alone, I felt him put a hand on my shoulder (making me tense up) as he said, "Upset."

Immediately I shoved his hand off my shoulder as I snapped, "No duh, Captain obvious! And you're not!..." "No, not me. Upset with something else." He pointed out.

I snapped again as I got right in his face, "And what makes you so damn sure?!"

Right then I saw his expression drop a little bit as he pointed at me and said, "Tears."

My eyes went wide and my stomach felt like it was going to drop out of my butt when even I could feel the dried tear stains still on my face and felt like kicking myself.

Great!

Fantastic!

Well, screw my dad catching me crying since Clam just did and he knows that I did. And I don't know which one is worse?!

Clam and I have been trying to beat each other at dumb things since we were kids and things maybe went too far sometimes… and kinda still go too far now.

Mostly because of me getting pissed off whenever he beats me at anything.

Back at home, I always win everything and no one can even touch me.

Sure it's part of the reason no one ever asked me out and most guys barely want to even be around me since apparently I'm 'too intense', but… whatever! Not my fault they can't grow enough of a pair to lose to a girl, so screw 'em!

But… that's also what weirdly gets me about Clam.

Even when I beat him, he never got upset about it.

So, I don't know what pisses me off more, him never getting upset about losing to me or every other guy on this dumb planet being a bunch of twerps that talk crap about me behind my back and avoid me like the plague when I beat them at anything athletic.

Then again… maybe this is what that mutant has been waiting for. Now that he caught 'hard-ass, tough as nails Gretchen Langlade' crying in the woods like a loser, he's probably going to make fun of me and let me never hear the end of it.

And that crap was NOT going to friggin' happen!

Quickly, I tried to wipe the tear stains away from my face, grit my teeth, narrowed my eyes, and clenched my fists at my sides before snapping in almost a snarl, "Shut up! I'm not some damn 'charity case' asking for pity! Especially not from YOU of all freaking people! Besides, what the hell do you even care anyway?!"

It was dead silent until I heard him say, "I care."

I whipped my head over, thinking this was the start of him trying to mess with my head or something.

But… that's not what I was seeing. He was just standing there, his expression relaxed and looking almost…

No! Stop it, Gretchen! He doesn't care! That's just what he wants you to think. He's just trying to bait you to get you right where he wants you like Edward just did to you.

I narrowed my eyes at him and scoffed before snidely remarking, "Yeah, right? Cuz if you think I'm stupid enough to let another Bean Scout double-cross me tonight, then you can just go take a freaking hike!"

I crossed my arms and looked away in some weird form of defense until I heard him say, "Uh, no! Not stupid. Err, you're not stupid, Gretchen."

My eyes went wide when I heard that. I whipped my head over to look at him and saw him still just standing there with a calm expression as he kept looking at me.

Eventually, I quirked up an eyebrow at him and asked point blank, "Look Clam, what the heck are you getting at with me right now? I've kicked your butt so many times since we were 11 and done nothing for you ever, so why do you even want to help or even talk to me right now?"

But, shocking me even more than what he said before, he answered, "I respect you."

My eyes went wide until he said, "You're strong, tough. Gretchen never went easy on Clam. Not used to that. I, uh, respect that, er, uh… you for that."

Okay, even though that was the most I heard Clam say ever, I also couldn't get over what he said, and not about me.

I was almost thinking out loud as I questioned, not buying or understanding what he said, "What do you mean 'not used to that'? What are you talking about?"

Almost right away, he put his hands in his pockets and shrugged as he kept looking right at me before saying, "Like I said, not used to that. Not at home. Not strong where I'm from."

What? What does he mean 'not strong where he's from'?

What the hell kind of place is he from where HE is not considered strong?!

I mean, I know he used to be a 'short stack' as a kid, but THAT coming from the guy who is now ripped as all get out and looks like he can benchpress my cabin without breaking a sweat and has Amber and Honey watching him from the observation tower during swimming drills at Camp Kidney just to see him shirtless when he takes off his swim shirt when he dries off?

Ha! You gotta be kidding me, right?

I even couldn't stop myself from letting out a scoff-like laugh and rolling my eyes as I responded, "Oh, what a load of bull…"

"Serious. Clam's not strong at home. Born small for rhino. Short, weak constitution. Babied a lot. Ignored by girls. Not strong enough for them." He cut in.

At first, I thought he was lying and making crap up, but… he looked serious.

Nothing about him looked like he was messing around with me or my head.

But, it still didn't stop me from being confused as I questioned, "Wait, what? Weak constitution? How?"

I had no idea what he was talking about since nothing about him is 'weak' to me or anyone that's not a total numbskull.

Well, until he barely gave me any more time to think when he took off his cap and my eyes went wide when I saw a scar on the top of his head when he looked down as he explained short but to the point, "Benign brain tumor."

I just kept staring until he said, putting his cap back on and started, "Like I said, weak constitution. Born underweight, small. Couldn't speak cuz of tumor. Removed as a baby. Clam wasn't supposed to talk cuz of it. Put in speech therapy by parents. Fine now! Can talk. Just can't talk like most people. Hard to get words out normal. Lucky though! Happy to talk at all!"

I couldn't even respond.

It was like my brain was still 'working through' everything he just said.

I mean, I guess I just never really thought about anything when it came to Clam since I always just thought he was a kid that talked and acted as weird as I thought he was.

But, now that I knew why he talks like that and as much as I can't believe I'm even admitting this to myself, I kinda felt… bad.

Ugh, dammit, what even is this weird-ass night anyway?!

I went from being stood up and humiliated by one Bean Scout that I had a crush on to talking to and feeling bad over another Bean Scout I always thought was a total weirdo, freak of nature.

We just stood there in silence until I finally let out a frustrated sigh before saying, "Look Clam, I don't know a lot about whatever you just said about the way you talk and what stuff is like back at home for you. But look, I don't know what those girls where you're from are talking about if they think that about you? I mean, what the hell are they looking for anyway? Freaking Hercules?! I may think a lot of things about you, Clam, but trust me… 'weak' has never been one of them."

It took a second until my eyes went wide and my stomach clenched in tense nerves at what I just let fly out of my mouth and even admitted all of that to Clam's face.

Well, ya know, considering younger me would probably smack me and kick my butt for admitting all that to him… even though it's true.

I never thought Clam was weak.

Honestly, if anything he always drove me insane because of how strong he was and how almost easily he was able to compete with me in a way no one, much less a guy, ever could.

I could feel my face go red and was close to biting off my tongue from letting my guard down like that and admitting all that to him as we stood in silence.

Or it was silent until Clam said, very calm and almost genuine, "Thanks, Gretchen."

I whipped my head back over to look at him and saw him giving me a small but genuine smile as he put his hands in his pockets again.

We just stood in silence again as I tried to figure 'whatever this was' out. Well, until he said, "So, eh… what happened?"

"Huh?" I asked reflexively in confusion.

He just held his spot and continued in the same way he asked the first question, "Why are you out here? Crying?"

Even though I felt myself tense up internally in humiliated rage… ugh, why the hell not? I already made enough of an ass of myself tonight, so how much worse can it possibly get?!

Before I could even do anything, Clam uprooted this nearby half-dead tree and tossed it on the ground.

Yeah, 'weak' my left freaking foot.

Look, if Clam is considered 'weak' where he lives, then I don't know if I want to know what the hell a 'normal/stronger rhino' guy is like.

Almost right after he threw it to the ground, he took a seat on it and pat the spot next to him before asking, his usual grin back on his face, "Wanna talk?"

I hesitated for a second before I sighed and pointed to him and bargained, "Okay, fine. But you tell anyone what I tell you and I'll break every bone in your body and make it look like an accident."

He hardly reacted except for saying, "Lips sealed." After which he made a zipper motion across his mouth and even tightened his lips together for emphasis which actually got a slight snort-like laugh out of me as I rolled my eyes and sat down.

Hehe… he's still kind of a doofus.

Eventually, I sat down next to him and (still not believing I was doing any of this crap) started, "Well, let's see here. Guess I shouldn't be surprised by the craptastic night I just had or expected anything. Considering it doesn't matter whether I'm here or at home for my luck with boys to be any different. Like you said with those poser girls back where you're from thinking you're 'weak', boys back home for me avoid me because I'm stronger than them. Honestly, I don't know why the hell I even let it get to me since I don't give a damn about them getting their panties in a wad over me beating them at stuff, but… guess it just stings when you know no one wants to date you for it too. So, I don't know what the hell I was expecting tonight when Edward stood me up and made a total idiot out of me at the diner tonight when I sat there for HOURS waiting for him to show up. Again, why I am surprised, right? Just me being stupid over something even more stupid like a date, I guess?"

It was quiet for a second until I heard what I thought was Edward's voice say right next to me, "That's cuz I'm just a stupid jerk!"

Well, until my eyes went wide in shock when I realized that came from Clam to the point that my jaw almost dropped.

Especially when he kept mimicking Edward's voice and his mannerisms as he crossed his arms and knit his brows together while saying, "What?! Didn't you hear me?! Then again, why even listen to me anyway! I'm just a miserable jerk that can't do something as stupidly simple as show up for a dumb date! Pathetic!"

Then and I have no idea why, I just burst out laughing, feeling tears coming on but for a different reason as I started laughing so hard I could barely breathe.

Finally, I stopped laughing and was wiping tears from my eyes as I admitted, "Hey, that was pretty good! But, wait, I thought you said it was hard for you to say complete sentences like that?"

He smiled a bit and shook his head before explaining in his normal voice, "Different part of brain. Singing and mimicking weren't affected. Can't do those forever though. Mimicked Edward for almost 3 days once though!"

I scoffed out a laugh at the thought of Edward probably getting pissed off by Clam imitating him for days.

I smirked back before saying, "Honestly, wish I would've seen that. Would've made me feel better about tonight."

All of a sudden my stomach tensed up, thinking back to being at the diner and having the waitress ask me 'if I was still waiting for someone' a million times and just sitting there alone like an idiot.

I kept thinking about it until I heard, "Hey, forget stupid Edward. He's a jerk."

I scoffed and rolled my eyes and retorted sarcastically, "Yeah, tell me something I don't already know about that dipstick."

I even kicked the dirt on reflex from where I was sitting before crossing my arms, still not knowing exactly how to feel about all this crap that just happened.

Well, until I heard Clam say, "Forget it then. Edward's not worth it. Don't let him get you… uh, wait."

Right then, he got up and started walking away.

I just kept sitting there and tilting my head as I tried to figure out what was going on. Well, until he walked over to these 3 large rocks.

"Clam, what the heck are you?..." I questioned until he just clapped his hands together and rubbed his hands together before picking up one of the large rocks and lifting it before tossing the large rock away with a grunt from his shoulder like he was throwing a shot put.

The rock flew and landed completely out of sight until all we heard was a subtle 'Boom' in the distance.

Then he looked back at me with a grin and motioned to the other rocks that were still there and said, "Now you." I gave him a confused look before groaning out a slightly annoyed, "Ugh, Clam what are you?!..." "Just do it." He quickly cut in, still smiling and looking at me.

And I knew he was just going to keep doing that until I did whatever he was trying to do by wanting me to throw a rock.

But, hey, the rowboat didn't do anything so why not try throwing a rock as hard as I can to release some rage?

Eventually, I sighed and said, "Okay, fine. I'll throw a dumb rock."

And I did.

I got right in front of the rock, concentrated to the point of gritting my teeth as I let out a loud grunt and threw it away in the same way Clam did, even looking like I got some pretty decent distance on it too.

I waited for the satisfying 'boom' and even couldn't stop myself from cracking a small smile.

And I honestly forgot Clam was even still there until he said, "There, see?" I whipped my head over to look at him before I questioned in total confusion, "See, what?"

Clam just crossed his arms before nodding toward where we threw our rocks and said, "You're strong. Don't need stupid, Edward. Not worth it."

Weirdly and maybe for the first time, I actually knew what he was trying to tell me, at least kinda. I mean, I still kinda feel like crap but… Clam's right.

Edward sucks and I shouldn't waste my time moping about it like some pathetic idiot. Sure I'm still pissed about it, but am I gonna let myself cry about it?

Yeah, not doing that again.

I didn't really know what to say, but I just gave him a nod before looking off into the woods again and saying, "Uh, guess I should head back."

He gave me a nod back before putting his hands in his pockets again and replying, "Okay."

Then he looked like he was just going to walk off and I felt something. Like I had to say 'something' as I called out to stop him, "Hey, Clam?"

He stopped and looked back at me, causing me to look away reflexively for a second.

Why do I feel so awkward all of a sudden?!

Ugh, this 'feelings' crap is damn weird.

Finally, I said, "Thanks, Clam. I know I've never thanked you ever and whether you believe me or not, but… I mean it. Thanks."

Slowly, he smiled and said, "No problem, Gretchen." I smirked back and nodded back before I walked off too.

And hey, as weird as this night is… I guess it didn't suck as bad as I thought it did.

The following morning

({No POV})

Clam started making his way into the dining hall, a big grin spread across his face as he got in the meal line. Partly because it was 'Pancake Day' and he still majorly got excited about it each week, but also because of something else that happened the night before.

While it was something he didn't mind admitting to himself that he always had a little bit of a thing for Gretchen (much to the confusion of Lazlo, Raj, and everyone else that fact), he was still surprised by what happened the night before with he and Gretchen practically becoming friends now.

Again, while Clam admits he always had a bit of a crush on her and was okay with her not returning his feelings if she didn't feel the same way toward him (considering he was sadly used to girls passing over him as 'dating material' if not just flat out ignoring him), he just never understood her and why she was always so harsh toward him and his friends that it kind of irked him at times.

But, Clam felt like for the first time he really got on 'Gretchen's good side' and also saw that maybe there was more to her underneath her tough front that she always puts up.

Even if her 'tough front' is one of the many things he always liked and respected about her.

Either way, he was just glad that he and Gretchen finally seemed to be 'friends-ish'... at least in some way. Clam just kept smiling as he got a stack of pancakes with some vegan sausage on the side from Chef McMuesli (who since the Outlaw incident with Clam has ALWAYS kept a full tub of pancake batter to avoid another incident).

As Clam walked off and started to pour syrup on his stack of pancakes at the condiment counter, he heard what sounded like Samson say, "Wait, you did what?"

Edward immediately scoffed before saying, "Just what I said, mouth breather. Oh, you should have seen it. I totally got that dumb alligator SO good last night! She even sat there waiting for HOURS thinking that I was actually going to show up. Ha! What a loser!"

Immediately Clam felt something in him snap to make every muscle in his body tense up as he almost robotically slowly looked over to see Edward sitting at a table with Chip, Skip, Dave, Ping-Pong, and Samson. An arrogantly satisfied grin spread on Edward's face as he ate while the rest of the table as he took another bite of his pancakes.

Meanwhile, the rest of the table was exchanging looks of disbelief and even slight hesitant dread at what they just heard Edward admit about him standing up Gretchen for a date as a revenge prank for beating him in the arm wrestling tournament.

Finally, Dave spoke up and questioned, "Um, aren't you scared that Gretchen's going to 'get you' for that? You know how she is since she never lets anything go."

Edward just scoffed before responding, sounding completely unconcerned, "Oh c'mon, I've been dodging her 'wrath crap' since we were 9. So, I'd like to even see her try. Besides, what was she even expecting? That I actually wanted to go out with her? HA! Not a chance. Like I'd want to date a girl with a mouth like a cerated chain saw."

Right then, the entire table lurched when Clam slammed his fist down on it, causing Edward and everyone else to grab their plates to prevent them from flying off and breaking on the floor.

Eventually, they all looked up to see Clam standing next to the table. His plate of pancakes in one hand and his clenched fist still against the table from when he hit it. None of the other guys at the table knew what was happening and still didn't when they saw Clam with a hard look on his face and an even harder death glare directed right at Edward.

Eventually, Edward (now annoyed) just looked up at Clam and prodded, "What's your problem, tiny?"

Clearly, Edward was taking a jab at Clam for formerly being the shortest scout at their camp as kids and now uses the term to taunt Clam since his 'growth spurt' in both height and physical muscle mass now as a teenager. But, it was short-lived as Clam just grabbed Edward by the collar of his shirt with one hand and lifted Edward out of his seat like it was nothing as he was now baring his teeth at him, causing Edward to go wide-eyed and silent.

At this point, the entire Camp Kidney mess hall was staring at the 'scene' that was unfolding.

Finally, Raj got up and put a hand on Clam's shoulder, clearly to partially be a good friend and stop Clam from doing something impulsive but more so because he didn't want to be involved in a punishment that would be given to his cabin if Clam decided to beat Edward to a pulp.

Especially since Clam didn't exactly like Edward to begin with… Raj wasn't going to put it past his friend.

Raj even tried to reinforce it as he said, "Clam, let's ah… let's sit down and uh, you know… try to eat our breakfast while it's still hot? Haha."

After awkwardly laughing for a second more, Raj relaxed and almost breathed a sigh of relief when Clam dropped Edward back to his seat.

But, for good measure, Clam gave Edward one last steady death glare (still clearly not appreciating anything he did to Gretchen yesterday or what he said about her just now) as he spat, short but to the point, "Just shut up, Edward."

After that, Clam stomped off and went to go sit at the usual Jelly Cabin table before proceeding to sit and angrily shovel his pancakes into his mouth as Edward and everyone else gave Clam wide-eyed looks.

As everyone eventually went back to eating, so did Edward as he took another bite from his plate before saying in annoyed indignance, "Hmph, meathead."

Okay, before I get into Gretchen and Clam here, I want to cover Edward here. Now when I was thinking about what to do with a teenage Edward Platypus, I had two visions for him. One was that he grew into a slightly nicer teenager after maturing a little, or two (being a realist) was that he became an even bigger jerk as a teen. Besides, all good stories need some opposing force, and since Edward was already an antagonist in the show… I decided to keep him firmly in the antagonist camp here. No pun intended. Lol. But, for real, I could just see Edward doing something like this just to get some revenge and a cheap laugh at Gretchen for beating him at something since Edward can be VERY petty as we've seen in the show. Although, had it not been for him as you all saw, it eventually led to Gretchen and Clam putting the rivalry aside and eventually forming a friendship that eventually turned into 'more than friends' or secret boyfriend/girlfriend relationship with nightly make-out sessions in the woods. ;) More on all this later, but I hope you enjoyed the perspectives I gave on both Clam and Gretchen in this chapter. Particularly with Clam, I thought it was very interesting how in the episode "Prickly Pining Dining", Clam's mom called Lumpus out of the blue and seemed to sound very frantic over the phone. This then gave birth to the concept that Clam (despite being an absolute epic unit with crazy levels of strength), has a mother who worries WAY too much over her son who was born with a condition that was surgically corrected but gave him a form of aphasia that he had to go speech therapy for as a child to help him try to learn to talk. I know some people headcanon Clam as being on the autism spectrum (which is another angle I love), but as someone who also had to go to speech therapy as a child for a stutter and was also in sessions with other kids who had it A LOT harder than I did, I decided to go with this angle for why Clam's speech is the way that it is. Also, since we hardly know anything about Clam and his background because he doesn't speak much in the show, I had fun making a backstory for him since he is one of my favorite characters from the show. :) Also, I thought I would give Gretchen a deeper backstory too since despite being pretty mean and harsh… Gretchen does have more redeeming moments than Edward at showing that she does genuinely care about her friends and standing by them during the moments when it matters. So I see her more as a 'rough around the edges girl with a bigger heart than she lets on'. :) But, that's just me! Anyway, more will be elaborated later and I hope you enjoyed the chapter! As always thank you as always for taking the time to read and constructive feedback is always very much appreciated if you have the time.

Stay Classy!

Dexter1995

P.S. I also just wanted to give a quick shout-out and thank you to soulripper13 who in the fanfic "Camp Runnybottom" gave me a shout-out and even used my headcanon to have Lazlo's surname being Moriera in their fic as well. So, I would like to return the favor and recommend that if you want to read a fic that keeps the characters in character for Camp Lazlo, definitely go ahead and give it a read!