The music had been set to an appropriate tone as they played the third game of the evening. Restless tension had gripped the campers and the stakes got higher and higher... So would Alfred's dad's blood pressure if he knew about the second phone trick and his son's current shenanigans. Right now the four boys were sitting in a circle with the speaker in the middle with M&M 'chips', intensely focused on a game of poker.

Alfred thought that he was the best at the game. Whenever he played it in the past he wiped the floor with these losers. Yet Matthew surprised him. It's always the quiet ones, right? Between him and his doppelganger, they'd both won one game each making them evenly matched. He was Alfred's true rival. Toris was happy to play but he was average at the game and Yao was a sore loser who wouldn't try if he knew he couldn't win.

"Are you going to fold?" Asked Matthew smugly. After the first round, he really came out of his shell and was more comfortable throwing some banter around, much to Alfred's delight. He was picking up a pattern here. Mattie was elite at sport and card games.

"Hold on. I still have the right to raise." Alfred slipped in a Jojo's reference he used every single time because he was a loser. Sadly no one here had been enlightened so they couldn't call him out for being a weeb loser. His friend at home and fellow loser would be so proud of him though.

"What are you offering?" Matthew squinted at him.

"If only it was about what you could win," Toris added, before leaning in towards Matthew. "If we aren't playing with food, there's nothing to win-"

"But plenty to lose!" Alfred finished.

"Aru, don't be stupid." Yao groaned. "What are you going to raise? Last year you suggested stripping and we all got eaten alive by mosquitos!"

"Yeah that sucked. If ya lost! I'll pick something reasonable then." Alfred chuckled as he brainstormed the most unreasonable thing he could.

"How about... loser goes swimming in the river? Sound fair?"

He said it half-jokingly just to rile up Yao. But he'd love to do it once they got used to sneaking around and were ready to really do something crazy.

"Seems fair to me." Matthew approved, taking Alfred by surprise. Now Alfred can't back down... not that he wanted to.

"Oooo-kay! Now we're talking." Alfred grinned enthusiastically. "Good thing you're Canadian then and the cold water won't bother you when you lose."

"It won't bother me because I won't be in it."

"We'll see."

He could see how Yao and Toris were keenly watching the match as the tension rose. Thankfully Yao was too interested in the outcome to complain about Alfred's 'stupid idea'.

"Now do you fold, Mattie?"

"Don't do it, I wanna see him swim." Yao laughed.

"Someone will have to fold soon. This can't go on forever." Toris added and Alfred supposed he had a point.

"Are you a betting man?" Alfred pressed his cards hard against his chest and glared with wild eyes. "I propose we put our cards down and end it all, here and now."

Instead of replying, Matthew slapped his cards down for the group to see.

"Read and weep."

He had won and he seemed to know it. Alfred groaned, loudly and dramatically as he slapped his cards down.

"I may be a loser, but I'm a man of my word."

Yao started cracking up while saying something about karma.

"You don't have to do it," Matthew reassured him as he gathered and shuffled the cards.

"No, he'll do it," Toris informed, sounding defeated. Toris knew him too well.

"He will!" Yao insisted. Alfred will remember this.

"I must," Alfred opened the cabin door a sliver and peaked outside. "Com'on, join me on my quest! Come witness me make a fool of myself."

Seeing the coast was clear, he stepped outside. Everything was colour-graded grey and he had to let his eyes adjust before making a beeline for the trees. It would be harder for them to get caught if they took this route. He ducked behind a tree and waited for his friends, unimpressed when Yao and Toris walked the distance.

"What do they think this is?" he ranted to Matthew, who had jogged over. "A field trip?"

"If we get caught I don't think there'll be any more field trips," Matthew whispered.

"We'll be fiiiine! This way."

He lead them through the trees until they reached the lakeshore and he immediately stripped to his underwear. He wrapped his clothes into a bundle and stuffed it on a log next to his shoes. He was ready.

Unwilling to back out now and look weak he sprinted into the water. It was freezing. He couldn't get further than his waist before he locked up. He was trembling as he turned around and faced his friends.

"This is how you gain respect," he stuttered.

"I already respected you?" Alfred tried not to laugh at Matthew's wholesome banter ineptness.

"I won't respect you until you do it properly," Yao stated. "You have to put your head under."

"Fine." Alfred hesitated as he built up his courage before taking an exaggerated breath and diving under. The cold shocked him to his core but he emerged nonetheless.

"There, happy?"

Great, now the water clung to his glasses. He'd sort that out once he got ou-

"Hey!" He squawked and flailed out the water when he saw Yao and Toris snatch up his clothes and take off.

"Mattie! Stop them!" He cried for his friend's assistance but alas his cry fell on deaf ears. No doubt the other boy was in on the operation. Alfred could tell by his stifled laughter that he knew it was going to happen and chose chaos over friendship. Alfred could respect that. He was glad that Matthew felt more comfortable and was having fun with everyone else.

Luckily Matthew didn't stay a traitor and assisted Alfred in hunting down the thieves when pointed out who had footwear. The two of them were able to corner their enemy. Toris was easy to find because he kept giggling and Alfred thankfully got his shoes back. And with all this running around he'd be dry again by the time he put his clothes back on.

"You're on our side now," he informed. "Thems the rules."

Yao was harder to find because he went quiet... how convenient he was better at hiding his amusement than Toris. Alfred closed his eyes and pretended he was a seasoned hunter as he listened for every little sound that could help him locate his prey.

Footsteps approached and a tap on his shoulder indicated someone was next to him. He opened his eyes and saw Matthew pointing to a bush next to a tree. Alfred nodded in understanding and motioned for Toris to surround it. Yao shrieked when the three of them suddenly pounced.

"Keep it down!" Alfred snapped as he snatched his clothes back. "We're gonna get caught!"

"Is that a light?" Matthew asked as he peered out past some trees. Alfred glanced over and yep, someone was patrolling the camp. Alfred cursed as he struggled to put his clothes back on, even with Matthew's offered arm to steady him. Luckily whoever was patrolling the campgrounds was unaware that some of the teens were missing from the cabins. Using the cover of darkness they all made it back to the cabin without incident.

Alfred flopped onto his bed and threw an arm over his eyes. It had been an epic first day, and he already knew the excitement for tomorrow would keep him awake all night.