Camp Lore - 21. Chapter 21

Around the same time, Andy and I were messing in the woods, Brian noticed Laura. Or he noticed her noticing him. Or she let herself be noticed noticing him.

Complicated.

“Who is she?” he eventually asked me.

“A counselor I think.”

Andy was on bunk duty so wasn’t coming to the Canteen that night.

“I knew she wasn’t a waiter,” Brian replied.

“She’s too old.”

“How old?”

I tried to study her unnoticed.

“I don’t know... Maybe twenty-one?”

“You think?”

“I think she’s gonna be a junior in the fall.”

He considered.

“You think that or know that? Where did you hear it?”

I tried to remember.

“I don’t know – where do we hear anything? Dancing. Or sitting around talking. Or standing in the Canteen line, overhearing.”

He nodded.

“So maybe twenty?”

I laughed. “Is that any better?”

He thought, then shrugged.

“No. Either way, she’s the kind of girl I normally don’t go for – normally don’t even try for. But she’s suddenly kind of flirting with me. Not really, but not not. And not all the time, either. And in a way that’s not really about sex but could lead there. And you know I’m not interested.”

“No?”

“No!”

He seemed to think about that then laughed.

“Well, interested but not stupid enough to risk Julie. Besides, with this girl, it’s almost like she’s got a bet going that she can get my attention. And once she does, she’ll collect and walk away.”

“Is that why you’re normally not interested? Or why you are now?”

He grinned at me.

“You’re a jerk.”

I grinned.

“But I got you.”

“Square. And I’m a jerk.”

We both laughed.

“No,” he went on. “I just think she’s way past me – that’s why I asked how old she was. And I’ve met a lot of girls like her. Well, not a lot, but a number – enough so I recognize one. And they live out in the world – like my parents – and not in boarding school or a small town where they grew up.”

“You’re ahead of me.”

He laughed. “She hasn’t been hitting on you.”

“No.”

“And she hasn’t been hitting on anyone else, either. I’ve noticed that. Not since we got here. Not that I’ve seen. She’s been dancing with guys. And chatting. And being friendly. But that’s about it.”

“So you’ve been watching her?”

He grinned.

“How can you not?”

I looked at her.

“What’s her name?”

“Laura.” He hesitated. “Not Laurie, like your sister. Laura.”

“Not Julie or Katie.”

“You got it.”

“And that’s ‘Out in the world?’”

“No – of course not. That’s not what I mean. You’ve got to have the rest of it.”

I cracked up.

“What?” he asked.

“Which we wouldn’t notice if we weren’t horny pigs.”

He screwed up his face.

“Pigs don’t have horns.”

“Boars?”

“They’re pigs.”

“Aren’t we?”

“Anyway, I was talking about Julie.”

“Sure you were.”

“You are a jerk.”

And we both laughed.

“No... really,” he went on.

“Then why are we even talking about this?”

“Yeah. Why? Really.”

And we looked at each other again, maybe each daring the other not to break up. Finally, I did.

“What?” Nate asked, and I hadn’t realized he was standing by our table. Brian pointed him to sit down, and Nate turned around a chair.

“What?” Nate asked again.

“Do you know Laura?” Brian asked.

Nate instinctively turned to her.

“No!” Brian squinched up his eyes in fake pain. “That’s exactly what I didn’t want you to do.”

“I know.” And Nate laughed. “And, yeah, I know her – a little.”

“And?”

“What do you want to know?”

“What can you tell us?”

Nate looked over at Laura and smiled when she noticed. And she smiled.

“She’s friendly,” he started.

“Yeah. We figured that.”

“How?”

Brian looked uncomfortable but realized he had to tell Nate the truth.

“She’s been hitting on me.”

“Lucky guy.”

And Nate looked at her again. This time she grinned, and he motioned to her.

“You bastard,” Brian nearly seethed.

Though when Laura came over, we all smiled. Nate also got up, turned his chair back around, and offered it to her. She shook her head, so Nate sat on the edge of the table. It only had a center post so began to tip. Brian and I grabbed our drinks, and Nate stood and let the table settle.

“Do you two know each other?” he asked Laura.

“Do I want to admit it?” she answered, laughing. “I mean, first impressions...”

“This wasn’t the first,” Brian said.

“No?”

“No.”

He smiled again.

“You’ve been watching me all night.”

She smiled right back.

“I’ve only been here fifteen minutes.”

“And for the last couple of days.”

“Well, I don’t know about that...”

“I do. I realized it when someone pointed it out.”

“Who?”

“I’m not getting anyone in trouble.”

She looked at Nate.

“No,” Brian said. “I’ve barely seen him tonight. I’ve been dancing.”

Laura looked at the girls near the speakers.

“And it wasn’t her fault. She just noticed you watching and asked if we had something going. I realized then how much you were looking at me.”

“You never noticed before? Or me?”

“Of course, I have.”

“Thanks.”

“But I didn’t know what it meant.”

“You dance well.”

“Thanks.”

By this time, she’d sat in the chair Nate had offered, and he started to sit across from her.

“Don’t get comfortable,” she told him. “Brian and I might want to talk.”

“So you know my name?”

“You know mine.”

“I just had to ask.”

“I’ve known yours for a couple of days.”

“Who did you ask?”

“One of the girls.”

“The one I was dancing with?”

“You dance with a lot of girls.”

“I like dancing.”

“Which is probably why you’re so good at it.”

By this point, Nate was giggling. I’d heard him laugh before. But nothing like this.

“What? Laura asked.

Nate just grinned.

“I’ve got to go jump in the lake,” he said. “This is way above me.”

“Take your friend with you,” Laura suggested.

She was looking at me.

“His name’s Rob, and if he goes, I do, too,” Brian warned.

And he stood.

“Please stay,” she told him. “And please give us five minutes,” she said to Nate and me. “After that, we’ll be fine.”

“We will?” Brian asked.

“Yes. I just want to ask you something.”

Nate and I stood. Laura smiled.

“Thanks. And stay dry.”

“Sure thing.”

“And I promise he’d tell you everything we said later.”

Nate looked at Brian.

“I sure hope so.”