Page 15 of A Little Campfire Blues
“You both are.”
“Let’s wait and see how talented I am once I actually get something production-ready.”
“Something tells me that you’ve reached that point, and beyond, already and are allowing nerves to keep you from sharing your creations with the rest of the world.”
“I dunno, there could be a shred of truth to that,” I admitted. “But I’ve done table readings on them a few times, and there’s just something missing. Figured I’d read over them while we were here and see if I can figure out what it was.”
“You could always read it to us.”
“To you maybe, but some of the stuff in it….” I glanced towards Axis’ door when I said it, thoughts whirling with the complicated feelings I still had for him.
“Needs to come out,” Roman insisted.
I couldn’t deny he was right about that, so I said nothing and grumbled when he messed up my wet hair, leaving it almost as spiky as it had been before I’d gotten into the water.
“See, it’s a done deal, no more protesting,” he said before turning me loose. “There’s sure to be activities we don’t feel like doing and days when we’d rather it just be the three of us without a bunch of other people around, so we’ll plan for that, as well as the conversations we’re all dying to have. For now, let’s get cleaned up and go enjoy ourselves. I’m curious to see what they’re serving tonight around the campfire. It’s been hours since lunch, and I’m starving.”
“I see some things never change.”
“Nope.”
We parted ways, him heading to his room, me heading to the fridge to pour a glass of the iced tea we’d made before heading outside. I drank half of it standing there in the fridge and the other half once I’d pulled a pair of shorts and a crop top from my bag before I headed to the shower, thoughts still whirling with the questions I wanted to pose to both of them.
Until Roman had admitted to not knowing anything more about Bowie or the band breakup than Axis had mentioned outside, I’d have assumed that there were no secrets between them, unlike the ones I’d been harboring all these years. Only now it seemed like their friendship, while intact, was still a bit frayed and fractured around the edges, the same as Roman's and mine was. There were plenty of things I’d shared, but there was also plenty I hadn’t wanted to bring up during those video chats. Emails and texts had always felt too impersonal for long conversations, so those were relegated to quips, jokes, GIFs, and memes, with the occasional grumbled complaint about something going on at work.
I tried not to dwell on any of the things I hadn’t told him while I took a quick shower and dressed, but it was hard when having the three of us back together again made me long for the chance to sink into the little world we’d always shared and stay there until we’d had a chance to fully catch up on the eight years we’d spent apart.
By the time I returned to the living room, Ajay stood there in holey black skinny jeans that clung to his legs and showed off glimpses of the tattoos that covered them. I’d gotten a good look at the ones on his calves while we’d been swimming, as well as the full back piece and sleeves that ran down his arms, but some of the rips suggested that there were others hidden higher up, and a part of me was very curious to know what they were. He wore a Megadeth T-shirt that was plastered to his back from the water that still dripped from his hair. All this time and he still preferred to let it air dry rather than rub most of the water from it before he put his T-shirt on. A guitar case leaned against the couch next to him, the same battered hard case he’d had back when we were in high school, though with far more stickers all over it.
Roman was in black jeans too, with a soft-looking light gray Henley, long-sleeved, as the temperature had already started dropping. I’d opted to grab a light throw blanket to pull around me if I started getting cold, which was rare for me, since I always tended to run warm. Figured I’d be cozy around a roaring bonfire and would probably just end up sitting on it.
“All set?” Roman asked.
“Yup. Which vehicle are we taking?”
“The jeep might be easiest, since Ezzy has the trailer hitched to theirs, and your car is kinda low for the ruts in the road.”
“Tell me about it,” Roman grumbled. “I bottomed out a couple of times and winced when something scraped against the undercarriage.”
“The Jeep it is,” Axis replied, fishing in his pockets for the keys.
Sure as shit, the moment he started the Jeep, we were all glad to have the windows rolled down all the way, as loud metal music blared from the stereo system, nearly deafening me.
“Sorry about that,” he said as he turned it down, a sheepish look on his face as he turned to look over his shoulder as he backed out.
At least the bonfire site was easy to find. The fire was already roaring as we pulled up beside the main lodge and found a parking spot between several other vehicles.
“Welcome,” A lady with perky fox ears perched on top of red hair said as we approached the group.
The tag on the front of her shirt readStaff, and she quickly pointed us to the buffet line and refreshment station.
“Help yourselves and enjoy the evening,” she said with a big smile.
“Thank you,” I replied as we strode past her to get in line.
Everything smelled delicious, and someone was already playing a tune on their harmonica while others ate aroundthe bonfire, a few in adorable little onesies, clutching stuffed animals against their sides while they carefully balanced a pie tin of food on their laps. A few were in pup gear too, headpieces having been removed so they could eat. I hadn’t expected everyone to so freely display themselves on day one, but wow, did it feel good to know that I could slip into whatever I wanted when we came up here.
Tomorrow, I told myself as I picked up a pie tin and followed Roman through the line. I had a good idea of exactly which outfit I’d choose to put on. My little self did a squirmy happy dance at the thought of pulling on the cute shorts and crop top I’d found, along with a matching binky and cap.