Chapter 15: The Bonds of Friendship
Saturday finally came—the day the boys of the Yellow Lynxes and the Grey Falcons had been waiting for. From early morning, everyone was on their feet. Tyler and Dylan were checking to make sure everyone was ready for departure. Mr. Parker was also going with them to the regatta, leaving Jason, as the oldest and most experienced, in charge of the camp until his return. After yesterday’s punishment, Noah had calmed down a bit, keeping out of the spotlight, while Tyler avoided any contact with him and Liam.
They packed their baggages onto the bus and set off, while the boys of the Red Hawks, Green Wolves, and Blue Otters, right after breakfast, together with their leaders, threw themselves into tidying up the camp, just as Mr. Parker had ordered. They gathered up trash and leaves that the wind had blown into the camp’s center, packed things away, dusted, and scrubbed the floors. It was a tiring day, but full of cheerful, friendly spirit.
By the time they finished, the sun was already beginning to set. Jason suggested to Ethan and Cameron that they could play hide and seek with the boys, to give them a little practice for the next game awaiting them when the others returned. Both of them agreed, and the boys were excited about the idea. All the boys had 100 seconds to hide, after which all three leaders set out to look for them. The Green Wolves once again proved to be the best, since out of about ten of them, only five were found.
After the game, dinner followed, and the tired boys went off to shower and sleep. Once they were settled in their beds, the leaders also showered and then headed to their cabins. Just as it was time to part from Cameron, Jason decided to suggest something:
“Hey, Cam! You could spend the night with us? I mean… if it’s boring for you to be alone over there? You know we have a free bed.”
“Huh, why not?! Honestly, I wanted to ask you the same thing, but I felt awkward barging in,” Cameron replied enthusiastically.
“Aw, relax, bro. Come on, the three of us can have a little party now that all the kids are asleep,” Ethan added with a smile.
Excited, Cameron brought his things over to Jason and Ethan’s cabin. Ethan pulled out a deck of cards and began showing him a game he often played at night with Jason. The three of them spent hours hanging out and laughing together. Cameron took the opportunity to gossip about Dylan, who annoyed him, and started imitating him. He put on Jason’s old sunglasses and mimicked Dylan’s movements as he adjusted them.
“Hey, guys, I haven’t had this much fun at camp in ages. I wanted to ask something… Could I move in with you permanently, if I’m not a bother?” Cameron asked a bit shyly.
Jason and Ethan exchanged a glance and laughed, before warmly welcoming Cameron to their cabin.
“Awesoomeee! You guys are the best!” shouted Cameron, throwing his arms around them in a friendly hug.
“Ethan, you mentioned that in the next tying game there might be alliances? The three of us could team up against Dylan and Tyler. We’d beat them easily this time,” Jason suggested.
“Yeah, though Parker said he’d still work out the rules. But if that’s how it goes, I’m in!” Ethan replied.
“Yaaay! We’ll crush them this time! We’ll be like the
Losers’ Club,” Cameron announced excitedly.
“Don’t start with King again, you know I can’t stand his stuff…” Jason teased.
“What? I thought you liked horror?” Cameron asked, puzzled.
“I do, but a little rougher… like
ki-ki-ki ma-ma-ma,” Jason mimicked the famous sound from
Friday the 13th, referencing his movie namesake, as the three of them burst out laughing.
“I’m not a big King fan either, but there’s one of his books I really like,” Ethan chimed in.
“Really? Which one?” Cameron asked curiously.
“
Salem’s Lot.”
“Hey, I actually like that one too! Well, I only saw the movie. I didn’t even know it was based on King’s book,” Jason said in surprise. “There’s one scene I still remember so clearly…” he added, a bit sheepishly, as if he hadn’t meant to say it.
“Which scene? I bet I remember it too,” Ethan asked.
“Uhhh… the one where…” Jason struggled to think of another scene but couldn’t. Luckily, at that moment, someone knocked on the door. It was Nate from his team, who reported that one of the boys had fallen on his way to the bathroom and cut his hand. Ethan and Cameron offered to help, but Jason went alone, carrying the first aid kit.
Ethan and Cameron were left alone in the cabin, where an awkward silence suddenly fell. Ethan remembered the rope he had hidden behind his bed. Knowing Jason wouldn’t be back soon, he figured this might be the perfect chance to finally tie someone up—Cameron.
“Hey, Cam… uh… so… could you do me a favor?” Ethan began shyly.
“Of course, bro, whatever,” Cameron answered warmly.
“I was wondering if maybe… if you’d let me tie you up?” Ethan finally blurted out.
“What do you mean? Why would you tie me up?” Cameron’s expression suddenly shifted.
“I didn’t mean anything bad, honestly. It’s just… you know I’m not really good at tying, and I wanted to practice for the game. Parker even suggested I should.”
“Uhh… Honestly, I’m not thrilled about that. I still remember what it was like when Dylan’s Falcons tied me up. I couldn’t move an inch. Why don’t you ask Jason?” Cameron tried to dodge it.
“He’d never let me. You know he always has to keep everything under control. I can’t even bring it up with him,” Ethan continued to persuade him.
“Alright, alright, no problem. I guess I can at least do that much for you. Just be gentle, okay?” Cameron agreed with a forced smile.
The two of them sat down on Ethan’s bed, and he pulled out the ropes he had prepared the previous day. Cameron looked a little surprised and wondered why he already had the equipment ready. Ethan untangled the rope and held it ready, then glanced at Cameron’s hands, hesitating to say anything. When Cameron realized this, he smiled and stretched his hands out in front of him, palms together: “Here, let’s see how you tie me up.”
Ethan gently began wrapping the rope around Cameron’s wrists and then started tying a knot. At the same time, he felt an intense excitement he couldn’t control, and he worried that Cameron might notice the bulge in his gray shorts.
“You can tighten it more, and you should run the rope between my wrists. If you do it like this, I can easily pull my hands out, see…” Cameron commented, demonstrating with his hands how he could slip out of the rope, which fell onto the bed.
Nervous and aroused, Ethan didn’t grab the rope to try again. Instead, he leaned behind the bed and pulled out a black bandana, intending to prevent Cameron from noticing his excitement. “I get a little nervous when someone’s watching me tying up, can I blindfold you first?”
“Damn! You know I hate the dark… Uh, okay, okay, I just hope it won’t take long,” Cameron replied, a little uneasy, after which Ethan quickly blindfolded him and immediately felt relieved. Cameron stretched his hands out again to have them tied, but instead, Ethan gently pushed him onto the bed, turned him to his stomach, and pulled his hands behind his back.
“Whoa, looks like you’re ready for the advanced level,” Cameron smirked, thinking the tying would be loose once again. However, to his surprise, Ethan began tying his hands tightly, like a true professional.
“Wow, Ethan, this is actually… really good. I don’t think I could get out of this.”
“Wait a bit, then you’ll try,” Ethan replied shortly. He moved down with another piece of rope to Cameron’s feet, grabbed them around white sports socks, drew them together, and began tying them the same way as his hands. Then he secured one end to the wooden edge of the bed. “There! So you can’t hop away!” Ethan commented with a smile and gave Cameron a signal to try freeing himself. Cameron wriggled on the bed for a few minutes, attempting to free his hands, but it was useless.
“Can you at least take off the blindfold? You’re not tying me anymore, right?” he asked.
“No, no, you have to wear it while you’re my prisoner!” Ethan replied, glancing down at his shorts.
Cameron sighed and continued his unsuccessful attempts to get free. Soon, he gave up and lay quietly on the bed. He expected Ethan to start untying him, but the cabin fell into an awkward silence again.
“Huh… I’d say you’re ready for the game, this is really good. Can you untie me now?” Cameron asked, a little worried.
“Aha, yes, of course, just wait a bit,” Ethan began untying his hands, and his excitement gradually subsided. Cameron removed the blindfold, and Ethan moved down to free his feet. At that moment, footsteps sounded outside the cabin, and Jason appeared in the doorway, eyes wide, watching Ethan untie Cameron’s feet.
“Hey… What are you two doing?”
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TO BE CONTINUED…
Below is an AI image of Cameron, Ethan and Jason playing cards that night.
