Sunday
The first night spent in their cabins ended up being both peaceful and comfortable. However, Joshua’s sleep was fitful, bolting upright in bed each time he awakened, listening intently for the sound of scurrying animal feet. He was the first counselor out of bed the following morning and quickly made a pot of coffee. His Day One packet was already sitting on top of the chest of drawers, filled with schedules ready to be dispersed to both his fellow counselors and the soon-to-arrive campers. It was 5:00 a.m. The first buses were due in four hours.
He sat on the bed, sipping his coffee while Colin slept beside him. He peered over his mug at the first items on the Day One schedule:
9:00 a.m. - Arrival & Welcome
9:00–9:30 a.m. - Bus Arrival & Check-In
·Counselors with music and festive decorations greet campers.
·Luggage is tagged and taken to cabins.
· Campers receive a welcome kit (name tag, camp map, water bottle, and schedule).
Welcome kits had been prepared for all thirty-six campers. The luggage tags, festive decorations, and all other paraphernalia were in the large box marked Day One, which waited in the campground dining room. They were ready.
He shot a glance at Colin, who was still sleeping peacefully, then got up and wandered outside to the cabin’s small porch and sat down on the steps. The sun was coming up, and the air was crisp, carrying the scent of damp earth and pine. A soft mist curled around the trees, broken only by an owl’s distant hoot and the breeze rustling the leaves.
Joshua wrapped his hands around his coffee mug, letting the warmth seep into his fingers as he took a slow sip. This was the calm before the storm—the last few hours of quiet before thecamp was filled with laughter, shouts, and the boundless energy of thirty-six excited campers.
A faint creak behind him signaled movement inside the cabin. A moment later, the door swung open, and Colin appeared, looking rumpled but alert. His hair was a mess, and he squinted against the early light as he took in Joshua sitting on the step, coffee in hand, already deep in thought.
“You’re up early,” Colin murmured, his voice still thick with sleep.
Joshua smirked, lifting his mug in a small salute. “You know me—once my brain starts going, there’s no turning it off.”
Colin grunted in agreement and dropped down beside him on the step, rubbing a hand over his face. “You making coffee for the whole camp, or just you?”
Joshua handed him his coffee mug, and Colin hummed in satisfaction as he took it and sipped. “Oh, man! That’s good.”
“Let me get you one of your own,” Joshua said, starting to rise. But Colin grabbed his arm and pulled him back down beside him.
“Just sit here beside me for a minute. This may be the only moment of peace we get today. Let’s enjoy it.”
Joshua hesitated, then let Colin pull him down, their knees touching. For a moment, the storm inside him—the nerves, the checklist, the worry—went quiet. They sat close together on the steps, sharing Joshua’s mug of coffee, watching in contented silence as the sun rose over the trees until the soft pat of footsteps drew their attention.
“Morning,” Nate said, his voice soft and somewhat muted in the morning air.
“You ready to go?” Joshua asked. “Is David up yet?”
David was to drive Nate to the meetup spot where all thirty-six campers would gather before boarding the bus that would carry them to Camp Pride. He would remain on the bus tosupervise the campers while David hurried back to help prepare for their arrival.
“Yeah—he’s dressing like a glam L.L. Bean ad.”
“So, no lion tamer suit?”
Colin lowered his head, laughing as Joshua nodded toward the cabin door. “There’s coffee in there.”
“Nope,” Nate told him, perching on the bottom step. “That restaurant we were at last night opens at six, and we’re headed there for breakfast. That’s why we’re up so early.” He nodded toward his husband, who was trudging toward them, his shoulders hunched under his stylish windbreaker.
“How’d you sleep?” Colin asked the Professor.
David shot him an aggravated look. “I may need to look up a mattress store.”
Colin snickered as David took Nate’s arm and lifted him off the step. “Let’s go rabble-rouser. I’m hungry and annoyed. I want breakfast.”
Nate waved at Colin and Joshua as he and David strolled across the lawn to where their car was parked. “See you when the bus arrives,” Colin called after them.
