Accidental Awakening

by Damien Benoit-Ledoux

  “Yes, sir,” the team said together.

  “No one’s sexuality ever let them win or not win a race. A team works best when it works together and its members stay committed to one another. Is that understood?”

  “Yes, Coach.”

  “Blake, front and center.”

  Blake stepped forward and approached Coach Tomlin.

  “It’s admirable that you wanted to stand up for your friend, but it’s troubling you were going to take down a bully with your fists. That’s not the way you should resolve it, at least not here; there are other ways to deal with bullies. I want you to figure that out because if I catch you in a school fight, I guarantee you will not only be suspended but you will be off this team as well. I can’t have four players off the team, so get your shit together and keep your temper under control. Is that clear?” the coach asked.

  “Yes, sir,” Blake answered.

  “Alright, that’s enough for today. Everyone have a great weekend. Go shower up, and no monkey business in the showers. If there’s any fighting or any more horse shit going on, there will be hell to pay on Monday. Track team, fall out!”

  Blake watched the team walk off the track field. Quinn sidled up to him.

  “Dude, were you channeling your inner Teen Wolf back there?” Quinn asked.

  “Maybe.”

  “That was awesome!”

  “Well, it worked on the show, so I figured it was worth a try.”

  ❖

  “I can’t believe he did that,” Blake said, flipping through the pages of the latest Spider-man comic that Quinn had just gotten.

  “I know,” Quinn said, “he’s such a jerk.”

  The boys relaxed on Quinn’s queen-sized bed, where the air conditioning struggled to keep the house cool that night.

  “I just don’t understand why he thinks it’s okay to pick on other people. Don’t we see enough of this on T.V. and haven’t we learned it’s not okay?” Blake asked.

  Quinn shrugged, “The world seems to be built on conflict. Everyone fights.”

  Blake chuckled, “If only you knew.” You have no idea how much people fight. Your parents are angels compared to the demons I live with.

  “Well, at least we don’t fight like that,” Blake said.

  “Like what?” Quinn asked.

  “Oh, right,” Blake answered. “Well, like my parents, for starters. And you and I don’t fight or treat each other like crap, like Darien does everyone else.

  “Naw,” Quinn said, “we’re good. I like to think we’re above that kind of stuff…that we know it’s better to help each other and help others instead of beating each other up and tearing one another down.

  A knock sounded at the open door. Blake looked up to see Mr. McAlester—or Daddio—standing there.

  “You boys about ready to crash?” He asked, “We have an early morning ahead of us.”

  “Yep, we will in just a few minutes.” Quinn said. “Good night, Daddio.”

  “Good night, guys,” Daddio said.

  “Good night, Mr. Mac,” Blake said, using the affectionate nickname he had given Daddio.

  Quinn’s father left the room and the boys decided to get ready for bed.

  “I’m going to brush my teeth,” Quinn said, rolling off his bed.

  “I will, too,” Blake said, following Quinn into the bathroom.

  Together they stood at the sink, staring aimlessly at each other and the toothbrushes in their hands as they brushed their teeth.

  Quinn stepped to the toilet and with his back to Blake, began to pee. The long-standing friendship the boys had torn down most of the barriers between them and there wasn’t much the boys didn’t share or know about one another.

  Blake spat toothpaste foam into the sink and grabbed Quinn’s mouthwash. He swigged some and swished it around his mouth. Several seconds later, he spat that out, too. When Quinn finished using the toilet, it was Blake’s turn.

  The boys headed back into Quinn’s room and Blake crawled onto the right side of the bed. Quinn shut the door and turned the air conditioning up, then approached his side of the bed. The boys had been sharing a bed during sleepovers since they were kids and they didn’t see a reason to stop sharing a bed just because they had gotten older or because of what Darien would think if he ever found out.

  Blake picked up his comic book and idly stared at the colorful pages. “I’m really glad your dads let me come with you this weekend.”

  “Me too,” Quinn said, pulling off his shirt and jumping into bed. He wore only his boxers. “I’m glad your parents let you come.”

  “Meh,” Blake said, sitting up and pulling off his T-shirt. “My parents don’t care. You know that.”

  “I know,” Quinn said, “I just keep hoping…”

  “Don’t bother,” Blake said, laying down. “I stopped hoping a long time ago. It is what it is, and I only have to deal with it for two more years.”

  “Well, we’re gonna have a good time this weekend,” Quinn said, “so I hope we can forget all the bad shit that’s going on. Not that there’s a lot of bad shit, but you know.”

  “Yeah, I hear ya,” Blake said. “I’m sorry, I’m just sort of bummed today. I’ll be in a better mood tomorrow. We’ll have an awesome time, I promise.”

  “Great,” Quinn said, “You can keep reading, but I’m going to bed. I’m wiped.”

  “Me too. Let’s kill the lights.”

  They each turned off the lamps on the nightstands next to their sides of the bed and then rolled over and fell asleep.

  4 | Family Camping Trip

  Quinn

  “WE’RE HERE,” DADDIO ANNOUNCED, WAKING the occupants of the car.

  Quinn open his eyes and blinked in the bright daylight. When they left Portsmouth at six-thirty, the sun had barely risen, but now at nine-thirty it shone brightly through the trees.

  “Thank goodness,” Blake said.

  “What do you mean, ‘Thank goodness’?” Dad asked, smiling as he shot Blake a quick glance. “You slept the entire way. We’re the ones who stayed awake to make sure you got here safely.”

  “Yeah, yeah,” Blake said, smiling in the back seat. Quinn yawned and stretched his hands over the front seat, gently massaging the trapezius muscles of his dad.

  “Thanks for making sure we got here safe, dads. It’s gonna be an awesome weekend.”

  “I can’t believe I slept the whole way,” Blake said.

  “We can’t either,” Daddio said, chuckling.

  Quinn said, “I didn’t think we were that tired, but I guess yesterday’s run through New Castle really wiped us out.”

  “I agree with you,” Blake said. “Did we hit any traffic?”

  “Not really,” Daddio said. “We left early enough that all the Massachusetts folk heading into Maine this morning weren’t even out of bed yet.”

  “Great,” Quinn said. “I’m glad that was so easy.”

  Fifteen minutes later, Daddio checked them into Woods Lake Campground. Then, they drove the vehicle to the campsite and when they had parked, they climbed out to stretch their legs. Daddio went to the back of the SUV and opened the tailgate and while Dad walked around and explored the camping area.

  “Well, if our fireplace is right there, then I guess maybe we should put our two tents over there. What do you guys think?” Dad asked, pointing as he spoke.

  “Sounds good to me.”

  “Me too,” Blake added, agreeing with his best friend.

  “Okay then, let’s set up our tents,” Dad said.

  Quinn nodded and grabbed his red tent from the back of the vehicle. Then, he and Blake walked over to an area and checked for small rocks and tree roots.

  “The ground is dry here, so this should be a good spot. What do you think?” Blake asked.

  “Works for me,” Quinn agreed.

  Quinn started unpacking the tent and Blake helped. Alongside them Dad and Daddio unpacked and set up their tent.

  “Are you sure you didn’t want
us to set up the big family tent?” Dad asked, teasing his son.

  “No thanks, Dad,” Quinn said. “I’m sure you guys would love your privacy.”

  Blake chuckled.

  “Aw,” Daddio said. “You don’t want to have family time with us anymore?”

  Quinn rolled his eyes and smiled, “You know what I mean. So, uh, Dad, you should move your tent over about ten feet.”

  Dad smiled. “Sounds good to me.” Then he winked at the boys.

  “Oh man,” Blake said.

  “Tell me about it,” Quinn added. “Maybe we should go ten feet in the other direction,” Quinn said, winking at his best friend.

  “Hey, it won’t hurt. The woods are pretty quiet at night, if you know what I mean.”

  The dads and the boys moved their tents further apart. Once Quinn and Blake had staked their tent in the ground, they inserted the support poles and raise the tent into position. When the boys finished, Quinn grabbed the air mattress and Blake grabbed the air pump. They took turns inflating it and when they were done, Daddio handed them their air mattress.

  “Since you boys did such a great job with yours, I’m sure you wouldn’t mind blowing ours up.”

  Quinn and Blake smiled and said, “No, of course not.”

  As the boys worked, Dad and Daddio grabbed the faded red picnic table from the far end of the site and moved it closer to the fireplace. Now their tents were on each side of the clearing and the fireplace and picnic table were in the middle. After setting up a rain shelter near the dad’s tent, Dad strung a rope from one tree to the other for the clothesline while Daddio grabbed some of the coolers and set them on the picnic table.

  “Are you guys hungry now?” Daddio asked. “We got up early and…”

  “Yes, we’re teenagers, we’re always hungry,” Quinn said.

  Blake smiled and added, “What he said.”

  “Well I don’t have anything ready to cook, but we have some protein bars and snack foods. So, dig in.” He pulled a zip-lock bag full of snacks from one of the food bags and set it on the picnic table. He checked his watch. “It’s a bit too early for the meats and cheeses, so I think we should…”

  “Wait,” Quinn said, “did you really make meats and cheeses?” he asked. “Like a charcuterie for a cutting board with fancy meats and cheeses?”

  His dad offered a guilty smile. “Maybe.”

  “You’re ridiculous, Daddio,” Quinn said.

  “Hey,” he said, “just because we’re camping doesn’t mean it can’t be a fabulous time. Right, hon?”

  “That’s right,” Dad called from the other side of the tent, his back to them.

  “What are you doing?” Quinn asked.

  “Watering this pine tree! Mind your own business.”

  “Oh, okay.”

  After they ate some snacks, the boys unloaded their sleeping and duffle bags from the car and set everything inside their tent. It was spacious, so they had plenty of room to spread out comfortably.

  “Actually,” Daddio said, looking at his watch again, “it’s late enough in the morning that if we used the gas grill we could have some burgers and dogs and then head off to the beach for the afternoon. What do you think?”

  “Sounds great,” Blake said.

  “That’s awesome, let’s do it,” Quinn said.

  Dad nodded. Together, the dads lugged the grilling equipment from the back of the vehicle and set it up on the other side of the picnic table. Quinn and Blake shifted some of the coolers around so there would be more room and they would have a place to eat. Fifteen minutes later, pre-made hamburger patties and hot dogs were sizzling on the grill while Dad buttered some buns and placed them on the outer edges of the grill, so they would brown.

  “What do you guys want to drink?” Quinn asked, knowing the answer.

  “I’m going to have some root beer,” Daddio said.

  “Me, too,” Dad said.

  “Blake?” Quinn asked.

  “Uh, pick a soda for me.”

  Quinn smiled with gratitude as he pulled four root beers from the cooler. He knew his dads discreetly sacrificed alcoholic drinks because they understood Blake’s father drank at any point in the day and they didn’t want to cause his best friend any undue stress or worry. A few minutes later, the guys enjoyed their first camping meal together.

  “Oh no, I forgot the chips,” Daddio said through a mouthful of hamburger.

  “No, you didn’t,” Quinn said. “I think they’re in a bag over here.”

  “Oh, thank heavens! I can’t have a burger without chips,” Dad said.

  Quinn rummaged through some bags near him and pulled out the bag of salt and pepper potato chips. “Camping trip disaster averted,” he said, winking at his father.

  “Thank heavens!” Daddio echoed, winking at his son.

  “By the way, Dad, where’s your cell phone?” Quinn asked, looking at his father.

  Dad smiled and pulled it out of his pocket. “Here you go. Just keep it nearby and in a safe place so that if we need it I’m not panicking for it.”

  “No problem,” Quinn said. “I’ll make sure it’s inside the lock box in the vehicle.”

  “Do I have to turn in my phone?” Daddio asked.

  “That depends,” Quinn said, “Will your office be texting you or emailing you, and will you be checking it throughout the weekend?”

  “No, of course not.”

  “Then you’re safe.” Quinn responded.

  “Yay,” Daddio said, winking at his husband.

  “But I don’t expect you to be on it, just like Blake and I are putting our phones away as well.”

  “We are?” Blake asked, looking up through a mouthful of hot dog. “I didn’t know that.”

  Quinn smiled. “New rules, I guess.”

  Blake shrugged. “I don’t have cell service up here, so I’ll keep my phone on me.”

  “Fine.”

  “Oh,” Daddio said, raising his phone. “I don’t have cell service up here, either. I guess the office couldn’t reach me even if they wanted to.”

  “Good,” Quinn said.

  “I’m a little surprised there’s no service,” Dad said. “You’d think that would be important around a campground.”

  “Especially since we’re not exactly close to civilization up here. Still, it’s beautiful,” Daddio said.

  “Like you.”

  “Aw, you’re too sweet.”

  “Thank you.”

  “Do you guys need some special couple time in your tent?” Quinn asked.

  Blake laughed and spit a mouthful of root beer across the forest floor, narrowly missing Quinn.

  “It can wait,” Dad said.

  “But not too long,” Daddio chimed in.

  “Whatever,” Quinn said, smiling.

  ❖

  Quinn pulled off his shirt, rolled it into a ball, and tossed it onto the beach towel he had laid out. Blake, sitting next to him, applied sunscreen to his chest. Quinn reached for his bottle of sunscreen and did the same.

  “I can’t believe how beautiful it is up here,” Blake commented. “And there’s like, no one around, either.”

  “It’s early,” Dad said. “I bet other campers will make their way to the beach over the next two hours.”

  “Sounds like a good time for a nap then,” his husband replied, winking the obviousness of his double entendre into the universe.

  Quinn and Blake stared at each other with mild embarrassment and shook their heads. When Blake finished applying his sunscreen he handed the bottle to Quinn who applied it to his back. They switched off, and so did the dads. Finishing up, they all laid out on their beach towels and relaxed as they soaked in the late summer sun.

  Sometime later, Quinn propped himself up on his elbows, so he could watch the water in front of him. A few children played in the pond with their parents. On the other side, some other teenagers kept to themselves, but occasionally laughed about the conversation he couldn’t hear. An elderly couple was
walking the small beach together, each one holding sandals in their hands as they held each other’s hand.

  “Wow,” Daddio commented, pointing to the sky. “The clouds around here are really weird. Look at all the crazy shapes and things you can see in them.”

  “That must be because of the mountains,” Dad said.

  “Interesting.”

  “That one looks like a dagger or a submarine,” Quinn said, pointing at a cloud to the left.

  Blake propped himself up and shielded his eyes from the sun. “It does. And that one looks like a dog or a cat. More like a dog, I think.”

  “How about that one over there, Blake? What do you think that looks like?” Dad asked.

  “Um…” Blake started, unsure of what he was looking at.

  “I don’t even know what that looks like,” Quinn chimed in.

  “Neither did I. I was just curious to know if you did.”

  They laughed together and laid back down. Daddio picked up his Kindle and started reading, holding it up to shield his eyes from the sun.

  “I thought we were here to relax?” Dad asked, glancing at his husband.

  “We are,” Daddio said. “Reading fiction is relaxing.”

  “Yes, but, it’s an electronic device.”

  “It’s an allowed electronic device,” Daddio said, smiling. “Or has the judge and jury not weighed in on that yet?” he asked, looking at Quinn and Blake.

  “Don’t worry, Mr. Mac,” Blake said, smiling, “if it becomes a problem, your Kindle isn’t waterproof.

  Daddio smiled, “You wouldn’t dare!”

  Quinn turned his voice into a creepy old man’s voice and said, “Do what must be done. Show no mercy.”