[Rickorty] Stars Shine Brighter at Night

Chapter 3

Either the days aren't long enough or there aren't enough days that last. Morty wishes that time could move a little slower, but the reality is that there's only one more night at camp before he goes back to his normal life. Thinking about how fast the days have gone by almost makes him dizzy.

Morty is thankful that his journal is able to keep up with all the memories, everything he wrote down over the weeks that he deemed worthy enough to be on the pages, though he notices that he made quite a few entries about a certain older camp counselor since the first night.

Rick has been angry about the other campers calling him grandpa, it's pretty scary. He made Jenny cry for it.

Had trouble sleeping again. Went out to the lake again and Rick was there. I couldn't really understand what he was talking about, He was drinking something weird again. Is he allowed to be drinking?

This is weird. I'm... weird. Why does my chest feel tight around him? I felt this way around Tina, but it's making me confused. Rick is not like Tina, so why?

I'm screwed. I... had a dream... about that night in the tower. Is this normal?

Morty feels heat in his cheeks as he reads over the last entry from a few nights ago. Moments of that night flash in his head, especially the moments where he's closest to Rick. The feelings and the sensations he felt still linger even after time has passed. Now, even the smallest interactions with the older man make his mind run wild. Small glances, a bush of hands or shoulders in passing, even a ruffle of Morty's hair from the older man is enough to make tingles run up his spine and stomach flip with butterflies. He wants more attention from the old man, so much so that it's making him have weird dreams.

I think I like him.

Morty's eyes widen a bit at the new words he put onto the page. He likes Rick. He likes the strange, weird old man. It almost feels wrong to admit it, obviously, he shouldn't. Aside from the incredibly large age difference, Rick already likes someone else, someone more his age.

A hand suddenly waves in front of his face, making him come out of his thoughts. Michael frowns at him, looking pretty annoyed. "Were you even listening to me, Morty?" He asks.

Morty quickly closes his journal and slips it away under his pillow. "O-oh, sorry. I-I got distracted. W-what were you saying?" He tries to look innocent and give his attention to his friend.

Michael crosses his arms. "You don't remember what we were talking about, do you?"

Daniel drops his head down on the top bunk above Morty. "We were talking about how much fun it was being here and now we're sad to be leaving again!" He says with a pout, his cheeks looking puffy from hanging his head upside down.

"I haven't said anything about it, but you've been acting like you have a new crush lately," Michael purses his lips and narrows his eyes a little at Morty, though there are no bad intentions behind them. "Who is it this time?" He asks, a small grin on his lips.

Morty's face flushes at the statement. "W-w-what makes you th-think that?"

Daniel hops down from his bunk, tumbling a little but brushes it off quickly. "It's been so obvious! You daydream, get distracted during the activities, scribble into your journal more, and your cheeks go red when you're thinking about them," he says, matter-of-factly.

Morty starts to sweat. Has he been that obvious?

"You were acting the same when you had a crush on Tina, but she's not here, so who could it be this time?" Michael asks.

"Could it be Tricia? She seems to like you!" Daniel blurts.

Morty can't help but laugh, "No! No way, s-she's actually dating Summer, my sister. T-Tricia's just being nice to me."