Camp for the Emotionally (Un)Stable || Lams

Chapter Nine: Maria Knows Best

|Third Person|

Maria Reynolds is the kind of girl who knows what she wants and knows how to get it. She wears her wavy hair parted to the side and a deep red cover over her bathing suit that has Peggy glancing at her more that once. Alexander can't help but notice how incredibly helpless she looks in her presence. She stumbles over her words and stares at her when she speaks in a deep sultry voice.

"It's nice to meet you, Maria. I've heard a lot about you." Peggy shoots Alex a look, telling him he's being too forward. Maria only laughs and lies back in the sand on the beach, taking in the sun that had finally reappeared after the clouds from last night cleared. 

"All good things, I hope." Peggy turns pink, glaring at Alex as he opens his mouth to answer.

"Of course," is all he says. Peggy turns away from him to sit on her towel beside Maria. They had been sitting there for a couple minutes before Maria joined them, sending Peggy into the fumbling state she's been in for a while now. 

Peggy looks up at Alexander, watching him look out over the lake and start to tune out the girls next to him. Maria leans her head on Peggy's shoulder and she blushes, biting the inside of her cheek to keep from smiling too hard. 

"What's up with you and John, Alex," she says, trying to distract herself from Maria's close proximity. Alex frowns, thinking of the boy who he thought he was getting closer too, but after this morning he's not so sure.

"I really don't know," he shrugs, not bothering to look at her. Maria looks at Peggy in confusion.

"John Laurens?" She asks, earning a nod from both Alexander and Peggy. "Aren't you dating him?" She asks, causing Alex to turn around to face her, surprise written on his face. 

"No," he says quickly.

"He wishes," Peggy snorts. Maria looks between them, putting together the seemingly complicated relationship between the two boys. Alexander sighs dramatically, flopping back down on the sand next to the girls.

"I thought girls were complicated," he tosses his arm over his eyes to block them from the sun. "I guess, boys are just the same though." Maria laughs beside him, nudging him with her leg. 

"You're just now realizing this?" Maria asks, looping her arm around Peggy discreetly. She freezes and looks at the girl next to her, hardly breathing. "I've been coming on to this girl for weeks now and she hasn't said anything." Peggy's eyes widen and Alex looks over at her as Maria leans over and kisses her cheek. Peggy freezes again, looking straight ahead, not daring to make eye contact with anyone. "See," Maria says, looking over at Alexander. "Nothing." 

Peggy looks over at her slowly, her face red. Maria only sighs and sets her head on her shoulder again. "Maria..." Peggy starts, looking at the top of her head nervously. Alexander grins at his anxious friend, awkwardly sitting next to the girl she's so helplessly in love with, despite only knowing her a couple weeks. Maria hums, not looking at her. "Do you want to be my girlfriend?" 

"I thought you'd never ask!" Maria smiles at Peggy, kissing her cheek once more as Alexander cheers.

"'Bout time, Pegs!" He laughs as she continues to blush and look down at her lap. 

"See how easy that was, Alex?" Maria purrs, her face still tilted towards Peggy. 

"Speak for yourself," Peggy says, finally looking up at her new girlfriend. She smiles fondly at her, the color in her cheeks dimming to a light pink shade. 

"Either way," Maria continues, keeping a firm grip on Peggy's waist as she talks. "A lot of people already think you and John are dating, so what's the harm in making it official?" 

Alexander rolls his eyes. "The harm is that one second he's telling me he'll protect me during the storm, and the next he's trying to ditch me in the morning before I wake up." He sighs and looks at Maria, at a loss of what to do about the charming, hot headed boy who sleeps a mere few feet from him every night. 

Peggy chews the inside of her cheek, thinking of John's words to her just that morning.  The image of him looking behind her, staring at Alex in almost a trance. The way his voice took on a dreamy tone when he described the night they had spent together. There was no doubt about it, John Laurens was most definitely head over heels for Alexander Hamilton. 

Peggy looks up at her pathetic, love sick friend. "Maria is right, Alex." He looks at her, surprised she had spoken up at all. "I think there's more harm in not saying anything at all." Alexander hums, thinking this over as he looks back up towards the sky.

"I dunno, Pegs." He bites at the inside of his lip and closes his eyes. "I'm still not sure if he even likes me." Peggy can't help herself from rolling her eyes, glancing around to see that thankfully Maria has her eyes trained on Alex still.

"Some risks are worth it, Alexander." She says, smiling at her girlfriend.

Doing a double update just because I'm eager to the rest of this out.
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