Escaping Reality

Chapter 28: Glamping Guys

As we all got back to our cars we lingered around chatting it up, none of us really ready to depart yet. We had had an incredible day and it didn't feel right to all just go our separate ways yet. My friends and I back home liked to go on mini camping trips but I was uneasy if that'd be popular with this crowd. However, after another 10 minutes passed with nobody offering up a suggestion but nobody exactly in a hurry to get home I decided to throw it out there.

"Is there a cool place nearby where we could camp?" I tossed up, adding "it might be kinda fun and it seems like none of us are really ready to go home."

Surprisingly the guys all seemed to be on board. I was hoping that it wasn't just the day's adrenaline talking, one of those things that wears off and everybody changes their minds as soon as they get home. We collectively decided that it would be a great idea and Jason said he even knew a place that wasn't too far out of the way.

"If you guys can meet back here in an hour with a change of clothes, a sleeping bag, snacks, and anything else you want to bring I can drive us all out from there." Jason offered.

We agreed that it was a solid plan, split up, and agreed to meet back here as soon as possible. I felt bad that I wasn't driving anyone, letting people use my yacht, or letting people stay at my house so I decided I would get a ton of snacks. Soon enough I was walking out of the nearest Walmart with an aggressive amount of snacks. I got all the s'mores essentials. An assortment of chips and cookies. Fruit snacks, goldfish, cheez its, everything. I grabbed a couple of packs of Gatorade and water too. After some hesitation, I also tested out the fake they had gifted me and purchased a handle of vodka to top everything off.

The cashier had given me a funny look but I ignored her, who was she to judge if I wanted to indulge a little bit. I loaded the groceries into the car and took off for Lola's, shooting her a text to see what she was up to.

She was waiting for me by the time I arrived to pick up a spare set of clothes. We debriefed quickly and I apologized for having to leave so abruptly. She was just happy that I was making friends and getting along with the guys. However, when I asked to borrow a sleeping bag it came with promises of future favors to be specified by Lola in the coming days. Worth the risk I thought, kissing her in non-verbal agreement.

Everyone was there on time except for Jason but that was acceptable as soon as he pulled up in a vintage VW van. The rest of the guys didn't think much of it but I was taken aback. I didn't know much about cars but I was a huge fan of old VW vans and knew that they were not cheap to get a hold of and refurbish. It was painted bright cherry red with white detailing, a true beauty. The winders boasted stickers from all of Jason's adventures. It was the perfect vehicle for camping, road trips, and about anything else that involved traveling in large groups.

"Pile in," Jason said casually as he rolled to a perfectly time stop.

We didn't hesitate. We threw the groceries and other supplies in the back and took our place in the vintage leather seats. The trip was fun, but to say it was smooth would be a lie. The suspension was not ideal and we felt every little bump and crack. Oh well, we were young, it's part of the journey I thought. Music blared in the aftermarket speakers that had been installed. A weird combination I thought to myself, no complaints though. We broke into the snacks early on and began singing along to the lyrics and sticking objects out the window.

After just under an hour of being on the road, we had arrived. It was a small little state park with a wooded area, a park, and a disc golf course. We found the spot that Jason had been able to reserve spur the moment and we pitched the tent.

"It's a five-person tent and there's six of us but I figured we could cuddle" Jason explained with a shy smile on his face

"As long as I don't have to cuddle with Nico" Hamilton shouted.

"What's wrong with me? I'm soft, cuddly, and can produce a lot of body heat" Nico shot back

"Wait, nobody wants to cuddle with me?" Tyler said, wearing an expression of artificially produced hurt.

"Probably because you smell like alcohol and wet farts" I responded feeling good that I was being integrated into the banter.

"Oh, that's right. Hey, Tyler you might have to sleep in the car man unless you brought some Febreeze or something." Jason said, further stirring the pot.

Now Tyler meant well but he was one of those guys who couldn't take a joke very well. At this point, it looked as if one more snide comment was gonna push him over the edge. Leave it to Hamilton to deliver the final shove.

"Oh, Tyler is that why your girl left. Could she not handle your stench."

That one brought Tyler to his feet. He started hurling insults.

"Shut up, you giant ass forehead ogre. Hamilton, you're so rich the only thing you've ever struggled with is drinking tap water instead of Voss and Fiji water. Jason, why are you even talking man, your breath stank so bad I can smell it from here. Luke what are you even doing here, none of us even really know you!"

We all recognized that he needed some time to simmer so we sat in silence for a while. Within twenty minutes he was back to himself and we were sitting around joking again. I was glad to see that a couple of minutes of silence, a shot or two of whiskey, and some double stuff Oreos were a good enough peace treaty.

We sat around the campfire for a few hours passing around a bottle of whiskey and telling some of our more memorable stories. I introduced the boys to the s'more 2.0.

"Instead of using a graham cracker, you use two grasshopper cookies." I explained as I bit into my modified s'more.

They, like me, were young males so any combination of delicious junk foods was welcomed with open arms. It wasn't long before we ran out of s'mores supplies and moved on to the rest of our snack stockpile. It didn't take long for the snacks to run out and the drinks followed suit shortly after.

At about that exact point somebody thought it would be a good idea to try to stick the mini ax into the tree tomahawk style. We took turns chucking it at a tree that couldn't have been further than 12 feet away. A part of the fun was seeing how the ax would ricochet when it didn't stick. There is a certain thrill in trying to predict and dodge a sharp bouncing object.

Nobody got hurt. I mean Charles threw his arm out but nobody got seriously injured, you know, impaled with an ax. However, the tree was badly scarred and the tent had a couple of tears. It was waning into the early hours of the morning and we finally decided to call it a night and crawled inside the tent.

"This tent really has an open floor plan doesn't it guys," Jason said referencing giant tears exposing us to the night sky.

"Shut up, you sound like a shitty realtor" Hamilton retaliated.

"Night boys" I finally said.

In classic Walton family-style, the good nights made their way around until everybody had wished each other a good night. We sifted around a little bit but eventually, we all drifted off, the crickets and other insects chirping in the background.