They decided that they would be taking two cars. Chris and Paige would be in Chris's since she had to be home Sunday. Ian, Liam, Lucas, Ember, Javi, and Izzy would all cram in Ian's. This decision was only made like that because Lucas and Liam were already at Ian's house and Javi is right next door. Izzy was added into the mix because of Ember deciding so and nobody questioning it.
So now, Liam is stuck in the middle seat up front between Ian and Lucas as they drive. They just picked Izzy up and are now heading to the rock quarry. He has to admit, he's pretty excited.
"Can we please listen to something else?" Ember asks as another rap song plays. Lucas shakes his head in the passenger seat.
"Nope. My music is superior." As if to show her he's serious, he turns it up some. Liam cringes at the loudness. The music itself he doesn't mind but the volume hurts his ears.
Seeing his reaction, Ian reaches over and turns it down. Lucas looks between the two before deciding not to argue.
As Ian's hand comes down from the volume dial on the radio, it stops to rest on Liam's thigh. Immediately, he tenses up at the surprise. Although, shortly after, he relaxes again.
Lucas mumbles something about 'being whipped' before turning his head to look out the window. Ember seems to hear because she laughs in the backseat. Izzy looks confused while Javi can't even hear them because he has headphones on.
Ian doesn't seem to protest this, his thumb rubbing small circles into the fabric of Liam's shorts. It's comfortable and causes a small blush to rise onto Liam's face. The rest of the drive is spent with Lucas jamming to his songs, Ember and Izzy playing games together on Ember's phone, and Ian's hand on Liam's thigh.
It wasn't necessarily a long drive. A good forty five minutes and they pull up onto a gravel road, following it through some trees. Finally, they park in a big circle made out of gravel that must be what is supposed to be the parking lot for this place.
"Come on." Ian smiles at Liam, patting his thigh and getting out of the car. Lucas climbs out at the same time.
Javi, Izzy, and Ember all get out as Liam does. Liam stands and surveys their surroundings while Javi and Lucas make their way to the back of the car.
"We're gonna start setting up." Lucas calls out. Just as they open the trunk, Chris and Paige pull up.
"Alright, I'm gonna show Liam around." Ian calls out and after receiving a nod from Lucas, he grabs Liam's pinky and leads him away.
After the initial tug, Ian drops his hand. Liam frowns at the lack of physical contact. He no longer cares about their friends seeing, he already plans on telling Paige and Ember sometime later. So, he reaches over and grabs Ian's hand.
As soon as he does, all the confidence leaves him. Just as his hand is slipping away, Ian grabs it too and interlocks their fingers. The brown eyed boy shoots a smile at Liam and then tugs him along, climbing up a little hill of rocks.
There's trees even on the dam of the lake but it's pretty. The water seems kind of clean, it's a blueish green color and not terribly muddy. Ian walks Liam around the dam, showing him where they set up tents.
There's a lot of litter scattered around. Not an excessive amount but every few steps there's a beer can laying on the ground or some fishing tackle. Other than that, it isn't terrible. Liam finds it pretty.
They get on the other side of the dam and Ian peeks over, checking through the trees to see if anyone is close by. Once he sees there isn't he looks back at Liam. "No one can see us. Is it okay if I kiss you?"
Liam nods and Ian leans forward, connecting their lips. It's a short kiss. Ian pulls away after only a few seconds and smiles sweetly.
"Let's head back and set up our tent."
As they head back, Liam realizes that Ian said 'our' tent. That meant they would be sharing a tent. He hadn't even really thought about that.
They get back to where they parked their cars and Ian drops Liam's hand to walk over to Chris. He smacks him upside the head and then the two walk over to grab another tent. They bring it into the woods, going to the little clearing that Ian had showed Liam earlier.
Liam walks up to the girls as they start heading to the trunk of the car too. "Hey."
"Perfect timing." Ember says happily. "You can carry our tent."
Liam chuckles but picks up the bag Ember hands him. Ember shuts the trunk of the car and leads the way after the boys. Piage falls in step with Liam, the two walking behind Ember and Izzy.
"So, there's only three tents?" Paige asks suddenly. Liam nods.
"Javi only brought one extra because we figured three was enough."
"Okay." Paige nods. "If I'm sharing with Izzy and Ember, who are you sharing with?"
"Ian I guess." Liam shrugs like it's simple. He bites his tongue at the urge to just tell her. Paige hums thoughtfully.
"What's going on with you two?" Paige asks. "You were holding hands earlier and you kissed last week. I wasn't going to say anything but when you held hands with him it didn't look like you cared much if we saw so now I'm just straight up asking."
Liam sighs. This conversation was happening sooner than planned. He wasn't aware Paige had seen them kiss that time in the parking lot but it made sense.
"I've been wondering too!" Ember declares, spinning around to face Liam once they reach the camping spot. Liam drops their tent and Izzy moves it over to start unzipping it.
Ian and Chris are already almost done setting up a gray tent and a little ways behind them Lucas and Javi almost have a green one up. Paige drops down to help Izzy with their green tent but keeps in the conversation.
"You promised you would tell me." Ember deadpans. "Well, we're both here and well... Izzy kind of already knows half of it so might as well shares."
Izzy laughs awkwardly. "It's fine. I didn't hear anything."
Liam just looks at her and then smiles a little. He surprisingly doesn't feel that awkward around her. "It's okay." He then diverts his attention back between Paige and Ember. "Um so, basically he kissed me and then we talked. But I'm not totally sure where I stand about this whole situation. Like, I didn't even know I was into guys until he did that so now we're just kinda going with it. Seeing how it turns out until I know for sure how I feel about him."
"Okay." Paige nods, setting up little pole things and sticking then together.
"Sounds confusing, you have fun with that." Ember huffs. "This is why I like girls."
Paige rolls her eyes. Before Liam can comment, Ian is at his side again. "Hey, our tent is set up. Do you want to go ahead and set up the sleeping bags and stuff?"
"Oh, sure." Liam nods, following Ian away. Lucas, Javi, and Chris all cluster around the gray tent so they must be sharing it.
"I already brought the duffel bag packed with bedding over so we can set it up and then go back for our clothes." Ian tells him as they approach their green tent.
"Okay." Liam nods, he remembers Ian packing several blankets in a duffel bag so that must be the bedding he's talking about.
They get there and Ian unzips the tent, crawling in. Liam crawls in after him. It's a spacious enough tent, big enough for three people to fit in.
"So, I brought two sleeping bags but if you want to sleep on top of them instead we can layer blankets to make a sort of palette thing." Ian suggests. He brings his hand up to rub the back of his neck. "I just didn't know if you would be okay in a sleeping bag or if you'd want to make a bed thing for the two of us."
Liam smiles at him, softly. "Making a little bed sounds more comfortable."
Ian breaks out in a huge grin and starts pulling out blankets. They push two sleeping bags next to each other and then layer two comforters on top. Ian also brought two pillows, both being a bit on the smaller side but it will do, and two throw blankets. When they're done, it actually does look like a miniature bed on the floor.
"Hey, lovebirds, we're going swimming!" Ember peeks in through the open tent door. Paige pops in too, smiling kindly at them.
"Chris is breaking out his ice chest filled with drinks."
Liam smiles, leaving the tent to join the girls. Ian is quick to follow him. Ember grins at the two of them and then walks away. She has already stripped off her shirt, now just wearing a black bikini top.
Paige is in a red T-shirt and jean shorts. Her blonde hair is braided along the back. She's clearly more excited about the drinks than swimming because she doesn't look ready to swim at all.
Ian leads the way over to the lake. He strips off his shirt and runs off a big rock that works as a diving board. Lucas is already in the water while Chris and Javi are making their way over with the ice chest.
"Come on Li!" Lucas smiles at him, waving encouragingly. Liam takes off his shirt and jumps in like Ian did, letting the cold water envelope him. He pops back up and grins, brushing water out of his eyes.
Ian smiles at him. A few seconds later Ember and Izzy are jumping in, wearing matching bikinis. Chris and Javi come in soon after them.
For the next two hours, they're in the lake. Two hours of splashing and swimming in murky waters, two hours of Javi and Lucas climbing trees just to jump off into the water and two hours of only getting out to get sips out of soda bottles. It's more fun than Liam imagined it would be.
After they get out, Ian grabs a towel out of Chris's car. They only have three so Paige gets one and then Lucas and Chris share one. Ian wraps the one he grabbed around Liam.
Javi starts a fire and they all drag rocks over to sit on. Ian sits up close to Liam as the fire starts up. He leans over to whisper in his ear. "You ever try a smore?"
Liam shakes his head. Ian smiles, patting his thigh and then standing. He comes back with a bag of marshmallows, a box of graham crackers, and a large bag of chocolate.
"Oh! Smore time." Izzy grins, springing up to go break a little limb off a nearby tree. She grabs two, handing one to Javi on her way back to her seat. They both stick the ends of the sticks over the fire, burning them.
Ian sets the stuff down and goes to break off a stick too. Lucas comes over and breaks off two as well. They come back and take their seats, Lucas passing Paige the other stick and they all begin burning the ends.
"Burning the ends kills the germs so you can roast the marshmallows without getting sick." Ian leans over to explain. Liam nods, watching as Ian burns the stick for a few more moments before pulling it back. He sticks two marshmallows on the thin end and sticks it back over the fire.
There's another two hours of talking about meaningless stuff. Izzy fills Ember and Paige in on school drama. Liam is only slightly embarrassed by the fact that he actually get dragged into the story telling as well. He doesn't even know the people they're talking about but he listens with interest anyway. Apparently some girl named Dixie got pregnant and doesn't know who the daddy is.
"Is she gonna make whoever it is pay child support?" Liam leans over, Paige looks back at him briefly. Izzy nods hurriedly.
"She said she was. She's ready to take their asses to court if they disagree too. She's literally so pissed about it happening. Not very many people know though so shh." Izzy brings her pointer finger up to her lips. A small smile escapes her as Liam nods back. "Anyways, there's also this girl Delilah that's been trying to get in Ian's pants lately. She's actually really upset that he isn't giving her the time of day too. Like, she was crying in the locker room of gym the other day and all her friends were calling him a dick."
Ember scrunches up her nose. "She always was a drama queen."
"Isn't she the girl that has a new boy she toys with every two weeks?" Paige tilts her head to the side. Izzy nods.
Liam pulls back to look at Ian, as if asking for confirmation. He just gives Liam a small smile and a shrug. "I told her I've got my eyes set on someone else at the moment."
It takes Liam a second to process it. When he does he feels warmth spread up his neck. "Oh."
When Liam looks back to the girls, Paige is smiling happily at him. He can't help the wide grin that spreads across his features. Ember is grinning too. They're all smiling.
"That Delilah girl is resilient too. I was drunk at a party once and we hooked up. She tried for the next couple weeks to try and get me to go on a date with her." Chris shakes his head. "I was pretty firm about not wanting anything more than a one night stand too. She just doesn't give up. It's annoying."
Ember throws a little rock at him. "You're annoying. That's what you get for hooking up with her. Maybe if you weren't such a whore there'd be less incidents like that."
Chris glared back at her. "At least I can get hook ups. When's the last time you got laid?"
"When's the last time you got tested for STDs?" Ember shoots back. Javi snorts from next to Chris.
"You know Chris, that might actually be a good idea." Izzy nods. "I heard you slept with Jazmine while being super drunk last week. Maybe go get checked out to make sure."
Suddenly Chris's sneer flattens out into a serious face. He looks over at Izzy with wide eyes. "What do you mean? Does Jazmine have something?"
Izzy just shrugs. "I mean, you used protection right?"
Pure fear crosses Chris's face. "Izzy. You better be serious right now. Does she have something?"
"That's not my place to share." Izzy shrugs again. "You should be fine if you wore a condom."
Chris groans. "I was drunk, I don't remember shit! I only know I did because I woke up next to her the next morning. What do you know?"
"Just... go get tested." Izzy smiles softly.
"Fuck this!" Chris stands up and marches towards his car. "I'm calling her!"
The second he's out of earshot, Ember and Izzy burst out laughing. Liam looks between them two with furrowed eyebrows. Was that all a joke?
"Wait, does Jazmine have something or not?" Lucas asks.
"I don't know." Izzy shrugs. "I don't talk to Jaz. All I know is that will scare him stupid. It'll teach him to whore around without protection."
Small laughs are passed through out them. Liam eats the smore Ian passes him, this being his fourth one. They're really good.
An hour later and it's dark out. They're all still around the fire. The orange light makes Ian's skin look pretty and there's a reflective glow in his eyes that has Liam looking back at him every now and then.
Chris returned a while ago, cursing Izzy and Ember under his breath. He didn't say anything loudly though, letting the topic move on.
"We should probably turn in." Lucas mumbles, looking out through the trees. "I'm starting to get paranoid that some ax murderer is gonna pop out of nowhere and slaughter us all."
Javi rolls his eyes, a small smile on his face. "Yeah whatever." He grabs a water bottle out of the ice chest and doused the fire, making it five times darker. Subconsciously, Liam leans a little closer to Ian.
Ian, Izzy, and Javi all turn the flashlights on their phones on. Ian intertwines his and Liam's hands, standing up and dragging Liam with him.
"Hey!" Chris's voice makes them pause on their journey to the tent. "Be careful you two. Tent sex isn't very comfortable."
Heat spreads all over Liam's face. Ian groans in annoyance and loudly yells back at him. "Fuck off!"
They can hear the laughs from the rest of the group but ignore it. Ian tugs Liam along to the green tent. They both slip their shoes off so they're in their socks and slip inside. Ian zips it up behind them. He turns the little lantern hanging at the top of the tent on and turns off his flashlight on his phone.
"We're not actually having tent sex, right?" Liam's voice comes out in a quiet mumble.
Ian laughs, bringing his hand to run through the hair on the nape of Liam's neck. "No baby, we're not gonna have tent sex."
Liam can't help the way he feels relieved at that. That's not what he's completely focused on though. His heart flips forward and his stomach dances around his insides. Ian called him baby.
"Uh- um." He finally blinks himself back to normal and nods. "Okay. I was a little scared."
That makes Ian chuckle again. "I wouldn't do that to you."
Liam nods again. He looks out to the bag in the corner of the tent, not wanting to sleep in the clothes he went swimming in, even if they're dry now. "Can we change?"
"Yeah." Ian answers immediately, dragging the duffel bag with their clothes over. He unzips it and digs through it a little. "Pick out whatever you want. Is it okay if I sleep shirtless?"
Liam nods and begins to look through the clothes. He pulls out a black shirt, deciding he doesn't care that much, and then a dark pair of shorts.
He briefly glances at Ian as he begins to strip his shirt off and then his shorts, leaving himself in just boxers. He grabs a pair of black sweats from the bag and pulls them on, catching Liam's stare during the action. He smirks and Liam immediately whips his eyes away.
Instead, Liam focuses on stripping his own clothes off. His skin feels cold and he's quick to pull on the shirt and shorts. He doesn't like sleeping in the same boxers but decides he can change tomorrow morning after kicking Ian out of the tent.
Ian is already laying down and covered up on the makeshift mattress by the time Liam is done changing. He crawls over onto the blankets and pulls up the one Ian is covering up with, crawling under it and behind Ian. The other boy laughs at his action, reaching up to pull the other throw blanket over them too. Laying close to each other and having two blankets covering them up, Liam already feels the tiredness set it.
"Sleepy?" Ian asks with a soft voice when Liam throws an arm over his waist. Liam nods and closes his eyes. Ian runs his hand through his hair. "Alright, we'll go to sleep. Do you want me to turn the lamp off or keep it on through the night?"
Liam thought about it. The battery operated lamp wasn't very bright. It only sprayed the tent with a dim yellowish light, it was actually kind of relaxing.
"It's okay on. Don't move." Liam mumbles, nuzzling his face into Ian's shoulder. Ian chuckles.
"Okay, I'm not going anywhere. Goodnight."
"Goodnight."
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I don't know why I decided that they were camping, that's just what my planner thing said they were doing. T-T
Love you â¡
- Z