View source for Offline/Invite Beth as well

"Of course she can come!" You announce cheerfully. "There should be room for three, and we'll be in camp ''most'' of the time anyway." Beth resumes her bouncing and sticks her tongue out at her brother but your main intention in offering that invitation was to shoot down your mom's offer of help. Making peace quickly will hopefully dissuade her from 'helping' any further. You just wish you could put a kids-only forcefield around your cabin for the week to keep her out of your hair for good. "Besides, all we're doing out there is sleeping, right? Maybe share some spooky ghost stories," you add with a grin, trying to sell your own excitement.

"Perfect! It's settled then!"

"Hmph," grumbles Brayden.

"Maybe Beth wants to bring a friend too?"

Mom!?! Shut up! Shut up!

"I'm sure Emma would love to join you as well! Did you ask your sister if she wanted to go?" she continues, trying to ruin your life. "Emma? Emma! Where'd she go?"

Your sister is already bouncing away from the bus having linked arms with her best-cousin Asha. Thankfully they can't hear your mom, even as she tries to shout over the sound of Uncle Dave revving his weedwacker who is poised to trim back the overgrowth and reclaim the camp proper.

"Only room for three!" you insist, hurriedly stepping away from the bus with your bags before your mom can mess with your plans any further. "C'mon you guys! Let's go!"

You usher Beth and Brayden down an invisible path into the forest and away from the dispersing clump of relatives pulling bags and bins off the bus. Your younger cohorts struggle a bit in the brush, dragging their luggage across the uneven ground, the sleeping bags strapped onto the tops of their suitcases snagging twigs and branches as you go. But, despite their struggles, neither complain about the trek, sharply tugging their luggage when necessary to get over a root or past a bush as you scurry deeper into the forest. Thankfully they aren't fighting yet, although you sense that they are silently competing with each other, trying to outdo the other by being the closest to you on the overgrown trail. Other than that, Beth is beaming. Brayden definitely looks sour about the new arrangements, but he's mostly silent.

The bush feels even thicker than last time you were here and were idly pacing around the camp before stumbling across this nearly invisible trail, but at least this time you know where this path is taking you. After a couple minutes, the commotion you left behind (save for the faint rumble of an angry weedwacker) is completely drowned out by the dense forest. But your tiny cabin is right where you left it in a wide thinned out clearing.

Taking a dramatic pause on the front step, you proudly open the door to the (if you're lucky) 7 by 10 foot box that someone made the unusual effort to build way out here and invite your younger cousins inside. It seems smaller than when you were here last; in fact, you've been in plenty of tents larger than this. You can tell that you wouldn't be able to get your arms all the way stretched above your head laying on the short side. Laid out on the wall opposite the door you certainly could but not with a lot of room to spare, but especially not if both of the perpendicular walls become occupied.

Your cousins, after getting excited when the cabin initially came into view, don't say much once they step inside. The two of them glance around to take in the limited floor space and sparse features of the paltry shack. A window resides on each of the short walls, the door being centered on the long wall and helping to split the cabin in half. A missing wood stove is opposite the door, only its metal chimney still present near the roof. You assume there were small beds in here at one point, maybe even bunk beds, but they've long since been removed. Your uncle did warn everyone that the camp had been stripped of most anything useful and that you'd be roughing it despite the presence of cabins so most people brought either foam or air mattresses with their sleeping bags. Still, having to sleep on the floor is a tad demoralizing, as if doing so in a tent is any better.

Your concern regarding the sibling's impending disappointment appears to be unwarranted, for the moment they drop their stuff their joy bursts forth.

"This is so cool!"

"It's like we have our own house!" muses Beth.

"I'm sleeping next to Justice!" Brayden abruptly declares, instantly ruining their shared excitement.

"Why do ''you'' get to sleep next to Justice?"

"Because ''you'' aren't even supposed to be here!"

"I was invited, same as you!"

"Only cuz his mom made him! You're a leech!"

"You're a jerkface!"

"I know you are, but what am I?"

You haven't been inside the cabin for a minute and they're already fighting. You need to put a stop to this.

"Woah! Just... fucking shut up already." The two siblings blink in surprise, first sharing a glance before turning their attention to you. This bickering must be pretty normal to them. Your mom tends to jump on everything, but their dad must let them go on like this for as long as they want. Or maybe Uncle Mike just lets them sort things out on their own. Maybe you even over reacted given how they're looking at you now, but it's hard for you to stay out of anything you're directly in the middle of.

"Listen you two, I'm going to be real with you; I only let you two come out here because my parents said I couldn't bunk alone. So be thankful I'm sharing this with you, because I have to... but this is still MY cabin. I get to do what I want, when I want, however I want, and I don't want you messing that up. So what I say goes."

"Yeah, you got it?" snarks Brayden to his sister.

"Justice is the boss, not you," Beth notes pointedly, perfectly happy so long as her brother is not the one in charge.

"Boys against girls, so..." Brayden sticks out his tongue.

"Are you listening? I'm the one in charge here. I'm like the king of the goddamn forest, got it? And I'm not going to mess around. Either of you want to test that and I'll throw your sleeping bag in a tree, or worse if you ''really'' piss me off. Don't think I won't. There's no tattling or crying or running for mommy out here. I'm the oldest and I'm calling all the shots, so ju-"

"Like as a punishment?" Brayden asks, seriously.

"Huh?"

"Like if we do something wrong and you give us a punishment like that... can we still stay with you after?"

It's a weird question. Clearly he doesn't trust his ability to not get on people's nerves. Maybe he gets grounded a lot. Or he could already be scheming a way to pull a prank or get his sister kicked out. But surely it shouldn't be so hard for him to not be a pain in the ass for a week.

"Well... sure, I guess. Just don't even go there is what I'm saying." Brayden nods. They both seem content with your somewhat tyrannical terms (more or less) so long as the other sibling won't be getting special treatment.

Beth twists her leg and bats her eyes, trying to look cute, before asking, "So, if you're picking... can ''I'' sleep next to you?"

"Hey! No fair!"

"Yes it is, if Justice picks!"

"How about this? I'll sleep in the middle, okay? That way you can both sleep next to me."

"Yay!" Beth hops forward and hugs your arm as a show of appreciation. "You can help me brush my hair before bed!"

"He's not going to do that," grumbles Brayden, unfurling his sleeping bag.

"Why not? I bet he would. If I ask nicely," she mutters to herself quietly.

"We're in the middle of the forest! We're not doing makeup and painting our nails! Me and Justice aren't little girls. We're roughing it! This is about, like, being manly and stuff!"

"So? Why can't I brush my hair, too?" Beth asks plainly.

"Because that's not what roughing it means! Roughing it is like... it's like wearing mud for sunscreen! It's going commando when you run out of undies!"

"That just means you didn't pack enough," his sister shoots back. Brayden huffs and tries to flatten out the roll from his foam mattress.

The conversation (if you can call it that) lulls for a bit. They start showing off some of the random things they packed when you realize you hardly know anything about these two, despite asking them to stay with you for a week. So you start gently poking into their lives a little, probing about interests and hobbies as you get comfortable in your new accommodations.

"Well I'm, like, 9," responds Beth to one of your questions, acting as if that single-digit number is impressive, "so I'm not into that anymore."

"You're 8, Bethany," says Brayden, quick to shut her down.

"I'm ''turning'' 9! So I'm basically 9 already."

"Yeah, well I'm turning 11."

"Liar! Liar!"

"Shut up!"

"Pants on fire!"

"Nuh-uh! I totally will be."

"Yeah, and you ''will'' be a grown up one day too! Doesn't count!" 

"It's just next year!" Sure, and it's currently summer...

"Well then I'll be 10 next year, so there," Beth counters with a snooty upturned chin, putting one hand on the hip of her girlie pink shorts for added emphasis.

They both seem eager to outdo each other and boast about how old they are but their bickering only showcases their immaturity. Seems a pointless thing to fight over too. Not as if they can change it, but they sure can lie about it, something they appear willing to do to impress their older cousin.

You don't think you were ever this bad with Emma, though it's hard to remember. What did you act like at 8 or 9? That's ancient history. You're "basically" a teenager now. These days you try to just ignore your sister, opting for a broody counter to most of her exuberance, at least when you remember to act cool. Brayden doesn't seem capable of that yet. Then again, you suspect the two of them enjoy harassing each other this much.

The siblings are soon bickering over other trivial things, Brayden bragging about how he officially has a later bedtime and Beth countering that she falls asleep later than him every night. With Beth being "almost" 9 - whatever that actually means - Brayden could have turned 10 a while ago or he could still be 9 until the end of the year. If he is almost 2 years older than Beth then you can't help but feel sorry for him as they are nearly identical in height. Being 4-foot-nothing and "almost 11" would suck since he could easily pass for a 3rd grader, so no surprise if that's a sensitive topic for him. But no one would be blamed for assuming the petite pair of preteens were twins given their similar figures and temperaments.

The one thing you're thankful for is that their bickering isn't too annoying, although Uncle Mike likely disagrees. But in some ways it's amusing hearing them go back and forth ceaselessly from topic to topic, ripping on each other like you aren't even there. Even though you are technically at the center of this, with both of them trying to wow you or win you over to their side (perhaps the threat of getting kicked out at the forefront of their minds) that's secondary to them one-upping each other.

After 20 minutes, before their banter can wear too thin, you all head back to camp to find a late lunch being doled out. It's hardly even apparent when you pop out of the forest as the camp hasn't even been setup yet, but you swoop in to snag some grub before it gets packed away, trying to ditch your bitching bunkmates in as polite a way as you can. The bickering does get harder to ignore the longer it goes on, so a break would be nice. Instead you're given a dose of perspective right away.

Mom snags you a dozen steps from the grub to make sure you're going to be okay looking after Bray and Beth all week. Emma and Asha were following mom and swoop in giggling and whispering, buzzing around you and distracting you from whatever pointless details mom is rambling about. You're guessing they're making fun of you given how they're covering their mouths and leering at you but, with the commotion of lunch happening all around, you have to strain to hear their giggles. They "accidentally" poke you and repeatedly brush past your sides, weaving around you and mom in a tight circle as you get bombarded by instructions, quickly reminding you how fortunate you are to be sharing a cabin with Brayden and Beth.

After you grunt and nod long enough for mom to take a hint, you finally get to eat. Sitting down on a log with a small plate of munchies on your lap, you're given enough peace to take in the camp as a whole. Everything is still very disorganized. Uncle Dave has put his wacker away (although you suspect he's not done with it) while your dad appears to be bossing his siblings around more than managing anything. Other parents are hauling gear in various directions, staging and sorting different things, with some girl whining for all to hear about the accommodations. You're not sure what she's going on about, but a group of moms decide to shove all the younger kids in a single cabin, probably so the adults get more sleep.

One of the last things your mom suggested was that you take this week to get to know all of your cousins better, but it dawns on you that you hardly have anyone to get to know. So many of your cousins are little kids, years younger than you, with practically no one around your age. Nicole has to be the closest, but she's probably boring given that you can spot her reading way over on the other edge of camp instead of eating lunch. The next oldest has to be Jet but he is well into high school and his arm looks to be permanently attached to his girlfriend's waist. Not a lot of prospects. All the same, you'd been hoping to hole yourself up anyway and jerk off in your private cabin all week, but if mom is expecting you to "get to know" the family you never see then she'll likely get nosy if you don't make some kind of paltry effort.

Just as you finish eating, Brayden and Beth bound up to you both smiling brightly.

"Hey, Jay! Are you done? Wanna go for a hike with us? Please?"

Brayden's eager enthusiasm makes you suspicious, but Beth promptly explains it.

"Uncle Dave said we can hike wherever we want... if you come with us!"

Oh, great. The whole camp already thinks you're their babysitter. No doubt Mom has been proudly sharing with everyone how nice it was for you to offer to take care of your younger cousins, which would explain why she had to grill you on it; to make sure you ''actually'' look after them. It's not even that you mind doing it - if that's the cost of keeping your cabin anyhow - but to have that obligation thrust upon you, like you don't even have a say, that's what's so annoying.

Still, it's not like anyone else has even noticed you since you came back to camp for lunch, and it would suck to get dragged into doing chores and setting up the camp. So if the other options are sucking up to highschoolers or running around with literal children, you may as well take a hike.


[[Offline/Go hiking with Beth and Brayden|Go hiking with Beth and Brayden]]<br>
[[Offline/Hang around camp and play with your other cousins|Hang around camp and play with your other cousins]]


[[Category:Offline]]
[[Category:Offline/B&B]]
[[Category:Offline/B&B/Day 1]]