My Crazy Family Camping trip

Sara 1327 July 16, 2046

“Are we there yet?” Sora grones

“Halfway there,” uncle Sam responds from the driver's seat. “We’ll be there before noon, have lunch at the car and then hike up to the campsite.”

“How far of a hike is it?” mom asks.

“Oh no, more than 2 miles er 3 kilometers, I should say,” Uncle Sam replied. Summer vacation was almost over, and we were going to spend the last few days of it in the woods. Originally I was going to go stargazing with the rest of the astronomy club, but a nearby typhoon was predicted to cause heavy clouds, so we wouldn’t be able to see it from the city. Luckily uncle sam had been walking by when I was telling Sora and Tobias-kun about it and insisted both families should go. Mom and dad agreed so they could get out of the house and try camping like they’d always wanted to. I was excited to go, but the ride was a bit cramped. Uncle Sam had rented a full-sized van to fit us all, but we were still shoulder to shoulder. Uncle Sam was driving while dad took the passenger seat, Yukki was between mom and aunty Serana in the middle row, and I was in between Sora and Tobias-kun in the back. Even though it was a bit cramped, I didn’t mind so much. I was weirdly excited to be pressed against Tobias-kun the whole time. If this was how it started, I was ready for four days at Chichibu-Tama-Kai National Park; I thought as I drifted off to sleep.

“Wake up,” a voice calls. “Hey Sara, wake up.”

“Huh,” I say, opening my eyes. “Oh, did I fall asleep?” I ask

“Yeah, took a nap right on my shoulder,” Tobias-kun says

“WHAT?!” I cry. I fell asleep on his shoulder? How long? Was I a bother? Did I say anything in my sleep? My mind is in such a rush that I didn’t even notice him hop out of the car until Sora pushes me. I also hop out and stretch a bit, looking around. The trees and mountains create a sense of serenity, and I take a moment to take it all in.

Uncle Sam digs through the bags for a bit before pulling out the Bentos I prepared with mom and Aunt Serena. “Alright, let’s eat and then head up the mountain,” he says, heading to a picnic area. As we sit and have lunch, Tobias-kun complimented my rice balls even though it was my first time making them. Once we have lunch Uncle Sam begins unpacking all the camping equipment. He hands each of the boys a tent while Mom and aunty Serana carry extra bags and I carry the food bag. Uncle Sam leads the way with Yukki by his side, setting the pace while Dad stayed in the back, ensuring nobody was left behind. We hike for a good while, and halfway through, I’d already started panting. I look behind me, and Tobias-kun and Sora are both struggling though neither will admit it. I look up and see that Uncle Sam is now carrying Yukkie, and he didn’t even seem to be tired. We hike a while longer before uncle Sam stops and sits on a log. “Here it is, everyone. Take a few minutes to rest before we set up camp.” he declares; as everyone collapses to their knees, he asks if it was really that bad.

Once we’re all finished resting, uncle Sam begins to divvy up tasks. First, he wants all the tents set up then the men will gather firewood while the women begin making dinner. Once his and dad’s tent was pitched, he heads over to inspect the rest.

“Sora, watch out for that pole. It isn’t secured properly.”

“Humm, which one?” he asks

“The one that’s about to come loose and hit you in the face.”I look over and see Sora leaning over the poles.

“Which one none of them a-” WHAP, a pole comes loose and swings up, hitting him across the face, causing him to fall onto his back. “OW OW OW OW OW OW,” he cries, holding his eye.

“Are you ok?” I ask, running over to him.

“Hang on, let me see it,” Uncle Sam says, taking his hand from his eye. Uncle Sam does a quick check before saying Sora’s fine. “Might have a black eye, but you’ll live,” he says before going back to the tent and fixing the pole that came loose. “And that’s why I’m checking tents. As funny as it would be to see one of you struggle to fix it in the middle of the night, it’s easier just to do it now.”

Tobias 1623 July 16, 2046

Once my father is satisfied with the tents, he gathers up everyone. “Ok, now we’re ready to get dinner started. Ladies start on the food prep while Asato-san and Sora-san clean out the fire pit, and Tobias and I go collect firewood.”

“Oh-oh, daddy, I wanna help get firewood too!” Yukie says, jumping excitedly.

“Hmmm, I don’t know. Does mommy think they’ll be able to make the food without you?” he says, looking at mother.

“We’ll be fine dear, let her wander around the woods with you.” Mother says

“Ok then, let’s go.” My father says as he turns and waves for me and Yukkie to follow. We head down a small trail as he explains what we’re looking for. “Now, Yukki, I want you to look for tinder, little twigs no bigger than your fingers. Tobias, you find kindling, no thicker than your finger and about as long as your forearm; and I’ll gather the fuel, got it?”

“Yes,” we both say

“Make sure to remain in earshot. Oh, and don’t pull live branches off of trees. It hurts them, and it doesn’t burn as well. Pick up the dead stuff from the ground.”

“Ok,” we both say as we split up. Yukki and I find a fallen tree and begin to break off branches and make a decent pile. As she’s collecting sticks and making them into a neat pile Yukkie taps my shoulder. I look over at her, and she’s holding a snake no longer than my arm. “Look what I found,” she says proudly.

“Oh, that’s cool,” I say

“You think daddy would like to see?” she asks

“Maybe,” I say. After 10 mins or so, my father comes by with a small tree dragging behind him. “That’s a good enough pile. Start moving it to the campsite.”

“Okay,” I say. My father looks over me at Yukki.

“What’ve you got there, sweetie?” He asks

“I found a snake look,” she says, presenting the snake to us. I hear my father’s tree slam into the ground, followed immediately by the sound of rushing air. I barely have time to turn and look before I’m jerked by my color and pulled up into the air. “GRAB ONTO THE BRANCH!” my father shouts, and I reach up, clamoring for the limb above my head. Once I have a hold of it, my father lets me go. “PUT THE SNAKE DOWN YUKKI!” my father yells.

“But daddy, you’re not looking at it,” Yukkie says

“I’M NOT GOING TO, PUT IT DOWN,” he yells again

“No, you have to look,” she says, walking just below us and hoisting the snake upwards.

“NOOOOOOOOO!” My father yells as he swings his legs up and locks his legs around it. “SERENA!” my father begins to holler. “SERENA, COME CONTROL YOUR DAUGHTER” he yells as Yukkie begins to jump to try and show the snake to dad. A minute later, mom comes stomping through the woods and looks at dad and me in the tree, a bit confused. “What is it, Hanabe?” she asks.

“Tell your daughter to put the snake down,” he calls. She takes the snake from Yukki and examines it.

“It’s just a little rat snake,” she says

“Don’t care, get rid of it,” my father orders. My mother takes a few steps before releasing the snake.

“There it’s gone. Now will you come down from that tree?” she asks. I look over to my father and see he’s still clinging to the tree as tightly as ever.

“Dad, are you scared of snakes?” I ask

“I’m not scared, I just…. Don’t like them and want them to stay as far away as possible from me.”

“So you’re scared?” I reply

“You must be too; you’re still up here after all,” he shoots back

“I’m just a bit unsure as to how I should come down is all,” I say

“Well, you got yourself up here; you should be able to get back down.”

“Actually, you got me up here,” I say. He looks blankly for a moment before speaking again.

“Fair enough,” he says, unwrapping his legs from the tree. And jumping down before helping me down. As we gather up the firewood, my father comments on how that branch is an excellent place to bear-proof our food. “Wait, there are bears here?”

“Yeah, Asian black bears,” he replies calmly

“What if one of them shows up?” I ask

“Then I’ll fight it,” he says assuredly

“Not the least bit frightened of a bear but jumped into a tree to avoid a 30 cm long snake,” I mutter as we bring the wood to the campsite. My father starters the fire as the sun sets, and we enjoy our curry and smores. A few ghost stories are told before Sora, and I head off to our tent.

Sora 0738 July 17, 2046

I woke up to a dull ache in my left eye and found I could only open it halfway. The tent pole had got me good, and it was not gonna be fun dealing with it the rest of the camping trip. After a quick breakfast, Uncle Sam hurries us to the river, saying, “Come on, we’re having fish for dinner tonight, and if we don’t catch anything, then we’re out of luck” We get there, and Uncle Sam gives all of us a quick rundown on casting. Aunt Serena prefers to use her hands for fishing and goes into the stream about knee-deep. “Aren’t you concerned about catching a cold?” mom asks her.

“How would I catch a cold ?” she asked, a bit confused

“Well, even if it’s hot out, the stream is still quite cold.”

“The water is quite nice; you should join me, sis.” Aunt Serena says

“I think I’ll pass.” mom replies.

Sara, Tobias, and I cast our lines easily enough and wait for bites. Mom and dad also get their lines out in short order. The only one having trouble is Yukki. Uncle Sam keeps trying to cast the line for her, but she insists on doing it herself. She keeps on getting her hook caught on tree branches and such, but she eventually lets him cast it for her when she manages to hook my cheek. “Why am I the only one getting hurt out here?” I ask once dad gets the hook out from my cheek.

“Because it’s funny,” Tobias says, laughing to himself.

“Oh yeah, how’s this for fun?” I say as I push him into the river, He pulls me in as well, and we splash around a bit before mom makes us get out. All in all, we caught enough fish and almost had leftovers before Uncle Sam hounded everyone to eat more so we wouldn’t leave food around the campsite. Tobias and I went to our tent after another round of ghost stories, and as we settle in, I inspect my new wound.

“Ugh, I hope this doesn’t leave a scar,” I groan.

“Why are you trying to look pretty for some girl?” Tobias jokes.

“How did you know?” I ask sternly. He looks at me blankly for a moment before reacting.

“Wait….you are?” he says, surprised.

“Uhhhh…. No.” I say as confidently as I can

“Oh man, you totally are. Who is it?” he pries. “Come on, you gotta tell me.”

“No,” I say.

“Ahh, come on. Do you think I would hide something like this from you? I promise I won’t tell Sara.”

“You better not. I can’t imagine what she’d do if I started dating one of her friends.”

“So it’s one of Sara’s friends?” he says smugly. NOOOOO, WHY DID I SAY THAT? I think in a panic.

“So let’s see, I’m guessing it’s either someone in our class or the astronomy club. I’m leaning more towards astronomy club because you initially expressed interest in going with Sara to the comet viewing before it was canceled, but now you don’t seem interested at all,” he says

“Your powers of deduction are as sharp as ever,” I say. “I guess there’s no hiding it.”

“It’s elementary dear Watson. Why it’s quite obvious that the one you have a crush on is.”

“Paul-san” “Suki-san,” we both say at the same time. Tobias pauses for a moment before giving me a confused stare. “Who’s Suki-san?” he asks. I flop down onto my sleeping bag and begin to roll. “I DIDN’T HAVE TO TELL YOU AFTER ALL,” I say, rolling around.

“Wait, do you mean Iori Suki from our class?” he asks.

“....Yes,” I say meekly before burying my face into my pillow

“She’s in the astronomy club?”

“Yeah, I heard Sara talking with her about it one night,” I say as I sit up. “Well, if you’re gonna tease me about it, then just go ahead and get it over with.”

“Nah, I’m not gonna tease you about this. I’m still kinda in shock. Out of the three of us, I always figured you’d be the last to have a crush.”

“Who’d you figure would be the first?” I ask

“Well, Sara, obviously. She’s the most mature of us, so it makes sense that she’d be the first to get to that point. Then I’d find somebody, and you’d find someone else in order not to be left behind. Either that or we would both fall for the same girl and fight over her till she chooses some other guy, and then we’d make up and laugh about how stupid we’d been acting.” he says assuredly.

“What makes you so sure we’d make up after she did that?” I ask

“Well, beating up the guy sounds like a great bonding activity for us,” he says. We both laugh, and we keep talking through the night before eventually falling asleep.