Dan and Tommy's Story Volume 1: Camp Lady Of The Lake

Graduation and Dreams

Looking down at the sidewalk below their feet, Tommy mumbled "Man, it's almost over." He looked up to Dan with a look of sad realization.

Graduation was only a week away. It was to be their last summer of freedom and innocence. Well, the teenage version of innocence anyway. They both enjoyed their share of mischievous innocence, parties in the woods, trying to hit home runs with the girls but always striking out for some reason or another, sneaking into abandoned houses looking for signs of ghosts... typical teenage boy stuff.

"I know dude! There are only a few months before we're both off to college." Dan responded in the most serious tone he could muster. "College girls, dorm parties..."

"Adulting!" Tommy interrupted. "Besides, I don't even know if I'm gonna go to college."

Being the more adventurous of the pair, Dan turned to his long-time partner in crime and best friend, "We gotta blow this summer out, my friend! We're eighteen and we only have a couple of months left of freedom!"

Seeing a little twinkle of light starting to form in his best friend's eyes. Dan continued. "We can't go off to college virgins! We can't start our adulthood without a bang! Do you want to look back in twenty years, on this summer, the LAST summer of fun, and think we shoulda done more?"

"No." Tommy answered in an obligatory kind of way.

Tommy was always the quiet one of the dynamic duo. A shy kid who was adored by his teachers, Tommy always worried about the what-ifs, what if his parents found out, what if he did poorly on a test or what if it hurts.

"What?" Dan prodded.

"No." Tommy responded a little louder with the corners of his mouth starting to turn up into a smile.

"Come on man, I can't hear you bro!" Dan leaned quickly to his left, bumping Tommy trying to stir him up.

"Do you want to let this summer pass without making it the best fucking summer of our lives?" standing to face Tommy towards the end of his question.

"NOO!" Tommy shouted!

Standing facing each other, Dan agreed "Fuckin A right, no!"

At that, the school bell that told them they had five minutes to make it to their respective first periods or suffer yet more tardies, sounded.

"See ya at lunch bro!" Tommy smiled through his word and they were off to face the day.

Dan, the older of the two turned eighteen back in December. The center forward of the soccer, Dan was thin, chiseled, and strong under his shaggy brown hair. He was the instigator that seemed to always inspire Tommy to step out of his comfort zone and take the chance.

Tommy on the other hand just turned eighteen a couple of weeks ago and was not into sports. Well, not organized sports. He enjoyed a game of football or baseball in the park, however, he didn't have the same competitive gusto as his closest friend.

"Damn clock is barely moving today." Tommy thought to himself as he paid more attention to the clock that Mr. Findley trying to teach an algebra lesson. There was an entire half hour left before lunch and he could feel the growl building in his stomach.

Eventually, the lunch bell rang and for Tommy, it was a mad dash to the lunch line where he found Dan a few places in.

"Come on bro. I saved you a spot in line." Dan said with enough volume in his voice to let the others before and after him know that Tommy was taking cuts.

For the first several minutes at the lunch table, it resembled a military mess hall. Heads down, hands feverishly filled faced with tasteless food and very little talking. Tommy's current priority was sustenance, not gossip.