THE IDIOT'S LANTERN, TAG: OPEN (OR AIMI)

[stephen ryker]

Stephen knew that he should have read his contract more carefully. If he had, he would have seen, in tiny, tiny font, at the bottom of the page, that before he could get out for the summer, he had to accompany the students camping. Camping? Stephen didn’t do camping. He didn’t do sleeping in a tent, he didn’t do cooking over a campfire, and he certainly didn’t do peeing in a bush. In fact, Stephen wasn’t sure there was a single thing about camping that he did do. After all, camping meant that he had no access to technology for the however many weeks they would be gone. Sure, he could bring a computer and probably set up some kind of wireless router, even in the middle of the woods, but the problem was electricity. Stephen may have been a technological genius, but even he couldn’t generate electricity out of nothing. He really was a bit pissed about the situation, but as Ms. McNeil reminded him, it was part of his contract. There was nothing Stephen could do about it. Well, it looked like a-camping he would go.

And what was he supposed to do in terms of supervision anyway? It wasn’t like he knew how to handle children. Why couldn’t the other teachers at Westminster Academy who actually worked with the kids go with them? Stephen worked for the technology department! Sure, he fixed laptops and such, but that was the extent of his job. But no, apparently, the teachers had some kind of conference or something at the same time, so Stephen was stuck with the job. And he didn’t even get a pay raise! Life was so unfair sometimes.

With a sigh, Stephen looked at the tangle of tarp and sticks that he had been given. At least he hadn’t had to go out and buy new camping equipment. Unfortunately for him, Stephen had absolutely no idea how to put the tent together. He fumbled around in his pack for the instructions which had been given to him, but he could not make heads or tails of it. For such a smart guy, Stephen really had no idea how to survive in the wild. Surviving in the elements was definitely not his element. He was much better behind a computer, or even behind a lecture podium. But camping? Epic fail on his part. If only Molly could see him now, she’d be laughing her ass off over his predicament. Luckily for Stephen, Molly wasn’t here and would not be here; he had no desire to make a fool of himself in front of her.

Right. Instructions. Stephen looked down at the wrinkled piece of paper, hoping that he did not look as stupid as he felt. Take the long rigid pole and drive it into the ground, securing it so that it does not fall over. Okay. Well, that didn’t look so bad. Stephen looked through the tarps and sticks and found one long, rigid pole. It looked right, or so he hoped. But how to drive it into the ground? Scanning the area, Stephen saw a large rock that looked like it could help him drive it into the ground. He grabbed the rock and pounded on the stick. It didn’t go down any further. Then how was he supposed to do it?

He chanced a glance the other students, who seemed to be doing just fine? Had they all taken a, “How to Build a Tent,” class before coming here? Stephen wouldn’t have been surprised. Fine. He’d just copy them. Holding on tightly to the rock, he began bashing it into the pole. Unfortunately for him, he also managed to bash his finger and ended up cursing in pain, dropping the rock and sucking the finger, hoping that it would relieve the pain a little bit.

[aimi grace]

Camping.

Aimi shuddered at the thought. She wasn’t keen on being out in the wilderness. She could definitely appreciate the awe and wander Mother Nature had to offer, but she would much rather be indoors. She wasn’t at all pining about thrusting herself into some strenuous extracurricular activities in the backwoods of Scotland though she didn’t have much of a choice since it was a school trip.

It came a surprise to her when the Headmistress announced that the whole Westminster body would be taking a class trip to Scotland—certainly, it hadn’t been the first, but large events like those were usually announced far earlier in the school semester. Aimi shook off her initial doubts about it; She shouldn’t even be questioning something that could be good for her. It was a rare occasion for her to have some time for herself, a quiet moment without having to worry about whether she had made enough lunch for everyone on her floor, or if she had stocked the common kitchen with enough ingredients for the following night’s dinner. She was told she had no prior responsibilities with cooking for her roommates, but she rather enjoyed making food for her friends and did not mind so much when it came to strangers. Perhaps, a flaw she needed to remedy.

With a sigh, Aimi took a deep breath, taking in the fresh country air. She closed her eyes for a moment, focusing her senses to the sounds of the wind combing through leaves, the distant echoes of nameless birds, and the particular doting beat of her heart against her ear. Maybe, the trip wouldn’t be as overbearing as she thought it would be.

She tightened her hold on her backpack and continued down the slightly paved path. She took the necessary precautions when going a long a trail by herself. She didn’t think she would get lost as long as she stayed on the path. Aimi glanced at her watch; If she continued for another half hour she should reach one of the camp sites she had seen on the map then a nearby creek.

“Hmm, should be around here…” She mused out loud, looking about the area then fishing out for the map she had stored inside one of her jean pocket. Though she wasn’t at all too keen on camping, she did, enjoy it at times, though not necessarily when she was lost. Maybe, she should have asked one of her friends to join her for an impromptu adventure.

She gleaned over at the map one more time before walking to the next clearing, ignoring the snide voice in her head.

[stephen ryker]

Stephen hated this. This was not fair. Camping! Why camping?! And now, in addition to the amount of suffering his dignity was being dragged through from needing to sleep in a tent and live on the wilderness for a few days, he couldn’t even put up said tent properly without damaging his fingers. It still hurt, reminding him that pounding his fingers with rocks wasn’t the best idea, but what else was he supposed to do? Frack. The other students in the clearing seemed to be doing just fine, something that Stephen simply did not understand. Now, how was he going to put his tent up? He didn’t think he knew any of the students in this clearing, anyway. Granted, he didn’t know very many students, other than Aimi and…that was really about it, to be honest. Most of the students whose laptops he fixed didn’t take the time to try and get to know him, which Stephen was just fine with. He wouldn’t even have gotten to know Aimi if it hadn’t been for their fateful meeting that night in the computer lab six months ago. Six months ago? It seemed so long ago, to be honest. Stephen couldn’t believe that he’d been in London for a year already.

And speaking of the devil. Aimi had appeared in the clearing, seemingly looking lost. Stephen took a quick look at a piece of paper in his backpack, which detailed the students whom he was responsible for. Yep. Aimi Grace was on the list. He abandoned his futile attempts to put up a decent tent and walked over to Aimi. “You’re in the right place,” he said by way of greeting, still rubbing his bashed thumb lightly with his other fingers, “seeing that you’re in my group and this seems to have been where everyone has decided to set up camp.” Stephen suddenly realized how true that was; out of everyone in the group, it seemed like he and Aimi were the only two people who hadn’t set up a tent yet, and Stephen was sure that she would have no problems with it, like the rest of her class. Great. So it looked like Stephen would be left as the only person who couldn’t put up a tent properly. He had half a mind to complain to someone about the unfairness of needing to go on this trip in the first place.

Then again, who could he complain to? The head honcho – Ms. McNeil – had been the one who had reminded him what he had signed when he had accepted the contract to work at the school six months ago. Complaining to anyone else would be no use, Stephen knew. So he’d just have to grit his teeth and do it. “So, you’ll just go put up your tent, yeah?” he tried to ask nonchalantly. “I need to finish up mine myself.” He gestured helplessly to his tangle of tarps and sticks. Part of Stephen really wanted Aimi to realize that he was having difficulty with his own tent and offer to help, and part of him wanted her to not notice. It would really embarrassing if the other students found out that Stephen had absolutely no idea what he was supposed to be doing.