Chapter 5 Counselor's Lounge

It’s Kai. His honey-blonde hair has a slight wave, making it move softly with his chuckle. His eyes crinkle kindly as he looks down at me.

“You’re okay, I was just teasing ya.”

He’s even taller close up, making my height end at his collarbones. I don’t know what to say. I’m shocked by how effortlessly hot he looks, even in this stupid counselor uniform. I’m at such a loss for words. I know every second that passes, I am ruining any chance I have with him. I’ll now be labeled the weird girl. But like the savior I needed so desperately, Beth rescues me.

“Hey, I’m Beth, this is Anna, you’re a counselor, right?”

He looks away from me as she stands next to me. I make a mental reminder to give her extra snacks.

“Yes, I’m Kai. Have you guys met your assigned counselors yet?”

We shake our heads.

“Ok, follow me real quick, and I’ll find it.” He looks back at me, gesturing his hand to follow him as he turns around and walks away from the cafeteria.

Beth gives me a look while I smile at her, trying to convey my gratitude without him hearing. He leads us down a hallway with pictures and achievements hung on the off-white walls. I fix my gaze on his back, appreciating how the shirt makes his body look even more attractive. It clings to his upper back and shoulders, then rests on his upper arms. His arms aren’t very muscular compared to how his back looks in the shirt, but I don’t mind the slender muscular look.

He turns down another hall that has rooms on either side. I can see a few people in some of the rooms, while the others are empty. He takes us to an area that I can tell was made for the counselors. There is a bright garland with rainbows and clouds hanging from the ceiling on either side of the hallway. There are a few random balls on the floor, pushed to the sides of the hallway.

The hallway ends with a large archway leading into another room, decorated similarly. We follow him inside immediately, feeling like we’re in a whole new world.

There is a large desk next to the dry-erase board on the wall, with information written across its entirety. A bulletin board sits on the wall next to it, also filled with far too many papers. The middle of the room is filled with beanbags and camping chairs, sitting about randomly. The room is lit by a few lamps scattered in various corners. There are lockers on the back wall with what I assume are the counselors' names on them. A mini fridge next to the lockers, with a box of assorted snacks on top, makes the room look more like a hangout spot than an office. Beth and I stop after taking a few steps into the room.

“What is this place?” I ask, taking in everything.

Beth walks further into the room, already catching sight of the mini fridge and snacks. He sits at the large desk, opening one of the drawers.

“We call it the counselor's lounge. It’s just a place for us to take our breaks, have extra food, and store our extra stuff.”

I move to stand closer to the desk he’s still digging through. I don’t think he’s allowed to do that, but who am I to care?

“Are we allowed in here?”

He shrugs, “Don’t really know, but what Tim doesn’t know won't hurt him.” He glances at me with a mischievous smile on his smooth face. I smirk back at him, already liking how he thinks.

Our attention is pulled away by the sound of a rustling bag from the other side of the room. Beth is grabbing a bag of chips in one hand while the other holds an open bag of popcorn. “You don’t mind, right?”

I look back at Kai, and he looks amused, waving her off with a knock yourself out. He continues digging in the drawer again, and I’m about to offer some help when he sits up, setting a packet of papers on the desk with a thud. 

“Here it is!”

Beth joins us at the desk. He starts opening the packet, stopping on the third page.

“What cabin are you in?” He looks at me through his light eyelashes.

“Cabin three.”

He goes down what looks to be a table on the paper, looking for cabin three.

“Alright, your counselors are Emma, Ollie, Ellie, and the best yet, me.” He says smugly, leaning back in the chair, making it creak painfully.

Beth and I share a look at this news, making this summer start to sound much more exciting.

“That’s great, at least we know we like one of our counselors.” Beth nudges me with her shoulder. My cheeks redden slightly, but he doesn’t seem to notice, instead putting the papers back in the drawer.

“We’ll be in the cabin behind yours also.”

“That’s convenient.” She puts another piece of popcorn in her mouth, giving him an insinuating look.

He chuckles at her while getting up from the chair, standing to his full height.

“How old are you?” She asks before he can do anything else.

“I’m nineteen, the other counselors in my group are twenty-one.”

Okay, so not too unreasonably old, it’s only two years.

“Why don’t we head back to the cabins. You guys do have a curfew now.”

“What? What is our curfew?” I ask, confused. I don’t remember this ever being told to us.

“10:30, you have to be in your cabins, 9:30, you have to be on the campgrounds. But I won’t rat you out as long as I’m invited.” He definitely knows what he just said and did that on purpose.

He walks to the hall, making us follow behind him before I get the chance to respond. Butterflies flutter in my stomach as I replay this whole interaction in my head. We walk in silence until we reach the cafeteria, where the loud talking assaults my ears.

He stops and turns to us, “I’ll see you guys tomorrow morning.”

I smile at him in return, “Thanks for helping us.”

“Anything for a pretty lady.”

I know my face is far redder from his compliment.

Beth is looking at me the whole time we walk to the cabin, but I haven’t even made eye contact, unable to wipe the smile off my face. She grabs my arm, turning me towards her. She looks around us to ensure no ears are listening.

“Can we talk about that?” She all but squeals, making my smile widen.