14

                                    

                                          
The sun hung low in the sky as Steve and I finally finished washing the last of the dishes. My fingers were wrinkled from the soapy water, and I was sure I'd never get the smell of dish detergent out of my hands. But for some reason, I felt oddly at ease. The laughter we'd shared earlier had lightened the mood between us, and the tension that usually crackled in the air when we were together had all but dissipated.
"Well, that's the last of them," Steve said, drying his hands on a dish towel. "Guess we're free to go."
"Yeah, free to roam around an empty camp," I replied with a smirk, tossing my towel onto the counter. "Everyone else is off having fun while we're stuck here."
Steve shrugged, a small grin playing on his lips. "Could be worse. We could still be doing dishes."
I chuckled, leaning against the counter. "True. At least we're done with that."
The campgrounds were eerily quiet, with most of the campers and staff off on some excursion that we'd been conveniently excluded from. It was just us and a few other unlucky souls who had also been expelled from today's activities for various infractions. The silence was almost peaceful, in a way—no shouting, no instructions being barked at us, just the sound of the wind rustling through the trees and the distant chirping of birds.
Steve glanced out the window, then turned to me with a mischievous glint in his eye. "Wanna go for a walk? Might as well do something instead of just sitting around."
I hesitated for a moment, but then nodded. The idea of wandering around the camp sounded better than just staying cooped up in the cabin. And maybe, just maybe, it wouldn't be so bad to spend a little more time with Steve, especially now that we weren't at each other's throats.
"Sure," I said, grabbing my jacket from the back of a chair. "Let's go."
We stepped out of the kitchen and into the fading afternoon light. The campgrounds were bathed in a warm, golden glow, and the air was crisp with the scent of pine and earth. It was actually kind of beautiful, in a way that I hadn't really noticed before.
Steve and I walked in silence for a while, following the winding paths that cut through the trees. The quiet between us was surprisingly comfortable, and I found myself relaxing more with each step. 
"So," I finally said, breaking the silence. "What's your story, Steve? I mean, we've been at the same school forever, but I don't really know anything about you."
Steve glanced at me, surprised by the question, but then shrugged. "Not much to tell. I'm just your average guy, I guess."
I raised an eyebrow, not buying his casual response. "Come on, there's got to be more to it than that. What about your family? Friends?"
Steve shoved his hands into his pockets, his expression growing a little more serious. "My family's... complicated. My mom works a lot, and my dad's not really around. It's mostly just me and my little sister."
I hadn't expected that. Steve always seemed so confident, so sure of himself, like he didn't have a care in the world. But hearing him talk about his family, I realized that there was a lot more going on beneath the surface.
"I didn't know you had a sister," I said quietly, trying to picture Steve as an older brother. "What's she like?"
A small, genuine smile tugged at Steve's lips. "She's great. Annoying as hell sometimes, but she's tough. She's only twelve, but she's already got more fight in her than most people I know."
I couldn't help but smile at that. There was something in the way he talked about his sister that made me see him in a different light—like maybe, just maybe, there was more to Steve than the obnoxious jerk I'd always thought he was.