There was a lull in the rain. I took the opportunity to drag Tony away from the party. We went back to the truck. I untied the tarp and peeled it back. I grabbed my bag. Tony took one of his suitcases. He followed as I led the way to the tent. Tony put his suitcase on a patch of dry ground under my tarp. I unzipped the door of the tent and knelt just outside as I rearranged things to try to make some more room for us. I moved Lucy thermarest and mine a little further apart. Our two sleeping bags were zipped together to make one. I shoved these onto the far thermarest and asked Tony for his sleeping bag. He got fished it out of his suitcase and passed it over. He sat back down on the suitcase. I lay his bag out on Lucy's thermarest and arranged a couple of pillows for us.
"This tarp is great," said Tony. "Sure gives you a lot more space. Do you ever just sleep outside of the tent under the tarp?"
I swiveled around and sat inside the tent. "No," I said. I started taking off my boots.
"Why not?"
"It's warmer in the tent. And drier. And there are no bugs. That's the main reason, I guess. No mosquitoes. And you're less likely to get eaten by a bear." I scooted backwards into the tent. "Coming in?"
Tony stayed sitting on the suitcase. He ran his hand over his wet hair and wiped it on his jeans.
"I was thinking I might go back to the party," he said.
"Oh, yeah," I said. "Sure. Go ahead." I was sitting crosslegged just inside the tent. I rummaged around in one of the side pockets and found a flashlight. "Here take this. It'll help you find the tent again."
"Thanks," said Tony. "Why don't you come with me? Maybe your friend Lucy will show up."
"Thanks, but I think I'll just get an early night," I said. "I'm sure I'll see her tomorrow."
"All right," he said. "I promise I won't stay up to late." He turned the flashlight on and headed back towards the party.
The truth was that I wasn't sure I wanted to see Lucy tonight - at least not any more. On the drive up I had a mental image in my head of arriving at camp. She'd come running up, a smoke in one hand, and a beer in the other. She'd throw her arms around me and ask me about my hand. We'd talk and laugh and then we'd sneak off to my tent together. This same tent that I was now in alone.
It was probably no big deal but the fact that I couldn't find her weirded me out. I was half worried something bad had happened to her and half worried that she'd hooked up with somebody else. And maybe it was cowardice but I didn't want to be the one to find either of those things out. Plus, I knew that if she did turn up now, even if she had just been off talking to somebody and everything was all kosher and innocent, I'd still act like a basket case. And that would be fine if it was just the two of us alone, but in the middle of the party I'd feel like an idiot.
And besides, if she did come back to the party, somebody would tell her I was here and she'd know where to find me.
Why the Hell did I offer to let Tony sleep here? What if she does show up tonight? Really, it's far more likely she'd sleep in her own sleeping bag than she'd bunk down with a friend. I am such an idiot.
I lay in my sleeping bag for about an hour, trying not to think about where Lucy might be and trying to figure out what I'd do if both Tony and Lucy showed up tonight. I kept telling myself I was being an idiot and she was probably back at the party right now having a good time and I was lying here like a moody idiot.
I realised I might as well get up and check. I wasn't getting any sleep anyway and, after all, it was a party night. If she was there, then that might be weird. If she wasn't there, well, that might be weird too. But it was definitely weird that I was lying in my tent wide awake when there was a party going on.
He made a lot of sense sitting in his tent wondering about Lucy's whereabouts ~ perhaps he should have stayed there. Now I'm a bit afraid that he won't find her at the party and then his worst fears will come true as she is obviously still in the other tent reading 'Jitterbug Perfume' (excellent choice of book to read I might add. Did you know that I have an autographed copy of his other book, 'Skinny Legs and All' where he wrote that my nephew was a gentleman and a schlor?((sic)) YF)