Sunshine Days - Chapter 33
Avery still sat in the same place Vince had left him an hour before. The sun was starting to go down but Avery didn't have any intention of moving from his place. He sniffled and wiped his nose with his wrist, leaving a trail of mucus over his fur. He didn't care.
He hated to admit that when Vince shouted him down and threatened to turn him in if he didn't delete the photos, that he had felt intimidated and very frightened by him. He hated being humiliated. He also hated admitting defeat. Avery wasn't just belittled in front of his little brother but in front of David and Jonathan as well.
He could still vividly picture the look on David's face. There had been a look of initial surprise and fear when Vince started handling him roughly but then... He looked angry. It was the look his father sometimes gave him after minor fuck ups. Major fuck ups resulted in fury and belt whippings. But still, the look of anger and disappointment was something he could recognize.
If David was, Avery didn't blame him. He had been a completely shitty person to him the past few years. After being his first and only friend, David had treated him with something he rarely got. And he traded that love and affection for respect. He went around spreading rumors, surrounding himself with powerful characters like Henry. He basically sold David out and ruined his life. And for what? To please his parents? To garner new friends who could all share a common enemy?
He didn't think it could happen but he felt several years of guilt all come rushing back.
Beating up Jonathan was probably his lowest point so far. He could understand if David completely gave up on him from that point. He knew there was no chance that David would ever take him back. Although he couldn't stand that little dweeb of a tabby cat, he still didn't deserve the beating he got.
The sun was setting over the horizon, casting an orange glow over the mountains in the distance. The sky overhead was growing a darker shade of purple and the stars were making their first appearance for the evening. Avery looked up at them and sighed.
Remorse wasn't an unfamiliar acquaintance. There were plenty of times where he looked back and regretted the things he'd said and done. More often they were to do with how he tried to ruin David's life. He tried reasoning with himself that he was doing the right thing. He had felt so righteous when he handed over all that information to Pastor Durham. But the sweet fruit of victory had a rotten core. He'd roughed Jonathan up and tried to ruin his life too. He tried to tell himself it was the wrong thing done for the right reasons but he was doubting himself. It just didn't feel right.
He wished there was some way he could win back David's affections but he knew that the chance for that was long gone. Every choice he'd made since they'd been caught had only served to dig the hole deeper for himself. If there was a chance to be redeemed, it was microscopic.
A plan started to take form in his mind, shaping slowly and branching possibilities outward. He supposed he could go back to Pastor Durham and tell him that he had been mistaken about the information he'd been given. Maybe he'd say that Jonathan lied to him about when and where it would be held. It was a long shot but at least it was something.
Deep down, he knew that wouldn't be enough to redeem himself but he felt like he needed to do something at least. Though if he was going to do something, he didn't have a whole lot of time. Durham had probably already taken some kind of action by now. Or soon. The Shindig was only a few short hours away if it was going to happen. It wasn't like he knew what Durham fully had in mind only that he was going to put and end to it.
But again, at least it was something.
As he got up from the ground and brushed himself off, a small voice came up in his mind and said, 'This isn't what God would want, is it?'
Of course it wasn't. He knew this. But everything that he'd done so far by the Lord's will had ended with people being hurt. Was that something God really wanted?
Sure, it's a sin and a crime against nature to be gay and all. But seeing the fear and pain in Jonathan's eyes right before Henry clocked him square in the head? Knowing the years of bullying and teasing David went through at school? Back then, he felt very sure of himself and he allowed himself to get carried away with his religious zeal. Back then, the ends had justified the means.
He stood there, looking out into the woods for a while, contemplating his past actions. He couldn't dwell on them forever. If he wanted to start making good, there was never a good enough time to start than now. What was the other thing that God had said? To love thy neighbor as thyself? Treat others the way you want to be treated? That "Sinners" were people too?
Something like that.
Avery made his way back across camp. The orange glow of the lamps guided his way towards Pastor Durham's office as the light continued to drain from the sky above, going from purple to black.
He breathed in deep and let it out in a sigh. He felt strangely lighter, like a weight had been lifted from him. Later in life, he would remember that as the moment he'd finally let go of all the hate and negativity he'd kept bottled up inside him.
He opened the door and let himself inside, keeping a paw behind him on the screen door so it wouldn't snap back shut and make a loud noise. The hallway heading towards the Pastor's office was dark and the only light sources came from the door behind him and the door ahead, which was ajar.
Avery got a nervous feeling as he walked closer towards the office. It wasn't just that no one had bothered to turn the lights on but it was also eerily quiet, save for the rotating fan and a low voice coming from the small room ahead. Instinctively, he began to tip toe, creeping towards the door and peering inside.
The fox was sitting in his chair, leaning back and facing away from him towards the window. He had the phone cord wrapped around the side of his chair and he sounded like he was talking with someone. He strained his ears to catch the conversation.
"...His name is Vince Mitchell... Right, Bart's grandchild....Yes, I do have reason to believe that he and some other boys are in on some illicit activities here at camp...Vince is obviously the ring leader organizing it...Well, no...But I have a testimony from one boy who says that there will be some kind of 'party' organized this evening...Yes, here at camp...Sex, drugs possibly..."
Durham paused before giving a dry, witless laugh, "Yes of course! Boys will obviously be boys...You will?...Thank you very much, Sheriff...Uh huh...No, thirty minutes isn't a problem."
Durham spun back around in his chair. Avery ducked back behind the door a bit, making sure he wasn't visible. Peering between the crack in the door, he saw Durham take a swig of beer while listening casually to the phone.
"Mm...Yes. I'll be waiting outside the Main Lodge. I'll be working on some paperwork until then so if I'm not up there to meet you, I'll be in my office. Uh huh...Thanks again, Lou. Bye bye."
Durham hung up and leaned back, chuckling to himself.
Avery backed away slowly from the door and headed back to the exit. He made sure to close the screen door as carefully as he could before bolting across camp. He needed to find Vince and quick. He wasn't sure what he was going to say or if he would even believe him but he needed to do something!
As he ran, he thought this could be his way of finally making up for the abuse and pain he'd caused for the last few years. It felt exhilarating to him. To him, it was almost as if some kind of divine intervention that had drawn him to Pastor Durham's office. It was probably just mere coincidence but he had been in the right place at the right time. This was his shot at redemption with David.
~ ~ ~
Vince regarded him coldly after he finished explaining everything he had just overheard from Durham's office. Avery shuffled awkwardly, forcing himself to look back up at the older tabby cat.
"I swear, everything I just told you is for real."
"Uh huh," Vince said coolly, still staring him down. "So why should I just believe you?"
They were in Cabin A, which had been abandoned the day before by everyone except Joey, who had opted not to go on the camping trip with the others. Vince and his crew had kicked him out as nicely as possible; giving him a Pepsi, a bag of Skittles, and the key to the Rec Room to play Xbox all night. It seemed to help him forget all about the nasty little encounter they'd had earlier that day.
Jamie, Roy, and Jess were setting up the room in preparation for the Shindig while Vince spoke with Avery. They seemed to be regarding Avery with the same kind of hostility as Vince.
Avery sagged his shoulders, unsure of how to answer the question.
"I don't know...All I know is that you guys got about twenty or thirty minutes to get out of here."
Vince rolled his eyes and folded his arms. "I bet you're just lying to try and keep us from having the Shindig."
Avery growled with frustration. "I'm not! I'm trying to help you!"
Vince regarded him, as if still deciding what to do with him.
"Honest!" Avery said, now pleading. "He told the police that you guys had drugs too! He even gave them your name!"
Vince's neck fur bristled but he didn't say anything. He looked uncertain now, as if considering what Avery was saying. He went over to Jamie, who was hanging heavy blankets up over the windows to block light from getting out, and tapped his shoulder.
Avery waited patiently, watching as they talked to one another in hushed tones. They glanced over in his direction occasionally. Then they rounded up the rest of the crew and talked amongst themselves while Avery sat. He fidgeted nervously, wondering what they were talking about.
Finally, Vince came striding back over. He sat down on the bed across from Avery. "You're sure Durham called the cops?" He asked, getting right to the point.
Avery nodded.
Vince starred at him. He seemed to know that they were operating on as little time as possible. "Why should we believe you?"
Avery looked him in the eye. "I don't want anything bad to happen to David. Or Jonathan..." He looked back down at his feet. "I don't wanna be the bad guy anymore..."
To Avery's relief, Vince sighed and leveled with him. "Alright...Since we can't afford to take any chances here, we're going to give you the benefit of the doubt. If what you say is true, we only have thirty minutes to do this..."
"Or twenty," Avery interjected.
"I need you to go and get your friend Henry. I need you to bring him here and keep him distracted for the rest of tonight. Got that?"
Avery nodded seriously and said, "I can do that."
The others immediately started to disassemble everything. They took down blankets from the windows, put food and drinks back into coolers and took down the card tables that they'd set up to hold them, and started to take everything out of the cabin.
"Don't let him come back to Cabin B under any circumstances, got it?"
"I'll do my best..." Avery said. Henry was a tough guy to handle but he still listened to Avery.
Vince studied Avery for a moment. After a long pause, he said, "If this is a ruse..."
"I'm not trying to stop the Shindig," Avery said bluntly. "I'm only trying to help y'all not get in trouble."
This seemed to satisfy Vince enough. Or at least convince that Avery was being sincere. He knew there were a lot of reasons he shouldn't be trusted. Even if they shut down the Shindig entirely, he'd at least be happy that David was safe.
Vince stood up and helped with getting things moved out. Avery got up as well and made his way back to Cabin B. Most of the guys in there 'looked' like they were getting ready for bed but he knew otherwise.
Henry was already laying in his bed, consumed in a magazine about motor vehicles. He didn't even look up when Avery approached him.
"Hey," Avery said, trying to mask his nervousness. "Let's go over to Cabin A."
"Why?" Henry asked, not sounding very suspicious but sounding a little annoyed at the prospect of getting up.
"No one's gonna be over there. We're gonna have the whole cabin to ourselves."
Henry looked up and scratched his chin. "Sounds like it could be cool..." He said dully.
Avery's muzzle twitched with a grin and he said, "Yeah. Joey's off doin' something. I haven't seen him. So it'll just be us."
Henry sighed and hoisted himself out of bed, throwing on a pair of jeans and putting on his shoes.
Together, they left and headed over to Cabin A, leaving the rest to Vince.