Chapter 40

       The birds chirping was what finally woke me up. I wasn't exactly sure what time it was, but I was a bit too lazy and tired to grab my phone to check. After all, Orchid and I had a very long night last night. Cooking marshmallows, watching the stars, telling stories, doing other things.

       Orchid was still fast asleep, her head resting on my chest. I definitely didn't want to wake her right now. She looked so calm and peaceful.

       I tried falling back asleep but I just couldn't now that the sun was starting to shine into the tent, the fly not doing its job at stopping rays. Apparently, that was enough for Orchid to start stirring as well. 

       The moment she opened her eyes, she looked at me with a smile. "Good morning," she said.

       "Morning," I said, smiling back at her as I run my hands through her hair. "How did you sleep?"

       "Like a baby."

       "Why do people say they sleep like a baby? Don't babies take a while to sleep soundly through the night? They wake up all the time to be fed and cuddled, don't they?"

       Orchid took a few moments to reply. "That's actually a good point. I have no idea why people say that. So no, I didn't sleep like a baby, but I did sleep amazingly last night. There's just something so peaceful about sleeping outside, albeit in a tent."

       "Yeah, I definitely agree there," I said. "I'm glad we decided to go camping, even if it was just for one night. But still, it was one night we got away from our fathers who act like babies."

       "Ugh, I know, right?" Orchid said. "I thought they would get used to us dating by now, but they are so dramatic. And because of what? A beach ball?"

       "Exactly that. And it was something that happened eighteen years ago. Oh, well. It's kind of funny to see my dad react like this."

       "Yeah, same here. If only he wouldn't stop me from going places with you, but at least my mom doesn't care. And I could easily bribe my dad with bacon if it comes down to it. And speaking of..." She sat up. "How about we got to a diner and get some bacon?"

       I chuckled. "Of course that's the only thing on your mind right now. But I did promise you that's what we would do so let's pack up and find somewhere to eat breakfast."

       Despite us going to be heading out somewhere, Orchid insisted on going in her pyjamas because she really wanted bacon and didn't want to waste any time getting changed. I, on the other hand, would rather not go in my pyjamas so I got changed while Orchid started packing up by putting the sleeping bag away.

       Since we were only here for one night, it didn't take long for us to pack up everything. Once all the camping gear was in the car, we got inside and just drove around until we found an interesting place to eat breakfast.

       It took some time, but we both didn't mind. It was nice to just mindlessly drive around. After all, we had been extremely bored this summer. Doing something, anything, was better than just sitting at home, doing absolutely nothing.

       Orchid soon spotted a diner she thought looked interesting for us to check out. To absolutely no one's surprise, Orchid ordered a meal that contained the most amount of bacon. She was even wanting to ask for a plate full of bacon, but she didn't want to do that to the cooks. She said she could just get a plate full of bacon at home. You know, after she bought her own pack of bacon because her dad was not wiling to share.

       "You know, I sometimes hate school, but I can't wait for school to start," Orchid said. "Just because I am so bored during the summer. School will give me something to do."

      "Like homework?"

      "Yes, but it's still something. Better than not having anything to do. I could always start looking for a job, but I'm going to wait until summer's over. Or at least close to over."

       "I should start looking, too. It will give me even more time to spend away from my dramatic dad. Though knowing him, he'd end up thinking that work is an excuse just to see you."

       "Oh, please. You'd always rub it in your dad's face whenever you're hanging out with me. No excuses or anything."

       "Yeah, that's true."

       Once we finished eating breakfast, we decided to drive around a bit more instead of just heading home. We didn't really have anything we wanted to do, but we just didn't want to head home.

       Eventually, Orchid suggested that we go to the beach for a bit. She did pack her swimsuit with her just in case there was a lake close to the campgrounds that we wanted to go to, so she changed out of her pyjamas and into her swimsuit.

       When she walked out of the washroom, we quickly went back to my car so she could drop her pyjamas off before we started walking on the beach.

       "So how has Wilder been doing?" Orchid asked. "I haven't seen him since his horse show."

       "He has been doing good," I said. "Been spending a lot of time at the stables. And then when he's not there, he texts me complaining because he's very bored."

       "I get that," Orchid said. "It's weird. Summer is usually the season to have a lot of fun, but we have just been extremely bored."

       "I wouldn't say extremely bored," I said. "I've been having a lot of fun spending time with you. Even if it's just sitting in one of our houses, complaining about not having fun and being bored."

       "That's a bit contradictory, but I agree. I love spending time with you. I love you."

       I smiled at Orchid. "I love you too."

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and this brings us to the end of atticus's book. i wish i had more ideas, but i just didn't so sorry if the ending seemed a bit choppy :( at least we still see this lovely couple in all the aus i have lol.

but thank you to everyone who read, commented, and liked the book! i appreciate all of the support i get from this website <3

-laeti