I could see Blaine shooting me nervous glances as I helped him get his things unpacked and settled. Since most of his things would stay in his trunk, that’s easier than it sounds.

Seriously, do I really look that scary? Alright, I need something to break this tension. I pulled his sheets out of his duffel bag, knowing it wouldn’t be the easiest thing to get a bed made one-handed.

Glancing around the room I gave his trunk a look over. The thing looked brand spanking new. It was a far cry from the battered and much abused ones in the JC room upstairs. After all, most of us had been living out of the things every summer for at least six or seven years now.

“So is this your first time at a camp?” I asked over, ignoring the way Blaine jumped. At least he was turning to look at me now, instead of staring out over the empty room.

“At a camp like this? Yeah.” Blaine answered, moving over to sink down to sit on top of that new-looking trunk. “I spent part of last summer at Kent State at a theater camp, but that was quite different. I mean, we lived in the dorms, for one thing. Otherwise, I’ve usually spent the summer at home busy with community theater productions and things.” He looked across at me with those clear nerves, as if he thought I would disapprove of such things. Really?

“If I could imagine spending the summer anywhere but here, I imagine that would be a really great way to spend it.” I watched Blaine visibly relax at that, grinning over towards him. “Loosen up. We’re not all scary jock types here. And even the jock types? Really not that scary. Well maybe Puckerman, but it’s all an act with that one.”

The smile Blaine gave me? It was an actual, real one. Maybe we could get him settled here after all, if he was opening up and chilling out a bit already. “I guess I just assumed I wouldn’t have much in common with all of you.” Blaine admitted with a shy smile over. “Not the way my dad and brother talk about this place. I figured you would all be like Coop.”

“Stereotypes will get you nowhere in life.” I pointed out as I spread his blanket over the bed, moving to tuck it in around the edges. “I remember Cooper. He was a counselor here my first few years. You remember the camp big brothers thing? Well my big brother, er camp brother, Finn was in Cooper’s cabin several years in a row. Honestly, yes, we’ve got a few guys who are that over the top. Most of us aren’t. Despite that little performance you saw after dinner.”

“That was…. really something.” Blaine offered back to me with a quick grin for the little mock bow I took at that sort-of compliment before he turned serious again. “I don’t know if I can do this. Look around this room. Ten more beds. And they’re all going to have known each other for years, right? I’ll just spend the next seven weeks blending into the woodwork, and I can’t even /do/ most of the activities.” Blaine gave his cast a sneer then stared down at the floor.

I propped his pillow into place and walked over to perch on the edge of the bunk bed across from Blaine’s, not wanting to invite his personal space too much. It gave me time to think of what to say, at least. I don’t want to screw this up and have him shut right back down. “Yes, they’ve pretty much all known each other since they were eight or ten. No disguising that. But I know these guys, really I’ve grown up together with them. There are some going to be some great people moving into this room tomorrow. Ever think that maybe they’ll be happy to have some new blood in the mix? Plus, we might not really /ever/ get new CITs and JCs, but we do get new counselors every year. Worst comes to worst? Make friends with some of them. They’re not /that/ much older. The new international staff are pretty much guaranteed to be even more out of their element than you are.”

“I could do that.” Blaine looked me over again for a moment before he reached up to rub the back of his neck sheepishly with his good hand. “You’re not what I expected. I’ll admit I was really worried when Schue told me he wanted you to be this mentor thing for me.”

“What did you expect?” I couldn’t resist asking, trying to keep as much of the smirky bitch from my face as I could. He did at least get some raised eyebrows for that comment, though. It totally earned them.

“Well, I guess I didn’t expect you to be this welcoming. Nice.” I must have had quite the look at that, because Blaine immediately started explaining in a rush of words. “You seemed kind of tuned out, like you couldn’t be bothered at the lake.” That was how that had come across? I guess better than Blaine realizing I’d practically been undressing him in my imagination.

“You’re popular here. Everyone seems to know you. Everyone talks to you. There’s that whole thing at dinner. I saw that tall guy seek you out and specifically drag you into it. I guess I thought you’d be way too cool to ever want to hang out with me.” Oh god, the look in those beautiful eyes as Blaine finally made eye contact. No more crushes on straight boys allowed. Especially hurting straight boys. I’d just have to keep telling myself that.

“This isn’t your high school, Blaine. Or mine. Popular here often equals outgoing and friendly, someone willing to make a complete fool out of themselves in front of the camp. Not someone on the top because they’ve crushed everyone under them. You don’t make friends here by putting other people down, even if they’re different. Especially if they’re different, maybe.”

I paused to think. Blaine had opened up. Could I do it back? Encourage the next level of sharing. “One of the reasons I love this place so much is because people actually like me, just for being myself. It’s a welcome break from home. From the one more year I have left of getting called horrible names just for daring to walk down the hallway before I escape to college.”

I stood, not waiting for a reply to that before I continued talking. I was not going to start crying tonight, and continuing this conversation up the risk of that a million times. “At the lake? I was so frozen I don’t think my brain was firing properly. Be glad your cast gets you out of the lake in June.”

“Look, Schue suggested I bring a couple guys down here for a sleepover, so you’re not all alone your first night in the woods. Or overwhelmed by the chaos of upstairs. Why don’t I go get a friend or two while you change? I think you’d like my friends. Mike’s a really great guy, and don’t let Sam put you off. We’ve been friends since we both started here at eight, and he always means well. He teases sometimes, but it’s all playful.” I finally turned for a response from Blaine to my long, rambling speech, not quite sure I really wanted to see the reaction to everything I’d just said.

“I… meeting just a couple of the guys sounds like a good start.” Blaine admitted, standing as well. “I didn’t realize we had so much in common.” The second bit was added much more quietly, just a step up from a whisper.

He was bullied, too. It was kind of nice in an odd way to have my suspicions confirmed. At least it told me what might be the root cause of all that nervousness. “There’s a reason Schue chose me, rather than anyone of a million other guys that know this place like the back of their hands, too. You’ll find out eventually that Schue knows what he’s doing more often than it seems.” I let that be the parting statement as I slipped out the door and up the stairs.

Mike was sprawled out on his bed with a novel in front of him, but Sam was nowhere to be seen as I made my way into our corner of the room. I sank down on my bed sitting crossed legged, waiting for Mike to finish his page and slide a bookmark into his book. We’d done this a hundred times over the years.

“So. Schue must have been really pissed off at you. You’ve been gone forever.” Mike pointed out, setting the book aside on the little wooden shelf by his bed.

“No, no. I was actually not in trouble this time. You heard about the new CIT who came up early today?” I waited for Mike’s nod before I continued. “His name’s Blaine. Schue asked me to be his big brother. I was downstairs helping him get settled in.”

“What’s he like?” Mike asked over with interest, swinging around to sit on the edge of his bunk, bracing his arms up on the bottom of Sam’s bed.

“Unsure. Worried. Nervous. I don’t think he was given any choice in coming here this summer or that he particularly wanted to.”

I tried to decide how much to tell Mike. More than I’d tell Sam, to be honest. That was pretty much always true. Sam was the friend I joked around and did crazy things with, but Mike was the friend I actually opened up to. He was the person on camp who knew the most about what my life at home was like, how bad school really was. Mike was the guy I’d call this year when I needed to let it out and vent. Or cry. He was generally pretty even keeled. Mike’s good at giving support without freaking out.

“He didn’t say anything uncool to you did he, this Blaine kid? He’s not going to try to get himself sent home?” Mike’d had a camper like that last summer, I remembered. His parents had forced him to be here, and the kid had done everything he could to get himself sent home before he finally realized camp wasn’t torture.

“No, no. Nothing like that. It’s more like he’s afraid of how we’ll all treat him. I don’t know his whole story, but I can tell he’s been bullied. Schue told me he’s had a hard time. That cast?” It all added up to something that I wasn’t totally sure of yet, but I knew it wasn’t good. “The worst he said to me was that he thought I’d be too cool to want to spend time with him.”

“Speaking of which, Schue asked if we could sleep down there with him tonight. I’d like to introduce him to you. I think you’d like him, actually.” I stood, pulling the duffel out from under my bed to find my sleeping bag. “Where’s Sam?”

“Taking a shower. Finally. He should be back soon. Sleepover down there? Alright. I’ll bring a few decks of cards along. You know we can spend hours amusing ourselves with those.” Mike stood to get his sleeping bag as well. He was already dressed in a pair of sweats, good enough for hanging out in or sleeping in. I moved to change into the same, grabbing a navy pair of sweats from my trunk.

“Sounds like a plan. Let’s stop at the bathroom and invite Sam on the way down. It’ll be just like old times, sleeping down there. Only quieter without the rest of this crowd.” I finished changing, sliding a pair of canvas shoes on my feet for the walk down.

Mike grabbed for his pillow, cuddling it to his chest with one arm as he grabbed his backpack and sleeping bag with the other. “Lead on, Kurt.”