A group of teenagers sat around a campfire, on one of those hazy summer evenings. Their whole town was practically a forest, so it wasn't difficult to set up a fire and a cozy atmosphere. They weren't the rowdy kind of teenagers you see in reality TV shows and films. No, they were the toasty-marshmallow and giggles kind.
For the most part anyway.
There were six of them. They all worked and lived in the same town: some had been riding the town rails since 2002, others since 2013. But they all shared the same earnest hearts and loyalty, and enjoyed spending time together despite their different personalities.
"Isn't this a beautiful night? I'm so glad that we picked the meteor shower to camp under," the blonde girl babbled. Her locks were bunched together with pink ribbons, with little bells to keep it all intact. As she moved to grab another marshmallow, she jingled.
The scruffiest member of the group smirked, grabbing the easel and paints he had bought earlier. He then started to sketch the sky. "Perfect for a picture, cousin. I can see it now. Starry Night, Van Gogh, three thousand bells. The villagers will lap it up."
After scanning the picture briefly, the red-eyed boy Rover piped up, "But that looks nothing like Starry Night. I've travelled loads, and believe you me I've seen way better counterfeits than that, Redd."
"The villagers aren't going to know that," he shrugged, continuing to work on his masterpiece. "At least I'm doing something creative, unlike Tom over there."
Sure enough, Tom was fiddling with his phone. When he realised all of his friends were staring at him pointedly, he awkwardly explained, "I left my nephews in charge of the family shop you see..."
"I can feel your stress energy from all the way over here." Katrina glanced at Tom from underneath her eyelashes. The boys all grinned hazily. They hadn't got over her recent transformation yet. "Tell him, Izzy."
The pink-ribboned blonde, Isabelle, huffed a little. She didn't like being told what to do by anyone but the mayor of their town. "Tom, we all came out here to have a good time, okay?" She slightly smiled at him. "I'm sure the boys will be fine."
"...yes, yes," Tom murmured. He tucked his phone into his trouser pocket, and turned towards them all. "So what are we all going to be up to this summer, hm?"
Isabelle tucked a stray hair behind her ear. "Busy, busy. The mayor is going on holiday, so she has extended my internship. I have to make sure that the bug-off goes off without a hitch, as well as the fireworks." She beamed brightly. Then, sparked by an idea, she swivelled towards the pale boy in the corner. He was nodding his head, strumming his guitar gently. "K.K.? I could really use your DJing skills for all that."
The guitarist stopped abruptly. "You know I dislike DJing, Izzy. I can't afford my rent without it, that's the only reason I do it. Those fat cats don't understand how difficult it is for us students to survive."
A melancholy feeling swept across the group. It was an unspoken fact in the group how lucky Isabelle, Rover and Nook were. When the town was all but tumbleweeds, Tom's family had moved in and started to control the local economy with their degree-level minds. Rover was one of the few villagers that didn't suffer from travel sickness. This, along with his charisma, allowed him to become a permanent tour guide. Even Isabelle had simply bowled over the Town Hall executives, practically having the internship given to her on a golden platter.
Katrina, Redd and K.K. though?... They were free spirits. But free spirits don't tend to do well in the real world.
"Yes, well, bad times are only times that are bad. You'll be a full-time musician soon enough," Katrina purred. "Now this negativity is really throwing off my senses. Could you play us a little camping tune?"
K.K. started to say something in retort, but he stopped as he saw Katrina looking at him pleadingly. Although she acted like a cool cat twenty four seven, he knew she was a sweetie really. So he began to play one of his own songs, K.K. Forest, humming and clicking merrily. The other five all knew this song, and they soon joined in. Rifts in the group never lasted too long.
Briefly exiting his groove, K.K. opened his eyes to watch his friends. His heart sunk. Katrina was swaying her hips, and her waist was gently being grasped by Redd. After strumming the final chords, K.K. muttered, "I'm feeling tired, you guys."
"Ho ho, cousin," Redd grinned. "The fun is only just about to start." He hopped over to his backpack and slid out a bottle of white chocolate and raspberry vodka. "Bought it from the market this morning."
Rover inspected it, his red eyes scanning the label intensely. He knew what was the best of the best, including with alcohol. The perks of being a tour guide. "Not too shabby, Redd. Are we going to be glugging it from the bottle or have you blessed us with shot glasses?"
"I think it'll make a nice little truth or dare bottle. A glug for the spinners. You guys in?"
"Of course."
"Sure!"
"Sounds fun."
"Yes, yes."
Isabelle bit her nails. "I...I guess..."
They all gathered around in a circle, just on the edge of the campfire. Rover handed the bottle back to Redd, who placed it in the middle precisely. "Alrighty. I'll spin first, and then we'll each take a turn clockwise to spin. Whoever spins gets to set the dare or truth for who it lands on. So it'll go me, Rover, K.K., Tom, Kat and then Izzy." With that, he sent the bottle whirring.
After a dizzying few moments, it landed on Tom. He chuckled, took the bottle into his hands, and unscrewed the top. When he started to 'drink' it, Isabelle noticed he stuck his tongue in the neck of the bottle so he didn't have to taste it all. She made a mental note to do the same.
"Dear Tom. Truth or dare?"
Tom knew how mischievous Redd was. He had nothing to hide, so a truth would have made sense. But something about the night and the excitement around the circle made him say, "Dare."
Without hesitation Redd said, "Chuck your wallet and phone into that swamp over there." He indicated with his thumb.
A sickly-white colour crossed Tom's face. "But my wallet has my credit card in there, and thousands of bells. Plus I have an iPhone 6S, and Timmy and Tommy might get out of control if I can't badger them."
"First off, iPhones are ****. Second off, live a little." Redd winked. "Be the rebel your parents never let you be."
Something about that sentence rung true with Nook. All his life he had been told he had to grab bells. Whether this was through fair or illegal means, his parents didn't really care. Bells were the centre of his life. To throw them away...sounded sort of fun. He stood up, scrounging in his pockets for his phone and wallet. Once they had surfaced, with all his might he threw them. Just like that they were gone. Tom Nook, the most promising entrepreneur in town, collapsed into a heap of childlike giggles. The rest of the group joined in.
It was Rover's turn next, and with a flick of his wrist, the bottle soon landed on Isabelle. When she opened the bottle, she was suddenly torn in two. She had initially wanted to stay sober, but just by watching Tom she knew what difference a leap of faith could make. So she tilted it and swallowed. It tasted amazing. "Dare!"
Rover laughed. "Eager beaver. Hmmm. I dare you to dance."
"That's not much of a dare," Katrina snorted. "Anyone can dance."
"True, but I haven't seen Izzy dance. Like ever. She's always too busy and uptight. Hit us with a tune, K.K.?"
Despite being a bit reluctant to play again after what happened with Katrina and Redd, K.K. did what his good friend asked. The melody to K.K. Ragtime soon echoed across the forest, and Isabelle stood up shakily. After side-stepping awkwardly for a few moments, Katrina grabbed her hands and danced with her. The rest of the group clapped them along as they swayed and shimmied. Isabelle's shoulders lost their tension, and she jigged carelessly. Once the song finished, they both collapsed onto the floor, exhausted.
The next three turns turned the game of Truth Or Dare into simply Dares. These involved skinny dipping, ant-eating and a ten-minute-non-stop guitar session. The last turn eventually arrived, and it was Isabelle's turn. She had had a few more cheeky swigs, and her cheeks were flushed.
But she still had a sound mind as she thought through the dare for K.K.. She still felt bad about the incident earlier, and wanted to make it up to him. "I dare you to kiss Katrina," she stated matter-of-factly.
K.K. and Katrina both showed flecks of nervousness briefly, and Isabelle smiled. It just confirmed that K.K. liked Katrina, and she was happy Kat liked him back.
As K.K. pulled himself together, Katrina nimbly made her way across the circle. She then sat herself opposite him, and leaned forward. He cupped her face as if it were china, and met her lips. The group held their breath, expecting it to be a brief peck and a few laughs. But K.K. soon had his hands entangled in her hair, and Katrina was in his lap.
"Get a room!" Redd laughed, chucking debris from the ground at them. The others followed suit, giggling hysterically.
After a few final moments, the two pulled away from each other. Katrina did not return to her place in the circle, though. She stayed put, snugly wrapped in K.K..
His eyes glowed, in a way none of the group had ever seen before. "I am genuinely super tired now. Shall we all call it a night?"
They all murmured and nodded, grabbing their respective sleeping bag packs and rolling them out. Before he climbed into his, Tom Nook said, "You know, I am very happy we did this. I have learnt so much about myself, and all of you tonight. Thank you."
"Agreed," Redd chipped in. "We should do this every summer. Whether Nook becomes a hotshot, or Isabelle becomes mayor, or Rover finds somewhere perfect on his travels, or K.K. starts a worldwide tour, or Kat's fortunes actually start coming true... Ow!" He rubbed his head from where Katrina's heel had hit him. "Or even if I become a proper artist! You guys in?"
"Of course."
"Sure!"
"Sounds fun."
"Yes, yes."
Isabelle yawned, smiling. "I'll put it in my diary."
