I'd gone camping with a couple of mates. We were getting in some fishing and a bit of riding on our dirt bikes through the back trails before some governmental asshole decides they're too dangerous and bans them.
There were several other tents scattered around at the camp site. Generally they were occupied by a couple or a group of friends, but there was one there that was occupied by a single woman. It was a very nice two man tent, and the reason she was there alone is because she had an asshole for a boyfriend.
That's not my estimation of him. It's hers. She'd arrived during the afternoon and set up camp and then hung around waiting for lover-boy to arrive. After a solitary dinner she finally managed to get him on the phone and I couldn't help but hear her part of the conversation.
Boiled down, the way she saw the situation was this. He had insisted that they go camping for the weekend, even though she didn't want to. He had insisted that they travel separately, so that she'd have time to set up camp before he arrived. (Lazy bastard in my books.) Now he was saying he couldn't make it tonight and would try to get there tomorrow.
What did he mean try? Would he be there or not? Probably not, as something had come up and he'd probably be busy all weekend. She should just enjoy her camping trip and not worry about him.
That's the point where she told him what an asshole he was and the quality of the conversation deteriorated.
Actually, the quality of her conversation with the boyfriend wasn't the only thing to deteriorate. So did the weather. The weather bureau had forecast the possibility of some light showers overnight, but that didn't worry me and my mates. A bit of mud makes trail bikes more fun. It doesn't hurt so much when you come off.
The Weather Bureau must have got it wrong, because the clouds that were gathering were big and black and it looked as though we were in for quite a storm. As you can imagine, dusk came early and it wasn't long before it was pitch black outside. No moon and no stars, the only light available coming from the flashes of lightning overhead.
I took a quick walk before I intended to retire, to attend to natures call, and was wandering back to our tent when there was a really vivid flash followed by a nice loud clap of thunder that seemed to shake the ground.
I could have sworn I heard a scream when the thunder sounded, so I stood still for a moment, listening. I could hear this whimpering sound, like a puppy in distress, so I moved in the direction of the sound to see what the problem was.
The problem was the woman in the tent alone. I could hear her whimpering in there, and she sounded scared out of her mind. Maybe she didn't like storms.
She had some sort of light on in the tent, which made it easy for me to spot the front of it. I unzipped and stuck my head in. (In case you're wondering, no, I didn't knock. Not too easy to do on a canvas tent that's flapping in the wind.)
The young lady was curled up in a ball on top of a sleeping bag, wearing flannelette pyjama with a Mickey Mouse motif. Very cute, I thought them.
"You OK?" I asked, which was a silly question, really. It was bloody obvious that she wasn't.
Her eyes popped open and she looked over at me and screamed again.
"Don't you touch me," she shrieked. "Go away."
Oh, brother, just what I needed. A terrified and semi-hysterical female. There was no way I could just leave her there to panic. I eased into the tent.
"Take it easy," I told her. "I'm not going to hurt you. I'm not even going to touch you. It's just that you seem a bit scared and look as though you need someone to sit with you during the storm."
The fact that I hadn't tried to grab her seemed to relieve her a little. That and the fact that there was someone actually there and she wasn't alone in the storm.
"I'm fine," she muttered, sitting up. "I'll be OK. You don't need to stay, although it's kind of you to offer."
"Yeah, I can see that," I said. "I think I'll wait for some more thunder before I make any decision."
"No, don't," she said quickly. "I'd rather you left."
