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At first, when one of Sapnap’s friends suggests he should sign up to be a counsellor for a nearby summer camp, he’s reluctant. The outdoors has never been his thing, and while he has nothing against children, he’s not particularly fond of them either.
His friend, Wilbur, argues that Sapnap needs to get out more (and it’s true, he does) and besides, it’ll just be one summer and his friend doesn’t want to do it alone and, who knows, maybe he’ll end up liking it.
Reluctantly, Sapnap agrees, and that’s how he gets dragged into this whole thing. (Later, he’ll both thank and curse Wilbur.)
Wilbur, who’s used to this sort of thing, takes a Counsellor-in-Training under his wing. His CIT’s name is Tommy, and it seems he was convinced to be here by his friend, Tubbo, the same way Wilbur convinces Sapnap to come.
Tubbo, who they meet at dinner the first night, is also a CIT. His mentor is named Karl, and Sapnap finds him somewhat... inhuman. He’s so impossibly loud, and larger than life, and intimidatingly confident and seemingly not self-conscious at all. It’s weird. Sapnap wants to be friends with him.
(Looking back, Sapnap will wonder if he liked Karl all along.)
Apparently, for some reason, Karl wants to be friends with Sapnap too. They become close quickly, much quicker than Sapnap could’ve ever dreamed, and it isn’t long before he comes to an Earth-halting realization that maybe he’s fallen in love with Karl.
He’s sitting with the fellow counsellor, watching the way the sun bounces off his hair and how flushed his cheeks are and how, as he rambles, his eyes constantly stay shining, always seeming so thrilled about everything. It’s as Sapnap is staring at him, crafting poetry in the back of his mind about his new friend, that he comes to the conclusion that what he feels for the man beside him stretches deeper than friendship.
He smiles, softly, and lets Karl keep talking.
Karl gets stung. They’re out on a hike, and Tubbo is going too close to some flying, stinging insects and Karl gets nervous. They don’t look like the honeybees Tubbo loves so much, but they seem to thrill him all the same.
Sapnap’s group is hiking with them and he barely has time to see Karl usher Tubbo back, away from the insects (which turn out to be yellow jackets) before one is diving and embedding itself in Karl’s ankle, wrenching a scream out of the counsellor.
He drops, pulling his foot to himself and peering at the sting, brushing off Tubbo’s nervous inquires and clearly trying not to cry. Sapnap sneaks through the group, who have all paused to watch the fallen counsellor.
He crouches next to Karl, reaching out and gently grabbing the injured man’s face, trying to turn his attention to Sapnap. “Karl, look at me. Try to stop thinking about the sting or it’ll just hurt worse, alright? I’ll walk you back down to the nurse and they’ll make sure you get whatever you need on there.”
Karl looks up at him, cheeks bright red, and nods wordlessly. Sapnap straightens back up and offers a hand to Karl, who gratefully takes it. Sapnap looks at the other counsellors of the group, who give him a thumbs up after he mouths “Karl got stung, taking him to nurse” and they leave.
Sapnap doesn’t leave his side until the group gets back from their hike.
Throughout the summer, Karl and Sapnap are constantly finding each other. They group up whenever they can, and talk as often as possible.
At the end of the summer, however, it comes time to leave. They stand near the bus stop, waiting. Sapnap is waiting for Wilbur, who plans to drive him home, and Karl waits for the bus, because he was too scared to get his license.
The bus pulls in, and Sapnap takes a deep breath, knowing it’s now or never. “Karl, I-“
Karl interrupts him, eyes wide and nervous, “Shhhh, shshsh.”
Sapnap waits, confused and hoping whatever Karl has to say, he’ll get through fast enough for Sapnap to at least get his phone number.
Karl presses himself up onto his toes, pressing a swift kiss to Sapnap’s cheek with a nervous grin. “Bye, Sapnap,” He speaks breathlessly, falling back onto his heels. Before Sapnap can say anything, he’s grabbing his bags, dashing off and boarding the bus without another word.
Sapnap watches, dumbfounded, as the bus pulls away. When Sapnap asks the other counsellors for Karl’s number, all he gets are shrugs or “Ask someone else” as a response.
That afternoon, as Wilbur is driving them back home, Sapnap mumbles, “I’ll never be able to talk to Karl again.”
”Don't worry,” Wilbur reassures. “He’ll be there next year. You just need to make sure you go.”
The next summer, Sapnap does go. Karl doesn’t. Sapnap never hears from his one-summer lover ever again. (Sapnap is forced to live with the memories of their one shared summer, wondering what became of him and why he didn’t come back.)