FIRST BASE CAMP 1970

[dadio]

Miriam got off the coach when it stopped at Sans Sebastian and Benedict got off just behind her it had been a long coach run through France almost non stop except for the occasional watering hole or at the odd roadside cafe for a meal or two she stretched out her arms to unwind the stiffness and looked around the base camp and took in a large restaurant and field upon field of tents and a block or two of showers and toilets it looks ok the sky is darkening possible rain then the guide said right here we are at the first base camp I have a list of names of who is with whom and of course except for married couples or couples who have asked to be together the rest will be same sex partnering there was a few sighs but otherwise all was silent awaiting the names to be called Miriam stood next to Benedict hoping hed not be too far off in a tent and wondering whom she would be paired off with in a tent the guide called out names and paired them off and the couple of the same sex would find each other and stand there and wait to be shown where their tent was and after a reading of names the guide said follow me and Ill show you were your tents are so they all followed him and he looked at the list and directed couples to the selected tents and they wandered off across a given field to the tents Miriam was paired with a plump girl aged about twenty two who nodded but said little else and as she walked off with the plump dame she gave Benedict a smile and he smiled back see you around she said to him sure Ill look out for you he said Benedict was paired off with a military looking guy who stood erect and tall and straight faced they walked across a field and it began to rain on them and Benedict sighed and the other guy began to run with his bags towards the tent and Benedict ran after him cursing the heavy falling rain thats our tent Military called pointing ahead his bags swinging around him once they got there Military unzipped the tent and bundled his bags and Benedicts inside then they both clambered in as fast as they could meanwhile Miriam and the plump girl had managed to get in their tent just as the rain came down and they zipped up as quick as they could and looked around the tent not much room to move Miriam said the plump girl looked at her bag and began unpacking what she needed but left the rest inside best get out only what we need I guess she said Miriam sorted out her sleeping bag and laid it out on her side of the tent and lay down gazing at the top of the slanting tent and the rain beating down hard on the canvas the plump girl who said her name was Cindy unpacked her sleeping bag and lay down too and began to talk about herself in a long almost unstopping discourse Miriam thought of Benedict and wished it was he in her tent and not Cindy that it was he she had to get undressed in front of instead of Cindy and God knows what shes like underneath her clothes Miriam mused trying not to think about it trying not to listen too intently to Cindys discourse meanwhile Benedict watched from his sleeping bag as the military looking guy who said his name was Charles took off his wet shirt and jeans and rubbed off with a towel and talked to Benedict about his recent days in the army Benedict had already taken off his wet clothes and had dried himself with a towel hed brought he lay on his sleeping bag in his underwear gazing at Charles torso unhappily wishing it was Miriam there striping off how about you Benny I can call you Benny cant I? I mean Benedict is big mouthful isnt it? sure call me Benny Benedict said not caring what he was called although he preferred not to be called Ben as some people did Benedict talked of his life and what he did and why hed come on a camping trip to Morocco and so on and so on meanwhile Miriam listened as Cindy continued on with her discourse and some parts were sad and some were funny in a weird sense but when she began to talk of her sex life with a boy called Seamus and how he liked to do things in a certain way and then she went into the details and Miriam hoped it would end soon before she fell asleep and her stomach was beginning to rumble with hunger and she needed to pee and the rain falling still and hitting the tent top and she pressed her hands between her thighs hoping that would ward off the pee needing feeling meanwhile Benedict and Charles had dressed and began to make their way out of the tent and then walked across the damp field towards the restaurant Charles ahead like some army scout carrying a torch and over the way Benedict spotted Miriam and the plump girl coming across the field in a slow uncertain movement Miriam in front sour faced and the plump girl moving through the wet grass like a young cow moving towards the milking sheds Benedict waved to Miriam and she waved back her sour face brightening to a smile see you later Cindy Miriam said running ahead to meet Benedict leaving Cindy to watch her run off despairingly and Charles looked on with disapproval as Benedict and Miriam paired off together across the grass towards the restaurant and toilets Cindy stared at Charles and half smiled and he shrugged his shoulders and said come with me as he watched the two disappearing as if they were over top soldiers.