Rain and wind whipped against the side of Grizzly cabin. All camp activities were postponed when the storm rolled in an hour ago. Thunder and branches scraping against the window panes had been sounding off ever since. Ravi noticed some water pooling under the front door. He grabbed a towel from the bathroom and packed it in the space between the door and cabin floor.

Jorge was sprawled out on a bean bag chair near their bunks. He was the one most upset about the spontaneous thunderstorm. After spending two days in the infirmary with a stomach bug, the kid had been determined to make up for lost time with an epic kickball game. Ravi and Xander had to practically carry Jorge back to the cabin once Gladys announced the severe thunderstorm warning. Griff had tried to console him by offering to play a card game, but Jorge refused and dropped down to the bean bag chair where he continued to sulk.

Tiffany, Zuri, Emma, and Lou had all decided to hangout in Grizzly cabin until the weather cleared. Emma, of course, always wanted to spend time with her boyfriend, Xander. Zuri was happy to spend time with her crush, Griff. Lou never needed an excuse to hang out with Ravi. And Tiffany tolerated them all.

"Ughhhhh! It's taking forever," Jorge complained. His arm was dramatically draped over his glasses. "I hate the rain!"

Tiffany, sitting on the edge of Xander's bunk, nudged Jorge with the toe of her sock. "You're supposed to be solving this riddle book with me," she said. She waved the flimsy paperback in the air. "You've been whining more than helping."

"But now I'm too bored to do anything!" Jorge said. He rolled over onto his stomach on the bean bag and let his curls fall over his glasses. "Stupid rain."

"Why do I even bother with you," Tiffany muttered as she crossed her arms and walked over to the other side of the cabin.

"Cause you like me," Jorge joked as he held back his curls and wiggled his eyebrows at her.

Tiffany yanked a pillow off of Griff's bunk and chucked it at Jorge. Griff and Zuri, who were playing Go Fish at the small table at the center of the cabin, laughed at their friends.

"Tiffany likes you about as much as she likes getting diarrhea," Zuri teased.

Jorge scrunched his nose and stuck his tongue out at Zuri.

Tiffany's face heated as she shifted her gaze to Griff. She said to him in a nervous panic, "I never get diarrhea!"

Zuri snorted and said, "Everyone gets diarrhea. The food here sucks."

Xander chuckled from his spot on his bunk. When they had all first gathered into Grizzly cabin, Xander had offered to play a song for Emma on his guitar. She had voted yes, but everyone else had voiced their annoyance and so he settled for painting his girlfriend's fingernails.

"Careful," Emma said to Zuri. "Xander's brush isn't steady when he's laughing." She held the open bottle of nail polish in her free hand. She was settled comfortably against his headboard wearing a pair of warm, fuzzy socks that she'd borrowed from Ravi. Her muddy sneakers had been abandoned by the front door.

Griff sat his cards down on the table and asked Xander, "Dude, why are you painting her fingernails?"

"I'm good at it," Xander shrugged. He held up her hand closer to his eyes. "This should dry nicely. Do you want those designs from last time?"

Emma's face lit up with a smile. She nodded enthusiastically. Xander kissed her nose and Emma let out a content sigh as her heart skipped a beat.

"Their love is just so beautiful," Lou cooed from her place by the large window.

She had contemplated what would be the best spot to get cozy when the group had all gathered inside. There was a comfy looking quilt that had been disregarded on top of an old trunk under the window. She had figured it would be a nice place to watch the rain. She had sat on the quilt and stared out the window as her friends chattered behind her. Not long after, Ravi had joined her. The old trunk was his and was filled with books he had shipped to camp.

"Their 'love' makes Xander boring," Griff said.

"Painting nails is art," Emma retorted. "And art isn't boring. Right, Lou?"

"You got it, bestie," Lou replied cheerfully. "Though, fancy nails aren't really my thing. It gets in the way of field dressing a deer."

Jorge balanced his glasses on his nose and asked, "What's field dressing?"

"It's when you remove the internal organs of a hunted animal as part of preserving the meat," Ravi replied automatically as he stared out at the storm.

"Cool!" Jorge replied.

"I didn't know you knew that," Lou said to Ravi.

His eyes flickered to hers for a moment before returning to the window. "I remember the interesting things you say. And you say a lot of interesting things," he said.

Before the thunderstorm, Ravi had been planning to ask Lou on a library date. He had imagined going to the camp library and picking out one of the comic books that she liked to read. They would read together at a picnic that he would set up behind the library that had a great view of the lake and her favorite kettle corn. As soon as he had approached her at the kickball game, it began to rain. As he now sat on the trunk and stared out at the storm, he wondered was this a sign that asking out his friend was a bad idea.

"Emma says a lot of interesting things," Xander said. "Did you know there was edible gold? Like actual gold."

Emma nodded proudly. "I taught him that. In New York, my special spa day cupcakes were covered in it."

"And I'm sure they weren't half as beautiful as you," Xander said as he gave her another kiss on the nose.

"Oh, Xandy!" Emma cooed.

Griff and Zuri made kissy faces at Xander while Tiffany giggled. Emma smirked and rolled her eyes. Xander only looked slightly embarrassed. He made a goofy face at the campers, causing Tiffany to laugh harder. Happy with that response, he reached for another bottle of nail polish on his nightstand.

"I'm so bored!" Jorge groaned. He flipped back over on his bean bag chair.

Tiffany sighed and said, "I admit it. I'm bored too."

Zuri tilted her cards down and looked over her shoulder at Tiffany. "Hey, come play Go Fish with us." She scooted over in her small chair and patted the edge. "You can sit with me. We'll crush Griff's spirit together."

"Yeah, Tiff," Griff said brightly.

Tiffany gripped her elbow and shook her head. "No thanks."

Jorge sat up on his bean bag chair. "I know!" he said excitedly. "Ravi, tell us a story. Tiff likes stories." He shaped his hands into a heart and clarified, "A love story."

"Oh gosh," Tiffany said flatly as she rolled her eyes.

Zuri snorted with laughter. She and Tiffany both said some variation of Ravi not knowing anything about love.

"He's hardly ever been on a date," Zuri started. "Once with a wakadoo that made him jump out of a plane..."

"...And once with a mop with googly eyes," Tiffany finished.

They broke into a fit of giggles, joined by Griff. Xander focused on painting, biting his tongue as he concentrated. Lou gave Ravi a sympathetic smile that only compounded his embarrassment.

"Not cool, guys. And Ravi's been on at least one more date," Emma said. "I think. You went to a dance or something in middle school, right? Wait, that may have been someone else. But for sure I saw you at the homecoming dance with someone."

"Was it mom?" Zuri teased. She rocked back in her chair and balanced herself with the table, letting her flip flops dangle.

Emma tilted her head in thought. "Well, she did chaperon that dance."

"Thank you, Emma," Ravi said flatly. He narrowed his eyes at Zuri and Griff. "Aren't you two supposed to start up a game of monopoly."

"Nah, Zuri always wins," Griff said.

Everyone muttered their agreement. Zuri beamed and nodded approvingly.

Jorge snapped his fingers in Ravi's direction and said, "Hey, I want Storytime, so chop chop."

"Storytime?" Xander chuckled. "Don't you turn thirteen next month?"

"There's no age limit on Storytime," Jorge replied.

Zuri tossed her Go Fish cards on the table and got up from her seat. She shoved Jorge over enough to make him share his bean bag chair with her. Tiffany followed, picking up the pillow that she had tossed over earlier, and made herself a seat beside her best friends. Next to Tiffany, Griff plopped down on the wood floor. Now all the campers were seated in front of Ravi and Lou at the window, looking up at him expectantly.

Ravi looked over at Lou for approval. She was busy opening her bottle of water and humming to herself. He sighed.

"Wouldn't you rather Emma or Xander tell you a tale of love?" he asked the campers.

"Yeah, they're the best Camp Kikiwaka love story ever," Lou said. She smacked her lips from her sip of water. "Besides Morgan and Christina Ross, of course." She smiled at Emma and Xander. "No offense."

"None taken," Xander said cheerfully.

"Some taken, but I'll allow it," Emma joked. Even though she didn't like living in her mom's shadow, she understood how much Lou looked up to Christina. Most people did. Her mom was a six-foot-tall model.

"And my dating record, as you all mercilessly pointed out, is limited. But Emma and Xander each have dated many, many people," Ravi said. He would be envious of that fact if he didn't care for his best friend and older sister so much. "They are more suited to the task."

Xander and Emma narrowed their eyes at each other. "How many people have you dated?" They asked each other simultaneously.

"You answer first."

"No way. I know that trap. You answer first."

Tiffany interrupted the couple by saying, "Emma and Xander don't read any books. They're not going to know any good stories."

"Hey! Not nice," Emma retorted. She motioned to cross her arms, but Xander stopped her from ruining her nails.

"But not wrong," Xander reasoned.

Emma blew out a breath, but agreed. "Yeah, that's fair." She scooted closer to the wall so Xander could sit beside her against his headboard. He leaned his head on her shoulder and hooked his arm around her elbow. "Tell the story, Ravi."

Ravi caved. "Very well. Let me think."

He tapped a finger to his chin and glanced out the window. There was a gray hue to everything outside as the rain continued to pour. He looked at Lou beside him. Her eyes were bright with expectation. It was a stark contrast to the darkness outside. She was less than an arm's length away from him. They had sat this comfortably close before and, in those moments, he wondered if she had ever noticed him as more than Emma's younger brother.

"Alright, I know the perfect story," he said as he held eye contact with Lou. She smiled at him, completely oblivious to the affection in his eyes.

"Then tell us already," Jorge said impatiently as he dug for a bag in his pocket.

Ravi cleared his throat and focused his attention on the campers seated in front of him. He began to tell them the story.

"This is the story of Love and Light..."

In a world, much like our own, there was a village where the sky was always blue and there was always light to shine. The shine would inspire the birds to sing in harmony, the clouds to drift in peace, and the people to dance happily in the streets. In the middle of the village stood a library, where all the knowledge of the world was stored. And on the steps of that library sat the guardians of the village, Love and Light.

"Wait, Love and Light were the guardians?" Griff asked. He scrunched his nose. "I'm already not going to like this story."

Tiffany nudged him with her elbow and told him to shush. Ravi continued the story:

Love adored Light. Love spoke kindly and encouragingly to Light from dawn until dusk. That's why the villagers were so happy during the bright daytime. And when Love was apart from Light, Love would long for Light. That's why the villagers were so drowsy in the evening. Their anticipation for the daytime would tire them out until they fell fast to sleep at night. One day, Love was late to meet Light on the steps of the library. Light waited patiently. Finally Love arrived, but decided to surprise Light by sneaking onto the steps. However, Love noticed that Light was shining brighter than ever. It was the most beautiful shine that Love had ever seen. Did Light shine brighter because Love wasn't there? Love sat on the steps with Light and spoke kindly and encouragingly but didn't mention Light's shine. Over and over, Love showed up to the library steps late and watched Light shine brightest when alone on the steps. Love, as painful as it was to accept, decided that in order for Light to shine brightest, Love would have to go away. And so, Love went away.

"Way to just quit your job," Tiffany interrupted. "Isn't Love supposed to guard the villagers? What a flake."

"Shush," Griff said in a high-pitched voice as he nudged her with his elbow and grinned.

"Stop, Griff," Tiffany giggled. Zuri raised an eyebrow at her and the giggles stopped. To kill the fluttering of butterflies in her stomach, Tiffany smacked Griff on the arm. "Pay attention to the story, Griff."

Griff shrugged and turned his attention back to Ravi, waiting for him to continue with the story.

Jorge tossed a red candy at Griff and said, "Leave my woman alone."

"What did I do?" Griff frowned.

Tiffany picked up the red piece of candy as it rolled across the floor. She threw it back at Jorge and said, "You and I are never ever, ever going to happen, Jorge."

"When did you get candy?" Zuri asked Jorge, who was munching on multicolored candies from a little baggie in his hand.

"Found um," Jorge said, still munching. "They're pretty good."

"Ew," Zuri said. She scrunched her nose and leaned away from him, but she still held out her palm. He shook some into her hand. "Ooh, make sure I get a green one," she added.

"I want some," Xander said, about to lean forward.

Emma stretched her arm out in front of him and said, "No he doesn't." She looked at her brother. "Go ahead and continue, Ravi."

Light hadn't realized what Love had done. So, Light continued to wait on the steps for Love to arrive. At first, the longer that Light waited for Love, the brighter Light shone. The birds' song was the most inspiring it had ever been. The clouds drifted dreamily and in patterns that dressed the sky. In the streets, people danced and cheered in celebration of the beauty of each day. But as the days came and went, Love never returned to Love's place beside Light on the library steps. Broken by the realization that Love would never return, Light grew dimmer and dimmer on the steps until there was no longer shine. Darkness hung over the village and sorrow manifested into rain that poured heavily from the gray sky. The birds' song ceased. The clouds contorted themselves into fearsome figures that grumbled in the sky. People huddled indoors, leaving the streets empty and Light more lonely.

The story of Love and Light can be summed up like this: Love figured that in order to truly love Light, Love needed to let Light go. That way Light could shine brightest. But what Love didn't know was this: Light only shone so bright in anticipation of Love's arrival. When Light gave up on Love returning, Light dimmed. And the skies were grey without Light and there was no Light without Love.

"The end," Ravi concluded. He clapped his hands and smiled at the group, hopeful that they had enjoyed the story as much as he had.

"Gee, way to bring the mood down, Ravi," Emma said. She blew on her nails and admired Xander's work. "And I thought the storm outside was depressing."

"Yeah, that was stupid," Zuri said. She dusted the sugary crumbs off her hands and then wiped her palms on Jorge's sleeve.

"Come on, guys," Lou said. She rested her hand on Ravi's shoulder. "I thought it was tragically romantic."

"Thank you, Lou," Ravi said as he stuck his nose in the air. "Someone with manners. How refreshing."

"It was tragically stupid," Griff said. "Love should've just talked to Light. Aren't they supposed to be guardians or adults or something?"

"Which is why kids will always be smarter than adults," Tiffany said. Her stomach rumbled. She hadn't eaten since breakfast and that had been hours ago. From the corner of her eye, she could see Jorge waving his bag of mystery candy at her. She ignored him.

Jorge shrugged and said, "I thought it was alright." He rested his chin in the palm of his hands and asked the group, "Who do you think would be Light? Emma or Xander?"

"I wouldn't want to be in that story," Emma said as she stretched. Xander sat up and wrapped his arm around her shoulders. "The library steps here are gross," she said. "Oh! Can I be the guardian of the Champs Elysees in Paris?"

Zuri held back a chuckle and shook her head. It amused her how her older sister could always slide shopping into any situation. She looked over at Tiffany and could tell that her best friend was thinking the same thing about Emma.

"Paris sounds cool," Xander grinned. "And could I be Music instead of Light?"

Emma nodded. "Oh yeah, that's much better to dance to."

Tiffany rolled her eyes and said, "No, the story was way too deep for those two."

Tiffany was sure that she didn't know anything about love. She was only thirteen. But she was sure Xander and Emma were more a modern fairytale than classic tragedy. She looked around the room at her friends. She didn't want Zuri to be light. Not because her best friend didn't have the sunniest of dispositions. She didn't. Zuri could be tough to get along with, but so could Tiffany, which made them perfect friends. But if Tiffany suggested Zuri as Light, she was afraid someone would suggest Griff as Love.

She looked over at Lou seated at the window in front of her. Her mind went straight to the word guardian and she couldn't think of a better guardian than her favorite counselor. Tiffany glanced at Ravi and frowned. Now that he was officially a counselor too, he and Lou were tied for her favorite counselor. Lou was like an older sister to her. Ravi was like an older brother to her. Tiffany watched Lou sneak a glance at Ravi. Tiffany winced when she saw the way Lou's eyes lit up.

"What about Lou!" Tiffany exclaimed. "Lou's like Light."

Lou blinked at the sound of her name. She realized she still had her hand resting on Ravi's shoulder. She let out an awkward laugh as she removed her hand. "Sorry," she stammered.

"It's fine," he said quickly. He scratched his shoulder where her hand had been.

Lou refocused her attention to Tiffany, pointed at herself, and asked, "Me?"

"Good one, Tiff," Zuri agreed. "Lou's light for sure. She's got a bright personality and everything. Plus, she's got a greater chance at being at the library than Emma does."

"I've got better things to do in Paris than be at the library," Emma scoffed.

Emma thought over Zuri's words about her best friend. To her, Lou was the most honest and caring person that she had known, with the exception of Xander. She and the Woodchuck counselor had been instant friends. She wanted her friend to have an epic love story. It was preferable that it not be tragic, but the current conversation was just for fun, she reasoned.

"You're right, Zuri. Stop smirking; I'm not talking about the library burn. I'm talking about Lou. Bestie, you should totally be light," Emma said.

"But then