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The day had been great, so Eli had high hopes for the night as well. First was the mini road trip, hitting up a beach a little farther away from home than usual - what was the point in a camping trip if you were still in your own backyard after all? Eli had always liked being in the car, it always felt intimate in the enclosed space. With friends it was close, cozy, and casual and comforting way. All there was to do was talk to each other, sing along with the music, and feel the road go by under the wheels... and it was awesome. Naturally Eli had called shotgun, and when he wasn't dozing against the warm window with a dopey little smile on his face he was twisting around to chat with everyone in the back seats.

Second was the actual beach. Eli wasn't a connoisseur of beaches like Conner, so he couldn't say if this one was better or worse than any other. What mattered was there was plenty of sun and sand, and hardly any of those little shells that cut one's foot while they walked. Eli had parked himself on a towel, threw a second one over himself, and had been content to bake low and slow at 87 degrees; until being all but pulled into the water. 

Third, and most importantly, was the company. The five guys he was with were probably Eli's best friends in the world. He'd gotten to know them all at different times and in different ways, and it was practically a miracle that they all meshed together they way they did, but it worked and it worked well. Eli was ecstatic that even Ciel had agreed to come along, so the entire crew was together! 

Eli might have been the only one among them that didn't angst over what the future held for them all at that moment. He was simply basking in a fun day with friends, and the anticipation of a fun night. 

[color=F7630C]"Dang, prepared as usual Gray,"[/color] he said, grinning at the other boy. [color=F7630C]"I thought we'd have to salvage driftwood and skin a palm tree! Lemme know if you need a hand?"[/color]

Though it probably wasn't wise to let Eli set up a [i]safe[/i] fire pit, he could at least help out. He did know his way around a tent though, so he made short work of setting their shelters up by chipping in with Noah and Conner. After that he gladly took Noah up on his suggestion, finding his way over the boy's bag to help himself to the stash. It was hardly his first time drinking, and it wasn't the only rule he usually broke. He cracked open the can, but ended up laughing aloud at Conner's reaction and subsequent outburst. 

[color=F7630C]"Hell yeah dude,"[/color] he laughed, raising his beer in a toast. From what he'd heard of Conner's family, his parents sounded like real hardasses. Eli's own mother probably wouldn't care much - honestly she probably expected it when he told her about the camping trip. She was one of those "as long as you're safe when you do it" kind of moms. 

When he actually brought the can to his lips, Eli glanced up at the darkening sky. It was the middle of summer, so it was about the right time for shooting stars as Conner had said. What were they called again? Per... something? Something about Perseus. 

[color=F7630C]"Oh yeah, so the meteor shower,"[/color] he began, waving a hand to draw everyone's attention. Then he pointed up at the sunset colored canvas above them. [color=F7630C]"Pretty sure you're supposed to look at that constellation with the three bright stars in a line. Y'know, the belt one? That's the best place to look to see the most of them."[/color]