Cameron

It was going to be a wild night. A strong wind blew straight in from the sea and heavy rain lashed the town. They were protected from southerly storms by the steep hill rearing behind the town, but when it came from the north, as now, the full force of the wind blasted them.

Thunder rolled, lightning flashed and the television went off the air. That was no great loss, the programmes were crap anyway. Gabriel turned the PC off and pulled the plugs out before that blew-up too. That had happened before, not to him but he'd heard of it and didn't want to lose his PC.

He was home alone again, which was not unusual, he often was. His Dad and Garth should've been home today but they weren't and they wouldn't be back now, they'd be staying well out to sea to ride the storm out. He wasn't worried about them, they were experienced fishermen and they knew what they were doing, but he was sure glad that he wasn't out there with them – he'd be spewing his guts out and that's not fun. It was much better to be on 'dry' land, tucked-up warm and cosy in his home, even if he was alone again.

He turned the lights off and sat by the lounge window to watch the pyrotechnics out at sea. It was something to do and, hey, you take what entertainment you can get. It was pretty cool sitting inside, warm and dry and watching the lightning flashes and the crap weather out there. Nice to be not out in it.

Someone was; a solitary figure came along the sidewalk between the road and the beach-front sea-wall. He was hunched over and getting blown about and thoroughly wet. That wouldn't be fun either. He had no coat or jacket on, of course. He was a teenager and coats are not cool. Dork!

No, that wasn't right. That was Cameron Black out there and he was not a dork, he was a very cool kid, the coolest kid in town.

Cameron was not a friend of Gabriel's. He'd always, kind-of, wished that he was, but he wasn't. Gabriel had no friends at all really. Cameron did, he had heaps of friends because he was cool. Gabriel was not.

Sitting there, watching him, he was thinking that he'd be more than cool now, he'd be friggin' freezing out there! What was he doing out there in the rain, and the dark, and all alone? That wasn't like him. Usually he was with friends and especially with his girlfriend, the gorgeous Ellie Thompson, the hottest girl in town. He didn't look happy now, he looked a picture of misery. That wasn't like him either, he was a happy kid, usually, and why wouldn't he be? He had everything going for him, unlike some people. For once in his life, Gabriel was glad that he wasn't him.

Cameron stopped under the streetlight, at the gap in the stone-wall, looking down the steps to the beach. He surely wasn't going to go down there in that weather, was he? He was, he did. He disappeared into the darkness below the road

Gabriel was glad that he wasn't with him. It'd be horrible out on the wet and stony beach. There was no shelter at all out there. Well, he wouldn't be there for long; no-one in their right mind would be on the beach in this weather. Gabriel sat waiting and watching. He was curious and he couldn't imagine why anyone would be down there, especially not the very cool Cameron Black. The very wet and cold Cameron Black he'd be right now.

He waited and waited, but the kid didn't come back. Damm. He'd be freezing his nuts off out there!

Was he wanting to die or something? Exposure to weather like that can kill you, he knew that, his Dad and Garth had told him often enough. Their other home was up in the high-country and the weather got pretty rough up there. Not a lot worse than this though, it was awful out there. What was he doing?

Finally, he couldn't wait anymore, he was getting worried and he had to know, so he got up and went out into the rain. He was going over to see what he was doing out there. He went out by the back-door, up the drive at the side of the house and out into the full force of the weather. Damm!

He retreated to the shelter by the house, and then went back to grab a coat from by the back-door. It might not be cool, but he wasn't going out in that without one. To hell with that! Not nice out there.

In the shadows by the door, the coat he grabbed was, of course, the biggest one there. It was a big old thing of his father's. On Gabriel it was like a tent. Whatever. It would keep him dry and that was all that mattered. Who cared what it looked like?

It all-but covered his feet. Maybe it was made for King Kong, or something? Folding the flapping thing around him, he went out to the street and across to the seafront.

There was quite a lot of light from the streetlights up on the road, but down on the beach it was as black as, well - night. He could see the crests of the thrashing white-capped waves and not much else. The wind was even stronger out there, there was no shelter at all.

He so did not want to do this. Why had he left his warm house? Whatever - he was here now and he wanted to know what Cameron was doing. It wouldn't take long and then he could go home. He went down the steps to the beach. Cold, dark, wet and windy. He stood on the beach and waited for his eyes to adjust to what light there was. The rain in his face wasn't helping. A flash of lightning lit-up the scene and, yes! There he was.

Cameron was just sitting there, on the bank of stones above the water-line, getting wet. What was he doing? Not a lot, obviously. But why was he there? Gabriel walked closer, leaning into the wind. Cameron was as still as a statue. He didn't even look up as Gabriel approached and stood next to him. He stood looking down at him, as best he could, and then he moved in front to stand with his back to the wind, the coat flapping around him. He still didn't move.

The coat pooled around him as he sank down for a closer look. It really was like a tent. He opened it out, sideways, by spreading his bent elbows to form a make-shift wind-break. Big eyes looked at him.

Did this kid want to die or something? Gabriel had just finished reading a book about George Fairweather Moonlight. He was an expert explorer and prospector, back in the gold-rush days. Born in Scotland, 'Captain' Moonlight had spent his life out in the wilderness. He discovered gold fields in California and in Otago and on the West Coast of NZ's South Island. He was only 56 when he died. His businesses were failing so he went out prospecting again and died of exposure, over by Hope in the Nelson District.

Exposure kills. It'd be way too tragic if that happened to Cameron Black.

"Hi," Gabriel smiled wetly. "You've got a great night for it."

"Yeah, I guess," the kid shrugged with not a trace of a smile. He was a picture of misery.

Gabriel looked intently at him and he made a decision. It was not like him to get involved with anyone, but he couldn't leave Cameron here like this. He got back to his feet and offered a hand.

"Come on," he said. "Come with me."

"With you?" Cameron looked up.

"Yes, with me. My house is just back over the road there. It's warm and dry and there's nobody at home. This is bloody murder here. Come with me."

"Well . . I, yeah, okay. Why not?" He took hold of Gabriel's hand and pulled himself up.