#i'm imagining this has to be because minkowski already had a trip planned but whoever she usually goes with (lovelace?) had to cancel

[commsroom]

i want eiffel and minkowski to go camping together so bad, like i know minkowski loves camping. eiffel loves the idea of saying he's going camping. eiffel loves the romanticized pop culture version of camping he imagines in his brain, where he gets to listen to music by the fire and eat smores. eiffel wants to feel like a rugged outdoorsman but, like, with access to modern comforts.

minkowski is actually outdoorsy and likes some challenge, so to her "camping" means long hikes and roughing it as off-the-grid as she can justify. eiffel cannot be taken off grid. eiffel's favorite outdoor hobby is handing someone one of his handmade walkie talkies and being like, okay, stay here, i'm going to drive in that direction and see how far i can radio you from. eiffel is out there building stuff out of their camping equipment to see if he can pick up signals. but when he's actually supposed to set up his tent, he can not do it. maybe he lost some of the parts along the way, but he keeps making it worse, and even minkowski can't salvage it. then it starts pouring rain on them, because of course it does.

eiffel sleeps in the truck and cramps his neck up so badly, and when he wakes up minkowski gives him black coffee and trail mix for breakfast and he looks at it so despondently that she's like ugh, fine, nevermind. and they give up and get breakfast at denny's and go home. and eiffel is like oh thank god, hot water, indoor plumbing, my own bed, i'll never take this for granted again <- guy who spent literally one night in the woods, and also years stranded in space.