Chapter Text
“Bye, everyone! I’ll miss you!” you shouted, jogging alongside the yellow bus. You slowed to a halt after a moment, and soon the kids you’d gotten to know and love over the summer were lost among the evergreens.
The voices of your fellow counselors rang out behind you.
“Bye!”
“Laters!”
“Peace and love!”
“See ya later, kids!”
“Yeah! Hackett’s Quarry forever!”
There was no way any of the kids had heard your guys’ farewells, but it was a nice sentiment nonetheless. With a sad smile, you turned around and trekked back up the dirt road to the lodge. You wore your favorite outfit (that was suitable for the forest) with a beaded necklace one of your campers had made for you in celebration of completing the summer.
"Guess this means no more little gremlins running around,” Emma said as you passed her. She crossed her arms over her turtleneck sweater as she spoke, but there was a hint of sadness to her words.
“Afraid so,” you said. You fell in beside her on your way to the steps of the lodge where Kaitlyn and Jacob were chatting. They paused their suspiciously hushed conversation to greet you.
“Hey guys,” Kaitlyn said. She glanced from Jacob to Emma with a knowing smirk, so it wasn’t hard to guess what they had been talking about. You pretended to be none the wiser and gave a friendly wave to them on your way up the steps, leaving Emma to get roped into their chitchat. You made your way to the side door which led to one of the designated counselor bedrooms, hoping to find packed bags and tidy beds. Instead, however, you found Dylan and Nick lounging around inside; clothes were strewn across the room and the bags sat empty.
“What are you doing?” you asked.
“...Packing,” Dylan replied innocently. You gazed around the room, unimpressed.
“That’s not what it looks like to me,” you said. “C’mon guys, get a move on. I don’t know about you but I want to get out of here as soon as I can. I love camp, but god I miss my own bed back home.”
Nick sighed and rolled off the bed to his feet. He dutifully began scooping his belongings off the floor while Dylan went back to flipping through his book. You crossed your arms and gave him a pointed look.
“Ughh fine ,” Dylan groaned after he couldn’t keep pretending to ignore you. “But only because I know you won’t leave until I do as you say.”
“You know me too well, Dylan,” you said, rolling your eyes.
He slowly got to his feet and leaned a hand against the wall. “Do I? I think we could still get to know each other bet-”
Before he could finish you pushed him away, causing him to stumble and fall onto the bed. Nick couldn’t hide his laugh as you heaved a sigh.
“Do you think we’ll ever see each other again?” the Aussie asked. He paused with a lone sock in hand to look from you to Dylan.
Dylan sat up and nudged Nick with his foot. “Of course we will! I know you guys couldn’t stand to be away from this guy.” He jabbed a thumb at himself for emphasis.
You shared a look with Nick and you both laughed.
“Mmhmm. Right. Well, you better get a move on so I can get away from 'this guy' ASAP,” you said. Not waiting for a response, you slipped out the door and back down the porch steps. Figuring everyone else could handle themselves, you went to help out in the camper cabins.
After a quick but scenic jog along the trail, you found yourself facing the semi-circle of wooden cabins. Memories of kids playing tag, frisbee, and hide-and-seek in the clearing filled your mind as you approached the nearest cabin. Abi sat on the steps, pine needles clinging to her dyed hair, while Emma stood facing the door.
“Door’s locked. Bags inside,” Abi said as you approached.
“Fuuuck me,” Emma groaned in annoyance. She tried jiggling the door handle while pounding the door with her other hand to no avail.
You hopped up the steps around Abi and stood beside Emma. “Shit. What are we supposed to do?”
“Well, it’s obvious what we have to do here,” Emma said.
“Find someone with a key?” Abi asked.
“Shape our destiny.” Emma’s expression was stoic as she looked back at the cabin. “And by shape our destiny I mean shape our way through this crappy lock and grab our bags.”
She waited for your and Abi’s responses, though you figured no matter what you said she’d probably do it anyway. You met Abi’s eyes and shrugged.
“Okay. Let’s do it,” Abi said with a sigh. “But we’d better not get in trouble.”
Emma smiled with a glint in her eye. “I won’t tell if you won’t tell.”
“Mr. Hackett’s gonna find out-!”
“No one’ll find out… that it was us anyway. And if they do, we can always blame Jacob or Dylan,” you said.
“Or a bear or something,” Emma added.
Abi frowned at both of you. “Have you ever seen a bear in these woods?”
“No… but that doesn’t mean they’re not out there,” Emma said.
“Fair point.”
Abi’s eyebrows stayed knit together but since it seemed two against one, she decided against protesting. She crossed her arms and stepped up behind you on the porch. You glanced at Emma and copied her stance, placing your hands against the door beside her.
“Alright. Let’s do this. On three,” she said, nodding at you. “One! Two! Three..!”
You shoved against the door as hard as you could - so hard in fact, that the door came completely off its hinges. You and Emma let out grunts as you followed the door right up against the wooden floor.
“Are you okay?” Abi asked. You mustered a laugh as you took her hand offering to help you to your feet.
“All about the power of positive thinking,” Emma said as she sprang back up.
Abi rolled her eyes at Emma. “Why do I ever listen to you?”
“Because I’m always right?”
“Are you sure they’re gonna think it was a bear?” Abi directed her question more at you.
‘No,’ you mouthed to Abi, fighting back a smile.
“Oh my God, relax, it’s not like we killed someone,” Emma said as she grabbed the bags. “I don’t think I can- achoo! - stand this dust any longer. I’ll meet you guys at the cart.”
“Alright… Well, I’m just gonna take another look around, make sure we didn’t miss anything,” Abi called to her. She turned to you expectantly. Deciding to poke around the cabin with Abi for a bit, you bid Emma farewell and moved on to inspect under the beds.
“Aw, this was little Izzy’s,” Abi said after a minute. You looked over at the little rabbit plushie she held in her hands.
“Oh no! Too bad she left that here; I know how much that goofball loves her stuffies,” you said. “She made me memorize the full names of every single plushie she brought with her. I believe that one was… Mrs. Fluffypants the fifth. Clearly, that toy comes from a long line of important bunny rabbits.”
Abi shook her head in affection. “Let’s get you back to Izzy,” she murmured as she tucked the toy into her bag.
You turned your attention to the back of the cabin. Something behind one of the bunks caught your eye - a burnt newspaper scrap. Your eyes traveled across the paper curiously. It was an old edition of the North Kill Gazette titled, ‘Freak Show Goes Up In Flames.’
“What’s that?” Abi said.
You shrugged and handed the scrap to her. “Something about a fire.”
“Hmm. Why would this place be in the news?” Abi handed it back to you. You didn’t know why either; had it happened near Hackett’s Quarry? You set it back down and after another minute you both moved on to look around outside the cabins. You and Abi strolled around the clearing, reminiscing about your summer at camp together.
“It’s gonna be weird not waking up to Dylan’s morning announcements,” Abi said after peeking through the window of the radio shack.
“Yeah, I guess you’re right. I’ll definitely miss starting my day to the sound of that dumb camp jingle he’d sing as well,” you said with a snort. Abi giggled.
“The swing!” you turned around and gasped. “Ha! I can finally get my turn on it undisturbed.” You ran over and plopped onto the homemade swing before using your feet to lightly push yourself back and forth. Since it was made for the kids, your toes easily reached the dirt. Abi followed you, laughing good-naturedly. She inspected a carving in the bark of the tree to which the swing was attached to. It read ‘ JACOB + EMMA 4 EVER ’ with a heart, but the ‘ever’ was crossed off and replaced with ‘ SUMMER. ’
“Ouch. Hope Jacob hasn’t seen this,” Abi muttered. She moved on to grab a small, dirty-looking vial from inside a hole in the tree. She suddenly recoiled at the scent of it. “What is that? Is it Dylan’s?”
“What, does he have a secret stash of booze or something?” you asked. Abi handed you the vial, her face contorted with disgust. After giving it a hesitant sniff, you shook your head to rid your nose of the scent; iron lingered in your mouth and you fought the urge to wipe the taste from your tongue long after you put it back in the tree.
You both decided you should probably not keep Emma waiting any longer, so the two of you made your way to the main trail. Emma was leaning against a forest cart she had thrown the bags in, inspecting her nails.
“Ready to roll?” Emma said as you approached.
“Let’s do it,” Abi replied.
“Finally!” Emma said, throwing her hands up. She hopped into the passenger seat and Abi followed suit, taking the wheel. After a pause, you jumped onto the back of the cart, facing backward toward the cabins.
“I’m all set!” you said over your shoulder as Abi started the engine.
Emma cheered. “Time to let loose and vamoose this caboose!”
You laughed and tilted your head to gaze at the treetops. Warm daylight shone through the conifers, highlighting the greenery surrounding you. You recalled the hikes you had taken groups of campers on with a twinge of sadness. You were gonna miss this place for sure.
“How are you so…” Abi was saying to Emma. Her voice brought you back from your thoughts.
“...Dramatic?” Emma guessed.
“Annoying,” Abi finished. “Confident.
“Eh… it’s just acting. It’s what the people want.”
“So you’re faking it?”
“I mean, in a way… ‘faking it’ is just being yourself… but louder.” Emma glanced at Abi as she talked. “You should try it sometime - you never know who you might impress.”
Abi shook her head. “Nah… it’s too late now anyway.”
“For what? You and Nick? You’ll never know unless you put yourself out there.”
You gazed over your shoulder curiously and spoke up. “Actually, Emma’s right, Abi. Acting more confident than you feel will trick others into thinking it’s real. And then, you might even convince yourself of it. Trust me, I know from experience-”
Suddenly the cart jerked to your left and you gasped. You clung to the cart for dear life; today was not going to be the day you fell from a moving vehicle.
“Woah, woah, woah! Nice steerin’, Tex!” Emma said with a laugh. Evidently, Abi had swerved to avoid something in the road.
“Jinkies. Sorry ‘bout that!” Abi said sheepishly. “You alright back there?”
“Something like that,” you replied, straightening yourself.
After a few moments of riding in silence, Abi spoke again. “Okay, so hypothetically… if I were to ‘put myself out there…’ what if he just ends up being a dud? Kind of like you and Jacob, Emma.”
“Jacob? Well… he’s actually really sweet,” Emma said, failing to hide the fondness in her voice.
“Then why’d you quit it?” Abi asked her.
“Summer fling!” Emma said. “We’re going to school like four states away. I- He gets it.”
“Yeah, sure,” Abi said lightly.
“But, that’s us. You and Nick… could be different. Why don’t you get his handle? Hit him up,” Emma continued.
“Oh, I already have his email. It’s in the packet they gave to us on the first day.”
“Email? Are you ninety-three?”
“What’s wrong with email?”
You couldn’t help but laugh at that.
“See, Abi? I’m not the only one who thinks that ridiculous,” Emma said, throwing a smile at you.
You twisted around to look at them both. “Sorry Abi, Emma’s right. This is your last chance! Just casually ask for his number or Instagram or something, and if he’s disgusted by the very idea then I’ll beat him up for you.”
You all shared a round of laughs at that.
“I’m really gonna miss you guys,” Emma said after a moment. Abi smiled at her and you opened your mouth in slight surprise; sure, you and Emma had bonded over the antics the campers would get up to, but you hadn’t realized she actually considered you a friend.
“Oh! Hold up,” Emma said, grabbing Abi gently as the cart reached a split in the road.
Abi gestured to her left in confusion. “Oh, but the lodge is that way…”
“Go right here,” Emma said.
“Hey, yeah. I’d enjoy a scenic route,” you agreed.
“Mhmm, exactly. One last victory route around camp.” Emma looked at Abi expectantly. Abi shrugged and gave in.
The minutes passed with light chit-chat. You closed your eyes, spacing out from the conversation. The warm August breeze brushed against your skin and carried with it the smell of the lake up the shore. The air was fresh, sharp, and earthy, like driftwood and pebbles. Faint quacks and honks from the wildlife drifted to your ears, audible only when you tuned out the cart’s wheels against the dirt. The tranquility was broken when Emma pointed out the smoke which billowed from the island in the lake
“Hmm… it looks pretty contained. It’s probably just Mr. H burning some stuff before, you know, he closes camp for the summer,” she said.
You squinted at the thin line of smoke partially hidden among the trees on the island. “Yeah… I feel like if it was a problem, we’d probably see more… destruction or something.”
“Speaking of which… we should- we should probably, you know, get back,” Abi said.
Emma smirked. “Oh yeah. Worried Nick’s… y’know… gonna leave without you?”
“Well, no, they’re probably, like, all waiting for us,” Abi said with a frown. You raised an eyebrow at that. More than likely, even with all of your guys’ poking around, you’d still be ready to go before Dylan and Nick. If those two were still lounging around instead of being helpful, you were definitely going to have some… choice words with them, and you certainly weren’t afraid to drag anyone’s asses around.