It was a major summer storm, brought on suddenly and without warning, causing everyone to gather all the kids into the main hall for the night, or at least until it seemed safe enough to send them back to their respective cabins. As the kids piled in and took seats on the floor wherever, Charlie and Ryan were sitting at a nearby table.
"This happened a lot in my summer camps, but, I went to summer camps in Kansas and you have a pretty good chance of the weather killing you there at any given time or the year," Ryan said, making Charlie giggle.
"The only times I ever had to be in the main hall at any camp I went to was when it was a mandatory thing or for eating," Charlie said, "I never wanted to spend time around adults."
"You still don't."
"Well, true, yes," Charlie said, "But at least they pay me to."
"Wait, you're getting paid?" Ryan asked, smirking, and making her laugh
A little bit in the back corner of the hall was Aimee, Ella and Gilly seated together in a small circle, not saying a word, just passing the time in the hall. Gilly was adjusting the lighting on the lantern that each group had been given, and she was trying to get it just so. Aimee sighed and pushed her curly bangs out of her eyes as she glanced around at everyone.
"I hate this, I wanna just sleep in my own bunk," Amiee said, as Ella shrugged.
"I mean, I'm not too happy about it either, but we don't have a choice until they tell us we can go back to the cabins," Ella said.
"This is the best kind of thing to happen at camp!" Gilly said excitedly, "Like, we can do so many things, like tell secrets or play 20 questions or have scary stories told!"
"It's late at night, I don't really feel like participating in slumber party games," Aimee said, making the giddiness on Gillys face slump a bit, until she looked at Ella and started smiling again.
"Ella, tell me something you've never told anyone else," Gilly said, and Ella twirled some hair around her finger, thinking.
"I guess, like, when I was in 3rd grade, I didn't like this girl because she made fun of how I dressed, and so one day during art, I walked by her chair and snipped some of her hair off. I never confessed, and now I feel really bad about it, but-"
"Hey, that's what she gets for being mean," Aimee interrupted, pulling her knees to her chest, wrapping her arms around them.
"Well, no, you shouldn't be mean back just because someone is mean to you," Ella replied, "Ya know, like, two wrongs don't make a right sorta thing? Anyway, I never told anyone about it but she was so upset. I think she thought it was me, but nobody saw me do it, so nobody could prove it was me."
"I actually think Amiee is right," Gilly said, making them both a bit surprised, "I mean, Ella is right too, just because someone is mean doesn't mean you should sink to their level, but hey, karma, right? She gave out bad energy and it came back at her worse."
Just then, they heard someone plop down beside them, and Ella noticed it was Rachel. She was in a nice, sleek, black robe, her hair back in a ponytail, chewing on some licorice.
"What're we talking about?" she asked.
"Being mean, and whether it's justifiable," Amiee said.
"Hmmm," Rachel said, "It really depends, honestly. I mean, defending yourself can be seen as being mean, but you're just doing what you think is right for you. I don't know, I'm tired, I'm probably not making a whole lotta sense."
"I need to pee," Amiee said.
"Oh!" Gilly said, hopping up, "We can go use the outhouse! It's right out back, basically attached to the main hall! I'll take you!"
Gilly grabbed Amiee's arm and started to tug her off towards it, as Rachel handed Ella a piece of licorice.
"Oh...um, okay, thank you," Ella said, taking it and chewing gently, "Um...I like your earrings."
"Oh, thanks," Rachel said, pushing her hair back to reveal cute little kitty earrings, "I begged my mom to let me get my ears pierced for my last birthday and she finally let me do it. I was so happy, oh my god. It kinda stings at first and you have to use this gross watery stuff to keep it clean, but, whatever, it's worth it."
"My mom won't let me pierce my ears," Ella said, "She said maybe when I'm 14. I don't know why she doesn't let me do it, I mean it's not like she might even be..." Ella stopped herself, tears forming on her eyes, afraid to go on, "...she might not even be alive when I'm 14. Why wouldn't she want me to do that now, so she could see it."
"Sometimes, by like, keeping things static, people feel like the world won't change after they're gone," Rachel said, surprising Ella as she continued, "That's how my dad put it anyway. When my grandma got sick, my grandpa didn't do a single thing differently. He lived every day like they'd lived every day together their whole lives, because by keeping that same routine, I don't know, I guess it helps the dying person feel like the world won't be that different, and they won't miss that much, or something."
Ella wiped her eyes and nodded, chewing on the licorice a bit more, watching Rachel as she glanced around the inside of the main hall at all the other girls in groups. Rachel sighed and twisted some of her hair around her finger, licorice hanging out of her lips.
"Camp is the only place I can talk to other people," she finally said, "At school, it's not the same...thanks for being my friend, Ella."
That smile. That slight smirky smile, that same smile that caught Ella's eyes when they first met...her soft pink lips, the sort of pink Ella didn't know lips could naturally be, that pastel pink, and her long curved eyelashes. Everything about Rachel made Ella's heartbeat faster, made her chest tight, made her skin goosebump. All she could do was nod, and say "You're welcome."
Meanwhile, Gilly was standing outside of the outhouse, waiting for Aimee to finish.
"I wish I brought my telescope!" Gilly said, "The stars look really cool! I meant to bring it, but I forgot!"
"I'm standing right here," Aimee said, coming out and wiping her hands.
"Oh, heh, sorry," Gilly said, "Do you like stars?"
"I mean, I guess?"
"I've got those sticky ones on my ceiling at home, the ones that light up in the dark, you know? When I was little, my dad would take me into the backyard and teach me the constellations, and-"
"Gilly, I don't really care," Aimee said, stopping Gilly in her tracks, "I'm sorry, I just...I don't wanna hear about your amazing dad who teaches you about stars, okay, cause...cause it's not fair that you have that and I don't."
"You think my parents love me?" Gilly asked, her voice flat, taking Aimee by surprise, "You think everything at home is just magical for Ramona Gilly don't you? Oh yeah, look how happy she is! Look how bubbly she is! You know what you are? You're just a mean person. I've tried to be nice to you the entire time we've been here, and really, our home lives probably aren't much different, okay? You're not the only kid who's allowed to be unhappy, alright? God. I'm sorry for being your friend, I'll stop."
Gilly turned, arms crossed, and stormed off back into the main hall. As she passed through the crowd, she felt a hand on her shoulder and stopped to see Keegan standing there.
"Hey," she said, "Are you ok?"
"...I'm never okay," Gilly said, almost in tears, "I need...I need to talk to someone."
"I'm here, you can talk to me," Keegan said, smiling.
"No, I mean, I appreciate that, but no, you're not who I need to talk to," Gilly said, "Thank you though."
Gilly continued heading through the main hall, until she found Ella alone again. Gilly stood there over her, looking down, until Ella glanced up at her.
"Where's Aimee?" she asked.
"Where's Rachel?" Gilly asked.
"She went to talk to a friend," Ella said, "Are you okay?"
Gilly continued walking, but Ella stood up and followed her out of the main hall, into the stormy winds. Rain was starting to come down hard as Gilly stood out there, staring up at the sky. Ella cautiously joined her, getting soaked in the process, as thunder rolled overhead.
"Gilly?" she asked, "Are you sure we should be out here?"
"...I don't know what to do," Gilly said, crying, "If I try and make people like me, they don't, but they don't like real me either. Who do I have to be to make people finally like me?"
"I like you," Ella said, "And...and that's why I brought my fish, because ya know, pets...they never care who you are. They just care that you love them and feed them. I know Gordon likes you."
"Do you really like me?" Gilly asked, sniffling as Ella came to her side. Gilly turned and the girls faced one another, their hair blowing wildly in the wind.
"You're my friend," Ella said, smiling, "So yeah, I like you."
The two stood there, staring at one another for a while, until Ella finally took Gilly's hand and led her back into the main hall. Both girls had come here as loners, but despite anything else that was to come, they knew they'd always have eachothers backs.
"This happened a lot in my summer camps, but, I went to summer camps in Kansas and you have a pretty good chance of the weather killing you there at any given time or the year," Ryan said, making Charlie giggle.
"The only times I ever had to be in the main hall at any camp I went to was when it was a mandatory thing or for eating," Charlie said, "I never wanted to spend time around adults."
"You still don't."
"Well, true, yes," Charlie said, "But at least they pay me to."
"Wait, you're getting paid?" Ryan asked, smirking, and making her laugh
A little bit in the back corner of the hall was Aimee, Ella and Gilly seated together in a small circle, not saying a word, just passing the time in the hall. Gilly was adjusting the lighting on the lantern that each group had been given, and she was trying to get it just so. Aimee sighed and pushed her curly bangs out of her eyes as she glanced around at everyone.
"I hate this, I wanna just sleep in my own bunk," Amiee said, as Ella shrugged.
"I mean, I'm not too happy about it either, but we don't have a choice until they tell us we can go back to the cabins," Ella said.
"This is the best kind of thing to happen at camp!" Gilly said excitedly, "Like, we can do so many things, like tell secrets or play 20 questions or have scary stories told!"
"It's late at night, I don't really feel like participating in slumber party games," Aimee said, making the giddiness on Gillys face slump a bit, until she looked at Ella and started smiling again.
"Ella, tell me something you've never told anyone else," Gilly said, and Ella twirled some hair around her finger, thinking.
"I guess, like, when I was in 3rd grade, I didn't like this girl because she made fun of how I dressed, and so one day during art, I walked by her chair and snipped some of her hair off. I never confessed, and now I feel really bad about it, but-"
"Hey, that's what she gets for being mean," Aimee interrupted, pulling her knees to her chest, wrapping her arms around them.
"Well, no, you shouldn't be mean back just because someone is mean to you," Ella replied, "Ya know, like, two wrongs don't make a right sorta thing? Anyway, I never told anyone about it but she was so upset. I think she thought it was me, but nobody saw me do it, so nobody could prove it was me."
"I actually think Amiee is right," Gilly said, making them both a bit surprised, "I mean, Ella is right too, just because someone is mean doesn't mean you should sink to their level, but hey, karma, right? She gave out bad energy and it came back at her worse."
Just then, they heard someone plop down beside them, and Ella noticed it was Rachel. She was in a nice, sleek, black robe, her hair back in a ponytail, chewing on some licorice.
"What're we talking about?" she asked.
"Being mean, and whether it's justifiable," Amiee said.
"Hmmm," Rachel said, "It really depends, honestly. I mean, defending yourself can be seen as being mean, but you're just doing what you think is right for you. I don't know, I'm tired, I'm probably not making a whole lotta sense."
"I need to pee," Amiee said.
"Oh!" Gilly said, hopping up, "We can go use the outhouse! It's right out back, basically attached to the main hall! I'll take you!"
Gilly grabbed Amiee's arm and started to tug her off towards it, as Rachel handed Ella a piece of licorice.
"Oh...um, okay, thank you," Ella said, taking it and chewing gently, "Um...I like your earrings."
"Oh, thanks," Rachel said, pushing her hair back to reveal cute little kitty earrings, "I begged my mom to let me get my ears pierced for my last birthday and she finally let me do it. I was so happy, oh my god. It kinda stings at first and you have to use this gross watery stuff to keep it clean, but, whatever, it's worth it."
"My mom won't let me pierce my ears," Ella said, "She said maybe when I'm 14. I don't know why she doesn't let me do it, I mean it's not like she might even be..." Ella stopped herself, tears forming on her eyes, afraid to go on, "...she might not even be alive when I'm 14. Why wouldn't she want me to do that now, so she could see it."
"Sometimes, by like, keeping things static, people feel like the world won't change after they're gone," Rachel said, surprising Ella as she continued, "That's how my dad put it anyway. When my grandma got sick, my grandpa didn't do a single thing differently. He lived every day like they'd lived every day together their whole lives, because by keeping that same routine, I don't know, I guess it helps the dying person feel like the world won't be that different, and they won't miss that much, or something."
Ella wiped her eyes and nodded, chewing on the licorice a bit more, watching Rachel as she glanced around the inside of the main hall at all the other girls in groups. Rachel sighed and twisted some of her hair around her finger, licorice hanging out of her lips.
"Camp is the only place I can talk to other people," she finally said, "At school, it's not the same...thanks for being my friend, Ella."
That smile. That slight smirky smile, that same smile that caught Ella's eyes when they first met...her soft pink lips, the sort of pink Ella didn't know lips could naturally be, that pastel pink, and her long curved eyelashes. Everything about Rachel made Ella's heartbeat faster, made her chest tight, made her skin goosebump. All she could do was nod, and say "You're welcome."
Meanwhile, Gilly was standing outside of the outhouse, waiting for Aimee to finish.
"I wish I brought my telescope!" Gilly said, "The stars look really cool! I meant to bring it, but I forgot!"
"I'm standing right here," Aimee said, coming out and wiping her hands.
"Oh, heh, sorry," Gilly said, "Do you like stars?"
"I mean, I guess?"
"I've got those sticky ones on my ceiling at home, the ones that light up in the dark, you know? When I was little, my dad would take me into the backyard and teach me the constellations, and-"
"Gilly, I don't really care," Aimee said, stopping Gilly in her tracks, "I'm sorry, I just...I don't wanna hear about your amazing dad who teaches you about stars, okay, cause...cause it's not fair that you have that and I don't."
"You think my parents love me?" Gilly asked, her voice flat, taking Aimee by surprise, "You think everything at home is just magical for Ramona Gilly don't you? Oh yeah, look how happy she is! Look how bubbly she is! You know what you are? You're just a mean person. I've tried to be nice to you the entire time we've been here, and really, our home lives probably aren't much different, okay? You're not the only kid who's allowed to be unhappy, alright? God. I'm sorry for being your friend, I'll stop."
Gilly turned, arms crossed, and stormed off back into the main hall. As she passed through the crowd, she felt a hand on her shoulder and stopped to see Keegan standing there.
"Hey," she said, "Are you ok?"
"...I'm never okay," Gilly said, almost in tears, "I need...I need to talk to someone."
"I'm here, you can talk to me," Keegan said, smiling.
"No, I mean, I appreciate that, but no, you're not who I need to talk to," Gilly said, "Thank you though."
Gilly continued heading through the main hall, until she found Ella alone again. Gilly stood there over her, looking down, until Ella glanced up at her.
"Where's Aimee?" she asked.
"Where's Rachel?" Gilly asked.
"She went to talk to a friend," Ella said, "Are you okay?"
Gilly continued walking, but Ella stood up and followed her out of the main hall, into the stormy winds. Rain was starting to come down hard as Gilly stood out there, staring up at the sky. Ella cautiously joined her, getting soaked in the process, as thunder rolled overhead.
"Gilly?" she asked, "Are you sure we should be out here?"
"...I don't know what to do," Gilly said, crying, "If I try and make people like me, they don't, but they don't like real me either. Who do I have to be to make people finally like me?"
"I like you," Ella said, "And...and that's why I brought my fish, because ya know, pets...they never care who you are. They just care that you love them and feed them. I know Gordon likes you."
"Do you really like me?" Gilly asked, sniffling as Ella came to her side. Gilly turned and the girls faced one another, their hair blowing wildly in the wind.
"You're my friend," Ella said, smiling, "So yeah, I like you."
The two stood there, staring at one another for a while, until Ella finally took Gilly's hand and led her back into the main hall. Both girls had come here as loners, but despite anything else that was to come, they knew they'd always have eachothers backs.