Chapter Five

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I made Joanne sleep in my bed with me that night, just in case, but she slept like a rock. Both she and Hannah were still asleep when I pulled on a pair of pants and a t-shirt that morning, but I wasn’t surprised. I left them there and went to the dining hall to eat on my own.

The dining hall was a good size with fifteen tables that sat twelve. Each cabin had their own assigned table and would be eating their meals together for the duration of the summer. The food was set up buffet style, allowing the campers to take what they wanted, and there were so many different kinds of juices available to drink. Soda wasn’t something Camp Holcomb offered but they did have coffee for those over the age of eighteen. Thank goodness.

I grabbed a tray and dished up my plate with waffles and fruit before sitting at a table with Cameron, Mike, and another counselor named Tammi.

“Good morning, guys,” I said with a grin as I poured syrup over my waffles. “How are you?”

Mike was definitely hungover and he just grunted at me while Cameron and Tammi laughed.

“Seems to be a common theme around here this morning.” Cameron gestured to Mike. “A lot of people went to town and got shitfaced last night.

I nodded, swallowing my bite of food. “I had the pleasure of holding hair back last night. I don’t envy them today.”

“What are your plans for the day, Shaylee?” Tammi asked as she put her fork down and sat back in her chair.

“I was going to take a horse out,” I replied before picking up my orange juice. “Then I might swim for a bit.”

“Come find us when you’re ready to swim.” Cameron started to gather the empty dishes. “I think we’re going to go play in the obstacle center for a while.”

“Sounds good. Have fun, guys.”

I watched as all three of them stood from the table and I finished my own food before dropping off my dirty dishes. The equestrian center was off to the side of the camp so it took me about fifteen minutes to get there.

Ted greeted me when I showed up and oversaw me as I saddled up Ranger. He made me put on a riding helmet before allowing me to mount the horse and smiled as he stepped back.

“He definitely remembers you. You and your sister were some of his favorites. You remember your way around the riding trails, Shaylee?”

I nodded and gave him a grin. “Yeah, we’ll be fine. Thanks, Ted.”

He waved as I clicked my tongue and Ranger immediately started walking out of the corral. Once we were free of the fences, I encouraged him to trot and we took off down the forest trail.

It had been a while but I was able to follow the marked trail until I found the small, unmarked path that forked off into a different direction. It took a few more minutes but Ranger and I finally found the small creek I’d been looking for.

I had only been out to it twice before and both times Kira had shown me the way. Ranger stepped into the creek bed until all four hooves were in the two-inch deep water and he took a long drink. When his thirst was satisfied, I led him to the shade of a tree and climbed off of him before tying his reins to the trunk.

“Give me a minute, boy.”

I unclasped my helmet, took off my shoes, and rolled up my pant legs before walking in the creek myself. The water was cool against my skin and I crouched down to cup some it in my palms. Little minnows and tadpoles could be seen at the bottom and I allowed myself a moment to be sad.

The creek wasn’t technically on the trail and I wasn’t supposed to be there. Kira had called it her ‘secret spot’ and only brought me out there the first time to try and help me acclimate to the camp. I knew she didn’t want me to go home and was pulling out all of the stops.

I wasn’t big into horseback riding and didn’t ever attempt to find the creek again by myself. The second time we’d come was the last summer she’d attended camp. We both had known it would be the last summer we would ever be together so we spent a whole Sunday at that creek. She’d given me every piece of sisterly advice she could think of and we’d cried together until we didn’t have any more tears to shed. Despite our three year age difference, Kira had been my best friend in the entire world.

“Promise me you’ll come back next year.” Kira looked over at me, fixing her blue eyes on mine as we sat on some rocks in the middle of the creek, our bare feet in the streaming water. “I know it will be hard without me but even if I wasn’t, you know, you’d be without me anyway.”

“I know but there’s a difference between you aging out and you…” Dying. God, I hated that stupid word. Kira understood, of course, and she just nodded her head.

“Yeah, there is a difference but you will still be here and I know you love this place.”

I did. After getting over my initial homesickness five years before, Camp Holcomb had become my second home. “I’ll keep coming until I age out.”

“And you’ll come be a counselor when you’re in school, right?” When I didn’t answer right away, Kira kept talking. “For me. I want to be a counselor so bad but I obviously won’t get that chance. Do it for me. At least one summer. Don’t let the stupid cancer take that away completely.”

“Maybe.”

“No. Promise me, Lee.”

“Fine,” I huffed, slightly irritated by her demands. She knew I’d agree because I’d do anything for her. “I promise. I’ll come back next summer and I’ll come back to be a counselor at least once.”

“Good.” She gave me a satisfied smile before looking back at the water. She let her head drop to my shoulder and we both stared at nothing in silence as silent tears streamed down my cheeks.

“Even though I won’t be here, I’ll always be with you in some way, Lee. For infinity.”

I nodded and swallowed back a sob. “For infinity.”

 

I didn’t even realize I was crying until a tear dropped from my chin and hit my wrist. I’d managed to sit on the same rocks Kira and I had been on in my memory and water was lapping at the hem of my jeans. I straightened up and wiped my face furiously before grabbing the necklace to make sure it was still on my neck. I let my thumb brush against the inscription that held those same two words we’d spoken to each other all those years before.

I took a few deep breaths to steady myself and walked out of the creek, avoiding the deeper areas while I did. I sat on the bank for some time, completely lost in thought, and only stood when my horse began to get impatient. Once my shoes and helmet were back on, I untied Ranger and climbed back on him.

It took me about twenty minutes to get him back to camp and I spent another thirty minutes untacking and grooming him. Once he was back in his stable with a fresh sugar cube, I kissed his muzzle and waved to Ted.

I stopped by my cabin to change into my bathing suit and gently woke up Hannah and Joanne, telling them both to get up so they could eat lunch. Hannah threatened me with bodily harm and Joanne just nodded, telling me she’d be up soon.

I pulled some shorts and a shirt over my suit, grabbed my swim bag, and left the two of them in the cabin as I went to the pool. I knew everyone would be at the lake but I still wanted to enjoy the moment alone while I could. The pool was empty so I took some time to swim laps and jump from the high dive several times. I’d just broken the surface of the water after jumping again when I heard someone speak from outside the fence.

“Little Shaylee Butler. When did you grow up?”

I whipped my head towards the owner of the voice and I studied the man at the fence. I pulled myself up and out of the pool, still trying to figure out who he was.

“Oh, man. You wound me,” he said with a grin before moving his sunglasses to the top of his head. After another second, I gasped and walked towards the fence.

“Keaton? Jesus, I’m not the only one who grew up.”

He laughed and nodded his head before shrugging his shoulders. “Puberty is killer.”

Keaton Holcomb was Howard and May’s only son. He was two years older than me and had been a fixture in my life and at camp. Although he’d lived in the house with his parents, they kicked him out during the summer and made him live like a camper. Keaton had been fairly obnoxious during the years, almost like I imagined a cousin would be, but he’d endeared himself to me in the end. Even though I saw his parents often, I hadn’t actually set my eyes on him since the last time I’d been at camp.

He had grown up, though. Instead of the tall, skinny boy I’d known during my childhood, he was now a taller, muscular man. His shaggy, dark brown hair covered his ears in way that showed he didn’t care and his brown eyes matched his mother’s.

“Are you working here during the summers?”

He shook his head. “Nope, just visiting. Mom mentioned your name so I wanted to say hey. So… Hey.”

“Hey,” I replied with a grin. “I was actually going to go grab some lunch. Want to join me?”

“Yeah, that sounds great.”

I nodded and gestured towards my stuff. “Give me a second.”

Using the towel I’d brought, I did my best to dry off before pulling my shorts, shirt, and shoes back on. I shouldered my bag and scrubbed my hair with my towel as I walked outside the fence.

“Let’s go.”

We made small talk about what we’d been doing for the past five years and Keaton told me he’d decided against going to college and pursued honing in on a trade. He owned a garage in Savannah and was apparently doing pretty well for himself.

“A hot, college woman like yourself,” Keaton said with a grin as he held open the door to the dining hall. “Are you dating anyone?”

I rolled my eyes at the question and shook my head. “No. I’m one of those nerdy girls who prefers to put school before boys.”

Keaton laughed and dished up his plate behind me at the serving line. Once we’d found a table off to the side, he sat across from me and smiled.

“You have tonight off, right? Let me take you out.”

His invitation was kind surprising. Keaton had been the first one to say how annoying I was in my childhood and the last one I expected to ever show any interest in me.

“Keaton Holcomb,” someone said to the right of me and I watched as Drew dropped his tray next to mine with a grin on his face. Keaton stood and the two did a bro-shake or a bro-hug or whatever it was called across the table before they sat down. Christy, obviously still attached to Drew’s side, dropped her tray next to Keaton’s and squealed.

“Keaton!”

He chuckled and wrapped her in a tight hug. “Hey, Chris. It’s good to see you guys.”

“What are you doing here?” Drew asked as he took a bite of his lunch.

I ate my own pasta as I listened to Keaton rehash the things we’d already talked about.

“You never answered me, Shaylee,” he said, jolting me out of my own little bubble.

“I’m sorry. What?” I gave Keaton an apologetic smile and put my fork down. “What was the question?”

He laughed and shook his head. “Can I take you out tonight?”

I looked away from his brown eyes to find Christy staring at Keaton with her mouth open in disbelief. I wasn’t sure if she was jealous or if she just didn’t understand why he’d be asking me. To my right, Drew was stabbing his pasta with unnecessary force and his left hand was clenched into a fist. After a second, I realized I still hadn’t given Keaton an answer and shook my head slightly with the same smile on my face.

“I have so much to do before tomorrow morning and I’m pretty sure my roommate isn’t going to be able to help too much. I’m honestly not even sure she’s still alive.”

Keaton let out a long sigh before pointing his fork at me. “Fine. I understand how hectic the night before opening is. How about, if I’m still here, you let me take you out on your first night off?”

“We’ll tentatively plan on it,” I replied, making him laugh again.

Christy tugged Keaton’s sleeve, demanding his attention, and I finished off my food before standing from the table.

“I’m actually going to go make sure my roommate really is alive,” I interjected quickly when Christy took a breath. “I’ll see you later, okay?”

Keaton nodded and reached over so he could squeeze my hand once. “I’ll find you in a bit.”

I stood from my spot at the table and grabbed my tray. As I turned to walk away, my eyes met Drew’s bluish ones for a moment. His face was passive as he studied my own and I raised my brows once before breaking our stare down and moving by him.

I grabbed two bottles of water and two hot coffees from the beverage area and headed back to my cabin. Both girls were still in bed and I gently shook Hannah awake first.

“Shaylee,” she whined as she cracked open an eye to look at me. “Why do you hate me?”

I chuckled and shook my head. “I am doing this because I love you, Han. You need to get up, hydrate, and put food in your stomach. The dining hall is only open for another thirty minutes and you’ll have to wait until dinner if you miss it.”

She whined again and sat up slowly.

“Attagirl. Let me work on Joanne and I’ll go with you guys. We’ll stop by the health center to get something for your head.”

I repeated the same steps to get Joanne out of bed and soon they were both sucking down water and coffee as they stumbled through the campus with me. Joanne had stolen my sunglasses before we’d left the cabin and Hannah had hissed when we stepped outside as if she was a vampire who was being burned by the sun.

One of the medical assistants gave them ibuprofen at the health center and they both scarfed down two grilled cheese sandwiches quickly. Aubrey joined us a short while later and laughed at their misery. We told them how fun it’d been getting them out of the bar and both apologized profusely.

“You’re my hero, Shay,” Joanne said as she finished off her second sandwich. “I remember you holding my hair back.”

“You guys would do it for me.” I shrugged my shoulders and stole one of her fries. “I’m not sure I could have walked you out to the van without Drew’s help, though. You were down for the count.”

“Speaking of Drew,” Aubrey murmured as she leaned in. “Christy came back to the cabin late last night all huffy. I guess that hotel room didn’t happen and she was pissed off.”

For some reason, that made me happy. I couldn’t help the small smirk that hit my lips as Aubrey told us about Christy’s temper tantrum. I was also really glad that I wasn’t the only one annoyed by her.

After the girls had food in them, they both went and showered off the night before. We spent the afternoon lounging by the lake and playing volleyball in the sand. Well, Aubrey and I played with a group of people. Hannah and Joanne watched.

We ate dinner that night and received our roster of campers that would arrive the next day, along with our weekly schedules. I read through it and winkled my nose.

“We’re working the golf range on Monday mornings.”

“That’s going to be nice and boring,” Hannah replied as she read through the schedule. “Look, though- we get a Friday night off during week two. That’s nice.”

I looked up from my sheet and narrowed my eyes at her. “Maybe we can see a movie rather than getting hammered, huh?”

Everyone at the table laughed, even Hannah, and she nodded in agreement. The two of us said our goodbyes and headed back to the cabin. It was barely dusk but Hannah immediately changed into her pajamas so she could go to bed. I pulled on my running clothes and told her goodnight before walking outside.

A few people still littered around the campus and some waved as I jogged by. I followed the path around the lake, like I’d done since I’d arrived, and when I made it to the furthest point from campus, I came to a stop.

Drew was sitting with his bare feet in the sand as he stared out at the still water. Although I couldn’t see his face, his posture seemed sad. I told myself to keep running, to leave him alone, but I didn’t listen to my own subconscious and instead walked down the beach to where he was.

“Hey,” I said softly when I was a few feet away. Drew twisted his neck until our eyes met and he nodded once as he put something in his pocket.

“Hey.”

I gestured to the spot next to him. “Can I sit?”

“Yeah, of course.” Drew looked back to the lake as I fell into the sand.

We sat in silence for a few minutes and I turned to study his profile. The facial hair on his chin was a bit more pronounced than when I’d met him at the airport and he was wearing his cap again.

“Are you okay?”

The sigh that he released was so big and so heartbreaking that I wanted to comfort him. I didn’t, though. Instead, I just watched him rub his eyes with his fist.

“I’m okay. Thanks for asking, Shay.” He reached out and squeezed my hand with his gently. The feeling of his warm palm against mine caused a shudder to roll through my body.

After a few moments, he let out another long breath and released his grip on my hand. “Come on. If you don’t keep running, it will be pitch black before you get back to the cabin.”

Drew pulled on his shoes and socks as I stood back up and gave him a small smile.

“Okay. I’ll see you tomorrow?”

He shook his head as he moved to his feet. “I’ll run with you.”

“What?” I asked in confusion. “You want to run with me?”

Drew didn’t respond. He just started jogging in the direction I had been running. I watched him for a moment, unsure of what just happened, and ended up sprinting so I could catch up. We jogged next to each other in silence as we rounded the lake, eventually passed the Holcomb house, and did the final half-mile back to campus.

We both slowed to a walk as we neared the cabins, and Drew looked at me with a smile.

“Been awhile since I ran just for the hell of it,” he puffed as he reached up and pulled his shirt over his head. “That would take some getting used to again. This humidity seriously sucks.”

I glanced at his bare chest for just a moment before meeting his eyes. “I do it every night. You’re welcome to join if you want to get back into it.” I paused and shrugged my shoulders when he looked surprised at the invitation. “It’s hard for you to be a douche when you’re trying not to pass out.”

“You’re funny, Butler.” Drew started veering towards the boy’s cabins. “Goodnight.”

I gave him a small wave and returned the sentiment as I continued on to my bunk.

Maybe Drew wasn’t such a jerk after all.