Authors: Katlyn Duncan
When we arrive at the back of the line, Lily is already at their table, laughing with Sebastian about something. A twinge of jealousy pinches at my heart. Then something slams into my chest, my breath whooshes out of me.
“Oh, sorry,” Dylan says. His hand drops to his side. He’s holding a plastic container of juice. “I was just giving you—” His words dissipate from his tongue.
“It’s fine,” I say, shaking my head. “Thank you.” He hands me the dented container with a sheepish smile.
“I’m normally not this clumsy,” he says, his brow furrowing. “I don’t know what’s wrong with me today.”
He makes a show of picking up a chocolate chip cookie and slowly handing it to me. I can’t help but laugh and take the cookie. “Thanks.”
He pretends to wipe his forehead of sweat and holds his hand in front of him, allowing me to cut in front of him. We direct the kids to a table and sit at the end. I slide onto the bench and he sits next to me.
“Where are you going in the fall?” he asks.
“Into the city to NYU.”
“Impressive.”
“Becoming a teacher is impressive.”
“I had this teacher in middle school who made me want to do it,” he explains, opening his milk carton. “I used to hate school, but he made it easier for me. I hope to do that for at least one kid someday.”
“That’s really fantastic.”
He shrugs modestly and finishes his cookie. He rubs his fingers together, dislodging the crumbs from his hands. “How about you, bro?” He asks Will, who I didn’t realize is sitting across from us.
“No school for me.”
“Solid,” Dylan says.
Brenda is staring at Dylan with the strangest expression. Disbelief?
Will looks down at his juice as he rubs the back of his neck.
Brenda hops up from her chair and looks at the group. “Anyone who needs to go to the bathroom before the hike, please do now.” All the kids stand up and I bring the girls to the growing line outside of the door. Dylan takes the boys, leaving Will and Brenda on clean up duty at the table. Harry makes a fast friend with his temporary counselor by pretending they are in a lightsaber fight.
“Don’t listen to anything he says.” Sebastian appears next to me, holding a cookie over his mouth as if that makes our meeting a little bit more secretive.
“What are you talking about?”
He takes a bite. “He may be adorable but he’s a bit of a player.”
We watch Dylan almost knock over one of the younger boys next to him. “Him? A player?”
“He plays the dumb jock thing perfectly, but he’s also slept his way around campus. There’s a rule at our camp otherwise I wouldn’t put it past him.”
“Hadley needs to get laid,” Lily says, coming up behind him.
“Lily!” I hiss and make sure none of the kids heard that.
“This is the girl’s line, mister,” she says to Sebastian, ignoring me.
“I’m just chatting,” he says. “If that’s what you’re looking for I’d say go for it. He seems to already have eyes for you.” To emphasize he bats his eyelashes at me and I can’t help but laugh.
That is until I catch Will’s expression. Brenda is talking quickly, her hands moving rapidly in front of her. Across the room I feel the anger rolling off him. What’s his problem? When his eyes turn to me, an electric jolt surges through my body. His jaw is clenched as his eyes return to the floor in front of him.
“The line is moving, Hadley,” Jaclyn says and I turn around, wondering what Brenda said to make Will angrier than I’ve seen him in a long time.
Hadley
The main activity for the day is a nature hike. Forest surrounds the camp so we have enough space and time to explore for the rest of the afternoon. Brenda and Dylan guide the hike, falling into a routine but still captivating the kids. We stay on a beaten path that runs alongside the river. They point out local flora and quiz the kids about it as we walk. I can’t tear my eyes from Dylan when he talks. He really is quite good with the kids. A few times he catches my eye and it’s as if we are in our own little conversation. His bright, infectious smile sends waves of butterflies through me. Will and I remain quiet most of the time. It’s nice to take a break and the kids seem interested. All except for Jaclyn and Kelli who spend most of the time griping about the dirt on their shoes.
Casey and Oliver breech the gap between the boys and girls groups by walking with each other. When I bring this up to Will he just shrugs.
“Is everything okay?” I ask when we arrive at our late afternoon free time.
“Yeah,” he replies stiffly.
All of the groups meet on the massive field and the Camp Henry counselors spread out at the different sports activities. Our boys go right for the soccer balls, Allison close on their heels. The other girls wander in a small pack to each of the activities before settling on the hula hoops. I’m closest to our boys and I pause, watching them dribble the ball through orange cones.
“You seemed stressed out before when you were talking to Brenda,” I say.
“I’m fine.” He starts forward towards the group. I follow. He kicks a ball and it rises into the air in front of him before he catches it in his hands.
“Hand ball!” Greg cries and dribbles toward us.
“Is that how this game works?” Will asks playfully.
Have I misjudged his mood? But when his smile doesn’t quite reach his eyes, I know I haven’t. He’s hiding something from me. Again. Maybe I was wrong to think that things could ever be the same. Not with whatever secrets he’s keeping.
Will drops the ball and dribbles it toward the cones. He expertly spins his body and feet in some crazy dance that I would definitely trip on if I tried. The boys cheer and try to copy him. Devon trips over a cone and goes down. The other boys laugh and just as I lunge to help, he rolls over to face us, doubled over in laughter.
Will gives him a hand and picks the cone up, continuing down the line. He stops at the end of the group and offers encouragement to the boys. My eyes and mind wander to Dylan. He’s on the other side of the field on the baseball diamond. I make my way over there to where he and a few other kids have set up a game of kick ball. He’s the pitcher and Tyler is up to kick.
“Go Tyler!” I call.
Dylan looks over at me and waves before the ball sails out of his hands towards Tyler’s feet. The ball connects with his foot and sails over Dylan’s head. The kids run for the ball as Tyler jogs to the first base, giving the kids enough time to get him out by throwing the ball at him.
“Who’s next?” Dylan asks.
No one volunteers.
“How about you?” he asks me.
Half a dozen pairs of eyes turn to me. “All right, but be nice.” I held the image of Devon falling over in my head, hoping that wouldn’t be me.
“I always am,” he says with a weighted tone, making my stomach twist.
I take position at home plate and Tyler stands behind me as the catcher. I position my body as Tyler’s was and get ready for the pitch. Dylan throws the ball much gentler than he did to Tyler and by some miracle I hit it. I don’t bother to look where it lands as I run towards first base. I hit the base hard and turn around. One of the boys has the ball in his hand, aimed to throw.
“Lucky shot,” Dylan comments with a devilish smirk.
I silently thank him for not making me look like an idiot.
We rotate through the group and soon enough the number of players has doubled. The younger kids and most of the girls are on the sidelines but the teams are pretty sizable. All of the counselors are in on the game and we are evenly split.
Will pitches for our team and the first up on the other is Dylan. Will rolls the ball around over his hands and narrows his eyes as if plotting his move. He throws the ball hard towards Dylan, but Dylan kicks it in the sweet spot. The ball shoots off his foot and beelines it down the third base line.
Sebastian is there but he fumbles. He curses under his breath, seeing Dylan at first base, and tosses the ball back to Will.
Another Camp Henry counselor is next and friendly jeers are thrown at him from his friends on our team. Will throws the ball and the guy hits it, this time a line drive to Will. Dylan takes off towards second base just as Will catches the ball mid-air. He swiftly turns around and launches the ball at Dylan who doesn’t seem to realize the other kid is out. The ball smacks Dylan in the arm and he stops running. A red spot forms on his light skin and Dylan smiles tightly and glances at me.
“He caught it,” I offer from my position at second base.
Dylan looks down at his arm and clears his throat. “Nice throw, bro.”
Will is already turned around and ready to pitch again. Skye is up next and she daintily takes her place at the plate.
“Everyone move in!” Lily calls from the outfield.
Skye gives her a disgusted look and fixes Will with a smile. Even though he’s just as gentle as Dylan was with me she still misses, and with that final strike we move off the field.
“It’s chow time!” Brenda announces.
The Camp Henry counselors lead the kids in the direction of the cafeteria while our staff sticks around to help with cleanup.
Will jogs across the field and starts stacking cones. I follow behind him and pick up several strewn hula hoops. We make quick yet silent work of cleanup and meet up at the edge of the field. Dylan directs our group to a shed behind the cafeteria and unlocks the door. He points out different areas for the supplies. Hula hoops are last. His hand touches the small of my back as he leads me away from the group. My skin warms where his hand is touching me.
“How’s your arm?” I ask.
“Barely a bruise.”
I look over and it’s still red. He hangs the kick ball bag on a nail and points to another hooked nail higher on the wall. “You can hang those there.”
I reach up, lifting the hula hoops above me. I barely reach the hook as I lose my balance. Strong hands grip my waist and my head falls against Dylan’s chest. “Whoops.”
His fingers tighten around me as he lifts me off my feet. With the extra few inches I’m able to lean the hoops against the wall until they slide over the hook. I let go of the hoops and he slowly lowers me to the ground.
“Thanks,” I say breathlessly.
His lips are close to my ears. “You’re welcome.”
I turn around and his hands are still on me. I’m momentarily lost in his eyes until I remember where we are. I step back and nervously pull my fingers through my hair.
“We should um—” I wave my hand in the direction of the door.
He nods a few times before letting go of me. He flashes a flirtatious smile. “Yeah, sure. I’m starving.”
I make my way toward the door and realize we’re alone. Outside the shed I find our group making their way towards the cafeteria. I wait for Dylan to lock the shed and we walk together to the cafeteria.
His hand on my arm stops me. He moves so his body is blocking my view of the building. “I think you’re pretty cool, Hadley.” He anxiously sways on his feet. Did I make him nervous? That was a first. “We should hang out later. After lights out.”
My heartbeat kicks up its pace. “Okay.”
“Great.” He moves out of the way and slides his hand against my lower back again.
I’m not sure why my stomach flip-flops. Is this what happens to Lily when she finds a conquest? I push away the unfamiliar sensation in my stomach, but when I see Will standing by the entrance to the cafeteria it returns with a vengeance. His gaze is laser focused on Dylan’s hand, but he says nothing. Instead he narrows his eyes and turns around, entering the building.
***
Will
The further away from Hadley and Dylan I get, the easier it is to breathe. When I didn’t see her come out of the shed with the group I knew something was up. Brenda’s earlier explanation of Dylan makes my blood boil at the sight of him. He apparently has a reputation at college and at camp. Brenda spilled her secret about hooking up with Dylan but she didn’t want to get him fired, even after he pretended like nothing happened. Apparently he’s “really a sweet guy” until he gets what he wants. She blatantly warned me about him since it’s obvious he’s found his next victim. Whether it’s jealousy or honest to God worry, I’m not about to let him take advantage of her. Hadley sees the good in everyone which is one of her amazing qualities, but can also make her susceptible to creeps. An image of Carter flashes in my mind as Exhibit A.
I’m one of the last in the dinner line. Our table is happily enjoying their meals, all except for Brenda who is staring at Dylan.
Hadley stands in line behind me while Dylan is mid-speech about something that happened to him at school earlier this year. His voice is like nails on a chalkboard, grinding into my chest like a chainsaw. My hands fist at my sides. I step forward as the line moves and grab an empty plate and silverware.
“What’s on the menu today, Will?” Dylan asks.
I indicate the board in front of us. “Take a look.”
He doesn’t say anything, but I feel Hadley’s eyes on me. I hold out my plate to the server and she scoops a pasta and vegetable stir-fry onto it. It looks fine but I’m not hungry. I grab a bottle of water and make my way over to the table. I sit where my back faces the line and dig into the meal even though my stomach is churning. I settle into a conversation with Oliver, who has been attached to Casey’s hip since earlier last week. I spoke with Sarah and Mrs. Yates about them doing a performance at the talent show and it seems like my idea has blossomed into friendship. I’ll have to pull Oliver aside later and ask just how it is going before revealing their act to the group.
Hadley sits on the other side of the table, further down from the group, with Dylan. I tune them out completely and clear my plate. Brenda shoots up from the table and Dylan doesn’t even glance at her.
“Listen up everyone!” Brenda calls from the front of the room. The counselors assist each other in getting the kids attention. She looks nervously at her clipboard. “Tonight we’re going to have a—” she pauses and blinks rapidly before continuing. The overhead lights accentuate her moist eyes. Damn. Dylan really did a number on her. “Tonight we’re going to have a karaoke party in the auditorium.” Her confidence grows with each word. “A slumber party of sorts. So you have a half hour to get changed into your pajamas then meet back here. There will be ice cream and cookies.”