by Sarah Delany
Chapter 18
-- Tamsyn --
The week for camp rolls around and everyone is buzzing with excitement. A whole week off school and getting to do fun activities sounds like bliss. Everyone had to be at school by seven thirty to pile into the buses and head the few hours to our destination. The camping resort we are going to is the same one all the seniors in past years have gone to. Camp Stargaze is what it’s called. It sounds like fate to me. As all the seniors squeeze onto the two yellow buses, I sit with Tate while JP, Rafe, Scott and Penny sit in a four seater in front of us. The chatter and laughter fills the air as everyone settles in for the ride.
Nearly three hours and one pit stop later and we pull up to an isolated location in between hills and paddocks. The buses bump along the dusty road leading to a series of white buildings with red roofs. Parking up in front of the main building, Mr Finnegan, who is in charge of our bus, instructs us on what to do.
“Okay kids, we are going to hop off the bus and gather with the rest of the seniors. The camp director has a few words they want to share before you can grab your bags and find a room.”
As we all stand to make our way out of the bus, the mid morning sun hits us with its heat. I’m thankful I decided to wear a singlet and shorts even though it was chilly this morning when we left. Tate tugs on my hand leading me to where the others stand, as we wait for more instructions.
A tall older man with an orange scraggly beard and a brown wide brimmed hat stands before us. His eyes are covered with thick black sunglasses but he removes them before addressing us.
“Welcome to Camp Stargaze everyone. The team and I here are so happy you could join us for the week,” he cheerily says, gesturing to the rest of the staff behind him. “I’m your camp director Mr Reynolds. You can call me Sir or even Steve will do. We aren’t too formal around here. During your stay, you’ll learn the rest of the names of the staff. The only thing we ask is you treat us with respect and in turn, we will do the same to you.” He stares at all of us, gauging our reactions. I wonder if he’s trying to find the troublemakers of the group.
Once he’s satisfied no one is going to chip in with any smart remarks he continues, “Our cabins have four beds each, two sets of bunk beds. We have one area for girls and one for boys. There will be no mingling and sneaking around at night as the staff and teachers will be monitoring the areas. Your teachers have split you up into smaller groups for activities. Some activities will be in these smaller groups and some activities can accommodate the entire group. So with that, you can grab your bags and go in search of a cabin. Boys you are towards the right and girls are to the left. Drop your bags off and then we will meet back here at our main site for lunch.”
As he finishes, murmurs begin and everyone heads to the buses in search of their bags.
Tate keeps a firm grip of my hand as he leans down to my ear, “Sucks we can’t be in the same cabin,” he whispers, before his lips meet the skin behind my ear, sending a shiver through my body. Since we had sex, we haven’t found a moment alone together to do it again. I talked to my mum the day after and told her what happened. She was worried like any good mother would be but is glad we were safe and the experience was a good one.
To say things are heated between Tate and I would be an understatement. I don’t think anyone else in the group knows we had sex but we find more ways to touch each other lately, and our gazes linger a bit longer too. Tate pulls me out of my daydreaming and towards the bus where he grabs both our bags, handing me mine.
“I’ll see you at lunch,” he says, and I nod as he leaves to walk in the opposite direction with Rafe, Scott and JP.
Penny and I watch them leave. We both let out a sigh then look at each other and crack up laughing. She links her arm through mine and we head towards the cabins on the left.
“The guys are lucky there are four of them. They can get a cabin together,” Penny says.
“Oh man, I didn’t even think of that. Let’s hurry and hope we get a good one.” We pick up the pace, power walking past a few groups of girls who are taking their time laughing on their way to the cabins. As we reach them, we notice the cabins are in a long rectangular building with doors scattered all the way down. Ms. Chadwick greets us as we get there.
“Just choose a room, ladies. Leave your bag on your bed so other girls know it’s taken and then we can head back for lunch. Only four to a cabin,” she tells us. Penny and I start our hunt but find the first few are already full so we keep looking, until we come to one of the last ones which is empty.
“Yes, let’s take this one,” Penny says, entering the small room with bunk beds on either side of the walls.
“Do you want the top? I can sleep on the bottom so at least if someone joins us, we are still on the same side,” Penny suggests.
“Sounds good,” I say, swinging my bag and pillow up onto the top bunk. Climbing up to the top bunk, I lie down to test out the bed while Penny does the same to hers and we both laugh and talk about how much fun this week will be. “Tate and I had sex,” I blurt, while my face heats as her head pops out from her bed, looking at me with an open mouth.
“What? Oh my God, when?” she asks, shock written across her face.
“Only a couple weeks ago,” I tell her, wringing my hands.
“And you’re just telling me now?” she accuses, with a smile spreading across her face.
“I haven’t really had time alone with you and I didn’t want to blurt it over the lunch table in front of the guys,” I say, which has us both laughing. She climbs up the ladder and takes a seat on my bed with me.
“So how was it?” she asks.
“Perfect. Honestly I’m so glad it was with Tate,” I tell her.
“Yeah you’re lucky. My first time was in the back of this guy Colin’s car and most of our clothes were still on,” she says as her face scrunches up thinking of the memory. Shaking herself out of her head she asks, “Did it hurt?”
“Yeah, I knew it would but jeez that burns like crazy,” I tell her, and we both start cracking up.
Our laughter gets interrupted by Leyla and Chloe entering the room. Penny gives them the evil eye and they both visibly cringe.
“Sorry we will find somewhere else,” Chloe says.
“But I don’t wanna be split up,” Leyla tries to whisper to Chloe, but I hear her.
“Are all the other cabins pretty full?” I ask, my eyes flicking between the two of them.
“Yeah, most only have one spot in each room left. Would it be okay if we stayed in here? We’ll keep out of your way.”
Leyla pleads and before Penny can deny them I say, “Yeah, that’s fine,” which has Penny staring at me with raised brows.
“Oh my gosh, thanks so much,” Leyla gushes, while Chloe smiles wide. They each take a bed opposite us with Leyla on the top bunk. Penny and I decide to leave for lunch but before we leave Leyla grabs my arm. “Thanks for this Tam, it really means a lot,” she says.
“It’s no problem. I never thanked you for contacting Tate about my birthday so call us even,” I say, smiling at her.
“Sure,” she says, and we leave them to it.
“Are you sure you’re alright with sharing a room with them?” Penny questions, when we are out of earshot.
“Yeah, it’ll be fine. I haven’t had much to do with them since Blake and my issue is more with him now than them. Plus Leyla did apologise for it all.”
“Okay, as long as you’re sure,” Penny tells me, linking her arm back with mine.
“Yeah, I’m tired of holding onto anger towards them. Anyway if I didn’t have the fall out with them, I wouldn’t have become friends with you,” I tell her, meaning every word. I may not have been friends with Penny as long as Leyla and Chloe but she’s been a better friend in every way.
“And I’m extremely grateful we became friends,” she says, leaning her head
on my shoulder.
“Don’t worry, this week will be fun no matter what,” I tell her, as we follow other kids into the lunch hall in search of the guys. Of course they are already seated, shovelling large amounts of food into their mouths. I honestly don’t think they ever get full with the way they gobble every meal. Penny and I grab a tray each and pile on some sandwiches and fruit before walking over to where the guys sit. I sit next to Tate while Penny sits herself opposite me, next to JP.
“Hey you,” Tate says, between mouthfuls of food.
“Hey yourself,” I say, as I take a bite of my own sandwich.
“Did you girls get a good cabin?” Rafe asks, on the other side of Tate.
“Yeah, but Leyla and Chloe are bunking with us,” Penny tells the table, which has all eyes on me.
“I’m okay guys. Hopefully I won’t be in the same group as them so I’ll only see them when sleeping, which won’t be that bad,” I tell them. “You guys all together?” I ask.
“Yeah, JP and I on one side and Tate and Scott on the other,” Rafe tells me. I offer Rafe a small smile which he returns. It’s nice to have him with us on this trip after everything that’s happened. He’s still the same Rafe, just less outspoken than he was beforehand.
After lunch, the teachers announce the groups and luckily all of us are together which is the best thing that could have happened. I want my memories of this camp to contain my friends. Our first activity is kayaking so we get suited up with life jackets and then hop into a van with Mr. Finnegan and one of the camp staff Mr. Arrow.
It’s about a ten minute drive and then we are pulling up to a wide blue lake. There are already kayaks lined up on the grass in front of the water so we jump out and pair up. Our group is pretty good. It is the six of us then JP’s friend Elijah, another guy Tyler, his girlfriend Hope and her friend Valerie. Tate and I pair up together and he tells me to hop in while he pulls it out into the lake a bit before he jumps in himself.
The sounds of laughter fill the breeze as we all paddle around the lake, trying not to bump into each other. It isn’t long before we have our first casualties when Hope and Valerie find their kayak tipped over. While they wade in the water we all laugh at their misfortune but then I catch Rafe tipping JP and Penny’s kayak. It makes me wonder if he tipped the girls too. It’s nice to see him up to his old tricks.
“Keep away from Rafe, he’s tipping them,” I yell to Tate, who starts paddling away from Rafe and Scott. We spend the rest of the time keeping away from Rafe who manages to flip Elijah and Tyler’s kayak before it’s time to go back in. Mr, Finnegan doesn’t look impressed with the ones who look like drowned rats. He must have missed the part where Rafe gave them a helping hand. Mr Arrow comes out of the little office-like structure they have and hands the wet kids towels to dry off.
When we get back to the main campsite kids are rushing around and Rafe yells out, “Hey, where’s the fire?” to one of the other guys from our year.
“They’ve made up water slides with some plastic and dish soap over on the hill,” he yells back, as he takes off in the direction of the slides. We all exchange glances, coming to the same conclusion.
“Let’s get changed and meet at the slides,” JP yells, as he and Rafe take off with Scott and Tate, hot on their heels. Penny and I quickly make our way to our cabin and get changed into our swimsuits, singlets and board shorts before we rush over to the hill where all the commotion is coming from.
As it comes into view, it looks like most of the kids are here, running up the hill and sliding down the bubbly slick surface. Rafe comes barrelling down with the biggest smile I’ve seen on his face in a long time and it makes something settle inside my soul to see him so happy again.
“Come on slow pokes, get moving,” he teases Penny and I, as he pushes us up the hill to get in line. As we rush up, Scott comes sliding down past us with a matching smile to Rafe’s. Since nearly all of the kids are out here, they are setting up a third slide so we aren’t all waiting too long for a turn. When we reach the top, JP flies down the plastic and Tate pulls both Penny and I in front of him, letting us cut in line. Penny doesn’t wait, throwing herself down with a giggle as she goes.
“Your turn,” Tate says, pulling my back into his chest quickly before releasing me. I lower myself to the wet plastic which is surprisingly heated from the sun. Using my hands, I launch myself forward, remembering at the last second to keep my mouth closed so it doesn’t get dish soap water in it. I can’t help the squeal that exits half way down when I realise how fast I’m going. Penny’s face lights up when I reach the bottom, pulling me up. I turn in time to see Tate launch himself down, his own smile blinding me as he slides down, greeting me at the end.
“Come on, let’s go again,” Penny urges, as she races up the hill and Tate and I follow behind, hand in hand. They’ve got the third slide set up now so the lines are shorter. That’s how we spend the rest of the afternoon before the teachers come out to collect everyone for showers and dinner.
After dinner, everyone disperses to their own cabins for the night. They haven’t planned anything for our first night since they wanted us to settle in. I give Tate a kiss goodbye and when Penny and I arrive at the cabin, Leyla and Chloe are already in there, getting changed for bed. I pull out my own pajamas from my bag and quickly change, trying not to be too self conscious.
“Hey Tam,” Chloe says, from her spot on her bed behind me.
“Hey.”
“You look a lot healthier now,” she says cringing. “Ugh, that didn’t come out right. I mean you look happier now and your weight looks better on you. I know I envied it before but that was before I realised you weren’t eating properly because of your dad.”
“That doesn’t sound much better Chlo,” Leyla says.
“Ugh, you know what I mean, don’t you Tam? I’m happy that you’re happy,” she explains. I offer her a small smile.
“Thanks Chloe, yeah I am happy,” I tell her, as I climb into my own bed. We lie in the dark in silence, none of us knowing what to say.
“Miss Dermot, where do you think you are sneaking off to with that flash light? Get back to your cabin before I confiscate it,” we hear Ms. Chadwick yell, which has us all cracking up with laughter, breaking the tension.
“Oh my gosh, she must have been sneaking off to see Drew. I saw them making out by the showers while everyone else was up on the water slides,” Chloe says, filling us in.
“No way, I thought she was seeing Derrick?” Penny asks, astonished.
“That’s what I thought too. Derrick probably doesn’t know,” Chloe says.
“Well we know one thing for sure, she does like her D,” Leyla giggles, and it has us all howling with laughter before Ms. Chadwick bangs on our door, telling us to go to sleep which has us giggling behind covered mouths, trying to keep the noise contained.
“Miss has a long night ahead of her,” Penny says, which has us all trying to contain our laughter some more. As our laughter dies, we all say our goodnights and try to sleep.
Chapter 19
-- Tate --
We wake up early Tuesday morning and after brushing our teeth and getting changed, we follow the other students to the dining hall for breakfast. As we enter, my eyes automatically search for Tamsyn. I find her and Penny in the spot we were in yesterday. With a bright smile plastered on my face, I go over and say hi before grabbing a tray and filling it with cereal and toast and my much needed caffeine.
“Does anyone know what our group is doing today?” JP asks, as he slides into the seat next to Penny. I do the same next to Tamsyn and she turns to me, her eyes lighting up as she smiles.
“I think it’ll probably either be abseiling or the high ropes course,” Scott says, from his spot across from me. That starts the others talking while I squeeze Tamsyn’s thigh under the table. I lean in closer to whisper so only she will hear.
“I missed you last night,” I tell her, honestly. It was hard to fall asleep in a strange bed even though I was surrounded by the guys.
“I missed you too,” she replies. “Hopefully we get some free time today and can spend some together.” My heart races at the thought. I want nothing more than to spend some time alone with her. I inch my hand up higher on her thigh which has her breath hitching as she tries to not draw attention to us from the others. They are too distracted with talk of the high ropes to notice us anyway. She’s wearing tight jean shorts so my movements get halted by her clothes as I can’t go any further up. Instead I run my fingers up and down her leg and watch as her cheeks change colour.
All too soon the others are clearing their plates so I reluctantly follow suit, giving Tamsyn a cheeky grin meant for her eyes only. We meet the rest of our group out the front of the dining hall with an instructor called Jack.
“Hey everyone, so today you are with me and we are abseiling,” he tells us, which starts the excitement back up again. “The rest of my team is already at the tower so we are going to walk through the forest track to get to our climbing spot. Everyone follow me.” We all fall in line, following behind him as everyone talks about how much fun this is going to be. I squeeze Tamsyn’s hand as we walk, running my thumb back and forth.
“You aren’t afraid of heights, are you?” I ask her, unsure.
“Ha ha ha I live for danger,” she fake laughs at me, which has us both cracking up. Once our outburst is under control she says, “Nah, I don’t think so. It’s not like I go out of my way to be around heights or anything though so who knows,” which has me holding her hand tighter.