The Girls of Firefly Cabin

by Cynthia Ellingsen

  “All right, Insects,” Taylor called. “Pick a partner. The two of you will share a canoe. We’ll learn how to row, have a ten-minute practice round, and then take a rousing journey across the lake. Campers, commence!”

  Instantly, Isla grabbed Lauren’s arm. “Will you go with me?”

  Lauren was athletic, so partnering with her seemed like the safest thing to do.

  Quickly, Isla slid on one of the green life jackets the counselors were handing out. It smelled like dried seaweed, but she pulled the straps as tight as they would go. She expected the wooden paddle to be heavy enough to pull her overboard, but when she picked it up, it was surprisingly light.

  Once the counselors had taken them through a quick lesson on captaining a canoe, they ordered the campers into the boats. Isla was so scared, it felt like her heart was going to beat out of her chest. What if she accidentally hit Lauren in the head with the paddle? What if it was too hard to row? Or worse, what if the canoe capsized and she got trapped underwater?

  “Come on!” Lauren scrambled in, stationing herself in the middle. “I’ll row. You steer.”

  Isla tiptoed up to the canoe. The metal stung her blister and the backs of her legs. The seat was lower than she expected, and she tumbled in, practically dropping the paddle into the water.

  “Hang on,” Lauren cried. “Here we go.”

  Isla tried to remember what the counselors had said about steering, but her mind went blank. The canoe rotated in a circle.

  “Push to the right,” Lauren called. “Push!”

  Tentatively, Isla pushed her paddle into the water. To her surprise, the canoe came to a stop.

  “Good,” Lauren cheered. “Now, switch back and forth.”

  Isla gave an earnest nod. The paddle dripped icy water across her legs, but she didn’t mind because with Lauren’s instructions, the canoe actually went in the right direction. She was steering!

  “Great job, Isla,” Lauren sang. “Keep it up.”

  The encouragement gave her confidence. The counselors motioned for everyone to line up in the water. Twenty canoes jockeyed for a position in line, along with three canoes of counselors heading up the front, middle, and rear. Then the group moved out onto the water like a very long row of ducklings.

  Isla and Lauren’s canoe sliced through the lake, making a strange metallic sound with every small wave. Isla breathed a sigh of relief, surprised to find she was actually enjoying the ride. Steering the canoe gave her a sense of control that she hadn’t felt since she arrived at camp.

  First, the counselors took them along the edge of the shore, where frogs chirped from lily pads, dragonflies buzzed through the air, and turtles scuttled off logs and into the water. Then the first canoe turned to cross the lake.

  Water dripped from the oars in a steady rhythm as Lauren paddled. Occasionally, it splashed Isla in the face, which actually felt good, given the heat. They were getting closer to Blueberry Lane. Isla hoped for a quick view but doubted the counselors would take them too far.

  Isla began to feel tense as the counselors brought them closer and closer to the other side of the lake. Her heart started pounding as the boys’ camp loomed into sight. Through the reeds, she spotted a soccer field. Groups of boys ran back and forth, sweating in the hot sun, and she wondered if Jordan was out there with them.

  “Hello, gentleman!” Taylor shouted into her megaphone at the shore. “A bright Blueberry Pine welcome!”

  Was he there? Would he see her?

  There! It was him!!!

  Isla ducked down low on the boat, letting out a little squeak.

  “What?” Lauren squinted in the sun. “What happened?”

  Isla covered her mouth with her hands and let out a series of hysterical giggles. Her bare feet banged against the bottom of the boat, making a metallic clank.

  “What?” Lauren demanded, swatting at her with the paddle. “Tell me.”

  Isla dropped her hands. “I know one of the boys,” she whispered. “I met him at the store.”

  Lauren squealed. “Show me which one!”

  Reaching forward, Isla grabbed Lauren’s hand. Once she was sure no one was looking, she guided Lauren’s hand toward where Jordan was on the soccer field. “Him.” Since she’d stopped steering, the canoe turned out from the line, heading closer to the shore.

  “Isla, he’s gorgeous,” Lauren cried. “Oh, no. We’re drifting.

  Steer.”

  Isla tried, but all feeling seemed to have left her arms. She was too busy thinking about the feeling of her hand pressed against his chest, along with the smell of grape Jolly Ranchers.

  “His name is Jordan.” She pulled at her paddle. “I think I’m in love with him.”

  At that very moment, he stopped dribbling the ball. Putting his hand up to shield the sun, he squinted in their direction.

  “He sees us,” Isla cried.

  “Back in line, campers,” the lead counselor roared.

  “Go,” Lauren screamed, giggling. “Go!”

  Isla shoved her paddle into the thick muck at the bottom of the lake. The oar gurgled, and for a terrifying second, the canoe seemed stuck. Then the smell of muck filled the air, and the canoe shot through the water. Isla and Lauren worked the paddles, Isla’s heart thundering with every stroke.

  He saw me. I know he saw me.

  They were halfway across the lake before she noticed she was breathing heavily and not wheezing. It was exhilarating. In that moment, she understood why Lauren liked sports.

  Neither of them said a word as they maneuvered the canoe through the shallows and back onto shore. Lauren slid out of her life jacket. Then she turned to Isla and grinned.

  “Isla Meyers,” she sang. “I had no idea you had it in you.”

  The other campers were racing back to the green building to change for lunch. The bell at the mess hall rang out as loud as the megaphone blared. Isla tugged off her life jacket and squeezed it tight.

  “Don’t tell anyone,” she begged, embarrassed. “Please.”

  The Fireflies would turn Jordan into a joke, and she didn’t want that. He meant too much to her.

  Lauren nodded. “Your secret is safe with me.”

  Archer walked up and Jade strolled past, heading straight for the building. Jade’s oversized sunglasses made her look cool and removed, as if she didn’t have a care in the world.

  Isla’s mother always said, Appearances can be deceiving. Maybe, in this case, she was right.

  “How’s Jade?” Lauren asked. “Did you guys talk about anything?”

  “Weirdly, yes.” Archer frowned. “We talked about painting.”

  “Did she mention the thing with her friend?” Lauren pressed.

  Archer drained the last of her Gatorade. “Nope.”

  “Let’s go, ladies.” Taylor shooed them away.

  “We had fun,” Lauren said as they climbed the steps.

  Isla gave a vigorous nod. “It was very educational.”

  Right before they walked in, Lauren poked Isla in the arm and grinned. Isla smiled, too, and her thoughts leaped back to the moment when Jordan had practically looked right at her.

  What did it mean? Did he like her as much as she liked him?

  Even though it felt impossible, everything in her screamed yes. She had to see him again.

  It was the only way to know for sure.

  Chapter Ten

  Archer had nearly panicked at the idea of a canoe ride with Jade. She was convinced Jade would knock her overboard at the first opportunity. Instead, once they were on the water, Jade slid her sunglasses up her head and turned to face Archer.

  “I’m sorry I was such a grump yesterday.” Her aquamarine eyes were pained. “You must hate me.”

  The apology, along with the knowledge of what had happened to Jade’s friend, made Archer feel super-guilty, especially considering how rude she’d been to Jade.

  “N-no,” she stammered. “You should hate me.”

  “Why would I hate you?”
Jade slid her sunglasses back on. “You brought snacks.”

  From there, they started talking. Not a lot, but enough that the time together wasn’t painful. Still, Archer was happy to get back to Lauren and Isla, because the three could be silly together. Jade was quiet as they giggled on the way to the mess hall, but once it came into sight, Archer’s enthusiasm started to wane too.

  At lunch, there would be no way to avoid Makayla.

  Lauren must have noticed her distress, because she reached out and squeezed her hand. “The Fireflies have your back.”

  “Good. Because that’s the first place she would try to stab me.”

  It was also good because the mess hall was exactly like the cafeteria at school: a wide-open space designed to maximize social humiliation. Granted, it was also a work of art, with large wooden beams across the ceiling, a glass wall with an incredible view of the lake, and enough long tables to seat 140 hungry campers and their nineteen counselors. But the mess hall already had a social pecking order, and the Bluebirds were clearly at the top.

  Their table was smack in the center of the room, with a prime view of the stage, the food line, and the great outdoors. It would be impossible to get food without walking past them. Still, Archer did her best, squaring her shoulders and sticking between Lauren and Isla to avoid detection.

  Makayla was talking to someone the first time she walked by, but once the Fireflies had packed their plates, her sister stared her down.

  I’m coming for you, her mean look seemed to say. Watch out.

  Jade gave a little snort. “Your sister needs to chill out.”

  “My sister is a total freak,” Archer said, surprised Jade seemed to care. “Sometimes I wonder if she got left on the doorstep by aliens and my parents decided not to tell me.”

  Jade gave her a skeptical look. “Aliens?”

  Archer ducked her head. “Yeah,” she mumbled.

  Great. I said something stupid and now she knows why Makayla is so mean to me.

  “I wouldn’t think aliens. More like the circus.” Jade popped a fry into her mouth. “At least if you take into account the amount of makeup she’s wearing.”

  The Fireflies burst out laughing.

  Okay, Jade and I might never become besties. But this is definitely a start.

  Lunch was over before she knew it, and it was time for allcamp swim hour.

  “This is silly,” Isla said as they walked back to the beach. “Didn’t we just change out of our suits? They’re going to be cold and wet.”

  “That’s why we have two suits,” Archer said.

  Isla brushed away a mosquito. “But I don’t want to get both of them dirty right away.”

  “Isla, what’s the real issue?” Lauren asked. “It sounds like you’re worried about something other than the suit.”

  Isla hesitated. “I thought you were supposed to take time to digest before swimming, or you could cramp up.”

  The Fireflies laughed.

  “You’ll be fine,” Lauren said. “Just stay in the shallow end.”

  “I think I’m going to sit on the dock,” she mumbled.

  Archer, for one, was excited to jump into the lake. The moment the counselors blew the whistle, she raced in and belly flopped into the water. Silt went up the front of her suit. For fun, she swam up to the edge of the dock to splash Isla, who didn’t even have her feet in the water.

  “Quit it!” Isla shrieked, smoothing her thick bangs.

  “It’s a thousand degrees,” Archer pointed out. “Don’t sit up there getting fried. Get in.”

  Lauren splashed around with the Cicadas. Even Jade was sunbathing. Isla just sat there like a stone, sweating profusely.

  “I am perfectly comfortable, thank you,” she said, which was obviously a lie.

  Archer sighed. There were moments when it was hard to talk to Isla, because the poor girl seemed scared of everything. Strange, considering she came from such a big city, but—Wait, that was it! Isla would be the first to know what to do if someone mugged them, but when faced with mosquitoes and fresh air, she didn’t have a clue.

  I can help her. Show her there’s nothing to be scared of in the lake.

  Archer let out a resolute breath. “One day you’ll thank me for this, princess.” Grabbing Isla’s legs, she pulled her into the water.

  Isla sputtered and shrieked, arms flailing. She threw a big handful of water at Archer. Then she raced for the shore, clutching her dripping sun hat to her head like a shield.

  The reaction was so over-the-top that Archer couldn’t help but laugh.

  “That was not nice,” Lauren scolded, swimming over to the dock. “Isla, are you all right?”

  Isla stomped back to her spot without responding. She wrapped a towel tightly around her body, flopped down, and glared at Archer. Even though her face was lined with fury, it was definitely less sunburned.

  “I don’t know why she’s so mad.” Archer floated on her back, relishing the feel of the cool water against her skin. “It feels great in here.” Flipping over, she spotted her sister, and her stomach dropped. “Dark mass warning. My sister is at two o’clock.”

  Makayla and the Bluebirds strutted across the sand, set down their beach bags, and waded in. They all dove in at once and swam out to the dive raft, just beyond the swim boundaries. Cassandra had explained it was off-limits to campers ages twelve and under. Makayla climbed to the highest board, posed, and did a perfect jackknife.

  “Uggh.” Archer groaned. “I can’t stand her. We should do something.”

  Lauren giggled. “Hmm. Like what?”

  “Prank her,” Jade drawled from under her sun hat. “Put a rubber snake on her towel. There were tons of them on that creepy ‘Take a Look at Nature’ display by the changing room.”

  Wow, Jade didn’t say much, but when she did, it was shaping up to be pretty entertaining.

  “Be right back.” Archer darted out of the water.

  The “Take a Look at Nature” display was, indeed, creepy. It was a plexiglass table set up beneath the overhang of the green building, showcasing an entire array of the various spiders, snakes, and insects common to northern Michigan. Archer lifted the lid of the display case to grab one of the snakes, cringing at how rubbery it felt in her hand. With a furtive look at the raft, she headed back to the water, and on the way, slipped the snake into her sister’s sandals.

  “Did anyone notice?” she asked, once she’d slid back into her spot by the dock.

  Talk about a bold move. If Makayla caught her, it would be an all-out war.

  “Nope.” Lauren shrugged. “They’re all too busy diving.”

  Archer spent the next hour splashing around, excited to see the prank play out. When the Bluebirds finally swam toward shore, she flagged down Lauren, who was playing water dodge-ball with some of the other girls. She came right over.

  “What’s up?” she asked, then spotted the Bluebirds. “Oh boy. It’s time for the fireworks.” She grabbed an inner tube and floated on the water.

  Archer started to feel panicked. “I think I should go to the changing room or something.”

  What am I thinking, doing something like this?

  “No, stay here,” Lauren insisted. “It’s more suspicious if you leave.”

  They migrated over to the deep end of the dock. Jade was still sunbathing, but not Isla. She had waded into the shallow end and was slowly making her way out toward them.

  Good. I’ve already helped her feel brave in the water.

  The thought made Archer feel less scared of her sister. Turning, she watched as Makayla made it to shore. The moment the Bluebirds reached for their towels, an ear-piercing scream cut across the lake. Makayla whipped her sandals across the beach, terror on her pretty face. There was chaos as the lifeguards and counselors ran over. It took everything not to crumple into giggles—even Jade’s sun hat bounced up and down as she laughed.

  There was a lot of hand waving and pointing. Then the counselor for the Bluebirds stomped awa
y, carrying the rubber snake. Makayla sat on the dock, sipping a bottle of ice water from a lifeguard, with a towel over her shoulders and her friends hovering around her as tight as a tourniquet.

  Lauren slid out of her inner tube. “I’m going to go ‘find out what happened.’”

  Isla had almost waded out to them when Lauren came bounding back. She had a huge grin on her freckled face. Jade dove in and swam over to them, eyebrows raised.

  “What’s the verdict?” she asked.

  “Makayla thinks some boy with a crush snuck over to prank her,” Lauren sang, her red hair hanging around her face in wet strings.

  “Phew.” Archer felt like she could breathe again. “Wow, she’s an idiot.”

  Quietly, she reenacted the moment Makayla found the snake. The Fireflies hid their giggles. She was just about to suggest they all have a handstand competition when—WHOOSH!—she got slammed in the face by a tidal wave.

  “That’s for pulling me in the water,” a tiny voice cried.

  BAM!

  Another wave hit.

  “That’s for getting my bangs wet!”

  The other Fireflies screamed with laughter.

  Archer opened her blurry eyes and—WHOOSH!

  “That’s for calling me ‘princess’!” Isla roared.

  Archer wiped water off her face, in complete disbelief.

  This is the thanks I get?

  Archer drew back to give Isla her own face full of water when strong arms gripped her from behind. Lauren and Jade had her pinned.

  “Hey,” she cried, kicking furiously. “You guys!”

  “I believe we’re girls,” Jade said.

  “Lauren,” Archer pleaded. Surely the nice one in their group would have some mercy. “Don’t do this.”

  “You started it,” Lauren crowed. “Isla?”

  Isla stepped forward with a crazed look in her eyes. She placed both hands over the top of Archer’s head. The last thing Archer heard before Isla pushed her under was the glug of water in her ears and the shrieking laughter of her new friends.