Maddie's Camp Crush

by Angela Darling

  So Maddie was relieved when the game was over and Gabriel walked right to her, just like he always did.

  “All that running has me famished,” he said. “I might need two cookies.”

  They got their milk and cookies and then sat on their rock, talking more about school. Gabriel still seemed nervous about it. Maddie was relieved that Amelia didn’t try to hang out and talk with them.

  When downtime was over, Maddie and Gabriel stood up. She looked at him expectantly, hoping for another hug, but he just gave his usual wave.

  “Night, Maddie,” he said as he walked away.

  “Night,” Maddie replied, feeling deflated.

  Back in the bunk, Maddie flopped down on her bed.

  “What gives, Maddie?” asked Ashley, who now had Liza’s old bed. “You look down.”

  Libby walked over and sat on the edge of Maddie’s bed. “Is it because of Gabriel hanging out with Amelia? I saw them at dinner.”

  “No! I mean yes. I mean . . . I don’t know!” Maddie cried, putting her pillow over her face.

  “Whoa. This thing with the British dude sounds complicated,” Ashley said, and Maddie removed the pillow and sat up.

  “It is complicated,” she confessed as Emily, Alexis, and Abigail moved in closer, listening intently. “This morning he hugged me. And then he’s hanging with Amelia? And at downtime he acted like everything was the same as before. Aaargh!”

  She flopped down again.

  “Wow, he hugged you?” Libby asked. “Maddie, he must so like you.”

  Emily nodded. “I haven’t even hugged Seth, and he’s my boyfriend.”

  “So what does that mean?” Maddie asked. “He’s your boyfriend. How is that different from when you were just friends?”

  Emily shrugged. “I don’t know. It’s just different.”

  “But Gabriel isn’t your boyfriend, so you just want to know if he likes you, right?” Ashley asked.

  Maddie nodded.

  “So let’s look at the facts,” Ashley said in her matter-of-fact way. “Does he talk to you?”

  “Yes,” Maddie answered.

  “When you’re with other people, or do you hang out and talk alone?” she asked.

  “Mostly alone,” Maddie replied.

  “And he hugged you?”

  Maddie nodded again.

  “That settles it,” Ashley said firmly. “He likes you.”

  Alexis and Abigail were shaking their heads.

  “That’s not enough,” Alexis piped up. “He has to do something special for you.”

  Emily nodded. “Right. Like give you a papier-mâché head.”

  Maddie made a face. “Um, I don’t think he knows how to make a papier-mâché head.”

  “Then he could make it out of clay,” Emily suggested.

  “I think what Emily and Alexis are trying to say is that if he really likes you, he’ll ask you to do something special with him, like go out for ice cream or something,” Libby interpreted.

  “But he always gets me a cookie at downtime,” Maddie pointed out. “And anyway, it’s not like you can go out for ice cream at camp.”

  “I think it’s clear that he likes her,” Ashley said. “And so what if he’s not her boyfriend? They can still like each other, right?”

  “He has to make it clear,” Abigail chimed in. “He has to do something cool, like what Seth did for Emily.”

  “I really do not need a papier-mâché model of my head,” Maddie protested.

  “You know what she means,” Libby said. “I think he does like you. But maybe he likes Amelia too. So you need to be sure.”

  “Exactly,” Maddie said. “But how?”

  “The ball’s in his court,” Libby replied. “It’s his serve.”

  Maddie stuck out her tongue. “Please don’t make this about tennis.”

  “Just wait and see,” Emily suggested. “I bet he’ll do something. I have a feeling.”

  Maddie sighed. “Whatever he does, I hope it happens before camp is over!”

  chapter 17

  AS MADDIE DRIFTED OFF TO SLEEP, SHE KEPT thinking of the hug and wondering what it meant.

  He probably just felt bad for me when he heard my dad died, she convinced herself. The hug didn’t mean anything more than that.

  And then, unexpectedly, her grandmother’s voice popped into her head.

  Your dad wanted you to have a wonderful summer doing fun things.

  Maddie’s dad knew how much she loved camp. He wanted her to have fun—and she was, except when she was trying to figure out the whole Gabriel thing.

  I will keep having fun, she promised herself. And I won’t ruin it by thinking about Gabriel all the time! Not thinking about Gabriel all the time wasn’t easy, but as the week progressed, Maddie found herself getting into a rhythm, just like on the tennis court. She fell in love with Apple, the chestnut-brown horse she was assigned in her horseback-riding class. Even though she was more comfortable in the water than on a horse, she quickly got the hang of Apple’s gentle trot.

  In photography, she took shot after shot of the lake, trying to capture the water as it rippled in the breeze. In ceramics, she painted a beautiful vase in her mom’s favorite colors, red and green. And in rope climbing, she tried her best to get through the rope course. A series of ropes crisscrossed a small field, leading to obstacles to climb over. The object of the activity was to learn how to get through the course, and Maddie knew it wasn’t going to be easy. Libby, on the other hand, scrambled up the obstacle walls as if she was defying gravity.

  “It’s my tennis training,” Libby would say, playfully showing off her biceps when Maddie would ask her how she did it. “Just another reason to keep playing, Maddie.”

  And every night, she and Gabriel still met at downtime. They talked about boating and school and American TV shows and music, and every night Maddie secretly hoped she’d get another hug, but it never came.

  After downtime, Maddie would head back to the bunk to find Tara on the porch, reading with a flashlight as she waited for the girls to get home.

  “Did they ask you to double-check on us or something?” Maddie asked one night. “I mean, you always used to check on us after curfew.”

  “No, it’s just that my friend Lara—you know, one of the swim instructors?” Tara began, and Maddie nodded. “Well, she had to leave camp early this year and I miss her. We used to hang out at downtime, but not anymore. So here I am. It stinks because I can’t even text her or call her.”

  “Yeah, that does stink,” Maddie agreed. “I miss Liza a lot too. But I’ve been writing her letters.”

  “She’s lucky to have you as a friend, Maddie,” Tara said.

  “Thanks,” Maddie said. “And we’re lucky to have you for a counselor.”

  Tara smiled. “Thanks.”

  Before Maddie knew it, the last week of camp began. Week six was always exciting and sad at the same time. The Lewises always did something really special for the evening programs. Monday night it was a movie under the stars, and curfew was extended by an hour so everyone could watch.

  Maddie grabbed her blanket and headed to watch the movie with Libby and Emily.

  “I hope it’s not a scary movie,” Libby said with a worried expression on her face.

  “They’re never scary,” Maddie promised. “In fact, it’s usually like a boring little kid movie with talking animals or something because they don’t want the little kids to get scared. But it’s still fun because it’s outside.”

  When they got there, Gabriel was waving her over, motioning to the rain poncho he had spread out on the grass. Maddie turned to her friends.

  “Do you guys mind?” she asked.

  “Not at all,” Libby said, taking the blanket from her. “Have fun!”

  Maddie felt nervous as she walked over to Gabriel.

  “I saved you a spot,” he said, sitting down on the poncho. Then he motioned for her to join him.

  Is this the “something special” I’ve be
en waiting for? Maddie wondered, and her palms immediately got sweaty. Normally Gabriel would sit with his friends during the evening program, but they were nowhere in sight. She scanned the crowd and saw Seth and Scott from Gabriel’s bunk sitting next to Emily and Libby.

  Okay, so maybe it’s not a big deal, she told herself. Maybe the boys are just mixing it up.

  But she couldn’t shake that awkward feeling.

  Patty Lewis appeared in front of the crowd. “Welcome to movie night, campers!” she announced in her game-show-host voice. “We’ve been getting requests to do something a little spookier on movie night, so we’ve switched things up a little bit. So tonight prepare to enjoy . . . My Uncle’s a Werewolf!”

  Most campers clapped, and a couple groaned.

  “Poor Libby! She didn’t want to see a scary movie,” Maddie said, looking over at her friend, who was hiding her face in her sweatshirt.

  “I saw it on the plane,” Gabriel said. “It’s a kid’s movie. Not too scary.”

  The crowd quieted down as the movie started, and Maddie soon learned that Gabriel was right. The film was pretty tame, but in one scene, the kids in the movie are walking through the woods at night, slowly, and then suddenly . . .

  “Aaaaah!” Maddie shrieked, along with half the campers, as a werewolf jumped out of the shadows in the film. Instinctively, she reached out and grabbed Gabriel’s arm. He looked down at her and smiled.

  Flustered, Maddie pulled her arm back. Gabriel looked over and smiled at her, but that only made her feel more awkward. She put her hands in her lap, but that got uncomfortable after a while. She shifted and sat cross-legged, planting her palms at her sides, but then Gabriel shifted and his left hand brushed against her right hand, so she quickly moved it.

  Maddie pulled her knees up to her chest and wrapped her arms around them. That worked—for a while. Even though it was a chilly night, she couldn’t seem to stop sweating. She tried leaning back with her arms planted in the ground behind her, and that worked pretty well. Just when she thought she needed a new position, the movie, thankfully, ended.

  They stood up and stretched, and Gabriel looked at his watch. “We’ve still got twenty minutes before curfew. Want to go for a walk?”

  Maddie panicked, her mind racing. This was it. This meant he definitely liked her. Maybe he was going to ask her to be his girlfriend.

  Yikes! She had been dreaming about a moment like this for days, and now that it was right in front of her, something in her gut didn’t feel ready.

  “Um, I have . . . a stomachache,” she said awkwardly, backing away from him. “I should go back to the bunk.”

  Gabriel looked concerned. “Let me walk you back.”

  “No thanks,” Maddie said quickly, and then she turned and practically ran off, leaving a very confused Gabriel standing there, holding his poncho.

  What just happened? Maddie asked herself as she quickly slipped into her pajamas in the bunk. I mean, I wanted him to like me. I think I even wanted to be his girlfriend. And then he did just what I wanted, and it felt good . . . and scary at the same time.

  Maddie got under the covers and pretended to be asleep. She knew her friends would have a lot of questions when they got back, and she didn’t feel like answering them. So she closed her eyes, feeling bad about the way she ran off on Gabriel, but cozy and safe at the same time.

  I’m sure it’s okay, she told herself. I bet everything will still be the same tomorrow.

  chapter 18

  BUT MADDIE SOON FOUND OUT THAT THINGS weren’t the same. The next night the counselors put together a fun game show for the evening program. It was a camp tradition. They set up the mess hall to look like a game show stage, with a glittery paper sign strung across the salad bar that read CAMP WIMOWAY TRIVIA BLOWOUT!

  Alyssa, the counselor who taught the drama class, was the emcee.

  “It’s bunk against bunk in the most intense trivia challenge in Camp Wimoway history!” she announced. “Who will win?”

  The campers let out a wild cheer, and Maddie scanned the crowd to see if she could find Gabriel. He was usually pretty easy to spot because he was so tall. She finally found him leaning against a table, staring straight ahead. He didn’t look for her and give her a wave like he usually did.

  “All right, let’s get this game rolling!” Alyssa announced. “Hannah bunk and Betty bunk, come on down!”

  Maddie forgot about Gabriel and ran up to the stage area with the other Hannahs. She loved trivia night, and she was usually pretty good at it. The Hannahs and the Bettys faced off against one another, with Alyssa in between them.

  “First question goes to the Bettys,” Alyssa asked. “How many dapple gray horses are in the stable?”

  The girls whispered to each other and then one answered, “Two.”

  “Correct!” Alyssa cheered. “Hannahs, it’s your turn. What color flip-flops does your counselor, Tara, wear?”

  The girls huddled together.

  “I think they’re blue,” Maddie said.

  “That sounds right,” Ashley agreed.

  “Are you sure they’re not green?” Libby asked.

  “Definitely blue,” Emily offered.

  Maddie turned to Alyssa. “Blue,” she said.

  Alyssa grinned. “Correct!”

  The game went back and forth until the Bettys got a question wrong. Then the next bunks were called up from the boys’ camp.

  The Hannahs kept winning. Finally, it was down to the Hannahs and the Rickys, the bunk that Brandon and Jared were in.

  “They’re going to be tough to beat,” Maddie whispered to her teammates. “Brandon and Jared have been going to this camp since they could walk.”

  The mess hall got crazy as the girls cheered, “Hannahs! Hannahs! Hannahs!” and the boys cheered “Rickys! Rickys! Rickys!”

  Alyssa had a question for the Rickys. “How many yellow kayaks are at the lake?”

  The boys whispered to each other as the other campers chanted. Finally Brandon answered. “Three?”

  “Wrong!’ Alyssa said. “Hannahs, if you girls get this you will be the Camp Wimoway Trivia Champions!”

  Libby frowned. “I almost never go near the lake. I don’t know.”

  Maddie closed her eyes. “I think I’ve got it,” she said, picturing the lakeshore in her mind. There were the kayaks, lined up as always. One green one, one yellow one, one blue one, another green one, another yellow one . . . ”

  Her eyes flew open. “Two!”

  “Is that your final answer?” Alyssa asked.

  Maddie nodded. “Yes. Definitely two.”

  “Correct! The Hannahs win!”

  The mess hall erupted in applause and cheers (and a few boos from some of the boys). Maddie jumped up and down and Libby and Emily, and Ashley, Alexis, and Abigail high-fived everyone.

  When the excitement died down, Maddie scanned the crowd for Gabriel, but she didn’t spot him. She checked the cookie line, but he wasn’t there. Then she headed out to their usual rock, but Gabriel wasn’t there, either.

  That’s weird, she thought. She waited by the rock for a few minutes, but then started to feel awkward, so she headed back to the bunk. Tara was on the porch steps.

  “Good job tonight,” she said. “You’re back early!”

  Maddie just nodded and walked inside. She didn’t mean to be rude, but an awful feeling was welling up inside her. What if Gabriel didn’t like her anymore?

  She got ready for bed and tried to sleep, but her mind was racing. She hadn’t noticed Amelia during downtime, either. Were Amelia and Gabriel together? The thought left a lump in her throat.

  The next day, she was sure something was up with Gabriel. They never spent much time together during the day, but he had stopped his friendly waving. And that night, he did another disappearing act at downtime. The evening program was a glow-stick party outside, where the campers listened to music and made swirly light patterns in the air. Gabriel stayed with the boys the whole time, and afterwa
rd, when Maddie went to look for him, he was nowhere to be found. This is bad, thought Maddie. Really bad. Camp was ending in just a couple of days. And unlike for Liza, it didn’t look like it was going to end on a high note for Maddie.

  Once again, Maddie headed back to the bunk early. Tara was there as usual, and this time she patted a spot on the step next to her. Maddie sat down and leaned against her shoulder.

  “Boy stuff?” Tara asked.

  “Maybe,” Maddie replied cautiously. “I’m not sure.” She felt silly talking about it, but Tara was so nice, like a big sister. “It’s just that, Gabriel and I are friends, and we sat next to each other during the movie, and I think he likes me and stuff, but then he asked me to go for a walk and I freaked out a little and just left him standing there.”

  She let out a deep breath. It felt good to get all that out. She glanced at Tara, worried that Tara might think she was silly, but Tara looked thoughtful.

  “Well, do you like Gabriel maybe as a boyfriend?” Tara asked.

  “Yes!” Maddie replied without hesitating. It was the first time she felt sure. “But, well . . . I don’t know. I like thinking about him. I like the idea of him. But the idea of actually having him as a boyfriend is kind of, well, kind of scary.”

  Tara let out an understanding laugh. “It’s okay,” she said. “Sometimes boys are a lot better from a distance. You can like a boy and not do anything about it.”

  “You can?” Maddie asked. She had never considered this before.

  Tara nodded. “Sure! That’s what a crush is all about. You don’t even have to let the boy know about it if you don’t want to.”

  Maddie thought about this. “You know what’s weird? The whole time I was worried if he liked me or not. I wonder if he was worrying if I liked him. I never did say anything.”

  “And you don’t have to say anything until you’re ready,” Tara said. “But it’s not good to hurt someone’s feelings. Gabriel is probably wondering what he did to make you run off like that. He might be avoiding you because he’s embarrassed. It would be really nice if you could talk to him.”

  Maddie stomach lurched. “What would I say?” she asked. She couldn’t imagine having that conversation with him. I was afraid to be your girlfriend so I ran. Awkward!