by B. R. Myers
Then a horrific thought occurred to me. My hands gripped the edge of the bench and my legs prickled with pins and needles. Is that why I was hired? Get the track and field star to win the race and end Kamp Krystal Lake’s losing streak? I never did see what the guidance counsellor put on my application form.
“New counsellors, please stand when I say your name,” the director ordered.
I uncurled my fingers and focused on breathing. Stand and wave. I could do that.
People did a speedy up and down, giving barely enough time to connect the face to the name. There were only a few of us who were new. Most of the other counsellors had been here before.
“Jessica Jesse,” she called out.
Are you kidding me?
I stood up, grateful my somewhat flat hair was covering my burning ears. The polite applause was punctuated by a whistle. I finally found Devin, and returned his smile.
“Jesse!” Scotty whispered.
I sat back down, and immediately knew I wouldn’t be getting up anytime soon. A quick glance to my left confirmed my suspicion. Spencer’s plate of sloppy blueberry pie was no longer in front of him. The warm sensation underneath me was spreading, and I pictured the purple stain making its way through my white shorts.
SIX
I didn’t need to read sign language to interpret Duff’s comment to Liam. Spencer had one of those satisfied smirks that only a little bastard could pull off. Scotty, the one with a shred of conscience, couldn’t even meet my gaze.
I turned to Spencer. “You finished your pie quickly,” I said.
“I love pie,” he replied. “But the pastry goes straight to my ass.”
The snickering ensued for several minutes and I looked around, desperate for an escape.
“What kind of a name is Jessica Jesse, anyway?” Liam asked, immune to my embarrassment.
I gritted my teeth. “It’s just Jesse,” I said. Duff made two quick motions with his right baby finger.
“What?” I growled, trying to think of a plan.
“We’ll just call you J.J.,” Liam answered.
The camp director finished her announcements by reminding everyone of the fireworks tonight on the beach.
“I love fireworks!” Spencer cooed, clasping his hands together. I imagined mashing a slice of pie into his face.
As everyone filed out the door, I sat waiting. The only plan I could think of was to stay put for now and eventually get my purple butt back to the cabin unnoticed. The room was almost clear, but my boys weren’t moving.
“Get going,” I hissed.
“I’m actually kind of interested to see how you’re going to get out of this,” Liam said.
The camp director walked by and scanned our table with narrowed eyes. She gazed at me with a mix of pity and support. “Let me know if you need anything, Jessica,” she offered.
“Yes, ma’am. And it’s just Jesse.” I gave her a small fake smile, not sure how she could help me at this moment. She joined the others leaving the main hall, anxious to start the afternoon activities.
I reached up and automatically rubbed the silver disc on my necklace.
At the 1936 Berlin Olympics, Jesse Owens defied Hitler’s master race theory by becoming the first American track and field athlete to win four gold medals in a single Games—no small feat for a young Black man competing in Nazi Germany. It was a record that stood unbroken for forty-eight years. And if Jesse Owens could stand up to Hitler, I could certainly handle blueberry pie.
Crying and talking about tampons wasn’t going to work. I leaned in close, staring Spencer down like he was the finish line in the provincial finals. “I don’t care what your motive is,” I said, “but you’re going to have to do better than this if you want to scare me away.”
Duff signed. “That sounds like a challenge,” Liam interpreted.
“I can run back to the cabin for a change of clothes for you,” Scotty offered.
“Actually,” Spencer said, “You’ve been a good sport, J.J. I’ll go back for you.”
I pictured the backpack full of snakes. “No thanks,” I said. “I don’t need your help.”
Devin approached our table. My insides began to liquefy. The only guy who wasn’t a total jerk, and may even have been interested in me, would see my butt covered in purple goo.
Spencer stood up. “Hey there,” he said to Devin. “Take my seat, I was just leaving.”
“No!” I said.
Devin frowned and put his hands in his pockets. “Are you all right?” he asked.
“You bet! Um…I was telling the guys they should hurry before all the good canoes are taken.”
Good canoes? Brilliant.
“Don’t mind our J.J.,” Spencer gave me a pat on the shoulder. “Her boyfriend broke up with her this morning, and she just started her period.”
Time seemed to stand still. No one moved or breathed.
I was sinking fast. I treated the situation like the long jump. Run hard. Hit your mark. And fly.
I took a deep breath and stared right back at Devin. “I need a favour,” I said.
“Yeah?” he said, uneasily.
Run hard.
“Can you take these guys to their afternoon activity, and tell the other counsellor I’ll be a few minutes late?”
“Um, okay…sure.”
Hit your mark.
I smiled back at Devin. He pretty much snapped his fingers and the boys stood at attention. They followed out of the main hall behind him, not daring to utter a single complaint.
And fly.
Now that the room was empty, I held the plate against my butt and quickly shuffled to the swinging door at the front of the room.
The industrial kitchen had stainless steel counters with a long wooden island in the middle. The dishwasher machines were already chugging while pots and pans soaked in a large sink under the window. Two brightly flowered aprons were hung up on pegs by the back screen door. I could hear voices lightly chuckling just outside. Guessing the kitchen staff would be back from their break soon, I hurried to the large sink, and hopped out of my shorts. Of all the days to wear the white pair! I scrubbed them under the running water.
I prepared myself for the walk back. “Yeah, I know,” I’d have to say, laughing like I just told the best joke ever. “I sat on a piece of pie.” Stupidly, I was more embarrassed by the fact that my cabin hated me, than the trick itself.
But that wasn’t me anymore, right? This is my summer of freedom—to hell with Spencer and his stupid prank.
The screen door at the back opened and closed. Footsteps walked into the room, then stopped.
Uh-oh.
I closed my eyes and started to pray. Please be a nice girl. Please do not let it be Devin. And please, please, please don’t let it be Kirk.
“Can I help you?” a guy’s voice asked.
I was fresh out of training metaphors. The only thing I had left was the truth. “It’s blueberry pie,” I said.
He leaned his tall, thin frame against the counter with his toned arms at his sides. He pushed up his glasses. Javelin thrower, I thought. His eyes did a quick scan of the situation. “You must have a really fast digestive system,” he said, looking at the sink.
He smiled a bit, then we burst out laughing. He threw me the two flowered aprons, which I overlapped around me like a big skirt. Then he got some bleach from under the sink. “It’s okay,” he said, nodding to the bright aprons. “The Brasseau sisters do most of the prep work, they won’t be back until lunch.” As my shorts soaked, he gave me another slice of pie with vanilla ice cream, and we chatted.
Lewis was one of the kitchen crew. The Brasseau sisters, he explained, had been cooking for the camp every summer since it first opened twenty years ago, but he was here for a reason other than a summer income. He graduated from high school last
year, and was going out west to study culinary arts at the Vancouver Arts Institute in the fall. This was his second year at Krystal Lake, and he knew mostly everyone by name, including Spencer.
“I think he did it as retaliation,” I said.
“Sounds like his style.” He did a quick check on my shorts. “Are you going to tell the head counsellor?”
“Kirk?” I blurted out. “No way. He’s waiting for me to run into the office asking for a bus ticket home.” I glanced up at the clock above the stove. “I gotta go. I told Devin I’d only be a few minutes.”
“Hold on, I’ll be right back.” Lewis returned with a pair of sweatpants. “Your legs are nicer than mine,” he said, “but we’re almost the same height.”
I left the kitchen wearing the sweatpants and ran across the green slope to Cabin 4A. I changed into my blue Adidas shorts, and ran down the stairs of the porch.
Across the lawn, Devin called my name. I waved back and he jogged up to me. “Hey,” he said, between breaths. “The kids are on a hike with Lacey’s group. I told them you’d catch up.” He pointed toward the woods. “You should reach them in a couple of minutes.”
“Awesome. Thanks.” I headed toward the trail.
“Um…J.J.?”
I turned around. “Yeah?”
“Did…did you really break up with your boyfriend this morning?”
His stammer made me smile for some reason. “No.”
“Oh.” He looked down at his sneakers.
“There was no boyfriend to break up with.”
His head whipped back up. “Excellent, cool then.”
Devin ran back down to the beach. I’d been going to track meets for years, seeing guys in great shape, but I was more interested in staring at the finish line. Watching Devin lope across the lawn like a well-conditioned stud machine brought a totally new feeling. Now that I wasn’t competing, I could enjoy the surrounding view. Devin caught me looking, and waved back.
I made my way into the woods and soon found them. Lacey’s group was up ahead, walking single file and filling the air with excited chatter. My guys lagged behind, grumbling and tearing leaves off branches.
Liam gave Duff a nudge. “This is so stupid,” he complained. Their hands moved, passing ideas back and forth. “I know,” Liam said. “First a nerdy counsellor, then this.”
Nerdy?
“I’m here,” I called out. Everyone stopped and turned around. I felt stupid just standing there so I gave a little wave. Spencer kicked at the dirt, hands shoved in his pockets.
“Perfect,” Lacey smiled brilliantly. “Girls, say hi to Jessica.”
“Hi, Jessica,” they sang.
“No,” I said, “just Jesse.”
“Perfect, Jazzy.” Lacey flicked her ponytail then continued with the hike.
I let her mistake slide, tired of correcting people on my name. I followed along, purposely staying in the back, content with daydreams about Devin. Every make out scene from every movie I’d ever seen, or book I’d ever read, flashed through my mind. Except in my version, Devin and I were the stars.
I’d had crushes before, and my pathetic kissing history spoke for itself, but this was totally new. An instant attraction. I wanted to know how it would feel to grab him by the shoulders and lay one on him. I kept replaying the moment when he turned around and waved at me. And I swear to Grandma, my ovaries jumped up and down.
SEVEN
After supper, I gave myself a pat on the back for not becoming soiled at any time during the meal. There was a scavenger hunt over the whole grounds that lasted the longest hour on recorded history. And since I spent most of my time making sure Spencer wasn’t making booby traps or collecting snakes for my bed that night, we barely collected three out of the twenty items.
Lacey’s team won, and Cabin 4A, nurse’s office for delinquents, came in last. I may have been reinventing myself, but I still hated losing, especially to a cupcake.
The boys traded gross talk in the cabin while I hung out on the porch. I wished for my iPod, knowing the sunset would be so much nicer without the background commentary on the fine art of booger flicking.
The rest of the campers were beginning to gather on the beach, anticipating the fireworks. I noticed most of the other kids were hanging out with their counsellors. Playing Frisbee, cracking jokes, having a game of touch football…bonding. Not insulting each other or engaging in a battle of wills. I let a out a long breath, suddenly feeling really tired.
The sound of footsteps coming up the porch made me turn. Kirk stopped just below the top step. He craned his neck as if he was trying to see behind me. He looked surprised to find me all by myself—surprised that I wasn’t bonding with the cabin. My heart sped up, trying to prepare a list of excuses to explain why I was letting my demons stay inside. I could imagine his speech on how I should be of playing Monopoly with them on the porch in the sunshine.
Instead, he ran a hand through his shaggy hair, pushing it off his forehead. “Evening, Just Jesse.”
Howdy, Sheriff.
He leaned against the railing and casually slipped a hand into the pocket of his cargo shorts. I was surprised he didn’t catch a cold, being so super cool and everything. “I heard you met Lewis after lunch.”
Crap. He knows about the pie.
“Yup,” I said, purposely looking back toward the lake.
“He’s a good guy,” he said. I could hear the smile in his voice, enjoying my moment of blueberry humiliation. He was probably picturing me in the kitchen wearing nothing but purple underwear. My jaw clenched.
He moved against the railing, making the wood squeak. “Tonight there’s a thing for the counsellors down on the beach.”
“Yeah, the fireworks, I know.”
“No, after the kids are tucked in there’s going to be a bonfire. Since you’re a counsellor, you can come.”
I turned to him. “Is it all right to leave the kids?”
He laughed. “It’s on the beach, right in front of the cabins.”
“Um…maybe.”
Not if you’re there.
“It’s up to you,” he said, sounding indifferent. He ran his finger along the railing, paying particular attention to a knot in the wood. I stared at his hand. When I looked up he was smiling back at me. I tore my gaze away from those stupid milk chocolate eyes and squirmed in my chair.
He leaned back and took a few steps down; he was ready to leave. “By the way,” he said, “the building beside the main hall is a small lounge for the counsellors. There’s internet, so you can email if you want.”
I thought of Chloe. “Do I need a password?” I asked.
“It’s already set up for your name,” he said over his shoulder. “Just put in a new password when you log on.”
My name or Jessica Jesse’s?
“Sure, thanks,” I mumbled. But Kirk was already down the steps and calling out to some other guy with a football. I leaned forward, watching him run for the wobbling pass. “Miss,” I whispered. He dove for the ball and made a great show of rolling in the grass, but he’d made the catch. Big deal, like no one had ever caught a ball before.
The beach slowly filled with campers. After I prompted them several times, my four boys finally emerged from inside and ran ahead, eager to cut the cord to their nerdy counsellor. I stood off to the side, exchanging nervous smiles with a few unknown faces. After five minutes, my cheeks were sore from all the fake happiness. I glanced at my watch.
Crap.
It was only my first day, and already I was exhausted. I was dreaming of that little twin bed when someone touched my shoulder.
“Devin!” I smiled—a real one this time. He was wearing jeans and a tight white T-shirt that showed every ripple. Seriously, how many sit-ups did this guy do a day?
“How was the hike?” he asked.
I blushed,
remembering how I spent most of it picturing us in an embrace that could be the cover of Chloe’s romance book. “No one died,” I said.
“Cool.”
“Yeah.” I looked down at my flip-flops but paused to stare at his chest again. Definitely hot pirate material. The fireworks finally started, giving us something to focus on other than my lame flirting.
We stood, craning our necks all the way back, oohing and ahhing like a game show audience. The big finale was not quite so big or finale-ish, but they weren’t bad for a summer camp. Devin and I started to leave the beach with everyone else. I noticed the boys had already reached the steps of the cabin. I glanced out of the corner of my eye at Devin and purposely slowed down.
“Um…so are you going to the bonfire tonight?” I asked.
“Bonfire?”
“There’s one for the counsellors, right?” I searched his blank expression with sudden panic. “After the kids are tucked in?”
Devin reached up and rubbed the back of his neck. “I think I heard something about it. I probably won’t be there.”
“Oh.”
He stopped, and glanced around the darkened lawn. “But I might run into you after?”
I tried to see what he was looking for but nothing stood out. “Okay,” I said.
“Cool.” He rocked back on his heels a few times as if he were waiting for me to say something. “Cool…okay.” Then he jogged up the slope, into the darkness.
“Cool?” I whispered. I decided to let it go since he seemed to be the only nice guy here. Well, the only nice guy besides Lewis. My short time with Cabin 4A was increasing my paranoia. I pictured myself on an empty beach waiting for the pretend bonfire, while they waited in the bushes with water guns full of vinegar.
I barricaded myself in my tiny room, listening to the guys settle down. Settling down for a twelve-year-old boy meant having farting contests and belching the alphabet.
The bonfire had started a half hour earlier. I wanted to stay in my bed and go to sleep, but I had a part to keep up. I was the new girl having a summer of flippant, flirtatious flings, and no cabin of evil turds or know-it-all head counsellors were going to push her—I mean me—around. I was about to march out my door, all fun loving and fancy free, when I caught my reflection in the mirror. I was still in my blue Adidas shorts and T-shirt. Liam’s comment about being nerdy rang in my ears.