How to Get to Rio

by Julie Fison

  Persephone didn’t seem bothered. ‘What do you think of Rio?’ she asked, after Tori was gone.

  I shrugged. ‘He’s okay, I guess.’

  ‘Just okay?’ Persephone raised one eyebrow.

  I knew she could see right through me. ‘All right,’ I confessed, ‘he’s totally cute. I see him on the bus. I’ve had a thing for him for ages.’

  Persephone’s eyes widened. ‘Interesting! You know, he’s going to Paradise Point with Jordan these holidays. What do you think about coming to Paradise Point with me, and we can hang out with them?’

  I honestly had no idea what I thought. I was totally confused. Not just about Rio – who must have thought I was the most clueless girl on earth and surely couldn’t be interested in me after this morning’s disaster – but also about Persephone. Why did she want me to go to Paradise Point with her after I flashed my knickers at the whole class? She must’ve had a million cooler friends than me who she could invite.

  But before I had a chance to work all this out, I heard myself saying, ‘That sounds like the best idea ever – I’m so keen! I’ll just have to ask Mum.’

  ‘Yay!’ Persephone cheered.

  ‘So when are you going?’ I asked.

  ‘On Saturday at nine. So we’ll be at Paradise Point by lunchtime. I’ll text Jordan and Rio and we can meet up there.’

  As Persephone chattered away excitedly, I suddenly felt my heart sink.

  I’d already made plans to go camping with Izzy and Mia on Saturday. I couldn’t let my friends down, but I didn’t want to disappoint Persephone either. I had no idea what to do.

  Should I go camping with my besties and miss out on the chance to get to know Persephone – and my best shot with Rio? Or should I go to the beach with Persephone and risk falling out with my best friends?

  It was a long drive to the camping ground, which gave me plenty of time to mull over my decision to go camping.

  Izzy and Mia were sitting next to me. They spent most of the drive debating which bush food was more nutritious – plants or insects. They also put a lot of effort into explaining to me which leaves were best to use as toilet paper.

  ‘Watch out for stinging nettles,’ Mia said.

  Izzy moaned. ‘Made that mistake before. I couldn’t sit down for a week!’

  They can’t be serious, I thought. Surely we could use toilet paper?

  ‘Well, I can’t wait to build a big campfire and roast marshmallows,’ I said, trying to steer the conversation to a happier place.

  ‘Oh,’ said Mia, ‘about that. There’s a total fire ban, so we won’t be able to roast any marshmallows.’

  I sighed. Why exactly had I agreed to go camping with Izzy and Mia? Maybe I’d been too quick with my decision.

  I’d had to tell Persephone that I couldn’t go to Paradise Point after all. She’d been totally cool about it and promised to give me more warning the next time.

  I pulled out my phone and shot her a text. She would be just leaving for the beach now.

  Don’t have too much fun without me. And say hi to Rio!

  A reply came back a second later.

  Wish you were coming, too. Next time! Where are you staying?

  I wondered what Persephone would think of me going camping for the holidays. She probably wouldn’t be too impressed, so I kept my response vague.

  A rural retreat.

  Persephone replied: Sounds cool! Hope it’s five-star!

  I shot back: Me too! :)

  ‘Who’s that?’ Mia asked, trying to peer at my phone.

  ‘Mum,’ I lied, shoving the phone back in my bag. ‘Checking up on me already.’

  I knew that at some stage I’d have to tell Mia and Izzy about Persephone’s invitation, but not today. I didn’t want to start the holiday with another fight about how stuck-up Persephone was. And I could just imagine how Izzy would go on and on about me wishing I was having a fancy-pants holiday with my new bestie.

  ‘How much longer?’ whined a voice behind me. It was BB, Izzy’s youngest brother. He was possibly the most annoying of Izzy’s three brothers, though there was stiff competition for that title.

  The three boys were wedged in the very back seat of the car with all the camping gear. They’d been having a pillow fight almost the whole trip, with just a few breaks to throw tennis balls at each other. When one hit me in the back of the head it did nothing to improve my opinion of camping holidays.

  ‘We’re almost there,’ Izzy’s mum called back to us. ‘The Lost World is just up ahead.’

  Izzy’s dad turned the car onto a tiny road that became a dusty dirt track.

  The Lost World – how fitting, I thought. I just hoped we’d be able to find our way back again.

  ‘Say goodbye to civilisation, kids,’ said Izzy’s dad, grinning.

  When the car pulled up, Izzy opened the door, but before she even had a chance to get out, her brothers somersaulted right over us and scrambled out. I got out of the car feeling bruised and slightly sick.

  Mia’s family was already there. They were busy setting up camp next to us. Her mum and dad were unpacking tents and boxes of food. Her four brothers were supposed to be helping, but they were screaming and chasing each other around the camping ground.

  I stood out of the way and looked around, taking in my home for the next week. Ahead was a cluster of tents and, past them, a row of campervans were facing the sea. The Lost World was actually a gorgeous spot – there was a dramatic mountain range behind us and the sparkling blue ocean up ahead. It was almost as lovely as Paradise Point, just without the shops and restaurants.

  On the very edges of the camping ground were a playground, a trampoline and a big pool bordered by palm trees – all very promising signs. And there was something else more amazing. A big brick building that looked like … I walked closer to get a better look.

  ‘Communal shower block,’ I gasped, reading the sign on the building.

  By then Mia was grinning madly. ‘Surprise!’

  ‘You mean, I don’t really have to dig my own toilet?’ I asked, looking around at Izzy.

  She just tossed me a sleeping bag and laughed. I felt like throwing it back at her – right in her laughing face! She and Mia had really got me this time. I’d got myself completely worked up about this trip for nothing.

  ‘You’re really funny, you two,’ I said, scowling, ‘telling me I’d have to dig my own toilet.’

  ‘Come on, Kitty,’ Izzy said. ‘We did it because we love you.’

  ‘Funny way to show it,’ I grumbled.

  ‘No, really,’ Mia said. ‘The camping ground is much better than you thought, isn’t it? That’s because we said it would be terrible. If we told you how great The Lost World was, you probably would have been disappointed. Sometimes you have to be cruel to be kind.’

  ‘Hmm … great theory,’ I muttered. But really I was only half angry now. I had to admit that maybe Izzy and Mia had done me a favour. ‘So what about the campfire situation?’ I asked.

  ‘We can definitely do that!’ Mia said, pulling a double bag of marshmallows out of her backpack. ‘There isn’t really a fire ban.’

  ‘Enough chit chat, ladies,’ Izzy’s father said, passing Izzy a large bag. ‘The tents won’t put themselves up.’

  Izzy took the tent bag to a flat piece of grass and emptied it onto the ground. I stared at the pile of poles, pegs, ropes and nylon.

  We’re never going to make a tent out of that lot, I thought.

  But a surprisingly short time later, we were sitting inside a perfectly comfortable structure, admiring our work. We’d pitched our tent, blown up our air mattresses, rolled out our sleeping bags and had the whole place looking cosy. Mia had even found some fresh lavender and tied a few sprigs together to make our tent smell nice.

  ‘Camping is actually pretty cool,’ I announced, lying on my mattress.

  Mia winked at Izzy. ‘I’d say our idea worked.’

  I huffed. ‘Yeah, but it nearly backfired,’ I
told them. ‘You told me so many horror stories that I nearly bailed on you.’

  ‘Really?’ asked Mia.

  ‘I’m glad I didn’t, though,’ I said. ‘It’s going to be beyond amazing spending the week here together.’

  ‘So you forgive us?’ Mia asked.

  Before I could answer, yelling started up outside the tent.

  We had been left in charge of the boys while the parents went off to the camping ground office. The boys were supposed to be setting up their tents, but there was no way they were doing that. It sounded like they were having a war out there.

  Izzy poked her nose out of the tent. ‘Stop mucking around, you lot! Before someone has an accident!’

  She had barely got the last word out when there was a squeal, followed by the whack of something hitting the side of our tent. Then there was another scream and a loud thud as several boys landed on our tent. A moment later our tent collapsed on top of us.

  ‘You rodents!’ Izzy screamed as the three of us fought our way out.

  By the time we got out, the boys were long gone. Mia spotted BB climbing a nearby tree. The other boys were scrambling after him.

  Izzy gave chase. ‘You’re all so dead,’ she yelled from the bottom of the tree.

  BB just laughed. ‘Can’t catch us, ya lazy old Izzy lizard.’ He fired a big seed pod, which just missed her.

  ‘Dead! You hear me?’ she screamed and looked up at the seven laughing boys in the branches above us. ‘I hate you boys. All boys! I hate you all!’

  The three of us paced around the tree, shouting threats and curses until Mia stopped in her tracks.

  Mia’s face was pale and her mouth dropped open. ‘That’s awkward,’ she mumbled. ‘I bet they saw the whole thing.’

  At first, I thought she was talking about her parents. But when Izzy and I followed Mia’s gaze, we saw a group of guys leaning on the pool fence, staring at us.

  Izzy ducked behind the tree trunk. ‘You think they heard me shouting?’

  ‘I’m pretty certain people on the other side of the country heard you,’ I said. ‘So, yeah, I’d say they did.’

  Izzy poked her head out. ‘Geez, that’s a shame. How cute are they? Especially that one in the red shorts.’

  Mia gave them a wave. One of them waved back half-heartedly. Then they all wandered off.

  ‘I love camping,’ Mia said dreamily.

  ‘Me too,’ Izzy sighed.

  I was beginning to get why my best friends loved camping so much. It was all about the guys.

  ‘Izzy, you scared them off with all that “hating boys” stuff,’ Mia said bitterly as we sat on the beach watching the waves roll in.

  ‘Or maybe you freaked them out by waving,’ Izzy replied.

  In the last hour, we’d done at least ten circuits of the camping ground, looking for the cute camping guys. We’d checked around the tents and the campervans. We’d been in and out of the pool three times and walked to the beach, but there was no sign of the guy in the red shorts or his friends. They’d disappeared completely.

  ‘Blame your brothers,’ I suggested.

  ‘I always do,’ Izzy said with a grin.

  ‘Yeah,’ Mia agreed. ‘If they hadn’t destroyed our tent, we wouldn’t have been putting it back up when we could have been talking with the guys. And we’d probably be hanging out with them right now, instead of watching seagulls.’

  Izzy sighed. ‘The guy in the red shorts was definitely the cutest.’

  Mia shook her head. ‘The one in the blue shirt was hotter.’ She sighed. ‘But we’re not going to find any of them here.’

  It was starting to get dark, so we headed back to the camping ground. I dawdled behind to check my phone. I’d heard it beep with a text earlier, but didn’t want to check it in front of the girls. While Izzy and Mia kept debating about which of the missing guys was cuter, I opened a message from Persephone.

  How’s the rural retreat?

  I replied: Pretty good :)

  Lucky you. Is it a beautiful villa? Have you got a pool?

  I shot back: Of course!

  I knew that was at least half a lie, but before I had time to worry about it my phone beeped again.

  So jealous :)

  At least my next text was totally true: It’s amazing here! Wish you could see it for yourself.

  The reply that came back made my heart jump.

  You should be here. Just saw Rio at the beach. He looked sad when I said you weren’t coming to PP.

  Really? I texted back.

  Really!

  Even though I was having fun with Izzy and Mia, my heart sank a little. While we were scurrying around a camping ground after some random boys, Persephone was hanging out with Rio. I didn’t care about some guy in red shorts or any of the camping guys. They were nothing compared to Rio.

  I looked up to see if I could send another text without Mia and Izzy seeing. They were a safe distance ahead.

  Now I’m sad I’m here and not there.

  Persephone replied: Don’t be! Enjoy the villa. You can see Rio another time.

  It was easy for Persephone to say. She was the kind of girl who could just stroll up to any guy she wanted and talk to him. It wasn’t that easy for me. But I wasn’t going to mention that.

  Sure, I’ll see him when I get back. Loving the villa life!

  My phone beeped again.

  Where’s this amazing rural retreat? I’ll have to go there sometime.

  I could answer that question truthfully. I figured Persephone would have no idea where this place was.

  It’s called The Lost World.

  Then came an unexpected reply.

  OMG! That’s right near here. I can probably wave to you from our apartment! But I thought The Lost World was just a camping ground.

  I felt sick in the stomach. Straining my eyes to see in the light of sunset, I looked at my surroundings. The beach, the mountains, the rocky headland. No wonder it all looked so familiar, because it was! My phone beeped again.

  What’s the address of your villa? I’ll come visit!

  I stared at the message and wished that I had never started texting Persephone. Now she was going to find out that I was a liar and staying at a camping ground. I wasn’t sure which was worse.

  ‘Kitty,’ Mia called down from the top of the sand dune, ‘do you have a boyfriend?’

  I jumped at the sound of her voice. ‘No. Of course not.’ I quickly shoved my phone into my pocket and raced up the dune.

  ‘Let’s see your phone, then,’ Izzy said, sticking her hand out.

  I shook my head. ‘Just needed to get a few things sorted out. Just boring stuff.’

  ‘Sure,’ Mia said with a sly smile. ‘Is that “boring stuff ” related to Rio, by any chance?’

  ‘I wish.’

  Izzy and Mia were looking at me suspiciously, but they didn’t ask any more questions. I was grateful for that because I had enough problems to deal with. What was I going to do about Persephone? I couldn’t let her come to The Lost World. There was no poolside villa to see here.

  Maybe I could organise to meet her at Paradise Point, I thought. But that meant explaining the whole story about Persephone’s invitation to Izzy and Mia, which I didn’t really want to do.

  ‘How far is it to Paradise Point?’ I asked when we were almost back at the tent.

  ‘It’s on the far side of the bay,’ Izzy said, pointing. ‘You can’t see it from here, but it’s just around the headland. Why?’

  ‘Just wondering.’

  ‘Wondering why?’ asked Mia.

  ‘Just wondering why you didn’t tell me that before,’ I said, grumpily.

  Izzy stared at me hard. ‘Well, because you didn’t ask,’ she said.

  I supposed that was true. I hadn’t asked. But now I knew that Rio was staying on the other side of the bay, I couldn’t get him out of my mind. I had to see him. I just needed a bit of time to work out a plan.

  ‘Guess what?’ Izzy whispered, crawling
into the tent. ‘I saw the guys!’

  ‘Did you talk to them?’ Mia asked eagerly, propping herself up on her elbows.

  Izzy looked down at her clothes. ‘Yeah, I really had a great conversation while I was in my pyjamas!’

  I laughed. ‘You look totally cute. You should have.’

  ‘Nice of you to say so, but no, I didn’t talk to them. I did get some intel, though.’ Izzy paused as she zipped up the tent door. ‘They were talking about the waterfall. You remember the one, Mia – at the top of the Valley of the Beeches?’

  Mia frowned. ‘Valley of the Leeches more like.’

  Izzy flopped down on her mattress. ‘Yeah, well, that’s where they’re going in the morning. We should go, too.’

  ‘Could work,’ Mia said, thoughtfully. ‘Sounds like a plan to me.’

  ‘Let’s go early to be there when they arrive. That way we don’t look like we’re stalking them,’ Izzy said, turning to me. ‘What do you think, Kit? A walk through Valley of the Leeches – I mean Beeches – and a swim at the waterfall?’

  ‘Ha, ha. You’re funny,’ I said, smiling. ‘You’re trying to get me all stressed about leeches and then you’ll take me on a hike through a valley full of butterflies or something. Well, you’re not getting me this time with that old trick.’

  Izzy shook her head. ‘Okay, that does sound like the sort of thing I’d do, but we’re not mucking around. The valley is actually full of leeches. But those guys are actually even cuter close up, so it’ll be worth it.’

  My smile dropped. ‘But you know how much I hate leeches.’

  Izzy nodded. ‘I’m scared of leeches, too,’ she said. ‘Everyone is.’

  I knew she was just saying that to make me feel better, but it didn’t. I put my hands over my face. ‘I can’t.’

  Mia gently pulled my hands from my face. ‘C’mon, Kitty. You’re the only one who hasn’t done something silly in front of those guys. We need you.’

  ‘C’mon, Kit,’ Izzy said. ‘All for one and one for all. We’d do the same for you.’

  I studied my friends’ faces in the torchlight. They were so excited about hanging out at the waterfall with a bunch of cute guys. But if I had to walk through leech territory to help them out, maybe they could do me a favour.