Through the Woods

by Rowan Thalia

  “Let’s go see if everything still looks the same,” Dexter adds, ushering us down the path that bisects the treeline. A small line of trees separate the camper’s area from the staff cabins, giving the staff some privacy.

  “I’m sure it’s just as dirty and spider filled,” Sterling adds with a shudder. I have a feeling he never would have agreed to this if everyone else hadn’t. Even as kids he wasn’t a huge fan of the bugs and extra mud that comes along with summer camp. Sure he hiked with us at the twins’ summer cabin, but there he didn't have to get super dirty.

  “And that’s why you’re stuck in the infirmary,” Alex teases.

  “Thank God,” Sterling shoots back, not even noticing the teasing tone.

  When we step through the trees, we get a full view of the camp. The camper cabins are sprinkled in the middle, with activity buildings surrounding it. Woods line three sides and lake access is on the other.

  “It looks the same,” Dex confirms, a wide grin spreading across his face as he leads us down the path to the buildings. “We may as well see where we’ll be working.”

  “Look, the archery range is up ahead, next to that baseball diamond,” Asher points out, his walk turning into a jog. By the time we catch up to him, he’s inside the building, checking everything out.

  “Oh, fancy! You get your own office,” Alex teases, sitting in the office chair and kicking his feet up on the desk.

  “Have some respect, bro,” Asher says, smacking his legs down, almost pitching Alex from the chair.

  “Do you even know how to shoot a bow and arrow?” I ask, picking up a child sized bow that’s sitting on a nearby table.

  “That was one of the less boring sports at camp, but I haven’t practiced in years,” he admits sheepishly, taking an adult bow off of the hook on the wall and walking outside. The hay bales are set up with targets affixed to them. Asher tests his string before pulling the bow back and lining his arm up properly. When he notches the arrow, his face turns from relaxed to intense. He lets out a breath and releases his arrow. I watch in shock as the arrow pierces the bullseye.

  “Still got it!” he shouts, doing a victory dance.

  “Come on, Robin Hood. We still have more things to see,” I joke, taking his hand and leading him inside to put the bow back.

  The next building we come across is the arts building, where I’ll be. The wooden structure is wide open, with shelves of craft supplies lining the walls, and tables scattered in the middle of the room. There are two small desks set on opposite sides of the tables for us.

  “I guess you don’t get an office. You must not be as cool as the sports director,” Asher jokes, earning the pinecone that I launch at his head.

  “Where the hell did you get a pinecone?” Sterling snorts, shaking his head at our teasing.

  “For bird feeders,” I point out, showing him the box sitting on the table next to me.

  “Already being crafty?” Dex teases. I roll my eyes and ignore them, and instead I start browsing all of the craft supplies. Seeing each new item has me more and more excited for the camp to open. This was always my favorite building. In fact, this is where I first found my love for art.

  “I remember having to sit in here for hours, while ‘Knees’ over there would paint. The only way I could convince her to leave, was with food,” Dexter teases.

  “Why am I not surprised about the food thing?” Asher asks, giving me a knowing look. I shrug, unashamed about my love for all things yummy.

  “Come on, I want to see the wilderness center.” Dexter pulls me out of the building and into the next. His inner dork shines as soon as he spots the petrified bugs in their display cases. Nature posters line the walls, including plants to avoid, which I should probably read. We all know my luck isn’t the best.

  “I’m surprised this wasn’t your favorite, Purple. I can just picture you being a little fire starter during campfire lessons,” Alex jokes, making an explosion noise and throwing his hands out.

  “Little old me? Burn down the whole camp?” I quip, giving him a smirk.

  “I remember having to take you to the infirmary for some extensive burning on your arms,” Sterling supplies unhelpfully as we walk back outside to finish our tour of the camp.

  “Thanks, Specs,” I deadpan, while Alex cracks up.

  “So this is where you’ll be spending all your time, Captain Disaster?” Alex asks as we open the door to the infirmary. It’s empty, but cleaner than the other cabins. The camp nurse usually arrives the day before the campers, so it will be up to Sterling and the other medical assistant to set up and finish sanitizing the place. He walks around for a few minutes, before shrugging and leading us out. His job won’t be as exciting as ours, but he’ll enjoy it.

  “Shut up! They have one of those giant blobs!” Asher calls, sprinting for the lake and stripping down to his boxers as he runs. Alex lets out a loud whoop, and runs after him. Asher launches himself onto the blob, but he doesn’t make it far enough to bounce off. Alex, being Alex, jumps on the end cannonball style, launching Ash into the air and sending him into the lake.

  “I give it a four!” I yell down to Asher as soon as his head pops above the water. He splashes water our way, and bubbles with laughter. I don’t think I’ve ever seen my sweet guy so carefree.

  “Let’s get Alex, guys,” I blurt, shrugging out of my shirt, shoes and pants. I run toward them, not bothering to yell and ruin the fun. The guys follow quietly beside me as we all sprint toward the blob. Alex’s eyes go wide as he sees us, and hurriedly scrambles to the other side.

  “Fuck, don’t do it, Purple!” he screeches, but he’s already laughing too.

  We all hold hands before running and jumping onto the blob. Alex is launched into the air with a high pitched yell that has me snort laughing, before belly flopping into the water with a loud smack.

  “I give that belly flop a ten!” Sterling yells, smirking at his own joke as Alex comes up, groaning and gasping for air.

  Without warning, the three of us are launched into the air. I let out a girlish scream that rivals Alex’s, right before I’m unceremoniously plopped into the water. The cool water washes over me, before I break the surface. Glancing back at the blob, Asher is sitting on top, cracking up. The jerk must have snuck up when we were laughing at Alex.

  “Come on, we need to get changed so we aren’t late to the dinner meeting,” Sterling says, looking down at his watch.

  “Fine,” I pout, but follow them out of the water when a fish brushes against my ankle. Right when I pull my shirt over my head, a car door slams in the distance.

  “Let’s go check out our competition,” Dexter says, putting his arm around my shoulders and pulling me close. We walk back to the staff side of the camp and hurry to our cabin, ready to get out of the uncomfortably wet clothes.

  We all change, before walking back to the farmhouse. The others beat us there and are all awkwardly standing together on the porch. They turn and give generic greetings. Dexter grins and walks up, holding out his hand for a shake.

  “I’m Dexter, nice to meet you. This is Alex, Asher, Sterling and Juniper,” he says, pointing out each of us.

  “Call me, Jun,” I say, offering my hand too.

  “Brian, I’ll be in wilderness training,” the first guy says. He has shaggy brown hair and green eyes, but when he speaks I already label him a nerd in my mind. He just gives off that vibe.

  “Jackson. Lifeguard,” the other guy says. If I wasn’t already involved, he’d be my type. Tall, built, and handsome with his southern accent and bright blue eyes.

  “Wendy,” a bubbly girl says, flipping her blond hair over her shoulder and stepping out of the group to offer her hand to Asher. My eyes narrow and she scoffs, apparently not convinced he’d date me.

  “Asher,” he says, shaking her hand before stepping closer to me. Her eyes go wide and she gives me an apologetic shrug, turning her sights on Alex.

  “Maria, I’ll be cooking,” a sweet, Hispanic gir
l says as she gives a small wave. I like her immediately, appreciating that she’s keeping her distance and not being overly chipper. My kind of girl.

  “Karen. I’m in the infirmary,” the pretty redhead says, giving each of us an assessing look. She has that serious, studious vibe about her.

  “I’m infirmary too,” Sterling says, giving her a friendly smile. Her eyes light up and I press down the jealousy flaring up. Nothing about me is controlling, and I don’t care if they talk to girls. It’s just that I don’t like other girls flirting with my guys.

  “I’m in arts and crafts,” I blurt, hoping to move the conversation away from Sterling, who is too oblivious to catch her sultry smile.

  “Same,” Wendy says, giving me an annoyed glance, clearly unhappy that I’m her partner and not one of my guys. Sorry to disappoint.

  “Archery,” Asher adds.

  “Water sports,” Alex says at the same time.

  “I thought I heard people talking! Well, come on in!” Jessica’s overly cheerful voice calls out as she opens the door and peeks out.

  Without looking at the others, I follow her in. She greets everyone and chats about how excited she is about this summer. I try to nod along, but my eyes are already scanning over the fried chicken, green beans, mashed potatoes, and rolls.

  “It’s over. Don’t bother to ask Jun anything now, she’s spotted the goods,” Dex jokes, earning himself a glare. Wendy makes a noise of disgust. The impulse to flip her off is strong, but I hold back. Clearly we’re off to a great start.

  “Did you guys find your cabins?” Wendy asks, taking one seat at the table.

  “Yeah, we claimed cabin one, on the left. That leaves cabin two for you guys,” Alex says, claiming a seat. Jessica and Bobby put plates, cups and soda out before stepping out of the kitchen.

  “Dig in!” Jessica says, taking a seat next to Bobby. “We can talk jobs after our bellies are full.”

  Not one to hesitate when food’s involved, I pile my plate full, before taking a bite and groaning as the spices dance across my taste buds.

  “You’re all sharing a two bedroom cabin?” Wendy asks, ruining a perfectly good food moment, clearly not happy with our earlier answer.

  “Yup. We live together, so it only made sense for us to stay in the same cabin,” I say with a shrug, before adding another bite into my mouth. She grimaces and glances at Jessica, who just smiles back before turning back to her conversation with Bobby.

  “We should have a campfire after this,” Alex calls down.

  “Did we grab marshmallows?” I ask. Alex looks over and rolls his eyes.

  “I stock them here, just check the pantry. We provide food, drinks, and snacks. The only thing we ask is no alcohol outside of your cabins, once the campers and counselors are here. Which brings me to your roles. For the next week we will clean the buildings, and get them ready for campers. Don’t forget to keep track of your checklists, they’re in your folders over there on the counter. Each has to-do lists, emergency procedures, a schedule, camper emergency cards, and your name tags. We are around if you have questions, and walkie talkies are in each activity building so you can call out anytime. And remember to have fun!” She ends on that cheesy note, giving us all super sweet smiles. This woman has enough sunshine to melt my frozen, goth heart.

  Once we all help clean up dinner, we head out to the big campfire ring. I take a stump while I let Brian and Dexter start a fire. Thankfully we don’t have to forage for our wood, there’s a huge stack of chopped wood already in the wood shed nearby.

  Once the fire is blazing, Alex turns on his twangy country music and smirks at me. It feels like a true southern campfire now. The night air is cool as I gaze out into the thick woods surrounding us. I love how peaceful it is here. This place is exactly the change we needed.

  “So, are you and Asher dating?” Wendy asks as she sits down next to me. “Yes, and I’m dating Dexter, Sterling and Alex, too,” I add, figuring we may as well rip the band-aid off all at once. Her eyes go wide as she processes my words, before they narrow at me.

  “They just all share you?” Her voice has moved from shocked to judgmental, and I’m not about to argue tonight.

  “Yes. We’re all adults and we’re happy. Now if you’ll excuse me,” I say quickly, standing up and heading over to the other side of the fire where Jackson, Asher, and Dexter are all talking. I’d rather not fight with the other staff, so I figure it’s best to leave while I’m being civil.

  When I approach the circle of guys, something catches my eyes. I pause and glance past them, into the woods. A white, misty figure peeks out from the tree line, chilling my spine. My eyes lock onto the figure’s shadowed face, and I shudder. The figure flickers in and out of view, before floating back into the thick of the forest.

  “Hey, Jun. You okay?” Dexter asks, glancing behind him at the treeline where I’m staring.

  “Probably just a deer or something,” I say, giving my best effort at a relaxed smile. Even though I let out a small laugh, he doesn't look fully convinced. Lucky for me, he lets it go, jumping back into his conversation with the others. I try to keep my eyes from wandering back to the trees, but every so often I think I see something that draws my attention back again.

  Maybe that demon wasn’t in my mind?

  Did the spirits find me again?

  3

  Jun

  There’s a loud ass bird warbling outside the window. When I look at my phone, it’s only five-thirty. Is this really happening? Fuck. Summers are for sleeping in! Growling, I turn over and pull the cover over my head, trying to burrow back down into my bed. But it’s no use, I’m awake now.

  “Jun?” Sterling whispers. “Is that you grouching?”

  Peeking one eye out of my blanket, I spy him in the bed across from me. He gives me a lazy smile and pats the bed next to him. Without letting go of my blanket, I slink onto the floor and creep across the small aisle between us. Sterling chuckles and throws his blanket over mine before reaching in and worming his way next to me.

  “That’s a grey-cheeked thrush you heard, I saw the nest yesterday when we were moving into the cabin,” he speaks in my ear.

  Sterling would know exactly which bird is guilty of waking me up. I scoff and snuggle into his chest. It may be hot in the summer here, but the thick woods around the cabin make it cold in the mornings. The cool air will be thick with heat in another few hours though.

  “Do you know about all birds, or just that one?” I speak as low as I can, so I don’t wake Dex.

  “I know all of the birds around Darkwood. I studied them the two years we were here. I only memorize things that interest me, Jun. I’m not a know it all,” he says.

  “I didn’t mean it like that, Specs. I was just curious.” I kiss his shoulder and wrap my leg around his.

  Sterling sighs and lays his head back on the pillow. The faint light of the morning highlights his long lashes and the strong line of his jaw. His eyes are striking, but they’re usually covered by his black-framed glasses. I prop my arm on my elbow and hold my head up to get a better view. He has a dusting of whiskers along his jaw, and a scar next to his right eye from when he fell riding bikes in fifth grade. Memories of the first time we met Sterling flicker through my mind.

  Dex and I were on the playground in second grade. He was new to the school and was sitting on the buddy bench. The buddy bench is a place you go sit if you want someone to play with, but have no one. Sterling was swinging his legs back and forth, big glasses reflecting the sun, wearing a button-up shirt and his dark brown hair side combed. Dex elbowed me and asked me if we should invite him to play, so we ran over and introduced ourselves. From that day on, the three of us were inseparable. He’s always been there when I needed him, my best friend and study buddy. I still can’t believe I was blind to the fact that he was just as in love with me as I was with him all those years. He’s mine now and I don’t intend on ever letting him go.

  “Juniper?”

  “Yea
h, Specs?

  Sterling curls his index finger under my chin and dips his eyes toward mine, “I love you, and I always will.”

  Butterflies bang against my chest, and I smile. “I love you too.”

  The guy really has good timing. I mean, if it wasn’t for Sterling, we wouldn’t all be in the relationship together right now. I don’t know what you’d call us… maybe poly? I’m not sure that’s the right term since the guys are only with me, but I’m with all four. Well, I guess Dex and Specs are kind of together too. Shit, I don’t know. We don’t need a label to know we’re happy the way we are, we’re a family.

  “I think I will get up. It’s my turn to help with breakfast,” Specs grumbles as he squeezes me tight. I have half a mind to keep him in here with me, but I love food… maybe more than sex.

  “Okay. I’ll hit the shower then, that way I can have all the hot water I want,” I giggle.

  “I heard that Juniper. You better not use all the hot water. If that is your plan, I’m coming with you,” Dex mock threatens.

  “If you’re trying to deter me by threatening to let me see your dick, you’re doing a terrible job,” I snark back.

  Sterling barks out a laugh, crawls over me and leaves the comfort of the bed. He pads over to his clothes, pulls on a shirt and sweats over his sexy ass black boxer briefs, then heads for the door. Sterling was a tighty whitey man until we started dating. I bought him the boxer briefs… and I’m so glad that I did. I peek my head up as he passes, and am rewarded with a kiss on the top of my head. Now that he’s gone, the bed feels unbearably cold. I grumble and stick a leg out of the covers. Shit! Couldn’t they at least put a rug by the beds? Nothing worse than cold wood floors in the morning.

  “Did Sterling clean the shower last night like he threatened?” I ask as I throw off the covers and tiptoe to the door jamb.

  “Yeah, he did,” Dexter eyeballs me from his covers. He doesn’t look like he’s moving, so I scramble to the bathroom with every intention of taking a ridiculously long shower. Thank goodness the hallway is short, I should wear socks to bed, I think as the cold floors send a shiver through me. When I reach for the bathroom door, Dex sweeps me into his grip.