Camp Confidential 08 - Wish You Weren't Here

by Melissa J Morgan

  “Tiii-gers! Tiii-gers! We like to play all day! Tiii-gers! Tiii-gers! We don’t care what you say! WE ARE AWESOME! WE ARE AWESOME! WE ARE—”

  “DAVID!!!” Abby paused mid-throw and turned around on the pitcher’s mound to glare at him. “STOP! CHEERING! NOW! You’re breaking my concentration!”

  Sarah looked at David, expecting him to look crushed, or at least a little embarrassed. Instead, he shooed a fly away from his face, shrugged, and punched his glove. “Whatever you say, captain. I’m just trying to build up a little team spirit.”

  Abby rolled her eyes, grabbing the ball again and returning to her post. “Well, do it silently.”

  David nodded. Abby turned back around and wound up for her pitch. David mouthed silent cheers while waving his hands around behind her. For the third time that day, Abby threw an awesome curveball and struck out the batter. “Strike one!” yelled Kimberly, the coach who was watching their game. “Nice job, Abby.”

  Nice job, Abby. Nice job, Abby. Yeah, so nice, you’re not even letting them hit the ball, Sarah thought bitterly. The rest of us might as well not even be here. It’s like a one-woman show.

  “Psssst.”

  Sarah looked over and saw David gesturing to her. “You bored?” he asked, quietly enough for only her to hear.

  She turned around and tried to ignore him. I have to pay attention to the game, she told herself. A ball might come out here any minute. I have to be ready. She punched her glove, trying to get it all hollowed out and ready for her face-saving catch. Yup, any minute now. Any minute now the ball will come out here.

  The new batter fouled a couple times, then finally hit a fly ball to third base, which the third baseman, Casey, caught easily. Darn, thought Sarah. The next batter hit a single, fielded by the shortstop. Double darn. The next batter was a boy that Abby had struck out in the first inning. One strike. Two strikes. Sarah sighed loudly and rubbed her eyes. Three strikes . . . inning over.

  “All right, Tigers!” Kimberly yelled enthusiastically. “Nice job! You’re up at bat!”

  Sarah shuffled out of left field, feeling heavy all over. This is such a joke, she thought. How am I going to impress anyone out there? She was an okay batter but had walked in the first inning, then hit a pop fly in the second. She felt that if she was going to do something impressive, it wouldn’t be at bat.

  “Aren’t you bored?” David asked, taking off his glove and stretching his fingers. “I know I am. We hardly ever get the ball!”

  “At least they batted to you once,” Sarah muttered. “The ball hasn’t come to me at all. I might as well not even be out there.”

  David nodded. “That’s why I started with the cheers,” he said. “I thought it would be fun, you know? Nothing serious.” He glanced at Abby, who was instructing Casey on the finer points of swinging the bat. “But Abby is such a drill sergeant. I wish she’d just let us have fun.”

  Sarah watched Abby swinging the bat for Casey. She was talking loudly, stopping to point at her shoulders and the position of her elbows. At least I’m not the only person who doesn’t like her, she thought. She can be kind of bossy.

  “She goes to my school,” Sarah told David quietly as they took their seats on the bench.

  David nodded. “I remember Jenna said something like that,” he said. “What’s she like?”

  Sarah shrugged. Sporty. Outgoing. The opposite of me. “A jock,” she said simply.

  David nodded slowly. “What are you like?” he asked.

  Sarah looked at his face, which arranged in a surprisingly interested expression. He looked like he really cared what she had to say. “Not a jock,” she replied, with a nervous laugh.

  David smiled and nodded seriously. “I hear you,” he said. “We can’t all be Curt Schilling, you know?”

  “I know,” Sarah agreed. “Believe me.”

  Two more innings went by with nothing much happening. The Tigers were winning, 4-3, but not because of anything Sarah had done. She managed to make a single in the fourth inning, but the inning was over before she could get to second, and the ball stubbornly refused to come into the left field. She tried to pay attention, to care what was happening, but she was quickly losing her drive. What does it matter what your team is doing if you don’t have any part in it? she wondered. Sarah was used to being the star of the team, an athlete that people paid attention to. It was an unsettling feeling, just blending into the crowd.

  David was amusing himself quietly. When Abby wasn’t looking, he tossed his glove into the air and caught it or drew tic-tac-toe games in the dirt. When he noticed Sarah looking at him, he would grin and try to do something funny. Stick his glove on his head and try to walk while balancing it there, like he was on America’s Next Top Model. Or do a cartwheel. (He couldn’t even come close, but he tried.) Sarah tried not to be distracted, but it was really hard. When he stuck his arms out and started dancing with an imaginary partner, tangoing some invisible lady around center field, complete with dips and kicks, Sarah couldn’t help it anymore. She started laughing. And the more she laughed, the more David played it up. He started shaking his hips. Spinning his “partner” around. Pretending to throw her up in the air and catch her as she came down. Sarah started laughing so hard, she was having trouble breathing and had to snort through her nose. She doubled over, covering her mouth and trying to calm down. It’s not even that funny, she thought. Why is it when David does things they seem funnier than they really are?

  “SARAH!”

  Sarah suddenly straightened up. That was Abby’s voice. Abby was yelling at her—but why? Then Sarah saw it. The ball. In left field. Omigod.

  It was headed toward the far left fence, as far from Sarah as it could possibly be. Sarah vaulted after it, putting out a superhuman effort to get to that side of the field. But it just wasn’t possible, not now. Not after she’d quit paying attention to crack up at David’s clowning around.

  Everything seemed to move in slow motion as Sarah made one final leap toward the ball, but fell far short. The ball sailed soundlessly over the fence. Sarah let out a cry and fell flat out on the ground with a whump. The hard ground knocked the breath from her lungs and left her stunned and sore. She heard feet pounding on the dirt as the opposite team’s players ran the bases.

  “A grand slam! Nice job!” Kimberly shouted. “Four points! That puts you in the lead, Panthers—7-3!”

  Sarah blinked. She had done it. She had lost the game for the Tigers. She’d just finished convincing herself that she had no effect on the game’s outcome whatsoever. And just like that, everything changed, and suddenly she’d had a huge effect—for the worse.

  I wonder if I just lie here forever and don’t get up, if eventually they’d start playing around me. Sarah looked closely at the grass around her head. There was an ant crawling on a dandelion. A leaf curled around a stem. It all seemed like great stuff to look at—much better than looking at Abby’s disappointed face. I don’t believe I just did that, Sarah thought. Now she’ll hate me more than ever.

  “You okay?” At the sound of his voice, Sarah looked up into David’s concerned face. He held out a hand, and Sarah grabbed it and pulled herself up to her knees, then to her feet. She felt Abby’s gaze on her so strongly that it was like a magnet pulling her eyes to that direction. And there Abby was—her eyebrows furrowed, her lips pulled down into a frown. She can’t believe it, Sarah thought. She can’t believe how bad I am.

  Abby shook her head. “Sarah, what happened out there?” she asked. “If you’re not interested enough in the game to pay attention, why did you even sign up for sports?” She sighed and ran her hand through her hair. “Maybe you don’t belong out here. Maybe you’d be more happy with your nose in a book,” she muttered, and walked away.

  Sarah felt like Abby had slapped her. For the rest of the game, she stood silent in left field, her eye never leaving the ball. David tried to joke around some more, but even he could tell that she wasn’t in the mood. When the game finally ended—t
hey lost, 8-6—David followed her off the field and touched her arm. “Hey,” he said. “Sorry about that, Sarah.”

  Sarah just shook her head. “It’s not your fault. I should have paid more attention.” Ahead of her, she saw Abby shoot her another disgusted look and take off for the mess hall without waiting. The last two days, she’d at least been polite and waited to walk back with Sarah and Jenna.

  David shrugged. “It’s just a silly game. Don’t beat yourself up.”

  Sarah sighed and nodded. Right. Easy for you to say.

  Suddenly David leaned in close and took a big, loud, exaggerated sniff. “Hey,” he said, leaning back and looking curiously into her eyes. “Is that strawberry I smell?” And then he smiled—a weird, smug smile—and ran off before Sarah could reply.

  She stopped short on the ball field, watching him run. What the heck was that about? she wondered. Just when you think boys might not be so weird . . . Then it hit her. Strawberry. Strawberry bug juice! The strawberry bug juice that was put in the showers the other day! Sarah’s mouth dropped open, and she started laughing in spite of herself. They pranked us! David’s bunk pranked ours!

  Sarah ran to 4C’s table all ready to share her revelation, but the table was already buzzing. A bunch of 4A campers—Natalie, Tori, Jenna, and Chelsea—had come over to chat. Everyone was crowded around the four 4A girls, talking over one another and gesturing wildly. “Sarah!” Natalie said cheerfully as she approached the table. “Who are you going to the social with?”

  Sarah felt her whole body sink. The social. It’s like I can’t escape the stupid social. She decided to dodge the question. “Aren’t you guys mad at us?” she asked, looking at Natalie. “The last time I saw you, you were saying something about karma?”

  Natalie smiled and shrugged. “That? I got over that hours ago. Right around the time I got back to the cabin with nine rolls of toilet paper. Bygones, you know?”

  Sarah shook her head. “I dunno. You seemed upset this morning. Anyway, you’re obviously going with Simon, right?”

  Natalie blushed and smiled. “Duh.”

  “I have news,” Brynn put in from the other side of the table, a big grin on her face.

  “What’s that?” asked Valerie.

  Brynn’s eyes lit up. She was always dramatic, and Sarah could tell she was enjoying being the center of attention. “Well, you know how in drama, I’m playing Annie and this cute guy named Darren is playing Daddy Warbucks? We’ve been flirting a lot more lately . . .”

  A smile was forming on Tori’s lips. “And . . . ?” she asked expectantly.

  “And, well, today . . .” Brynn’s cheeks were pink with happiness. “Today he asked me to be his date to the social!”

  Sarah cringed as the table exploded in oohs and ahhs, especially from Natalie, Tori, and Alex. Sarah’s stomach sank down to her feet. Why didn’t Brynn tell me about this guy before? she wondered. We used to talk about everything.

  “Congratulations!” Chelsea cried. “That’s so great. Who’s everyone else going with?”

  “Do you guys know Geoff in 5G?” Alex asked.

  “Sure,” said Tori. “We’re on the camp paper together. He’s really nice.”

  Alex turned pink. “I think he’s kind of cute.”

  “Oh, he totally is!” Tori agreed. “He’s way cute, Alex. You should go for him.”

  Sarah had to struggle not to roll her eyes. Go for him? What does that mean? Is there a big competition?

  Alex was smiling, though. “I think I will.” She looked down at the table for a minute, then seemed to remember something. “Oh! We’re trying to get a real DJ for the social this year. We might have to cut down on the decorations, but we all thought it was important to have good music.”

  “And good lighting!” Brynn added. “Romantic. Soft. You know.”

  “Totally,” Natalie agreed.

  Sarah sighed and drummed her fingertips on the table. It was a shame this conversation was happening before dinner, because it was totally making her lose her appetite. Although after dinner, it might have made her lost her dinner altogether!

  “Do you have anyone in mind to ask, Jenna?” Alex asked.

  Jenna looked surprised by the question, but not as incredulous as Sarah might have expected. She didn’t think Jenna had any interest in boys. But Jenna’s answer surprised Sarah even more. She shrugged. “Maybe.”

  Alex’s eyes widened. “Who?” she demanded Suddenly, Sarah couldn’t take it anymore—she had to change the subject. And luckily, she had the perfect subject at hand.

  “I almost forgot!” Sarah cried suddenly. “I was leaving sports today, and this guy David came up to me and was like”—she made an exaggerated sniff in the air—“‘Hey, is that strawberry I smell?’ ”

  Everyone at the table looked completely mystified.

  “What?” Jenna asked finally.

  Sarah rolled her eyes. “David, you know? Your brother’s friend? Anyway, he made this big deal out of saying I smelled like strawberry. And then he had this weird smile. Strawberry is the flavor of bug juice that got put in our showerheads. Get it?”

  Sarah looked around at her friends. They looked like she was speaking Martian. Nobody was getting it.

  “They did it!” Sarah yelled. “David’s bunk. Jenna was telling the truth. She never put bug juice in our showerheads! It was the boys! It was the boys all along!”

  Everyone’s mouth dropped open as the information slowly penetrated their brains.

  “See!” Jenna cried after a few seconds. “I told you! I tried to tell you, like, a hundred times!”

  “So you were telling the truth,” Natalie said thoughtfully, turning to Jenna.

  Jenna looked offended. “Of course I was. Why?”

  Natalie gave a little embarrassed smile. “No offense,” she said. “But up till now? I kind of thought there was a chance you really did it.”

  Jenna rolled her eyes. “Nobody trusts me.”

  “I don’t get it,” Abby spoke up suddenly. Everyone turned to look at her, surprised. “If the boys really pranked us, why would David just out and tell you? It doesn’t make sense.”

  Sarah sighed. “It does make sense,” she insisted. “That’s how a prank war works.”

  “Why would David prank you guys?” Jenna suddenly spoke up. “He doesn’t even know anyone in your whole bunk except you and Abby, right, Sarah?”

  “Right,” Sarah agreed slowly, thinking fast. “But it’s not just him pranking us. It’s his whole bunk. Maybe Adam said something to him?”

  Jenna made a face. “Doubtful. I don’t get it.”

  “I still don’t think they necessarily did it,” Abby spoke up. “I think the clue is weird. He said you smell like strawberries?”

  Sarah nodded. “He said, ‘Hey, is that—’ ”

  Abby interrupted her. “Maybe he was just complimenting your shampoo, or something,” she insisted. “Do you use strawberry shampoo?”

  “No,” Sarah said with a sigh. “I mean yes. Sometimes. But that isn’t the point. Who smells someone’s hair? He was telling me that they pranked us to take credit for the prank. What good is a one-sided prank war? We have to prank back.”

  Abby wasn’t done arguing, though. “What good is a one-sided prank war? How about that you get away with it? How about that no one sneaks into your bunk in the middle of the night and steals all your toilet paper?”

  “Word,” Natalie muttered.

  Sarah sighed again and sat up in her chair. “Abby. Listen. You’re not helping here.”

  Abby looked offended. “I’m just trying to help figure this out.”

  “But you don’t get it,” Sarah explained. “Look, I’ve been coming here for years now. This is how a prank war works and how it’s always worked. Okay?”

  Abby started like Sarah had punched her. She blinked, then turned away. “Oh,” she muttered. “Excuse me, then.”

  Sarah could tell she’d hurt Abby’s feelings, but by the time she’d opened her mou
th to apologize, everyone was talking at once.

  “This is huge!” cried Alex. “I mean, the rivalry with 4A was one thing, but this is way huger.”

  “We have to get them back!” added Tiernan. “We can’t let them get away with this. We pranked 4A this morning, and meanwhile the boys are running around scot-free!”

  “This is big,” agreed Jenna. “But . . . maybe you should let it go.”

  Everyone’s mouth dropped open. “What?!” Sarah cried.

  Jenna looked sheepish. “Look, I really don’t want to get involved in any kind of prank war right now, all right?” She sighed. “I’m going back to our table. Whatever you plan, leave me out of it.” She abruptly stood and walked back to the rest of 4A.

  There was silence for a minute as everyone watched her go.

  “I don’t think you can let it go,” Chelsea said slowly.

  “Yeah?” Gaby asked. “It’s serious, right? Whatever Jenna thinks. Does that mean you want to help us?”

  Chelsea hesitated, then said, “Well. While I am still annoyed that you stole all of our toilet paper this morning, I think this outside attack is important enough that maybe we should put that aside.”

  Gaby beamed. “I agree totally.” She looked around the table at the faces of all of the campers, looking more and more excited. “Ladies,” she said, “I think we need to do something unprecedented here. An outsider has attacked one of our own. I think we need to form a two-bunk alliance.”

  “Two-bunk alliance?” Candace asked incredulously.

  “Two-bunk alliance,” Chelsea repeated with glee.

  “Here’s what we do,” Gaby continued. “Since Jenna doesn’t want to be involved, I think I should be the one to come up with the prank. And it’s going to take some thought. This has to be, like, the best prank ever.”

  “What if we steal all their underwear and dump it in the lake?” Chelsea cried.