Thankfully, the damage wasn't that bad. Hitch said the kitchen would be open the next day. And on the upside, because of the fire, Hitch ordered the whole camp pizza. Real pizza. Not those little frozen ones that tasted like cardboard. While we waited, the younger campers were watching a movie in the auditorium and some of the off-duty older campers and counselors were playing games on the great lawn. The sun was finally lowering behind the trees, which made the weather much more bearable, and it wasn't dark yet, so the mosquitos were still at bay. After Alexis reassured me that she didn't need me to sit with the peeps in the auditorium, I decided to play Capture the Flag with my friends. The game was really growing on me, mostly because it didn't require me to throw a ball or catch one. All I had to do was run.
Court somehow made sure Em, Grace, and I were part of the same game as Donovan, Dylan, Cole, and Tim.
Playing on Cole's team sounded like a good idea at first, but once we started playing, I found it kind of distracting. Just the night before, Em and I were freaking out about the Guess the Counselor game again. Court told us we had to chill. "It's so easy," she said. "You walk up, tell them, and take off your mask for a kiss!" Great idea, if you had the guts, which I was starting to think I didn't. If I did, I would have casually mentioned the camp-wide dance to Cole by now. I hadn't. The problem was, I couldn't just blurt out "Cole, I like you." Just looking into his eyes made me dizzy.
"Court? Hello, Court?" Donovan waved a hand in front of Court's face. Sweat was beading down his chest. Donovan and Hunter, who were also playing with us, had taken off their shirts about twenty minutes ago and wrapped their opposing team pinnies around their waists. "Heads up out there. You don't want to get captured!"
"Captured is bad," Court said in a trance. I'd never seen her like that. Grace stepped on Court's foot and she yelped. "What was that for?"
"Will you get it together?" Grace whispered heatedly. "We're getting killed out there because you're too busy staring at Donovan's abs." She glared at Em. "And if you say, 'It's just a game' one more time, I'm putting you in our own jail."
"Look who's all huffy," Court pointed out. "Grace, remember: You don't have to win every time. Just have fun."
"And you promised not to make us practice for the talent show so much my calves would hurt," Grace complained. "I can't be worn out before Color War. What do you think these kids will think if I lose today? They might think I'm not a worthy Color War captain candidate."
Court flashed her you've-got-to-be-kidding-me look. "You're going to win captain, okay? And besides, the practices have been paying off, haven't they?" Court asked. "Our number rocks. Even Ashley didn't have a nasty comment to make after yesterday's practice."
We had decided to go with "These Boots Are Made for Walkin'" and it was coming together nicely. We borrowed cowboy boots from the theater department to use in rehearsals. The drama teacher said no one had done a western-themed act in years.
"I still don't trust Ashley," Grace worried. "She is not going to take this loss lying down. She and Gabby will get you back somehow, Court. We already know they're out for blood with Sam and now you too."
"Tell me about it," I grumbled. Seriously, Ashley's attitude was the only sore note to this whole perfect summer experience. I'd gotten over missing Mal (especially since she didn't seem to miss me enough to send more videos). I'd made a bunch of new friends. And being a CIT made me feel like an adult. But Ashley's attitude and her comments were getting old. I didn't know how much more of them I could take.
Cole jogged over. I was a little disappointed that he didn't join the other guys in the shirt removal trend. "Why do you guys look so down?"
"Because we're losing!" I complained. "We've got five teammates in jail and someone on the other side seems to have it out for me and Court."
"She's got a point," Grace agreed. "We've had to rescue Sam and Court from jail six times already."
I rubbed my sore elbow. I felt like I was playing football, not a mindless camp game. Every time I crossed the dividing line I was tackled. So was Court. Every time, by the same two burly marshmallows. I wanted to blame the smackdown on Ashley, but she wasn't even in the game we were playing. I hadn't seen her since Gabby's fire was put out.
"I don't mind," Court said with a sigh. "Donovan has come to my aid every time I fall."
"That's great, Court, but my welts are starting to add up." I glared at the opposing team. "It's those two guys over there." I pointed to two marshmallows that were covered in mud and grass stains. "They're not even trying to capture the flag. They just want me and Court."
"You do seem to be getting banged up out there," Cole agreed. "Do you want me to talk to them?" I shook my head. "Are you sure they're after you in particular? We lost Colin and Joyce on that last round. Maybe you're just not very good." He smirked mischievously and I felt my heart skip a beat.
"I am too good!" I said defensively. "Maybe if you were paying attention to the marshmallows instead of yelling out fake code words to me, Joyce and Colin wouldn't be in jail." I tried not to laugh. Cole was always yelling things like, "Sam, forty-eight, twenty-two -- go left!" Or "Sam, initiate Operation Storm Shield!" I had no clue what a storm shield was, but he made me laugh anyway.
"I'm trying to distract the other team," Cole protested. "They don't know the codes are fake." Cole's face was sweaty and there was a huge smudge of dirt on his forehead that I hadn't told him about. He looked cute like that.
"Are you done writing your surrender speech yet?" Hunter yelled from across the dividing line.
"God, he looks good," Court whispered to me. I glanced quickly at Cole. I didn't want him to hear Court say that. I was already sensitive about the fact that he thought I used to lust after Hunter. Hunter did look good, I had to admit. Was it okay to think that? He had his hands on his hips and there were grass stains all over his white nylon shorts and mud splattered across his chest.
"You're the ones who need the pen and paper, my friend," Cole yelled back.
I wasn't sure I believed the threat.
Donovan joined our huddle, putting his arms around Court and me. Cole then put his arm around Grace and me. All I could think about was the fact that Cole was touching me.
"Team, forget the flag," Donovan instructed us. "We need manpower. Cole and Sam, I need you two to distract some of the girls while Court and I make a run for the jail to get some of our teammates back. Grace, you tag out as many people as you can. The rest of you, keep Hunter and the marshmallows running in circles." We placed our hands in the circle and chanted our battle cry ("Bleed Red or Die!" which didn't make sense to me, but I guessed it was a boy thing).
"Don't worry," Em told me. "If those guys come after you again, I'll put them in jail so that you don't have to worry about them anymore."
"I'll help you," Dylan offered. Em looked panicked and took her inhaler out of her pocket. I coughed loudly. Dead giveaway, I wanted to tell her. Thankfully, Em seemed to get the point.
"Thanks. I could use some help," she said shyly.
"Me too," Grace said loudly. "I know I'm fast, but sometimes I get confused when so many people are charging at me." She looked at Tim out of the corner of her eye.
"I'm with Donovan," Court announced before hurrying to his side.
"Ready, partner?" Cole nudged me.
"Ready, sir." I saluted. I took my mark on the matted-down muddy grass and stared menacingly at the two guys who kept going after me. Bring it on, baby, I thought. Bring it on. I was determined not to go down again.
"Game back on," yelled Donovan and we were off.
The scene reminded me of Gladiator. Both sides started charging at each other and screaming. The muddy field, already squishy from last night's rain, was splattering all over the place as both teams stormed the dividing line. Our jails were supposed to be quiet, but you could hear captured teammates on either side screaming for release or cheering their teams on. Cole was fast so he was already several paces ahead of me. A girl lunged at him, but h
e was too quick for her.
Their jail was straight ahead of me and I could see the flag. A girl in a red pinnie was waving it listlessly. I knew I wasn't supposed to, but I was sure I could reach her. I started running and I was getting pretty close. Maybe those guys were going to leave me alone this time. They would have tackled me by now if --
OOOF! In an instant, I got sandwiched to the ground and I felt the mud squish into my blue pinnie and white shirt. Eww! Both of my legs hurt and I could swear I felt my back snap when I went down. I pushed with all my might and heard Donovan calling a time-out. From my position on the ground I could see Court down a few feet away. Donovan was helping her to her feet. Right away I knew it was the same two guys who tackled us last time. I tried to stay calm. I was a CIT and they were campers. I couldn't yell, but I was angry. "Guys, I know you're into the game, but do you think you could quit the tackling?" I asked one as I dusted off my shorts. "We don't tackle in capture the flag. You're supposed to capture me, not kill me."
The guy shrugged and smiled at his friend. "We're just playing the game."
Cole made it to me first. "Are you okay?" he asked and I nodded. He turned to the two campers. "Guys, take it easy on her okay? This is just a game." Then Cole turned back to me, looking worried. "Are you sure you don't need ice? Where does it hurt? Can you move your knee?"
"Cole, I'm okay," I promised.
He looked skeptical. "You're out of this next play. You shouldn't be running."
"I'm playing," I said and I meant it.
"If you hurt something you need to tell me now." Cole touched my shoulder gently and I felt a tingling sensation.
"Whoa." Court was standing behind me. "Cole is like your own personal bodyguard," she whispered in my ear.
Watching him get all protective of me was pretty cool.
"Isn't getting hurt great?" she asked me, linking arms. "Donovan helped me up." There was blood dripping down her arm.
"Court, you're bleeding!" I told her.
She pointed to my knee. "So are you," she said. She shook her head. "If we keep getting nailed like this there is no way we'll be able to practice tomorrow and we need a few more practices before our audition."
"I think you should go to the nurse," Cole said to me.
"Cole, it's just a little scratch," I told him. "I'm okay, really."
"Everything okay over here?" Hunter asked.
"We're just going over the rules of the game, right, guys?" Cole said to the marshmallows. "No tackling allowed."
"Guys, what are you doing?" Hunter asked, sounding stern. "Cut it out or you're out of the game and I'll have to write you up. Got it?"
The two campers mumbled some form of "got it" and walked back over to their places. I couldn't take my eyes off them. They were whispering to each other and looking back at the woods next to our field. What were they up to?
I didn't have a chance to find out. I got back to my spot just in time for the game to start again. We'd gotten one of our marshmallows back during the last round, so we were up a person. This time, Grace flew past me on her way to tag out some more people. Tim was at her side and I heard her asking him for help. Court was shadowing Donovan's every move and Em and Dylan were working together. I headed straight for the jail, following Cole's backside. Hunter jumped right in front of me. I stopped short for a second in a total panic. He was trying to capture me and I didn't want him to. Even if he did have amazing abs.
"You're mine, champ," Hunter growled.
"Sam, RUN!" Cole bumped Hunter out of my way. I moved just as Hunter weaved left to nab me. Hunter started chasing Cole and he left the jail unguarded. Now was my chance. Closer, closer... I could feel someone brush against my pinnie, but I kept going. Just a few more feet and I'd be able to rescue Colin and Joyce and --
Boom! I was down again.
You've got to be kidding me! I felt the pain shoot through my right leg. This time I was hurt and mad. I looked down at my knee and it was covered in dirt and gushing blood. I looked around for Court. She was a few feet away lying on the ground. Donovan was leaning over her. She said something I couldn't hear and he helped her up. The two of them hobbled over to us and I noticed Court was limping.
I knew I was a CIT and I was supposed to set an example, but this was ridiculous. "Guys, we went over this," I complained to the misbehaving marshmallows. "What are you doing?"
"Sam, you're bleeding a lot!" Em freaked.
"I think Court sprained her ankle," Donovan said as he helped her over to us.
The marshmallows didn't answer me. Cole and Hunter came running over. Grace, Em, Dylan, and Tim were right behind them. A crowd was beginning to gather.
"You two are out of here," Hunter told them. "I'll be talking to your senior counselors and you'll be sitting out all of tonight's and tomorrow night's activities. Go to your cabins and wait for instructions."
They didn't look too upset. One of them actually looked like he was going to laugh.
"Do you think you can walk?" I heard Donovan ask Courtney.
She nodded. "My friends can help me."
"I think I should take you to the nurse, Sam," Cole said. "You shouldn't walk on that knee." He looked so concerned. Even though I was bleeding, I was secretly swooning.
"Thanks," I said breathlessly. I pictured Cole carrying me through the woods.
"The girls can help you and Court get there, right, champ?" Hunter asked. He put his arm on me. It felt warm and sweaty. I wiggled away.
I looked at Cole and realized he was looking at me. Did he want to see how I reacted to Hunter? He needn't worry. "Guess I'll check on you later," Cole told me.
Grace helped me and Em put her arm around Court. We hobbled off the field. It didn't hurt too badly, but the blood had dripped onto my socks and was ruining my Pumas.
We were halfway down the path to the nurse's office when Em stopped. "Guys, do you see what is going on over there?" She dragged Court over to a nearby tree where another game of capture the flag was in progress. Court started motioning wildly and waved Grace and me over. I peeked over her shoulder and that's when I saw the commotion.
Ashley and Gabby were standing on the sidelines of the game talking to the two marshmallows who had given Court and me a beating -- and they were all laughing! This was no coincidence.
"They are so dead," Court said, practically breathing fire.
The group of us did our best attempt to storm over.
Ashley saw us and elbowed Gabby, but the two guys looked nervous. They pretended to be watching the game. Ashley, on the other hand, looked ready for the confrontation.
"Hey, girlies. What's up?" She looked down at my knee. "Oh, did someone get hurt? Too bad. Gee, I hope this doesn't mess up the talent show audition. I'd hate for you two to be out of the running. If that happened, we might have to go back to my idea."
"You're unbelievable," seethed Court. "You got Sam and me beat up just to avoid doing my number for the talent show audition? We could have gotten really hurt!"
"I didn't say I did it," Ashley said, looking innocent. "I just said it would be a shame if this messed up the audition, which it looks like it might have seeing as how Court looks like she has a sprained ankle." Gabby was doubled over in laughter.
My blood was boiling as the two of them continued to make fun of us. I had had enough. "I'm sick of this. We should go to Hitch," I said to my friends.
Ashley just laughed harder. "Who do you think he's going to believe, Sam? You or his daughter? And don't even think of trying my sister. She may like you, but I'm still family. All you'll do by tattling is wind up getting yourselves in trouble." She looked at my knee. "You guys better hurry. I wouldn't want Sam to bleed all over her no-name sneakers." The two of them giggled.
"This isn't over," I said. "Actually it's far from it. You have no idea what you started." For a split second, Ashley actually looked worried, but then she started to laugh again. "Let's get out of here," I said to my friends, feeling disgusted. "She makes me so an
gry," I complained when we were far enough away.
"You were really good back there," Grace said admiringly. "I think Ashley looked a little nervous for a change. What made you finally speak up?"
I shrugged. "I think I've finally had enough."
"It's about time," Court said. "I think it's time for a little payback. The sleepaway girls have to have a meeting about pranking Ashley and Gabby."
"I can't believe I'm saying this, but I agree with Court," Grace seconded. "Ashley has gotten away with being queen bee around the Pines for long enough. She deserves a taste of her own medicine." I guess I must have looked surprised at Grace's unsportsmanlike behavior because she added, "You don't think I'd do this if I thought it would cost me Color War captain, do you?" Grace had put in her name for the job last week and voting was going on now.
"You're right," said Em, sounding charged up. "I'm in."
"Okay, we're agreed then," I said, then paused. "Not that I know what we're actually doing. How do we get her back?"
"Don't worry about that," said Court with a sly smile. "I'm a pro at a little camp mischief. We'll meet later during our next camp confessional and figure out the logistics."
"Works for me," I said. I looked back at Ashley. She was still laughing.
Enjoy it now, Ash, I thought. You won't be laughing for long.
Game on.
14 Gotcha
"Watch it," Grace whispered.
"Sorry," Em mouthed.
"Shh," Court and I told her. Then Court started to giggle and I kicked her.
"What?" Court said. "It's not like she is going to wake up. She got an hour's sleep last night. Listen to her snoring. She could saw wood."
This made all of us laugh.
"Shh!" Grace admonished us even though she was laughing herself.
Court was probably right. Last night was Ashley's sleepover party and according to Ashley, who had dark circles under her eyes at breakfast, she and her friends had "the most awesome time anyone could ever have" and barely slept a wink last night. I was glad we didn't do our prank during her sleepover. We'd thought about it and realized the culprits would be too obvious since we weren't invited.