“What do you think happened?” Dani asked her tall friend.

“I’m not sure.” Katie pointed the flashlight in front of Dani. “Samantha said that they had a good time. At least she said it looked like Erika was having a good time……. Erika!” She called out into the dark trees.
 

Camp Kumoni
By Anistasia Allread

---

A big thanks to Sephrena for helping me iron out and smooth over this chapter.
 
Chapter 14
 
So how was your date with Josh?” Dani asked, as the two girls entered the cabin.

Erika shrugged. She really didn’t want to talk about it. He had kissed her. Josh had kissed Erika... and she was confused. Confused didn’t even cover how she felt. It was just that he, Eric, didn’t like being kissed by a guy, especially on the lips! But he didn’t punch Josh, or throw up in the bushes when it had happened either. Why didn’t he? The whole experience was awkward for Erika, strange. Strange, because her lips tingled afterwards... and she just couldn’t tell if it was a bad tingle.

Rachel sat up in her bed, trying to act non-chalant - playing with her I-pod.

“He kissed her!” Samantha gushed with the seemingly good news. “He held her in the boat while watching the sunset. It was sooo romantic! And then, before heading back to the cabin…. He kissed her.”

“Oh My God!” Dani giggled into a pillow and then turned to Erika. “Was it wonderful? Is he as good a kisser as he is good looking?”

Erika turned several shades of red and turned her gaze down to the floor. How could Samantha do this to me? How? On impulse, Erika, thoroughly embarrassed, grabbed her pajamas and stormed into the bathroom to change. She really didn’t want to share these intimate, confused thoughts and feelings with her cabin mates. Especially when she was having such mixed feelings about Samantha.

Erika stood in front of the mirror in the bathroom and studied the strange, yet somehow familiar face staring back at her. Dark hair framed her face in large curls and ringlets that Samantha and Victoria had painstakingly put in. Her blue eyes accentuated with eye shadow, and groomed, arched eyebrows. Lips glossy and stained by lip-gloss. Who is that girl staring back at me? Can I even see Eric anymore? There was barely a trace of him to be found in the reflection. Erika sighed and noticed the breast forms rise and fall with her chest. They almost seemed a part of her now... Him now! He stated, trying to reinforce his gender. In a fit, he reached into the bra, pulled them out, and hurled them across the bathroom. The sound of them hitting the wall and settling on the floor echoed slightly and then silence.

What in the hell are you doing? The reflection, the girl in the mirror seemingly mouthed his thoughts. You went on a date with a guy….. A guy! You did it because you like Samantha... but you can’t tell her that! She’d laugh in your face! The girl in the mirror ran her fingers through the dark curls. They bounced back as her hand left her head. The girl you like is in the next room... sleeping in the bed right underneath you! And you can’t tell her how much you care about her! You go on a date with a guy! Because she asks you to... Damn it!!! Eric! He kissed you! He kissed you! And you didn’t do anything to stop him! You didn’t even punch him, slap him or get sick afterwards! What are you? Who are you? Are you really a girl after all?

Eric kicked off the wedges, sending them into the far wall where the forms lie. Tears of frustration trickled down his cheeks, as he yanked the skirt off. He grabbed a hold of the top and tried to tear at the fabric. He tried to tear off the top. He wasn’t even strong enough to tear open a top! I’d bet Josh could tear it off! I can’t even rip it a tiny bit!! Damn it! You’re a pussy, Eric. A pussy who can’t even tear a shirt. Maybe you really are a girl!!! He started sobbing as he yanked the top over his head and tossed it across the floor with his shoes. He’s a guy. You went out on a date with a fucking guy and you let him kiss you!! You let him kiss you, and you didn’t do ANYTHING!!!!!

Eric found himself sitting on the bathroom floor leaning back against the wall. His eyes were glazed in a stare with tears leaking from them, little rivulets trickling down his cheeks. He could vaguely hear Samantha in the next room telling the others in great detail about the whole affair. All the while he sat in the bathroom, on the floor, crying in his girl’s panties and bra. Why didn’t you do anything? Why... Why didn’t you do a damn thing? He hit the back of his head against the wall repeatedly, as if trying to knock the memory of the kiss from his head.
 
 
A light knock sounded at the door. “Erika, are you all right?” It was Rachel.

“YES! I’m FINE.” Erika lied. Eric’s voice sounded croakingly funny, his nose being stopped up from the crying.

Rachel paused and listened against the door. “I’m here... if you need me.” Rachel stated softly through the door.

Eric paused briefly trying to think.“I’ll be out... in jj-just a few-w minutes.” Eric managed to get out, without continuing to cry.

He picked himself up off the floor, pulled his panties down and sat down on the toilet. He reached between his legs and, grabbing the tape, yanked hard and fast. Stifling a scream, Eric sobbed fresh tears, angry at himself, as he screamed and cried into his covered mouth. The pain was so excruciating… and it’s what he deserved for standing there and doing nothing while a guy kissed him! He wadded up the tape and tossed it into the toilet and flushed it. Damn tape! Symbolizes my entire life!!! He thought. Flushed down the toilet like a piece of shit!!!

He pulled his panties back up and thought about what he was doing. I should call this whole thing off! I should march out there and show them that I’m a guy and have them call the cops. They can put me in cuffs; arrest me for perversion or whatever else! I can then go home and …. And …. And do what? Play on the computer? Retreat back to a life with no friends? With no hope of being accepted... Back to a life... of being taped to a flagpole, spit upon, and ridiculed because I don’t fit in? Eric stared somewhere ahead of him... in space. You were kissed by a guy!!! How could you? You’d never been on a date before, never been kissed before! Then you dress like a girl and you get your first kiss by a guy?........ God! If this gets out at school, I’ll be killed! The flagpole incident will look like a holiday compared to what they will do to you if anyone at school ever learns of this! Absentmindedly, he had pulled on the pajama bottoms and slipped the top over his head. Grandma’s.... you need to go to Grandma’s... and live with her! Start fresh! New school, new town! You can even make friends! Just leave all of this behind you. Leave Camp Kumoni behind you! Leave the girls of Columbine cabin behind you, leave………. Samantha…… behind? Eric paused in his rant and sat back down on the toilet. God she was beautiful tonight! The way the sun made her hair shine and her skin glow. He buried his face in his hands. She was simply gorgeous and he couldn’t do a thing about it! She didn’t even know he existed! You were just a girl going on a date with a guy. Getting kissed... by a guy. A GUY!

Eric flung open the bathroom door and ran through the cabin and out the door, fleeing barefoot into the cover and protection of the darkening woods.

Erika's clothing lay still on the bathroom floor.
 
 

************************************************************
 
 
The girls in the cabin stared in shock as Erika ran crying from the cabin.

“What happened out on the lake!” Rachel demanded of Samantha.

“Just what I’ve told you.” Samantha looked on in shock as well. She frowned in concentration for a moment. “Oh, ……. Oh God!.”

“What?” Rachel marched across the room towards her. “What is it?”

“Oh God, we’ve got to find her.” Samantha jumped up and raced out of the cabin.

Phoenix jumped out of the way just in time to avoid being knocked on her butt. “Where are you going?” She called after Samantha. But the blonde didn’t answer as she took the nearest trail into the woods.

Phoenix looked into the cabin as the other girls were also rushing to leave the cabin. “What is going on here?” She demanded of them.

“Something happened to Erika.” Katie looked from the counselor to the darkening trees. “She ran off crying.”

“What happened?” Phoenix looked to Rachel, who always seemed to know what was going on.

“We need to find her and talk to her.” Rachel stated. “She went out with a guy this evening. When she came back, she locked herself in the bathroom for a while, then ran off crying.”

“Any idea where she might have gone?” Phoenix asked.

“You didn’t see her leave?” Dani looked up at the red head.

“No, I was too busy trying not to be knocked over by Samantha.”

“Do we have flashlights?” Rachel asked the group.

“I’ve got one.” Krystal spoke up. “For reading at night” She finished the last part in a mumble.

“I’ve got two.” Phoenix reached into the drawer under her bed and pulled out two.
“Let’s team up in twos.” Rachel suggested. “Katie, you and Dani check the North side of the lake. Phoenix can you and Krystal check the South side. Victoria and I will check the woods around here.”

“If you don’t find her within half an hour, come back here to the cabin. And stay with your buddy. No splitting up.” Phoenix ordered. “If you find Samantha, make her join you and bring her back with you as well. We don’t need any more running off and getting lost.”

Victoria came out of the bathroom. “I don’t think Erika went very far. She was barefoot.” She held up the wedge sandals.

Phoenix handed Rachel a flashlight, while Krystal handed hers to Katie.

“I’ll be right out.” Victoria told Rachel as the un-appointed leader stepped out of the cabin.

“Hurry up.”

Victoria tossed the sandals on the floor next to the bunk then dumped Erika’s clothes and breast forms into her top drawer, next to the laptop.

“Come on.” Rachel called from the edge of the trees.

“I had to drop her stuff off.” Victoria explained. “Do you think she could have gotten far?”

“Without shoes? In the dark? I don’t know.” Rachel swept the light back and forth ahead of them.

“What do you think caused her to take off?” Victoria asked.

“I have a strong feeling it had something to do with Josh.” Rachel growled.

“Do you think she might be embarrassed about something?” Victoria inquired, trying to feel out what Rachel knew, while not wanting to reveal what she had found in the bathroom.

“Like I said, It has something to do with Josh.”
 
 

************************************************************
 
 
“What do you think happened?” Dani asked her tall friend.

“I’m not sure.” Katie pointed the flashlight in front of Dani. “Samantha said that they had a good time. At least she said it looked like Erika was having a good time……. Erika!” She called out into the dark trees.

“That was just weird.” Dani shook her head. “She came in the cabin with Samantha and said that the date went fine. Then disappeared into the bathroom. Then the next thing I know, she is tearing through the cabin as if she was being chased by a bear. Do you think Samantha might have said something wrong?”

“I don’t know,” Katie shrugged, in the darkness only her silhouette of her shoulders moved a bit. “Erika!” she called.

“Wow.” Dani shook her head. “She seemed so normal the past few days. Maybe she is on medication and forgot to take it.” Dani thought for a moment. “Or maybe she is a psychotic slasher who is going to take us out one at a time with a machete.” She make a stabbing motion while making the sounds from ‘Psycho’.

“You watch too much T.V.” Katie smiled. “Besides you can’t stab with a machete, you can only hack.”

Dani cringed at the thought as an eerie silence fell between the two girls. Only the lapping of the waves upon the lake shore and the light breeze in the tree tops broke the stillness.

“Erika!” Dani called.
 
 

************************************************************
 
 
“We have a campfire to attend in half an hour.” Phoenix muttered to herself. “If we can’t find Erika before then. I’m going to have bring Director Hobbs into this, and then she’ll have to call the police and k-9 units to help with the search.”

“Erika.” Krystal called in her soft soprano. “Erika.”

“This was supposed to be a simple summer job. Watch some young girls, keep them active, help them understand themselves, boost their confidence, and write a term paper on it for class.” She stared off into the darkness looking for movement. “What do I get? A cabin with girls who dress like hookers for the first meal in the mess. Or who go running off at night in hysterics for unknown reasons.”

“I’m sure she has a good reason.” Krystal stated softly. “We just have to find her to find out what it is.”

“Erika!” Phoenix called. “Erika, where are you?” She looked over to the large blonde. “If you suddenly got upset and took off in the middle of the night, where would you go, Krystal?”

“I’d raid the kitchen.” Krystal mumbled, blushing at the thought. “But I’m not as skinny or as pretty as Erika.”

“It’s worth a shot.” Phoenix sighed. “We’ll stop by there on the way back, if we haven’t found her.”
 
 

************************************************************
 
 
“Erika!” Samantha called. “Erika, come back.” She stumbled over something in the dark. Oh God, I’ve got to find her……… I’ve got to find her before the others do. Samantha’s mind was a jumble of frantic thoughts. I’ve got to keep her here. I’ve got to talk to her…… Oh Erika. Please let me find you before the others……… I should have never pushed her into going on that date. I should have known better. The poor thing is probably scared to death. “Erika!” she called out. “Erika!” Why did I push her into going on the date?........ Because you have the hots for Josh, you whore. Erika, where are you? “Erika!” Walking on the un-even ground at night, slowed her down. I didn’t know Josh would try and kiss her…… Sam, listen to yourself. You are calling Eric a her. You talk him into dressing up as a girl on the spur of the moment for summer camp of all things and then you talk him into going on a date with a guy…… “Erika!” A branch from a tree caught Samantha across the forehead. “Ouch.” She rubbed at it as she continued to search. Why are you thinking of him as a her? He seems to fit so easily in with the others. Sure, he has some physical differences. But he was starting to look happy. He was starting to act happy. At least, he was until you forced him to go on a date with Josh. “Ouch.” Samantha tripped over a tree root. “Erika!” They looked so…. So cute…so content in the boat. I thought he was enjoying himself, herself? Himself? Shit how should I think of you, Erika?

 
 
************************************************************
 
 
Eric sat on the hard ground. His knees drawn to his chest, his back resting against the rough outside wall of the cabin. It had only taken a few steps after leaving the cabin to realize that running off without shoes was a mistake. He could probably have kept going the emotional pain hurting worse than the physical, but he didn’t have anywhere to go. The woods were just dark and stumbling blindly through the dark, stubbing toes, and getting hit with branches were not what he had in mind. He just wanted to get away. To be alone.

Okay, Eric, you need to think. You need to calm down and think about what you are going to do. He took a deep breath, and wiped the tears from his face. You are at a summer camp that your parents sent you to. Your parents have no idea that you are hiding out at camp as a girl. If they did, there would be years of psychology sessions, not to mention grounding and who knows what else. You are here as a girl…… maybe you do need counseling.

He could hear the girls from Columbine cabin calling his feminine name in the distance. He felt a bit guilty having them running around looking for him. But he couldn’t handle his emotions and the onslaught of girls at the moment. Do the girls suspect that I’m not a girl? Samantha knows of course. Victoria might know, she might recognize me as Eric the ‘plague’ at any moment. Damn! I told Dani that I was called the ‘Plague’. What if she tells Victoria? Oh shit! Just what I need another twist in this fucked up fraud to worry about…… Calm down, and think, damn it!

A stillness settled around the cabin. Crickets in the tree, began to chirp, undaunted by his presence. As far as I know, only Samantha knows about me. Victoria might know, but if she did know, wouldn’t she confront me? Or would she accuse me in front of the other girls?....... I don’t think she knows…yet. I’ve even fooled the guys. Which brings me back to that damn date and that fucking kiss.

Tears started welling up in his eyes again and his heart skipped a beat before pounding even harder in his chest. He swallowed, but it was like forcing a lump of hard, crusty, bread down his esophagus. Don’t get all emotional, Eric, you’ve got to think this through. You were kissed by a guy. Did you like it? His stomach churned at the thought. No……not really. It was a kiss by someone other than your mother, there is bound to be a reaction. But, did you like it?............ It made your lips tingle afterwards, is that a sign of liking it? Did your heart leap for joy at being kissed? No, it was tight, like it was being squeezed, definitely a feeling of fear…… So did you see ‘fireworks’?........ Not even a sparkler. So then maybe you’re not gay. Yes you were kissed by a guy. Eric cringed at the thought. It just proves that you are passing pretty well as a girl.

Eric’s butt was starting to go numb, sitting on the hard-packed dirt. He shifted to allow the blood to flow. Do I continue this charade? Do I attempt to play the girl through the summer? Or shall I call it quits before anyone gets hurt or into any more trouble? Right now, the only one getting hurt is me. What happens if in a week or two one of the girls finds out? what kind of trouble will that cause? How much hurt will I cause someone like Katie? She is so sensitive and caring about what everyone around her is feeling. Victoria is too logical of a thinker to be hurt, she’d be embarrassed for not figuring it out, but not hurt. Then there’s Rachel. She already seems to hates guys. Will her finding out about me make it worse? Will she hate me? What about Krystal, with her quiet suffering and silent insecurities? Or Dani with her forced bravado? Will Their finding out about me hurt them? The last thing I want to do is hurt the only friends I have made since Summer’s death.
 
 
Eric stood up with a new resolve. He had to take an action, he had to make a stand. With tears in his eyes, he slowly, and because he was barefoot, carefully made his way around to the front of the cabin.

---

 
End of Chapter Seventeen