Jack is a boy nothing like what his name would suggest. Shy and nervous around people, and often completely ignored. However, when he vists a summer camp much to his protest and gets his clothes wet, he can only find a girls' uniform, leading him to disover a lot about girls and boys, as well as himself.
Chapter 1: Boys can’t be shy
“Sleep away camp? I’ll, I’ll be away from you on the weekdays?” Jack trembled as he spoke. He hated being away from his parents, and even though he was 14, had never spent a night away from them.
“Weekends too.”, said his mother, who might as well have ripped his heart out.
“But… that’s not fair!”, screamed Jack as his eyes welled with tears. “I’ll be away from all my stuff, not to mention you guys, for the whole summer? That defeats the whole purpose of summer!” He stomped his foot angrily.
“Stop it Jack. This is part of the reason your father and I decided to make you go.”
“What is? If I did something wrong I’m sorry, just please don`t make me go, you know I hate the woods! Why are you doing this to me? This must be costing you a lot of money. If I stay home you’ll save a ton!”
Jack was in full panic mode now. Every weapon against his parents’ decisions in his mental arsenal was out in full force. There was no way he was going to spend his summer away from his safe haven of TV and video games and into a proverbial lions’ den of the exact type of kid who made every day of his school life a living hell.
Jack’s mother sighed and hugged him, muffling his tears, just like she did when he was little.
“Now Jack, I love you so much, more than anything.”, said his mother as she hugged him deeper.
“Then, why..”
“Jack, you don`t have any friends, and you don`t play any sports. You don`t even play with the neighborhood kids.”
“And?”, Jack said, knowing full well what she meant but protesting what she was implying. “ I don`t need any friends, or sports. I always get A’s in school, and I have plenty of stuff to do at home. Don`t worry, I won’t get bored.”
“Jack, people need friends, especially teenagers your age. It isn`t normal for boys your age to just play with toys and games all day. You need to learn to get along with other people.”
“I get along with you and dad just fine! Come on, that stuff can`t be THAT important.”
Jack was running out of things to say and growing more nervous by the second. His voice sounded shaky.
However, his mother was right about one thing, he was certainly different from other boys his age in more ways than one. First, although he was actually average height for his age, most of the boys at his school were not and easily towered over him. Something else that worried him was that even though his voice had broken, no other signs of puberty had. His body had little if any hair, and although his parents and relatives often told him he was handsome, he knew that if his head was on a girl’s body it would be called “beautiful”. All in all, Jack knew he wasn`t a shining example of masculinity, but he honestly didn`t care.
“Mom.. please, I want to stay with you.”, Jack pleaded, doing the best puppy-dog eyes he had ever done.
Jack’s mother, Lisa, knew that Jack would react this way. She and her husband were so grateful to have a child that he was coddled and protected by them always. Jack had gotten used to it, and as a result never felt the desire to rebel against his parents like most teenagers did, and eventually form their own groups of friends. A pat of her loved this. She loved her son so much, but she and her husband knew that he had to grow up.
“Jack, so do I, more than anything else, but your father and I feel it is best for you to experience this on your own. Camp Silva is a good camp. I heard they just got computers, so you may be able to use them there too.”
“They do?”, said Jack. While his surprise was true, his mind was more focused on the first part of her statement ‘just’ . In this day and age, ‘just’ getting computers seemed fairly backwards, but at the same time gave Jack a little bit of hope, as well as a sinister idea in the back of his mind.
“Can you tell me the camp website?”, said Jack, sniffling his tears.
“Sure sweetie.” His mother gave him the sheet of paper with camp information.
“Now come on Jack, we have to start packing your things. The camp starts next week.”
Jack wasn`t as sad now, as the beginnings of a plan began to formulate in his mind.
Six days later, Jack was far calmer than he was the previous week He had seen the camp website, and it was as pathetic as any site he had ever seen. Their brochure was professional enough, and he knew his parents had seen the camp, but the website was a basic HTML geocities site with images.
“Geez, did they just get a counselor to put this together one afternoon?” In truth, he wasn`t surprised the site was so shoddy. Camping and the internet seemed like interests that were mutually exclusive. Nevertheless, his heart leapt with joy when he found that the password to edit the site was in fact the name of the camp spelled backwards.
Of course, he wasn`t going to ruin the site. He wouldn`t do anything that destructive. He merely wanted to see if what he originally suspected was correct, and it was. The camp actually kept its attendance files uploaded to the internet but inaccessible from the main site in case of file loss.
“This is too good to be true.”, he thought. Unfortunately, the camp had over 200 young teenagers, girls and boys, attending. “Crap, this is gonna take a while to find my name.”
The file was simple text information, but it was a hell of a lot of it. For each camper there was financial as well as physical and emergency contact information.
“Ah, there we go, Jack Rivers.”, he said as he found his entry. He was scheduled for One month and three weeks of pure hell, and now was going to make sure it would be much less. He smiled nervously as he erased his information from the file.
It was the perfect plan. When he got to camp, he would act nervous and flustered, and say that he wanted to go home. The counselor would check his records, find that he didn`t have any, and send him home as early as the next day. What was even better was that they would have to refund his parents’ money as well, so he didn`t hurt them financially.
Electrified with excitement, Jack tried to sleep. He knew tomorrow would be an eventful day.
“Hey Jack, it looks like you`re feeling a lot better today.”, said his father at the bus stop, awestruck at his recovery from the previous week of moping and crying he had done.
“Don`t get me wrong Dad, I still don`t want to go. Now that the wait is over, I can start being scared of the real torture rather than just being scared of going to be tortured.”, Jack said smugly.
His father gave a confident laugh. “Come on Jack, please try to make friends, okay?”
“Hmph.”, replied Jack loosely. After giving his parents one last farewell hug before the bus arrived, he stepped on.
As (bad)luck might have it, the boys and girls were being taken in separate busses, so as soon as Jack stepped on a cloud of swearing and yelling filled the halls of the seatbelt-less brown leather bus seats. Jack tried to find an unoccupied seat, but had to settle for one with a rather cross-looking individual with a jock-like body and clean haircut. He was only about 4 inches taller than him, but the width of his body and arms compared to Jack’s scrawny build made him seem far larger.
It was then that the bus started to drive away, and he could already hear mutterings of “that faggy kid that just got on?”, and “Yeah, he looks gay”. Jack sighed and tried to make himself seem as small as possible. As the drive went on, he found himself to be the “topic of the half-hour” no more, thankfully.
That didn`t make him feel any better though, as school was the same. No one ever seemed to notice him except if it was to make a negative comment. Otherwise, he may as well have been invisible. Because of this, Jack was adept at blending into the crowd and avoiding attention, as it managed to avoid him. At the very least, he was glad no one he knew from school was on the bus.
He learned through forced overhearing that most of the boys there were athletes, or even luckier, those scholar-athletes who excelled in both physical and mental activities. That made little difference to Jack, who was ignored by all cliques. He mainly listened to alleviate the boredom of the long bus ride.
After four hours, the bus finally arrived at camp Silva, which did not defy its Latin root. A huge campsite that Jack couldn`t see to the end of from the bus window’s view was surrounded by an even larger forest and was placed beside a moderately sized lake. The cabins he saw were fairly big and grouped into two main sections, he guessed for the boys and the girls. One group was near the lake while part of another he could see was nearer to the playing fields and forest.
“Okay boys, time to get off. We have to take attendance.”, said the counselor as the bus doors squeaked open.
The boy next to Jack pushed past him without saying a word. Jack was used to it though, and not exactly in a hurry. He eventually got out to see the boys walk into what appeared to be the center of the camp.
The counselor who was on the bus with the boys, along with several others, were joined by a much older man, who began to give a speech.
‘Hello boys.”, he said in a gruff, but friendly voice. “Welcome to Camp Silva. I know that most of you have come here for exercise in the off-season from your particular sport, while others have come to get in shape, and maybe even others have come just for fun. Well, during your stay here you will have the opportunity to do all of that and more. I am Dr. Ballard and I am more or less in charge of the camp. If you have any major complaints or questions you can come to me or your counselor. We’re first going to give you a tour of the camp, then split you off into your cabins where you will find your camp uniforms you’ll use for the summer. With that, I’ll leave you with these fine fellows right here, who will tell you all about the variety of interests we satisfy here.”
Jack wondered something, “What kind of doctorate did it take to run a camp?” Was a degree truly necessary? Or was he retired and is doing this for kicks?
“It dosen’t matter”, thought Jack. The tour group was big, and was heading towards the lake. He tried to make a break for the Doctor’s cabin when a counselor stopped him.
“Hey, where are you going? Follow the tour big guy.”
“But..”
“come on, let’s go.”, said the tall, brown haired college student who impeded Jack’s road to freedom. Begrudgingly, Jack went to the tour group, which headed towards the lake.
“Ok guys, this is Patria lake, where all of our swimming activites will be held. If you`re used to a pool, sorry about that, the Doc is kind of old-fashoined.”, said the tour guide, hoping for some laughs from the anxious group.
“Over here by the lake are the girl’ cabins, and the building closest to the lake is the shower houses. Everybody has to shower after swimming guys.” The group groaned as they headed to the dock.
“While we’re here I have to warn you guys about something. There is absolutely no sneaking into the girls’ cabins at night, no exceptions guys.” Some snickering was heard in the crowd.
“Geez, can these guys be any more stereotypical?”, thought Jack. They seemed just like the kids that picked on him at school. Athletic kids, intelligent or otherwise, who were sexually active and only cared about hot girls and people like them. He couldn`t believe….
“Aaah!!”, said Jack as he slipped on the dock, fumbling in the muddy sand of the shoreline. “My clothes, they’re… oh crap.”, said Jack as he noticed something very troubling. As it turns out his clothes were not only soaked but caught on a sharp rock, ripping a hole in his pants in a very inconvenient place.
Jack was horrified. If the other boys saw him like this, he would never hear the end of it. Thankfully, they didn`t hear his yell, or at least, if they did they paid no attention.
“Where is that nosy counselor now?”, jack thought, annoyed. However, now was not the time, he needed to find a change of clothes, and fast. He looked around frantically. Thankfully his glasses were not damaged.
The boys’ cabins where his uniform waited were all the way across the camp. He would never make it…unless…
Jack quickly but stealthily ran to the shower house. Maybe, by some shred of luck there would be some spare swim trunks.
He opened the door to reveal a set of showers and lockers, all looking fairly old, but well kept and not dirty-looking like the ones at school.
“Dammit, nothing in the open.”, he said as the area seemed well-cleaned. His only hope was the lockers. He began to frantically open and close each locker, the metal clanging only magnifying his worry. This was far from the perfect plan he envisioned.
He had reached the end of the first section of showers and lockers and turned up nothing. His heavy, panicked breathing combined with the cold of his clothes made him cough.
“Come on, next section, come on!”, Jack said to himself as he opend and closed a set of doors. More frantic searching turned up nothing, until he reached the final locker by the door….having a full girls’ uniform and makeup kit.
Jack’s jaw dropped.
“You have got to be freaking kidding me.”
Jack had two choices. Go outside in ripped pants and risk being embarrassed, or go out in a girl’s uniform complete with skirt and stockings and be called a fag even more.
“Damned if you do, and damned if you don’t”, Jack thought. Just then, he saw a mirror. His handsome/pretty face.
Jack prayed his new idea would work, and for the first time, was thankful for his girlish look.
TBC:
Chapter 2: Boys don`t wear skirts
Notes: Ever since I found out about it, I have been completely fascinated with the subject of gender and changing between them. After eventually confirming my own identity(Heterosexual Male with introverted qualities), I found out about sites like these with TG stories and thought they were great. However, since I am far more interested by stories dealing with the change in identity rather than ones that deal chiefly with sexual activity, I found somewhat of a shortage across the internet. But, I digress. This is ironically a story dealing more with gender roles in society rather than transgenderism itself, but nevertheless I hope it will be entertaining. Constructive criticism is appreciated on this story based on a dream I had.
Chapter 2: Boys don`t wear skirts
Jack gave careful thought as to what he was about to do. If his plan worked, he could be going home by the next afternoon.
If it didn`t, everyone in his known universe would think he was gay and his parents would most likely send him to psychotherapy.
Clearly, the odds were against dressing up. After all, boys don`t wear skirts. But..no..just….
Somewhere inside him, an insatiable curiosity built up. Just how would it feel like to be a girl? Surely, he wouldn`t have another opportunity like this.
“I can`t believe I`m going to do this…”, said Jack to himself. “It’s not like I`m even going to be dressed for long anyway.”
All he had to do was stay dressed long enough to grab a boys’ uniform, then change back and enact the rest of his plan.
He took off his pants, and removed the uniform from the closet, and found that a bikini swimsuit was behind it.
“Wha? That can`t be part of the camp uniform!”, Jack said to himself. Surely they would have one-pieces. A counselor must have left it. However, this just might work to make his disguise a bit more realistic.
Quickly, he slipped off his boxers and put on the swimsuit bottom, fitting snugly. It was just like the tighty-whitey underwear he wore as a kid, except no hole in the front.
Then, he took off his wet shirt and nervously tried to put on the bikini top. It fit tightly around his torso but loosely in the cup area, just like he thought it would.
“I hope this won`t be too itchy.” Taking paper towels from the dispenser he balled them up and nervously giggled as he put them in the empty cups.
“Better not make them too big.”,thought Jack, remembering his goal of trying to avoid attention.
He put the undershirt over the bikini top, giving the illusion of a young girl’s B cups.
As he was putting on the skirt, he noticed himself in the mirror and blushed. If the face wasn`t his own, the overall image seemed almost like something he’d seen in a dream. Not a dream of any kind of beautiful supermodel. He never had dreams like that, and he looked nothing like that.
But a dream he once had of the girlfriend he never met. A bright, yet shy young girl who would be there when he was sad and share his interests. One who would get him into things he had never tried before and would comfort in turn when she was sad. But that girl wasn`t real. She was a fantasy, an illusion that both gave him hope and made him hopeless at the same time. He both loved her and hated her more than he could ever realize.
At that moment, a tear rolled down his cheek.
“damn it..” he cursed.
”I`m such a girl.”
His own joke cheered him up a little, and he put on the overshirt and shoes, completing the disguise.
Gathering his composure, Jack opened the makeup kit, and realized he had no idea how to use it.
“errr…Wha?”
He saw all kind of odd tools. One he immediately recognized as lipstick, but others like odd brushes and vials he hadn`t the slightest clue how to use.
“I guess its best that I don`t use it anyway.” Thought Jack. A plain girl would get much less attention.
Unconsciously, he put the kit back into a different open locker. His mind was far too occupied with going outside dressed as a girl.
Slowly, he opened the door, and surveyed the area. The girls had definitely gotten there before the boys, as they were playing a few games in the ball courts and fields. Some were even swimming.
But it wasn`t the time to look at the sights. It was time to get to the boys’ cabins. Jack saw that if he stayed near the cabins, which were all but empty at this time of day, he would avoid contact with most of the people. He could sneak over to the boys’ side of camp quickly and get a uniform.
As fast as he could, Jack darted to the next cabin and felt a rush in his legs. As much as he felt it was weird to think, wearing a skirt felt light and free. He felt a breeze on his legs that he never felt wearing shorts or pants, and it was almost exhilarating as he reached the next cabin and peered from behind it.
He was nearing the center of the camp, the large circular dirt field which had the main camp office buildings. On the other side was the boys’ cabins.
The field was mostly empty, and a girl sneaking around the boys’ cabins, during touring no less, would be very suspicious even if he really was a girl. He would have to be stealthier than solid snake to get around this place, even if he felt more like raiden at the moment.
As inconspicuously as he possibly could, he went to the side of the main building and slunk around behind it. The building seemed larger in the back than in the front, and getting around was no small feat.
Quickly, he dashed from tree to tree, trying not to go too deep in the woods. As he ran past the windows, he could see the feeble “computer room” through a window. Just as he thought, it was about eight machines, unsupervised, with most likely simple parental controls to keep the boys from going on porn sites. A good sign for the future.
In time he made it around the middle of the building and now finally saw the boys’s cabins from the back. The tour groups were going around them, probably showing the boys where their uniforms were and where they would be sleeping.
“Okay, It’s best to wait for a group to go past first, then get a uniform…but if I do that, they’ll know for sure one is missing…”
Jack was annoyed at his logic. But if he was going to do this cleanly, he had to get to a cabin before the groups did.
Quietly, he watched as the boys were approaching a cabin. From earlier estimates they spent over 10 minutes inside each one at least, so he would have plenty of time to get a uniform.
He went to the back of the current cabin and it was so small that he could hear the counselor’s speech. At this moment, he became very aware of the small sounds his footsteps made in the grass, and tried to get a good balance of speed and silence to get two cabins ahead of the group.
“Heh, I`m getting some exercise after all.”
Now was the key moment, he had to get around the side and in the door without anyone seeing.
Forgetting about stealth, jack ran in as fast as he could. The cabin was small, but fairly well kept for the camp’s old fashioned feel. Surely, he could get a uniform and get out before..
“Excuse me Miss, what are you doing in here?”
Oh. Fuck.
Jack froze. He had never felt more panicked in his life, yet relieved that the counselor called him “Miss” as he was about to open a dresser.
Jack stood up straight and faced him. He had tried a falsetto before to sound funny, and it sounded nothing like a girl and everything like a boy imitating a girl’s voice. If he said a word, he was dead.
The counselor came into the cabin further and looked jack in the eye. To him, he was looking at a very scared little girl, who seemed to have a good enough shape for the boys to notice. He couldn`t let her stay there. “Can you speak, miss?”
Jack was suddenly struck with inspiration. This guy, like the camp, seemed really old-fashioned and he knew exactly what to do.
Making the biggest, saddest puppy-dog eyes he could, jack shook his head sideways slowly.
‘Oh my god, I`m sorry.”, said the counselor in shock, taking Jack’s hand. Here, let me take you to the office.
Wait… the office? No! that wasn`t what he should have done! He should have let the poor little girl….get help from the office.
“I..have…to..think..further...ahead..”, thought Jack strongly.
Jack was both relieved and saddened by what he saw as the counselor dragged him to the main building. On one hand, nobody was laughing at him as they saw him dragged by. Some of the boys said “who is she?”, but that was it. However, even though he was glad his disguise worked, he was slightly disappointed inside that no one had even said he looked a little boyish. Slightly.
“Oh, by the way, my name is Jack. Jack Willis.’, said the counselor.
Jack almost opened his mouth to say “that’s my name too!”, but quickly closed it, remembering who he was.
“I`ll get the boss to see where you`re supposed to go. You’ll be with your friends soon.”
Jack grimaced. He hated that word.
“Buuuut, he’s usually pretty busy. If you like computers you can play on one in the room over there while I get everything straightened out.”, said counselor Jack, half jokingly.
Jack made a huge grin, and Counselor Jack, satisfied, watched the young girl joyfully run off to play with the computers.
In reality, he could not have asked for a better opportunity. He had been seen as a girl now, but as soon as they checked the database and couldn`t find a mute girl, he would be screwed.
Quickly, he went online and to the camp website. In almost no time he found the camp roster and the blank spot on the boys’ list where his entry used to be.
To make this work he would have to find an absent entry on the girls’ list, and change it with new data.
“Oh god, please let there be a girl who couldn`t make it!”, thought Jack as he searched frantically. As luck would have it, one girl in cabin 6 was marked as absent.
He would have to change her name and info, everything, so that girl’s parents wouldn`t be called. But what would he choose?
Suddenly, for some reason, he thought of guilty gear and had to keep himself from laughing as he entered the data.
Name: Bridget Alden
Birthdate: 3/5/91
Interests: computers, boating
Height: 5’4’’
Etc. etc. etc.
Notes from parents: This girl is mute and quite shy. We feel it would be best if she was left alone to do her own activities, as she seems happiest that way, and given a notepad so she can communicate. Our jobs are very discreet so we cannot leave contact information, but we will miss our daughter terribly. — Mr. & Mrs. Alden. PS: Please do not coddle her. She gets nervous.
“Hehe.. perfect. “, thought Jack deviously.
Soon he would be alone and ready to have another shot at getting a uniform.
It was at that moment that counselor Jack and Dr. Ballard walked in.
“Well Miss, I think you need to step into my office.”, said Dr. Ballard sternly. Jack, or should it be called, Bridget, took his hand and followed the two of them into the Dr.’s office, which just like the rest of the camp, seemed old-fashioned and woodsy, except for the obviously recent addition of a desktop computer.
“It seems, miss, that we need to know your name so we can look you up to see what cabin you belong in, although you seem familiar, I don`t quite recall.”
Just like in his speech earlier, Dr. Ballard seemed like an okay guy, one Jack wouldn`t mind having as a teacher if this was school.
Counselor Jack handed Bridget a notepad and a pen.
In the girliest handwriting he could muster, he wrote:
My name is Bridget Alden. I was in the cabin because I was lost when the bus came in. I`m sorry if I did the wrong thing. Please forgive me.
Both men read the note and seemed embarrassed at the cute way the girl seemed to sink her head and write.
In reality, this was exactly what Jack/Bridget wanted, and he was sniggering inside.
“I see… Bridget…..Alden… there you go. I see you’re in cabin 6. Jack will show you to the cabin as well as your counselor. Try not to get lost again, okay Ms. Alden? And if you are lost, just come get a counselor.”
Bridget nodded cutely. He would be out of here soon enough.
He hoped.
End Ch2.
TBC: Ch.3 : Kind of what I expected but not really
Chapter 3: Kind of what I expected, But not really
“I’m sorry you got lost, that shouldn`t have happened.”, said Counselor Jack. “It must have been scary for you to be wandering out there.”
He saw Bridget write something on her notepad, right before she held it up to him.
It read: “Not really.” The counselor made a small laugh.
Jack sighed internally. If this took any longer he was going to feel like wile E. coyote in no time.
“So, you’re in cabin 6, right?”, said the counselor, trying to pass time in the waiting room. “Your cabin leader is Reina. She’s pretty cool, but given the girls she has to watch over she’s going to be stressed out soon.”
Jack looked at the window. He honestly didn`t care what the counselor was saying, as he was going to be on a car home in a few hours, However he continued on regardless.
“They made quite a scene last year, they even snuck in a TV and had it undiscovered for over a month! But I suppose it’s not all their fault, there’s just that one girl…”
At that moment, the door to the outside opened, and a girl who looked barely older than Jack walked in.. Only a few inches taller than him and with short, straight hair, a textbook in hand, and thin, black-rimmed glasses, Jack was unnerved that in his feminine guise, he almost looked like a hypothetical younger sister to her.
“Hello…Bridget?”, she said in a calm, slightly annoyed voice.
“I`m sorry.” said the counselor.” Reina, this is Bridget, she’s mute, so that’s why she has the notebook. Bridget this is Reina. She’ll be your counselor.”
Bridget quickly scribbled two sentences down and showed one to the counselor.
It read;” She’s my counselor? She’s barely older than me.”
Jack smiled, and whispered a reply. “Actually, she’s 19.”
Questioning the information’s validity, Bridget scribbled out the sentence and showed the other one to Reina, with a fake, cheery smile.
“Hello Reina! My name is Bridget! It’s nice to meet you.”
Reina raised an eyebrow. “Eh…okay.”
Jack was taken aback by her reaction. She was the first person he had met that found his overly cheery behavior suspicious. He would have to be a lot more cautious.
“Anyway Jack, I can take her from here.” Reina grabbed Bridget’s hand and led her out the doorway.
About halfway to the girls’ cabins, Reina started to speak to Bridget sarcastically, “Hey new girl, I don`t know what you’re up to, but I have a feeling you`ll fit in just fine with Hell Mel and the others.”
“What the heck was up with her?”, thought Jack. She’s obviously smarter than the average jock if she knew the polite thing was just an act, and anyone called “Hell Mel” couldn`t be the friendliest person in the world either. Quickly, Jack struggled to write a note as he was walking and showed it to Reina.
“Hmm..Yeah, I guess you’re pretty good if you can handle everyone with that
act of yours. As for me knowing why? Listen Bridget, I invented that sweet innocent girl act to get free time. It won’t work on me, kid.”
Although Reina spoke condescendingly, she ended the sentence with a smile and a small giggle. Jack didn`t know why, but he felt Reina was a lot more at ease with Bridget than before.
Jokingly, Bridget passed her another message.
It read: “You didn`t invent it! Thousands of smart women before us have used it to their advantage. BTW, I don`t care how much crap some people might feed you about being “handi-capable”, it sucks not being able to speak.”
Reina let out a big laugh. “You know something Bridget, you’re pretty cool.”
“Maybe she wasn`t as smart as she thought.”, thought Jack. Then again, no one would expect a triple bluff, let alone the third being the person’s own gender.
Finally, the pair reached the girls’ cabin area. Like the main camp, ten cabins on either side of a large field with all kinds of sports equipment in the middle. On the right side were cabins 6-10, with cabin 6 unfortunately closest to the lake.
”That’s number 6 right there. Let me let you in and, um.. meet your roommates. Be warned, some things should not be seen by mortal eyes.”, said Reina in a fakely creepy voice.”
Jack was honestly scared. He had no idea what to expect. Just who were these girls?
Cautiously, Reina opened the door to the innocent-looking cabin, and quickly darted into the room.
Jack wanted to ask what happened, but remembered his ruse. He began to wonder if it was still worth it, as he was suddenly under a bright light as an unfamiliar, reverberating voice shouted out.
“BWAHAHAHA!!! Welcome to cabin 6, gentle newcomer! Please allow the Legendary Five to introduce ourselves, and bask in the glow of our majesty!”
Loud rock music began playing, and the voice shouted once again as a new spotlight was on a red haired girl facing away from him.
“First in our group is the graceful Cecilia Warren, master of time and space!”
The girl turned around nervously and waved her hand. The expression on her face clearly told she did not approve of whatever spectacle was taking place.
“Actually.”, said Cecilia. “ I just have a digital watch and a map.”
Undeterred, the original voice shut off the spotlight and turned on another one, revealing another girl that turned around, this time taller and with long, dark hair.
“Next, we have the brave and agile Jenna Clay, capable of feats beyond those of mortal women!”
“But… a lot of girls can do spli…”
“BEYOND THOSE OF MORTAL WOMEN!”
“okay..hehe…”she said, sounding more scared than nervous.
Jenna’s spotlight shut off, and a third one turned on, this time a girl with short blonde hair and a figure she simply had no business having at age 15.
“Now, we come to Sarah Jackson, my crucial second in command and master of organization!”
“All I did was organize your uniforms…”
At that moment, all the lights went out, and a hand could be heard fumbling with a CD player. A drumroll started playing as a dim light lit up in the center of the cabin, revealing a girl slightly taller than Bridget but with shoulder Length black hair and eyes that almost seemed to glow with determination. Curiously, what appeared to be a large yellow bow was on top of her head.
“And finally, I the leader of the Legendary Five sworn to make this camp not completely suck, Melody Hatchett!(but call me Mel) “
At that moment, all the lights came on, revealing all the girls together in the center of the room, all looking like they really didn`t want to be there except for Mel.
“and together, we are…
THE LEGENDARY FIVE!”
At that moment, the music stopped, and Mel gave a big sigh.
“ Whew! That rocked! I love it when we do that..”, said Mel, stretching. “Oh, hello Reina, where might our new bunkmate be?”
Reina sighed and pointed to the open door.”Oh, you mean Bridget? She ran out of here about a minute ago.”
Mel blushed and stepped back, grinning sheepishly. “You think we might have scared her off?”
“No..of course not. She just ran off in terror because it’s her favorite thing to do in the whole wide world.”
“……”
“You want me to go bring her back?”, said Reina.
“Please do, I`ll explain everything.”, said Cecilia.
Jack could not have thought of a time he wanted to scream more. He had to get out of this looney bin and home as fast as possible. Running into the middle field, he realized he had to get to the boys’ cabins and a uniform as fast as possible. This was not under any circumstance, what he wanted to be doing at camp.
All of a sudden, he felt a pull at his neck, vaulting him backwards. It was Reina, dragging Bridget back to the cabin.
“Hey, I told you it would be scary.”
Scary, yes. Mind bogglingly terrifying…no. “Hell Mel is actually pretty okay once you get to know her. It’s best not to dwell on first impressions with her.”
If she was so ‘okay’, why did she have a nickname like that and act like a psychopath? Jack was literally trembling as he was brought back to the cabin.
“Look at her, Mel! She’s scared to death!”, said Sarah. The Blonde girl stood straight up to the much more confident looking Mel, who merely looked to the side, avoiding the gaze of both Bridget and Sarah.
‘Oh come on, don`t be too hard on Mel. She’s done far worse and far better.”, said Cecilia.
“Come on.. Bridget, was it? I`ll explain everything.”, said the red haired girl, smiling at the trembling creature next to her.
At that moment, Mel stood up and walked directly over to Bridget, who cringed. Even though she was only a bit taller, the strength of her presence was unimaginable as she stuck out her hand.
“I, Melody greatly apologize for frightening you. I assure you, my intention was to welcome you. If you can believe me… and I sincerely hope you will even though I have given you no reason to, my reason for being here is the complete opposite of what you just felt. If you would do me the honor.. I beg that you forgive me.”
Jack had never been more confused? Clearly, this girl was crazy. She spoke like she was in the middle ages and some kind of knight errant. And yet, the look in here intense green eyes and the conviction of her voice said that she was being completely honest. He was quite sure that he had never met such a person in his entire life.
In a decision that Jack had no idea the repercussions of, he shook her hand.
“T..thank you.”, said Mel, with a sigh of relief.
“Wow.”
“That’s a first.”
“That’s great Mel!”
Jack was confused at the reactions from the peanut gallery, until Reina stepped forward and whispered into his ear.
“Hey Brid, apparently she sees something special in you. Hell Mel never apologizes, not even to me or Dr. Ballard.”
Reina then stepped back and spoke up.
“ooooooookay.. now that the horrific incident of terror is over, allow ME to introduce your newest cabinmate. This lil’ four-eyes over here is Bridget Alden. She’s a bit of a bookworm, but has an attitude inside that silence so I think if she decides to join your group she’ll fit right in. By the way, she can`t talk. But if anyone makes a crack about it…well, tell me and they’ll wish they hadn`t.”
Jack looked around and saw all the girls looking at him. Although he wasn`t showing it, he was nervous as hell. He’d never been around this many girls before, let alone this many that weren`t gossipy sluts. He scribbled something down on his notepad and showed it to the girls.
It Read: Honestly, I think you`re all nuts. But in a good way. By the way, why are you called the Legendary five if there are four of you?
All the girls looked dumbfounded, and Jenna spoke out, “that… is another story all together. We’ve actually got lots of stories about stuff that’s happened here. Some good, some bad. You don`t have to be a part of it, and I`d understand if you don`t want to, but will you think it over?”
Jack wasn`t fooled. These people seemed genuinely nice, but nothing was ever what it seemed. Why would they so readily accept him into their little club? He had heard something about making the camp not suck, which probably meant kicking around all the uncool people.
Bridget wrote another note: “I`ll think about it, but.. can I go for a little walk first?”
Reina, leaning back on one of the banisters of the bunk beds, spoke. “Sure, but dinner is almost ready. Can you take the walk afterwards?”
Bridget grudgingly nodded. It would be a long meal.
The dining hall was in the same building as Dr. Ballard’s office and the computer room, so it was a large part of an already large building.
Jack’s stomach felt queasy as he and his cabin walked in. It reminded him of the school lunchroom, which was a place that never held good memories for him.
He tried to sit at a table alone like he did at school, but Mel insisted she sit with their group. Reina was at the counselors’ table. All of them were plastic, but made to look like wood, much like the cabins and main building.
Surprisingly, the meal was served to them rather than having to get up and get it themselves, something which Jack liked, as it brought less attention to himself. It was a decent plate of fried chicken and peas. Although he hated vegetables, the chicken was enough, and he started to eat.
As usual, there was plenty of time left after the meal in the allotted dinnertime to talk, and the usual social groups were now overrepresented due to the nature of the camp. The popular girls were gossiping to his right and left, along with the jocks.
Looking back, it could be seen as if Jack was in a living nightmare. Surrounded by people who would love to hate him, in a place that he hated, dresses in girl’s clothes and wearing a bra stuffed with paper towels, Jack couldn`t take it. He started to cry.
Mel and her friends were chatting with each other, and didn`t notice his tears. Quietly, Jack got up, and left the room, but not without being seen by Mel, who saw a tear drop to the floor as the new girl walked out the door.
It had taken him over a half an hour, and the sun had almost gone down, but he had found the bus with his bags. He knew his mom had said he didn`t need to pack clothes, but knowing her, she just might have packed an extra set of clothes for him.
Tears flowing, Jack struggled to open the bus’s compartment with his bags. He had had it up to here with this nightmare. He was going home.
Finally, he was able to open the compartment, and dragged his bags into the forest where he could hopefully change.
It was at that moment that a group of girls holding what looked like cigarettes came up to him. Jack vaguely recognized them, but they looked like some of the girls that were at the lunch table across from his.
“Hey, you. “, said one of them in a firm voice. “ Why did you come here?”
Jack was terrified that he couldn`t answer. The forest was getting darker, and he could see that the girls were holding marijuana. If anyone knew about it, they would likely have a police record and the rest of their lives would be affected and tarnished. They weren`t messing around.
“I said, why did you come here?”, the six girls were coming closer, and some of the more nervous ones put out their lights. On girl in particular looked down and tried to hide behind a tree.
“I think she’s gonna snitch to the Doc on us. Aren`t you?”
“Yeah, that’s right”, said another.
“Little miss goody two shoes.”
Jack’s tears changed from those of sadness to fear as he was punched and then tripped, by two of the girls, sent crashing to the forest floor. Protecting his identity was a small price for protecting his life. He had to scream…
“Greetings, Malcontents. First substance abuse, now gang violence?”
The druggie girls grimaced. It seemed that they knew this newcomer. “We don`t have to take your shit this year Hell Mel. This chick was gonna squeal on us.”
Jack was stunned. How on earth did Mel know he was there? And why on earth was she defending him?
“Oh, I`d say right now you have bigger problems than her, you filthy skanks.”
That was all it took. One of the girls rushed her, but Mel caught her fist in her hand and slammed it to the ground, the girl’s body following with it. Two others came at her and Mel delivered a quick one-two punch to the chest of one followed by a kick to the midsection of the other. Both fell.
Mel stood above them smiling confidently. Jack couldn`t help but be amazed at her strength and ability, and her determined eyes lighting the dark forest.
“You idiots! You took on Hell Mel! What the fuck were you thinking? Lets just get out of here!”, said one of two girls who looked ready to run. They and their downed comrades started to escape, only to be greeted by a tall figure.
“I suggest you drop those things in the river.”, said a looming Jenna. The five girls shrank back and dropped their marijuana, which Jenna immediately stepped on and smashed into the ground, destroying the wrapping and scattering its contents around the forest floor.
“You think you can just get away with beating us up?”, said one of the running girls. “Once the Doc hears about this you’ll be kicked out for good!”
“Oh, I doubt that.”, said Reina leaning against a tree. “He wouldn`t want to know what you girls were doing here in the first place, now would he?” The girls shrank back again, this time knowing there was nothing they could do in their favor.
Back where Mel still stood, Jack could not believe what he saw. Just who was this Hell Mel? How did she know they would be here, and set up Jenna and Reina to cover for her.
“Oh My God!”
“Bridget, are you okay?!”
Jack heard two familiar voices, and Cecilia and Sarah came rushing up to Bridget picking her up.
Jack gave a confused nod, as Mel wasn`t finished there quite yet.
“Anne, I know you’re hiding there. It’s okay to come out.”, said Mel, in a voice so caring he could not have imagined that this was the same Hell Mel who beat 3 girls without breaking a sweat.
From behind a tree a short girl with long blonde hair stepped out cautiously. “Hell Mel.. I`m sorry… they told me they wanted to hang out and…”
“Don`t worry.. I know how they operate. That girl only brings a few hits to smoke at the beginning of the summer, a sort of.. initiation to her group. Are you in her cabin?”
“N..no..”
“That’s good. Reina, if you would be so kind as to take her back to camp.. I have to talk to Bridget.”
“Sure thing Hell Mel.” replied Reina, from the tree. She went over to Anne and took her hand. “Come on, let’s get back and I`ll get you some chocolate from the cafeteria. No one needs to start a summer like this.”
At that point, Mel turned around and helped Bridget up.
“I…I see I have quite a bit to explain.” Said Mel.
Although Jack had heard someone say that several times today, he was far too relieved to be safe to be annoyed. These girls, these “Legendary Five” had saved his life even though they knew next to nothing about him. Why? Why? It made no sense! "Why would she help me!", he thought.
Then, almost spontaneously, Jack leapt up and hugged Mel tightly while crying. He had never been more confused in his life, but he did know one thing. She was the first person to ever help him deal with a confrontation, something no teacher or aide had ever done, and that at least earned her his thanks.
TBC: Ch. 4 The Belle known as Hell Mel
Notes: Sorry this chapter got a bit dark. I promise next time will be lighter.^_^ But Mel is one of my favorite charachters, and she needs situations like this to show her true side, much in the same way that Bridget needed a situation like this in order to trust someone, because he had been betrayed so much in the past.
Bridget learns more about Hell Mel and her exploits as he/she realizes that he/she will have to spend the summer as a girl. Funnier than it sounds. Hopefully.
Chapter 4: The Belle known as Hell Mel
“Hey, you okay Brid?”, said Reina as she gave her a warm cup of chocolate milk and a blanket.
Bridget nervously scribbled “Kinda” on a piece of paper as Mel dragged her two heavy bags in with a single hand.
“I`m glad you’re okay, but usually they come much later. I had no idea you would be near those ruffians.”, said Mel as she sat down on the bed next to Bridget.
Mel saw Bridget writing down something on her notepad, and actually got a good look at the girl for the first time.
To be honest, she was what her sister in-law would call a quiet beauty. Her soft hair wasn`t very long, but it framed her face well, and although she didn`t have many curves in her torso, her legs were shapely enough, especially in that skirt, to gain the attention of many boys. Her glasses magnified her deep blue eyes as well, only adding to this.
This is why, especially, Mel could not figure out for the life of her why she was so shy. She knew that the girl couldn`t talk, but surely she would have gotten used to it dealing with it all her life. Then again, after the experience she just had, she would be pretty shaken as well.
“Hey Bridget!”, said Mel in an upbeat voice as Sarah, the last to come in out of the warm summer air, shut the door. “I know it seems like you feel out of place here, but one of the many goals of the Legendary Five is to make this camp a good place for everyone! How about I give you that long awaited explanation eh?”, Mel stood up and spoke loudly and confidently, something which seemed to get Bridget’s immediate attention and made her stop writing.
Mel could see that Reina had her usual half-sarcastic, half-contented look as Cecilia turned on one of the spotlights from her top bunk excitedly.
The girl took a dramatic pose, as if she was holding a book, and began to speak. Bridget was smiling, not running away in fear this time, and that comforted her to no end.
“It began not so long ago, this saga of the battle for happiness at our dear camp Silva. Several years ago at the ripe young age of twelve, My dearest friends and allies, Jenna and Sarah and I, took it upon ourselves to come to this place of recreation for so many of our school, as evil pays no heed to summer vacation. What we found was a travesty unto good moral standing. One vile villain after another, committing inexcusable acts of dominance and most egregious substance abuse, treating these grounds of supposed camaraderie like so much of a back alley; it was a most saddening site. We, then the legendary four, took it upon ourselves to rid this now nearly noble place of all manner and sort of mistreatment by fellow campers and those who treat this ground with disrespect. In spite of our age, but certainly due to the help of our girl on the inside, the valiant Reina Ballard, we have slowly either reformed or solved many problems plaguing this camp, our major breakthrough being the addition of those wonderfully addictive human communication tools known as computers the previous year. And now, miss Bridget, whom I hope to be calling my newest friend, I extend my official welcome to our cabin, and although I would understand if you would decline our offer, I hope you will join the Legendary Five with us as well.”
The flashlight turned off, and Sarah turned the normal light back on, revealing a surprised Bridget, who unfortunately looked cautious.
After a minute or so of writing, Bridget handed a note out for the girls to read.
“First of all, I can`t thank you all enough for saving my life back there, although I have no idea why you did or would. But even though it was cool to see those bullies get what they deserved for once… I don`t know if I can be your friend, much less join your group. Don`t get me wrong. To be honest from the impressions I have gathered here you seem to be very nice. However, the trouble is, you don`t know me. I have had friends before, and they all either left or betrayed me in time. I know I am not a good person as I get told this enough every school day for most of my life. Please, I’d rather you not get to know me and treat me with neutrality than get to know me and truly hate me. Please, it was not my choice to come here. At least give me this.
Sincerely,
Bridget Alden.”
In writing this, Jack felt somewhat relieved. Aside from the signature, it was the first thing he had said with honesty the whole day.
It was curious to note that the girls all reacted somewhat differently. Sarah walked away casually, while Jenna gave him a long look before going to her own bed. Cecilia looked like she was about to cry, while Mel gripped the paper and had a look of disappointment in her face. Reina, however, walked towards him.
And slapped him across the face.
Jack was caught completely off guard. He almost yelled in the sudden pain, but bit his tongue to make the sound nothing more than an “Mph!”
From his position on the bunk, he could see Reina looking down on him angrily.
“When someone like Mel wants to be your friend, you don`t tell them to fuck off. It looks like I was wrong about you. Come with me tomorrow, I want to show you something important.”
Jack, at that moment was both relieved and saddened. Just as he had thought, once the girls knew even the littlest thing about him, they would be turned off.
“Hey Bridget… I know how you feel.”, said Cecilia who had come up to him after Reina went to bed. “You shouldn`t be scared, really. I`ll tell you more tomorrow, although I can`t see why someone who looks like you would be so cautious around people.”
Jack was again filled with mixed emotions as two girls now, the seemingly impossibly sweet girl and the wisecracking counselor had both apparently had more things to tell him about the girl who called herself Hell Mel. After she went back to her own bed, Jack finally got to open his bags in the bathroom and see his final hope was destroyed.
No spare clothes, only pajamas and a few of his favorite books. Jack, for all intents and purposes, somehow, someway would have to be one of the girls for the rest of the foreseeable future.
Jack took the scissors from his backpack that he had brought into the bathroom, and without hesitation, cut off the pantlegs of his sweat pant pajama legs into shorts and put them on, adjusting the panties so that they adequately covered his male parts, and put on the pajama t-shirt over the bikini-bra.
“It’s really over.”, he thought to himself. He had miscalculated. It was far too late in the night to be considered simply lost at the camp. Getting into the main building would be nearly impossible as well.
The real tragedy of it all was that it had all been his own doing. Changing the computer files, disguising himself as a girl, getting dragged into the situation in the woods, all caused by his own actions.
On top of this all, he was stuck with people that he knew would hate him and already began showing signs of it. This inevitability was something he had realized from the start, not knowing what gender he would be playing to experience it. Regardless, damage control was now a top priority. He had to keep his real gender a secret and stay inconspicuous for the whole summer.
Bridget stepped out of the bathroom with a grim look on her face. Reina payed no heed, and Mel was on the top bunk with a flashlight. Jenna, however, walked over to Bridget as she was getting in bed.
“Hey, I`m sorry for what Reina did to you. For what it’s worth, Mel got her back for you while you were in the bathroom.”
Jenna smiled as her deep, yet warm and comforting voice hopefully provided some comfort to the new girl.
However, Bridget only turned away as she buried herself in her blanket.
“Hey… Mel may act like a nut but you won`t find anyone with a stronger heart.”
The girl in the bed said nothing, and Jenna sighed.
“I guess if you want to be miserable, that’s your prerogative. But let me tell you this. You don`t need a reason to want to be someone’s friend. So go easy on us, okay?”
Jack’s heart was consumed with anger at that statement as the tall girl left. He could not count the amount of times people had asked for his friendship only to betray him in the end. The times his heart had been ripped out and stepped on, the times he finally thought he had a true friend, all lies. His heart had been wrung dry.
With these heavy thoughts, he drifted to sleep.
“Rise and Shine, Brid, it’s time to wake up.”
Jack felt someone shoving him and made a moaning sound, catching himself halfway through. The familiar rough, sarcastic voice of Reina finally jolted him, as a notepad and pen were thrown to him. All around, he could hear the tired moans of the other girls waking up.
“Ugh..what..treachery..is this… for us to be up at such an ungodly hour….”, said Mel.
“Sorry I was so loud, but I need to show miss Alden here a thing or two. You all can go back to sleep. “
“What time is it anyway?”, said Sarah as she revealed her wild bed hair. Bridget had to hold in a laugh as she saw it was still dark outside.
“Oh, I`d say about 5AM. Now, get your ass out of bed! Your uniforms are in the drawers next to you.”
Groggily, Jack got up and immediately noticed something that would cause him some problems. With inhuman speed, he turned away from everyone so that his crotch faced the bed. He hadn`t counted on a morning surprise.
Sheepishly, he took the clothes out of the drawer and ran into the bathroom, slamming the door.
“This is going to be a long summer.”, he though as his cheeks burned red. Quickly as he could, he took off his pajamas and noticed that the paper towels in his bra were becoming disheveled and had almost come out of the cups. He first used them thinking he was only going to need a disguise for a few minutes. He now needed one that would last for two months.
Looking around the bathroom, he saw nothing that would suffice... he would have to spend a portion of the day looking for more stable breasts.
“Oh Joy.”, he thought sarcastically. Jack replaced the paper towels with new ones and put on the shirt and skirt as well as shoes. Fortunately, the skirt flowed enough to hide any more “surprises”. After putting his glasses over his weary eyes, he stepped out of the bathroom to see an impatient Reina grabbing for his hand.
“Let’s go, kid.”, said Reina as she dragged Bridget out the door and into the dark of the early morning.
The camp was eerily quiet in the early morning with the dampness of the dew-filled air making Bridget’s ankles quite cold.
Quickly scribbling down, “Where are we going?”, the new girl showed the paper to her counselor.
“You’ll see.”, she said in a hopeful voice, not at all like he expected her to answer.
Now dragging Bridget through the woods, she slowed down her pace a little until she came to a small overlook facing the lake. Although it was a nice view, Jack saw little point in coming there to talk, or whatever she wanted her to see.
“ you can’t tell by looking, but this lake used to have a huge freaking exposed pipe right in the middle of that lake a few years back. Oh, it wasn`t connected to anything so there was nothing dangerous to leak out of it or anything like that, but that was also why nobody ever bothered to remove it. When Mel got here, she absolutely hated that thing and wanted it out right away’, and took it up with Grandpa…”
wowowow… She was the Doc’s Granddaughter? That’s… right, Reina Ballard. He should have noticed the night before.
“ Anyway, she set up the whole damn thing herself, and without a computer to boot! Went right into town with a couple of the counselors and began getting money in any fairly legal way she could. Man, you should have seen some of the crazy crap that girl got away with. Yeah, there was a bake sale, but to Hell Mel, that was just a cover for the real operation of using card tricks and an arm wrestling scam, to swindle money out of innocent bystanders. Never even caught once. I`d be surprised she was still alive if she weren`t so ridiculously strong.”
Jack was honestly surprised at the tactics Reina mentioned and Reina could tell by the look in Bridget’s eyes.
“Oh, the scam stuff? Hell Mel may talk like a knight sometimes but she’s all craft. If she believes in something she knows is right she’ll go as far as she can without crossing the line to do it. In case you didn`t guess the obvious, we eventually got the money within two short weeks and the pipe was removed. But that ain`t the whole story. You won`t believe what she said when they were driving away with the pipe. I`ll never forget it as long as I live.
She said, ‘what?! You mean I can`t keep it? Insolence! What mockery of values is this! We raised thousands of dollars to get that thing and we can`t even keep it? Thieves! Charlatans! Arrgh!’
Oh man, she kicked that fender so hard it left a dent, and that was with four of us holding her back!”
Jack let out a giggle. The idea of a twelve year old Hell Mel squirming around kicking a truck and leaving a dent was hilarious no matter how impossible it seemed.
“Hey, so you can laugh a little. Throat’s dosen`t seem to be able to take it though. Anyway, what I wanted you to see is coming up just…about…now.”
At that moment, the sun rose above the trees, and shone across the lake, making it literally glow. The rays also hit the dewdrops in the sky, making the formerly normal lake look like a fantasy wonderland.
Jack froze and thought he saw someone..walking? on the lake. Somehow, his view zoomed in closer and he saw the girl from his dreams.. how he looked at the current moment, dancing and looking carefree.
“Hey Brid!”, yelled Reina, snapping her fingers. “Looks like you weren’t quite awake, eh? Anyway, it’s damn pretty, but it only lasts for a little while in the morning. And I can definitely say it looks better without a big pipe in the middle. I don`t know if anything I said helped you, given that you probably went through a lot of shit to be that scared, but if you want to, you can take my word for it that Hell Mel is a-okay.”
Reina helped Bridget up, and guided her back to the cabin. On the way, some of the other campers were coming out of their cabins.
“Oh, and um.. by the way.. I`m really sorry for hitting you. That was not cool in the least. I owe you one, okay?”
Bridget smiled devilishly. At the very least, Jack was glad she apologized.
“Hey early birds, welcome back!”, said Cecilia sweetly as the duo came in. Mel and Jenna were getting up groggily, their messy hair being especially adorable. Sarah was still sleeping, or at least pretending to sleep.
“Hey Cec, hope you guys weren`t worried.”
“We thought you were gonna finish the job from last night.”, said Sarah sarcastically from under the covers. The girls giggled.
“Oh come on guys! I apologized, and all I did was tell her the pipe story and show her the lake!”
“Oh, did you tell her about the part where Mel kicked the truck and dented it!?”
“Oh guys! Come on, you said you wouldn`t talk about that!”, said Mel.
“Sorry, it’s just too funny. The car got a dent and you broke your toe.”, said Jenna while she laughed.
Mel’s cheeks turned red.
“It sure is odd for someone like her to be embarrassed like that.”, thought Jack. Even Hell Mel was human.
“Anyway, since it’s Saturday we have pretty much a free schedule until lunch unless you want breakfast here.”, said Reina.
“Trust me, you don`t.” Whispered Sarah.
“Well guys, I`m going to hit the weights! See ya at lunch.” And just like that, Hell Mel was dressed and out of the door.
“Cec, Sarah, come on; I’ll show you where the new computer room is.”, said Reina. “Brid, Jenna’s a CIT(counselor in Training) she’ll take you around if you want since Jack told me you probably missed the tour.”
“Okay Reina, I think we can manage.”, said Jenna.
As the other three girls walked out the door, Jenna walked in front of Bridget and helped her off the bed where she was sitting.
“Hey...so is there anything in particular you wanted? I was gonna tell you the pipe story but it looks like Reina beat me to it. If you want, I can tell you a different one another time.”
Bridget quickly scribbled down, “Can I go back to sleep? I really didn`t come here by choice.”
Jenna sighed. “Come on, there must be something you want to do outside. If it’s any help, a lot of hot guys come here.”
Jack felt a bit nauseous. That would most definitely not make him want to come outside.
“Hey, what is it? You’ve got nothing to be embarrassed about. I wish I wasn`t so tall. At the very least, do you want to watch me play soccer? I told a couple of people I would play today if I had the time, and I think at least right now it would be more fun for you than forcing you to do something.”
Jack quickly scribbled down an angry “Fine”, and Jenna gave a frustrated smile.
“Oh well, we gotta start somewhere I guess. Come on!”
Jenna waved for her to follow, and the two “girls” left the cabin.
Jack followed the tall girl to the large field between the cabins, and noticed several people gathered along the sidelines as well as the field. The place was fairly large, and although not the size of a genuine field, it got the job done while allowing to serve as a field for other sports at times. Jenna sat down Bridget at the sidelines.
“I hope you enjoy the game, even thought I’d rather you play with us.” After firmly shaking his head no, Jack sat down and Jenna ran out to the field.
‘Hey Jenna, glad you could make it.”, said a brown haired boy holding a soccerball.
“Yeah, me too. Anyway, is everybody ready?”
The players got into positions, and the boy went on Jenna’s side of the field. When a counselor threw the ball into the air, the game started and Bridget froze.
Not because of anything having to do with the game, but because it was the very counselor that had found him as a boy.
Continued in chapter 5: Evan and the Soccer ball of Justice!