Chapter Text
The moment my mom shoved the pamphlet for the summer camp into my hands, I began to think of every way of how to get out of it. Of course all the summer jobs in town had to be taken, that's what I get for thinking that I'd have a relaxing summer, full of bullshitting around on the beaches of the Jersey shore, so there went my only good option in avoiding this .
My Mom had heard of the camp from some of her friends who were sending their poor kids. From what they had told her, it was insanely cheap compared to other summer camps, and if it kept me from getting into trouble around town for 104 days then she'd gladly pay the money. I never bothered to open them, refusing to even learn about where I was being dragged to. That day when she handed that stupid bulk of papers onto me I swore to god that there was no way in hell that I'd spend my summer all the way up in some grimey camp in New York.
But here I was, bag packed. At 6am, about to set off for the bus that would take me to hell.
"I don't wanna go."
I stood in front of my mother, who was sipping her coffee and reading the newspaper at the dining table, without even looking up she responded,
"Hurry up, or you're going to be late."
After seconds of silence shared between each other, I started towards the door, only stopping to slip on my stained and worn Van's. Reaching for the handle and opening the door, I was just about to step out,
"Ace, wait,"
My mom walked up to me, placing her hands on my arms,
"This summer camp might not have been what you wanted to do with your summer, but please, please, promise to me that you'll behave. Who knows, you might have fun," she pleaded lightly.
"...Yeah, ok mom, I promise." I smiled, placing my hands on top of hers. After placing a kiss on my forehead, she sent me off. I padded down the walkway of our house and onto the sidewalk,
"And don't light anything or anyone on fire!!!"
Mom called out one last time as I disappeared around the corner of our street.
Once I was out of her sight, my bored expression melted away to a determined one. Sure, I can stay out of trouble for a few days, and that's exactly how long I intend to stay at camp. While packing my bags, I stashed a couple hundred bucks from odd end jobs over the previous school year, my plan was to spend a couple days at the camp to avoid suspicion, then sneak out to the nearest bus stop to buy a one way ticket to Atlantic City, from there I'd hotfoot it to the family summer home in Ocean city. My family's had that home for years now, anyone from cousins to grandparents can stay there, as long as they had the house key, which I snuck from the mudroom closet and currently have packed away in a pocket of my gym bag. I don't feel as guilty for planning on running off from camp since the admission was cheap, if it was I might've actually bit the bullet for my Mom. But it's not, so I'm ollie ollie oxen free.
I soon arrived at the town bus stop, joining the crowds of fellow kids, ages ranging from 8 to 17 who were also overly packed and threatening the oncoming nightmare of wasting their summer. The morning air was crisp and cool, with sunlight streaming through the leaves of overhanging trees, even though it was early you could still hear the cicadas screech somewhere. It was around 7 when the large bus pulled in, opening its doors to reveal a young man in his thirties, the camp logo on his tennis shirt.
"Good Morning everyone! My name is Tyler Andersen and I'm one of the camp counselors for Camp Pinewood!"
His voice was comically boyish for a man who looked to be in his mid thirties, tidy brown hair tucked under a khaki bucket hat. After introducing himself he explained his job of corralling the group of kids onto the bus and giving them an introduction of the camp on the way there. I winced, the bus ride there will take around 4 hours, and I don't think I can take hearing that voice babble on about that shitty camp I don't intend on staying at for more than a week and most. Being filed into a messy line, it was my turn to step on to the stuffy bus.
Looking around the bus, multiple kids from different towns were already seated, the volume of their conversations filled the air, I grew more annoyed thinking about how much louder the bus will get with every new stop. I walked down the aisle, managing to find an empty row of seats by the back of the bus. I seated myself by the window, putting my bag in the middle seat to let other kids know that I wasn't in the mood for a seat partner. The faux leather seats - the same ones you would find on a school bus - stuck to my thighs as I got comfortable. After 10 minutes of getting situated, the bus went off, taking me from my beloved town and to the deep forests of New York.
2 hours went by, filled with mindlessly picking at the scabs on my knees, daydreaming, and chewing on some bubblegum that I had hidden away in the back pockets of my shorts. The bus stopped about 4 other times between the 2 hours, the 4th stop must've been the last one, since the guy Tyler decided to stand up in front of the packed bus.
"Good morning everyone! Now that everyone is all here it's time for me to introduce you all to the camp that you'll be staying in for the next 3 months!" He gleamed, a plastic smile spread over his face, his squeaky voice lulled the chaos of the packed bus, the once loud conversations now dwindled to murmurs.
"Tch, over my dead body," I sneered to myself, deciding that I had nothing else better to do, I listened to the human chipmunk.
"Camp Pinewood is an international sleepover summer camp in upper New York, not only do kids from America join us, but others from all over the world come as well!"
I raised myself a little, international? I'd be stupid to think that that wasn't the least bit cool, gaging from the other kids on the buses reaction I could tell I wasn't the only one interested. The hushed side conversations raised up again to loud banter, the prospect of meeting others from places like Europe and Asia was too exciting not to talk about. Tyler raised his voice again,
"Everyone, everyone! Can I have all of your attention again?- thank you. This introduction will be short, so you don't have to stay quiet for too long. When we get to our destination, everyone will be directed off the bus and to the camp orientation! There, after introducing the camp, they'll separate you into groups where you'll be shown your designated cabins, mess hall, and give you a tour of our campgrounds!"
He continued on but I checked out after he gave the beginning of his stupid speech. I got all the information I need. My plan was already ironing out the finer details of my great escape, this was going to be too easy.