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Miss Jenn stepped out of her car with great expectations for what the next several hours held. Fresh air, blue skies, her many non-biological children, way too much dirt… and perhaps a few surprises for all, considering she was currently standing beside the passenger side of her car and a man was getting out of the driver’s seat.
Not just any man. It was Benjamin Mazzara, fellow teacher and, very recently, boyfriend.
But that was not the point! No, the point was that Miss Jenn had received a very frantic, very strained call from her tallest child, EJ Caswell, who desperately needed her help. There was nothing Miss Jenn loved more than helping others, so she’d immediately stopped what she was doing (driving), then continued what she was doing (because stopping in the freeway is very dangerous, and also she still needed to drive), and beelined straight for Shallow Lake.
“Jennifer, what exactly are you intending to accomplish by showing up to a children’s summer camp?” Mr. Mazzara asked with one of his trademark raised eyebrows.
“We, Benjamin, we,” Miss Jenn corrected, wobbling around the car (heels met stony dirt and said no) and latching onto his arm, both for stability and to make sure he didn’t run away. “You and I are both here to give EJ some much-needed encouragement.”
It was the perfect arrangement. EJ needed her directorial guidance, and he needed Mazzara to fill the role of kind fatherly figure he simply wasn’t privy to at home.
“I am just dying to see everyone,” Miss Jenn beamed as she and Mr. Mazzara walked towards The Barn, the first building visible from the so-called parking lot. “Just imagine how much closer they’ve become over the course of camp! I always loved summer camp as a kid. You simply couldn’t leave, so if someone hated your guts you had to fight it out in the moonlight, throwing sand into each others faces and trying not to be waterboarded.”
She sighed nostalgically while Mr. Mazzara side-eyed her in subdued alarm, then shook herself out of her reverie so they could head up the creaky splintery steps.
EJ was inside, pacing, his binder held in front of him. He spun around when he heard voices and his eyes went wide. “You’re here! And-“ He did a double take. “Mr. Mazzara?”
“EJ Caswell,” Mr. Mazzara rejoined, trying to suppress his fond grin. “We meet again.”
“Come here, come here.” Miss Jenn waved her arms, urging EJ into a long, grappling hug. “You know, I think you’ve gotten taller.”
“It’s… been three weeks?” EJ frowned, eyebrows creasing in confusion.
Miss Jenn patted his shoulder and then moved aside so he and Mr. Mazzara could shake handsbecause they were Big Strong Men, despite obviously wanting to hug it out.
“All right!” Miss Jenn clapped her hands together. “Legally we can’t spend the night here, so time is wasting. EJ, tell us what you need.”
EJ blew out a breath, and the grin that had relaxed his face when he first saw them was replaced by a stressed crease in his forehead. “Uh… where to begin? So, turns out Corbin Bleu didn’t actually want to direct the musical, he wanted to direct the documentary about the musical, so then Dewey forced me to be the director, but the thing is, I have no idea how to be a director so I’ve just spent the last week making things up as I go along, which isn’t going very well considering that all I seem to do is stress everyone out and ruin their summers and possibly their lives.”
He stopped and blinked a few times. Miss Jenn and Mr. Mazzara exchanged glances and both opened their mouths to speak, but EJ started up again a moment later. “And on top of that, I just wanted to spend the perfect summer with Gina because we’re finally dating but I’ve barely had a moment to spend with her and I think that she’s mad at me for that? Or maybe she’s mad that I hid my dad’s letter from her and didn’t tell her that I might not be able to take a gap year in Salt Lake after all because my dad might be making me do the Caswell Success Program instead. But if this documentary succeeds—forget the show, he doesn’t care about the show—he might see that I’m actually able to do something worthwhile with my life and let me take the gap year after all, which means I could stay with Gina and actually try to build a future with her.”
Another pause, another breath, and EJ started pacing. “Then on top of all of that everyone’s been acting super weird this summer. Kourtney seems so stressed out and terrified of everything which is super unlike her, and Ashlyn has been acting really odd around Val and hasn’t mentioned Big Red in, like seven straight days which was not how I expected things to go. And then Ricky-“ EJ let out a strained laugh. “Well, Ricky showed up out of the blue and is- is- okay, maybe I’m just being a stupid, jealous boyfriend but I feel like he’s trying to make a move on Gina which, just saying, is completely inappropriate.
‘And don’t even get me started on Corbin!” EJ drove the fingers of one hand into his hair. Miss Jenn cringed and stepped forward but Mr. Mazzara shook his head slightly and subtly held up a hand, urging her to let him continue. “Corbin was supposed to be this amazing surprise for everyone, and he’s, you know, he’s Chad, and we’ve all been looking up to those characters for our entire lives! But he’s a- a- well, he’s a complete and utter douchebag, sorry, but- it’s true. And his cameraman is even worse. All he cares about is drama. We had to-“
He spun towards them, increasingly manic. “We- we had to fake an entire series of dramas just so that he’d think our group was a mess and want to keep the documentary going! And I just- I just- I just wanted this summer to be fun-“ His voice cracked and he balled his fists. “This is the last summer I can be a camper here and I just wanted to have a good time with my friends and instead I’ve missed everything.”
EJ took a hard seat on the edge of the stage and pressed his forehead to the heels of his hands, elbows on knees.
“Ohhh…” Miss Jenn breathed. She took four quick steps to the stage and slid into a seated position next to him. “EJ, honey… this is what my mother used to call a snowball situation.”
EJ sniffled and lifted his head. “It’s summer.”
“It’s metaphorical,” she sighed. “The point is, things have spiraled out of control. It happens. Learning how to deal with this is a part of growing up.”
EJ’s chin dropped, his expression sliding to downcast. “I know, I just need to get ahold of myself and-“
“Ah ah ah!” Miss Jenn whipped up her hand. “Ah. Let me finish. Just because you grow up doesn’t mean you don’t have anyone to support you. We all need support, EJ. It’s something that us teachers get all-too-little of. So when we find someone likeminded, someone who cares about educating instead of just informing, well…” She allowed herself a pause and a fond gaze at Benjamin. “We know it’s someone really special.”
Mr. Mazzara smiled awkwardly, still made bashful when she professed things like that.
“The point is the you’re not alone in this, honey, no matter how much you’ve been made to feel that way during the past few days.” Miss Jenn reached out and put her hand on his knee. “Understood?”
A flicker of a smile passed over EJ’s face. “Understood,” he mumbled.
Miss Jenn raised her eyes to Mr. Mazzara and looked at him expectantly. “Uh-“ he cleared his throat. “Understood?”
“What?” Miss Jenn rolled her eyes. Men, honestly. So little ability to read the room. “I gave him my pep talk, now it’s your turn.”
“I don’t- I-“ Mr. Mazzara made eyes at her, looking very alarmed. “You didn’t tell me to prepare a pep talk.”
“It’s okay, it’s okay, really.” EJ stood, looking bemused and a little more calm. “It’s enough that you both are here. Speaking of that… how are you both here?”
“Oh, well, it’s a funny story-“ Miss Jenn began, but just then the doors burst open and campers began to flood inside The Barn.
Ashlyn, Kourtney and Gina were all chatting and giggling, closely followed by Carlos and Ricky, the latter who—oh goodness, EJ hadn’t just been being a jealous boyfriend—was gazing at the back of Gina’s head like a love sick puppy. The five of them stopped abruptly at the sight of their much-beloved teacher.
Then the screaming started.
“OH MY GOSH NO WAY!” Carlos squealed, darting over and flapping his hands enthusiastically. “No way no way no-!”
“Miss Jenn!” Kourtney shrieked. “Oh I am so glad to see you I cannot even tell you how-“
“How are you here?” Gina demanded, beaming. “And Mr. Mazzara? How are you both here? When did you-?”
Ashlyn spun to her cousin. “EJ, did you plan this? Why didn’t you tell any of us?”
“It’s great to see you guys,” Ricky grinned. “And just like that, we’re back in school!”
“Oh, don’t be ridiculous Richard, I am much to tan to be School!Jenn,” Miss Jenn scoffed, flipping her hair. “Ugh! Gather round children, let me take a look at you.”
With her flock around her, Miss Jenn let herself relax for the first time since agreeing to come to Camp Shallow Lake. Perhaps internally everything wasn’t perfect, but her kids appeared, overall, to be happy and healthy. Ricky’s hair was a little longer, Kourtney was trying a new eyeliner, Gina looked radiant with her long braids, Ashlyn was glowing, Carlos was quite tan.
That being said, she’d just heard a full, if very scattered and frazzled, rundown of how everything was not going well this summer. And since EJ had enough on his plate to make even a competitive eater feel threatened, it was time for her to step in.
Oh, and Benjamin. She’d make sure he felt useful, too.
“All right.” Miss Jenn patted Ashlyn’s cheek and gave Kourtney’s arm a squeeze. “Since there is a mysterious and disturbing lack of camp counselors in this place, I think all of you need a space to come and talk someone you trust. Benjamin and I have arrived to help out in whatever way we can so you can just focus on your fun summer and your wonderful show instead of whatever else might be dragging you down. So! We are going to set up camp—no pun intended—in that back room, and if any of you need to talk you just come right on in.”
“Anything and everything you say stays with us,” Mr. Mazzara added, following his lover (idk man girlfriend felt too casual) towards the back room she’d indicated. “It’s like… therapy. Except we have no training. And are mandated reporters, but- anyway.”
He nodded awkwardly and disappeared into the back room, Miss Jenn shutting the door behind them.
W /T \ Y
“Should we bet on who comes through that door first?” Mr. Mazzara asked in a low voice as they both took seats.
Miss Jenn pulled an affronted face in his direction. “Absolutely not!”
A pause.
“Ten dollars it’s Kourtney.”
“Fifteen and make it Bowen,” Mr. Mazzara countered.
Miss Jenn grinned and held out her hand for him to shake. “Deal.”
Ashlyn walked in first. The two adults sighed but quickly got more professional.
“Hiiii…” Ashlyn greeted with a sort of moony grin as she took a seat in the chair opposite her teachers. “How’s it goooooing?”
“I think that’s the question we have for you, honey,” Miss Jenn rejoined with a faint smile. “How has your summer been?”
“Up and down, honestly,” Ashlyn admitted with a quick laugh. She leaned back in her seat, stretching her arms up above her head. “I got ensemble, which was sort of hard at first! But it really is true: there’s no small parts. Only small actors. Also…”
She trialed off and glanced at Mr. Mazzara, smiling awkwardly. Mazzara raised his eyebrows, uncomprehending until Miss Jenn cleared her throat and nodded subtly at the back of the room. Mr. Mazzara blinked, opened his mouth, shut it again, then stood up and oh so casually went to go look out the window.
Ashlyn leaned forward, confidential. “Okay, so this is actually the first time I’ve done this…” she began, grinning giddily. “But… I recently discovered that I am- that I like- that I’m bisexual.”
“Oh!” Startled, Miss Jenn shook her head a bit. “Oh! Well. Ashlyn, that’s wonderful.” She reached over and her her hand atop her student’s. “I’m so proud of you. Have you told Big Red yet?”
The smile slid a little off of Ashlyn’s face. “Um… not yet,” she admitted. “I’m just… working through some stuff while I’m at Camp.”
“Of course,” Miss Jenn allowed. She gave Ashlyn’s hand a little squeeze. “Just… try to remember, Ashlyn, that self-realization does not give you an excuse to hurt others. I am so very happy you’re figuring yourself out, but don’t let it be at someone else’s expense.”
“Of course not!” Ashlyn exclaimed, and though her words implied the sentiment was obvious, her face and tone told Miss Jenn that she had struck a nerve.
She patted Ashlyn’s hand and backed off a bit. “Now, tell me about ensemble!”
W / T \ Y
When Ashlyn was finished raving about her new ensemble friends and all of the character building they were doing, she left and was soon replaced with Gina. “It’s really good to see you,” Gina told her teachers (Mr. Mazzara had been permitted to step away from the window) with a relieved sigh. “Things have been really… weird.”
“Tell me about that,” Miss Jenn prompted, smiling. “Summer camp isn’t supposed to be weird, it’s supposed to be fun and exciting. Maybe a bit… romantic…?”
She waggled her eyebrows and Gina let out a laugh, but it was clearly halfhearted. “Trust me, I’m trying!” she said, holding up her hands. “I thought that coming here with EJ would be some impossibly romantic moment after another but, well… he’s got this whole directing thing. He doesn’t really have… time.”
Gina screwed up her face, before she seemed to make a decision and plunged into a whole rant. “It’s just- he doesn’t seem to understand that I don’t care about the show! Well, I do, but I care about him more. I care about our summer more. But he seems to think that if he makes this show perfect, then the summer will be perfect, even though the only way to make summer perfect is to actually have a summer. I just want to be with him, you know? Without that stupid clipboard.”
“He does really seem to like that clipboard,” Mr. Mazzara mused, slowly crossing one leg over the other. “Maybe we should steal it.”
“Not sure that would help…?” Miss Jenn shook her head and turned back to Gina. “Honey, have you tried just talking to him about this? Laying it all out?”
A scoff broke from the back of Gina’s throat and she rolled her eyes. “Yeah, can’t really lay things out when he never has time to speak to me.”
“That does seem to be a bit of an issue,” Miss Jenn allowed with a faint smile. She reached over and patted Gina’s knee, brisk and professional. “Don’t you worry, honey. We’re gonna fix this, you just wait and see.”
Gina smiled gratefully and got up to give her a hug before leaving the back room. Miss Jenn turned to her partner in crime. “Okay, how are we fixing this?”
“Leave it to me,” Mr. Mazzara told her vaguely. He got up, pecked her on the lips, then vanished out of the room after Gina.
“Mysterious,” Miss Jenn mused. “But I like it. Ooh!” She gave a pleased little shiver, then hurried to the door herself. “Next up, come right in!”
W / T \ Y
Kourtney slipped into the room as anxiously as she slid into her chair and as anxiously as she started to fiddle with her fingers. “Ummm… where did Mr. Mazzara go?” she asked, an attempt at a smile flitting around her mouth.
“Ohh, just on a little side mission to support plot B,” Miss Jenn reassured her. “So Kourtney, a little birdie told me that you got cast as Elsa.”
“Yeah.” Kourtney let out a high-pitched laugh. “Yeah, I did.”
Miss Jenn raised her eyebrows. This wasn’t the blustery, shoulders-back-chin-high Kourtney she remembered from the dressing room of East High. “How do you feel about that?”
“Um…” Kourtney took a steading breath. “Kind of like I’m… drowning?”
“Or maybe… freezing?” Miss Jenn suggested with a teasing smile.
Kourtney frowned at her for a moment, before she jumped a little and laughed, for real this time. “Oh! Yes, freezing, exactly. Nice pun.”
“But, really,” Miss Jenn redirected, sobering up a bit. “Kourtney. Drowning is valid. I think all of us have drowned, at least a little. You just need to make sure you have someone or something that can provide CPR and the breath of life.”
Kourtney blinked a few times. “Um… thanks?”
“Too metaphorical? Hm.” Miss Jenn repositioned on her chair. All of this advice-giving after so little sleep and going through so much self-realization herself before even arriving at camp was beginning to drain her reserves. “What I mean is, if you feel like you’re drowning, you need something that keeps that feeling at bay. Oh, darn, more puns. I don’t mean to be making light of this, Kourtney, I really don’t.”
“I know.” Kourtney smiled faintly. “It’s uncomfortable to talk about.”
“Then we should be embracing the uncomfortable!” Miss Jenn protested. “Isn’t that what art is all about? Have you considered using art? As an outlet for what you’re feeling?”
“Not really…” Kourtney admitted, chewing on her bottom lip. “I usually just kinda… hide from it and push it down until I feel like I can breathe again. I sing, sometimes.”
“Well, perhaps, if you’re comfortable, next time this happens, you could paint a picture, or… sew a dress, or… or write a song, even.” Miss Jenn shrugged. “It might not work, but it could be something to try. But! I am not a professional. I can give advice to you and your classmates for your various day-to-day problems, but anxiety is usually something to be dealt with in a more… professional setting? Did you know I got a therapist around your age? And guess what? I still have one.”
“Really?” Kourtney asked tentatively. “Like… I know it’s something that people do, a lot of people, but it just feels like… I shouldn’t have to be one of those people. Which is so stupid, I know.”
She dipped her chin, avoiding Miss Jenn’s gaze.
“It’s not stupid,” Miss Jenn assured her, quite serious now. “Kourtney, I don’t believe you could ever be stupid. We always think ‘it could never be me.’ But sometimes it is, and we must simply make do.”
“I guess so,” Kourtney murmured, biting her lip harder. “Well… I guess I should let some other people come talk to you, huh?”
Miss Jenn stood and crouched down in front of her. “Honey. Take all the time you need.”
W / T \ Y
Mr. Mazzara tailed Gina out of the barn and managed to catch up with her quick steps at the intersection signpost. “Porter!” he greeted, raising his hand. “Just a moment. I was wondering if you’d… be able to show me around camp?”
Gina stared at him quizzically. “Um… me?” she asked. “I’ve only been here for, like, a week and a half.”
“Yes, but I feel like you are the least likely to condescend to me for my stunning lack of direction abilities,” Mr. Mazzara blustered. Every single word coming out of his mouth right now was a falsehood. He was tremendous at directions. Also, if anyone her was going to avoid condescension it was Kourtney or Caswell. Porter could be… intense.
“Oh!” Gina was still looking unconvinced. “Sure…? Okay. We can start with the arts and crafts building, I guess?”
She set off across the patchy grass towards some unknown destination. Mr. Mazzara quickly whipped out his phone, shot a quick text, then hurried to keep up with her. Gina really did have long legs.
“Wellll, here we are!” Gina presented with an awkward laugh, waving her hands at the building. “Pretty cute, huh?”
“Yes, wonderful…” Mr. Mazzara muttered abstractedly. “Let’s… head inside, shall we?”
Bemused, Gina allowed him to lead the way into the fairly basic wooden structure. Mr. Mazzara made a big show of looking around—and he was. More specifically, he was looking for any possible exits.
Now, before you get concerned that this story is about to take a very creepy, trigger-inducing turn… there was the sound of footsteps creaking on the steps outside. “Mr. M?” a male voice called, one that made Gina freeze and look over with trepidation all over her face. “You in here?”
“Ah, yes, Caswell, come right in!” Mr. Mazzara called back, hurrying towards the front door, which to the best of his estimation seemed to be the only way in or out of the building. “Just, step right in here, and… that’s it…”
He did an awkward dance with EJ in the doorway, who was staring at him, utterly perplexed. “You, uh… said you needed to talk?” he asked distractedly, trying to figure out where Mr. Mazzara wanted him to go.
“Hmm, autocorrect. I meant that she needed to talk.” Mr. Mazzara grabbed EJ’s shoulders and twisted him around to face inside the building.
It was there that the overstressed teen caught sight of his girlfriend, standing awkwardly in the center of the room and not seeming to know what to do with her hands.
“I’ll… leave you to it,” Mr. Mazzara said, giving him a firm pat on the shoulder as he high-tailed it out of the cabin.
He locked the door behind him. Checked it thrice, for certainty.
They were going to be in there for awhile.
W / T \ Y
Mr. Mazzara arrived just in time to witness Kourtney’s departure and Ricky’s hesitant entrance. The teen smiled awkwardly, taking a slow seat in the chair opposite his teachers. “Hey…”
“Hi, Richard,” Miss Jenn greeted, smiling broadly. The kid looked good. Better than he’d looked in awhile, actually. She was happy for him, but she knew there were certain matters that must be addressed. “How are you?”
“Fine…?” the smile grew still more uncomfortable and Ricky abstractedly fixed his hair. “Um, so… I wasn’t really sure what to talk to you guys about except… what happened with my dad?”
Miss Jenn’s mouth twisted a bit, and she exchanged awkward eye-contact with Mr. Mazzara. “Well! It’s a funny story, really. Rather a long one, including an oil change, bed bugs, a Disney singalong soundtrack, and a great horned owl that I am convinced was imbued with the spirit of Aphrodite.”
Silence reigned. Ricky blinked a few times and tilted his head, waiting to see if there was any more information coming.
Miss Jenn smiled pleasantly at him, waiting for him to broach their next subject.
Mr. Mazzara coughed. “Well! Speaking of Aphrodite, how’s your love life, Richard?”
Miss Jenn squinted. “Smooth,” she muttered, then looked expectantly at Ricky to see what he’d say.
His face was already turning red. “Um… my love life is… um… nonexistent?”
“Really?” Mr. Mazzara raised his eyebrows. “See, I’ve heard that camp romances are quite popular to people of your… age demographic.”
“How has playing Kristoff alongside Gina been?” Miss Jenn redirected, hoping for a more subtle approach. “You’re both so talented.”
“Oh! It’s been, um…” Ricky grinned bashfully. “Yeah, it’s been fun. She’s… Gina’s amazing. She deserves so much more than-“ He bit off his words, shaking his head with a tight, frustrated quirk of the lips.
“Ricky…” Miss Jenn tipped her chin so she could meet his eyes. “Nothing you say in here goes anywhere outside of these walls, okay? We want to help you work through whatever you need to.”
Ricky’s knee jostled for a moment, before he let out a sharp breath. “I just feel like Gina’s gone through kind of a lot, and should just be having a fun, carefree summer instead of being bogged down by all of the drama that our dear director is dragging her through! And so, yes, I’ve been trying to be there for her so that she can actually have some fun times while we’re at camp, and of course that makes EJ think I’m trying to, I dunno, steal her from him—“
“And are you?” Mr. Mazzara broke in, leaning back and raising a slow eyebrow. “What is your intention with Porter, exactly?”
Ricky stared between the two of them. “Did he- put you up to this?” he demanded, irritation clear on his face. “Did EJ tell you to draw this out of me? If you’re looking for a confession of feelings, you’re not going to get one.”
“Ricky…” Miss Jenn began.
Mr. Mazzara held out a hand. “Richard. You seem like a good kid. But let me tell you something I learned many years ago, when I was but a college boy, falling head over heels for my lab partner. She had a six year long relationship, but whenever she would complain or confide her troubles in me, I would think there’s a chance. They could still break up. She could see that I am the one she’s supposed to be with.”
Ricky’s defensive walls seemed to be coming down slightly. “So… what happened?” he asked, tentatively curious.
“They ended things.” Mr. Mazzara let out a sharp breath, shaking his head slightly. “Second semester Junior year, they broke up. I waited an entire summer, and then I asked her out. And she turned me down.”
Miss Jenn put her hand on his knee sympathetically. She knew very well the trials and pains of the high school and college dating life.
“In the end, it didn’t matter that she wasn’t the one for me,” Mr. Mazzara said, glancing fondly at his new girlfriend. “It rarely does. But what did matter was that I had wasted so many sleepless nights daydreaming about her, so many weekends catering to her every need when I could have been focusing on things that made me happy. When she rejected me, I had nothing, because I’d put everything on her.”
He leaned forward, serious. “Don’t do that, Richard. Don’t make my mistakes. Also… don’t be a home wrecker. They have zero redeemable qualities.”
“Says the man who stole my dad’s girlfriend!” Ricky exclaimed, redder in the face than ever.
Miss Jenn sighed tolerantly and reached for Mr. Mazzara’s hand. “You forgot one important thing, Richard. The Disney sing along.”
Mr. Mazzara squeezed their intertwined fingers, resting them on his thigh. “The Disney sing along.”
W / T \ Y
The moment Mr. Mazzara shut the door of the cabin behind him, EJ was rushing to grab the handle. “He locked us in,” he realized, confounded. “He locked us in!”
Gina stood motionless in the center of the room as he ran to the window and hammered on it. “Hey! Let us out!” Then he stepped back with a frustrated breath, unable to do anything but watch as his teacher retreated down the path.
“Is being alone with me such a horrible concept?” Gina asked with a tight smile that looked more pained than the bemusement she’d been hoping for.
“No!” EJ said immediately, spinning towards her. “Of course not, G, of course not, I just… there is a lot we need to get done today, and I just- I don’t-“
“You don’t have time to spare for me,” Gina completed, rolling her eyes and crossing to another window. “Trust me, I get the message.”
Silence filled the dusty space. Then Gina felt two arms bind around her waist, hugging her from behind. “Gina… I wanted everything this summer to be with you,” EJ said quietly, his voice pained. “I wanted to spend every waking moment with you. But this- I have to direct. I have to make sure this show is incredible and that everything goes perfect.“
Gina swiveled in his grasp and stepped back. “What if I don’t care about perfect?” she demanded. “What if I don’t care about the result at all? EJ, opening night will be a few hours. This camp is two weeks.”
“Yes, but what about after?” EJ pressed. He tried to reach out and hold her again but Gina took another step back so he dropped his arms and squeezed his fists. “If this documentary goes well, I might be able to stay in Salt Lake. I might be able to stay with you. You think I care about the show for the sake of the show? No! I care because I trying to prepare for the future.”
Gina was silent for a long moment, staring at the floorboards. “I… I understand that, EJ. Or… I do now, I guess, I just… the future is uncertain, you know?” She lifted her gaze, growing a little teary. “We don’t know what’s going to happen this school year. We don’t even know what’s going to happen next week, or tomorrow! So do you see where I’m coming from when I say that I just want to enjoy all of the moments we know we have?”
EJ opened his mouth to immediately confirm that yes, of course he understood, but then he shut it again, took a breath, shut it again.
“EJ?” Gina prompted after a moment, stepping forward and finally initiating contact as she reached for his hands. “You still there?”
“I’m so sorry, Gina.” EJ swallowed and his chin dipped, breath releasing in a harsh pant. “I’ve been so stupid. I haven’t listened to anything you’ve been saying and now it- now it might be too late to actually make things right.”
“No, EJ, of course it’s not too late.” Gina cupped his face, lifting it so she could look at him. “We’ve still got, what? Five more days? That’s just under half of camp. And sure, we do need to prepare for the show and make sure we’ve got everything in order. But I also think we should prioritize us, okay? Even if that means, I dunno… working together for all the prep you need to do.”
She shook her head, letting out a dry laugh. “Honestly, we should have been doing that ages ago. This fell on you so suddenly and we’ve just been neglecting you through all of it. So… I’m sorry too, EJ. I really am.”
“Come here,” EJ murmured, drawing her into his arms. Gina rested her cheek against his chest and threaded one of her hands comfortingly through his hair. She could feel the lines of tension stretching his body and gave his neck a gentle rub with her thumb.
“We’ll figure out the school year, okay?” Gina said softly. “We will figure it out. We. You’re not alone in this, not anymore.”
“Thank you,” EJ whispered, pressing a kiss to her hair. “I lo-“
He paused.
“Me too,” Gina whispered, hiding a grin in his shirt. “So much.”
W / T \ Y
Miss Jenn and Mr. Mazzara were just coming out of the back room, their mini-therapy sessions over, when Corbin Blue and Channing burst into the Barn.
“Ah! There you all are,” Corbin exclaimed, staring around him in irritation. “Nope, nope, not all. Where’s RJ and Gertrude?”
“You mean… EJ and Gina…?” Carlos prompted, squinting skeptically.
Corbin waved him off, his eyes landing on Miss Jenn and Mr. Mazzara. “Oh, great, yep, wonderful. Who are you? Never mind, doesn’t matter. Where’s my director?”
“I’ll, uh… go find him,” Mr. Mazzara said with a tight smile, giving Miss Jenn a squeeze on the arm and slipping out of the Barn.
“Well, great. The rest of you, get to the climbing wall! Channing just had the greatest idea for our documentary that you will not want to miss.” Corbin spun on his heel and plunged out of the room, his drama-happy cameraman hot on his heels.
The students blinked around at each other, then looked to Miss Jenn. She shrugged. “You heard him. To the climbing wall! Where… is the climbing wall, exactly?”
“This way…” Kourtney gestured over her shoulder with a belabored sigh that Miss Jenn didn’t think had anything to do with her, and led them out of the building.
When they reached the tall, grey plastic climbing wall, Mr. Mazzara, EJ and Gina were just arriving from another direction. Miss Jenn smiled to herself, proud of her successful meddling, when she saw that Gina and EJ’s hands were tightly intertwined and there was less than two inches of space betwixt their shoulders.
“Perfect, great, awesome, glad you’ve finally arrived,” Corbin prattled. He gestured towards his cameraman. “Channing?”
“This documentary needs spice,” Channing began, holding up his camera and giving it a slight shake, like the item itself was a pepper grinder. “Paprika. Cinnamon. Or a wide-angle shot of an exaggeratedly tall climbing wall… with a little twist.”
He waved his hand towards the wall. “Now. Who’s climbing?”
Kourtney held up her hands and took about twelve steps back. “Nuuuuuh uh, no way, I would actually rather be punched in the face.”
“Oooookay so not her,” Channing agreed, giving her a weird look. He glanced over the group and jutted his chin at EJ. “You look buff, you’ll get to the top fast. Get over here, Cornwell.”
“Caswell,” Gina corrected, giving EJ’s arm a squeeze as he sighed tolerantly and started to get himself hooked up to climb the wall.
Mr. Mazzara stepped up beside his fellow teacher and tucked a hand around her waist.
“How’d it go?” she whispered, nodded over in Gina and EJ’s general direction.
“Quite well, I’d gather,” Mr. Mazzara assured her with a faint grin. “Sometimes all you need is that tiny shove to get pushed over the emotional brink.”
“Beautifully said,” Miss Jenn commended with a wide smile.
They turned their attention to EJ, who’d started a quick ascent up the climbing wall, Channing’s camera trained on him. Ashlyn sighed and shifted her weight. “Honestly? Don’t get what’s so spicy about someone rock-climbing.”
“Ohhhhh…” Channing’s voice wobbled with restrained glee. “Oh, just wait. Juuuuust wait.”
Miss Jenn blinked at him, misgivings starting to grow in her chest. “What exactly do you have planned here?”
“All right, that’s high enough!” Corbin yelled up at EJ, both he and his cameraman ignoring Miss Jenn’s question.
The brunet paused his climbing and looked down over his shoulder at them. “You don’t want me to go to the top?” he queried, confused.
“No, no, no need for that. Just sit on back and we’ll let you down,” Corbin said with another dismissive wave of his hand. He grinned over at Channing. “You ready? You got this?”
Channing planted his feet a little more firmly and nodded. The misgiving stirring in Miss Jenn grew.
“EJ-“ she started, but EJ was already leaning back and pushing away from the wall.
He made it down two feet before the rope holding him to the top of the climbing structure snapped in two.
“EJ!” Gina screamed as EJ spiraled down from the sky and landed with a horrible thump at the base of the climbing structure. She raced forward, skidding on her knees next to him. “Oh my God. Oh my God.”
Miss Jenn was white to the lips, her hand gripping Mr. Mazzara’s forearm. Then she released a strangled, delayed gasp and followed in Gina’s path over to EJ’s body.
“EJ?” she asked tentatively, kneeling down and putting her hand on EJ’s shoulder. “Honey, can you hear me?”
EJ let out a low groan and Gina’s entire body went limp with relief. She grabbed his hand. “You’re going to be okay. You’re going to be fine.”
“Should we call 911?” Carlos asked, his voice a strained squeak.
“EJ, honey, can you move?” Miss Jenn questioned, squeezing her student’s shoulder. “Is anything broken?”
EJ sucked in a long, thin breath. “Wind-“ he gasped out. “Knocked- out-“
He coughed and groaned again. Gina leaned over and kissed him on the forehead, then brushed his hair back. “Take your time,” she whispered. “You’re okay, I’ve got you.”
Miss Jenn rose unsteadily to her feet, her heels catching on the pockmarked dirt and grass. She stared at Channing and Corbin with murder in her eyes. “You knew,” she murmured, dangerously calm. “You knew that rope would snap, that’s precisely why you did this.”
“Of course we knew,” Channing said with a roll of his eyes. “You think that someone climbing a rock wall was going to make this documentary interesting? No, we needed some tension, some-“
The palm of Miss Jenn’s hand connected with Channing’s face with a hard slap. Ashlyn gasped and clapped her hand over her mouth, exchanging gleeful glances with Carlos.
“You put a student’s life in danger!” Miss Jenn yelled. “He could have DIED!”
“Oh, please,” Corbin broke in as Channing stared at Miss Jenn in abject shock, his hand over his reddening cheek. “We told him to stop climbing before he got high enough to break anything major-“
Slap.
Corbin stumbled back, now mirroring Channing’s position. His expression was much angrier, though. “Did you just slap me?” he demanded, looking ready to throttle Miss Jenn, who had her feet planted in full battle mode. “I’ll have you arrested for assault, you crazy bit-“
“You’ll do no such thing,” Mr. Mazzara broke in. He stepped forward, placed a hand on Miss Jenn’s shoulder and drew her carefully back to his side. “Because I believe you’ll find that through all of this most enlightening conversation, Channing was still recording.”
Before Corbin or Channing could do or say anything, Ricky had dived forward and grabbed the camera out of the other man’s hand. He backed up a few paces, holding it protectively to his chest. Channing lunged but Mr. Mazzara shot out an arm that lanced across his chest, stopping his motion like a flannel-clad iron bar.
“That’s enough child endangerment for one day, I think,” he said, pleasantly but with an edge to his voice. “Now, I believe it would be in both your best interests to leave the premises of this camp. For good.”
Channing and Corbin stared at him, then Jenn, then the camera, then each other. Then they turned tail and raced for the parking lot.
EJ slowly sat up, one of Gina’s arms around his back. “Do you think anything’s broken?” Ashlyn asked anxiously, crouching down beside him.
EJ rolled his shoulders tentatively. “Well… I’m definitely gonna be sore,” he said with a strained laugh. “But I think I’m in one piece?”
Gina smiled relievedly and gave him a squeeze. “Come on,” she urged. “Let’s go get you some ice.”
She helped him limp off towards the dining hall, Ashlyn trailing behind to keep tabs on her cousin. Ricky looked down at the camera in his hands. “So… what’s the plan? Are we actually pressing charges?”
Mr. Mazzara and Miss Jenn looked at each other and shrugged. “I don’t have anything going on until school starts in September,” Mr. Mazzara said.
“Me either.” Miss Jenn smirked and reached for his hand. “Let’s go get a lawsuit.”