Chapter Text
“Sweetie? Are you awake? What is 2+2?”
Ryland slowly opened his eyes. His body ached; he had definitely fallen asleep in an awkward position.
“Hello? Honey, you have to get out of the van.”
There was a woman in front of him. She looked young, with dark eyes and black hair streaked with white tied into a braid. She wore a white smock with the name Mary and the school’s logo on it. Who was she? He had a vague feeling he had seen her around as a teacher. Noticing he was awake, she asked if she could carry him out of the van. Too disoriented to overthink the situation, Ryland reached out and let her lift him until they had both climbed down from the vehicle.
The sun was about to set. Wherever they were, there were plenty of trees, a few cabins, and lots and lots of kids older than him.
“Where are we?” Ryland asked once she set him on the ground.
“Don't you remember? We came to camp. Eva told me you had volunteered to represent the school.” She took him by the hand and led him toward a cabin called Tau Ceti. “I was a little hesitant to bring you since you’re the youngest participant, but you’re quite smart; I’m sure you’ll do amazing. Now, go settle your things while I register us, okay, sweetie?”
Ryland sat down on the couch. He felt a bit dizzy. He couldn't remember getting into a car. He remembered… Eva!
“Are you Ryland Grace?”
“I am the comatose emperor, bow before me!”
“...” The red-haired girl stared down at the blond boy with glasses in front of her. She questioned whether she was truly desperate enough to resort to him.
“Uhm… that was a joke. You were supposed to laugh.”
“I know it was a joke, but it wasn't funny.”
The girl introduced herself as Eva Stratt. She was in fourth grade, two years older than Ryland. Aside from her striking hair, she was easy to recognize because she was always dead serious and rarely smiled. An enigmatic girl who got whatever she wanted because she was the principal's daughter; most people did what she asked, though she rarely abused that advantage, at least according to her, unless strictly necessary. Like this time.
According to school rules, the science club had to be shut down due to a lack of members. They only needed one more person to save it, and Eva wanted Ryland to be that final member.
“Are you crazy? Only weirdos and nerds join that club,” Ryland said, pushing up his glasses. “Besides, everyone is at least in fourth grade. I’m not going to fit in there.”
“It’s not optional.”
“Well, it seems pretty optional to me. Bye.”
Eva simply watched as Ryland grabbed his backpack and walked off. He didn't make it far. Carl, another fourth-grader, intercepted him near the exit and dragged him all the way to the lab where the club held its weekly meetings.
“I'm glad you changed your mind.” Eva stood by the chalkboard. She pointed out a seat to Carl, and he sat Ryland down. “Everyone, this is Ryland Grace. He built a homemade microscope using a laser pointer and a syringe filled with water… of questionable origin. Now, let's get to work.”
A month ago, Ryland had “voluntarily” joined the science club to keep it from being disbanded. Even though he initially thought they only wanted him to fill a spot on the roster, he soon discovered the meetings were a blast and that he was learning a lot from his peers. Everyone was very kind to him, and he quickly became the club’s favorite kid, or well, more specifically, Stratt’s protégé. She liked how passionate and stubborn he was about his ideas. Though he didn't get along with the Lokken girl at all, which almost got him kicked out. Who knew that calling her a “waste of breath” would bring Ryland both so much fame and so much trouble at school?
For three weeks, he had been helping train three of his peers, Yáo Li-Jie, Olesya Ilyukhina, and Martin DuBois, for the annual science tournament at Camp Petrova. Each school sent representatives for a week to tackle various challenges and puzzles. It was a great opportunity to learn, make friends… and prove to the other schools how much they sucked. At least, that was how Ryland saw it. Eva was determined to win this year, so she had handpicked the strongest trio: Ilyukhina was great at math, DuBois at science, and Yáo was excellent at building prototypes and keeping the team in line.
“Aren’t you coming to the send-off party? There’s cake!” The next day, the three kids were heading to camp. The school was providing the van for their luggage, and Mary would accompany them as the adult in charge. The club had organized a party to wish the team good luck, but for some reason, Ryland found Eva standing alone out in the hallway.
“Yes, I asked Dad to buy cake. Is it good?” The blond boy held a plate with what Eva hoped was his first slice, not his tenth.
“It's awesome! You should come inside and eat with us."
“I don't want to ruin the mood.”
“Do you always have to act so cool and mysterious?” Ryland stepped closer and offered her one of the party hats they were wearing. She stared at him, taken aback, a faint blush creeping onto her cheeks from the compliment. Ryland didn't notice, far too busy devouring more cake.
“I… suppose I could join for a moment.” The red-haired girl took the plate from Ryland's hands, unable to suppress a small smile at the sight of his pout. “I think you’ve had enough cake. I thought this slice was for me, but you just kept eating. That many carbs will make you pass out in the middle of the party… and your stomach will hurt tomorrow.”
Ryland was happy to see his friend Eva join the fun. They sang karaoke and played Catan (though the club later banned Ryland from playing again because he was a terrible winner). It was a wonderful afternoon. And just as Eva predicted, Ryland passed out cold halfway through the party, forcing them to call his brother Court to pick him up.
Ryland rubbed his temples. The memory didn't explain much, but at least it confirmed where he was (in case the smell of pine and damp earth wasn't enough) and what the place was for. The pieces were starting to come together, though he still couldn't fathom what he was doing there. The team was already set; they didn't need anyone else.
He walked over to check the luggage. He found his backpack with his notebooks and a snack Court had likely packed for him that morning. An absurdly light pack for camping. Where were his clothes? He distinctly remembered his older brother taking him home after the party and getting dressed that morning for a regular school day… not for camp.
There were more bags piled up, likely belonging to the rest of the team and the teacher, but… where had everyone gone?
Mary walked back into the cabin carrying another bag after finishing registration. “Eva's dad just sent this over; looks like you forgot your clothes,” she remarked, setting the bag down in front of the boy and placing a hand on his forehead. “How are you feeling? You looked a little dizzy getting out of the van earlier.”
“I'm okay, I think.” Ryland stepped back and unzipped the bag that had just arrived. Clothes. There were several of his favorite t-shirts, pajamas, and underw- where on Earth did Eva get all of this?! No, he had to prioritize. “Where is everyone else?”
Mary moved to stow the other kids’ luggage into a closet. “Oh, sweetie, there was a little mishap on the way here.” She shuddered slightly, as if recalling an unpleasant sight. “We had to pull over at a gas station because your teammates got terribly carsick. They felt so ill that we had to call their parents to come pick them up. But Yáo and Ilyukhina wished you the best of luck.”
Ryland was left even more bewildered. He glanced around the cavernous cabin, looked toward the four empty bedrooms, and turned his gaze back to the teacher.
“Does that mean… I’m on my own?”
“Yes, sweetheart, but I'm right here to look after you. And you can make plenty of friends tomorrow once the activities kick off.” Mary patted him on the head before heading toward the exit. “I'm going to grab the schedule of events. Rest for a bit; it was a long drive.”
The moment the door clicked shut, Ryland collapsed onto the couch. None of this made any sense. How had he ended up at camp in the first place when Eva never even asked him to go? He sighed and rummaged through the bag to see if there was a phone he could use to call Court. Nothing; and he doubted there was much cell reception out here anyway.
Deep down at the bottom of the bag, however, his fingers brushed against a small piece of grid paper, folded neatly into quarters. Ryland carefully unfolded it to reveal a note written in handwriting he would recognize anywhere:
“You're a smart kid; you'll figure it out. Eva.”