Nursing Camp
-Cramp_Gleem_Lack-
Chapter One: Camp Green Lake
Rowe stepped out of her car and onto the dusty ground. It was hot - hotter than she expected - and she could feel little beads of sweat appear on her forehead. She looked around, taking in the dark grey tents, and the tired, dusty boys milling around the desert camp. Rowe moved to the back of her Honda and popped open the trunk, pulled out her duffle bag, and shut the trunk. She looked around, but all she saw were the grey tents and a shack that read, "library".
She stood by the trunk for a minute, just looking around. Now where was the main building? Rowe saw a group of boys walking toward the tents. Hoisting her bag on her shoulders, she started walking to them.
She called to them as they walked to a tent. "Hey! Hey!" Rowe waved her arm and jogged toward them.
One of the boys, a short black one with thick glasses, looked her up and down, and smirked.
"Hey uh, could ya'll tell me where I can find Lou Walker?" she asked, pulling her bag up again.
"Hell, girl! You talkin' 'bout the Warden?" said the black kid.
"Yeah, yeah I guess. You know were she is?" Rowe asked, putting her hands on her hips. If he wanted attitude, she was more than happy to give it to him.
"I might," he said, looking down at his nails.
"Oh you might, huh?" Rowe lifted one eyebrow and walked over to the steps he was standing on. She snatched his hat off his head and threw it behind her. "You wanna tell me, or do you want me to take your glasses next?" The kid licked his teeth in irritation and nudged the tall blonde boy beside him.
"Over that way," he said, pointing down the dusty road. Rowe saw a long wooden building with a covered porch, and hoisted her bag up again. "Thanks," she said, giving him a half-smile. Then, shooting a smart-ass look at the black boy, she started off toward the building. Behind her, the black boy muttered, "Man, I feel sorry for whoever gets stuck with that..."
Rowe smirked.
-------
The feel of the cool air and the shade made Rowe smile and she let out a breath she hadn't noticed she'd been holding. She knocked on the open door and looked toward a desk in the back of the room. A man was sitting at the desk, and he looked like the oddest man Rowe had ever seen. He had spiky hair and a short, bristly beard...in fact, he looked like a cross between a rooster and a lizard. Next to him, a tall, skinny, redheaded woman in a cowboy hat stood with her hands on her hips. She was very freckly, and looked at her through beady eyes.
"Yeh?" He grunted, smashing a cigarette into a glass ashtray.
"I'm uh..." Rowe faltered under the intense gazes of her two employers. "Uh..."
"Miss Stewart," the woman said. She walked over to Rowe and shook her hand. "I'm Lou Walker, the warden of this camp. That," The Warden motioned to the man at the desk, who was spitting sunflower seeds into a trash can. "is Mr. Sir. He'll be in charge of the campers. If you have any problems, see him. Don't bother me unless it's an emergency."
Rowe watched the Warden walk to a file cabinet and pull some files that had been resting on the top it into her hands. She walked back over to Rowe and dropped the pile into her hands. It was so heavy, that her knees buckled from the unexpected weight. The warden paid no attention to her, said, "Follow me," and walked out of the office.
"The top file is a list of all the campers, what tent they're in, who their counselor is, and their pictures. The second is a list of the medical supplies, where to get them, how to order them. In the heavy file is a list of the campers. You'll find every list of misdemeanors, transgressions, every crime, and how long they'll be here. There's also background checks and physical and psychological history."
The Warden had lead Rowe to a tent that looked exactly like the rest - the only difference being a sign tacked on the flap that read, "Nurses Tent". It was large inside, with one cot against one wall and another cot on the opposite wall. On the back wall was a large wooden cabinet full of medical supplies. Next to the cabinet was a large, metal sink, equipped with pipes for running water. Rowe figured they were connected to the showers she had seen outside.
"That is your private quarters," the Warden said, pointing to the cot on the far wall. Rowe looked confused, and the Warden said, "It's where you sleep."
"No, no, no," Rowe said, "Its just...I didn't think I'd be sleeping in the same room as my patients."
"Well," the Warden said smartly, "This is just a temporary residence until we finish remodeling your castle." Her face dropped and she said tersely, "Pull the curtain and you'll be in your room. You suggest you get started on those files."
Rowe let out a breath when the Warden had left. She dropped her duffle bag on the cot and opened it, removing a heavy sleeping bag from it. She laid it down on the top of the cot...it might make it a little more comfortable. Next, she began to empty her bag, shoving her clothes into the small night dresser at the foot of her cot.
When her bag was sufficiently shoved under the bed, Rowe wandered around the small infirmary, spotting two extra cots on a shelf above the medicine cabinet, and a few hospital gowns in the drawer under it. Inside the cabinet were some packages of gauze, antiseptics, ointments and creams, and antidotes for scorpion stings and snake bites. And there were also some bottles of onion juice - for the lizards, of course.
As Rowe was going through the medicine cabinet, the flap opened and there were footsteps on the wooden floor. Rowe turned around to see the black boy that had been by the tent, along with his tall friend and a few other boys.
"So you're a nurse, huh?" He said, crossing his arms.
"Guess I am," she mocked, crossing her arms too. "Anything I can do for you boys?"
"Well..." the boy smirked, "There are a few things I can think of..." he grabbed his crotch and the boys behind him laughed and looked at Rowe to see what she would do.
"Hey! You're a funny kid! And you know what's really funny?" She was next to him in two strides, and quickly snatched off his hat.
He smirked again. "I don't need that hat," he said.
"Yeah?" Rowe asked. "So then I guess you don't need these either?" She swiped his glasses off his face and he shouted in indignation.
"Come on, lady! Give those back!"
Rowe smacked him upside the head. "Didn't your mother teach you manners?" she asked. "Now if you don't have any real injuries, you wouldn't mind getting out? I'll guess you know where the door is. Have a nice day, boys."
"Damn girl, I need my glasses!"
"You keep talkin' like that to me, and you'll never get them back. You can have them once you learn your manners, kiddo. I'm sure you're friends here won't mind helping you get around."
The boy left with his friends, swearing, as they held onto his arms. One boy, though, stayed behind.
"Can I help you?" Rowe asked.
"I got these cuts from my shovel," the boy said. He was tall and muscular, with frizzy blonde hair and startlingly blue eyes. "They've been stingin' all day...keepin' me from diggin'."
"Alright, take a sit down on that cot. I'm not sure what I've got, so I might not have any bandages." Rowe moved to the cabinet again and pushed through all the labeled pills and asthma inhalers. The Warden had mentioned that they needed a nurse partly because of so many sick kids, and partly because the camp didn't have enough money to pay for any more hospital bills. Rowe found some cheap Neosporin and some gauze in the back of the middle shelf of the cabinet. Obviously the Warden wasn't too big on health care.
"Can I see your hands?" She asked. The boy held his hands out, and Rowe opened the box of bandages and uncapped the Neosporin. She took his hands in hers, not failing to notice how tanned they were from the sun, nor how rough they were. Along the inside of his thumb and forefinger were tiny cuts that were filled with dirt. Rowe sucked in her breath.
"Hold on," she said, "I should wash those out." She took a towel from the top of the cabinet and rubbed it in the sink with soap and water.
"Sorry about X," the boy said.
"X...?"
"X-Ray...The kid with the glasses."
"Oh, right. The kid who thinks I'm the camp whore." She walked over and kneeled in front of him, taking his hands and gently rubbing the towel over his cuts. He sucked in his breath and she said, "Sorry...it's gonna sting."
"Hahaha...thanks for the warning."
"Any time." Rowe grinned. She saw more cuts on his palm, and started cleaning them. "So this kid...X-Ray? Weird name for a kid."
"Its just what we call him," he said. "We all have name's for each other."
"Nicknames, huh? So what's yours, Blondie?"
"ZigZag."
"How fitting."
"I know. These cats are genius. You got a name, Red?"
"Rowe. But I'm sure you kids'll think of something much more fitting for me."
"Rowe? That's -"
"Strange? Unusual? Yeah, I thought so too. You get used to it after a while." She put the gauze over his palm, wrapping his hand up and taping it to stay.
"You know, you don't look old enough to be a nurse." Zigzag said as she was wrapping up his left hand.
"I'm only seventeen," she said. "Eighteen in a few months."
"How many?"
"Six." Zigzag laughed and Rowe started unrolling the gauze tape. "How old are you, Blondie?"
"Almost eighteen."
"How long?"
"Four months." It was Rowe's turn to laugh as she finished taping his hand.
"All done. You're free to leave the evil wrath of the nurse." She rose from the floor and watched Zigzag head out the door.
"You know, you weren't that bad," he said with a half-smile.
"Hey," she called suddenly. She reached above the medicine cabinet and threw something to him. It was X-Ray's hat and glasses. "Tell your friend he'd better start actin' like a gentleman." Zigzag saluted with the glasses and hopped down the stairs.
-Cramp_Gleem_Lack-
Chapter One: Camp Green Lake
Rowe stepped out of her car and onto the dusty ground. It was hot - hotter than she expected - and she could feel little beads of sweat appear on her forehead. She looked around, taking in the dark grey tents, and the tired, dusty boys milling around the desert camp. Rowe moved to the back of her Honda and popped open the trunk, pulled out her duffle bag, and shut the trunk. She looked around, but all she saw were the grey tents and a shack that read, "library".
She stood by the trunk for a minute, just looking around. Now where was the main building? Rowe saw a group of boys walking toward the tents. Hoisting her bag on her shoulders, she started walking to them.
She called to them as they walked to a tent. "Hey! Hey!" Rowe waved her arm and jogged toward them.
One of the boys, a short black one with thick glasses, looked her up and down, and smirked.
"Hey uh, could ya'll tell me where I can find Lou Walker?" she asked, pulling her bag up again.
"Hell, girl! You talkin' 'bout the Warden?" said the black kid.
"Yeah, yeah I guess. You know were she is?" Rowe asked, putting her hands on her hips. If he wanted attitude, she was more than happy to give it to him.
"I might," he said, looking down at his nails.
"Oh you might, huh?" Rowe lifted one eyebrow and walked over to the steps he was standing on. She snatched his hat off his head and threw it behind her. "You wanna tell me, or do you want me to take your glasses next?" The kid licked his teeth in irritation and nudged the tall blonde boy beside him.
"Over that way," he said, pointing down the dusty road. Rowe saw a long wooden building with a covered porch, and hoisted her bag up again. "Thanks," she said, giving him a half-smile. Then, shooting a smart-ass look at the black boy, she started off toward the building. Behind her, the black boy muttered, "Man, I feel sorry for whoever gets stuck with that..."
Rowe smirked.
-------
The feel of the cool air and the shade made Rowe smile and she let out a breath she hadn't noticed she'd been holding. She knocked on the open door and looked toward a desk in the back of the room. A man was sitting at the desk, and he looked like the oddest man Rowe had ever seen. He had spiky hair and a short, bristly beard...in fact, he looked like a cross between a rooster and a lizard. Next to him, a tall, skinny, redheaded woman in a cowboy hat stood with her hands on her hips. She was very freckly, and looked at her through beady eyes.
"Yeh?" He grunted, smashing a cigarette into a glass ashtray.
"I'm uh..." Rowe faltered under the intense gazes of her two employers. "Uh..."
"Miss Stewart," the woman said. She walked over to Rowe and shook her hand. "I'm Lou Walker, the warden of this camp. That," The Warden motioned to the man at the desk, who was spitting sunflower seeds into a trash can. "is Mr. Sir. He'll be in charge of the campers. If you have any problems, see him. Don't bother me unless it's an emergency."
Rowe watched the Warden walk to a file cabinet and pull some files that had been resting on the top it into her hands. She walked back over to Rowe and dropped the pile into her hands. It was so heavy, that her knees buckled from the unexpected weight. The warden paid no attention to her, said, "Follow me," and walked out of the office.
"The top file is a list of all the campers, what tent they're in, who their counselor is, and their pictures. The second is a list of the medical supplies, where to get them, how to order them. In the heavy file is a list of the campers. You'll find every list of misdemeanors, transgressions, every crime, and how long they'll be here. There's also background checks and physical and psychological history."
The Warden had lead Rowe to a tent that looked exactly like the rest - the only difference being a sign tacked on the flap that read, "Nurses Tent". It was large inside, with one cot against one wall and another cot on the opposite wall. On the back wall was a large wooden cabinet full of medical supplies. Next to the cabinet was a large, metal sink, equipped with pipes for running water. Rowe figured they were connected to the showers she had seen outside.
"That is your private quarters," the Warden said, pointing to the cot on the far wall. Rowe looked confused, and the Warden said, "It's where you sleep."
"No, no, no," Rowe said, "Its just...I didn't think I'd be sleeping in the same room as my patients."
"Well," the Warden said smartly, "This is just a temporary residence until we finish remodeling your castle." Her face dropped and she said tersely, "Pull the curtain and you'll be in your room. You suggest you get started on those files."
Rowe let out a breath when the Warden had left. She dropped her duffle bag on the cot and opened it, removing a heavy sleeping bag from it. She laid it down on the top of the cot...it might make it a little more comfortable. Next, she began to empty her bag, shoving her clothes into the small night dresser at the foot of her cot.
When her bag was sufficiently shoved under the bed, Rowe wandered around the small infirmary, spotting two extra cots on a shelf above the medicine cabinet, and a few hospital gowns in the drawer under it. Inside the cabinet were some packages of gauze, antiseptics, ointments and creams, and antidotes for scorpion stings and snake bites. And there were also some bottles of onion juice - for the lizards, of course.
As Rowe was going through the medicine cabinet, the flap opened and there were footsteps on the wooden floor. Rowe turned around to see the black boy that had been by the tent, along with his tall friend and a few other boys.
"So you're a nurse, huh?" He said, crossing his arms.
"Guess I am," she mocked, crossing her arms too. "Anything I can do for you boys?"
"Well..." the boy smirked, "There are a few things I can think of..." he grabbed his crotch and the boys behind him laughed and looked at Rowe to see what she would do.
"Hey! You're a funny kid! And you know what's really funny?" She was next to him in two strides, and quickly snatched off his hat.
He smirked again. "I don't need that hat," he said.
"Yeah?" Rowe asked. "So then I guess you don't need these either?" She swiped his glasses off his face and he shouted in indignation.
"Come on, lady! Give those back!"
Rowe smacked him upside the head. "Didn't your mother teach you manners?" she asked. "Now if you don't have any real injuries, you wouldn't mind getting out? I'll guess you know where the door is. Have a nice day, boys."
"Damn girl, I need my glasses!"
"You keep talkin' like that to me, and you'll never get them back. You can have them once you learn your manners, kiddo. I'm sure you're friends here won't mind helping you get around."
The boy left with his friends, swearing, as they held onto his arms. One boy, though, stayed behind.
"Can I help you?" Rowe asked.
"I got these cuts from my shovel," the boy said. He was tall and muscular, with frizzy blonde hair and startlingly blue eyes. "They've been stingin' all day...keepin' me from diggin'."
"Alright, take a sit down on that cot. I'm not sure what I've got, so I might not have any bandages." Rowe moved to the cabinet again and pushed through all the labeled pills and asthma inhalers. The Warden had mentioned that they needed a nurse partly because of so many sick kids, and partly because the camp didn't have enough money to pay for any more hospital bills. Rowe found some cheap Neosporin and some gauze in the back of the middle shelf of the cabinet. Obviously the Warden wasn't too big on health care.
"Can I see your hands?" She asked. The boy held his hands out, and Rowe opened the box of bandages and uncapped the Neosporin. She took his hands in hers, not failing to notice how tanned they were from the sun, nor how rough they were. Along the inside of his thumb and forefinger were tiny cuts that were filled with dirt. Rowe sucked in her breath.
"Hold on," she said, "I should wash those out." She took a towel from the top of the cabinet and rubbed it in the sink with soap and water.
"Sorry about X," the boy said.
"X...?"
"X-Ray...The kid with the glasses."
"Oh, right. The kid who thinks I'm the camp whore." She walked over and kneeled in front of him, taking his hands and gently rubbing the towel over his cuts. He sucked in his breath and she said, "Sorry...it's gonna sting."
"Hahaha...thanks for the warning."
"Any time." Rowe grinned. She saw more cuts on his palm, and started cleaning them. "So this kid...X-Ray? Weird name for a kid."
"Its just what we call him," he said. "We all have name's for each other."
"Nicknames, huh? So what's yours, Blondie?"
"ZigZag."
"How fitting."
"I know. These cats are genius. You got a name, Red?"
"Rowe. But I'm sure you kids'll think of something much more fitting for me."
"Rowe? That's -"
"Strange? Unusual? Yeah, I thought so too. You get used to it after a while." She put the gauze over his palm, wrapping his hand up and taping it to stay.
"You know, you don't look old enough to be a nurse." Zigzag said as she was wrapping up his left hand.
"I'm only seventeen," she said. "Eighteen in a few months."
"How many?"
"Six." Zigzag laughed and Rowe started unrolling the gauze tape. "How old are you, Blondie?"
"Almost eighteen."
"How long?"
"Four months." It was Rowe's turn to laugh as she finished taping his hand.
"All done. You're free to leave the evil wrath of the nurse." She rose from the floor and watched Zigzag head out the door.
"You know, you weren't that bad," he said with a half-smile.
"Hey," she called suddenly. She reached above the medicine cabinet and threw something to him. It was X-Ray's hat and glasses. "Tell your friend he'd better start actin' like a gentleman." Zigzag saluted with the glasses and hopped down the stairs.