Hi everyone! I know, I know, you're probably thinking 'Why is she starting a new story? Can't she finish her other ones first?' FEAR NOT! I have not forgotten the others BUT my dear friend gave me this AU idea a while ago, and it started out as an addition to my AU one shot series then got too big of a SL! Thanks to thearcanachronicles for the amazing idea! I hope you all enjoy it! If you do, please leave me a review! They make me smile and I read every single one of them! Now I present to you... JAPRIL AT SUMMER CAMP!
Summer - Calvin Harris
When I met you in the summer
To my heartbeat sound
We fell in love
As the leaves turned brown
Summer 2012
It was finally summer. No more school, no more homework, no more annoying people, and no more nagging teachers. Just free time, the great outdoors, fresh air, summer breeze and sleeping in. Two whole months free of farm responsibilities and irritating sisters. Goodbye farm life and middle school, hello summer vacation and high school!
Lexie bounced up and down in her seat beside April, causing the whole car to shake. April stared out the window, watching the trees pass by and the rolling hills disappear in the distance behind their moving vehicle. The further they got from their home in Ohio, the further she got from her worries. She could practically feel the weight of the world being lifted from her shoulders.
Lexie's long brown hair was tied up in a ponytail that whipped around as she continued to bounce in excitement and the car drove deeper into the woods. Meredith and Cristina quietly chatted from the middle seats, while April and Lexie were stuck in the tiny back ones. Meredith was only a year older than Lexie, but since she and Cristina were in high school, they insisted that they get the seats with more leg room. Apparently, just graduating the eighth grade 'doesn't count' as being a high schooler yet, much to Lexie and April's dismay.
Lexie's tone-deaf dad sang along to the 80's music that blared throughout the car speakers and her mom occasionally chimed in with the familiar tunes. Currently, April was regretting her decision not to replace her broken headphones.
After three agonizing hours of being crammed in the stuffy SUV, they finally rolled to a stop beside a gravel road that led into the woods. Lexie's dad got out of the car and started unloading the girls' luggage onto the side of the road. April waited as the other three got their duffel bags before she moved to pick up her backpack and suitcase, and then waited by her bags as Lexie and Meredith said final goodbyes to their family. They all stood together at the beginning of the gravel walkway and waved as the SUV pulled away and eventually vanished from their sight.
The four girls grabbed their bags and turned around to start their long trek to the end of the path, and Lexie laughed as April struggled to pull her large bag along the bumpy road. The wheels got a gravel piece stuck in between them and the suitcase rolled on its side, which caused April to lag behind the others.
"That thing is as big as you are, April!" Meredith snickered, before she and Cristina left the two younger girls behind.
Lexie waited until her sister was out of earshot before she teased April herself. "Why do you have so much stuff? What did you pack?" she asked.
April huffed and let go of her suitcase to take a short break as she stood in the middle of the path. She rolled her eyes, turned to her best friend and said, "I packed everything you put on the list!"
"The list said to pack clothes, not your whole closet!" Lexie joked as she grabbed one side of the handle of April's extra large suitcase and offered to help her carry it to the gates. It took a joint effort from both of them, but they eventually managed to lug her heavy bag to the front gates where all the other kids had gathered. Lexie immediately went to the front of the group to find her other friends, leaving April by herself to stand awkwardly to the side with her luggage piled at her feet. This was the first time she got a chance to look around, and she noticed the big wooden sign above her head that read CAMP ECHO. She smiled to herself, hardly able to contain her excitement of what the summer might hold. She was going to get to spend the next two months with her best friend, doing some of her favorite outdoor activities, and most importantly: be free of her family.
"What are you smiling about, weirdo?" A puberty-ridden voice tore her from her thoughts and her smile fell as she came face to face with a gruff looking, brown-haired boy. She looked the boy over and automatically noticed his already dirty clothing. He was a rather tall boy for his age, which she assumed was around 14 like her, and he was slightly more muscular than most boys at her middle school. Her gaze zeroed in on his arms, where he held a scrawnier boy in a headlock. Surrounding the two, more boys were engaged in more serious roughhousing, which explained their muddied and torn clothing. The tougher boy released the younger one and made his way over to where April was standing at the edge of the large group. He took one glance at her large suitcase and backpack before he reached across and snatched it up.
"What did you pack in here? Did you bring your whole house?" he tormented, as he held her backpack high above his head, out of her reach. Choosing to ignore his comment, April didn't say anything back. Instead, she jumped in attempt to reclaim what belonged to her. Her petite body, however, was no match for his tall stature as she tried everything to reach over his head. The annoying brown-haired boy laughed at her failure and slung the bag across the yard where it hit the ground right at Lexie's feet.
"Alex, you jerk! If you just tried to hit me, I swear!" she yelled at the boy as she walked over to her friend with the backpack slung over her shoulder and a scowl on her face. "And leave April alone! If I find out you're messing with her again, I will kick your butt into next week!" She threatened him before she gave him a shove, hinting him to leave.
Alex scoffed at them and rolled his eyes, "Whatever, Little Grey." Then he spun around and headed back to the group of boys wrestling and messing around in the middle. They watched him jump right back in and grab another boy into a headlock.
Lexie huffed in annoyance at their idiotic behavior as she turned back to April to apologize. "Sorry, I was just going to see some of the girls that would be in our group! I didn't realize Alex would be over here and not with Meredith and Cristina."
"Attention Campers! May I have your attention, please." An older man stood up at the front of the very large group of teens with a megaphone held to his lips. The chattering amongst the circle stopped immediately as he continued with his announcement. "Welcome to Camp Echo, everyone! I am Richard Webber, Camp Director. Our staff has been working very hard these past few weeks to ensure you all have a great summer. We have so many activities lined up for you, and Mrs. Bailey-" He paused to gesture to the shorter woman at his side. "Is our coordinator here at Camp Echo, and she has all your cabin assignments, where you will sleep, and what activities your groups will participate in. Take it away, Bailey." Mr. Webber handed Mrs. Bailey the megaphone and she stepped up onto a chair so she was able to see everyone.
"Now, I have organized all campers into their specific age groups. Cabins are determined by birthdays, so you will be with people around your same age. Age groups are determined by the grade in school you previously completed. These groups will be co-ed, and you will travel with them for every camp activity, including meals. This is to ensure safety for all our campers. You can see the list of cabin assignments on this sheet when you come check-in with me in just a moment." She held up a clipboard full of papers to let everyone see before she continued with her speech, "Now, I must talk about rules." A large portion of the group started grumbling and groaning in response, "Quiet down now. I know rules are no fun, but they are mandatory. To save time, I won't go over all of them, but there is a list of our basic summer camp rules posted in every cabin. You are required to read them and every camper must sign the bottom of the sheet. Failure to do so will result in consequences. I, however, will go over the most important rule to ensure that you all understand it. Absolutely NO boys in the girls' cabins, and NO girls in boys' cabins. Ever. Do you understand? If you are caught breaking this rule, it will result in immediate removal from camp. No negotiations. We are not here to babysit a bunch of horny teenagers." She gave the group a stern look to show them that she meant business before she smiled again, "With that said, let's have a great summer filled with lots of fun! Everyone get your stuff and let's get this summer started!" Everyone started cheering and rushing into the camp as she finished her whole spiel.
Lexie barely gave April time to pick up her belongings before she grabbed her arm and pulled her into the sea of people. She lead April to the long line that had formed right inside the gates into Bailey's office. They waited in line to check-in for several minutes, and April took this time to look around the camp and take it all in. Right inside the front gate was the main building, where Bailey and Webber's offices were located as well as the infirmary and the staff's housing. Next to where they stood in line, there were signs with arrows pointing to all camp locations. The girls cabin arrow pointed to the right and April followed her gaze to the right side of the main building where she saw two rows of small wooden cabins. The boys cabins were located to the left, mirroring the girls side. As the line slowly progressed forward, Lexie further explained the layout of the camp. The dining hall was directly behind the main building that overlooked Echo Lake, which was where the camp got its name. Lexie continued to point out places that April surely wouldn't remember, until they finally reached the front of the line where Bailey greeted them from behind her desk.
Once they were signed in, Bailey handed them their camp schedules and their cabin assignments, "You two are in Cabin 5. Lexie, can you show her the way?" Lexie nodded to her and, once again, dragged April along with her.
"Sweet! We are with Arizona!" Lexie shouted as she skimmed over their cabin assignment.
April looked confused, not recognizing the name, "Oh, you'll love Arizona! She's ah-mazing!" Lexie said in a sing-songy voice as she skipped along side April. Her skipping jostled her pink Lily Pulitzer duffel bag off her shoulder and it hit the dirt. The zipper popped open as it came into contact with the hard ground, causing all her clothes to tumble out all over the place.
Alex appeared seemingly out of nowhere as Lexie frantically picked up her clothes from the ground. Lexie swatted Alex's hands away as he reached for some of her clothing, but Alex managed to snag a couple items, one being her brand new training bra that she got on her 14th birthday. Alex held it up to himself and snickered, "Look, I could wear this bra because you're just as flat chested as I am."
Lexie stomped in frustration as she tried to get her bra back from him, "What is with you and stealing people's stuff?" She yelled when he didn't give her back the plain white, padless bra. Her face turned red in anger and embarrassment as he waved it around for everyone to see. Luckily, no one was paying attention as they were too busy to care. Suddenly, Alex took off towards the boy's camp and Lexie hollered after him, yet made no effort to follow him.
Just before he reached the main building, Alex turned to face them once more. He held up the bra and used the straps like a slingshot, flinging it back at her as he ran away, "Don't worry, you're not THAT flat-chested!" Lexie ran forward to catch her bra before it landed in the dirt like most of her clothes. As she snagged it from the air, she let out a huff in annoyance. She picked up the rest of her clothes and shoved them back in her bag and held it closed as best she could.
She noticed April smirking at her and she glared at the redhead for not helping her, "What?"
"I think he likes you, Lex." April teased and Lexie's face got even redder than before.
"Who? Alex? No way. You think? No. Definitely not." Lexie stuttered in response to April.
"Of course he does! Who wouldn't? They do say that boys tend to pick on the girls they like! Plus, he noticed your boobs." April giggled and Lexie rolled her eyes, irritated with her friend's suggestion.
"Oh hush. Let's just get settled in so I can wash my clothes. I can't believe I already got them dirty!" April and Lexie walked the short distance to their cabin. They stopped as they reached their with a rusty wooden Cabin 5 sign hanging off the door.
"I call top bunk!" Lexie shouted as she raced past April and quickly climbed the ladder of the last bunk in the back of the open room.
"But Lexie! You always get the top bunk, anywhere we go!" April whined as she slowly made her way over to the bunk Lexie had claimed next to the window, her luggage dragging behind her. April passed the first set of bunk beds and noted that both beds had already been made up.
"I got here first, Apes! You snooze, you lose!" Lexie grinned down at April from her perch on the top bunk. April grumbled as she let go of her suitcase and plopped down face first on the bottom mattress. The stiff cot sank slightly with the new weight and April looked up to see Lexie had joined her on the bed.
"Looks like the other girls already dropped their stuff off. Guess we will have to meet them later tonight after the campfire." Lexie stood up and motioned for April to get up to. April sighed and followed her friend's lead. They both began unpacking and making up their beds. They shared the dresser next to their bunk, and filled it with their clothes. Lexie tossed her dirty garments in a laundry bag she had set up in the corner of the room. April looked around as they were finishing up and realized one of the most important things was missing, "Uh, Lex?"
"Yeah?" Lexie responded without looking up from what she was doing to see April's puzzled face.
"Where's the bathroom?" April chewed on her cheek as she peered around the one room cabin. She quickly realized that there was absolutely no place for a bathroom to be secretly attached. There were no doors except for the entrance, and she desperately hoped they didn't have to dig holes outside.
"Oh, we use the latrine," Lexie replied nonchalantly as she busied herself with unpacking.
April's cheeks flushed, "What?"
"Yeah. We have a bathhouse in the middle and two latrines at each end." Lexie never mentioned outdoor, public, dirty restrooms to April before they came to camp, until now. She knew April definitely wouldn't have joined her this summer if she had known about these arrangements.
"Lexie!" April gasped in exasperation at the newfound information.
"April, don't be like that. It's honestly not that bad," Lexie told her honestly. She knew that April would make deal about it, then eventually get over it as she got used to it. That's what Lexie did, and every other first year camper.
"I can't believe this! That's disgusting!"
"April, you live on a farm! It's not as bad as you think and you'll barely notice it after a week," Lexie reassured her, "Now, let's go to dinner. I'm soooo hungry!"
Lexie and April followed their camp schedules and arrived at the mess hall right at 5:30 to avoid a long line. Once they went through the line and got their food, Lexie led April to a smaller table at the left side of the room by a huge window, giving them a clear view of the gorgeous lake below. They were both quickly joined by a short, blonde girl and a pale, skinny boy.
"April, this is Arizona," Lexie pointed to the blonde girl, "and this is George." She gestured to the boy and introduced them. They made small talk throughout dinner and before they knew it, it was nightfall. The whole camp gathered on the lakeshore around a huge bonfire. They were squished together on little wooden benches that surrounded the campfire. The camp director made a few announcements and the counsellors introduced themselves. Each counselor was assigned an age group and had a nickname they went by instead of their real names. April listened as her counselor, who was nicknamed Chief, introduced herself with a short, spunky monologue. Lexie and April giggled to themselves at their counselor and ignored the other introductions. Once the last one spoke, they were dismissed back to their cabins for the night.
April and Lexie got ready for bed alongside the other two girls in their cabin, one being Arizona and the other being a tall girl named Reed. They all walked together to the bathhouse and April shuddered at the thought of using the dirty, outdoor bathrooms. Lexie picked up on April's hesitation and reassured her that they were clean for the third time that day. April showered, changed into her pajamas and brushed her teeth before she deemed herself ready for bed.
"See, it wasn't that bad, was it?" Lexie teased her friend when she came out of the shower stall beside April's and joined her by the sinks.
"No, I guess not. Just weird having to wear shoes in the shower." April motioned to her flip flops that were now her shower shoes. Lexie giggled and gave April's shoulder a light shove. After they were all ready, they headed back to get in bed for the night. Once they all climbed in bed, Arizona turned off the light since she was closest to the switch and they all fell asleep to the crickets chirping outside, but they barely noticed as their exhaustion of their first day at camp set in.
By the end of their first week at camp, April and Lexie had fallen into a regular routine. April was more comfortable around her age group and she had even become friends with Arizona and Reed. April fit right in with Lexie's summer friend group, just like she had been told. Lexie was a camp regular. Meredith's mother had been the camp director before Richard Webber, so Lexie knew this camp like the back of her hand and she had been coming to Camp Echo since she was little, despite Meredith's efforts to turn her away. She eventually accepted Lexie and let her tag along. However, last year was her first year as a camper, due to the camper age requirements being 13-17. Lexie loved it so much the previous year, that she had convinced April to come with her this year.
Today was Friday and that marked the start of their first weekend at camp, and both girls were very eager to start it. At camp, weekends were their only free days and April couldn't wait for Lexie to take her exploring. She had yet to go to the lake and Lexie had told her that most people went swimming on their free days. She was also pretty excited to be free of a schedule, so sleeping in was at the top of her list.
April and Lexie sat at their usual table in the mess hall and ate dinner with George, Arizona, Reed and a new boy named Charles. Charles and George were in their activities group and they were bunk mates on the boys' side. They shared a cabin with Alex and another boy that April had yet to meet. The first week of camp was meant for them to meet with their small groups, go over rules and the camp schedule, but the activities didn't start until Monday.
As the group chatted about their weekend plans, Alex slid into the empty seat beside Lexie and sat his plate down in front of him. Everyone paused mid conversation to see what Lexie would do. Lexie slightly scooted in her seat away from him and closer to April, who was seated on her left.
"What do you want, Alex?" Lexie said in annoyance while rolling her eyes.
"I just want to hang with you, no biggie," he replied with a mouthful of green beans.
Lexie crossed her arms in irritation but tried to remain calm and civil while getting the point across that she didn't want him there. "Go away, Alex."
"Geez, chill." Alex smirked and shoveled more green beans into his mouth.
Lexie glared at him and repeated herself with a more forceful tone, "I said, go away. Leave us alone." She reached out to shove him away from her but he grabbed her wrist before she could pull away.
"Let go of me." Lexie jerked her arm away, but he tightened his grip in order to keep hold of it. April noticed Lexie struggle against him.
"She said leave her alone, Alex," April said politely as she stepped in between them to separate the two.
Alex got right in April's face ready to tell her off. "Shut up and mind your own business," he sneered at her, grabbing her wrist to pull her away from him. Before he could say anything else, he felt cold wash over his whole body.
"Don't talk to her like that, you jerk!" Lexie yelled as she continued to pour her Fruit Punch over his head. The sticky, cold liquid ran down the back of his his head and over his neck.
"What the crap, dude!" Alex reached for the roll off his plate and threw it at Lexie, but before it hit her, she ducked. It sailed passed Lexie and to Alex's normal table behind them.
"Alex, what the heck, man?" A boy's voice yelled out when the roll hit him in the back of the head.
April turned around to look where Alex's roll had landed. As soon as she faced the direction to see, a warm, lumpy, mushy substance collided with her face. Stunned at the sudden force, April stumbled back in her seat to find a napkin. Her body filled with embarrassment.
"Oh, crap." The other boy noticed his mistake and looked at Lexie in fear as her eyes filled with rage.
"Jackson!" Lexie shrieked in horror as her friend got smacked in the face with mashed potatoes. She picked up her fork full of macaroni and cheese and launched it at him to defend April.
April finished cleaning off her face with the napkins from the table. She opened her eyes to see Lexie sling her macaroni and cheese at the boy who she assumed had doused her in mashed potatoes.
"FOOD FIGHT!" Charles stood on his chair and shouted as chaos ensued. Food started flying all around as the whole cafeteria joined in. April ducked under the table as Lexie and Alex continued to pelt each other with food from their plates. Jackson spotted April as she army crawled to the corner away from the mayhem. He made his way over to her safe spot and sat down beside her, "I'm sorry about the mashed potatoes. They were meant for Alex." April nodded in response to show her acceptance of his apology. They sat there in silence and watched the destruction for a few minutes before Jackson decided to stand up. He offered April his hand and brought her to her feet beside him. They leaned on the wall as food rained around them, dodging what they could.
Suddenly the main double doors flew open and an angry voice boomed, "STOP! PUT THE FOOD DOWN!"
Everyone froze as Bailey's voice filled the very messy cafeteria, "Who started this nonsense?"
The whole room's eyes trailed to where Jackson and April stood in the corner. April's face flushed as she noticed everyone looking at her and Bailey took it as guilt-ridden. Jackson on the other hand, pointed to Alex, who pointed right back.
"You two, stay where you are. Everyone else, get out of here and go clean yourselves up! NOW!" The room was cleared in seconds to avoid Bailey's wrath.
"As for the both of you, the mop is in the closet, so get to it." she demanded of them. She waited for them to start cleaning before she left, but they didn't move.
April held back tears as she politely tried to explain the mistake, "But Mrs. Bailey, I - I didn't, I would never-"
"I don't want to hear it young lady. You two clean up this mess, or else your parents will be hearing about this. I will be back in an hour to check on you, so you better get started!" Leaving them with that threat, Bailey stomped out of the room.
"I'm really sorry about Alex, and this," Jackson apologized, but she didn't respond. April grabbed a mop and pulled the bucket of water out of the closet.
"Okay, so you're ignoring me for something that wasn't even my fault?" Jackson continued to stand there and talk even though April had already walked away. She slowly started mopping up what looked to be smashed carrots. Again, he continued to stand there talking while April got to work right away. "I'm not doing anything until you say something to me. I'm not the one that did this, so you really have no right to blame me."
"If I accept your apology, will you help me?" she huffed.
He stood there with his hand on his chin and acted like he was thinking about it, "Hmmmm… Sure."
"Apology accepted. Will you please help me now?"
Jackson smiled and plucked the mop from her hands. He started scrubbing the floor near their tables while April sat on her knees with a sponge in her hand.
They cleaned in silence for a while until Jackson couldn't take it anymore, "We need music," he announced. April looked stunned as he walked over to the closet and turned on the stereo, "They have this back here for when the older kids have their annual camp formal. What do you wanna hear?"
April shrugged, "Anything is fine, I guess."
He clicked a few buttons and the 2011 Top Hits album started to blare Party Rock Anthem through the speakers.
Jackson used the mop as a microphone as he sang along to the song. He danced around with the mop, spinning it and flipping it around the air like he would a dance partner. He swept around with it while still cleaning and April playful rolled her eyes at the scene. He swayed and continued to mop while singing obnoxiously and shaking his butt. He cleaned the floor until he got to the place where April was scrubbing at the wall.
Jackson dropped the mop at his side and reached out towards her, "May I have this dance, my lady." He said in a goofy british accent and bowed in front of her.
She shook her head in amusement but he took her hand anyway and pulled her to his chest. Even though they were the same age, Jackson was a whole head taller than her. He shook her side to side and spun her around like he had done with the mop. They both started laughing at the silliness and continued to dance horribly. He teasingly dipped her and then spun her around again.
Suddenly, the music shut off and an angry Bailey was standing in the doorway, her foot tapping away impatiently. "What do you think you are doing? No music! Just cleaning!"
Once she had exited the room, April and Jackson burst out into laughter. Jackson reached up and pulled on her hair, causing her to reach up and feel where his hand was.
"You have green beans and mashed potatoes in your hair," he chuckled softly and removed the dried lumps.
April pulled away from him, "Yeah? Well you have gravy all over your shirt." she pointed out to him. They both looked at their appearances and cracked up again as they saw their food covered bodies.
"Well, Little Red, you never told me your name," he joked as their laughter died down.
"Oh, uh, April. My name is April." She smiled at him and took his outstretched hand to shake it.
"Nice to meet you April. I think I'm going to call you Little Red. It fits the color theme you and Little Grey have going on." he teased her and she giggled again.
"Well, what's your name?"
"Avery. Jackson Avery." His response caused her to snort loudly. She put her hand over her face to hide the blush that raced to her cheeks.
"What?" He looked at her confused.
"Nothing, it's just, you totally stole that from James Bond," she explained.
Jackson held his hands up in defense. "You caught me. It sounded cooler in my head."
April rolled her eyes but giggled again and continued to scrub the wall. Jackson walked up behind her and pointed to what she was wiping off the wall, "Ew, what is that?"
"I think it's green beans? Maybe?"
"Let's see if you're right." He slid his finger through the mush and put it to his mouth to taste. Before he could, April swatted his hand away and cleaned it off, "Ew Jackson! That's disgusting!"
"What? I'm hungry and we didn't get to finish eating dinner," he complained while mopping up the floor around her, leaving a trail of water.
"Yeah, and whose fault is that?" she teased.
"Ha, ha," he laughed sarcastically. "Now, is that any way to treat your new friend?"
She quirked her eyebrow at his last question. "New friend? Who said we were friends?"
Jackson was appalled by her statement and held his hand to his chest in surprise. "Trust me, you're going to want me on your side."
"Oh yeah?"
"Yeah. Because we have this year's paintball tournament coming up, and it's going to get crazy," he stated matter-of-factly.
"Huh. I guess I will think about it." she smirked and turned back around to scrub the rest of the green beans off the wall. About that time she felt cold water splash on her back. Jackson had flicked some dirty water from the mop at her. She whipped around and prepared to throw her even dirtier sponge at him.
He held his hands up by his head in defeat, while trying balance the mop on his hip. "Sorry! It was an accident, I swear!"
"Whatever. Hurry up and finish mopping so you can help me scrub." She rolled her eyes at him once again.
"Okay, bossy," he mumbled as he proceeded to mop across the room.
"Jackson," April warned him, "Don't test me!"
Jackson laughed at her not-so-threatening voice. She playfully glared at him one last time before they both resumed cleaning.
April went back to her cabin that night expecting everyone to be sound asleep, but Lexie was sitting up in her bed when she arrived. The other two girls were passed out on their beds.
April crept over to their side of the room and once she reached her bed, Lexie immediately bombarded her with apologies, "How bad was it? I'm so, so sorry, April! I didn't mean for you to get in trouble like that! Camp is supposed to be fun and that definitely did not show you how camp is." She rambled frantically, afraid that her actions had ruined camp for her best friend.
"Lexie, it's fine. It was actually kind of fun. Minus getting yelled at."
"And Jackson was nice to you? Did he help clean?"
"Yeah, he was. He did a lot of the cleaning actually."
"Good," she sighed in relief, "He's a cool guy and he came to camp last year. He's friends with Alex, for some reason unknown to me, but he's nice. I'm really sorry that's how you had to spend your first Friday night. Tomorrow we will go to the lake to make up for it," Lexie promised her.
April nodded and smiled in appreciation, "Thanks, Lex. I'm gonna go shower now. You don't have to wait up for me."
"Do you want me to walk down there with you? I don't mind."
"I'll be fine, Lex. Don't worry." April picked up her shower caddy and grabbed a towel and some pajamas before she quietly headed to the door, trying not to wake up the other sleeping girls.
"Okay. Goodnight, Apes. Love you." Lexie yawned and then rolled over in bed.
"Goodnight. Love you, too." April closed the creaky door and made her way to the showers to clean off the night's dinner events. After she showered, she snuck back into the cabin and crawled in bed to sleep off the hectic day.
"Lexie, hurry up! We are going to be late if we don't leave now!" April stood by the door and bounced on the balls of her feet as she impatiently waited for Lexie to finish getting ready.
"Oh, calm down, April. It takes like 2 minutes to get to the Arts and Crafts pavilion," Lexie chided as she combed out her long brown hair in front of the small mirror on the wall.
"I don't want to be late today! You make us late every day and we don't get to sit with the others," April whined and leaned back onto the wooden wall.
"You only want to get there early so you get sit by Jackson," Lexie teased her.
"No!" April shouted without hesitation, making Lexie's eyebrows shoot up in response, "No. That's not it. I just want us to sit with Arizona and Reed."
"Mhm, sure… You would ditch us in a heartbeat if there was an open seat by Jackson, admit it." Lexie smirked, knowing that she was right. She was actually relieved that April was making other friends here instead of gluing herself to her side all summer.
"Lexie-" April started to argue but she was cut off as Lexie slammed her hairbrush down on the dresser.
"It doesn't matter, I guess now does it? Because we're going to be late anyway, according to you," Lexie shrugged and finished putting her hair up into a messy bun. Once she was done, the two girls walked out of their cabin towards the pavilion located between the main building and the girls side of camp. When they reached the shelter, they sat down at a picnic table in the middle with their usual group, plus Jackson, who had recently joined them. In front of them sat three baskets full of colorful, plastic beads and different colored yarn.
"Okay, everyone. Today we are going to do a fun little craft. I know it seems silly because you are middle schoolers, but it will be easy, I promise." Their group counselor, Chief, stood at the front of the pavilion, "We will be making friendships bracelets today, and don't say it's childish, because it's a camp tradition."
As Chief began giving them instructions, the group of 14-year-olds talked amongst themselves while following the directions. Lexie started to cut the yarn into pieces and distributed them to each person at the table.
"What's your favorite color?" Jackson asked from his spot across from April.
April blinked out of her daze and stared at him with a puzzled look. "Uh, blue, why?"
"Because we're making friendship bracelets again, and you're my new friend. Plus, everyone else here already has one from last year. You're new, so you don't." Jackson stated with a 'duh' tone of voice.
"Oh. Well then, what's yours?" April asked in return. If he was going to make her a bracelet, then she was going to make him one, too.
"Red, like your hair." April blushed at his words but smiled and grabbed the red yarn from the table and Jackson grabbed the turquoise blue yarn.
They both followed Chief's instructions and braided the three strands together with beads woven in. The craft was pretty simple since it was a regular three strand braid, however, some of the boys struggled with it due to their lack of braiding skills.
"I don't know how to do this! I can't braid," Charles complained from the very end of the table. He threw down his three strands and they fell apart.
Reed rolled her eyes from her seat beside him, "Oh, calm down, Charlie. It's not that hard." She held up her finished bracelet and then picked his up to show him how. She started braiding it then handed it back to him, but he still had no idea what to do.
"My hair is short! How do you expect me to know this?" he said, still confused.
"Look at Jackson! He can do it and his hair is even shorter than yours." Reed pointed to Jackson to show Charles how far along he was on his bracelet, "Stop being such a baby," she huffed in annoyance.
Despite Reed practically finishing the bracelet for him, Charles continued to complain. "He's been here! He's done this before."
Jackson rolled his eyes at his friend and decided to insert himself in the conversation. "So have you, Charlie." He teased his friend from the opposite end of the table as he finished putting the last bead on April's bracelet. He and Charles had become friends last year after being placed in the same cabin with George and Alex. Jackson actually got along great with all three boys, but Alex had a bit of a big head. He thought he was a cool guy, but he prefered hanging with the others instead. They were much calmer, and a lot less rough. Once he was finished bickering with Charles, he turned back to April and said, "Here, give me your wrist."
She held out her wrist like he said and he wrapped the blue braided friendship bracelet around it and tied the ends together. April grabbed the red one she made for him and looped it around his wrist in return.
"There. Now, no one will ever forget we're friends," Jackson joked, making April giggle as she adjusted the string jewelry.
Their counselor took her place in front of them as they completed their short craft. "Alright, everyone, as you finish up, make your way to the paintball field! We are in desperate need of a whole group practice. Desperate times call for desperate measures, and if you couldn't tell by my wording, we are desperate."
"Ugh," Lexie groaned as they all stood up to follow their leader to the paintball field. "I really don't want to go do this."
"Me, neither. Is it really necessary?" George added, flailing his skinny arms and motioning to his unathletic body for emphasis.
"I think it's a fun tradition," Jackson defended.
"What is with this camp and your traditions?" April asked recalling all the previous things he had mentioned, noting that the camp was quite habitual. "Do you do anything different? Won't doing the same thing every year get boring?" She wondered why they couldn't come up with new activities and how the older kids still held interest in returning to the camp if it was the same every year.
Jackson just shrugged and moved in front of them, walking backwards as he began to give the group a pep talk. "Alright, gang-" he started out, but Reed cut him off mid-sentence.
"Did you just call us a gang, Jackson?" she quipped, a smirk gracing her face.
"Shut up, Reed. Of course we're a gang. Look at us!" Charles shouted and waved his arms around, gesturing to their huge group of friends. They all rolled their eyes and kept walking, ignoring the two that were bickering for the second time in 30 minutes. Charles and Reed were from the same town and their parents were very good friends. They got sent to camp together last year, along with their older brothers, who were best friends and counselors.
They made it to the field behind the girl's cabins and Jackson retook his place in front to encourage them. "I'm going to let the lovebirds fight it out while we prepare to kick some butt. Hands in, everyone!" he directed them and the whole group put their hands in the middle of their circle, "Alright, on three, let's say 'kick butt!'"
"1, 2, 3! Kick butt!" they all shouted and their hands flew in the air. All of them looked really excited to get their game on. They were chanting loudly and high fiving each other.
"Lame!" Alex snickered from across the field, ruining their moment.
"Shut up, Alex. We're on the same team," Reed pointed out to him, clenching her jaw in annoyance. She and Alex didn't get along. At all. She was normally the first to lose her temper when it came to him.
"Yeah, unfortunately. Your little group is going to make us lose."
Jackson moved to block Reed's view of Alex, trying to keep her from fighting with him and making things worse. He managed to persuade her to ignore his comments. "Don't listen to him, guys. We are gonna rock this tournament," he yelled as a grin spread across his face. "Now, let's go!" This made the group cheer as they raced off to start practicing for the big, end of the summer event.
The end of June came and went. July brought even more heat and dreadful weather, so most camp days were spent playing lake sports or kayaking. However, as the end of camp neared, the massive paintball tournament inched closer. April and Lexie were forced by their group to practice every day for hours on end the first two and a half weeks of July. April learned that she absolutely hated the game and she wasn't very good at it, either. Lexie, on the other hand, just hated how hot the gear was. She was not a fan of sweating at all, for she would rather be soaking up the sun on the waterfront.
Today was the last full Friday of camp, and that meant that it was paintball tournament time. All the campers gathered around the open field and wooded area at the edge of the camp. Paintball gear was scattered across the ground in front of them and all the counselors stood around the edges in referee jerseys, whistles hanging from their necks.
"We are so not going to rock this, Lex," April whispered to her as they stood in the middle of all the campers. She looked around for their guy friends, whom she didn't see join the large group, nor did she see them at breakfast.
Lexie nudged her with her elbow in response. "Don't think like that! We've been doing better recently."
One of the older counselors stepped out in front of the group and blew his whistle to get everyone's attention. "Alright campers, as you know, today is the start of the camp-wide paintball tournament. First up, the 7th graders versus the 8th graders. Everyone else can enjoy their free time while they play. The bracket is set up by the pavilion and winners of each round will be announced immediately following each game. We will have a big winner by the end of the day!" The group dispersed, leaving behind the younger ones that were competing first.
"Players, grab your goggles, protective gear, guns and enough ammo to last! The 7th graders will be the blue team, and the 8th graders will be the red team! " he gestured to the blue and red equipment strung out all over the place. Both teams moved to pick up their assigned colored jerseys as he continued talking, "Make your way to the playing field and when the you hear the whistle blow, you may begin. Two whistles signal an out and three signal the end of the game. Remember, one hit and you're out. Good luck and don't forget the main rule, have fun!" He clapped his hands together, signaling the end of his instructional speech. Everyone scattered around, searching for a place to hide. April and Lexie headed into the woods, splitting up from the rest of the group. April struggled to hold her gun and run at the same time, but she managed to keep up with Lexie as they entered the trees.
They heard the whistle a few minutes later and April's body tensed in anticipation. Lexie stood with her back to the tree across from April, who did the same. They both looked straight ahead; this way they could see who tried to sneak up behind them. The only flaw in their plan was that they forgot to look beside them. A boy from the other team snuck up on their left barely 10 minutes into the game and shot Lexie in the arm, causing her to drop her gun.
In a panic, April started shooting aimlessly in his direction while Lexie yelled at her,"April! Get him!"
"I'm trying! I keep missing!" April kept shooting, wasting a lot of her paintballs. Red covered the ground and surrounding trees instead of her intended target. The other boy blankly stared at her and aimed in her direction. April held her breath and braced herself for the painful hit, but before he pulled the trigger, Lexie tackled him to give her a quick escape.
"Just run!" Lexie ordered her and April took off in the opposite direction as fast as her legs could carry her.
With Lexie out, April was completely on her own. She had no idea how she had managed to remain in the game for this long and dodge that last paintball like she did. She walked slowly around the trees with her back to each one as she moved, trying to stay on guard. She crept around the edge of the woods trying to avoid anymore encounters with the other team. That was her new strategy. Avoid everyone, stay in the game. If no one is around, you won't get out.
She slid to the ground at the edge of the tree line and leaned back on a tree. She kept her eyes peeled for more people, but somehow, she didn't pay enough attention. She heard a few leaves rustle through the brush and then felt a hand on her shoulder. She jumped up and whipped around quickly, nearly whacking the culprit in the head.
"Whoa! Calm down, Little Red!" She came face to face with Jackson, who stumbled away from her. She held her hand to her chest and she could feel her heart racing below it.
"Jackson! You scared me! I thought you were someone from the other team, I almost shot you." She swung her paintball gun around for emphasis.
"You wouldn't have hit me anyway. You would've missed."
"Hey!" she smacked his shoulder before they went back to hiding behind separate trees. "I'm not that bad."
"Admit it, April. You have terrible aim. I've seen you try archery."
At that moment, a blue splat appeared on the tree right next to April's head. She stood there frozen, not knowing what to do, becoming an easy target for the second time that day.
"April, watch out!" Jackson hollered in panic, his gun drawn to protect himself. She remained still, gun dropped to her side. The other team member fired another paintball at her. She felt like she was in a daze. Jackson was yelling, but her body didn't work. It was like she wanted to get out.
"Whosa. That was a close one," he said in her ear, startling her out of her haze. At some point, he had moved beside her, sharing the same tree as a shield.
"We almost got hit." Her eyes were wide in shock. Paintball was definitely not her friend, and she was not a fan. She hated things flying at her face, yet somehow, in every sport, that's always what ended up happening.
"We? You mean you. Pay attention. Don't be afraid."
Their moment of strategizing, mostly on Jackson's part, was interrupted by another shot. This time, the paintball spiraled in their direction, aimed right at April's face. On instinct, Jackson leapt up to shelter her from the blow. The blue paintball collided with his chest as he jumped up. Grunting from the impact, Jackson rubbed his injury as he fell to his knees. With Jackson out, that marked two people April had managed to get hit on her behalf and she felt horrible. His groans in pain distracted April just enough for her to not realize the person was still there hiding in the brush, making her an easy target yet again. As she bent down in concern for Jackson, she felt a pang of pain of her own. She looked down at her elbow, the source of her discomfort, and saw blue paint in the place of her pale skin. She gasped and looked around quickly, only to see a flash of blue running away.
"Great. Now we're both out," Jackson groaned from the ground.
"Sorry." April smiled at him sheepishly, cradling her already bruising elbow in her hand.
She helped him to his feet and they walked to the outside of the field to sit and wait for the rest of their team to either carry them to victory or be their downfall.
"You know, I don't think you were a very good partner in crime. I'm disappointed because we worked so well together during the food fight," Jackson said, breaking the silence as they sat on the grass by the fence. April stared at her feet and picked at the grass on each side of her.
After a few beats of silence, Jackson brought up something new to talk about. "Where are you from? What brings you to Camp Echo here in Pennsylvania?" he asked.
"I'm from Ohio. Moline, Ohio. It's near Toledo, if you know where that is." She shifted to cross her legs, still looking down.
"Not one bit."
"I didn't think so. Not many people do," she giggled at him. "But Lexie, you know Lexie, her stepmom. Wait, no, I guess not her stepmom but her sister's mom, Meredith's mom, used to be camp director. She practically grew up here over the summers, so she dragged me along this year. What about you? Where are you from?"
"I'm from Boston."
"Oh. Why are you here in Pennsylvania for the summer then? Aren't there better things to do in Boston?" This made her look up at him, her eyebrow quirked in confusion.
"Well yeah but, you see, my mom started sending me here to stay with Richard for the summer after they got married," he chuckled, shaking his head.
"Richard Webber is your step-dad? No way!" she gasped, unable to hide the grin from forming on her face.
"Shhhh! No one knows. Well, except you now," he clamped his hand across her mouth and frantically looked around to make sure no one heard. Of course, no one did because there was no one else around. Everyone else was still in the game, or on the benches near the counselors, which was far away out of sight.
"Would your mom ever come visit you at camp then?" she laughed again, grabbing his hand and pulling it off her mouth.
"God, I hope not."
They sat quietly for a few more minutes, taking in the new information. April took a deep breath and turned back to him. "So, what's it like in Boston?"
"It's pretty chill. Big city, cold weather. Annoying tourists everywhere. Everything you imagine Boston to be. Not as grand as everyone makes it out to be, though."
April sat back and sighed, thinking of what it must be like there. "I've always wanted to visit Boston. See Plymouth Rock."
"Ugh, I can't believe you're one of those people!" he dramatically rolled his eyes, but couldn't help laugh at her far-off look.
"Like what?"
"Touristy. I don't know if we can be friends if all you want to do when you come visit me is go to historical sites and museums."
"What's so wrong with museums, huh?" she defended herself. She loved history. It was one of her favorite subjects in school. She loved learning all about Boston, its history and its importance to the start of their country.
"You don't get to see Boston for what it is."
"And what would you show me then?"
"The skatepark, the hills we use for sledding, you know, stuff only natives know. Stuff you can't get on a tour. That's the true essence of the city," he explained with a glint in his eye, thinking about his hometown. "Not that history crap."
April rolled her eyes at the mention of the skatepark and leaned back on her elbows once again, "Maybe, but that doesn't make me want to go to the museums any less."
"Well, I tried to warn you. I guess we can't be friends anymore."
"Hey!" She smacked his shoulder with the back of her hand.
"So what about you? What is a normal day in Moline?"
"Well, it's pretty boring actually. We live in a really small town, something you don't understand. Most days we wake up early, living on a farm and all, you kind of have to."
"You're a farm girl! I can see it now," Jackson interrupted to poke fun at her. He pulled on her red hair that was done up in two braids.
"Can I continue?" she yanked her pigtail from his grasp, "Okay, so we wake up early and feed the animals, and I milk the cows because my sisters refuse to. Then I catch the bus to go to school, which is in Toledo. Our town isn't actually big enough to have their own school system."
"Really?"
"I told you it was a small town."
"You said you have sisters? What are they like?"
"Irritating," she huffed at the thought of her three sisters back home. She was not ready at all to leave camp and return home to them. She missed her parents dearly, but her sisters? Well, she could do without a lot of their unnecessary actions. "I have three. Libby is the oldest, then there's me, then Kimmie and then Alice is the youngest. Do you have any siblings?"
"No. Just me, myself and I."
"Lucky."
Their conversation was put to a halt by three whistles, signaling the end of the game. Their standing team members emerged from the field and made their way towards the fence where the two were sitting.
Alex stepped out from behind the trees and shouted over at them. "Kepner! Avery! Look alive! We're going in for round two!"
"We won? How?" April questioned him. She had no idea how they had managed a win, with most of their team out from the very beginning. She had only been able to stay in with the sacrifice of her friends, and even then, she still got hit. They would've had a better chance if she had gotten out to begin with, because Lexie was certainly more skilled than her.
"Ugh… here we go again. Now, stay with me this time," Jackson advised her as he lifted her to her feet.
Alex walked over to them with Lexie, Reed and Charles in tow. "I have a feeling we're going to be facing the Freshmen team. That means we have to look out for Owen, he's a killer shot. Sloan isn't that big of a threat, but Derek will be. Meredith and Cristina will be with them so if we can take them out we will have a clean shot at Hunt, Sloan and Shepherd."
"Wait, where's George?" April looked around for the missing boy.
"Man down. Saw him go down early on in the game. I think he was sent to the infirmary," Alex told them.
"Oh…"
Jackson shook his head, "Poor 007. He got in one good shot but didn't watch his back." He had been there to see it happen when he was looking for April.
"More James Bond references, Jackson?"
Jackson's eyebrows furrowed in confusion, "What?"
"007? Never mind..." she started to explain, but decided it was better not to.
Jackson ignored her comment and smacked Charles and Alex on the shoulders, once again becoming the team leader, or at least trying to be. "Let's kick some butt!"
"Kick butt!" they all hollered like the first time. They split up when they heard the first whistle, signalling the beginning of the second game.
Their group ended up getting beat by the freshmen in the end, but it didn't mean they didn't have fun. Of course, April hid behind Jackson and Lexie most of the time throughout the second game, but that helped her stay in longer. She didn't distract him this time, and she and Lexie even got a few good shots in. One being Lexie's sister, Meredith, which ticked her off a lot so they had to stay on guard. That made Lexie a huge target for the other team, and Cristina ended up sending Owen on them, who snuck up behind them in surprise. They lost, nonetheless, because Alex and Jackson couldn't carry the team alone. On the bright side, the freshmen then got their butts kicked the next round by the sophomores, who got beat by the combined Junior and Senior group, since there weren't enough of them to form their own team. At the end of the day, the older kids won it all, which meant they got the big prize. It was nothing huge, just special privileges at the dining hall, such as special meal requests and jumping ahead of the line. Their group didn't mind losing the silly competition, because even though they lost, sitting on the sidelines all day, seemed to bring them closer.
The next week flew by and suddenly it was the last day of July, which meant camp was almost over. None of the kids wanted to leave their friends, but tomorrow they would be parting ways and going home. Lexie and April packed up their bags that night to prepare for their morning departure.
Lexie sighed as she climbed up her bed for the night. "I can't believe summer is already over."
"I know. It doesn't feel real." April flopped back on her bed and closed her eyes, exhausted by the day.
Lexie smiled to herself. She was so glad April had come with her, knowing it would be good for both of them to get out of Ohio for a while. She was so glad that this summer had turned out the way she wanted, for both her and April. It was important to her that she take care of her friend, and it was a great experience. She even thought it had broken her out of her shell, for the most part. "So, does that mean you want to come back next summer?" she asked through the dark. She waited for a reply, but all she heard was slow, even breaths, signalling that her friend had already fallen asleep.
That night, April was jarred from sleep by a slow, quiet tapping noise. She shifted in her bunk and slowly opened her eyes when she heard the tapping again. She shot up in bed and listened for the source of the noise, thankful that the other girls were heavy sleepers. When she heard the noise again, she got up and made her way over to the window expecting to find a branch brushing against the glass, but she was surprised at what she found instead. "Jackson? What are you doing here?" April gasped as she saw his silhouette on the other side of the window. It was pitch black outside, and she could barely see anything except some of his body illuminated by the moon and his flashlight that sat up right on the ground.
"Come outside," Jackson told her as she gently opened the window. She could barely see him through the darkness, but she could tell he was grinning.
She gave him a confused look as she whispered back to him in order not to wake the rest of the girls. "Jackson! It's past curfew."
"Just meet me outside your door, goody-two-shoes," he teased.
"What if we get caught?" That was her main concern. She had already got in trouble for the food fight, which wasn't even her doing. She never got in trouble, ever, and she didn't plan on it ever again.
"Don't make me come in there instead," he playfully threatened her, knowing she would give in.
"No! That's worse!" April argued with him. In reality, she knew Bailey couldn't really do anything about it now, since camp was technically over. Tomorrow they would be going home anyway so she really couldn't send her home as punishment, but she didn't want to get banned from camp either. She had a really great time and she really hoped to come back next year, but getting banned would ruin that chance.
"Then come outside. I have a surprise," Jackson beckoned her from the outside. He waved his flashlight up to her face
"Fine," she agreed and shut the window before she crept to the door. She tried as hard as she could to quietly slip out, but the old, rusty door creaked as she pulled it shut behind her. She winced as it loudly clicked shut, despite her efforts.
"Boo!" Jackson yelled. April whipped her head around to see him leaning on the corner of the cabin. She chuckled at him and put her fingers to her lips to shush him. He just shook his head and grabbed her arm. He dragged her along beside him through the grass and away from the cabin. If he had been anyone else, April would've been a little scared, but she had come to truly trust Jackson in these short two months.
"Where are we going?" April tugged to free her arm, but he held it close to his side and kept leading her into the dark. The only thing she could see was the ground ahead of her lit up by the the small flashlight in Jackson's other hand.
"Just wait and see."
She blindly followed him until he came to a halt in front of Echo Lake. She hadn't noticed that they had walked that far from the cabins. He guided her to a spot beneath a tree right on the water's edge before he pulled his shirt over his head and tossed it on the ground beside him. "This is something everyone has to do their first year at camp, it's tradition."
"What? What are you doing?" Her eyes widen in concern of what their nightly activity might end up being. "Because I, uh, don't think I feel comfortable skinny dipping. I don't care if it's tradition-"
Jackson's laughter cut her off and she looked at him in bewilderment. "No, April. Not skinny dipping, midnight swimming."
"I didn't bring my swimsuit, though."
"That's okay. You don't need it." He scooped her up as best as he could and started to carry her towards the lake. April wiggled in his arms in attempt to free herself, but he held her tighter to his chest and walked closer to the water. When he made it to the edge, his grip loosened.
"No! Jackson! Put me down! I like these pajamas and I-" she tried to yell in protest but he had already let her go.
She landed on her bottom in the shallow water, drenching her pajamas and Jackson with her large splash. He entered the water along side her and splashed her back, further soaking her pajamas.
"Hey! That's not fair!" She splashed him back, creating a huge wall of waves to send back at him. This started a huge splash war between them. Back and forth, they splashed each other harder with more water until they were completely soaked head to toe. They had gone out deeper in the water as well, being about waist deep now.
Jackson realized this, remembering that they were going against camp rules by swimming this far out without lifejackets, "Okay, stop! Truce! Truce!" he yelled, holding his arms up to block his face. April stopped and giggled at his appearance, knowing she probably didn't look any better.
"If this is tradition, where is everyone else?" she asked him, looking around for more people partaking in this camp 'tradition'.
He grinned at her and answered, "Because you're the only first year, plus, I didn't ask them to come. Just us."
"Oh. Why?"
"Because, hold on, I, uh, I have something for you." He got out of the water to grab his shirt, and she followed behind him, climbing out of the water while wringing out her clothes. He reached in his shirt pocket and pulled out a small piece of plastic with a metal clip attached to it. "It's a charm, for your bracelet. As a reminder of camp and how we met. I made it when we did shrinky dinks," he blushed.
"Wow. A fork? Really?" She laughed when she saw the shape of it and the picture on the top.
"Yeah, because I hit you with my mashed potatoes, remember?"
"How could I forget?" They both laughed at the memory from the beginning of camp. He reached out and took her wrist into his hand, clipping the charm onto the bracelet he had made her just a few weeks before. Instead of dropping her hand, he took it into hers, causing her to blush.
"You guys seem pretty fond of traditions here. Maybe this can be our new tradition."
"Yeah, maybe." They both blushed and grinned at each other before he silently walked her back to her cabin for the night. She was unable to sleep the rest of the night. She just kept replaying what had just happened and fiddling with her new charm on her bracelet. Being with Jackson just felt so natural to her, and she wasn't ready to part with her new friend yet. She wanted more time with him, to get to know him and she knew that she felt something different with him. She just couldn't quite put her finger on it.
That morning, the camp was alive with the hustle and bustle of leaving day. People were hugging each other and some were even crying as they loaded up their cars with luggage. Others sat around on wooden benches waiting to be picked up by their parents and go home after the long summer break. April and Lexie sat on a bench near the end of the road with their suitcases and duffel bags at their feet.
Jackson plopped down in the empty space beside April, "So this is it. Summer is over."
April nodded, "Yup. Two months really flew by. School starts back next week." She sighed and looked over at him, seeing the solemn look on his face.
"Ugh," Jackson groaned. "Don't remind me."
"What? School isn't that bad."
"Yes it is, April. We aren't all as smart as you," he joked and nudged her, but his face remained just as serious as before. She wanted to cheer him up, but she wasn't sure what to say, because their departure was just as hard for her, too.
"Just think, at least we have camp to look forward to." Jackson nodded in agreement, "See you next summer?" April asked him, hopeful that they would be able to reunite next year. They had just established their friendship, yet two months of knowing each other felt like years. She wasn't ready to lose that just yet.
"Of course. I'll be here, so you better be too. Promise?" Jackson stuck out his pinky and April latched hers around his in agreement. "I promise. Do you?" She gave his pinky a squeeze before she let go and dropped her hand back down to grab her suitcase from the ground.
"I promise, and I don't make promises I can't keep." Jackson grinned at her before he gave his final goodbye. He climbed into the passenger side of a silver Range Rover that appeared at the end of the gravel road and they pulled away. She waved at his car until it disappeared from sight.
Once it was gone, she plopped back down next to Lexie and smiled to herself as she thought about the summer she had and how much she couldn't wait for the next one. Lexie tugged on her arm, causing April to look up. She realized Lexie's dad had pulled up in front of where they sat, ready to pick them up and take them home. They loaded up the trunk with their luggage and extra things they had acquired from their stay at camp. Everyone buckled up in their seats and he started the car.
"Did you enjoy camp, girls? Do you still want to come back next summer?" Lexie's dad asked them while looking through the rearview mirror.
April couldn't help the huge grin that spread across her face as she nodded along with the other three girls. She looked down and started playing with at the bracelet that hung loosely around her wrist. Oh, yeah. She definitely couldn't wait until next summer.
Next Chapter: Summer 2013
I hope you guys liked this first chapter! We will follow Japril in this story summer to summer as they attend summer camp! As of right now, they are only starting high school, so they are just becoming friends. Romance is later my friends ;) My updates will be very slow for the next few weeks because, as the school year wraps up, I will be very busy! Bare with me please! I will also try to alternate between stories so all of them get updates and not just one! Leave me a review or follow me on tumblr japriet and tell me what you think so far!