Chapter 2: Steer Clear

After about an hour long bus ride, the students finally made it to the Waterfront Trails, the campsite they would be spending the next three days. They could smell the scent of pine in the air and could see nothing but natural land for miles. As the teens made their way off the bus and gathered up their belongings they were greeted by a park ranger. She was a short, blonde woman wearing a traditional green rangers uniform with her hair up in a pony tail. She was a very muscularly defined woman, yet still exuded a sense of femininity about her.

"Hi campers! Are you here from Degrassi?" she asked Mr. Simpson and Ms. Oh who had been acting as chaperones for this event.

"Yeah, that's us. Hi, I'm Archie Simpson. I'm the principal of Degrassi, and this is Winnie Oh. She's one of our teachers", he said first shaking the ranger's hand then gesturing over to Ms. Oh. Ms. Oh just smiled and waved back.

"Well, hi there! I'm Ranger Melissa. If you're all ready I'd be happy to give you a tour of the grounds and lead you to your campsite.

"I think we're all ready. Hey kids! Grab all your bags and start following us!" Ms. Oh announced. The students then all trailed behind as they listened to Melissa discuss the camp grounds.

"Here at Waterfront we have a lot of things to offer you for entertainment", Melissa informed.

Jake leaned over to Clare and whispered, "See I told you so", into her ear.

"We have a lake that you are free to swim and fish in", Melissa continued. "If you forgot a fishing pole we can provide one for you. You can also just take a walk around and explore the grounds, but if you're looking for a challenging hike then we also have three long trails in which you can do so." Melissa then paused for a moment and remembered, "Wait, no, we only have two trails now. The third on was declared too dangerous and unsafe for campers. Don't worry, though, we have put up a sign in front on the trail so you'll know which one to avoid."

Melissa went on for a bit longer about the park's history, it's wildlife, and the all species of plants found on the grounds. She eventually led them to a large, circular dirt space that was surrounded by towering trees.

"And this here is where you'll be setting up camp. I guess I'll leave you to it, but if anyone needs anything at any point, please feel free to come by the rangers cabin. If you can't find it then just give us a call because I'm certain that you all have cellphones on you. Mr. Simpson can give you our number. I'll see you folks later", Melissa waved and scampered off, disappearing into the forest.

"Well you heard her, guys, start setting up you tents. If you need help you can either ask a friend or come see Mr. Simpson and I", Ms. Oh offered.

Clare lifted up the tent bag and began to take everything out piece by piece when Jake stepped in.

"Clare, I got this", he said taking one of the poles from her hand.

"What? You don't want any help?"

"Nope. I do this all the time. I'm the master at it. No offense, but you'd probably only slow me down."

"Okay, whatever you say, master", Clare joked as she stood up and backed away. She went over to her own suitcase and pulled out a book. She sat on a nearby rock and began to read.

Jake looks up at her. "Vampire Fiction? Really, Clare? Now?" he teases.

"Well what else am I supposed to do since you took over everything. Besides, I like vampire fiction", she snickered back.

Jake laughed and resumed building their tent. It didn't take long for him to finish. In fact, they were the first ones to successfully pitch their tent. Soon enough group after group began completing their tents until everyone was practically all done. Clare looked around and noticed Eli was still the only one who hasn't made any progress and immediately felt bad.

"Jake?"

"Yes, Clare?"

"Would you mind going over and helping Eli with his tent?" she asked as politely as she could.

"And why would I want to do that?" Jake questioned.

"Because just look at him. He's obviously struggling. He needs help", Clare saws gesturing toward Eli.

"Clare, he hasn't exactly been nice to me or to you lately. Especially with that stupid play of his. Why should I help him?"

"He was going through a hard time, Jake. He had just been diagnosed with bipolar disorder. Come on, you know it's the right thing to do. Please, Jake", Clare begged giving Jake puppy dog eyes. Clare's beautiful blue eyes were something that he couldn't resist.

Jake grunted and said, "Fine. Whatever", and trudged through the leaves and broken branches over to Eli.

"Hey, Eli. Having a bit of trouble?" Jake hesitated.

Eli snapped his head up, surprised to see who was standing before him. "Oh, hey Jake. Yeah, actually I am. This is not one of my strong suits", he admitted.

Jake sighed. "Need any help?" He hoped Eli would say no.

"Yea, that'd be awesome. Thank you."

Jake bent down, picked up the materials, and began construsting Eli's tent. Much like he'd done with Clare, he pushed away all of Eli's attempts to help. Not only did he think he'd be in the way, but he also wanted to keep the actual interaction with Eli as little as possible. Too bad Eli didn't know that.

"You know", Eli began, breaking the silence, "I'm surprised you were the one to offer to help me. Especially after all that craziness that happened between us with Love Roulette."

"Well, honestly it was Clare who sent me over here to help you", Jake sneered.

"Clare?"

"Yes, Clare. Truthfully I want nothing to do with you", Jake confessed.

"Oh, but Clare had asked before if I wanted to hangout with you guys this weekend so I kinda thought that meant-"

Jake cut him off and said, "She did? You know it sickens me that she still even tries to be civil with you."

"Jake, I'm sorry. I just-"

"I know", Jake interrupted again, "You're bipolar. I get it. It wasn't entirely your fault. That doesn't mean you're good for Clare to be hanging around with. The only reason I'm even pretending to be cool with you is because of Clare."

The two of them grew silent before Jake finally said, "Well, it looks like your tent's all set, My job here is done." Jake got up and began to walk away.

Jake turned his body around once more before leaving completely. "Oh, and by the way, try to steer clear of me and Clare this weekend."

Eli froze as he watched Eli return to his tent and kiss Clare gently on the lips. As much as he'd been looking forward to spending time with Clare again, maybe it would be for the best if he kept to himself for the next three days.