-1-

There's the bus, coming to take me to "Camp Green Lake". You'd think that a place with a name like that would sound inviting, but when you know it's basically glorified juvi, it sounds just as bad as prison.

The bus stops in front of me, and the stern-looking officer at my side says, "Time to go."

Mom and Dad are at the door behind me. I can practically feel my Dad's disapproving glare on my back. He shouldn't be surprised that this happened. I got my short temper from him, after all.

I step onto the bus when the door unfolds, trying not to drop my duffle bag; the handcuffs make it tough to hold it comfortably.

"Just sit down somewhere," the cop says gruffly. He obviously doesn't enjoy this part of his job.

I start for the middle of the bus when I catch a glimpse of reddish-brown off to the side. Is that another girl? ...Do I actually have someone to talk to over the trip?

Excited, I drop myself onto the seat across the aisle from her, tossing my bag next to me.

My "escort" goes to the back of the bus, where I see another cop seated.

While they greet each other, I get a better look at my bus-mate. Her hair, the red-brown color I'd seen, is really long. Like, down to her ribs. She has a decent tan to her skin. She's wearing a light blue tank, a pair of worn jeans, and a pair of semi-beat-up converse. Like me, her wrists are bound by the silver cuffs. She doesn't even seem to notice me.

May as well try to talk to her. Maybe she's friendly. "They didn't tell me I was sharing a ride."

She tears her gaze from the window and I see that her eyes are a grayish green. Pretty. And now that I can see her face, I note that she's probably not any older than me. If I'm lucky, she's in for something stupid like I am, not because she's a total psycho.

~(.*.*.)~

"They didn't tell me I was sharing a ride."

Snapping from my daydream, I turn and find that I've been joined by another girl. I must've been even more out-of-it than I thought; I didn't even realize we'd stopped.

She looks around my age; brown hair halfway down her back, blonde highlights, hazel eyes... She's pretty pale, but there's a little color to her skin. Italian, maybe? She's dressed in a black camisole top and camo-cargo pants that drape a little over her sneakers. She doesn't look menacing at all, making me wonder why she's here.

"Me neither," I finally say back. I was so caught up in analyzing her, I forgot what she said for a minute.

The bus starts moving along again, and she looks out the window at who I guess are her parents. Almost immediately, she looks back at me. "So, what's your name?"

"Lexie. You?"

"Name's Aidan. And yeah, I know it's a boy's name."

She's sarcastic. I like her already. "Camp Green Lake?"

"Yup. Got into a fight and the judge decided it'd be good for 'controlling my angry impulses' or something like that. What'd they get you for?"

"It's a long story. I'm sure people will ask when we get there, so I'll tell you then. I've already explained it twenty times."

Aidan nods. "So, we're the first girls to get sent there?"

"As far as I know. Did you pack a bathing suit?"

She nods again. "I hear they have open showers."

They're sending us to a formerly all-boys camp where they can see us showering? Ew. "Good thing I packed mine, then."

She looks at the cops in the back, then smirks at me. "You think there'll be any decent-looking guys there?"

I stop myself from laughing aloud; I thought about that when they told me it was a boys' camp! I just can't believe she brought it up! "Fingers crossed!"

~(.*.*.)~

Maybe this won't be a complete nightmare after all...