It's time for Brooke to make a choice. Thank you for reviewing, Nicky Haugh and Bloodylilcorpse.
For the next few days, I went swimming in the afternoons. I didn't want to talk to Della until I decided whether I wanted to talk to her about the dying thing.
I was really torn for the moment. I wanted Della to stay my friend, but I didn't want to have to die to keep her friendship. I pondered over what I knew as I swam that first day, keeping an eye on my buddy.
Then I thought about the things Della had said. She couldn't leave Camp Cold Lake without a buddy. She had to be stuck here on her own all year round. If I agreed to be her buddy, we could leave together. And...well… what about my parents? If I could go anywhere, and be visible if I wanted, did that mean I could just pretend to be normal, and have no one be the wiser? What disadvantages did I have?
I knew I needed to ask Della some more questions about what being dead...or, I guess, undead...entailed. But I didn't want to face her just yet.
I swam on Wednesday and Thursday uninterrupted. Then, when I gave in and let Jasmine drag me into canoeing on Friday (and surprisingly didn't get sick, despite thinking I was going to), I heard a voice yelling from the shore.
"Brooke! Hey, Brooke!"
Della was standing on the shore, calling to me. "It's OK, you're the only one that can hear me right now!" she called. "Why are you avoiding me? Look, can we talk? I thought you said you were still my friend! After your activity's over, meet me at the campfire pit! Please? If you don't want to be friends with me, I can take it!"
What could I have done? I caught her eye, and nodded as a sign that I would talk to her later.
Della was waiting for me. No one else was around. "Finally!" she said as I ran up to her after I got dressed. "I thought you weren't coming."
"I'm sorry I haven't talked to you since Tuesday." I said sincerely. "It's just...well, I'll explain in a minute. I just need to ask you a few more questions."
Della nodded, and I asked my main one. "What are the disadvantages of being, you know...like you? A ghost?"
Della thought about it for a moment, and then said "Being tied to one place is the worst one. It's probably different for different people. You see, the way I died means that I can still eat and most of my organs still work. It's just my heart that doesn't. But I'm guessing that people who died of illness and had other parts of their body shut down – if they even become ghosts, I don't know how it works – won't be able to do those. If I had to die at all, I was probably lucky to go the way I did."
I noticed that she avoided explaining how she died. That supported my theory that she wanted me to die, too. If I didn't know how she went, if she tried to lure me towards death, I wouldn't know until it was far too late. I knew she hadn't drowned, but that left so many different explanations. But all I did was ask my next question.
"What about advantages? Is there anything good about it?"
Della's pause was longer, this time. "I guess it's nice to be able to disappear when I don't feel like socializing." she admitted. "And I can fly, sort of." To prove it, she floated up from the ground and hovered over me for a moment. "I can't go that high. But it's kind of a cool power." She came back down. "If I could only leave the camp, maybe I'd feel like a normal kid. My parents know I'm dead, but..." Her eyes shone. "That's why I need you, Brooke. If I go home with you, I can live the same way you do, and your parents wouldn't even know I was there. Even though I can eat and things, I don't actually need to."
"I have one more question." I said shyly. "I think there's something you're not telling me. You haven't told me how you died, and being your friend is not the same as being your buddy. Do I have to die to be your buddy?"
I didn't need Della to answer that. Her expression said it all. Her face fell, she went pale (for real this time) and her eyes welled up.
"I guess I know." I murmured. At that moment, Della took my hands, starting to sob.
"You must hate me!" she wept. "I mean, if you figured that out. But I swear, I'm not just using you as a means to get out of here. I really do want to be your friend! I just want you to stay my friend. I do this every year, but you're the first time I've made an effort with, and so I like you a lot more."
I had to ask. "Have other people died here?"
Della kept sobbing, but she managed to choke out some words. "Briana...on the last day of camp. She didn't want to be my buddy, though. She hated me. Then she pretended to be alive the next year, and declared she'd protect the next girl. Then she took Sarah away from me. I didn't kill her, but Sarah didn't live. Briana let her die. And they were still each other's buddy forever. They've left camp now. I don't know what happened, but they could leave. It's no wonder Briana didn't come back." She kept crying. "I'm really really sorry, Brooke, but please! I wouldn't ask this of you if I didn't have to. I just told you the only disadvantage – and that won't be a disadvantage if we're each other's buddy."
"But I don't want to die!" I protested. "I'm sorry you can't get out without someone, but why should I be the one to give up my life? And now I know that you always planned to kill me, how can I trust anything else you've told me?"
"You can!" Della insisted tearfully. "I gave you the choice, didn't I? I haven't lied to you. I always tell you the truth when you ask me. I really want to stay friends with you, Brooke. Please, don't hold my methods against me – I can't help being dead. And even if I was planning it, I didn't put you through anything like I did with Sarah, or the other girls I tried with. And if you do by chance decide to be my buddy, it won't be too painful."
I waited for her to elaborate.
"I tricked Sarah." she admitted. "I tried to scare her away from the lake. I even ran her over with a speedboat. Then she ended up trying to escape through the forest. Then when she said she wasn't going to drown like me, I told her that I hadn't drowned. I hated having to scare her, and it didn't work. That's when I worked out that I needed to find a friend before I found a buddy."
"And you figured that friend would be your buddy?" I said, still angry. "I still can't believe this!"
"I told you, you wouldn't have a disadvantage!" Della repeated. "Not with me by your side. And..." she paused. Then she asked softly "Would you like me to tell you my story?"
I was curious, so I nodded. We sat on the stumps, and Della pointed out two angry red pinpricks on her ankle. "That's how I died. I got bored of listening to one of the water safety lectures. So I sneaked off into the woods-"
"The woods that are full of deadly snakes?" I said. "So that means..."
Della nodded. "That's what that mark is. Snakebite. It took about one minute for the poison to get into my heart. That was it. But it doesn't hurt much, really – it's just like a bee sting."
"That can hurt a tonne." I pointed out.
"It would hurt more suffocating from drowning." Della said logically. "I understand if you don't like the idea, Brooke, but please? Just consider it? And even if you can't do that, can you at least be my friend until camp ends? Please?"
I took a breath...and made a decision. I managed to smile at Della. "We're still friends." I said. "But no more secrets, and no more thinking about how you want to kill me."
Della laughed a little. "Not going to happen, Brooke, I swear. But...I should say this now, something I kept from you. That letter I said I'd post for you? I never posted it. I forgot that you could still be with your parents and...but it doesn't matter. You've got a correspondence with your parents now, right? Since Visiting Day?"
Somehow, I couldn't find it in me to be mad at Della any more, especially since she was right – things were fine with my family. So I smiled back at her. "Thanks for telling me."
Well, at least there aren't any more secrets between them now. I feel sorry for Della, to be honest – I always did. But she really shouldn't be trying to stalk and kill people.
BTW, what do YOU think Brooke should do? Let me know in a review!