A/N: Here is another chapter for you nerds. Sixth Grade Camp was such a memorable experience for me, I figured I'd show the Ross girls at theirs. And the birthday song heard here is the exact one I used to sing every summer at camp whenever someone had a birthday, and it was just as crazy and silly as I tried to make it here.
Enjoy!
The large dining hall was full of noise; voices overlapping, utensils on plates, cups being smacked on tables as kids played games. It was the last night of High Trails for this group of sixth graders, and despite the tiring week of activities, they still had energy and enthusiasm. The camp was focussed on science and nature studies and allowed students a hands-on, outdoors, science class for a week.
Kate Ross' group, for example, had only forty minutes before returned from a long hike up to the bat caves; a beloved and popular activity for campers. She gossiped with her friends about their different activities for the day, and even went over to catch up with her twin sister. The two hadn't seen each other since the campfire the previous night and the need for them to see each other was very large. She was halfway through her second helping of lasagna when the room went suddenly very quiet.
None of the kids had noticed that their counselors or teachers had disappeared, so when they appear at the double doors leading to the kitchen holding trays of ice cream sundaes, some of which with burning candles stuck in them, everyone is curious.
But not as curious as when they all starting singing.
"There's a birthday for someone, we wonder for who. We know it's for someone right here in this room. So look all around for someone who is laughing and smiling. My goodness, it's Kate!"
By then, all the counselors had returned to their tables and had placed the sundaes with candles in front of the kids who had birthdays on or around their week of camp. And when one gets placed in front of her, Kate smiles and blushes. She hates being the center of attention; even if it was with twenty of her classmates.
Her counselor, OmNom, pulls her up and continues singing with the others.
"Happy birthday to you. Happy birthday to you. Happy birthday dear, Kate. Happy birthday to you!"
Thinking that it's over, Kate starts to sit down but is suddenly grabbed by the hand and is pulled into the aisle and is lead, running, around the room. She spies her sister, who is just as confused as she is, but manages to smile and have fun. So Kate follows her lead and lets herself get into it as the counselors sing again.
"Round the tables, you must go, you must go, you must go! Round the tables you must go, it's your birthday! Back around the other way, other way, other way! Back around the other way, it's your birthday!"
By the time she sits back down at her table, Kate is out of breath, completely red-faced and really happy. She doesn't do anything crazy like that (that's more her twin's department), and it was such fun!
"Oh my god! Kate, that was so funny!" her cabin mate, Jenna, says as they dig into their desserts.
Kate makes a wish and blows out her candle before she replies. "Yeah, it kind of was. But Wes seemed to enjoy it," she comments pointing out the boy in her class nearly all the girl had crushes on.
"Yeah, I guess so," Jenna says, knowing that if Wes liked it, it must not be so bad.
Kate and Tess lock eyes from across the room and smile at each other, touching the corner of their eye then their chests and finally pointing at each other. I love you. Their way of saying it without saying it.
If the noise in the room was loud before, it's almost deafening now. Everyone was talking about what they had just seen and how crazy it was and how funny it was. Kate was still embarrassed about it but found herself laughing with her friends about it on their way back to their cabin to get ready for the dance that was to happen that night.
Sitting on her bed when Kate got back to it was a yellow envelope. The front had her name written in her mom's slanted handwriting. Kate rips it open and pulls out the card inside. On the front is a pug with giant googly eyes that moved when Kate shook it around. She opens it and inside is simply typed: 'Hope your birthday is Crazy!" and underneath, again her her mom's writing is a short message.
Happy (early) birthday, Katie Bean! We hope you're having an amazing time at camp. We can't wait to hear all the stories when you get back! Have fun!
Love,
Mom, Dad, and Addy.
Kate smiles and stuffs the card back into the envelope and into the outside pocket of her suitcase. She grabs her hairbrush and an extra elastic and heads over to the bathroom to fight for a spot at the sink.