R_S: Here's the next chappy! I have another 10 or so already written, and I genuinely think it gets better as it goes, so keep with me =)

Chapter 3

No Privacy

Groaning, Katrina fell back onto her cot and shut her eyes. The tears came nearly instantly. It had been a long day. She had come to Camp Green Lake only to find that she was the only female for miles, aside from the warden. If that was not enough, she was introduced to a group of bullies who likely wanted nothing more than her gone and got felt up by some delinquents. Then, to top it all off, she lied to her aforementioned tent-mates… twice. And not well, at that. She had always been a terrible liar, too nervous for it. What a wonderful day.

Standing up, she sighed and roughly brushed away her tears. They could be back any moment, and she did not want them to see her like this. Squid had made it very clear that her feminine frivolities were not going to be tolerated. It was not all that late, but she thought she would feel much better if she were wearing something comfortable to sleep in. She was sure it was not against the rules, or at least hoped not. The boys probably slept in just their boxers, but that was far from an option for her. Instantly, images of shirtless D-Tent boys popped up, causing Kat to blush. It was comforting and almost made her laugh aloud; it was good to know that, no matter how dire the circumstances, she was still a teenage girl. She was still her, no matter how you dressed it up. What was not comforting was knowing how inappropriate some of what she had packed was, given these unforeseen circumstances.

Turning to her bags, which were on the other end of the cot, she reached in and looked at what she had. It was not much, but besides the necessities, like the sparsely allowed clothing and hygienic materials, she had a small bit of candy and some personal items: stuff for writing home, a small calendar, some make-up (which seemed silly in retrospect)… all her electronics had been immediately confiscated. Because she was a girl, they hadn't checked her luggage- some rule about gender boundaries. They figured it would not be right for a guy to be handling her bras and pads, she supposed, so she was only made to go through a simple metal detector. And like an idiot, when they asked about things like cellphones and IPods, she stupidly handed them over without a fight.

She looked up as the boys entered the tent, causing her flap to wave in the sudden breeze. They each went to their respective cots, either casting wary looks in her direction or ignoring her presence altogether. Kat licked her lips. Flying under the radar was a good idea, her main plan, but it might also behoove her to get on their good sides. She would be polite, she decided, and hopefully by being nice and less of a nuisance, they would continue to look out for her.

"Hi," she offered by way of quiet greeting, "how was the rest of dinner?"

"Fine." Armpit responded coldly. X-Ray stiffened as Squid, Magnet, and Zigzag sent their large friend withering looks. They had agreed not to engage until they were certain they had leverage or, in other words, when X-Ray decided it was time. The plan was for Squid to first snag her file and see what there was on her, and they would go from there. She needed them, X-Ray reasoned, so she would have to come clean if they threatened to pull support. It was an empty threat- as bold a face as the boys put up, they were hardly rough and hardened criminals. But they doubted she would call their bluff, not when she was skittish as a baby deer.

"Oh…" She glanced down, slightly hurt and wondering if she should amend her choice of Armpit as a suitable aid, before asking, "Um, is there a curfew?" Squid snorted at her word choice, muttering 'curfew' mockingly beneath his breath before answering.

"Lights out in an hour or two. We usually just get changed and hang until then, so just stay out of the way." Silently, Katrina thanked her foresight. She had taken a long, hot bubble bath before leaving, knowing it would be her last time in a real bathroom for a long while. The boys had showered just after digging their holes earlier that day. Any awkward shower issues had been curtailed at least for the night.

"Uh, yeah, ok. Lemme just…" she rearranged the flap, which had blown aside, to fully separate their spaces. The boys turned away to get changed into their nightclothes, if they had any. Some just extra soft tee-shirts they managed to steal from the laundry, others simply stripped their day shirts off and planned to sleep in their boxers. The ones who wanted to remove their jumpsuits got into their cots, others just sat on the edge. None spared her direction a second glance… at first.

"Hey Magnet, pass me my shirt man- I know you took it." Squid barked from across the tent. He always slipped into the laundry room and snagged an extra shirt or two for various comfort purposes. There was no response. "Magnet… Magnet… Hey Magnet!" He looked up to see what caused the lack of answer and noticed that Magnet was staring straight ahead, not blinking. With a bemused expression, he turned to see what he was so captivating behind him. The answer quickly became obvious.

Yes, the 'curtain' blocked off their new roommate's personal space, but it did not completely block her from view. A dark silhouette was clearly visible while getting changed behind the sheets. The two boys stared mesmerized as the figure began to remove her the jumpsuit that served as pants. Their lack of movement caught the other boys' attention. Zero took a singular glance before turning away, giving the others a distasteful look that contrasted with his blush.

"Hey guys, what's…" X-Ray broke away in mid sentence. He whacked Armpit in the shoulder, effectively catching his attention, and pointed. They now also stood completely engrossed by Katrina and poked Zigzag to point it out. He winced at the sudden, hard jab to his shoulder, and looked up. The first thing he noticed was that no one was moving. Upon turning his head in order to find out what was so mesmerizing, he was met by what he thought might have been the most amazing sight he had ever witnessed in his entire life (though, he later reasoned, it likely was just a result of extended isolation from women). The curvy, woman's silhouette immediately hypnotized him. None of the boys had noticed before, but Kat, though small, was all curves. They nearly whimpered when she began to take off her shirt. All her movements seemed to be in slow motion.

It was Squid who finally ripped himself from his observing stupor and spun around. That was not the way southern gentlemen were meant to act. Grabbing his dirty shirt, he tossed it onto ZigZag in order to wake him up. It worked, for when the white fabric blocked his view, his gaze automatically lowered. Such actions continued until all the D-Tent boys were watching the ground, eyes only flickering occasionally for a teasing glacne, as they finished getting changed. As much trouble as the girl was, she certainly came with some perks.

"Guys," Katrina called out softly from behind the 'curtain', "you decent?" She received mostly grunts as confirmation before moving aside the flap to step out.

"Whoa…" Zigzag's low, rumbling voice erupted through the tent as Squid's signature toothpick fell to the ground. X-Ray snorted, shaking her head at her innocent stupidity. She seemed to sense what the issue was, taking a small step back and crossing her arms over herself.

"You're gonna wear that here?" Squid sniped, before noticing the absence of his toothpick.

Kat looked down at herself to verify what he meant, though she already knew. She was wearing a skintight camisole that hugged her every curve and a pair of hot shorts that just barely covered her underwear. She really had thought she would be with other girls, that it would not matter or that they would at least supply supplemental sleepwear. She bit her lip and rubbed her arms nervously.

"I… I didn't know exactly…" she trailed off, uncertain how to explain.

"Jeez, chica, it's not that hot." Magnet pointed out, trying to lighten the mood.

"Yeah. Besides," joked X-Ray, "it's a dry heat." They all gave a good laugh at that, though she seemed no more comforted. She made the effort to give them a small smile before moving to her cot. She bent over, five pairs of eyes glued to her backside, and retrieved her toothbrush and toothpaste. Standing back up, she turned back, shifting awkwardly with her silent question.

"There's a spigot out by the showers." Armpit offered blandly.

"But you don't think you're goin' alone lookin' like that?" Squid's voice was incredulous, with an almost condescending under tone.

"Take someone with you, a'ight." ordered X-Ray, leaning back. Clearly, it would not be him.

Kat blushed, "Um, I don't want to be a bother…"

"Too late for that," Squid snorted, and Zigzag threw his balled up socks at him. He was being too mean, his gaze said, but he had no real power to curtail it.

"It ain't safe." X-Ray insisted, "Pick someone."

"And damnit, put on the damn uniform before you cause some real trouble out there." She immediately did as the gruff southern boy instructed, this time zipping it fully, before coming back out from her area. She shifted again, looking around the room. No one seemed to be offering, as she looked around imploringly. Armpit let out an annoyed sigh as he stood not without effort.

"C'mon, let's get this done." She muttered her thanks, but he only brushed passed her. She followed like a chastised puppy.

It was a relatively uneventful trip. The two walked to the water spigot, where she brushed her teeth as he just looked around expressionlessly. A few of the other campers lingered around, eyeing her appreciatively, but they slunk off at the sight of Armpit's withering gaze. When they returned, the boys had assembled on Zigzag's bed and taken out a worn deck of cards. Squid shuffled them quickly and began to deal. Armpit went straight over without another word, ignoring the thanks she offered as she tucked aside her tent flap.

Leaning over to the other side of her space, Kat pulled out a notebook and pencil from one of her bags along with a lap desk to lean on. It was full of little notes to herself and doodles, but it was one of the ones she had grabbed on her way out to Camp Green Lake. Immediately she began writing home with great fervor, telling her parents all about what was going on. She did not ask for it, but she thought that perhaps they could have her moved to a female detention facility. How she was allowed into CGL was a mystery but not one she relished continuously looking into. After only a day, she already had pages of things to say to them and regrets to bare.

"You burnin' through that paper, chica." Magnet commented cheekily, one eyebrow raised. She said nothing, far too focused to notice his attentions.

"Uh-oh, guys, I think she's ignoring us." X-Ray spoke with condescension lacing his voice. She still did not move or even react.

"I don't think she hears us." The Latino stated, craning his neck to get a better view of what was in her hands. Zigzag did the same, but no such luck.

"See anything?"

"No. She's probably recording everything we say so she can relay all of it to the government. Then they'll use the information to…" the others rolled their eyes and tuned out the boy's paranoid babbling. Seconds later he realized no one was listening and quieted down in a huff.

"Done." Kat muttered sadly under her breath, flipping through the pages of loopy writing and quickly done sketches of the camp and her bunkmates. They were not particularly impressive, more meant to give a general idea of what it was like, but her skills were better than a toddler's, at least.

"With what?" Squid asked, louder than usual, catching her attention immediately. A dark flush spread across her cheeks when she noticed them all staring at her.

"Oh, nothing." The brunette answered nervously. Somehow she did not think they would take kindly to her piteous cries to mommy and daddy. She went to put the notebook away, intending to send the letter in the morning, but it was too late. Zigzag's long legs had already carried him over to her in a few quick strides and he pulled it from her hands. She jumped up, futilely attempting to grab the paper from his hands, but it was no competition. The top of her head only came up to his nose. Rather than looking at it on his own, he headed back to the rest of D-Tent and sat down. They all crowded around the tall blond in order to get a glimpse of what was in the book. He opened the cover and began slowly flipping through the pages. Zero looked at them through the corner of his eye but didn't move.

Meanwhile, Katrina bit her lip in a mixture of fear and annoyance. What right had they to touch her things? Now they would mock her for something they had chosen to look at, not something she had offered. She had half a mind to go over there and take it back in an effort to avoid further humiliation, but, her common sense kicked in before she did anything. What was she, a weak little girl, going to do against five juvenile delinquents who had been muscled up by digging holes everyday for months? Nothing. For the umpteenth time that day, she was reminded of the fact that she was entirely at their mercy.

"Hey look," Armpit pointed out as they reached the final drawings, "it's us."

"Cool, we're models!" Squid joked crudely, "Only difference is we're not gay."

"Well," Magnet grinned, "I'm certainly attractive enough for modeling." He struck a mock pose while his friends threw soft punches at his arms, telling him to knock it off.

"Think we ought'a call her 'Sketch'?" asked Armpit.

"No, we can come up with something better." X-Ray murmured dismissively, shooting him a glare. The message was clear- she had not earned a nickname yet. But the boys had already moved on to reading bits of her letter and were oblivious to the hostility. Kat shut her eyes, bracing herself for the onslaught of cruelty- likely with Squid at the center.

"Chicks." The boy muttered under his breath, irritated. He fixed her with a hard glare, and she stuttered an effort to explain.

"I-I just- that was meant to be private, and-"

"You better drop the princess complex, darlin', it ain't gonna work here." He looked like he wanted to go on, but she simply nodded obediently and dropped her gaze. They all looked vaguely affronted at what they read, which seemed a bit unfair to her. It was, after all, private. He did not have it in him to further bully her when she was already down, though, so he backed off. Anyway, it was just for her own good- she needed toughening up to survive that place. She was too delicate to make it out there, and that was going to get her into some serious trouble. He and the boys were not about to let that happen. So instead, he just left her with a final comment.

"Best get to your little room." He sneered, "You start diggin' tomorrow, and we get up at 4:30." That caught her attention more than anything else that day. Her head shot up in disbelief, eyes widening.

"WHA-"

"Lights out!" Dr. Pendanski's voice rang out through the night as he checked each tent to ensure everyone's presence. D-Tent climbed into their beds as he came in to take a head count. A minute later, the lights went out loudly.

Fwoomtch!

Blackness engulfed her, and Katrina silently cried herself into a fitful sleep.

End of Chapter

R_S: Leave me a nice review, please! I'd really like more feedback than I'm getting. It helps me write!