CHAPTER FOUR: WELCOME TO DEADWOOD
Octavia bit back a groan. Why did it have to be her who got stuck with the human? She sighed heavily, resting her head on the seat in front of her.
The boy, Cameron, leaned over, apparently oblivious to her lack of enthusiasm. "Oh shoot! We got matching shirts!" he said, his voice brimming with an obnoxious cheerfulness. "I found mine in the trash. I'm guessing you bought it from the merch store though."
Octavia groaned, rubbing her eyes tiredly. She had no interest in speaking to anyone who had a smile on their face.
"What?" Cameron said defensively, smiling at her. "I think it looks awesome."
"I hate it. But thanks," Octavia muttered bitterly, her disdain dripping from each word.
Cameron's grin only widened, undeterred by Octavia's negative energy. "What, don't tell me you're not stoked to spend two whole months at Deadwood!" he exclaimed, grinning widely.
Octavia narrowed her eyes, before letting out a sad sigh, her shoulders sinking.
"Your parents made you go, didn't they?" Cameron probed.
"What gave it away?" She replied sarcastically, her tone laced with bitterness. She had hoped her frustration would be obvious enough to deter any further conversation.
Cameron, undeterred by her snarky response, offered a sympathetic smile. "You know... something tells me you're a city person," he remarked jokingly, his attempt at camaraderie falling flat.
Octavia scoffed, not buying into his attempt to find common ground. "What, you're a wilderness person? Roughing it out among the trees?" she retorted, skepticism scrawled on her face.
Cameron chuckled, completely missing her sarcasm. "Man, you know it. I almost don't wanna go back, you know?" he confessed.
"No," Octavia replied curtly.
Cameron paused for a moment, searching for a connection. "Well... I dunno. Don't you sometimes get tired of having to deal with people?" his voice carried a hint of vulnerability as if he hoped she would understand.
"I mean, yeah, the whole world sucks, but it's, I dunno... got computers and internet and shit," Octavia mumbled, her attention already diverted to her device. She scrolled idly through Voxelgram, looking for some memes to distract her.
She scrolled past a post that looked familiar. It was the pic Courtney had taken of Octavia a few moments ago. She had already posted the picture! Did she have no life?
"Lmfao yall I can't with her shirt rn im unironically screaming rn" the post read, having already garnered a few hundred likes.
"That bitch..." Octavia muttered, gripping her phone tighter as she opened the replies and began typing.
"So how are those 'computers and shit' working out for you?" Cameron muttered teasingly, noticing her angered demeanor.
"It's nothing," Octavia said quickly, her fingers tapping the screen as she typed out the most heinous and hurtful message her teenage brain could concoct.
"You know, you shouldn't respond to people like Courtney," Cameron said.
"Thanks, dude, but I don't need your advice," Octavia said bitterly, turning away from Cameron. "Courtney's been extra shitty all week, and somebody's gotta put her in her place."
"I get that, but you know it's not gonna help," Cameron said. "She won't break into tears at whatever you're typing. She's probably just gonna laugh and show her friends how mad she made you."
Octavia paused for a moment. Perhaps he was right. Maybe she was just letting the brat get to her head. She scoffed and sent the message anyway. Octavia then opened her music playlist, searching for something to pull her out of the moment. She wasn't sure what she was in the mood for, but she needed something.
Yet as she reached into her pocket for her earbuds, they felt worryingly empty. She put her hand through her other pocket, finding nothing as she began to frantically pat herself down. She had left it at home! "Are you serious? How? How could my day get worse?" she asked herself.
"Oh-em-gee. Stephenie, look who just commented on my post!"
Octavia heard the high-pitched laughter of those hellhound divas from the front of the bus. She slouched over defeatedly, laying her head on her knees as she clawed her talons into her scalp.
"Listen, they're laughing now, but in 2 minutes they'll have forgotten you exist," Cameron said comfortingly. Octavia felt Cameron pat her shoulder. She sighed, tucking her phone in her pocket. There was no reason to waste battery power if she couldn't even listen to anything.
"Anyway, I'm sorry that you're not excited to be here. I can't wait." Cameron said, shrugging.
Octavia squinted at him. She couldn't figure out what his deal was. Forget her initial confusion at why he even wanted to talk to her when nobody else even wanted to look at her; What was so great about summer camp? They would get to see some trees, maybe a squirrel taking a shit. She shook her head. "I don't know what you see in all this."
Cameron stayed silent for a moment before sighing and relenting. "It's a good way for me to get away from my parents."
Octavia perked up at that, her standoffish demeanor softening slightly. "Oh. Your parents suck too?" She asked.
Cameron grimaced. "Big time, yeah. It's a long story, but I take every chance I can to get away from them."
"Wait," Octavia said, looking over at him with a raised brow. "Didn't you say you lived in your car? Are your parents bumming with you or something?"
Cameron tensed up a bit. "Well, uh- Well, no, they're not. But like I said, it's a long story."
Octavia suspected there was something more to his 'long story', but shrugged it off and dropped the issue. It sounded like he didn't want to talk about it.
"Forget about my parents," Cameron said with a sigh, relaxing in his seat. "I'm just glad I won't have to see Mr Maxson again."
Octavia cracked a ghost of a smile at that. "Ditto," she said. "I'm gonna try to get some sleep, 'kay?"
"Gotcha, I'll keep quiet," Cameron said.
"Oh Em Gee, Taylor! Josh is so NOT going to prom next year!" A grating voice yelled out, followed by shrill cackling.
Octavia buried her face in her knees and groaned. It was going to be a long ride to summer camp.
As the worn-out school bus trundled along the winding forest road, the camp's entrance finally came into view. The bus hissed to a stop, the engine's rumble fading. Octavia grabbed her suitcase as campers began to stand up, getting in formation as everyone started filing out of the bus.
Stepping off the bus, Octavia was greeted by the earthy scent of pine needles and the faint rustling of trees. She looked back and saw nothing more than an endless expanse of dense forest. She couldn't even see civilization anymore.
There went her plans of just running away from camp and chilling somewhere in the city.
"Welcome! Welcome all!" A goat-headed camp counselor bellowed as the students stepped off the bus and amassed into a large crowd. He wore a cowboy hat, a collared leather jacket, and cheap tan slacks with grass stains on his knees; his clothes had seen better days, even by Octavia's standards. Yet still, he carried an air of authority. Octavia couldn't help but get the feeling that Cole was a badass, though she wasn't sure why. Maybe it was the hat.
He began to pace up and down the row of teens, his hands clasped behind his back. "I'll be your Camp Counselor for the next two months. You can call me Counselor Cole," he said, glancing around at the crowd before him. He raised a finger, his face turning stern. "Here at Camp Dreadwood, we have one rule. Can anyone guess what that rule is?" He asked, glancing around at the silent crowd of adolescents.
"No smoking?" One of the students asked.
"Nope!" the counselor chuckled, giving a crooked grin, before throwing his arms out to his side. "Our only rule here at Camp Deadwood is that you ALL have fun!"
Octavia rolled her eyes. She was going to break that rule for sure. Everyone else seemed to approve of the lax rules however.
The counselor chuckled and tipped his hat at the high schoolers. It seemed to delight him to see everyone (besides Octavia) become less stiff. He put his hands on his hips, proudly surveying all the campers before him, nodding to himself.
"Alright y'all, get in groups of four!" He called out, stepping back and giving the teens an expectant nod. He started snapping his fingers. "Go on now, ain't no rules! Pick anyone you want!"
Immediately, before Octavia could even separate herself from Cameron, the entire crowd descended into chaos. Campers swarmed about, dashing to group up with their friends. Octavia was shoved forward, backward, and sideways as they roughly pushed past her.
Octavia grunted as a hand roughly shoved her back, causing her to stumble and fall flat on her face. She groaned pathetically into the gravel, before slowly pushing herself up onto her knees. She looked around, seeing everyone had sorted themselves into their groups of four. And, of course, each group put plenty of distance between themselves and her.
Octavia pouted, blowing her bangs out of her face as she brushed the dirt off her shirt.
"Alright, there's that camper spirit!" Counselor Cole said with a cheer, clapping in delight. He paced up and down the line like a drill sergeant, looking down at the teens. "The groups you have all chosen will be your cabin mates. You're gonna be spending the next two months with 'em."
He pointed at Courtney and her Hellhound girls clique, who had banded together immediately. "You four are... the Moonhowlers."
Courtney scoffed. "Ummmmm, can we have a better name maybeee?" she piped up, putting a hand on her hip as she brushed her bangs aside. "Something involving glitter or something? Like, ugh. Literally."
Counselor Cole rolled his eyes, a bemused smirk on his face. "Fine. You can be... Glitter...fang. Glitterfang, stationed at cabin A," he said. The Glitterfangs giggled and high-fived each other.
Cole began pacing down the formation of campers, listing each of the groups' cabin names and where they would be assigned. "Badgerclaw; you're in Cabin B. Eagleheart, C. Hogtusk, Cabin D. Moosetrack, E."
Counselor Cole sidled up before Octavia, who was just getting up off her knees. He looked side to side, trying to find her a group, before giving her a sorry look. "Darn. Looks like you were a bit slow on the draw, missy!" he joked as the entire camp laughed at her.
Octavia groaned miserably, looking up at the tall counselor. "Does that mean I get to go home?" She asked.
Counselor Cole looked at her, confused for a moment, before bursting out laughing. He clutched his side, leaning up against a lamp pole as everyone else started chuckling. He took a deep breath and tipped his hat. "I ain't heard that one before! You must be the class clown! Don't worry, lil' lady. We'll find someone for you."
Cole scanned the crowd, looking for any groups of three. He quickly spotted Cameron standing alone, his hands in his pockets. He walked over and grabbed Cameron by the shoulder. "Well well well! I think we found your cabin mate," he said as he dragged the boy over to Octavia, pushing him into her.
Octavia grunted in surprise as Cameron stumbled into her arms, nearly knocking her over. "Sorry, sorry," Cameron mumbled to her, standing upright and giving a confused glare at Cole, who merely shrugged.
"Ya'll gonna be bunkin' up with ol' four eyes in Cabin F," Cole said, before stepping back and tapping his chin thoughtfully. "Now, you gon' need a cabin name."
"We really don't," Octavia muttered under her breath.
Cole snapped his fingers, a proud grin forming on his face. "Possumpaw Cabin!" He proclaimed proudly. A few students let out some poorly stifled laughs as Octavia rubbed her face in annoyance. Maybe if she played dead like a possum, she could get sent home.
The campers around Octavia were becoming restless. For whatever stupid reason, they couldn't wait to get inside the campgrounds. As a few of the students stepped forward, however, Cole stopped them with a raised hand.
"There is one rule besides the fun rule." He said, his expression darkening a bit. Octavia raised an eyebrow, her interest piqued.
Cole looked around the crowd of campers. "Don't go into the Dark Woods," he warned, pausing for dramatic effect. He looked at Cameron, and his brow furrowed. "Under any circumstance."
The campers murmured amongst themselves, confusion and curiosity rising amidst them. Cole glared at everyone, his friendly demeanor vanishing. Even his warm country drawl seemed to fade. "I said don't. Every year, I tell people this. And every year, someone wanders off and gets hurt. Don't let that be you." He leveled his gaze at Cameron for a moment.
Octavia and Cameron looked at each other. Cameron shrugged, seeming completely unaware of what had earned him that scowl from Cole.
With a clap of his hands, Cole beckoned the crowd to follow him. They left the gravel parking lot of the camp and headed through the entrance. Octavia looked up at the towering gates, adorned with an intricate wrought-iron design, standing tall and sturdyâ"a wooden slab dangled by dark iron chains from the oak gate.
Carved into it were the words, "Camp Deadwood."