**Nat’s POV**
Well, I was REALLY nervous about this whole camp thing, but it seems to be working out okay. I mean, there are a couple really nice people in my bunk. There are a couple of really mean people, as well, but I think eventually they’ll just ignore me, and that’ll be good. Spencer- The boys’ cabin is really nice, too.
“God, I’m hungry,” Jacey moaned.
“Me too,” Eurydice and Olivia agreed.
“Better change fast,” Jasmine advised. “There’s usually a huge long line for meals.”
I stared at her. “You’ve been here before?”
“Yeah, this is my third year,” she said, sounding surprised that I didn’t know.
“Oh. Cool,” I shrugged, grabbing my clothes off my bed. Well, that’s a good thing to know… I think I’ll stick with Jasmine…
After we got changed back into the same clothes we’d been wearing, we left the cabin and the preps, who were all picking out new clothes, even though they hadn’t actually done anything in their old ones.
We hurried up the hill to the dining hall, and found the guys all standing outside. We joined them happily.
“How much longer till dinner?” Joe moaned.
“Uh… five minutes. Can you live that long?” Ray asked teasingly.
“Barely,” grunted Joe, collapsing onto the steps of the dining hall.
“Wow, hunger issues, huh?” Jacey grinned.
“Uh huh,” Joe sighed.
At that moment, a counselor stuck her head through the door.
“Ring the bell!” she ordered.
“Uh… what bell?” Mikey asked slowly.
“The one right behind you, Hun,” the counselor snorted, and he turned and nearly fell over a big metal bell hanging from a stick stuck in the ground. He reached down and shook the clapper, his face slightly red.
“FOOD!” Joe yelled, leaping through the door. Dinner was macaroni and cheese. I was starving and ate all of mine, even though I’m usually not much of an eater. Joe, Frank, Jacey, and several others went back for seconds.
There was the usual funny conversation, which flew from music to sports to clothes to how much everyone hated preps to the Belleville basketball team. It was a lot of fun, and even I started talking and feeling more at home.
After we finished eating, there were the usual announcements. I didn’t pay much attention; they were mostly about sailing and rock climbing trips, which I didn’t care at all about. But then Wendy and Robin got up.
“Okay, Cabin One, boys and girls, have a cookout tomorrow night!” Wendy announced happily.
“We’ll tell you more about it tomorrow, but we just wanted you to know. If any of you have any problems about going, please talk to one of us,” Robin said calmly.
There was a fair bit of excited whispering. I was pretty psyched, myself. Cookouts were so fun, and who knew what would happen with these guys?
After dinner, we went back to our respective cabins with cheery good nights. Then we had about an hour of “quiet time” before lights out, Wendy told us. The preps immediately huddled up and started talking, probably about how weird we were. Jacey and Eurydice sat on Eurydice’s bed talking quietly, Olivia took out a notebook and started drawing, and Jasmine took out her huge book.
I followed her lead, but I was so tired that I fell asleep after half an hour of reading.

**Jacey’s POV**
I woke up to the sound of trumpets. Trumpets? What the hell? I sat up, banged my head on the bottom of Eurydice’s bed, and fell back down again.
Eurydice rolled out of bed and hit the floor with a thump. She dragged herself to her feet, rubbing her eyes sleepily.
“What in the name of all things caffeinated is going on?” she asked drowsily.
“Wake up call,” Jasmine said shortly, walking in the door. Eurydice stared at her in wonder.
“You were up BEFORE the wake up call?” she asked dazedly.
Jasmine just nodded. “Better get dressed and washed up. Breakfast is in fifteen minutes.”
“You can go in your pajamas, though,” Wendy added at Eurydice’s alarmed expression.
“Thank god,” I muttered, pulling my pillow over my head. Eurydice jumped and spun around.
“You’re awake?” I heard her ask through the pillow.
“No,” I mumbled.
“WAKE UP JACEY!” Olivia’s voice screamed, and someone pulled my pillow away.
“Give it back, betch,” I groaned, grabbing blindly for my beloved pillow.
“Never!” she shrieked, and there was the sound of running feet and the door slamming.
“Did she just… take my pillow outside?” I asked slowly, my eyes still squeezed shut.
“Down to the lake, it looks like,” Eurydice’s voice said dryly.
“WHAT?” I yelled, practically levitating out of my bed. I ran across the floor in my bare feet, threw the door open, ran out into the cold, cold early morning air, looked down to the lake… and saw no one.
“What the hell?” I asked for the second time in five minutes. “Where’d she go?”
“Looking for this?” a voice asked teasingly, and I turned to see Gerard holding… my pillow.
“Give it,” I growled.
“Uh… maybe…” he pretended to think.
“Now, betch,” I snapped.
“Uh! Did you just call me a betch?” he asked, striking a preppy pose.
“Maybe I did, betch!” I shot back, trying to contain my laughter. “Now give it.”
“Give what?” he asked innocently.
“The effing pillow, dorkbag,” I growled.
“Okay, okay, no need to get angry,” he sighed, stepping casually off the boys’ cabin porch. He sauntered slowly across the hill, holding the pillow out at arm’s length. He was a few yards from our porch when his cabin’s door slammed open and a blur sped out, raced up to Gerard, and snatched the pillow out of his astonished grasp.
“Frank!” I screamed as he skidded to a stop, halfway back to his cabin.
“Can I help you?” he asked politely.
“Yes! Give me back my freaking pillow before I eat you!” I hollered.
“Should I? Or shouldn’t I…?” he mused.
“There are many good reasons for you to give it back Frank, and most of them involve personal bodily harm done to you by me,” I threatened. “So what are the reasons for you not to give it back?”
He thought. “Well, there’s only one,” he said at last.
“Which is?”
“The expression on your face, my dear, is absolutely priceless,” he grinned before tossing the pillow to me. I instinctively caught it, rather surprised.
“Oh. Okay. Thanks?” I said dazedly.
“No problemo, sweetie,” he laughed, strolling back into his cabin. Gerard shrugged and followed him.
I wandered out onto the path between the cabins.. Frank… that boy is evil… and devilishly cute… what? Devilishly cutely… evil? Okay, stupid, stupid…
Admit it, it would make life a lot easier if you just stopped denying that you love him.
Love him? Excuse me?
Yes, love him. It's rather obvious.
*Eyebrow raise* Obvious? I rather think not.
I rather think so.
Name a few clues, then, if you’re so smart.
One: How you can’t stop looking at him. Two: How happy you felt when you threw a handful of water into his face and he looked at you that way. Three: How you get those shivers whenever you meet his eyes. Four: That feeling you got when he called you Sweetie.
And what feeling would that be, huh?
I think it would be the feeling that you want to hear that more often.
What? Shut up! You’re making this all up!
No I’m not.
Yeah, you are. Who are you, anyway?
Your romantic side. And I think I would know when you’re in love with someone, dear.
Don’t call me dear!
Oh, right, sorry, you’re reserving that privilege for Frank.
Shut UP.
I shook my head and cleared my thoughts. I glanced down at what I was wearing, baggy black pajama pants with bright popsicles and a blue tank top. Didn't match at all. Do I care? No. I shrugged and sat on the boys' porch and stared at the lake. Moments later Gerard came back out and sat down next to me.
"Love the get up," he remarked.
"You know you do," I said not taking my eyes off the lake. Gerard laughed a little and I could see him out from the side of my eye. I heard yelling inside the cabin,
"JESUS, PETE, PUT ON YOU R FREAKING PANTS! AGH, MY EYES!" somebody yelled. I stiffened.
"I'M SORRY, I'M SORRY!" Pete, I assumed, yelled back.
"OH, GOD, EW!" the person screamed. I took a deep breath.
"PETE, IF YOU'RE PLANNING ON COMING OUT HERE WITHOUT YOUR PANTS I WILL PERSONALY RIP YOUR BALLS OFF!" I bellowed. Gerard cringed and burst out laughing. I heard running noises and Pete came running out with pants on.
"I AM NOT PLANNING ON GOING OUT WITHOUT MY PANTS, THANK YOU VERY MUCH," Pete screamed in my face. I stood up and yelled right back,
"WELL, PETER, I DON'T KNOW WHAT TO EXPECT FROM YOU! YOU'RE BASICALY OVERFLOWING WITH TESESTERONE, EVEN FOR A GUY!"
"DO NOT MISTAKE ME FOR HORMONE BOY!" he yelled grinning and pointing inside the cabin, where I could vaguely see Brendon daydreaming. I burst out laughing.
"Does he do that often?"
"Yes."
"YOU'RE STILL A PERV" I yelled in his face and ran away. Gerard followed me, and we went to the girls' cabin. I am now fully awake, might as well change.
"See yous in a bit, Gee," I said going in.
As soon as I walked into the cabin, I smacked into Eurydice going the other way.
“Where were you?” she asked. “It’s time for breakfast! And I don’t know about you, but I don’t function without breakfast. So let’s go.” With that, she grabbed my arm and towed me back out of the cabin.
“Dude, dude, stop, I’m still wearing my pajamas!” I yelled, trying to go back into the cabin.
“Screw that. Didn’t you hear Wendy? You can go to breakfast in your pajamas. Now come ON.” I sighed and gave in. Eurydice and I walked to the dining hall in our pajamas. Eurydice was wearing an oversized Rolling Stones tee shirt and long black sweatpants that covered her feet and dragged in the dirt.
We got to the dining hall just as the bell was being rung, and we got in line for food. When we finally, FINALLY got into the serving area, I got French toast and hot chocolate, which was the closest they had to coffee. Eurydice had yogurt with brown sugar, fruit, and hot chocolate. We took our food out into the dining room and located the guys and Nat, Olivia, and Jasmine. We sat down in our usual places.
“Sexy PJs, girls,” Pete snorted.
“Thank you, Peter,” Eurydice said sarcastically. “I’m sure yours are equally lovely.”
“Oh, no, sorry, you don’t wear any, do you?” I added, much to the amusement of the guys. Well, except for Pete, of course.
Eurydice grinned at me and we high-fived. I distinctly heard her hiss, “Psyche!”
There were no more comments on sleepwear, or on anything else, for that matter, because everyone was either eating or half asleep. I got the feeling I wasn’t hanging out with morning people. Good, I’ll fit right in… God, I’m tired…
After a bit, the same counselor who had done the announcements at lunch yesterday walked up to the front, and I sat up and tried to pay attention.
“Okay, so for their first activity today, Bunk Two boys and girls have volleyball on the beach. Bunk One boys and girls have soccer out on the field. Bunk Five boys and girls have baseball…” After that, I didn’t listen.
Once we were dismissed from breakfast, Eurydice and I hurried back to the cabin to get dressed. I put on an I am Ghost tee shirt and black Capri’s. Eurydice wore a Thursday tee shirt and black and white checked shorts. We both wore Converse high tops, of course. Then we went outside and joined the group of guys trudging out past the cabins and dining hall to the field.
Soccer was long, wet, muddy, and actually kind of fun. After about half an hour our counselor gave up on trying to get us to play any kind of organized game, so we just ran around and slipped in the mud and kicked the ball, each other, and, in one very strange incident with Mikey, ourselves. There was also a lot of tackling done by the guys. Eurydice, Olivia, and I were perfectly happy to be tackled, but Jasmine and Nat didn’t seem so keen. The preps had left after about fifteen minutes, crying seven cases of hurting ankles.
So we had a good time without them, and walked off cheerfully to the crafts cabin when our counselor said soccer was over and we should go to the crafts cabin to meet our next counselor.