Part 12 (1/2)
Ma.s.sie, Alicia, and Claire held hands, hoping they'd be together.
”Claire Lyons, Olivia Ryan, Josh Hotz, and Cam Fisher, and your captain is Coral McAdams.”
Strawberry jumped for joy. ”I love that I'm captain!” She stuck two fingers in her mouth and whistled. ”Over here, team!”
Claire looked at Ma.s.sie and silently begged for help. Cam and and Josh? She didn't know if she should celebrate or tie a rock to her leg and walk straight into Lake Placid. Josh? She didn't know if she should celebrate or tie a rock to her leg and walk straight into Lake Placid.
”Olivia,” Alicia whispered.
”Yeah.” Olivia stepped under the tree.
”Find out who Josh likes,” Alicia ordered. ”But don't let him know I want to know.”
”Given.” Olivia nodded. ”Come on, Claire.”
Claire looked back at Ma.s.sie one last time, but all Ma.s.sie could do was wave goodbye with a half-smile on her face. Was she actually enjoying this?
”Pod three is Alicia Rivera-”
”You're hot!” shouted one of the boys.
Mr. Myner ignored the interruption. ”Carrie Randolph, Layne Abeley, Marc Cooper, B. J. O'Brian, Adam Freeman. Your captain is Ma.s.sie Block.”
”Wait, what about me?” Chris Plovert asked, perplexed.
”I thought you might want to sit this one out because of the leg,” Mr. Dingle said.
”No way, man,” Plovert snapped. ”That's discrimination. I can do this.”
”Are you sure, Mr. Plovert?” Mr. Dingle pushed his gla.s.ses up his nose. ”It is is a race, you know.” a race, you know.”
”I know.”
”O-kay.” Mr. Myner sounded doubtful but willing to give Plovert a chance. ”Who would like to welcome Chris to their team?”
No one volunteered. Not even Dylan.
”Aw, come on, guys,” Chris pleaded.
”Dude, we're playing for fooood.” Kemp rubbed his skinny belly. ”No hard feelings, but you gotta understand.”
”He can come on our team,” a sweet voice offered.
Chris's face lit up when he saw that it belonged to the beautiful Olivia Ryan, the blond half of the Twenty.
Dylan stomped her foot and scowled.
”O-livia,” Strawberry snapped. ”What are you doing? I'm the captain and I say who joins this team.”
But it was too late. Plovert was already hobbling over.
”You just kissed our chance at a good lunch goodbye.” Strawberry punched the trunk of a spruce tree. ”What were you thinking?” Her face turned dark red.
”Trust me, it's part of my strategy,” Olivia whispered. ”If one of us gets hurt, we'll have a pair of crutches.” She winked. ”How smart is that that?”
Strawberry punched the tree again while the rest of her pod welcomed their newest member.
”Are all pods ready?” Mr. Myner asked.
”Ready,” everyone said, almost at the same time.
”On the count of three I want you to head toward the back of the cabins and find your pod's trailhead. I have marked a different entry point for each: green for pod one, blue for two, and yellow for three. Ready? One-”
And they were off.
Strawberry marched ahead of her pod, tearing down every leaf and branch that crossed her path. She swung her arms like the speed-walking mothers that Claire and Ma.s.sie always pa.s.sed on their way to school.
”Let's go, people!” Strawberry shouted without turning around.
Claire looked at Cam and rolled her eyes, hoping he would join her in making fun of Strawberry, but he immediately looked up at the blue sky. It was obviously going to take more than an eye roll to win him back.
The thick woods swallowed up the compet.i.tion's voices and crunching footsteps as they all went their separate ways. Soon silence hugged them like a sleeping bag. Claire wondered if anyone could hear how hard her heart was pounding.
”Hey, Claire, want me to take your picture?” Josh scurried up beside her and pulled a digital camera out of his blue wool pea coat. He twirled it around his finger by its gray string.
”Hey, how'd you get that?” Claire stopped and looked into his warm dark brown eyes. ”Mr. Myner took took mine.” mine.”
”I didn't tell Dingle I had it.” His eyelashes were so thick and dark, Claire wondered if he was wearing mascara. And then she realized why Alicia thought he was so cute: he looked exactly like her.
”I wish I'd thought of that.” Claire kicked a pinecone. It accidentally hit the back of Strawberry's hiking boot.
”Let's go, people!” she shouted again. ”Less kicking and more walking, please.”
Claire snickered and looked at Cam again, but Josh was blocking him.
”I feel so bad you don't have your camera.” He shook his head and smiled affectionately. ”You're too honest. That's what I like about you.”
Claire whipped her head around to see if Olivia had heard that. If she she had, then Alicia would, and ... The rest was too terrifying to think about. had, then Alicia would, and ... The rest was too terrifying to think about.
But Olivia was too busy sc.r.a.ping a mud clump off the end of Plovert's crutch to hear.
”Hey, Strawberry, can I take a look at that map?” Cam shouted as he ran ahead. A faint trace of his sweet-smelling Drakkar Noir cologne lingered behind in his absence. Claire inhaled deeply as she moved through it, hoping to reclaim a little piece of him. But Josh inched closer to Claire. Now that Cam was gone, Josh's spicy Polo cologne seemed to chase the last bits of Drakkar away for good.
”Who's hungry?” Strawberry barked.
”Me,” everyone answered at once.
”THEN MOVE!”
Two white-breasted sparrows darted out of their nest and everyone jumped.