Olivia:
excuse me?
Gage:
[eye roll emoji] Let me rephrase. Annie ismybest friend, but I’m notherbest friend. That honor goes to you, of course
Olivia:
damn straight
Gage:
Not telling her will be hard. I tell her everything
Olivia:
I get that. I do too. but you know how she is. She’ll want this to be something it’s not
Olivia:
she’s not here. We won’t see her. She doesn’t have to know
The dots appear and disappear again.
Gage:
I guess so
Olivia:
it’s probably best if no one knows
Gage:
No one? Like sneak around?
I bite my lip, considering.
Olivia:
how about no one from back home?
Gage:
If that’s what you want
One week goes by, then two, then three, all following the same routine but with different groups of kids.
Nina is a decent roommate when she’s here, but usually she’s out somewhere with Rocky. Because neither of them are cabin counselors, they have some free time in the evenings, like me. But she keeps her things neat and is quiet when she sneaks in after I’m asleep. On Friday nights, she and Rocky head home as soon as they can and don’t return until Sunday morning.
In my position, I interact with pretty much everyone every day. The counselors bring their kids to the lake for free swim and water sports time. I check in with the activity counselors and coordinate with Linda and Troy. I even usually see Hannah, the camp nurse, when I pick up the bottle of swimmer’s ear solution from her each morning.
All of that means that if something happens at Camp Prairie Star, I usually know about it. I hear—and unintentionally see—all the best gossip, and I know that Gage and I are a hot topic among the other counselors.
Even so, during the week while Gage is busy with his campers, our fling is more like longing looks across the crowded mess hall. A few times a week, he comes to find me in the boathouse while his kids are crafting with Nina or hiking with Jake. He pulls me into the corner and kisses me senseless and then takes off again, leaving me spinning.
But from Friday night after the campers leave until Sunday when the new group arrives, we spend every waking minute together. Canoeing or swimming or driving into town or hanging out in one of the cabins.
