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» 𝕤𝕦𝕞𝕞𝕒𝕣𝕪: how travis gave katie her nickname.
» 𝕨𝕠𝕣𝕕𝕤: 1031
. . .
Crash!
"Hey, watch it!"
Bang!
"He started it, Luke!"
Blam!
"It wasn't me!"
I burrowed my head into the sleeping bag's flat pillow, wishing I could be anywhere but the room. Wishing I could be anyone but me. A bowling pin (a bowling pin) landed near me from somewhere across the room, and I shrunk further into myself, whimpering.
Was this what it was like to be a halfblood?
I didn't want to be a halfblood.
When my dad sat me down and explained I'd be going to a summer camp, I was ecstatic. I'd get to meet new friends, make arts and crafts, and hike in the beautiful forest on Long Island. I could experience the lake - maybe tubing! - and smell sunscreen on its shores. For a whole three months. It sounded amazing.
What my dad failed to mention, unfortunately, was that it was basically a psych ward for misfits.
"Hey, I told you guys to keep it down! We've got an early morning," came the voice of the so-called counselor, though he wasn't much older than the rest of them.
His announcement did nothing.
I'd been placed in the eleventh cabin with a handful of demigods just as confused as I was - the people at the front hardly stopped to explain what a freaking "halfblood" was in the first place before chucking us into this hectic mess. Cabin 11 was full of screaming kids running around and banging into every available surface. It smelled like dirty gym socks and old sheets, and I couldn't see anything past the first few bunks because of the pillows and toilet paper being tossed around.
I hated it here.
"You look a little out of sorts."
From the top of the nearest bunk, a head of curls stared down at me. The boy offered me a grin, but I couldn't have cared less to smile in return. When I didn't react, he flung himself over the bars of the bunk and landed conveniently at my side. His legs folded so he could sit next to me, and I lifted myself up on my elbows.
"I'm Travis."
I turned my head, hoping he'd just leave me alone. Making friends wasn't exactly at the top of my list of things to do anymore. But he didn't seem to mind my disinterest and utter terror of our surroundings.
"How old are you, mystery girl? I'm eleven."
In the back of the cabin, someone let out a blood-thirsty war cry.
"Don't mind them," Travis said. "They're noisy, but they mean well. They're my siblings."
I wondered if he was just like them. He probably was.
"Do you want some?" Digging under the bed, the boy revealed a king-sized KitKat bar with a mischievous glance. He held a finger up to his mouth, as if I was even close to talking, and ripped it open.
He snapped it into halves and held one out to me. "It's kinda hard to get used to them, but hopefully you'll be claimed soon. They mean well."
"They mean bodily harm," I muttered, and reluctantly took the KitKat from him.
"Aha, so you do talk!" he celebrated, and laid the other half of his candy on its wrapper next to me. "I can tell we're really gonna get along."
My eyes went to the ceiling. I somehow doubt that. If I acted uninterested enough, maybe he'd just leave.
"You still didn't give me your name," he reminded me, eyes searching for an answer.
I grumbled, "Didn't want to."
He chuckled and leaned forward. "Maybe I should start guessing. You look like a Tessa."
Scrunching up my nose, I shook my head.
"Bailey?"
This kid was annoying - I just wanted this interacting to end so I could try to get some shut eye. I definitely didn't want to make friends with any of the kids who lived in this cabin full-time; it seemed like they were all trouble. Especially seeing as this one wouldn't leave me alone, I made the mental note to stay as far away from them once I got placed in my real cabin.
"My name's Katie."
"Katie." The boy tested my name out, eventually nodding. "I can see it."
I laid my head back down and hummed in finality.
"Do you not like KitKats or something?" he inquired, already halfway through his piece.
I figured there was no hope of shaking him until I engaged in the conversation, so I sat all the way up to fold my legs under myself. "Not really."
"But your name's Katie," he argued, "it's even alliterative! Katie KitKat."
I exhaled, irritated. Either this boy was stupid or he just enjoyed putting people off. "Well, I don't know what to tell you. I think I have bigger worries now than what chocolate I like."
"Aw, come on, Katie-kat. There's always time for chocolate!"
"Don't call me that."
"I think it suits you."
"Well, I don't." This was miserable. I cursed my dad for ever thinking of bringing me here, and I still had three months of this nightmare. "Can I just go to sleep please?"
He grinned with an evil glint in his eye, and he jumped up. "Sure thing, Katie-kat. Maybe tomorrow I can give you the exclusive Stoll Tour de Camp!"
"Not happening."
"We're gonna be great friends, you and I." Travis Stoll finished his piece of candy and stuffed my half in his mouth. Through a layer of chocolate, he said, "Sweet dreams, Katie-kat!" and clambered up to his bunk.
Confused and exasperated, I tossed myself to face the wall away from his bed. This Travis Stoll was already on my very last nerve, and I didn't want to know what on earth the "Stoll Tour de Camp" involved.
A small voice of reason in me head suggested I was just tired and annoyed at the world, and I should try to give him another chance to come off as less irksome. But, although I was normally patient to a fault, I couldn't even imagine wanting to talk to him again to find out. Maybe after some sleep, I would feel different.
As long as he didn't call me Katie-kat ever again, we'd be off to a good foot.
If not, this was going to be a long summer.
