Summer Hatin'

Petty Olympics

Tori's POV:

"Are you afraid of heights?" I ask Jenny upon seeing how quiet she's been. Then again, she was never not quiet so I'm starting to believe she's simply not much of a talker rather than a shy camper. Though that doesn't stop me from trying.

She shakes her head, eyes trained to the large, colorful rock climbing wall ahead. 

"You don't like climbing?"

She doesn't move. I sigh, focusing my attention back on the tiny harness. 

I glance over at Jade who's almost finished fastening her group, noticing she's one harness short. She realizes that fact and immediately looks to me, not saying a word. I grab one from the bag, throwing it at her before focusing on the quiet brunette.

"All done!" I say cheerfully, hoping she starts to feel even a tiny bit more comfortable. She gives me a curious look like she's comprehending my smile before walking away. 

Once everyone's secured and antsy to start, the climbing instructor, Andrew, takes the floor to go over the do's and don't's of rock climbing. I step aside, listening intently despite not being the one who'll be climbing. 

"And remember, we'll be right here so don't be afraid to give us a shout," he finishes with a nod, stepping aside after his speech. I smile back politely when he walks over to where I stand, a little nervous now since I've ruined every one of my first impressions.

Andrew is apparently an experienced climber that they were lucky to hire. I only got that from eavesdropping on some of the other counsellors during lunch. Nevertheless, when I imagined a very experienced climber, I certainly didn't picture him to look so.. young. He's definitely older than me, probably mid to late-twenties, but he looks great. Really great.

"Tori, huh? How're you finding the camp so far?" He flashes a charming grin at me and I blush, cursing myself for doing so. I glance over at the campers, needing an excuse to avoid eye contact. 

"It's lovely. I love working with kids," I say, gazing proudly at said kids. I always have. All the ecstatic joy they bring along with their wild imaginations. It's very fulfilling to say the least.

"Have you ever climbed before? Camp activities aren't restricted to the campers, you know," Andrew's voice brings me back to his eyes. I gulp at how close we are.

"Right. I'm, uh, hopeless at climbing. I wouldn't make it far," I try joking while subtly inching away. 

I feel a firm hand snake around my waist, causing me to jump at the unexpected action, "What are instructors for?" He smirks. I shudder, not out of shyness this time. It feels weird to be flirting in front of all these young, innocent minds. Besides, shouldn't he be paying attention to them in the first place?

My exact point is proven when one of the campers yell for our attention and we snap our heads towards Bree who clutches and hugs the wall. She's gotten far. Not as far as Jenny, though. Damn. Who knew the girl could climb so well? She's miles ahead of the others and doesn't hesitate with every move she makes. 

I cheer her on, clapping and wooing in support. I don't think she really appreciated it. It's hard to tell. The girl has a very unreadable face for an eleven-year-old. Speaking of unreadable people, I do my quick check on Jade to ensure she's not up to something, only to be met with a hardened glare aimed my way. 

I walk towards her, raising an eyebrow at the death glare that also extends to Andrew who helps Bree get down behind me. "What?"

"You know that guy's like thirty, right?" Her tone is of pure disapproval. Not that I ever wanted her approval to begin with. Jade's always hated the guys I dated. I never understood why, always blaming it on the fact that she hated to see me happy. But seriously, it's getting old now.