Camp 0

Chapter Nine

I sat at the edge of the water, still processing what Poppy said. Since the rest of the game was canceled due to both Grace and Jeremy having to leave us, we were told to stay in the dining hall and play the games they had in there. I, however, left to go clear my head. Poppy offered to come with me, but I told her I wanted to be myself. So here I was, sitting at the edge of the lake, thinking about what she had said.

But that's not the only secret this camp holds. Were there more dead bodies that I have to find? Or does it mean something else? And why did she have to tell me that then? Can she not talk about it out loud? Do the others not know? They have to, right? Most of them have been coming here for two or more years now. Have they found things like this before?

I sighed, staring into the water. It was calm with no ripples. I could easily see my reflection. I stirred the water a little to give it some movement.

"Hey." I jumped at the sound of a voice behind me. I turned around to see Noah standing there. "Sorry, I didn't mean to scare you. I was just checking on you."

"Oh, no it's fine." He came to check on me? How...nice of him.

"Poppy told me I could find you out here. She said you wanted to be alone but I didn't care. I came to bother you." I smiled a little.

"Thanks." He came and sat down next to me.

"So, what's on your mind?"

"I'm just thinking." I started to wonder how long Noah has been here and if he's seen stuff like this before. "Actually, I have a question."

"What's up?"

"How long have you been coming here?" I asked. He thought about it.

"For about four years now. Why?"

"Has this happened before? Finding a dead body I mean?" He shrugged.

"Well, you know that story Jeremy told the other night? About finding the body in the lake?"

"Yeah. What about it?"

"I was part of that group."

"But, he said no one-"

"Yeah, I know. He lied. Actually me and my brother were both part of that group. But my brother was...graduating that year so he never came back. Actually all the kids in that group were graduating so they couldn't come back." Something in his tone told me there was more than just them graduating. But I ignored it.

"Oh," I said, turning and looking back at the water. "But has anything else weird happened since then?"

"I wish I could tell you. But I can't," he said. I turned back to him.

"Is it because you can't remember or you can't tell me?" He sighed, glancing around.

"It's just... this camp, it's-"

"What about the camp?" I jumped, turning around to see Jeremy behind us. He was staring down at Noah. Noah smiled.

"This camp is wonderful," he said. "I was just telling her that even after what happened today it will get better." Jeremy smiled.

"Good," Jeremy said, walking away. Noah sighed.

"He came out of nowhere," I mentioned.

"Yes, he does that a lot."

"So, what were you going to say?" Noah shook his head.

"I can't remember it now. It wasn't that important anyway." I sighed, turning back to the lake. We sat there in silence for a few more minutes. I kept thinking about the events of today. And the face Jeremy gave Noah right when he was going to tell me about all the weird stuff he's noticed. Something suspicious was going on and I knew I had to get to the bottom of it before it was too late.

"Hey, lunch time," Jeremy called from the porch of the dining hall. Noah gave him a thumbs up. He stood up, holding his hand out, helping me up. Right when I went to let go, he pulled me closer, getting really close to my face. I knew my face was turning a bright red. My heart sped up. It felt like it was beating out of my chest. I prayed he wouldn't notice my hand shaking as he still had a hold of it. He lowered his head, keeping his gaze down as he whispered.

"Just watch your back. You never know who may be watching you." His gaze met mine as he smirked and backed away, walking towards the dining hall. I stood there confused. Both on what just happened and what he said. The imagine if his face so close to mine would be forever engraved in my brain. I watched as he turned around and looked at me. He gave me a concerned look. "Amelia, are you okay?" he asked. I nodded. He smirked, turning back and continuing to the dining hall.

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Nothing major happened at lunch today. Other than Poppy picking on both Rosie and me for talking to our 'guys'. After awhile I decided to shoot her back with how her and Avery were partners. Rosie then started picking on her.

It was time for our group activity. We headed outside where Jeremy and Grace were waiting.

"Okay, guys," Jeremy said. "For those who don't know, there was a body found. I'm going to go into town and get the authorities out here. Grace will be watching over you guys."

"Are our parents going to hear about this?" Matthew asked.

"Yes, your parents will be contacted." I was relieved to hear that. Maybe my parents will come and get me. I hoped they would at least. I don't want to spend another day at this camp.

This deadly camp.