Family + Camp (working title)

Chapter 31 Part 1: Square Dancing

Each person was given a card with a prompt on it, and they had to share with everyone else. Nell's read, "What are your three best qualities?" Ugh...Who wrote this crap? 

She tried to make eye contact with the others and not look too baffled. "I floss every day...I follow rules...ummmm...I can drive?" 

Everyone in her group laughed, but she hadn't been kidding. Those were her best qualities because it certainly wasn't being Little Miss Mary Sunshine or Never-Questioning-Dad Daughter. She tried not to feel too good about the laughs her words had generated. That would be getting invested. Instead, she concentrated really hard on listening to the others' answers, on not being disappointed that Cash had wound up in another group. This way, she reasoned, she could keep an eye on him from afar. But no! That wasn't the way her thoughts should flow either. She should instead—

Her thought was interrupted because it was time for some square dancing.

"What now?" Nell wondered if she'd heard Jake's announcement correctly. Strider was already pulling out a guitar as if it had been in his back pocket all along. A few other guitars appeared out of nowhere as well as a tambourine or two.

"Square dancing," Cash said helpfully, magically by her side. Again. With Izzy. Again. "It's a Morgan tradition. You didn't have that up at Fields?"

No. No, they did not. They had a dance at the end of each week, which Nell loved because she got to listen to music and jump around with friends, sweating it out. Basically, one of the kitchen staff, a cousin of Len's, was a part-time DJ, with dreams of hitting the big clubs in New York or Los Angeles. He would bring out his turn tables and albums, hook it all up to the stereo system, and away they'd go. It was pretty awesome, Nell was just now realizing.

But, no. At Camp Fields Creek, they did not do anything as formal as square dancing.

"It's super fun!" Izzy enthused, because of course she would be all bubbly about everything. "Cash, be my partner."

Cash's eyes slid over to Nell for a second. But only for a second. He nodded almost reluctantly as everyone picked up their folding chairs and put them back on the racks to make room for the dancing.

Apparently, Nell's dad had hidden depths he had not yet shared with his daughter because he was going to be the caller for this dance. He was up at the top of the room near the fireplace and a makeshift stage next to all the guitar players and tambourinists.

"Square dancing is not difficult, not at all," Morrie said soothingly into a microphone. "You just have to follow my direction and all will be well. Do not worry: I shall start out slowly."

Everyone squared up in two lines facing each other, girls on one side and guys on the other. There were more women than men, so the last two couples were same sex. Nell wound up across from Seth somewhere in the middle of the line. He gave her a wave with just a hint of a smile. She waved back.

"I'll be gentle," he said.

"I won't," she replied. But crossed her eyes and made a face.

Cash and Izzy were down at the other end of the line waiting patiently, having some kind of conversation that involved laughing and Izzy swaying from side to side. Cash stood with his arms crossed shaking his head, a wry smile on his lips.

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Wattpad friends: I have to say, this was one of my favorite parts of staff training, and I only remember it from my first year. Square dancing and learning the shuffle! We didn't actually use this training with our campers, but it was a great way to bond with each other. What's your favorite kind of dancing?