7 Days {edited}

One

"Do you have all you need?" Mom asked as I prepared to leave.

"Yes, Mom."

"Clothes?"

"Yes."

"Toothbrush?"

"Yes."

"Bras? Underwear?"

"Yes and yes."

"Swimsuit?"

"Yes. Mom, could you please hurry up? I need to get going so I can meet Emily."

A month ago, my friend Emily Summers had invited me to attend church camp with her. I was reluctant at first, but after awhile, I finally decided to sign up.

I wasn't the kind of person who liked church events, or church in general. With my two moms, it was hard to be accepted and not be made fun of. But here, Emily was the only person who knew me. It would be a fresh start. I could start over, without my parents ruining it for me from the start.

"Okay, do you want me to drive you to the church?" Mom asked. I swore I saw her cringe as she said the last word.

"No, that's okay. I'll take my car."

"Okay, sweetie. Be safe and have fun. I love you." She kissed my forehead.

I picked up my duffel bag and hustled outside to my royal blue jeep. It was a present from Lauren, my mom's wife, for my 16th birthday. At first I was just annoyed because it was like she was trying to win my approval-which was never going to happen-but a blue jeep was my dream car, so I got over my anger pretty quickly.

When I got to Emily's church, there was a school bus in the parking lot, surrounded by a moving truck and lots of cars. I got out of the jeep and searched for Emily.

"Rain!" she yelled, waving her hands in the air.

I saw her and jogged over to her. "Hey." We hugged, and then she introduced me to the people huddled around her.

"Rain, this is Blake, Cami, and Jordyn. Guys, this is my friend Rain."

Blake was the only guy in the group. He was tall, with shaggy brown hair and blue eyes.

Jordyn looked like a tomboy, with her Chicago Cubs jersey and jeans. Her mouse brown hair was pulled into a ponytail.

Cami's makeup was perfect, like she'd had it professionally done. She was dressed nicely, with a flower crown and a sleeveless cardigan. "Your name is so cool!" she exclaimed.

"Oh, thanks," I said, blushing. That was a usual compliment for me, one I was used to, but I still blushed every time.

"Emily says you work with her?" Jordyn asked.

"Yeah. I've been at Chick-Fil-A for a year now," I replied.

"Cool!"

"Do you go to church anywhere?" Blake wanted to know.

Ugh. The dreaded question.

"Um, no, not really."

"Oh, so I'm guessing this is your first time at a church camp, too?"

"Yup." Wanting to get the subject off of church, I said, "I've never been to any camps. What's it like?"

The four of them went on to tell me what they enjoyed about church camp, and before too long, it was time to board the bus.

Jordyn and Cami climbed on and slid into a seat together. Blake sat behind them. "Rain, over here!" called Emily, patting the empty spot next to her. I smiled and sat down in the seat.

After roll call, it was time to go. The bus roared to life and we started the journey. I wanted nothing more than to plug in my earbuds and listen to music, but I knew that would be rude, so I chatted with Emily and her friends on the ride down.

About halfway into the trip, I began to feel exhausted. My eyelids became heavy and drooped every time I blinked. It didn't take long for me to fall asleep.