Pranked

Three

I followed Evelyn down the trail with my group to the cafeteria.

The cafeteria was a big room with several 4 person tables. It had cream colored walls. A window in the wall had some big bins of food. There was a seat belt material strip of fabric between some posts. Kids were lined up and next to the end of the post and fabric lines was a whiteboard that said "May 22, 2015! Dinner-Baked Beans, Grilled Cheese, Peas, and Mashed Potatoes!" There was a cart with a sign labeled 'salad bar' and another cart with a sign labeled 'ice cream'.

I got in line and got myself some grilled cheese and mashed potatoes. It was actually really bad food, but at least it was edible. The grilled cheese was more like bread with a tiny bit of hamburger cheese gluing it together. The mashed potatoes had a gross canned food aftertaste and it seemed like the cooking staff tried to put a bunch of salt in it to cover it up, but it didn't work. Jojo put some pepper on her mashed potato and said it tasted slightly better, but when I tried some of hers, it didn't make a difference. It was still gross.

At least dessert was halfway decent. I got some vanilla ice cream with whipped cream and toffee. My crazy cousin Jojo of course won the most toppings award that evening. Her bowl of chocolate ice cream was like Mount Everest compared to mine. She had three scoops of chocolate ice cream with practically every topping there. Whipped cream, caramel sauce, strawberry sauce, peanut butter, hot fudge, chocolate syrup, brownie bits, crushed oreos, chopped chips ahoy cookies, toffee, chocolate chips, rainbow sprinkles, you name it and unless it was pineapple, it was guaranteed to be on Jojo's ice cream. She stirred her bowl up so that way it looked like a brown, chocolate soup full of bits of random food and streaks of strawberry sauce, caramel sauce, peanut butter, hot fudge, and chocolate syrup (after she stirred it all up, she also went back to get another hill of whipped cream on top.

After dinner, Evelyn lead us back to our cabin.
"Do you stay in the cabin with us?" Kenny asked.
"No I don't. We all want you to be able to bond in the evenings without it being forced upon you," Evelyn said, "We think a natural bond is better than a bond we set up. It's like growing a grapevine. You tie string to it after you plant it. You build the foundation. Then, you watch it grow. You let the bonds become stronger. Then, you water it and pull out the weeds around it. You nourish it some more. Then you keep watching it grow and nourishing it. In the end, it becomes magnificent and strong and beautiful."
"That's...deep," I said.
"Thank you, Leighanne," Evelyn said. Silence fell over the group.
"So, where will you be staying?" Jojo asked, "Like, in case we need you for anything."
"I'll be at the counselor quarters. It's next to the cafeteria where it says 'staff only'. So, if you need me, get there. If it's an emergency, you'll know what to do," she said.
"Alright, Evelyn. Will do," Jojo said,
"Don't be too loud, don't forget to brush your teeth, lights out before 9, be kind to one another and if someone isn't kind, come get me," Evelyn said.
"Okay Evelyn. We got it," Kenny said.
"And also if you-" Evelyn started but Jojo interrupted her.
"Okay, chill out Evelyn," Martin said, "It's not like we are gonna be in the Hunger Games or anything."
"That was a good movie though," Jojo remarked, "Right Leighleigh?"
"Yeah it was. I love that movie," I said. I remembered sitting in the movie theater with Jojo and my Aunt Vanessa. Aunt Vanessa hated it, but Jojo and I were practically fangirling over Katniss.
"Okay. You're right," Evelyn said, "Just use your common sense and I'll be in the counselor's cabin if you need me."
"Alright Evelyn. We got it. Good night," Martin said.
"Good night, kids," Evelyn said, "Sleep well."
I followed the group to the cabin and felt a bit bad as we left Evelyn watching us walk away.
The moment we entered, Jojo flopped on the couch and said, "I got an idea. And it's a great idea."
"Okay," I said, "What is it?" Jojo got up and unrolled a yoga mat in the corner in front of the couch and the other chairs.
"Lets all sit down now and talk about this idea that I'm really excited about!" Jojo said, imitating Evelyn.
We all laughed and I sat down on the chair.
"So, what's this big idea, Jojo?" Martin asked.
"You need to raise your hand, Martin. That is how you be respectful. And being respectful is a very, very good thing," Jojo said, imitating Evelyn again and we all laughed. "And since we all want to welcome our friends, let's invite Leighleigh to ask that question. Leighleigh, would you like to answer that question."
"Sure," I laughed, "What is your very good idea?"
"My great idea that I am what about?" Jojo asked in her Evelyn voice.
"Your great idea that you are very excited about," I said.
"Yes that is correct. When you restate my question, it shows me you are listening and as we all know, listening is a very important thing in earning respect," Jojo said. Everyone laughed again. Kenny raised his hand.
"Yes, Kenny?" Jojo said in her Evelyn voice.
"I don't think you got to answer her question," Kenny said.
"I was just about to do that now, Kenny. It is important to not jump to conclusions like that," Jojo said in her Evelyn voice, "My great idea that I am very excited about is a team building exercise!"
"Okay seriously, Jojo. What is this really good idea of yours?" Kenny said, not bothering to raise his hand.
Jojo shifted a little bit on the yoga mat.
"For our team building exercise, we are going to do one of my favorite activities," she said with that troublemaker smirk I knew so well spreading across her face.
"What?" Martin asked.
"Pranks!" Jojo announced, standing up and putting her hands on her hips in a superhero pose.