Spark

Chapter Three

"Mom, do you really have to go?" I asked her with my puppy eyes, hoping she would stay. I grabbed her hand as she started to back away. 

"Honey," she laughed, stopping in her track and squatting down to my level. "This will be fun for you! I promise!" 

I clung onto her, burrowing my head into her chest. "Please stay, Mom. Please!" 

"Brooklyn," she pulled me away from her so she could look at me. She had such pretty eyes. "I promise you, you are going to make so many new friends. You're going to do so many different activities! Remember when you said that you wanted to learn how to shoot an arrow?" 

I nodded slowly. I really did. 

"You'll get to do that here!" she beamed. 

"Really?" I asked, feeling excited about the thought of shooting an arrow like Merida from Brave. 

"Yeah, Honey," she smiled, kissing my forehead. 

"Will I get to paint like Rapunzel?" 

She nodded and laughed again. 

"Will I get to dance like Cinderella?" 

She nodded. 

"Will I get to read books like Belle?" 

She nodded. 

"Will I get to meet my Shang?" I asked, the most excited I've been today. 

"Wait!" my mom chuckled, shaking her head. "Let's hold off on finding your prince." 

I giggled with her as we hugged really tight. She then told me to meet some of the other kids and play some games before the bonfire ceremony started. She reminded me to ask any of the adults if I get lost or need help with anything, but she knew I was smart enough to find my way around. And after one last hug, she was in her car and driving away. 

I decided to head to the lake because I wanted to feel the temperature of the water. Today was pretty warm and the water was so shiny. I just had to touch it. 

When I got there, though, I spotted a boy with fluffy hair by himself, skipping rocks into the shallow water. He seemed like he was having a lot of fun, so I walked towards him. 

"Can I throw?" I asked him as I went up to him. "My mom told me it's nice to share." 

"You probably aren't as good as me," he responded, holding out the rock for me to take.

I shrugged, walking up to him. It was when I got closer that I saw that he had really really really grey eyes. They were really pretty like Mom's eyes. I took the rock from him and on my first try, I managed to throw it just like he did. He was just as surprised as I was. 

"But you're a... a girl," he gasped. 

"You're a wimpy boy," I spat back. 

"Take that back!" he shouted, dropping his other rocks and coming very close to me. 

"Never!" I shouted triumphantly, crossing my arms over my chest. "Wimpy boy!" 

All of a sudden, I was being tackled onto the sand. At first my back hurt from the impact, but then I suddenly felt the sting of pinches running along my arms. I fought back harder, hitting whatever I could. 

"Ow!" I heard him shout as my hand hit another part of his body. "You stupid girl!" 

"Wimpy boy!" I shouted back. I heard the sound of footsteps running up to us and the wimpy boy was pulled off of me. 

"Hey, hey, hey. No fighting!" a lady told us, pulling me to my feet. I could feel my ponytail was now bent and twisted uncomfortably on my head. 

"Kieran and Brooklyn," the lady said, looking at our name-tags. "We do not hit each other here at Camp Kennedy!" 

"He started it!" 

"She started it!" 

The sound of knocking on my cabin door took me out of my memory. I quickly opened the door and found two girls standing in their sweats with loads of luggage around them. To my surprise, I noticed that they were twins. 

One had long, curly brown hair that was incredibly silky and smooth-looking. Her messy bangs covered most of her face, but I could tell her skin was spotless and clear. Her smile exuded warmth and friendliness, giving me the vibe that she was a naturally bubbly person. 

The other twin had her hair pulled into a messy, high bun. Like her sister, her face graced clear skin and full features. Unlike her sister, however, she was frowning. In fact, her body posture was a clear indicator that she was not in the best spirits. 

"I'm guessing you're Brooklyn?" the bubbly twin piped up.  

The other rolled her eyes. "Why wouldn't it be her, dummy?"

I opened the door wider and stepped away from the entrance. "Yes, I'm Brooklyn." 

The grumpier twin shuffled inside quickly without saying another word. From the corner of my eye, I saw her drop all her bags and throw herself into the closest, bottom bunk. 

"Sorry about her," the bubbly twin apologized, still standing outside the cabin. "We had a rough car ride over. I'm Rae and that's Kenna." 

"Nice to meet you, Rae," I smiled, noting the five duffel bags around the poor girl. "Here, let me help you with your stuff." 

"Thanks Brooklyn," Rae sighed in relief as we both settled into the warm space. Kenna was completely knocked out already. 

"How long did you travel?" I asked, sitting on our couch. 

"Six hours," she answered, yawning. "We are from up north of here." 

I nodded, seeing Rae's visible exhaustion.  "We have a pretty big day tomorrow. I can help you and your sister catch up on the schedule and the meetings and whatnot in the morning. I think it'll be best if we sleep now," I suggested, crawling up to my bed. 

"Yeah, I think you're right," she agreed as she settled into the bunk on top of Kenna who was still fast asleep. "Night, Brooklyn." 

"Night," I said back, thinking about what a long day it has been. 

Author's note:  yikes, this chapter was hard to write but it was a filler and we met the twins! yay!