Camp Charlie

Chapter 9

If someone had told Hannah that the world was ending today, she would've believed him. But when one of her best friends told her that he was gay, she was rattled. It's not the fact that Rohan was gay, shocked her. It was the fact that he hadn't told her earlier.

"For how long have you known?" questioned Hannah as she tried to hide the hurtful expression on her face.

"For about a year."

"A year! Why didn't you tell us?"

"I was scared. At first, I thought it was just my stupid brain playing games with me but when I met Jace, it was clear to me."

"There was nothing to hide about it, Rohan. You should accept who you are. You'll always be our friend, gay or not."

"I know Hannah and thanks for not judging me but I didn't want my parents to know about it. Especially my father. He'll kill me if he knows."

"Oh come on Rohan. What century do we live in? The twentieth century, right. Then what are you scared of? Don't worry, if your father kicks you out of his house then you can live with me."

"Oh, Hannah! I can't even imagine what I'd do without you," said Rohan with a hint of sarcasm in his voice. The others who had been just spectators in this conversation then joined in to show their support for Rohan. Maybe it was a good idea to tell them, thought Rohan. Oh, dear! Only if you knew.

"Then I announce Rohan to be the undebatable winner of this game," said Alan.

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Secret. A self-explanatory word. Secrets have the power to destroy someone if they come out. They are never meant to be known. The only person you can trust them with is yourself. If you tell it to someone else, it's not a secret anymore. Two can only keep a secret if one of them is dead.

That night, Rohan received a message on his phone from an unknown number. It was next to impossible to get a network in the forest and that was what shocked him. He read the same message several times and couldn't believe his eyes. After putting on his jacket, he went outside into the night with just a torch and his phone. It wasn't the night and it's creatures that scared him, it was the person behind those texts.

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Hannah woke up late that morning. The sun was hidden behind the grey storm clouds that covered the whole sky. The sound of thunder was enough to deafen her and the ground shook violently each time the lightning struck the ground. She got up from her bed and went outside. It wasn't raining as yet but the strong winds that blew indicated that a storm was due. As she entered the kitchen cabin, her eyes landed on her friends who were sitting around the dining table, discussing something with hushed voices.

"What happened?" she asked.

"Hannah, have you seen Rohan?" asked Maya.

Upon looking closely, she realised that Rohan wasn't there.

"No. Why? What happened?

The other five looked nervously at each other. Alan broke the news to her.

"Han. He's missing."

"What? Have you checked his room? Or maybe he went out for a walk? Have you tried calling him?" Hannah's words came out rushed and jumbled as her innocent mind tried to digest this piece of information.

"Han, we've looked everywhere. We haven't seen him for the past three hours. I tried calling him but his phone was switched off and we have network issues."

Hannah sat down on a nearby chair and started racking her brain for any possible place that Rohan could've gone to. But her mind was blank and her heart was heavy. She stood up abruptly and went outside. Her friends ran after her.

"Hannah! Where are you going?" asked Sarah.

"To find him."

"Are you out of your mind? The forest is too big, we won't be able to find him on our own."

"Then what do you want to do? Keep on sitting here."

"No. Once the storm surpasses, we'll go and find some network so that we can call the police."

As Sarah said this, big droplets of water started falling from the sky. Alan pulled Hannah inside one of the cabins and all of them went inside after them.

Hours passed but the storm did not surpass. The winds became stronger and the rain never ceased. The sky was crying and the earthlings were the ones suffering. Day turned to night but there was no sign of Rohan. Hannah's constant, loud cries had been reduced to mere sobs. No one was able to console her. Maya, who always said that she was strong, had moist eyes and tears were threatening to fall from them. But she didn't let anyone see them, lest they should feel that even she felt hopeless.

Sarah was being consoled by Ethan. Her anxiety had managed to reach new heights and a panic attack was on its way. She had difficulty in breathing and she felt that some unknown force was about to choke her to death. Ethan, who had his arms around Sarah was almost worried to death. Dark thoughts were swirling in his mind like a tornado and he felt that he would burst any minute. But he was trying to look calm and composed for her sake.

Alan was busy blaming himself for all of this. He had said it out loud that it was his fault that Rohan was not with them because he had been the one who had insisted on going to a camp. But no one blamed him because what was meant to happen always happened. If there was anyone to be blamed, it was destiny.

Liam was a prisoner of his thoughts and was remembering all the good times he had spent with Rohan. He was his best friend. After having a flashback of his recent fight with him, he promised to himself and the lord almighty that if he gets his friend back, he would never fight with Rohan again.

It was as if, the supreme power which was omnipresent had heard his silent prayer because that very moment everyone received a text. This place was weird beyond anyone's imagination. How did they receive that text even when there was no network? We don't know and neither did they.

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Hey everyone! I hope you liked the chapter. Please vote and comment. I've started writing again and it's good to be back. I finally got a break from my busy schedule and I want to complete Camp Charlie within a few months. But it's a long way to go before I actually complete it. Till then, stay tuned.

Has anyone heard 'Without me' by Halsey? It's an amazing song.