Desperado: A Holes Fanfiction

Stanley

I blinked my eyes for a moment once I got into my cot and before I knew it, the sun was up and a loud trumpet jingle was playing through the campgrounds intercom. I heard Magnet groan while the other boys got sorted for another day of digging. X-Ray was right. I was sore. My muscles were stiff and not nearly in the mood to dig a hole at 5:30 in the morning. Not to mention I nearly got killed by a yellow-spotted lizard or Mr. Sir last night (I'm still not entirely sure who is more lethal).

"If you find anything else, give it to me alright?" That's what X-Ray said at the end of another awkward day in the sun at Camp Green Lake. I dug up a slab of stone from my hole with fish imprinted on it: A fossil! I thought it was pretty cool. And since Mr. Sir said return anything you find to Mr. Pendanski, I did just that; Only to get laughed at by him and the rest of the D-Tent.

"The Warden isn't interested in fossils," said Mr. Pendanski before he told me the history of the lake and town that once was. He told me about how The Warden's grandfather owned the town and the land it sat on.

She was the first thing I saw when I walked into the rec room. Our eyes locked for a moment on entry. Her eyes narrowed at me as I approached the other D-Tent guys, scattered across that side of the room. She was sitting cross-legged on the carpet next to Zig-Zag in front of the tv. As I got closer, I noticed the screen was nothing but static.

"Are you following me?" she said frowned. Her thick eyebrows furrowed.

I got nervous and stammered, "Uhh.... Um, no," God, she thinks I'm a weirdo, "No I just..."

She let out a laugh followed by a cute snort, "I'm just messing with you," she shook her head, "Stanley, right?"

"Right....Ty?" I thought it to be safe to at least pretend I didn't remember her name. She nodded, with a sigh, and pointed at an empty chair at the table next to them.

"Have a seat. Go on," she encouraged me with her soft brown eyes. She was warm in a way. I'm not talking about her looks. She leaned in to me and whispered, "We're watching Good Times," followed by a wink. I snorted at her wit.

I gazed around the current day rec room, searching for clues for what its purpose held in the past. Bar, maybe? No, too open. Ty waved a hand in front of my face cautiously, interrupting the daze, "Stanley? What are you watching?" Her brown eyes were wide in fascination.

"Oh I was just," I awkwardly waved a nonchalant finger around the room searching for a response less nerdy than Pendanski told me earlier this place used to be a town. She raised both of her eyebrows and propped herself onto her knees. I stumbled to find something else to say. I never know what to say around here anymore. The D-Tent makes a joke out of everything and how could The Warden not find fossil's cool? But her warm eyes drew me in so I took a leap and told the truth, "I was just wondering what this room used to be. Yah know, when this place was an old town."

She sighed and nodded her head, "Ahhhh, Pensanski sold you the dream of the Green Lake that once was." She tucked a single curl behind her ear and returned her attention back to the static television screen. "A pharmacist," she said without looking at me. She looked around as if she'd been in that old pharmacy many times before. I waited for a snide remark to follow and fell short. Zig-Zag was still intently watching the imagined television program. I'm not sure he noticed Ty was even there.

She eyed the stationary I had in front of me. "You writing someone?" she flashed a sweet smile. I hesitantly nodded. "That's sweet," she said, "I wish someone would send me a letter." Her eyes shifted.

Before I could respond the letter was snatched from in front of me by Squid. Where did he come from? "Awwww you writing your mommy and daddy?" He teased as he carried the letter away.

"I don't want them to worry," I said. He snatched the letter out of my reach once more.

"They don't care," he said.

Ty rolled her eyes, "Can it, Squid." Her voice was bored. His eyes flashed her way and he shoved the crumpled letter in the trash, taking a step closer to me, "Believe me, they're happy to get rid of you." He bucked at me and I ducked on instinct. He laughed and sauntered towards the pool table. I retrieved my letter from the trash, gave it a kiss and put it in the mailbox.