Panem High: Freshman Year

Chapter 24

Trigger warning: brief mention of self-harm.

Brrrrringggggg, brrrrringggggg. Madge's Samsung rang as she called her friend.

Clove answered on the fourth ring. "Heyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy."

"Hey! Are you doing anything this week?" Madge asked.

"Uh, my practices are all cancelled so Darell can go to Dominican Republic with his wife and kids, so I have no hockey, but I'm hanging out with my teammates on Friday night. We're doing this bonding thing. I don't know, it sounds kind of stupid, and only some of them are going, but since I skipped the movie night last week I figured it would be nice. Besides, Lorna isn't going, so that automatically makes it at least decent," Clove said scornfully.

"Who outta y'all are going?" Madge asked. She loved keeping up with the complicated lives of Clove and her hockey teammates.

"Uh, Allegra, you know her, she's leading my team in points this season, um... oh, Street is going!"

"You like her, right?"

"Yeah, she's pretty dope."

"Who else?"

"Um... Becca, Hannah, Clementine, maybe Sadie, Shakira, Tessly, and Cordy."

"Cordy is Cordelia Reed, correct? The one who plays soccer and volleyball for AHS?" Madge asked.

"Yeah, she's cool. Danika isn't going, which sort of sucks, but she's hanging out with Lissy, so at least I don't have to put up with her. And Marlyn is ditching us to go on a date, so..."

"Well, I hope you have fun."

"Thank you," Clove replied. "So, what's up?"

"Huh?"

"You called me, remember?"

"Oh, yeah," Madge laughed. "I was thinking we could do something interesting this week."

"Like, hang out or something?"

"No, that's boring. I figured that since sports are off for the week and pretty much everyone is out of town, you and I could maybe scrape up some babysitting money and rent a bed and breakfast in St. Simon's? We could stock up on snacks and spend part of the week. It's only Sunday, and if we leave tomorrow and stay til Friday..."

"My mom would never let me stay an hour and a half away from home without an adult," Clove said. "She hardly trusts Sierra not to kill my brothers and I while they're in Barbados for the week. Besides, how would we even get there? I just turned fifteen two months ago, and I mean, I start Driver's Ed next week, but I can't actually drive until next year."

"My mom's friend Kim flew in last night and she stayed at my place, but she's leaving tomorrow morning and heading to St. Simon's until Friday. She will be there for the week and my dad's richie friend Leo owns half a street of quaint little houses, one of which Kim is staying in, right on the beach, so if we stayed in one, we'd have an adult my parents trust nearby to check in on us, but still some privacy from our parents to stay up all night and eat nothing but junk food."

"My coach would literally rake me over hot coals."

"Your coach won't know if he's in the Caribbean," Madge pointed out.

"Maybe so, but he'll definitely notice when I don't fit in my equipment anymore," Clove said, and the two roared with laughter.

"Well, I have to get in a few runs this week for soccer anyway, so you and I could run on the beach every morning. And we could go to the gym on Friday morning if we really think it's necessary."