Page 75 of Sporty Girls Don't Fall For Loners

“Darn it,” he grumbles when his guy stumbles to the ground. “Thought I had it.”

“Cursed bus,” I joke as I rub my head.

“You okay?”

“Yeah.”

He starts again, but the bus pulls up before the historic town and museum. Mr. Ortiz stands up and calls for everyone’s attention. “We’re going to have a buddy system. I know you might find it juvenile, but it’s the safest and most effective way to make sure everyone is safe. Everyone will be responsible for his or her buddy. When we get off, I want everyone to gather in a line with your buddy. We have a few events lined up, and then you’ll be able to walk around freely. We’ll meet back at the buses in two hours and then make our way to the orchard. Please leave the bus in an orderly fashion.”

Kade gets in line and motions for me to go in front of him. I thank him and follow the rest of the kids off the bus. Mr. Ortiz once again calls for everyone to line up with their buddy.

“Buddy?” Kade asks me.

I smile. “Buddy.”

We step in line with everyone else. Once everyone has settled down, we each get a sticker to wear on our collars or chests. Then we start our first tour of Historic Edenbury. The staff is dressed up in the clothes they wore back then. It’s really awesome. I remember some of it from when I was a kid, but not much. They proceed to tell us how the town was founded and then show us some of the earliest buildings and structures, like a school, a fire department, and the mayor’s house. We’re also brought to a house where they teach us how they made butter and cheese, and we also see a mill.

“It’s all so fascinating, isn’t it?” I say to Kade. “I love learning about the history of Edenbury. We’ve come such a long way.”

“Yeah. Their costumes are sick.”

“Totally.”

For the next part of the tour, they sit us in the school and the staff performs a short play about an important event that happened back then, one that helped shape Edenbury to what it is today. It’s weird to think that some of our ancestors were present during all of this. My family has been in Edenbury forever, so it’s possible they could have founded the town, too.

After they tell us more about the town and bring us to other locations, we enter a large building which is the actual museum. It’s full of exhibits and information boards about the town, including prominent people and incidents that happened, like a fire that killed two families, which hit the town really hard. Even though I’ve lived here all my life, I’m learning so much.

Once we’re done with the museum, we’re free to roam by ourselves. Mr. Ortiz reminds us for the millionth time to stay on the property only and to make sure our buddy is with us at all times. And if we want to stop off at the gift shop, we should make sure to do that before it’s time to leave because we’re on a tight schedule.

“Do you want to walk around, buddy?” I ask Kade. “I wouldn’t mind seeing the well again. It was so cool.”

He gestures toward the exit. “Lead the way.”

There are tons of kids milling about, some of them chasing each other or goofing off. I study the map they gave us at the start of the tour, and once I locate the well, Kade and I head over there.

“This place is pretty,” I say, taking in the grass that surrounds us. “Can you imagine living here?”

Kade wrinkles his nose. “You think we’d get used to that constant smell of smoke?”

Yeah, the place stinks pretty bad because of the ancient stoves. They still use them today for demonstrations.

“What about no toilets?” I say with a laugh.

Kade shivers. “Yeah. Pass.”

“The clothes are great, though,” I muse. “I think it would be fun to wear them.”

“You’d look cute,” he says. “I’d look like a moron.”

“No, I think you would look really handsome.”

He stops walking and looks at me. Then he smiles. “Thanks.”

“Thanks, too. You know, for saying I’d look cute. Oh, here’s the well.”

We spend some time here before visiting other areas. Then we stop off at the gift shop because we have about twenty minutes before we need to head back to the bus.

“Looking for something specific?” Kade asks.

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