Page 16 of Freshmeet
Trudging up the stairs, the air grew thick, and a musty smell unique to the ancient structures in Kirksville gagged me.
The second floor was one big meeting room, and the program coordinator stood in the center surrounded by the other summer counselors.
Mona looked up from her clipboard and gave me a guilty smile. “Hey, Sarah.”
“Hey,” I gave her a lazy wave. If I wanted to carpool with her, I’d need to get up a whole lot earlier.
“I got you an iced coffee,” she said as she gestured toward a beat-up, white refrigerator in the corner.
I immediately perked up. Slamming the cold caffeinated beverage, I listened to the others chat quietly before Christie called out, “Okay, let’s jump right in. Break into groups of four, and let’s get to know each other!” She clapped, smiling at us as she handed out activity packets.
“A scavenger hunt?” Carter asked, ruffling his blond hair.
“Yes!” Christie said, lifting a big tote from behind a folding table. “And here are your official Camp College Bound swag packs. I’ll be downstairs finalizing paperwork when you’re done. Now get going!”
Mona flipped through the paper quickly, then nodded. “Right. Let’s go.” Without waiting for a response, she was jogging down the stairs. Meg, a fellow BAE sister, rushed after her, but Carter and I took our time.
“I didn’t know you’d be working here.” He gave me a funny look before pushing a pair of sunglasses over his blue eyes.
“Yeah. Had to find some way to pay the bills. It helps that this looks good for future teaching opportunities.” I shrugged and picked up the pace to catch up with the rest of our team. Sweat rolled down my cleavage, and my thighs were already stinging from rubbing together.
It’s going to be a long summer. I’m definitely not an outside kid.
“So, your parents really cut you off? That’s brutal.”
I internally sighed. Some people had no sense of decorum. “Yeah. They seemed to have a problem with me getting an MIP on the same night my sorority sister drunkenly fell off the roof and died.” I gave him a blank look. “It sucks, but luckily, I can work.” Speeding up, I tried to outrun the awkward conversation.
“I can’t imagine.”
“Yep. It’s not fun. What are you doing here?”
Carter kept up with my short strides without breaking a sweat. “I’m a counselor every summer. My parents say it’s good for me to make an honest buck.”
There it is.
I’d been confused why a fellow trust fund kid was sweating it up for just above minimum wage.
“This is my last summer having to do this shit.” He smiled, all charm and bullshit.
We reached the edge of the parking lot, and Mona waved a hot pink index card in the air. “We have ten index cards to collect from around the area the program operates in. I think we should split up and get the rest faster.”
“Why are we in a hurry?” Meg asked, digging through her Camp College Bound tote bag. “Oh! A whistle.” She fished out a purple lanyard with a metal whistle on the end and put it around her neck before testing it with one short, shrill blow.
Carter took a step back and glared at her. “What the hell, Meg?”
“Sorry,” she said, a healthy blush spreading across her cheeks.
Mona waved her off. “Okay, so I’ll take the first three. All three tasks are on the main hiking trail.” She smiled at me and said, “Can you do the two down by the lake?”
I nodded, taking a quick look at the task list.
7. Count the kayaks and note their condition
8. Count the life vests and note the sizes and condition
“Easy peasy.” I checked the crude map at the back of the packet and walked in the general direction of the shed that housed all the water equipment.
I reached the gravel road and followed it down to the lake, pointedly ignoring the construction workers taking a break next to the visitor center. They were building on an event space to accommodate the growing interest in the area. It was part of the reason the AC wasn’t running.
