𝐒𝐔𝐌𝐌𝐄𝐑𝐓𝐈𝐌𝐄 𝐒𝐀𝐃𝐍𝐄𝐒𝐒 - 𝐡𝐬𝐦𝐭𝐦𝐭𝐬 (𝐢𝐢𝐢) | ✔

four

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four: trouble in paradise
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     Juliette turned around and walked to her cabin, millions of thoughts flooding her mind. This was supposed to be her summer, the summer in which he got over Ricky and found herself again. And yet, Ricky had decided to come to camp instead of following her plans of going to the lake with Lily, which she had made sure to let everyone know through one of Ricky's close friends stories. She could hear Gina calling for her but she did not stop until she was in the comfort of the Honeycomb.

     Ashlyn and Kourtney were still not there, meaning that she was alone with Maddox. Not that she minded the girl, quite the opposite really, but she did not feel like anyone seeing her like that. Life, however, had other plans for her.

     "Juliette, right? Is everything okay?" the older girl asked, jumping to sit besides her in the redhead's bed.  She nodded, knowing what would happen if she dared to open her mouth. "Do you want to talk about it?"

     And Juliette broke down. She had so much she wanted to say but so little resilience left to do it that the only way for her to let her emotions out was to cry. "My ex-boyfriend showed up. Instead of going on holiday with one of the reasons of our breakup, he has come to camp. And this was supposed to be my summer."

     "Why can't it be still?" Maddox asked, softly besides her. "You can't let him see you suffering for him still. Show him what he's missing. You still like him, right?"

     Juliette nodded as she sobbed, "I love him. And I thought the breakup would be the right thing to do for the two of us but I am still not over him and he is thriving."

     "You don't know that. Maybe he is in the same situation. Have you tried talking to him?"

     "Never about this. We..." she began, "we tried to continue as friends but it's too much. I can't do it."

     "Maybe you should sit down with him and... I don't know, open your hearts to each other. That helps, I promise."

     "Do you do this very often?" Juliette asked and continued, seeing Maddox's confused expression. "Comforting stupid teenagers crying over their ex-boyfriends?"

     "Oh I do," the girl laughed. "But the ex-boyfriend is usually not around."

     After a thank-you hug from Juliette, Maddox got down from her bed and allowed the younger girl to sleep it out. With some light coming from the inside, she looked at her tear-stained cheeks and smiled softly. She hoped that Camp Shallow Lake had something good in store for her.

—

     Since she had fallen asleep so early the previous night, Juliette was up at six a.m., the sun barely out yet. Tired of staring at the ceiling and waiting for any of the other girls in the Honeycomb to wake up, she decided to put on some shoes and her favourite hoodie and get outside to get some much needed fresh air. 

     As soon as she stepped outside, she inhaled and smiled. The smell of the trees and the chlorine from the pool filled up her nostrils and seemed to clear up her mind. That process, however, was interrupted by a trail of steps behind her. Worried that it was going to be one of the monitors to tell her to go back to sleep, she turned around only to find E.J., at which she let out a sigh of relief.

     "Couldn't sleep?" she asked as her best friend joined her.

     "Not a blink, you?"

     "I slept too early yesterday," she admitted. While talking, E.J. took her to the dining hall where they both prepared a cup of coffee and then sat by the pool. "What's on your mind, then?"

     "I'm not ready to- to direct this. I wanted a summer with my friends and instead I have to spend it all working on this musical."

     "E.J., you are more than ready to direct this, are you kidding? I know it is not what your summer looked like but is there anyone here who knows how to convince people of the greatness of Camp Shallow Lake better than you? You got us all here and you will get these people to do an amazing musical," she reached out over the table and took his hand on hers, smiling at him. 

      "And what if this is too much?"

     "Then we'll be there to help you every step of the way," the girl continued as the door opened, revealing Gina. Knowing that the two of them would like to be alone, Juliette prompted them to stay as she walked to her cabin to get ready for the day. That was the day they had to chose their elective and, taking into account that only swimming and the musical were available, Juliette had her choice very clear. Chlorine and her hair were not a good match.

     "Morning, Juliette," Ashlyn greeted her from the bed, startling the redhead. "Where were you so early?"

     "Couldn't sleep. I was just clearing my mind."

     "Why? Did something happen?" she asked, truly confused.

     "Oh, you don't know? You're in for a surprise today, then."

     Maddox was the next to wake up, followed by Clara and Millie. Kourtney was still sleeping like a baby when the camp monitors broke the peace of the night with the sound of a trumpet, scaring her. 

     "Come on, Kourt. It's audition day!" Gina entered, also ready to change into her everyday clothes. The five of them got ready in between laughs and speculation as to what the day would hold. "I just want to let you all know that I'm going for gold at auditions today. I'm finally ready to play the lead. No apologies, no prisoners."

     "Sounds like you brought Gina 1.0 to camp," Ashlyn observed.

     "No," the addressed girl laughed. "Look, okay, I loved auditioning with you guys last year and we're still a tercet, but I just feel like I need to stand on my own this summer, you know? Especially with the whole documentary thing. That could literally be our future."

     "Okay, 1.0."

     Once they were all ready, they walked to the dining hall for breakfast. The way there smelled like toast and frozen waffles but, before they could reach the place, Ashlyn stopped on her tracks, making the others imitate her. As the girls followed her line of sight, Kourtney's face changed into one of surprise as well.

     "Wasn't Ricky going to spend the summer with Lily?"

     "Trouble in paradise, I guess," Juliette half-whispered, speeding to the dining hall as she saw Ricky walking towards them.