Camp Red Lake

Chapter 4. Story

The next few days at camp were uneventful. School didn't start for another two weeks and I was still getting to know my way around. Every morning we would wake up at 04:30 hours, take a shower and line up outside. Croy didn't say much other than the occasional instruction, and after drills I would spend my free time reading or learning how to sew with Myra and Allison.

One afternoon, a few days after the incident with Violet, I decided to ask the questions that had been on my mind since I first arrived.

"Hey Mai? How did you end up in here?" Allison stopped sewing when she heard my question. I glanced up and noticed Myra's expression had softened into one of nostalgia and sadness.

"Hazel, I don't think-"

"Ally, it's alright." Myra stopped her before she could intercede.

"Okay." Allison shrugged before going back to her sewing.

"My mother walked out on me and my dad when I was eight. My dad stepped up and took care of me better than she ever could. One day, not long after I turned twelve, my dad got in a car accident and never returned..." She trailed off, her eyes watery.

"After his death, they tried to contact my mom but they couldn't find her. So they placed me in the care of my aunt. Things wouldn't have been so bad if she didn't hate me. My aunt always resented my mom for leaving and since I look a lot like her, she couldn't handle it. Eventually, I ran away. I couldn't stand being a burden.

The cops picked me up from under an overpass for shoplifting. When they asked my aunt, she said she didn't want me anymore, so they brought me here. I'm fifteen now and must remain here until I'm eighteen. They brought me in for shoplifting which is a nonviolent crime. That's the reason I wear white."

"So that's why I wear white too, because I was brought in for a nonviolent offense?" I asked curiously.

"Well what was your offense?" Myra asked as she put down her needle.

"Status offender. My mom and I have a rocky relationship. I was having problems at school and even though she knew about it, she didn't do anything to stop it. She was too focused on her own life with her new boyfriend, so I resented her and began acting out. Eventually she got tired of my attitude. The judge said I have to be here for two years until I'm seventeen." I muttered bitterly.

"Geez, that sucks, what about your Dad?" She asked.

I shrugged. "He died when I was ten but since he was in a different country, I never met him. His death never really made a difference to me." Myra nodded pensively as she considered everything I had said.

"What about you Ally?" I asked curiously. A grim expression contorted her features as all the memories came flooding back.

"Ally, if you don't want to talk about it, I'm sure Hazel will understand." Myra assured as she climbed down from the top bunk and sat next to her friend. I nodded.

"No, it's okay. If you're gonna be our friend, it's time you knew about my past." She said definitively before taking in a deep breath and starting her story.

"When I was thirteen, my mom got remarried. Her boyfriend seemed nice, until he started living with us. My little sister, Adeline and I were close. She was eleven at the time and we would tell each other everything. After a few months of mom's new marriage, I noticed Adeline began acting strange.

She stopped talking and began wearing all black. She would come home from school and lock herself in her room. She began failing her classes and she shut out all her friends, including me. I was concerned, but my mom kept saying it was just a phase.