Top Bunk

DAY 7

⌚ 6:45 AM

El finally knows what a hangover feels like. She really wishes she doesn't.

"Oh my god," that's a female voice, yet El isn't sure. Her head aches too much for her to decipher what's what anymore. "Will, I found them! Will!"

A few seconds later, Finn's cabin floods with light and El's head is hurting worse than ever. That plus Louise's bright turquoise hair spilling over in El's field of vision...just no.

"It reeks in here," that's Will and by this time El has regained enough of her consciousness to see that he's wrinkled his nose in disgust.

"Wake up," she hears Louise say. By the way her voice bounces off the walls. El's best guess is that she's waking Grace up in the bathroom.

"Hey, El." Will's gentle hand is shaking her shoulder slightly. "I think you should wake up now. Lionel's pretty pissed."

"I'm awake," El mumbles, shutting her eyes tight. Light. No.

"And your breath stinks," Will says. "Wait. Have you been drinking?"

El says nothing, choosing instead to pull herself up so she's sitting.

"Louise!" Will calls. "They're hungover."

"I kind of figured." Louise emerges from the bathroom, holding Grace up by the waist. "By the amount of her beer-scented vomit all over the floor."

⌚ 8:28 AM

Yesterday's victory over Cabin J is still ringing in El's ears and her crotch has somehow finally stopped itching (she checked when Will and Louise forced her to take a very hot shower and it doesn't look like she has herpes anymore!) and her hangover is practically cracking her skull open so it's understandable why El couldn't pay attention to Lionel's scolding a while ago.

But somehow Grace has gotten over her hangover just like that, as now she's the one who's taking charge of the Ashes for this week's Bonfire Music Jam. Meanwhile, El has her sunglasses perched upon her nose, her head on Louise's lap.

Grace explains the concept of the Bonfire Music Jam for the campers new to it in the standard Grace Upland sass method. "How many days have you been at this dump?"

"Seven days" is the reply of the seventy two girls seated on the grass.

"A week!" Grace says. "We've won and we've...lost," she narrows her eyes at El, "but now is the time we redeem ourselves. Right now, we're at the north end of the woods while the Woods are a the south. We're going to be practicing for the music jam. Basically shit's going to go down. That shit is each cabin is performing a song and Lionel's scoring each of them out of ten. And we know how fair Lionel is at scoring."

For the first time, El agrees with her.

"You understand?" Grace asks.

The Ashes nod in assent.

Grace reminds El scarily of Regina George right now. "Good. Now, if we could just decide on what songs to sing..."

"Taylor Swift!" El squeaks as her head leaves Louise's lap. She ignores the sharp pain at the back of her head. "Sorry. But yeah, Taylor Swift."

Cabin A cheers and El silently thanks them. Grace's expression is unchanged. "Why?" she asks but by the way her lip is twitching, El knows she's already onboard.

"Taylor's cool," El shrugs. "Plus, we might make Finn cry," she adds under her breath.

Sky sniggers from behind her.