Chapter VIII: Unexpected Peace Offering

Candy Summerton cleared the last of the paintbrushes from the arts and crafts table, her heart heavy with conflicting emotions. As she straightened up, she noticed her newfound friends, Emily and Sarah, exchanging mischievous glances.

"So, Candy," Emily began with a sly grin, "did you see how that lonely girl ignored Lance earlier?"

Sarah giggled and added, "Yeah, it was so obvious! He practically tripping over himself to get her attention, but she just walked right past him and treated him like shit. Girl doesn't know how good she has it."

Candy's brows furrowed as she tried to process their words. She had seen the encounter they were referring to earlier that day. The girl they were referring to was Jordan. She was so keen on finishing her bow and admittedly so vain she didn't want his help. Maybe they had some history or something. She didn't know. All she did know was Lance had always been one of the quieter kids from Willow Wind Prep. He was smart, but he was a scholarship student. And being student body president, it was her job to know everybody. Maybe she just hadn't noticed the guy's attempts to catch her eye. It seemed like a harmless thing at the time, but now her friends were turning it into gossip.

"Don't you girls have better things to do?" Anabelle Reiss snapped.

Emily rolled her eyes playfully and nudged Sarah. "Oh, lighten up, Bella! We're just having some fun."

Candy bit her lip, torn between wanting to fit in with her friends and feeling guilty for participating in the conversation. She glanced over her shoulder toward Jordan, who was walking back to camp alongside another guy. Her friend presumably. Maybe he was her boyfriend and she was trying to get Lance to take a hint.

"You know what?" Candy said softly but firmly. "Bella's right. We should focus on being kind and supportive of each other instead of spreading rumors or making fun of someone."

Sarah sighed and shrugged. "Ugh, be a buzzkill why dontcha?"

Night was falling. At least that was the safest assumption. The trees were growing darker and the dimly lit wood was now losing its bright aura. As they made their way towards the large dining hall for dinner, Candy couldn't shake off a strange feeling. Out of the corner of her eye, she thought she saw a shadow pass by one of the windows. She blinked and turned her head, but there was nothing there. Just her imagination playing tricks on her, she reasoned.

Inside the hall, the campers chatted excitedly amongst themselves, their voices echoing in the spacious room. The counselors were absent tonight, giving the campers a chance to enjoy their meal without adult supervision. Candy found a seat at a table near the center, hoping to catch glimpses of Lily and maybe strike up a conversation.

As she settled into her seat, Candy's gaze wandered towards the window. Once again, she thought she saw a fleeting shadow outside. Her heart skipped a beat as curiosity tugged at her. Should she go out and see who was there? Maybe a camper had been locked out? Maybe they were lost or confused? But before she could make up her mind, Jordan approached their table with a smile.

"What is this?" she stormed, her face mottled in anger.

She slapped her shirt onto the table, garnering a few stares from the other campers. The shirt had the words 'Freak,' written across them in a red felt pen. And it wasn't just this one. It had been done to most of her clothes. Other than the ones she was wearing of course.

Candy's was confused as she turned to Sarah and Emily who snickered. "Um, I'm sorry why do you think it was us who had something to do with this?"

"....Call it instinct." she seethed glaring at Sarah and Emily.

She crumpled up the shirt and tossed it at Emily, hitting her square in the face before she stalked out of the dining room and slamming the door shut behind her.

As the girls resumed chatting about their day and sharing stories, like nothing at all had happened, Candy couldn't help but steal glances towards the window. Although unsure of what she had seen, she couldn't shake off the feeling that something was off.

Little did Candy know that her intuition was right. Beyond those windows, hidden in the shadows, someone was watching her every move with intense curiosity and longing.

But for now, in that moment of camaraderie and friendship, Candy only focused on how she would make it up to Jordan and how she'd finally break her shell and make her her friend before the end of the summer.

I sat alone in the rotting cabin, tears streaming down my face. My clothes, my only solace in this unfamiliar place, had been torn to shreds, defaced you name it by Candy and her goons. And she lied to me to my face that she didn't know anything about it. I knew no one could be that sweet and human. It was a front she was putting up. And I don't even know what I had done to deserve it. I felt utterly defeated, like an outsider who didn't belong. Why had I even come to this wretched camp? I buried my face in my hands, wishing I could disappear.

A soft knock on the door startled me. Reluctantly, I called out, "Go away!"

The door creaked open, revealing guitar boy, I think his name was Lance, standing there with four large hoodies folded neatly in his hands. His eyes met mine with a mix of concern and sincerity. "Hey, Jordan," he said softly, his voice filled with genuine empathy. "I heard what happened. Thought you might need these."

I stared at him in disbelief, my tear-streaked face still wet. We weren't close. We weren't friends. In fact, I hated him. I felt like I should. And I hadn't done anything to deserve his kindness. But here he was, offering me a peace offering in the form of hoodies.

"What's the catch?" I asked suspiciously, my voice trembling slightly.

Lance shook his head, his expression earnest. "No catch, I promise," he replied sincerely. "I know you hate me or something but I just want us to be friends, Jordan. I guess this is my olive branch, I haven't quite figured you out yet and you probably have no reason whatsoever to trust me but right now, all I want is to help you."

His words resonated deep within me. Could it be that Lance genuinely cared? That he wasn't as bad as I had assumed? Tentatively, I reached out and accepted the hoodies from him.

"Thank you," I whispered, unable to meet his gaze.

Lance nodded and turned to leave the cabin.

"I'm sorry, that the other girls did this." he said.

As he walked away, a sense of gratitude washed over me. Perhaps there was more to him than meets the eye.

I sat there for a while longer in silence, letting his gesture sink in. The cabin felt a little less lonely, and I realized that maybe, just maybe, I had misjudged him all along. Maybe we could be...friends after all.

A small smile tugged at the corners of my lips as I wiped away the remnants of my tears. In that moment, I made a silent promise to myself: to give Lance a chance, maybe give him a chance to prove himself. He wasn't them, he wasn't those guys I'd met before. He was actually making an effort, maybe I should too.

And as I slipped into one of the hoodies, feeling its warmth and comfort envelop me, I couldn't help but think that maybe this camp experience wouldn't be so bad after all.