trying.
âI donât want your help, anyway!â Brynn yelled as the other girls started to whisper about the impending altercation. When Chelsea chewed out Alex, it was easy for everyone to take Alexâs side.
But the fight between Alex and Brynn wasnât so clear-cut. Both girls had a point: Alex was standing Brynn up, and Brynn was being self-involved, not to mention bossy. The other girlsâNatalie, Alyssa, Karen, and the othersâdidnât know what to do. They just looked at one another and shrugged.
Only Sarah and Valerie got involved.
âIâll help you, Brynn,â Sarah said, moving to stand next to Brynn.
âCome on, Alex,â Valerie said. âCool down for a while, and then try to talk about it again.â
Alex wanted to add one more thing before Brynn walked away. âIf Sarah helps, then itâs okay if I go to the meeting with Julie?â At least she knew Brynn would have an extra hand, which was the important part, anyway.
â I said , I didnât want your help, anyway,â Brynn stated, stomping off.
What has Brynn done for me lately? Alex wondered. Brynn hadnât even said anything to Chelsea when she harassed Alex just before. Alex honestly didnât think she should be the one to apologize this time.
âItâs okay, Alex. Letâs just go the scavenger hunt and forget about it,â Valerie said. âIt will all blow over soon.â
âYeah. Sure.â Alex shrugged, trying to shake off the icky feeling the fight had given her. Valerie had to be right. This couldnât go on forever.
Could it?
chapter SIX
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When the girls returned after the scavenger huntâthey had lost to their rival bunk 3Aâno one was in a giddy mood. Before lights-out, Brynn and Alex used to sit around and talk. Theyâd often share their dreams and secrets and rehash the day. Nothing of the sort happened that night.
Alex hadnât expected it, but it still stung when Brynn took her script over to Graceâs bed and started reading.
It was getting more and more awful by the dayânot just for Alex, but also for the other girls who felt like they were being forced to take sides. The most worrisome thing for Alex was that Chelsea and Brynn had been talking more. Alex was terrified that the two of them would gang up together against her and make the last days at camp one big pile of steaming Hamster Surprise.
This was not how Alex had imagined the end of camp! She was so disappointed. Sheâd managed to have a little funâlike at the formal banquet planning meetingâbut she just couldnât enjoy the other camp activities with Brynn acting like they werenât even friends anymore. Alex started wishing that she had gone to paint with Brynn that night instead of to the planning meeting. Maybe then nothing wouldâve gotten this bad , Alex thought. But then another, less quiet voice perked up inside her head.
Why should Brynn always get her way? Alex asked herself, vowing to stand her ground on this one. Itâs like she just expects me to go play with her.
As the days went on, woodworking was a much-needed break once a day from the girls and their dramas. Valerie didnât care much about it. She mentioned a few times that her friendship with Sarah was totally over.
âIf sheâs that sensitive, and if I canât talk about my girls at home, then so be it,â Val explained. âMy mom says sometimes friendships fade, and you should let them go gracefully. If Sarah wants to dump me over one little stupid comment I made, I guess we werenât that close in the first place. Hmph.â
âIt still stinks, though,â Alex added, feeling totally dumped herself. âI hate the way Brynn ignores me.â
âLikewise,â Val said. âDid you see the way they were holding hands at the flagpole this morning? I couldnât even giggle about Dr. Steveâs mismatched knee
Vladimir Sorokin
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S Moose