Stealing Third (15 page)

“It
was, Emily. Was.”

Tears
run down my face as Tyler disappears down the dark tree lined trail towards his
cabin. His final words slamming into my chest, leaving me hunched over and out
of breath.

“Was,”
I choke out into the quiet night. “Was.” Past tense.

What
have I done? My chest tightens at the only answer I can come up with.

I’ve
ruined everything.

The
sudden sound of twigs snapping along the path startles me off the ground and
out of my head.

Tyler?

Relieved
he’s come back so I can explain, I quickly wipe the tears from my face and spin
around, but instead of Tyler, it’s Jenny who emerges from the trail.

“Emily,”
Jenny says, her voice cutting through the silent night as a small beam of light
from her flashlight pools on the ground by my feet. “I’ve been looking for you
everywhere. Where have you been? ”

“I—”

She
holds up her hand to stop me from answering. “Never mind. I don’t want to know.
But trust me, I won’t hesitate to call you out if we get caught being out past
curfew.”

“Don’t
worry,” I sniffle. “I couldn’t get in any more trouble tonight if I tried.”

“What
do you mean by that?” Jenny flicks the light up to my face, her pinched lips
softening at the sight of me. “Whoa. Are you okay?”

I
shake my head as a fresh batch of tears streak down my face. “I’m the complete
opposite of okay—I’ve ruined everything, and he’s never going to forgive me—I
mean, how could he?” I babble incoherently, knowing she probably doesn’t care
if I’m okay or not. She’s just asking to be polite, but I don’t care. I need to
talk to someone. “I don’t know what to do, but I have to fix this.”

Placing
her hand on her hip, Jenny takes a deep breath, and by the look on her face,
whatever she’s about to say pains her. “Sometimes in the heat of the moment
things seem like a bigger deal than they really are, Emily. I’m sure whatever
happened, you and Todd will work it out. He’s been into you, for like, ever.”

“Todd?”
I laugh, but there’s no humor behind it. “Why would you think that?”

Jenny
stares down at her feet. “Well…I guess I just assumed. I saw that postcard from
your friend Kat asking about him…and I don’t know…” She shrugs. “You’re always
sneaking off towards his cabin and stuff…so I just figured.”

First
the letter—and now the postcard. No wonder no one writes hand written letters
anymore. No passwords.

“Well,
you figured wrong.” I blow out a shuttering breath. “It’s Tyler I screwed up
with. And now it’s over,” I admit since we’ll be the talk of camp tomorrow
after we’re both kicked out anyway. What’s the point in hiding now?

Jenny’s
hand falls from her hip, and her jaw drops open. “You and Tyler? Not Todd?”

“Definitely
not Todd.” I swipe my face dry with the back of my hand. “Although, I will
admit I flirted with him to make Tyler jealous at first.”

“Are
you serious?” Jenny’s eyes light up as a smile spreads across her face. “I’ve
been flirting with Tyler all session to make Todd jealous.”

This
time I laugh. Remembering all the times this summer I’ve wanted to pull Jenny’s
hair out for hanging all over Tyler, when she was probably thinking the very
same thing about me and Todd.

“So,
how long have you guys been together?” she asks, giving me the sense she
actually cares. Nothing fake about it.

I
shrug, unsure how to answer.

Since
his party? Since our kiss after the campfire? Or maybe since today, when we
finally told each other how we felt. “I don’t know, a while, I guess.”

“I’m
really happy for you,” Jenny says, giving me a hug. “And I’m sure whatever
happened will work itself out. Camp fights tend to blow over pretty fast.” She
releases me and steps back with a smile. “See? Just like us. ”

I
roll my eyes. “Yeah, now that we know we’re not after the same guy.”

“That
definitely helps,” she says, tossing her hair over her shoulder, her smile
genuine. Linking my arm in hers, she starts to guide us down the trail to our
cabin like two old friends. “Btw, I think you and Tyler make a cute couple.”

My
heart pinches. Make? Or Made?

“You
and Todd would too,” I offer quietly, trying to hold back another wave of tears
thinking about me and Tyler in the past tense.

“Although…”Jenny
flicks off her flashlight when we reach the first cabin along the trail, I
assume to keep us incognito. “I’m not sure anyone could dethrone Lucy and Dave
for cutest couple, but we could always try.”

I
stop us so quickly Jenny’s head whips back. “That’s it!” I shout before tossing
my arms around her neck. So much for being stealth.

“Can
I borrow that?” I ask, letting her go and eyeing the flashlight.

Jenny’s
forehead wrinkles as she hands it over. “Yeah, but why?”

I
smile at the plan forming in my mind. “I was wrong—I might just get into a
little more trouble before the night is over.”

…

Considering
all the practice I’ve had this summer sneaking out, I’m not surprised my heart
is steady and my palms are dry. What does surprise me is how hard I’m trying to
not
get caught. It wouldn’t change a thing if I did, but if I don’t—it
might just change everything.

With
my back pressed firm against the wall, I continue to scan the dark empty field
as I tiptoe in the shadows to the last door of the building. I hold my breath;
wrap my hand around the handle, and push.

Locked.

“Damn
it.”

They’re
all locked.

Letting
out my breath, and some hope in the process, I rack my brain for a new idea.

The
sound of nothing but crickets chirping in the distance only helps to remind me
how flipping far away camp is from everything. However, it still doesn’t stop
me from calculating exactly how long it would take to walk the fifteen or so
miles into town.

Before
deciding to hoof it through the woods in the middle of the night to find a
phone in town, I survey the building one last time for any other ways in. I
smile when my eyes stop on a small window with a crack running down the middle
of it on the second story. Todd.

I
stifle a laugh remembering Andy’s bet during the egg toss. He said you couldn’t
break a window with a raw egg. Apparently Todd could—and did.

This
time, my calm, cool, and collected heart picks up speed since my simple plan to
sneak in has now developed into a full blown plan to break and enter. My three
strikes at camp will be insignificant compared to the real trouble I’ll get in
if I get caught.

I
shake my head. I have no other option. I have to fix this for Tyler.

Snatching
the largest rock from the ground I can find, I stuff it in my pocket, climb
onto the waist high brick ledge, and scan the wall of river rocks covering the
building’s side in search of a finger hold.

“I
can do this,” I whisper as I dig my fingers into the first deep grove I can
find. It’s no different than the rock wall at the college I’ve climbed a
million times while Dad ran practice or worked late.

Well—except
it’s pitch-black out and I have no harness—but otherwise it’s totally the same
thing. Right? My now sweaty palms disagree.

Here
goes nothing.

Keeping
my eyes on the window, I suck in a deep breath, sweaty palms be damned, and
start to work my way up the wall.

The
rocks are smooth and shallow, and I manage to climb the ten or so feet without
incident until I’m perched outside the window with my fingers digging into its
metal frame.

See?
Easy.

Now
for the hard part.

Holding
on to the frame with one hand, I reach back to grab the rock from my pocket,
prepared to smash it into the already cracked window, when my hurt ankle
buckles under my weight and sends my foot slipping from the tiny grey rock it’s
balancing on.

Frantically
scrambling to find a new footing so I don’t plummet to the ground, I clamp down
on the metal frame of the window so hard it cuts into my hand, while my other
hand, searching for anything to grab hold of in a panic brushes against the
window and slips it open.

Despite
the fact that I’d have way worse than just a sprained ankle if I’d fallen, and
my heart is beating so hard it feels like it might explode, I can’t stop the
smile that breaks across my face. Looks like my breaking and entering is just
plain old entering again.

Yes.

This
time, keeping all of my weight on my good foot I dig the edge of my tennis shoe
into a thin grove between two rocks, flatten my palm against the window, and
slide it all the way open.

I
hoist myself into the darkened exam room and pull in a few ragged breaths as my
eyes adjust to the dark before I tiptoe to the door and open it just a crack.

The
hallway is dark except for the bright red exit sign hanging above the door at
the other end of the long corridor. I stop and listen, making sure the coast is
clear before slinking down the hall to the first open office door I find.
Doc’s.

Steadying
my shaking hands, I pick up the receiver and punch in a number I know as well
as my own. My foot taps nervously against the tightly woven brown carpet.
Please pick up. Please pick up. Please pick up.

A
mixture of muffled background chatter and loud music blares through the phone.
“Hello?”

I
breathe a sigh of relief. “Kat, I need your help.”

“All
right guys, make sure your bunks are made up before you leave, and all personal
items of questionable taste are put away, please.” I give Todd a pointed stare
before eying the spread of Sports Illustrated bikini model magazine pages taped
to the wall above his bed.

“What’s
the big deal?” he huffs. “I have these plastered all over my room at home,
too.”

“Uh…maybe
you should just listen to Tyler, man. I mean, not all the moms are so…cool,”
Andy says, fidgeting with the button down shirt he’s tucked into his pleated
Dockers, giving me the distinct impression camp is the one place Andy can let
his neatly gelled red hair down. So to speak.

“Yeah,
yeah, fine. I’ll take’em down,” Todd says, stripping his wall and tucking the
pictures under his pillow.

I
flinch. “You might want to do a better job of hiding those unless you don’t
care who stumbles on them.”

“Yeah?”
Todd laughs. “So I probably shouldn’t keep these under there either, right?” He
swings a pair of lacy yellow panties around his finger before pulling out a
pair of red ones from Andy’s top drawer.

“Dude,”
Andy shouts, snatching the underwear from Todd and stuffing them under his
mattress, his face and neck an even brighter shade of red than the balled up
piece of lingerie.

I
roll my eyes. “Seriously, guys? I cannot believe you took those,” I say, but it’s
a total lie. I can believe it—and they better not be Emily’s or it won’t just
be my eyes that roll—heads will too.

I
try and shake off the unexpected moment of protectiveness over Emily since I’m
still furious at her for using me, but I can’t. Despite everything, I still
care about her. More than I’d like to admit considering how hard she played me.

“Dude,
it’s cool. Jenny and Sara will never know.” Todd tucks the underwear in his top
drawer before turning back to me. “And speaking of panties…whose were you
getting into last night?”

“I’m
sorry?” I choke out, loosening my tie to keep it from strangling me. As if
Walter wasn’t bad enough. Did Todd see us, too?

Todd
wags his eyebrows, laughing. “Oh, come on—you rolled in way after curfew last
night. So? Who was the lucky lady?”

I
breathe a sigh of relief. He only saw me come in after curfew. “Trust me, no
one got lucky last night.” 

The
exact opposite actually, and I’m afraid it’s only going to get worse from here.

I
glance at my watch. Shit. It’s time.

…

Heading
down the trail with the guys, I run my hands nervously over the fitted dress
shirt and dark wash jeans I’m wearing, hoping Coach doesn’t take a bat to my
knees when he finds out why Emily and I have been kicked out of camp.

I
scan the field, overflowing with visitors, and find Emily without even trying.
Regardless of everything that has happened in the last twenty-four hours, I
can’t take my eyes off of her as the sun picks up the natural auburn highlights
in her hair; the red tips all but gone, washed away from afternoons in the lake
and maybe even an unexpected shower or two.

Smiling
at the memory of us hiding in that tiny shower together, and the way I felt in
that moment with her, it all clicks. That was the day I decided to screw the
rules and let myself fall for this girl.

The
day
I
decided. For me.

Not
because it was right or wrong, or because it would make my parents proud, or my
team happy, or honor my brother, or further my plans for med school—no—I
decided to do what I wanted.

And
what I wanted was to meet Emily out on the field last night, in spite of the
rules, because I’m falling in love with her. And that’s on me.

Shoving
my hands in my pocket, ashamed of the way I blamed her for us getting in
trouble last night, Emily suddenly turns and catches me staring.

I
drop my eyes, unsure I’m ready to see how much damage I’ve caused when she
calls my name. I pull in a deep breath and look up to find Emily waving me
over, a soft smile on her face.

My
heart pounds as I make my way across the field. When I finally reach her, I’m
careful not to stand too close—knowing Coach could be anywhere—but wishing we
were alone so I could tell her how I feel and how sorry I am for last night.

I
kick at the dirt as I lock eyes with her, her smile easing my nerves. “Hi.”

“Hi,”
she says back, her eyes bright even though I’m sure she slept as little as I
did.

“All
right, you two, enough with the pleasantries. Why don’t you just kiss and
makeup already?”

I
whip my head around, recognizing the refreshingly blunt sound of Emily’s friend
from the party. The one Pete couldn’t stop talking about after the girls took
off that night—that is—after Coach bailed him out of the drunk tank.

“Kat,
right?” I reach out my hand to shake hers.

“You
can do better than that…considering,” she laughs, before throwing her arms
around my neck and nearly choking me.

Considering
what?

When
she finally lets go, I have no chance to ask what in the hell she meant because
I’m standing face to face with Coach, and a woman who I assume is Emily’s mom
by their resemblance to one another.

Coach
wrinkles his forehead, the same way he does when he’s figuring out the batting
order before a game. “Tyler? What in the hell are you doing here?” He smiles,clamps
his hand on my arm, and pulls me into the standard half-body guy hug. “This is
the kid I was telling you about,” he says to Emily and her mom when we
separate. “The one the minors are all buzzing about.”

“Mr.
Evers, sir.” I nod, nervously straightening my shirt, which earns me a puzzled
look from both Emily and her dad. Her mother looks between Emily and I and
smiles. “Uh, I mean…Coach.”

“That’s
better. What is this, a first date?” Coach chuckles loudly at his own joke,
drowning out the sound of me swallowing. “Now, really, what’cha doing here?”

“Tyler
is job shadowing Doctor Newton, Dad.”

Coach
slaps his leg. “That’s right. Doc told me he was going to have one of my guys
working with him for the summer. Well, I sure hope for the team’s sake you’ve
been able to take advantage of the world-class features this camp has to offer
athletes.”

“I’m
pretty sure he’s been taking full advantage of
everything
camp has to
offer, Mr. E,” Kaitlin chimes in before tossing Emily a smile and causing me to
choke. “I mean, how could he not?” She gestures to the lake. “This place is
amazing.”

I
let out a choppy breath, relieved Coach didn’t seem to catch onto Kaitlin’s not
so subtle innuendo as he takes in the lake. Unfortunately, it won’t be long
until he figures out Kaitlin isn’t all that far off.

“Mom,
Dad—can you excuse us for a second? Tyler and I have to speak with Mr. Robbins
real quick.” She shoots me a look I can’t quite read, but it looks like a plea
to go along with whatever she says. “It’s uh…about second session.”

Emily’s
parents look surprised, but not as surprised as Emily looks when her father
wraps his arms around her mother’s waist. “Sure thing, sweetie, we’ll head into
the chow hall for lunch.”

Emily
stares in shock, her jaw hanging open at her parent’s retreating backs as they
make their way into the cafeteria with Kaitlin in tow.

I
nudge her arm to get her attention.

“Oh.
Um, yeah.” She blinks a few times before returning her focus to me. “We need to
talk to Walter, like, right now. Come on.”

She
grabs my hand and drags me through the crowd towards Walter’s office, and now
I’m the one whose jaw is hanging open. “Are you trying to get us in even more
trouble?” I say, lifting our joined hands and widening my eyes at her outright
display of affection.

“If
my plan works,” she lifts up on her toes and plants a kiss on my cheek, “less.”

“Emily,
what the—” my eyes scan the crowd to see if anyone has noticed when I see my
tall, lanky best friend wandering from the parking lot towards the cafeteria. “Hell?”

…

“Miss
Evers, Mr. Ford, this is not a good time,” Walter says, looking up from the
pile of paperwork covering his desk, dark circles ringing his eyes. “As I said
last night I’ll speak with your parents after the luncheon. And as for you,
Tyler, I’ll need until the end of the day to work out a counselor that can take
over your cabin before I can let you go.”

“This
won’t take long, I promise,” Emily says, ignoring Walter’s suggestion this
isn’t the time. “I want to start off by apologizing for last night. I know what
we did was against the rules, and I understand there has to be consequences for
our actions.”

Walter
sits back in his chair, slides his reading glasses off, and rubs the bridge of
his nose. “Thank you, Emily, for your apology.” He crosses his arms and lets
out a deep breath. “But I just wish you would have thought about that before
breaking the rules in the first place. I’ve practically watched you grow up
here—watched you grow as an athlete, and a young lady. And, needless to say,
I’m disappointed. In both of you,” Walter says, leveling me with a look. I have
a feeling this won’t be the last one I’ll receive before the day is out. I just
hope Coach doesn’t level me with a bat.

“Again,”
Emily says. “I’m sorry for both the food fight and for sneaking out last
night.”

Walter’s
brows lift as he waits for her to continue, but she doesn’t.

I
glance at her, waiting too, as the silence in the room draws out uncomfortably
until I can’t take the quiet any longer. “I…uh...I’m sorry, too, sir, for last
night. For all of it really.”

“Thank
you, Tyler.” Walter nods, still eyeing me. “However, as an employ of this camp
I hold you most responsible for what has happened. The fraternization rules are
clearly
and
repeatedly stated in your training manual in order to
protect our campers.” Walter places the tip of his eyeglass frames in his mouth
and looks at me retrospectively. “I would have thought keeping campers safe
would be one of your top priorities considering your future career path.”

The
sting of his truth hits me right in the gut, leaving me speechless. He’s right.

I
drop my eyes to the ground, embarrassed I’ve let him down.

“It’s
not Tyler’s fault, sir. It’s mine,” Emily says, taking a step closer to his
desk.

Walter
leans forward and sighs. “While I appreciate your candor, and your willingness
to take the blame, Emily, it was quite clear last night you are both
equally
to blame.”

I
swallow hard, remembering just exactly
how
clear Walter’s view of us
must have been. I peer at Emily, expecting to see her looking as embarrassed as
I feel, but instead she is standing firm, with nothing but pure determination
on her face.

“You’re
right, sir, we are both equally to blame for the food fight
and
for
sneaking out, and again I’m sorry. But—”

“Miss
Evers,” Walter says, raising his hand to stop her, probably having heard every
excuse in the book. “There are no buts. You broke the fraternization rule and
that makes strike three. I’m sorry.”

“That’s
the thing,” Emily says, a faint smile ghosting her lips. “We didn’t technically
break the fraternization rule because we’ve been together since before camp,
sir.”

My
eyebrows shoot up. This is her plan to get us out of trouble? To tell Walter
we’ve hooked up before? Um. No.

“Miss
Evers, that’s quite convenient, wouldn’t you say?” Walter drops his glasses to
his desk before leaning back in his chair once again, looking completely
unconvinced. “And let’s just pretend I was to believe this suddenly handy story
of yours—what then, Emily? It doesn’t change the rules against campers and
counselors dating.”

Emily
straightens her shoulders. “But what about Lucy and Dave?” she says with
conviction, like she’s been waiting for this exact question.

Walter’s
face falters, and so does mine. What do Lucy and Dave have to do with this?

Expecting
Walter to stop this charade, call Coach up here and let him deal with us, my
heart starts to pound as she reaches back and wraps her hand around mine.

“Emily,
Miss Emmerson and Mr. Miller were a special circumstance last year.” Walter
stands and moves to the front of his desk, crossing his arms. “They alerted me
of their relationship prior to Dave becoming a counselor and Lucy becoming a
junior counselor and because of that, I was able to get the proper
documentation needed to exclude them from the rule.” Walter clears his throat.
“Unfortunately, this is not the same situation, and frankly, I can’t just take
your word for it.”

I
tug on Emily’s hand. He’s right. It’s not the same thing, and just because
Emily tells him we were together before camp doesn’t make it true—unless of
course you count the night of the party.

My
eyes widen. The night of the party. With Kaitlin and Pete.