Second Time's the Charm by Melissa J. Morgan Read Free Book Online

“Well, now you are.” She frowned, peering down at her fingers. “I, on the other hand, broke a nail. Darn it.” She shrugged. “Well, I guess sports aren’t my thing.” She giggled to herself and wandered off, apparently completely unconcerned with the fact that Lissy, another 4B-er, was stepping up to the plate to kick.
    That’s just it, Natalie thought, frustrated. Sports aren’t my thing, either. At least, they weren’t before this morning. And it looked like they wouldn’t be anytime soon—again today, anyway. Not that Nat cared.
    Or did she?

    By lunchtime, all thoughts of her fall from athletic grace were gone from Natalie’s mind. She had seen Simon at the waterfront, and he’d told her he would stop by during the siesta period after lunch. Now Nat’s biggest concern was how she was going to scribble a postcard to Hannah before he showed up.
    â€œWhat did one snowman say to the other snowman?” Perry asked as the girls kicked along the dirt path that ran from the bunks to the mess hall.
    Natalie looked at Alyssa and shrugged. “We have no idea,” Alyssa said.
    â€œFreeze!” Perry screamed, adopting a Charlie’s Angels pose and laughing maniacally.
    â€œVery mature,” Chelsea sniffed.
    Nat smiled. Okay, it was a stupid joke, but whatever. At least Perry was always upbeat and energetic—which was more than anyone could say for Chelsea.
    â€œHey, aren’t those your friends from last summer?” Tori asked, pointing.
    Natalie and Alyssa looked off into the distance, where Tori was pointing. Indeed, Alex, Brynn, Valerie, Sarah, and Grace were marching together in a Rockettes-style kick line, chanting. Natalie opened her mouth to say hi to her friends but realized they were too involved in their chant to hear her. As they drew closer, the words to their little cheer became clearer:
    â€œHey, 4A: Save your toilet paper ’cause we’re going to wipe you up!”
    They’d clap heartily through linked arms after each rendition, growing progressively louder.
    â€œWhaaaaaa?” Jenna murmured incredulously, almost more to herself than to anyone else. “That’s crazy!”
    â€œPeople are starting to notice what they’re saying,” Jessie said nervously, tugging at the tips of her pigtails. Inter-bunk rivalries were not uncommon and generally were all in good fun—but as other campers started to ogle the two sparring bunks, Natalie and her friends flushed with embarrassment.
    â€œAll right, kids, break it up,” Andie shouted, waving her arms like a particularly friendly train conductor. 4C acquiesced, but only after a minute or two more of stubborn catcalls and hollers. “Does this happen at Lakeview often?” Andie asked her campers, bemused.
    Jenna nodded. “Oh, yeah. You know, rivalries. I think they’re starting up because half of our old bunk is in 4A, and half is in 4C. So it’s like, us against them. And 4C is going to have to pay.”
    Andie smiled mischievously. “I like the sound of that,” she said. “A lot.”

chapter FIVE
    It took only a few days for Natalie to find her feet and truly settle into the camp routine. Every morning, the girls were woken at the crack of oh-my-god, and were given twenty minutes to get down to flag raising. That was twenty minutes total, for the collective group, as Nat had learned the hard way the summer before. She was extremely proud of herself for having considerably pared down her a.m. regimen. A quick shower, a tug of the hairbrush, and she was done.
    At flag raising, the entire camp did just that, with Dr. Steve, the camp director, leading them all in calisthenics and a few cheesy songs. He also made announcements, if there were any to be made. Then it was time for breakfast—or what passed for breakfast, anyway. After breakfast, all of the campers returned to their respective bunks for chores. They