Spells & Sleeping Bags #3 by Sarah Mlynowski Read Free Book Online Page A

stack!” Deb tells her, howling with laughter.
    The girls resume their activity. I rest my butt back on the bench (ahhhhhhh) and ask, “What is stack, exactly?”
    “Cleaning the table,” Alison says, returning to her mac and cheese. “Counselors call ‘freeze’ at every meal. Whoever moves first, stacks. Or they call ‘pig.’ That's when they go like this”—she puts her index finger on the side of her nose—“and the last person to do it stacks.”
    It's like moving to a new country and having to learn all the customs.
    After filling my plate with salad and mac and cheese, I look at Raf's table (three over from mine). Should I go say hi now? Probably not, since he's currently wolfing down his food. Now what? Do I wait for him to talk to me? Do I go over in front of everyone? I don't want to interrupt. What if he just stares at me like I'm crazy? What if he doesn't think we're going to be a couple? What if we spend the entire summer playing the camp equivalent of phone tag and I never talk to him again?
    I try to control myself and not stare. I don't want all his bunkmates wondering who Crazy Stalking New Girl is.
    Don't obsess, don't obsess, don't obsess. . . .
    “Ketchup?” Alison asks me, interrupting my panic.
    “No, thanks.” Miri puts ketchup on her mac and cheese. I do not, as that is disgusting.
    By the time I finish eating, Morgan is already halfway through clearing the paper plates and tossing them into the garbage. My sister the environmentalist is going to hate that.
    Suddenly, there's a tap on my shoulder. Raf?
    Miri. “Hi,” she says. “Move over.”
    I push over so that she can squeeze in beside me. “Hey! Did you like dinner?”
    She shakes her head. “I can't believe how much paper they waste.”
    “I thought that might annoy you.”
    “It should bother you, too,” she says, taking a sip of my bug juice.
    Perhaps, but my brain is too busy being bothered by the fact that Miri can get off her butt to say hello to me but Raf can't. I mean, I saw Miri this afternoon and Raf hasn't seen—
    Raf is standing directly across the table, behind Carly.
    “Hey,” he says.
    I can't breathe or speak. What is wrong with me? I've been waiting for this day for so long, planning the entire conversation. Really. I have it all scripted in my head. I'll casually flick my glimmering brown tresses over my shoulder and say hello as demurely as possible, and then I'll ask, “What's up?” ever so casually. He'll then declare his undying love for me and grab me in his arms and kiss me so passionately that—
    “Rachel? You okay?”
    Now is not the time for fantasizing, Rachel! Now is the time to speak up, Rachel! Now is not the time for referring to oneself in the third person, Rachel!
    “Hi, Raf,” I squeak.
    “How are you liking your first day of camp?”
    “Fun. Cool. Good.” So what if I can manage only one-syllable words? At least I'm speaking. Unfortunately, my entire bunk is intently listening to the conversation.
    “Did you like Oscar's mac and cheese?” he asks.
    “Oscar?”
    “The chef. He's been the chef for, like, twenty years.”
    “Oh yes. Very cheesy.” Brilliant, Rachel.
    Raf waves hello to the girls at the table. “Hi, ladies.”
    “So how long have you two known each other?” Alison asks, her mouth full.
    “Rache and I go way back.”
    “We hear she knows your brother, too,” Morgan says.
    The edges of Raf's cheeks turn pink.
    I might have to zap her into a bug. Or even better, bug juice. I can't believe she brought up Will. I can't believe I dated Will, even though it was accidental. I hope Raf won't let all that come between us. I know it would totally weird me out if Raf dated Miri.
    Oh, right. Miri. “Raf, have you met my little sister, Miri?”
    He gives her a smile. “Yup. Once. I forgot how much you guys look alike.”
    That's good, right? Miri's adorable. We blush simultaneously.
    “I also saw you in the fashion show with Rachel,” Miri says, which leads to an