Camp


It all started in June of 2009. School wasn’t quite over but the outdoors was still hot and humid and ready for summer. I was starting to become really good friends with a girl named Alyssa who went to my school. By the way my name is Natalie. We would never hang out outside of school but we would talk and talk about everything inside of school. We became very good friends. Alyssa would always talk about this boy with me, his name was Paul. He was a boy she went to camp with and saw him quite a lot. And then one day she asked me if I wanted to go to her camp with her. And that is the story I am going to tell you about…

Alyssa was on her way to pick me up. I was all packed and ready to go, but of course mom had to make sure I everything.

“Do you have sunscreen?”

“Yes mom I have sunscreen. I am pretty sure I have everything,” I say in a annoyed voice towards my mom.

“I just want you to be protected honey.”

“I will be fine mom.”

As I was praying for Alyssa to arrive at my house, a gray truck pulled up in front of my house. Then the door bell rings and my dog go ballistic.

“Hey Alyssa,” I say with a relived smile on my face.

“Hey,” said Alyssa. Alyssa has always been the shy one but when she is around a friend she is as outgoing as they come.

“Hello, I’m Pete.”

Pete is Alyssa’s dad. Alyssa’s mom passed away when she was in the 3rd grade from a car accident. Her dad Pete though is really funny you just have to meet him. Alyssa and Pete are a lot alike in that they are both shy at first.

“Hello, I’m Carla,” my mom says introducing herself all nervous like always.

While our parents are talking Alyssa and I are looking at each other begging that we could eventually hit the road. Then all of a sudden Alyssa speaks up.

“Natalie, how about we bring your stuff to the car.”

“Good idea Alyssa lets do that,” I said.

As we are walking down my drive way Alyssa and I were just glad to get away from our parents when Alyssa’s dad starts walking over to the truck.

“Bye mom!” I yell getting into the car. “I love you!”

“I love you too sweetie, have fun!” my mom says hoping I won’t leave. But she knows I need to have some fun.




An hour goes by and in the car it is a little quiet, besides the music anyway. Then Alyssa and I find something to talk about. We say how it’s going to be so much fun going to her camp. Alyssa has all of these things to do but the person I really wanted to meet was the guy Alyssa was crushing on, Paul.

“Natalie, just remember don’t do anything that will drop hints that I like him please.”

“Of course I wouldn’t I will stay calm I promise,” Yes I promised to stay calm but I was excited. We were going to have so much fun.

Finally we got to her camp. Paul wasn’t there yet so we took our time. We took out our iPods, speakers, bathing suites and everything we need out of the car. When I got there it was exactly the way I pictured it. All the trees, a cabin, a camp fire, and a dock in a pond you can swim in. It was great.

“Hey Pete. Hey Alyssa Bean.”

“Hey Bill what’s going on?” said Pete. They had a long convocation on hunting. There kind of on the redneck side at Alyssa’s camp if you go there but they are nice people.

“What’s going on Alyssa bean?” said Bill. Alyssa Bean was a nick name he had for Alyssa since she was little. Anyways Bill seemed to be looking at me like I was a wearing a pig for a hat on head or something. “Who’s your friend?”

“Bill this is Natalie.”

“Hi,” I say hoping he likes me.

“Nice to meet you Natalie,” Bill said with a smile on his face.

I didn’t know how to act around the people at Alyssa’s camp. But after she introduced me to Bill and everyone else we went inside the cabin. We went inside so Alyssa could give me a tour of it even though it was a little small. All we would hear outside was Bills dog barking, his name was Gunner. Even though Alyssa loved Gunner she was afraid of dogs at the time, so she kept her distance. But anyways we went inside the cabin so we could change into our bathing suits. As soon as we got changed we went out to the dock with our iPods and speakers and everything else we would need to have a good time out sunbathing.

“This is going to be so much fun!” I say while we are listening to a song called Baby Got Back.

“I know right! Just wait until you meet Paul, He is so cute!” said Alyssa waiting for Paul to get here.

I still couldn’t believe that I was there with Alyssa. It was awesome and it would be even more awesome once Paul got there. We kept waiting and waiting too and it was horrible. We were so excited and nervous and anxious for him to get there that the perfect temperature for today which was 85 felt like it just went straight up in a second to 105 degrees or something.

“What is he like?” I say trying to imagine what Paul looks like.

“Well he is tall, he has brown hair and brown eyes, but he is a total red neck,” Alyssa says with not the best look on her face, “Oh but he is a year older than us, and that is pretty hot.”

“Oh that does sound pretty hot,” I say with a smile on my face and we just start laughing.

“But my cousin Jake is going to be here too and he is a character let me just let you know that.”

“Ha okay that’s fine.”

All of a sudden while we are finally getting a conversation started, Gunner starts barking. Alyssa yelled from the dock to her dad.

“Dad, Are the Johnson’s here?!”

“Yeah they are,” said Pete annoyed that we asked him for the millionth time.

“EEEPPPP!!!” we screamed as we ran off the dock with our towels to go see the Johnsons, but mostly Paul. Right before we went out to see Paul we checked to see if we looked okay and then we went out to the front of the cabin where Paul and his family were. We were still in our towels and it was kind of weird but we couldn’t do anything about it.

As soon as I saw Paul I turned towards Natalie when he couldn’t see me and said, “Oh My Gosh you are right he is so cute!”

“I know right! I told you.”

Alyssa and I just kept standing there silently then we went back to the dock after Alyssa introduced us.

“Paul this is Natalie, Natalie this is Paul.”

“Hi,” I say screaming on the inside.

“Hi,” said Paul with a shy look on his face.

After Alyssa introduced Paul and me we went back out to the dock. Then we started talking about Paul again. And it seems like we are being obsessed but it is just what girls do. Anyways I was telling Alyssa how I thought he was shy but that was only because we had just met.

The rest of the day we hung out with Paul and her cousin Jake but also with Paul’s younger sister Nicole, she is a year younger then us. We played hide and seek and played football and went out on kayaks. It was a lot of fun and Alyssa and I became even closer then we were before.

Paul by the end of the night had to leave, and I swear he was the love of my life by the first time I saw him. And Alyssa felt the same way. Oh, puppy love. We were having fun even though Paul just left. We were talking and talking and talking about him and hoping he would come back and kiss us.

“I think Paul likes you Nat,” said Alyssa feeling jealous.

“No way, I don’t think so!”

“Well I do, he was so flirting.”

I couldn’t help but giggle. I felt great but I didn’t want her to know since she liked him too but I was happy. Other than that awkward moment between us, we were having a great time at her camp and the day was coming to a end we drove home at like midnight and I was very fun. And I am still thanking Alyssa for inviting me today and we are still great friends. And I will never forget that great day with a great friend and even met a guy out of it. In the end though I couldn’t end up with Paul even though he liked me and I liked him it just wouldn’t be right since Alyssa had liked him for so long. But I ended up with another guy… his name was Phillip. And that is the story about me and my best friend Alyssa going to camp.