With another glance, I move past how wide my mouth is and ignore how squinty my eyes are, and instead, I see a girl who has been through a lot but is managing to laugh and experience love and joy, gazing up at a boy she adores with wonder in her eyes. It’s beautiful.
CHAPTER 17
Summer 17
Several minutes later, we enter our campsite, still dripping wet in our bathing suits and holding our clothes. The truck is gone, and there’s no sight of Angelina. She must be in the tent.
Andrew saunters over to the plastic table holding all of the food and rips open the bag of Oreos. He grabs two and then looks around at the table for something.
“The milk is in the cooler,” I offer, gesturing under the table.
“Thanks, but I’m looking for your cookies. Those things are the best I’ve ever had, and I think they’d complement the Oreos well.” He winks.
I return his cheeriness with a frown. “Don’t you think you should eat Angelina’s cookies instead? You’ll upset her if they go uneaten. Since I made my own cookies, and she’syourgirlfriend, the job of eating them kind of falls onyou.”
He frowns a little and lowers his voice. “Yours are so much better.” Then he grabs two of my cookies and one of Angelina’s.
I can’t help but laugh. Andrew has always had a big appetite, similar to me. We’ve bonded over that throughout the years, buthis has grown to be three times what it used to be, and he is still this chiseled masterpiece of a human. It’s not fair.
He pours himself a small cup of milk, sits down in a chair, and dunks the Oreos in with patience as they soften. Then, in complete juxtaposition to his earlier patience, he shoves the whole Oreo into his mouth at once.
After he polishes off the last of his cookies, he gets up and moves toward the tent. “I’m going to check on her real quick,” he explains.
I nod and just stand there, unsure of what to do with myself.Why did Rebecca have to leave me alone at the camp with these two?Did she not realize I might end up murdering Angelina? Maybe she did realize and wanted to get out of the way so I could.
I snag one of my cookies from the Ziploc they’re sitting in and then head to the tent. I’ll put some dry clothes on and maybe read a few pages of my book while I wait.
Right as I find my book, I start to hear kissing sounds in the tent next door.Kill. Me. Now.This is not happening. No. No. No. This is not happening.I rush out of the tent, determined to get as far away from camp as possible when Rebecca pulls back into the campsite.
She hops out of the truck perkily, but her face falls when she sees me. “What happened now?” Glancing at her phone, she’s quick to defend herself. “I was only gone like half an hour.”
I nod my head in the direction of their tent. “Andrew went to check on Angelina, but that turned into a makeout session, and I refuse to sit here and listen.”
She immediately waltzes over to the tent and pokes it, then shakes it. She begins roaring, and I roll my eyes because she sounds more like a dying walrus than a bear.
Angelina starts screaming, and Andrew tries to console her as he yells at Rebecca, knowing it’s his twin without even having to see her.
I have to throw both of my hands over my mouth to hide the laughter that is pouring out of me right now.
Andrew and Angelina come rushing out of the tent, and Andrew charges at Rebecca. “What the hell was that for? You freaked Angie out!”
Rebecca looks calm and collected. “I was just having a little fun. You both need to lighten up, or this camping trip is going to be miserable. You used to do this to me all the time. Remember, Andrew?”
Andrew backs off a little and the tension in his shoulders visibly releases. He turns to wrap Angie up in a hug, and Rebecca walks away, heading back toward me near the truck.
Her perky smile is back on her face already. “Dani bought us a bottle of tequila. Let’s make some margaritas tonight.”
I look at her confused and then burst out laughing. “That was a good one. Now why’d you leave me?”
Her face goes serious. “Danididbuy us tequila.” She opens the truck and pulls out a bottle of Jose Cuervo, holding it up for me to see.
“Are you nuts?! Where did you get this from? I know Dani wouldn’t buy it for you!” I feel my chest constricting as panic rises. It’s not like I’ve never been around alcohol before. I have. I just haven’t consumed it before, and I certainly have never illegally acquired it. Then the thought ofDanibeing the one to get this for us? No way! This is the same girl who won’t even go on the tube with us because she’s too afraid. There’s no way she’d risk getting caught with a fake ID. Nope. Not her!
“I know you think Dani is some goody two shoes, but she’s a college woman now, and she can get a little rowdy.” She turns toward the truck again and grabs the bottle of margarita mix, setting it on the table.
“In case you’ve forgotten, Becs, we’re only seventeen. We are a long way away from the legal drinking age. I haven’t even had a sip of my parents’ drinks at home. I’m not surewhat you are thinking here, but it’s a bad idea. You’ve got to take it back.” I grab the two bottles and go to put them back in the truck.
She thrusts her arms out to stop me. “Emma, I just want to have a little fun. With Angie here and all this tension, this camping trip is a recipe for disaster. I want to make some good memories while we are out here.”
