Mark spotted Anna’s purse to his left and climbed in as quickly as he could and backed into a corner to try and remain out of sight.
Kylie took the camp T-shirts off the top of the pile and folded them neatly before putting them in the other dresser. Returning to the desk, she took the other shirts which were still folded and put them in the dresser with the others. All that was left on the desk now was Anna's purse, an empty plastic bag, an open bag of dry Cheerios, an open bottle of water, and a plastic bottle cap filled with water. She flattened the empty bag then closed up the bag of Cheerios and put it on top of the empty bag. She wondered why the cap to the water bottle was sitting out with water in it. "Should I dump it back in the bottle? Dump it in the bathroom?" Kylie thought to herself. "Well, it seems to have been done on purpose, but I don’t know why. I’ll just leave it," she decided. She moved the purse, bottle, and cap to be next to the plastic bags and decided she’d picked up as much as she could. With a feeling of accomplishment, she pulled out a book and laid back on her bed and started reading.
By late afternoon, Anna was exhausted and hungry after leading tours for several hours. She ended her final tour at the main assembly building and headed to the nearby administration building to meet with Mrs. Berkin and get her schedule for the next few weeks. Entering the office, she ran into her co-counselors Sharon, Jessica, Amy, and Rhonda. Some of them were still waiting to meet and others had already received their schedules and were waiting to find out their friends’ schedules.
A few minutes after Anna arrived, Kylie showed up. As Kylie looked around the room taking in the faces, Anna waved. "Hey Kylie!"
"Hey Anna," Kylie waved back as she walked over to Anna. "How did the tours go?"
"Not bad. By the final one, I had really found my groove, but it was exhausting trying to herd all those pre-teens." Anna let out a long exhale. "I’m looking forward to dinner and putting my feet up."
"If you want, I wouldn’t mind unpacking your stuff for you," offered Kylie. "I like unpacking and putting things in their place. I already folded the shirts you left on your desk and put those away for you. I hope you don’t mind."
Anna’s eyes opened wide. "You put away the shirts on my desk?" Anna could feel her heart beating faster in a panic. She wondered if Kylie had noticed Mark and where Mark was hiding without those shirts out.
"Yeah, I figured you were so busy it was the least I could do."
Anna’s mind was racing. "So you put them in a drawer?" Anna wondered if Mark was also in the drawer. She began to worry he may have been trapped there all afternoon.
"Yeah, the one closest to your bed, of course." Kylie tilted her head slightly, "Although I did see there was a cap of water poured out. I didn’t know if that was okay to pour back in the bottle or if it was left out for a reason, so I just left it there."
Anna wondered if Mark had been able to have a drink. She realized if he was separated from the water, he might be pretty thirsty by now. "What if he had to pee?" she wondered. "Would he end up peeing or pooping on all my shirts?" She wanted to rush back to the room now, but had to meet with Mrs. Berkin. Running out now would only raise suspicion.
Anna tried to think of an excuse for the cap of water. "Oh, the water? Uh, well, I was just fooling around, I guess." She thought for a moment and offered a nervous laugh. "Trying to see how much I could pour in before it spilled."
"Oh, seeing it bubble up from the surface tension? Yeah, I’ve tried that before," admitted Kylie.
Anna wished Mrs. Berkin would hurry up and call her in. When the door to her office opened, Anna’s head turned to await being called. She saw Abby and Kate emerge and they were greeted by everyone.
Abby walked up to Anna and gave her a big hug. "See you at dinner?"
Anna was partially distracted, but responded with a, "Sure! See you there."
Mrs. Berkin stood in the office doorway and called in Anna and Kylie next. Going over the schedules, Mrs. Berkin explained that Anna’s schedule would keep her busy in the morning, but she’d have time to herself between lunch and dinner. Kylie’s schedule was nearly the opposite. Mrs. Berkin went over other camp protocols and got acknowledgement from each of them that they understood.
Finally, Mrs. Berkin addressed Anna. "I understand that a friend of yours, a Jessica McKenzie, is signed up to be a counselor, but has not arrived yet."
"That’s correct," Anna explained. "She had a family emergency come up, but she’s likely on her way as we speak and should be arriving in a few hours."
"Okay, understood," replied Mrs. Berkin. She looked at Kylie. "Kylie, you’re all set and are free to go. I just need a little more information about Jessica from Anna."
Mrs. Berkin waited for Kylie to leave and close the door before continuing. "I understand that you and Jessica wanted to bunk together and you may have promised that to her. However, we typically assign the newer counselors to the older campers because they tend to have fewer issues such as separation anxiety that affect the younger campers. The older ones also tend to fend for themselves and require less direction. At this time, I can’t really move anyone from the older group to the younger group or vice-versa without making some major changes."
Anna sighed with disappointment.
"However," Mrs. Berkin continued, "I also recognize that the schedule is not set in stone and often has to make accommodations as situations change. So, here’s what I’ll do. If it turns out that someone currently assigned to the younger campers isn’t quite ready to handle them and if it also turns out that Jessica has proven herself to be ready, willing, and able to help the younger campers, I may be willing to make the swap. Alternatively, I do like having you work with the younger campers, but I may also be able to swap you to the older campers. That seems less likely, but it’s possible." Mrs. Berkin paused for a moment. "Anyway, what I’m saying is that I’ll see what I can do for the two of you."
Anna smiled. "Thank you, Mrs. Berkin!"
"Again, no promises. In the future, please don't promise people something you can't guarantee." Mrs. Berkin paused and looked at some forms. "I’m assuming you’ll be willing greet Jennifer when she arrives. I’m heading out after these meetings and won’t be back until morning." She handed some papers to Anna. "Please have Jennifer complete these and return them to my office in the morning. We need to know her activity preferences and emergency contact information." She also handed over a keycard. "This is the key to Jennifer’s room. Please give it to her and do not lose it."
"Okay," answered Anna. "Will do! Thank you!"
"Thank you, Anna. We’re all glad you’re back this year." Mrs. Berkin offered an uncharacteristic smile. "Please send in Amy and Rhonda next."
Anna left the office and told Amy and Rhonda it was their turn as she headed toward the outside door.
Kylie had been waiting for Anna. "Heading over to dinner? I’ll go with you."
Anna opened the door and started to leave. "Actually, I’m going to run back to the room first."
"Oh, I’ll come with you," offered Kylie.
Anna replied with an abrupt "No!" which seemed to catch Kylie off-guard. "I think you should go get dinner and save me a spot before all the good tables fill up."
"Oh, okay. Good idea. See you in a bit," Kylie said with a wave as they headed in different directions.