“No, but I have my phone. I’ll hike to the end of the camp road and use a ride share app to get a lift to the Target we passed getting here,” Anna explained.
Mark nodded, “Yeah, okay, but how will you know what clothes there have been worn or not?”
“Best case scenario, I see someone about our age trying something on that she doesn’t buy. Then I buy it. Maybe a dress or shoes. Hopefully something cheap. Worst case scenario, I find someone and convince her to try on a hat.”
“Target usually closes at 10 o’clock. It’s about 8 now, so you’d better get going. Except Kylie might notice you’re gone. What if she says something?”
Anna looked down at the floor. “That’s a good point. Curfew is at 9 and everyone is expected to be in their dorm rooms. They lock the outside doors. If I got locked out, I would have to go to the security office in the admin building to be let back in…and there would be questions.”
“Pile up pillows and clothes in your bed and cover them with the sheet. Turn off the lights after you leave and post a note on the door that says, ‘Kylie, Really tired. Went to sleep early.’ and hopefully she falls for it. You could stay here with me and sneak back into bed in the morning.”
“That is such a dumb idea,” commented Anna. “i don’t know if anyone would fall for that.”
“I think all we have left are dumb ideas,” joked Mark. “The only other option I can think of is to tape the door so that it won’t lock, but I think they’d be likely to notice that. They probably go around and check the doors.”
Anna sighed. “Okay, I don’t want to delay this any longer since we’re short on time. I’ll go with the dumb plan. You’ll be okay here until I get back?”
Mark looked around the hut. “Yeah, I’m going to be okay here. I’ve got my phone now too. Text me with updates.”
Anna saluted Mark. “Will do!” She kissed him on his fuzzy cheek, handed him the key to the hut, and ran out the door. Mark watched until she was out of sight and then closed and locked the door from the inside.
As Anna ran back to her dorm, she saw some people had started to leave the dance. She hoped Kylie was not one of them. Back at her room, she was relieved to find it empty. She quickly piled pillows and clothes in her bed roughly in the shape of a body laying on its side. She covered it all up with a sheet and thought it looked convincing enough. If only she had a wig, that would have helped. She opened a window slightly and turned on the small fan in the room thinking the noise might hide the fact there were no breathing sounds. Anna quickly scribbled a note and stuck it on the door. With no sign of Kylie, she turned off the light in the room and hurried down the hallway to the stairs on the other side of the building. She knew the stairs near her room were closer to the hall where the party was, so there was less chance of running into someone there.
Anna emerged from the other end of the dorm and there was nobody around. The sun had set and lights were coming on. She headed toward the road leading out of the camp and avoided walking under lights as much as possible to avoid being seen. After a brisk 15 minute hike, she found herself approaching the state route outside the camp. She opened an app and called for a ride. There weren’t many drivers in the area, but all she needed was one. Fortunately, one accepted her ride request and had an ETA of five minutes.
Right on time, a newer Nissan pulled up. The driver opened the passenger window and leaned over. “Anna King?”
“That’s me!” she stepped forward, opened the rear passenger-side door, and got inside.
The driver looked back at Anna. “Hi, I’m Sumeet.” He was an overweight man in his mid-30s who appeared to be of Indian decent. “Escaping from camp?”
Anna laughed nervously. “No, nothing like that. We just arrived today. I realized I forgot some stuff at home and…” She grinned at Sumeet who was glancing back at her as he started driving. “I can trust you, right Sumeet?”
“Your secrets are safe with me,” Sumeet promised with a wink.
“I snuck out and will be out after curfew. I figure this was my only chance to escape to Target to get things for my friends and me.”
Sumeet laughed. “I went to camp when I was your age. I brought a big stash of candy and would sell it off to the other kids at double the price, but still undercutting our camp store. A few years of that helped to pay my way through college. I definitely recommend investing in candy.”
“That’s a great idea, thanks!”
The rest of the ride was mostly silence until they arrived a few minutes later. Sumeet pulled up to the front door and looked back at Anna. “I know you’ll need a ride back, so I’ll hang out here and wait for you if you’d like and won’t take any other rides. Five stars would be greatly appreciated.”
Anna smiled as she got out. “Absolutely 5 stars! I’ll be right back!” She hurried into the Target leaving Sumeet waiting outside.
Inside the Target, she texted Mark. “arrived at target and looking for a target” She headed to the juniors clothing and looked for someone about her age. There wasn’t anyone around. Apparently high schoolers had better things to do than shop for clothes at this hour on a Saturday night.
Back at camp, Mark had left the hut. He had been cooped up in Anna’s purse, on her desk, or in her dresser drawer most of the day and he wanted to get some fresh air. The sun had set, so he figured there wasn’t much of a chance anyone would be coming down to the beach. To play it safe, he left the door to the hut unlocked so he could run in if he heard anyone coming. Given his large hamster ears and his sensitive nose, he figured he’d be able to sense anyone coming long before they caught sight of him. He had taken his shoes and socks off and enjoyed the feeling of the sand beneath his feet. He sat on the sand, relaxed, and reflected on the day for about 15 minutes. Finally, he put his fuzzy head in his four-fingered hands and sighed. It was a rough day, but he could only laugh at his predicament. He recalled how this morning he originally objected to having to pass as a woman for the duration of the camp. Now he was actually wishing to become a woman since it would be infinitely better than being half beast.
After spending about half an hour on the beach, Mark headed back to the hut and checked his phone. He had several texts from Anna. She had arrived at Target, but apparently there weren’t many others shopping. However, her most recent text sent just a few minutes earlier informed him that she had spotted someone in the shoe department and was going to follow her to see if she tried anything on. Mark texted back, "good luck" with a kissy face and a hamster emoji.
Anna looked at her phone and laughed. She was sitting in the shoe department trying on a boot. She had no interest in buying the boot, but was trying to blend in while keeping an eye on the other girl who was looking at shoes. The girl was a little taller than Anna, probably about 5’8" or 5’9". Anna estimated her age at 18 or 19, but figured she could pass for 17. She had long auburn hair. Anna had described Jennifer as having blonde hair, but without much time left before the store closed, she couldn’t be picky.
Anna watched the girl pick a pair of flats off the rack and try them on. "Yes! Finally!" Anna spoke quietly to herself. "Now put them back. You don’t want those. They’re ugly on you." Anna didn’t actually think the shoes were ugly, but she was trying to mentally convince the girl to put them back. If she bought them, Anna wouldn’t be able to take them back to Mark.
After standing and looking at the shoes in the mirror, the girl took them off and put them back in the box. Anna watched intently. "This is the moment of truth," she thought. Anna let out a sigh of relief when the girl put the box back on the rack and picked up another pair. She was mentally cheering, but kept her celebration to herself and continued trying to blend in.
After trying on several pairs, the girl Anna had been watching took the last pair of shoes she had tried on and walked off. Once she left the shoe department, Anna stood up, put a pair of shoes she had tried back on the rack, and grabbed the first pair of shoes the girl had tried. Anna hurried to the self-checkout, but picked up some chips, snacks, and candy on the way along with a bottle of water.
After paying, she went back outside and found Sumeet waiting to drive her back to camp. Inside the car, she texted Mark that the trip was a success and she was headed back.
Mark had moved some sails around to make a better bed. He was laying on his makeshift bed, he noticed his phone light up with a text from Anna. "success!!! headed back"
Mark breathed a sigh of relief. He felt like he could actually relax now. He wondered what Anna had to buy and who had worn it last. He hoped whoever he would be would at least be cute. He wondered if she wore glasses, but figured Anna wouldn’t pick someone like that or else he’d have trouble seeing without glasses all summer. He hoped she didn’t wear contacts. "Well," he thought to himself, "it’s who I’ll be for the next few weeks. I’ll learn to live with it."
As he laid there, he thought about how he had been a 3" tall hamster a couple hours ago and wondered what it might be like to be other animals. It might be fun to spend a day as a dog running in a park, a cat laying in the sun, a fast animal like a horse or cheetah, or a bird soaring high above. Mark looked down at his body. His current hybrid form seemed rather fascinating. He felt his thin waist and how it flared out to wide hips. Stroking his fur, he enjoyed the feeling. Sitting up, he reached under his shirt and felt the weight of his breasts like he had done back in the dorm room, except this time Anna wasn’t there to interrupt him. He wondered if this is what it would feel like as a woman or if he was experiencing some weird combination of human and hamster feelings.
Mark attempted to unbutton his jeans, but found it quite difficult without opposable thumbs. He fumbled around and eventually managed to get the button through the hole and pinched the zipper between two fingers and pulled it down. He slipped a hand into his pants and felt the fur going down his body. At a certain point, he would have normally felt his penis, but this time his fingers kept sliding down his body unimpeded. He gently felt between his legs and took in all the new sensations. Extending a finger, he started to slide it between folds of tender skin. He felt his claw-like fingernail slightly scratch against his skin and pulled his finger out. He was afraid of scratching and injuring himself with his unfamiliar claw against his unfamiliar privates. "I’ll have plenty of time for this when I’m not part hamster," Mark thought. "The last thing I need is for Anna to find that I’m bleeding because I scratched my vagina or something."
Deciding to be patient and wait until he was fully human again, Mark managed to zip up his pants and button them again. He walked back out onto the beach to enjoy the night air and wait for Anna.
Sumeet turned onto the road to camp and slowed the car to a crawl. He looked back at Anna. "Do you want me to drive down the road?"
Anna thought for a moment. "While I’d love to not have to walk, I think it’s probably best if I get out here. It’s past curfew and I need to sneak in quietly."
Sumeet grinned. "Yeah, I get it. Good luck!" He handed her a bottle of water. "Here, have a bottle of water for the walk…and five stars would be appreciated!"
Anna took the bottle and started to get out of the car. "I’d give you ten stars if I could. Thanks for the ride!" She closed the door to the Nissan and watched Sumeet turn around, turn right on the road, and drive away. Once he was out of sight, she turned and started to walk down the dirt road to camp. There weren’t any buildings close to the road, but she walked past deep woods, some sports fields, the archery range, an unused scout campground, and a few smaller parking areas. Most of the camp’s buildings were clustered around the main hall at the center of camp. The dormitories were across a road just before the main hall. She had to start being more careful not to be spotted by anyone looking outside.
Anna quietly approached the door to the dormitory. She had to get back to Mark, but figured there was a chance that the door was still unlocked and she wanted to check. Making sure to avoid stepping on any sticks, pine cones, or loose rocks which might make noise, Anna reached the door, grabbed the handle, and gave it a gentle tug. To her surprise, it opened.
Anna held the door open just an inch for a moment. "Should I go in or should I go to Mark?" she wondered to herself. If she went in, Kylie might still be awake and realize she was tricked. On the other hand, Kylie already might have realized she was tricked and Anna thought if she didn’t go up now, she might end up in bigger trouble. She didn’t know Kylie too well and wasn’t sure how much she could trust her.
Anna also knew that Mark was waiting for her to return, but there was really no reason for her to go back to the sail hut tonight since Mark couldn’t change until morning. She’d like to spend time with him, but he was also half hamster. Even though she wanted to cuddle with his furry body, she couldn’t picture herself making out with him as long as he still had those big hamster teeth. Anna pulled the door open and slipped inside.
She let it close gently from the other side, worried if it slammed shut that it might attract attention. Once it was closed, she quietly stepped up the staircase to the second floor. All the doors were closed. Looking at the peepholes as she passed, she could tell some lights were still on and some were off. From a couple rooms, she could hear laughter and talking. Normally, everyone would be expected to have lights off and be quiet by now, but it was the first night so the counselors were instructed to be somewhat forgiving as kids got to know each other.
Back at her room, she noticed her note was no longer on the door. Through the peephole, she could tell the light was off. "Okay," Anna thought, "I’ll slip in, crawl into bed, and Kylie will never know." She took out her keycard and held it up to the sensor. There was a buzz as the sensor light turned green. She held the doorknob and opened the door, quietly stepped inside, and let the door close silently behind her. Finally in her room, she exhaled in relief.
A light came on and she saw Kylie roll over on her bed and face her. "So, where have you been?"