Jessie’s cabin soon sounded as if it were filled with chipmunks. The Cedar Cabin campers were settling in.
“There you are,” Jessie said when Lizzie finally showed up for the cabin meeting. “We had a bit of excitement in the woods. Somebody tried to scare us, but we didn’t get scared — not too much, anyway. Right, girls?” Jessie asked. “Come on in, Lizzie,” Jessie continued. “Leave your sneakers outside, though. They’re all wet and sandy. And next time, stay with our cabin group, okay?”
Lizzie stepped on the porch to remove her sneakers. When she came back, she stood in the doorway barefoot. The other girls arranged themselves on the beds and the floor close to Jessie. Lizzie stayed where she was.
“Okay, Dolphins, let’s talk about some ideas you might have for the Big Idea Medal,” Jessie began. “I’ll write down your ideas. After that, we’ll vote on one to give Ginny and Rich.”
“I know,” Daisy began. “We could have Be Nice Days. We would put slips of paper with our names on them in a box and choose one every day. Then we all would do nice things for that person on her day.”
“Or at lights-out time, I could sing my favorite song,” another girl piped up. “That’s to help anyone who can’t fall asleep. My mom does that. Is that good, Jessie?”
“It sure is. I’ll write it down on my list.”
Jessie found a notepad and began writing the girls’ suggestions.
“Can we write down sharing chocolate?” a girl in pigtails asked.
The girls giggled, even Jessie.
Lizzie Pines didn’t giggle, though. “Food is not allowed in the cabins,” she told everyone. “Junior Counselors have to know the rules.”
“Lizzie’s right,” Jessie said. “No chocolate or any food in Cedar Cabin. Thank you, Lizzie.”
“Where’s your trunk?” Daisy asked when she noticed Jessie only had a backpack on her bed. “Didn’t you bring one?”
Jessie felt her whole face get red, even her ears.
Before Jessie could explain what happened, Lizzie interrupted. “The Aldens left their stuff at the ferry. Cedar Cabin is going to lose points.”
“What about your pj’s and teddy bear?” Daisy asked Jessie. She double-checked that her own pajamas and teddy bear were right there.
“I’m really sorry I let you girls down by forgetting my trunk,” Jessie said. “But maybe I can help make up for it. While I was listing your ideas, I thought of a way to combine all of your suggestions into one super Big Idea.”
“How?” some of the girls asked at the same time.
“Me and My Buddy could be the name for all of your ideas,” Jessie said. “One camper who’s good or strong at something helps another camper who isn’t. Since everybody’s good at something, and everybody needs a little help at other things, we all get to help our Buddies or have a Buddy help us.”
After the Dolphins added more ideas, Jessie tapped her pencil against the wooden beam over her bed. “Hear! Hear!” Jessie began. She read off the list: “ ‘Teach Someone to Make Her Bed. Teach Somebody How to Do Something Hard. Help a Friend to Not Be Afraid of the Dark.’ ”
Jessie kept writing until her girls couldn’t think of anything else. “Those will all be part of our Me and My Buddy Big Idea.”
The chattering started up again as the girls talked about who could be Buddies for each other. They didn’t notice that not everyone was still in the cabin. A few minutes later, they heard a knock on the door.
Ginny stepped into Cedar Cabin. “Inspection.” She began to look around. She noticed how tidy everything was. All the trunks were shut. All the beds were made. All the sand and cobwebs had been swept away.
“Nice work, Dolphins,” Ginny said. “Except for Jessie’s wayward trunk, I’m giving you full points for a perfect cabin.” Then Ginny noticed everything wasn’t quite perfect in Cedar Cabin. “Goodness, Jessie, where’s Lizzie?”
All eyes turned to Jessie. She got up from her bed and ran to the porch. “She was here just a second ago.” Jessie looked down. Lizzie’s sneakers were gone, with Lizzie in them!
“I’ll need to talk with you about this,” Ginny said. “I’m in a bit of a rush, but I’ll wait here a few minutes while you go find her. Check the Bogs first.”
Jessie headed to the girls’ bathrooms. When she arrived, several of Kim’s Seals were busy filling a water bucket with soapy water. Violet spotted Jessie in the mirror.
“Kim told us we have to wash down the cabin floor,” Violet explained. “She said we didn’t have any good activities for the Big Idea. I guess she wants us to get lots of points for making our cabin super clean. We have to hurry.”
“Sorry,” Jessie said. “Did you happen to see Lizzie in here?”
Violet nodded. “Not here, but she was in Birch when we all came to the Bogs. Want me to get her?”
“No, I’ll go,” Jessie answered.
Jessie stopped by Birch Cabin. Kim looked up. “If you’re looking for Lizzie, she left for the ferry.”
Jessie got to the point. “We need to talk with Lizzie about not coming here without telling me. If we both talk to her, we can explain that the groups have to stay together for safety reasons.”
“Fine,” Kim said. “But I can’t help it if she wants to be in my group and not yours. Anyway, she went to see her brother and her dad. It’s not a big deal.”
But it did turn out to be a big deal. When Jessie came back to Cedar Cabin alone, Ginny stepped onto the porch. “Jessie, it’s time for the day campers to go back to Dark Harbor. Camp Seagull isn’t just about the Olympics. It’s also about responsibility. Lizzie is your responsibility.”
Jessie looked down at her flip-flops. First her trunk was missing. Now one of her campers was missing. “I know. She already went to the ferry. I . . . uh . . . guess we’ll meet her there.”
Ginny’s face grew very serious. “After the ferry leaves, ask Sarah to watch the cabin. Then please take some time to go over the rules about knowing where your campers are at all times. It’s our most important safety rule.”
To Jessie, every word that Ginny said felt like a stone falling on her head. “I know. I’m so sorry. I’ll be much more careful.”
Jessie walked slightly ahead of her Dolphins as they made their way to the ferry. She didn’t want them to see that she was upset.
Henry’s group caught up with Jessie’s.
“What’s the matter, Jessie?” Henry asked.
Jessie took a deep breath to steady her voice. “Lizzie left the cabin without telling me. I overheard her tell Zach she wants to be in Kim’s cabin. Then I didn’t know where she was when Ginny came by. When she and Kim don’t follow the rules, I’m the one who looks like I don’t know what I’m doing, and my campers lose points, too.”
Henry nodded. “Same here, Jessie. Only Zach’s the one who makes me feel like I shouldn’t be here — like he’s in charge of Camp Seagull or something. He won’t do anything with the Dolphins.” |