Free The Summer Is Ended and We Are Not Yet Saved by Joey Comeau

as tall as her knee. The counsellor was pointing at one piece, and then another, and gesturing wildly in the air. Martin had never learned how to play chess. He always just kind of assumed it was boring, but Sherri-Lynn looked genuinely excited.
    “Chess is better than hairstyling tips,” Courtney said, slumping down over the table with her head on her arms. “I got stuck with Cindy. There is no way I am ever going to put curlers in my hair, let alone stay up late having some kind of curler party. What kind of insanity is that? Let’s all stay up late and do our hair? Honestly, it’s like a bad dream. I think that our counsellor might be completely nuts. Or she’s fucking with us. Do you think she’s just fucking with us?” She turned to Melissa, but Melissa was staring at Sherri-Lynn still, and shaking her head in disbelief.
    “Is that what we’re like?” Melissa said to Martin. “When we were talking about our telescopes earlier, did we have that crazy look on our faces?”
    Martin shook his head, but Melissa had already turned to Joan.
    “I think it’s probably a good thing, though,” she said. “Maybe she’ll be willing to bend the rules for us. Maybe she’ll let us watch the comet tomorrow night.”
    “Did you ask her about letting me switch cabins?” Courtney said. “I don’t think I can handle Cindy being my counsellor. I’ll wind up pregnant by the end of the week. I am thirteen years old. I’m not ready to have a baby yet.”
    “I don’t think you can get pregnant from hair curlers,” Melissa said.
    “Well, that depends on how clean they are,” Joan said, and Martin burst out laughing.
    Everyone turned to look at him.
    He tried to catch his breath but the joke had taken him off guard. He couldn’t stop laughing. He closed his eyes and shook his head. He wanted them not to stare at him, but he knew they were going to. Joan was probably staring at him, too.
    “‘It depends on how clean they are,’” Martin said when he finally caught his breath.
    And Joan smiled.
    “We didn’t ask yet,” Melissa said, turning back to Courtney. “No. We were waiting for you.”
    “How are we going to do this?” Courtney said. “Do we just go right up and ask her if I can be in your cabin? Or do we make something up?”
    “What would we make up?” Melissa said. “I guess we could tell her that you get really homesick. Do you think you can cry when we get over there?”
    “I don’t know. I could cover my face and pretend that I’m crying,” she said.
    “What do you mean
pretend
that you’re crying?” Melissa said.
    Courtney covered her face with her hands and started shaking a bit, making quiet sort of sobbing sounds. She sounded exactly like a person who was pretending to cry. Watching her, Martin almost started laughing again.
    “No,” Melissa said. “Stop, don’t do that. That was terrible. Have you ever even seen somebody cry? Just try to look kind of sad, I guess.”
    “Okay,” Courtney said. “I can do that.”
    They stood up, and Martin stood with them, making sure not to bump into Joan again.
    “Why’s he coming?” Courtney said, looking at Martin.
    “What’s he going to do, sit here by himself?” Melissa sighed. “Just focus, Courtney. Get ready to look sad.”
    They went over to the chess board and stood watching Sherri-Lynn show a younger girl how to play. The girl had big thick glasses on, and she looked even younger than Martin. But it must have been the glasses that made her look younger. She had to be at least eleven. Eleven was the youngest age the camp accepted.
    “Hey girls,” Sherri-Lynn said. “I see you’ve made a couple friends already!” She smiled at Martin. “Do either of you play chess, by any chance?”
    Martin shook his head. Beside him, Courtney did the same.
    “We wanted to ask you a question,” Melissa said. “Do you have a minute?”
    “Sure,” the counsellor said. She turned to the younger girl. “I’ll be back in a bit, Margaret.