Free Camp Confidential 01 - Natalie's Secret by Melissa J. Morgan

wasn’t that interested in socializing. She wandered off a little ways down the path to a nearby wooden pagoda. Once she reached it, however, she realized it wasn’t empty.

    “Oh, I’m sorry,” she said, retreating from the pagoda before she could intrude.

    “No, hey, it’s totally cool.”

    Natalie peered more closely into the pagoda and realized with a start that she had actually walked in on Simon! She flushed.

    “I guess they haven’t let us into the mess hall yet?” he asked.

    Natalie shook her head no. “Not that I mind, to be honest.”

    Simon grinned. “True. I can’t decide if it’s a good thing or a bad thing that I’m a vegetarian. On the plus side, I get to avoid the random mystery meats. On the other hand, the selection leaves a lot to be desired.”

    “You’re a vegetarian?” Natalie asked, nearly swooning. To her, that sounded very cosmopolitan. Almost New York, even.

    “Yeah, why? Are you?”

    Natalie nodded. “Yeah. I mean no. I mean, I was,” she finished, appalled at her awkwardness.

    “Why’d you give it up?” Simon asked, sounding genuinely curious.

    “Well, I don’t eat too much meat, but I guess I just decided that I couldn’t go without sushi. It was just too much of a sacrifice. Plus, half the time, it’s all that my mom and I even eat,” she explained.

    Simon raised an eyebrow. “Sushi? Wow. Raw fish—that’s pretty brave.”

    Natalie giggled. “Brave? Hardly. You’re talking to the girl who lives in terror of poison oak. I’m like, totally freaked about our camping trip,” she confessed.

    “It’s nothing,” Simon assured her. “It can even be fun, I promise.”

    “I’ll believe that when I see it,” Natalie said.

    “I swear,” Simon insisted. “Roseanne does this trip every year, and she hasn’t lost a camper yet. I did it last year.”

    “So you’re like a seasoned pro,” Natalie teased.

    “Totally,” Simon said. “I can be your guide.”

    Yes, yes, you can, Natalie thought to herself. She racked her brain to come up with a reply that wouldn’t sound lame or over-eager but came up empty. Say something, Nat, she begged herself.

    “Nat!”

    Natalie looked up to see who was calling her.

    “Dinner! Come on! We’re all going in!”

    It was Jenna. Normally, Jenna’s loud voice, bright eyes, and bouncing ponytail were a source of amusement for Natalie, but right now Nat could have killed the girl for her timing.

    “Oh, ah,” she hemmed, not wanting to walk away from the conversation with Simon.

    Simon stood up and dusted himself off. “You go,” he said to Natalie. “We’ll have plenty of time to talk on the hike, right?” He winked at her and walked off to rejoin his own bunk.

    “Ooooh, Natalie, do you have a boyfriend ?” Jenna singsonged.

    Natalie whirled around as if just then realizing that Jenna was still there. She was completely unfazed by Jenna’s little joke. “We’ll see,” she said, with a little smile on her face. “We’ll see.”

     
 
At dinner, everyone in 3C was talking about all the activities they had planned in their specialties. “Will you read my newspaper piece before it’s published?” Alyssa asked Natalie shyly. The girls had learned that professional writers called their articles “pieces,” and they liked to use the grown-up terminology.

    Natalie pushed a rubbery piece of chicken back and forth across her plate. Maybe it was time to reconsider vegetarianism again? At least for the summer, anyhow. “Of course. I mean, if you’ll read mine,” she said. She had conducted an interview with Brian, the sports counselor, on what had prompted him to come over from Australia for the summer, and she was really excited about it, but she knew that Alyssa was the better writer. Alyssa would definitely give her piece a great once-over. “I may have gone on a little too long about his accent,” Natalie joked.

    “How could you not? It’s so cool!” Alyssa agreed.

    “The best