Free Camp Ghost-Away by Judy Delton Page B

home to their mothers with the address and telephone number of the camp.
    “We will leave Friday afternoon from the school,” Mrs. Peters said. “We will ride to camp in a bus. We will come home on Sunday evening.”
    *   *   *
    Lisa’s mother was coming along to help Mrs. Peters.
    During the rest of the meeting the Scouts told good deeds they had done.
    “I watered Mrs. Johnson’s plants for her,” said Tracy Barnes. “She’s my next-door neighbor.”
    “I washed my dad’s car,” boasted Roger. “All by myself.”
    “Good for you!” said Mrs. Peters.
    It was a short meeting. The Scouts sang their Pee Wee Scout song. Then they said the Pee Wee Scout pledge. Then they ran home to tell their parents about Camp Hide-Away.
    “I’ve got a new swimsuit to take to camp,” said Mary Beth at the park the next day. Some of the Pee Wees played there in the summer.
    “I have a new swimsuit for camp too,”called Molly from the top of the jungle gym.
    “I’ve got two swimsuits,” said Rachel. “My mom says everyone should have two. In case one is wet and you want to go in the water again.”
    Molly hung upside down by her knees. She tried to think of a worse word than hex. Molly learned “hex” from her grandma, but it wasn’t really bad. She wanted a really bad word to use on Rachel’s mother. Her mother was probably a show-off just like Rachel.
    “I’m wearing my new bracelet to camp too,” said Rachel. She held out her arm. “It is fourteen karat gold.”
    Rachel’s bracelet sparkled in the sun. It looked very expensive. “My dad brought it back from New York with him,” said Rachel.

    *   *   *
    Molly had a bracelet. But it was too small. And it was not real gold. It made her wrist turn green.
    Rachel kept waving her arm so the bracelet would sparkle in Molly’s eyes. Molly watched her. She wished the bracelet were hers.
    The Pee Wees played in the park until suppertime. The next day they went there again. They had to wait and wait until Friday.
    They ran under the sprinkler at Molly’s house to make the time go faster.
    They rode their skateboards in Roger’s driveway to make the time go faster.
    And they made lemonade at Lisa’s, and tried to sell it on her front lawn, to make the time go faster. They sold only two cups. One to Lisa’s mother. And one toher little brother. But he couldn’t pay because he had lost his penny.
    At last Friday came. All the Pee Wee Scouts carried their camp bags to the school. The school was closed, but the bus was waiting! Mrs. Peters and Mrs. Ronning were waiting too. Everyone got on the bus. Even Mrs. Peters’s big black dog.
    “He is coming along as our mascot,” said Mrs. Peters. “His name is Tiny. He will be a watchdog in camp at night.”
    “Tiny!” shouted Tim. “His name should be Giant. Why would such a big dog be called Tiny?”
    “Sometimes you call things the opposite of what they really are,” explained Mrs. Peters. “Like sometimes if a man has no hair, they call him Curly.”
    The Scouts looked puzzled.
    Then Roger said, “My uncle is real tall and everybody calls him Shorty!”
    “That’s right,” said Mrs. Peters. “The opposite of what he is.”
    As the bus rolled along, the Scouts sang camp songs. They sang the Pee Wee Scout song too.
    Mary Beth showed Molly her new swimsuit. And her new birthstone ring she got for her birthday. “Emerald,” she said. “For May.”
    Rachel dangled her bracelet in front of everyone’s eyes. Mary Beth’s ring was almost as shiny.
    “I don’t feel so good,” said Sonny. His face looked white. He leaned back in his seat and closed his eyes. He was sitting next to Lisa.
    “OOOOOOoooo,” he moaned, holding his stomach. “I think I’m carsick.”
    *   *   *

    Lisa leaned over into the aisle. She didn’t want to sit too close to Sonny. He might have an accident. All over her.
    Sonny groaned again, and the driver stopped the bus. He took Sonny off the bus until he felt