coating this freckly skin of mine. ”
Torin
laughed unrestrictedly. “ Well
if that ’ s
the case, I ’ d
love to see it. Go for it, strip down and show us this masterpiece you boast
of. ”
I
ignored Torin. Ran chuckled quietly, slipping my hair behind my ear to pull it
away from my forehead. “ Come
back in tonight, and I ’ ll
get a clean bandage on this for you. ”
“ No can do. Tonight ’ s the overnighter. If she needs a
bandage, she ’ ll
have to take it with her. ”
Ran
flipped around to face Torin. They were eye level, and even though they looked
nothing alike — Ran
with his dark hair and Torin with his dirty blond — they both were equally attractive and
I couldn ’ t
decide who was better looking. There was something classic, yet equally bad-boy
about Ran, and despite Torin ’ s
overly casual demeanor and mildly unkempt appearance, they were both intriguing
in their own right.
I
sat there for a few minutes rating them. Ran had a perfect mouth but Torin had
those irresistible dimples. They were both built — Ran probably more so with Torin just
a bit on the leaner side. Ran had a strong jaw, but Torin ’ s permanently rosy cheeks won out
over that. I shook my head and scolded the irrational thoughts away. I shouldn ’ t be concerned about the looks of
other guys, much less about judging who was hotter like they were competing in
some pageant they don ’ t
even know about. How hard had I hit my head?
“ Overnighter? ” was all I managed to squeak out
through the mess of hormone-laced thoughts running laps through my brain.
“ Yeah. ” Torin motioned toward the ground
littered with backpacks. “ Tonight
is our survival run-through. ”
“ That ’ s what the backpacks are for? ”
“ Yep. I came in here to stock them. ” Torin stood at the wall with the
rows of bottles and bandages and gathered an armful of supplies. “ But Maggie and Ran will stay back. We
need to have a medic on the grounds at all times, and everyone that goes out
for the overnighter needs a partner. ”
“ I ’ m fine hanging back, ” Maggie said, exchanging a look with
Ran. I wondered if they wanted company. If being the third wheel got me out of
a night alone in the forest with Torin, I ’ d
happily volunteer for that tricycle position.
“ I can stay back if we need more
people at camp, ” I said, pressing my palm to my forehead. The bandage was doing a good job of
keeping it from opening and the sting from earlier was now completely gone.
“ Nah Darby, you ’ re with me. ” Torin unzipped the backpacks and
slipped medical supplies into them. From what I could see, he placed a few
Band-Aids, an ace wrap, and some packets of gauze into each.
I
nodded my head, figuring I wouldn ’ t
get out of it that easily, but it was worth a shot.
“ Would you mind helping me carry these
to the Rec Hall? ” Torin looked up at me under a lock of hair. He flicked his head to sweep it
back instead of using his hands, which would have been more effective. I never
quite understood the use of the neck to do things the fingers were meant for.
Like calling a waiter over or requesting the check or waving at a friend. A
head nod seemed like weird stand in for jobs that were created for fingers. “ We need to pass them out to the other
counselors. ”
“ Yeah, sure. ” I hopped off the cot and draped
several packs across my arms just like Torin had them arranged when he walked
into the room.
I
found it hard to believe that whatever I needed to survive a night in the woods
was contained inside these bags. I was pretty sure I would need a U-Haul full
of equipment. In reality, that might not even be enough. I think I was totally
semi-truck status.
In
fact, I found it hard to believe there was anything that might help me survive
this summer at all.
***
“ Watch out! ” Torin yanked me by the wrist,
pulling me back onto the path before my leg brushed against the feathering
plants lining it. I jerked to the side
Torin
laughed unrestrictedly. “ Well
if that ’ s
the case, I ’ d
love to see it. Go for it, strip down and show us this masterpiece you boast
of. ”
I
ignored Torin. Ran chuckled quietly, slipping my hair behind my ear to pull it
away from my forehead. “ Come
back in tonight, and I ’ ll
get a clean bandage on this for you. ”
“ No can do. Tonight ’ s the overnighter. If she needs a
bandage, she ’ ll
have to take it with her. ”
Ran
flipped around to face Torin. They were eye level, and even though they looked
nothing alike — Ran
with his dark hair and Torin with his dirty blond — they both were equally attractive and
I couldn ’ t
decide who was better looking. There was something classic, yet equally bad-boy
about Ran, and despite Torin ’ s
overly casual demeanor and mildly unkempt appearance, they were both intriguing
in their own right.
I
sat there for a few minutes rating them. Ran had a perfect mouth but Torin had
those irresistible dimples. They were both built — Ran probably more so with Torin just
a bit on the leaner side. Ran had a strong jaw, but Torin ’ s permanently rosy cheeks won out
over that. I shook my head and scolded the irrational thoughts away. I shouldn ’ t be concerned about the looks of
other guys, much less about judging who was hotter like they were competing in
some pageant they don ’ t
even know about. How hard had I hit my head?
“ Overnighter? ” was all I managed to squeak out
through the mess of hormone-laced thoughts running laps through my brain.
“ Yeah. ” Torin motioned toward the ground
littered with backpacks. “ Tonight
is our survival run-through. ”
“ That ’ s what the backpacks are for? ”
“ Yep. I came in here to stock them. ” Torin stood at the wall with the
rows of bottles and bandages and gathered an armful of supplies. “ But Maggie and Ran will stay back. We
need to have a medic on the grounds at all times, and everyone that goes out
for the overnighter needs a partner. ”
“ I ’ m fine hanging back, ” Maggie said, exchanging a look with
Ran. I wondered if they wanted company. If being the third wheel got me out of
a night alone in the forest with Torin, I ’ d
happily volunteer for that tricycle position.
“ I can stay back if we need more
people at camp, ” I said, pressing my palm to my forehead. The bandage was doing a good job of
keeping it from opening and the sting from earlier was now completely gone.
“ Nah Darby, you ’ re with me. ” Torin unzipped the backpacks and
slipped medical supplies into them. From what I could see, he placed a few
Band-Aids, an ace wrap, and some packets of gauze into each.
I
nodded my head, figuring I wouldn ’ t
get out of it that easily, but it was worth a shot.
“ Would you mind helping me carry these
to the Rec Hall? ” Torin looked up at me under a lock of hair. He flicked his head to sweep it
back instead of using his hands, which would have been more effective. I never
quite understood the use of the neck to do things the fingers were meant for.
Like calling a waiter over or requesting the check or waving at a friend. A
head nod seemed like weird stand in for jobs that were created for fingers. “ We need to pass them out to the other
counselors. ”
“ Yeah, sure. ” I hopped off the cot and draped
several packs across my arms just like Torin had them arranged when he walked
into the room.
I
found it hard to believe that whatever I needed to survive a night in the woods
was contained inside these bags. I was pretty sure I would need a U-Haul full
of equipment. In reality, that might not even be enough. I think I was totally
semi-truck status.
In
fact, I found it hard to believe there was anything that might help me survive
this summer at all.
***
“ Watch out! ” Torin yanked me by the wrist,
pulling me back onto the path before my leg brushed against the feathering
plants lining it. I jerked to the side
Similar Books
