Day of Camp

The teenage boy lookes our across the jungle scenery before him, despite it being a familiar sight, it was beautiful nonetheless.

"Camp for 2 whole weeks means I am free for 2 whole weeks!"

The teenage boy yelled as he lept down from the tree branch, landing on his feet.

"I wonder who got selected for the camp, I feel kind of bad since I jumped the line, but its my reward so no matter!"

His enthusiastic responses were seemingly out of place within the thick jungle environment he was traversing.

However, it wasn't long before he arrived at a clearing, revealing a large reinforced building with cargo containers and vehicles lined up outside it.

Scanning the area, his face lit up when he saw a specific car. As if on cue, the car horn beckoned the boy over.

Wasting no time, he opened the door and hopped in the passenger seat.

"James, I thought I told you to wait in the car?"

The middle aged lady spoke to him in a stern and almost peeved voice.

"Sorry Mum, I thought that it would be nice to look around one last time before I head out"

That was only half true. His Mum had to speak to the Doctor before she left and that usually took way too long, so James decided a quick stroll should kill enough time.

"It's only 2 weeks so don't worry. Anyways, your bag is in the back, don't forget it. The doctor said that you need to stay out of trouble even if this is your reward."

James' mum continued in her usual stern voice as she drove the car along the jungle roads. Despite the huge trees and flora everywhere, the roads were immaculately clean and maintained.

"Don't worry Mum, I helped with all those tests and this is my reward, theres no way I am wasting this chance."

His voice could not hide his excitement, let alone the sparkle in his eyes.

His Mum sighed but chose not to pursue it any further. The past 14 years had taught her that the more boundaries she set for James, the more he would ignore them.

'At least he knows better than anyone that he shouldn't talk about too much'

His Mum thought to herself as she kept her eyes on the road.

"Mum, do you think the campers will like Bluey?"

His curiosity peaked as he realised that he would be meeting other children at this camp.

"Probably, though it may be too dangerous to show the other kids"

His Mum answered as she twisted her neck to see the back of the car, lining up the car with the parking space.

They had arrived at their destination. Before them was the main port, the large expanse of the ocean was a sight to behold for the boy who spent the majority of his life in the jungle area. He had been here before, however, each time was only brief.

As they parked up, James noticed two adults with matching shirts stood beside one of the docks.

"Mum, is that them?"

He inquired while gesturing towards the two.

His Mum looked up before undoing her seatbelt.

"Seems so, I believe their names are Roxie and Daniel, I think. Dr.Wu said Ms Dearing spoke about it but I can't remember too much."

The two exited the car, closed the doors and walked over to the duo.

As soon as the saw James' approach, the matching duo stopped their conversation as the mans loud voice sounded.

"Hey there! How's it going!"

Behind the man, the lady shook her head in exasperation. 

Before he could say hello, his Mum addressed him.

"Good Morning, I believe you're Daniel and Roxie from Camp Cretaceous, correct?"

The mans smile froze. Noticing this, the lady from behind came forward and spoke between her muffled laughs.

"Good Morning, right, my name is Roxie, Lead Counseller at Camp Cretaceous and this is Dave."

Without responding to Roxie, his Mum turned to James and addressed him.

"Right then James, these are the Camp Counsellers. Make sure to behave and I will see you in two weeks."

With those words said, his Mum turned around and left without a seconds delay causing everyone, even the boy himself to be flabbergasted.

Smiling wryly, James apologised to the two in front of him.

"I'm sorry, Mum can be quite blunt. Anyways, my name is James Farnes. I should be attending the camp. I will be in your care."

He bowed slightly before offering a smile.

Hearing his introduction, a pensive look appeared on Roxies face as she looked at the clipboard.

"I see, so you're the young man recommended by Dr. Wu. It's nice to meet you, James, it seems you're the first one here but it shouldn't be long, the boat is apparently entering the park waters soon."

Having recovered from the unexpected damage, Dave put his hand on James' shoulder and turned him to look out at the ocean.

"Your campmates are just out there, pretty exciting right? All those future camp memories waiting to happen!"

James couldn't tell who was supposed to be more excited for said memories, himself or Dave.

'It's nice to see an adult who isn't so stiff... those lab guys are so dull, even school books are more entertaining...'

He mused to himself.

The three waited at the dock for a few more minutes, with James listening to the duo talk.

"I assume that's them?"

James pointed out onto the ocean, stealing the adults attention from their conversation.

When they saw the boat atop the water, Dave seemed to adjust an invisible tie as he walked further down the dock, seemingly looking to help the boat dock.

"They're here, are you ready James? Camp starts now!"

Roxie spoke as she stood beside James.

Despite not knowing them for long, James knew that the duo were kind individuals.

With the boat successfully moored, the crew stepped off before urging multiple teenagers off of the boat as well.

James watched with curiosity as he got a good look at everyone.

'So these are the other kids? None of them seem to be jungle material'

James was not the type to judge based on appearance considering he grew up in an environment that many kids would find weird, however, he noticed that one of the kids was holding back vomit and another was typing away on her mobile phone.

'I suppose kids from off the island really are different'

His gaze then turned to a smaller kid who seemed to have a raptor tooth hung around his neck and then onto one of the girls whose appearance screamed athlete.

'Hmm she seems to be more athletic than most, perhaps a sportswoman'

As he finished his evaluations, James noticed that the numbers did not add up. From what he remembered, there were 6 others besides himself since his participation was not guaranteed. Yet only 5 kids had left the boat.

It wasn't just James who had reached this conclusion, Dave took the chance to do a head count before turning to Roxie and questioning her.

"We are one short Roxie."

It was in that moment when James' head swivelled around in the direction of a new sound. The others soon followed upon noticing him.

A helicoptor flew overhead, making its way to the dock. It wasn't long before it begun to descend besides them.

The helicopter slowed its blades as the door on the side opened up, revealing a teenage boy with sunglasses and a pink polo shirt.

If James had to sum up this newcomer, it would be spoiled.

"Kenji has arrived! Time to get this party started!"

He lept off the helicopter before the rotors started up once more.

In the corner of his eye, James noticed Roxie shaking her head with a sigh.

"Right thats everyone! Let's get heading to camp!"

On Daves cue, everybody headed for the car.