Page 13 of Ring Around the Rosie

Willie’s normal flirty demeanor suddenly returned. “Oh yeah. Here.” He pulled a small, folded piece of paper from his jeans pocket. “I’m afraid there’s not much to it.” I unfolded the paper and read my new name, eloquently scribed in cursive. There was nothing else.

Fuck. I’m not sure what I expected, but something would’ve been nice.

“Say, why a burned rose?” Willie asked.

I looked at him, then at Nurse B. She seemed oddly interested in what I had to say. “I don’t know. I mean, no reason.” I looked down and noticed Nurse B’s hand. She wasn’t wearing a wedding ring. I then remembered how Willie mentioned she was a widow. It was sad to think about. But it made me wonder if maybe her married name was Sequoya. Could she be related to Sabbath somehow? “It must be from a friend.”

My eyes met hers, and she smiled. “Must be an important friend. Maybe even a relative?”

You have no idea.

“More weirdness.” Willie shook his head. “Say, Thisbe.” She peeled her eyes away from me and looked up at Willie. “Did I mention that Aster here has the same last name as you?”

Nurse B’s eyes twinkled. “You don’t say?” She turned to look back at me and a chill ran up my spine. “My, what a small world.” I tried to shake the feeling, but I couldn’t. I could only stare back at her dark, depthless eyes. “A small world filled with fateful people.”

I cleared my throat and stood. “Thank you for treating my knee, Nurse B. And sorry for bugging you two so early, but I’m–I’m going to go.” God, I couldn’t get out of there fast enough.

“Alright counselors, listen up!” Nurse B shouted out to the staff as if we couldn’t hear her. She was only standing three feet away. Willie stood by her side as his whistle hung from his lower lip. He looked at Sandy and winked. She smiled and blushed back. Nurse B noticed and whacked Willie’s arm. He nearly choked on the whistle as the counselors all tried not to laugh. “As I was saying.” Nurse B turned to look back at us.

She had all the counselors, including Solomon, lined up outside the administrative cabin. We were all dressed in our uniforms and ready to greet the campers. Nurse B was giving a speech about the do’s and don’ts of being a counselor, as well as reiterating the rules she expected us to follow. Willie followed her up by handing us our camp rosters, summer schedules, and a map of the camp. The camp was even larger than I expected. I had no idea how far it stretched or that we had an arts and crafts building, a storage building, or even a well. It was both nerve-wrecking and exciting.

Willie clapped his hands in excitement. “Now, we’re about to wave the campers in. Once we do, you are expected to help them find their ways to their cabins. Once everyone has unloaded their gear and luggage, we expect all campers and counselors to meet in the cafeteria for introductions. Any questions?” We all shook our heads. “Alright then. Let’s do this shit!” Nurse B whacked him again before they waved the line of yellow buses in.

The buses drove beneath the entrance sign of Camp Redwood and waves of campers unloaded. There were more kids than I expected, aging from what I presumed was as young as eight to as old as mid-teens. They poured from the buses and tossed their bags onto the ground while clucking around. I wasn’t sure what to do and looked over at Kaila and Sandy. They were high fiving returning campers and welcoming new ones with vibrant smiles. God, I wanted to be like them. So normal and full of life.

“Excuse me, miss?” I turned around to see a little girl tugging at my shorts. She looked to be maybe ten years old and had the brightest red hair.

I bent down and tried to mimic the smile I’d seen Kaila and Sandy use. “Yes?” I asked. She seemed a bit taken aback from the forced gesture, so I tried to soften it a little. “Welcome to Camp Redwood! How can I help you?”

The little girl hesitated. She eyed all my tattoos, and I just knew she was probably terrified of me. Fuck, I knew I should’ve worn a jacket or something. “Is that a dinosaur?” She pointed to a small tattoo on my thigh.

I glanced down at the old, faded tattoo. I’d almost forgotten about it. But remembering didn’t exactly make me feel better. “Yeah,” I whispered. My fingers lifted the hem of my shorts a tad to show her the whole thing.

The little girl read the name aloud and made a face. “Who’s Ozzy?” she asked.

I had to swallow my emotions. “Ozzy is—wasmy little brother.”

She tilted her head. “Did he like dinosaurs?” Her big eyes looked up at me.

“Yes. Yes, he did.” I tried to not cry, but I could feel tears swelling in my eyes. “He used to have themeverywhere.” Ismiled and a single tear fell from my face. I tried to wipe it away quickly to hide it.

The little girl watched me closely. “Why are you crying?”

I couldn’t tell her the reason. So, I did as any adult faced with an impossible question from a child would do. I redirected her attention. “Do you like dinosaurs?” She nodded excitedly. “Me too.” I smiled.

The little girl seemed perfectly comfortable and no longer afraid of me. “I hope I’m in your group.” She gave me a big hug. “My name’s Tabitha. What’s yours?”

I hugged her back and then crouched in front of her. “My name’s Aster. And I hope you're in my group too, Tabitha. We can be dinosaur buddies!” She gave me the biggest smile and rushed off towards the cabins.

Kaila and Sandy approached me. Kaila crossed her arms as Sandy spoke. “They’re so cute when they first arrive!”

“They sure are.” I smiled back at Tabitha as she skipped down the path.

Kaila laughed. “Yeah, just you wait. Give it a few days, and you’ll be begging for them to leave you alone. Trust me.”

The three of us laughed as I tried to stand. I lost my footing, but someone grabbed my hand and helped me to my feet. “Thank you—” I stopped as my eyes looked at who it was that helped me. His dark eyes stared straight down into my soul, and I swear a piece of me died at the sight of him. “Sabbath,” I whispered. Fuck.

What the hell is he doing here?

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