Arriving and Unpacking

Cordelia

By the time we get to the cottage, only about two and a half hours have passed, but it feels like it's been days. I managed to get just under fifteen minutes of sleep, and I just woke up, so I'm not in a very good mood.

"Marvin!" Whizzer calls, getting out of the drivers' seat. "Get over here and help me unpack the car."

Marvin pays him almost no attention. It looks like he's still stressing about the text he sent his parents. "Why did I send that?" he cries. "I wasn't thinking. I was sleep deprived. Oh my God, I shouldn't have sent it. Mendel." He runs to Mendel and grabs him by the shoulders. "Mendel. Is there Internet here? Did my text send?"

"Yeah, your phone probably would have picked up a connection by now. It's not great, but..."

"Oh, my God," Marvin says again, draping himself over the hood of the car. "I can't believe I did that. I should have thought about it more."

"Yeah, that's what I told you!" Whizzer shouts from behind.

I shake my head. "Relax, Marvin. At least you told them. Anyway, listen to your boyfriend and come help unpack the trunk. I want to set up my bed and go to sleep," I tell him.

Trina gets out of the car next, rubbing her shoulder in pain. "That was the most uncomfortable car ride I have ever experienced in my life."

"Tell me about it," Charlotte complains, climbing out the other side. Marvin's still half-lying on the hood, which is probably scalding hot from the sun, but he seems to care more about the text.

I walk over to Marvin and pick him up. "Come on," I try to reassure him. "They'll at least be glad you told them the truth. Now get your mind off it for a few moments and help us unpack so I can go inside and sleep."

"Fine," he groans. When we reach the trunk, Whizzer takes Marvin by the hand and kisses him.

"Everything's going to be fine," Whizzer affirms. For what's probably the first time today, Marvin smiles, and he helps the rest of us unpack the car.

Once we get inside, Charlotte is quick to claim a bedroom for the two of us to share with Trina. Mendel is obviously indignant because it's his own parents' cabin, but nobody else really cares. She finally picks the biggest room, showing us a spot on the floor where Trina can sleep on an air mattress. Personally, I wouldn't want to sleep on one of those for a week, but Trina will probably take anything over rooming with Mendel.

To my relief, the rest of the day is more or less relaxed. Mendel's helping Trina set up her air mattress for a bit, so I hang out in Marvin and Whizzer's room and read a book while Marvin goes back to worrying about his text.

"I shouldn't have been so straightforward," he's saying. "I should have eased them into it."

"Marv, I think you were anything but straightforward," Whizzer jokes. He looks at me for a laugh, and I think it's funny, but I also think it's not the time.

Marvin starts wringing his hands. "I should check my phone. See if they said anything. I sent it to both of them at the same time. Maybe I should've taken turns—"

"Okay, calm down," I tell him. "You can't go back on it now, and let's be honest, they probably suspected you were gay anyway. So get over it, and find something to do that's not stressing out while the others get set up."

Whizzer nods. "Yeah," he agrees. "What she said, Marvin."

"I know, I know," sighs Marvin.

"Hey, you know what? We should go to the lake. See if it's really as cold as we think it is." I grin. "Are either of you up for that?"

"Abso-fucking-lutely not," Whizzer replies. "I don't want to go back to school with hypothermia, thank you very much."

"Come on, we should at least try it. Look, Whizzer. Marvin needs this."

"No, I don't," protests Marvin.

"Hush. I'm sure Charlotte can talk you guys into it. Charlotte!"

She walks in a second later. "What's up, hon?"

"Can you please tell Marvin and Whizzer that we're all going to the lake right now?"

"Don't bring your innocent girlfriend into this," Whizzer mutters, crossing his legs on the bed. "I told you guys, the lake's probably still frozen."

"It's almost April!"

"My point."

Charlotte smiles and tucks her hands into her jeans pockets. "You know, I have to agree with Whizzer here, but I think we should at least try," she admits.

"Thank you," I say triumphantly.

So, against Whizzer's objections, we get ready to go to the lake. It serves a double purpose, because Mendel is still helping Trina set up her bed and it'll give them some space for a while. When we get to the beach, Charlotte sets out a blanket under the unusually hot sun.

"I'm not swimming," Whizzer tells us stubbornly. "You all can catch a cold and die. I'm not taking that chance."

Marvin rolls his eyes and heads for the water. I jump up to join him, excited. "You're coming around!" I exclaim.

"Better than sitting at home worrying about what my parents are going to say," he mutters. We stand at the edge of the lake for a few moments, and I can tell we're both scared to go in.

"You can do it," Charlotte calls encouragingly from behind us.

That's very nice of her, but I don't think we can. I'm starting to rethink this whole decision. Maybe Whizzer was right. I'd never tell him that, though.

I decide to start out by dipping in my toe. I pull it away almost immediately. Even though we're right at the shore, the water's freezing. I wonder if I've permanently lost all feeling in that toe, because it sure seems so.

Before I can think about dipping another toe in the shallow water, Marvin runs past me and dives headfirst into the lake. I scream from the shock, as well as the spray of ice-cold water splashing over me.

Whizzer raises his eyebrows and looks across the water. "Well, he's dead."

A second later, Marvin's head appears just above the surface, a few meters from where I am. "Hey, guys!" he shouts. "Come in! The water's great!"

"Seriously?" I ask in disbelief.

Charlotte winces. "I think I'm gonna sit this one out."

"I guess I can try going in," considers Whizzer, to all of our surprise. He's been the most vocal about how he thinks we're going to die of hypothermia, after all. He looks around and notices us staring at him. "It can't hurt."

I take a deep breath. "Maybe I should go under, too."

"How the fuck..." Charlotte whispers, watching Marvin, who seems totally unfazed.

Whizzer's already gotten further than I have, and he's started wading in deeper and deeper. Marvin stands up and turns to him.

"Whizzer? Do you want me to splash you?"

"Don't you dare!" Whizzer shrieks, holding his hands out in front of his face. He clears his throat to get rid of his shrill tone. "I swear, Marvin. If you come near me, I'm going to rip your face off."

"Hot," says Marvin, walking closer.

I back away from the shore. I'm starting to feel less and less confident about going in. Maybe I'll wait until the water warms up. Like tomorrow.

"Don't splash me," Whizzer warns, backing away from Marvin.

"I never said I was going to. Quit worrying."

"I'm worrying? You're the one who's worrying." He backs up further. "But seriously, don't."

"I won't."

All of a sudden, Whizzer slips on something (a rock? I don't know, I can't see under the water) and falls in backward. I clap my hands over my mouth.

"Fuck!" he cries, getting up and spitting out water. "It's fucking freezing in here! I told you we were going to get—"

"Hypothermia, I know." Marvin rolls his eyes. "It's really not that bad."

"Yes, it is." Whizzer crawls onto the blanket and wraps a towel around himself, shivering. Which makes it official that I'm not going in.

Marvin huffs. "All of you need to loosen up," he tells us. "Have fun once in a while."

"Freezing to death isn't fun, Marvin," Whizzer hisses.

"Fine. I guess I'm going to be the only one who's swimming all day, then?"

"Right," I answer, joining the others on the blanket.

Trina

"Trina, can you help me with this?"

I walk into the room I'm going to be sharing with Cordelia and Charlotte, and my eyes widen. Mendel's sitting on the floor, trapped under my now fully inflated air mattress.

"Why," is all I have to say.

"I got stuck."

I sigh heavily and help move the mattress off of him. He sits there, catching his breath, while I press it a few times to make sure it's firm. It is, so I place it on the floor across from the other girls' bed and start to make it with the spare blanket and pillows Mendel got me from the linen closet.

Finally, he stands up. "All right. Now that your bed is all set up, what are you thinking we should do? The others are at the beach, right?"

"Maybe we should go," I offer.

"Hmm, I don't know. Don't get me wrong, the lake is great, but I think Whizzer was right. It's probably too cold."

"Okay," I answer, crossing my arms and leaning against the wardrobe. "What do you suggest we do, then?"

He frowns. "I don't know."

I'm starting to get a little bored. How are we going to keep ourselves entertained for the next week if we're stumped on the first day? Suddenly Mendel perks up, like he has an idea.

"Ooh, I know! How about we go to the store to get bug spray?"

My shoulders slump. "I thought you had a real idea," I say indignantly. "I don't want to just go to the store and get bug spray."

"Well, too bad, Trina, because we need it, and we're going." He maneuvers his way through the house and grabs his backpack from the kitchen. Reluctantly, I follow him out the door and to the car.

"Do you think Whizzer's going to mind us using his car?"

Mendel shrugs. "He better not, 'cause this is the only means of transportation that we have. Come on, get in," he commands. So we get in the car, and I notice that Mendel grabbed Whizzer's keys as well.

"This feels illegal," I tell him.

"Well, we're sure as hell not walking to the store."

The car ride isn't very fun, but it's better than nothing. And I guess we do need bug spray. I've already been bitten twice since we got here. When we get to the store, it's actually kind of a refreshing change from the cottage. It's a refreshing change from back at school, too. Most convenience stores don't have those ice cream counters where all the flavors are out in front of you, and it's mesmerizing. Mendel pulls me away from it, though, so we can get the bug spray.

"I wish I had some of this when we found that cockroach in the girls' bathroom," he thinks out loud, looking over all the different kinds of bug repellent on the shelves. I give him a perplexed look.

"When were you in the girls' bathroom?"

"A while back," he answers vaguely. He reaches for one of the cans. "This'll do. Let's go to the counter."

So we go to check it out. "Can we get some ice cream?" I ask Mendel. He smiles.

"Maybe tomorrow. I only brought enough money for bug spray."

"How much does motherfucking bug spray cost?" I mutter, but I don't really care that much. We get outside and apply as much of it as possible. I don't want to get any more bites. I'm not sure what kind of mutant flies live at the cottage, but they hurt like hell.

Afterward, we sit in the car, not going anywhere. I turn to look out the window.

"Shouldn't we be getting back soon? I think Whizzer's going to want his car back..."

Mendel hesitates. "Yeah, you're right. But while we're alone, I wanted to ask you about something," he says quietly.

I face him. "Of course. Go ahead." Is this just going to be about our "therapy" sessions again? I love Mendel, but he's seriously wasting my time by now.

"I mean... oh my God, I think I just got bug spray in my mouth." He starts coughing violently. I sit up hastily in the driver's seat.

"How?" I demand. "The can is closed!"

He's still coughing. "I don't know. Oh fuck, I'm going to die. I'm going to choke on bug spray and die. Trina, save me."

I don't know what to do, so I slap him on the back, even though he's not really choking. Finally, his coughing and wheezing subsides.

"That was intense," I remark.

"I'm probably poisoned," he complains. "Ugh, that's disgusting. I can taste it."

I raise my eyebrows. "So what was it you were going to ask me?"

"What? Oh, that's right. Well, after I almost died, it doesn't seem like such a big deal anymore, but I guess I've gotta say it, so do you— do you want anything more of our relationship?"

I blink in surprise. What's he talking about? "Mendel, I think you inhaled some of the bug spray fumes." I put my hand on his forehead, still not able to process what's going on. He laughs and takes my hand away.

"No, Trina. Come on. It's no secret that we like each other."

Oh, damn it. Even he can see it?

"And I know we've been friends for a while, but I just wanted to, you know, shoot my shot." He makes finger guns to go with his statement, which makes me smile. "And if you say no I'm totally fine with being friends and just friends—"

"Mendel." It's my turn to laugh. "Oh, my God. You get exactly the same way I do when I think about this. I mean, it's good to know I'm not alone."

"I just don't know if it's too soon."

"It's been almost a year since I even kissed a guy," I remind him. "Of course it's not too soon. And if I wanted my next relationship to be with anyone, it would be with you."

And now it's his turn to look surprised. "Wait, so are you saying you want this?"

"Well... yeah."

"That's such a relief," he sighs. "I've been thinking about asking you out since, like, November. But now—"

"November?"

"—but now it's so nice to know you feel the same way. I always sort of had a feeling. But I'm just a first-year psychology major, so what do I know about people's feelings?"

"Right. Now, wait, did you say November—?"

"I really like you, Trina." He takes my hands in his. "And if this could even work out for a week, I'd be so grateful."

The corners of my mouth turn up in a smile. "Me, too," I reply.