Haley Magrill's "Summer Camp"

“It will be like Summer Camp,” Ma says. I’m not sold yet, but Ma says she gets to decide for me because children don’t have rights until they're at least eighteen in this country. Fake Summer Camp at Aunt Molly’s house is a hundred hours away from Meadow which is where I live with Ma and Indigo and the baby who cries all the time and Willow who is very old now and likes to run around with her clothes off. There are others too, but my brain gets tired naming them all. I have lots of friends at Meadow. Cow is my friend, and so is Chicken. Rabbit used to be my friend, but then he died and I buried him next to the carrots. We’re happy at Meadow, even when it rains through the hole in the roof. Ma told Indigo to fix it before Mister Sir got there. I’ve never met Mister Sir. Ma says I’m not allowed to until I’m older. I asked her when that would be and she said she would let me know. When I was smaller Ma would hide me under the bed when Mister Sir came. I don’t fit anymore.

“I have to pee again,” I tell Ma from the back seat.

“You just went!” Ma pulls over to the side and I hop out. “Don’t get it on your sandals, Marley!” She shouts out the window. The rest of the trip is windier and my breakfast flops up near the top of my throat which makes my face a bit greener than normal.

Aunt Molly’s house is the same as the one next to it and I wonder if she ever gets confused and tries to open the wrong door. Ma kneels next to me.

“You’re not staying?” I grab her hand even tighter.

“I’ll be back before you know it,” Ma says. We hug and I can’t help but notice that her body is very stiff. Aunt Molly takes me up to my room. I ask her to keep the door open a crack so I don’t run out of air. She gives me a funny look. Falling asleep is hard because I’m not used to all the pillows on my bed and I can’t find a comfortable spot. I wish I could have brought Cow, but Ma said he wouldn’t fit in the car. When I wake up there’s a girl in my room.

“Beth, are you botherin’ your cousin?” Aunt Molly yells from the kitchen.

“No!” Beth yells.

“Come down and set the table for breakfast!”

“In a minute!” Her head whips back around. “Why is your hair so long? Momma said you were a boy.”

“I am a boy,” I say. Beth does not appear convinced.

“Momma says you live in a weirdo commune.”

I don’t know what to say to this.

“I bet you can’t even read,” Beth says after a minute.

“I can read,” my voice has gone sort of quiet. I don’t think I like Beth very much, but Ma said I should try to make friends. I stick out my hand like I’ve seen Indigo do before and I ask if she will be my friend. Beth’s face contorts and she says she doesn’t want to touch me because I’m probably carrying diseases.

Aunt Molly has made a strange, flat thing for breakfast. It’s salty and crunchy and tiny bits get stuck between my teeth. I don’t really care for it.

“Beth, why don’t you take Marley next door to play at Julie’s house?”

Beth pulls a horrible face.

“Don’t be weird, weirdo.” Beth says before we go in. Julie’s mother frowns at my long hair and makes me wash my hands before I can play.

“Can he talk?” Julie asks Beth.

“A bit, but not like you and me.” Beth says.

We play a game called Cops and Robbers.

“Too tight!” I shout as they tie me to the chair. I struggle and the rope burns my wrists, ripping at my skin.

“Sit still!” Beth growls. “You’re in jail.”

“No! You go to jail!” I shout in their faces until Julie’s mother comes running into the room waving a soapy sponge in the air. We have to leave after that. Aunt Molly is surprised to see us back so early. She says she doesn’t have time to call a babysitter and we’ll just have to come do the shopping with her. I tell her that I stay home by myself all the time at Meadow. She gives me the same funny look again.

“Beth, hold Marley’s hand. There’s lots of cars,” Aunt Molly says. I can tell that Beth is not pleased with this because she makes a big show of holding her breath until we’re all the way to the other side.

The door opens by itself and I jump back, searching for the invisible hand that opened it.

“What is this place?” I ask Aunt Molly.

“It’s a supermarket, dummy.” Beth scoffs. I’ve never seen so much food before in my life. I wonder if Ma knows about supermarkets. We trail behind Aunt Molly as she wanders through the aisles. The lady in front of me has a bag of peaches in her basket. My mouth begins to water. It smells so much better than the strange, flat thing I ate for breakfast. I pick one out of her bag and sink my teeth in. The juice is sticky and warm and dribbles down my neck.

“What are you doing?” The lady says, whipping around. I drop the peach from shock and it squirts onto my sandals.

“Honey, you can't take food from other people’s baskets.” Aunt Molly says. “If you want something you have to buy it first.” The lady gives me a dirty look and stalks off.

“Buy it?” I don’t understand.

“Yes, with money.” She shows me the papers in her purse.

I let out a very small, “oh.”

At Meadow, when we’re hungry we just eat. We move to a colder part of the store where there are lots of squishy red things wrapped in plastic.

“Is that a brain?” I ask Aunt Molly.

“Brain? No, sweetie. That’s beef.”

“It’s cow,” Beth whispers in my ear. My stomach flips over. Suddenly, all I can smell is blood. Aunt Molly doesn’t notice me back away. She’s arguing with the man about the prices being too high. I go through the aisles trying to sniff out the peaches. Instead I come across a long aisle of dead fish. Their mouths are pulled open and I have to fight the urge to stick my finger inside. And then there’s a box filled with the saddest lobsters I’ve ever seen. I press my hand to the glass. There’s a big one standing on top of the pile. He tells me he is the king and he asks me very quietly to let them out. I peek quickly over my shoulder to see if anyone is around and then I snatch the first lobster out. It wriggles as I pull off its elastic hand cuffs. I do the same with the rest of his friends until the tank is empty. They scuttle away. I tell them not to worry when the screaming starts.

“Please remain calm!” A voice shouts over the loudspeaker.

“Marley!” Aunt Molly rushes over and yanks me away by my elbow. As she’s plowing us toward the exit I can see the peach lady throwing bags of lettuce at my lobsters as they clip at her ankles. I’m very worried that my friends will be squashed. Beth looks as though she’s just swallowed some bad medicine. For once, she doesn’t have anything nasty to say.