Chapter 1

“And then you’ll be taking a hike up Mt. Ford,” my mom was busy saying. I wasn’t paying any attention to her. I couldn’t believe she’d have the nerve to take me on this dumb getaway anyway. She said she needs some time away from dad, and that’s fine, but why did she have to take me? I wasn’t having any problems with dad, and I sure didn’t wanna be trekking around in the woods, with dirt and bugs, and no guys. What kind of summer was this going to be?

“This Mt. Ford sounds wonderful,” my mom said, as we kept driving through some small city in Florida.

“I didn’t even know Florida had mountains,” I mumbled, looking out the window.

“It’s not so much a mountain, dear,” my mom said. “As it is a hill.”

“Oh, we’re walking up a hill?” I asked. “Sounds joyous.”

“I heard the youth program at the resort is wonderful,” my mom said.

“Your Aunt Dawn suggested it. She said Travis loved it.”

“Well Travis is a loser,” I said, changing the radio station. “And how many kids, my age, are actually going to be there mom? Like, none!”

“Don’t worry Amanda,” my mom said, as if it would make me feel better. “Your going to have a good time.”

“I don’t even get to spend time with you!” I exclaimed. “You get to do crap like arts and crafts, and I have to walk around in the woods and get bit by bugs, and get dirty? some vacation mom!”

I don’t even think my mom was paying attention to me anymore. I sighed and continued to look out the window. We were passing the small city and were traveling down a road which was lined with trees. I saw a sign that advertised ‘Sunshine Resort’. We were getting close. I was somewhat happy about that. We’d been driving for three days straight, all the way from New York, New York.

“This is going to be an excellent experience,” my mom said.

“It’s good to know you’ve used your thesaurus today and found all these different terms for good,” I mumbled, bitterly.

The rest of the trip took ten minutes, and I didn’t say another word to my mom. We pulled up in front of a huge lodge building. The whole front of it looked like it was made of windows. It probably was.

My mom parked the car, and turned to me. “Please try to make this an enjoyable experience for me,” she said.

“Enjoyable, another great word mom,” I said, sighing, as I opened my door and got out of the car. I followed her into the building.

Inside, there was a reception desk, a lobby, and from what I could see, a dining room. I sat down in a arm chair, and waited as my mom talked to the receptionist. As soon as she was done, we went back outside.

“What are you doing?” I asked, as my mom got into the car. “Aren’t we staying here?”

“We’re going to find our cabin,” my mom told me.

“We have to stay in a cabin?” I asked, skeptically. I got in beside her. “What kind of resort is this?”

My mom didn’t answer me, and pulled out of the parking lot. She started to drive along a well driven, dirt road. When we came to rows of cabin’s, my mom started looking out the windshield. “Look out for number eleven,” she told me.

“There it is,” I said, pointing ahead of us. It was a fairly nice cabin from the outside. Not too small, not too gross looking. I decided it would be okay as long as it had a working shower.

Inside, it looked smaller then it did on the outside. There was a simple kitchen/living room, and a little space for a dining room. A small set of stairs led up to three doors, which I assumed were the bedrooms and the bathroom. It wasn’t too bad, but it could be better.

“So, what do you think?” My mom asked.

I dropped my bags at my feet. “I think this is going to be a very uneventful summer.”



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