camp bigfoot
DESCRIPTION
The truth is out there - and it’s watching us.Eighth grader Ted’s two best friends are obsessed. Colby is girl crazy and although it irks Ted, he knows the infection is already spreading to him. Zach is fixated on legends of all sorts - ghost, aliens, phenomena and cryptids. When Colby’s interest Ellie invites the boys to her grandmother’s campgrounds in the mountains, the guys decide to make an adventure out of it and hunt for Bigfoot. Ted thinks it’s all in good fun and when they fail to find the elusive beast, it finds him and in the nick of time.TRANSCRIPT
Camp Bigfoot Lisa Marie Arnopp
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The Soccer Field After School
Colby’s head snapped back from the force of Edgar’s blow. Who teaches bullies
to fight anyway? Or are they born with the innate knowledge? Are people predestined to
be menaces? If they are, Edgar is definitely in that group. He didn’t swing his punch in a
lower to upper arc. He pulled his balled up right fist level with his head, drew it straight
back and thrust in a linear vector at Colby’s chin.
Dancing around on his left foot, Edgar swung his right, kicking Colby square in
the chest. He fell back and down – winded from the impact.
Let me stop here for a minute. Colby is one of my two best friends and the
coolest kid in school. For the record, we were friends before coolness was a factor. And
if you think being popular is generated because you follow the crowd you’re mistaken.
He’s a free spirit if not a “tad wild” and a natural born leader.
Being that he started kindergarten late, he is the oldest kid in eighth grade and one
of the tallest. He hit a growth spurt last summer and is thinner than ever but hardly
wimpy. His dark brown hair is straight and never trimmed. If anyone could stand up to
Edgar, it was Colby, but it wasn’t going to be without a beating.
Edgar closed in for the kill but Colby flung his legs and knocked his attacker flat
buying him needed time to recoup.
“What are you just watching for? Get them.” Edgar commanded his buddies as
he hustled to regain control.
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It was five of them against three of us and unless you really stink at math, you get
that we weren’t going to walk away unscathed. One of Edgar’s cronies helped with
Colby, the other three made their way for Zach and me.
Zach, by the way, is my other best friend. Of the three of us, he is the shortest
and the roundest but most of the chub is in his face. His hair matches Colby’s color but
it’s very curly. He calls it a Jew-fro. Mom says I can’t do the same because someone
could think it’s racist. Like I would hate a certain group when one of my favorite people
ever was one of them.
Seeing we were out of options, Zach crouched down and shouldered the beefiest
of our oppressors in the gut. Using his hold around the guy’s midsection, Zach mule-
kicked the skinniest into a tree. Slim was out for a while and that left the fat one for me.
I’m Ted and I’m the average of the two in height, weight and waviness but my
hair and eyes are lighter brown than theirs. And other than play fights we occasionally
had, I was without any true warring experience.
Tiny, as I dubbed the last brute, rushed me. His blubbery middle undulated from
the motion and there was no doubt it was going to smart once contact was made.
SMACK. It hurt and before I knew it I was pinned under the behemoth as he shoved my
face into the lawn. If you’ve heard the expression “eat dirt” – this is what it means.
I’m getting ahead of myself. Let me go back some.
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Bar Mitzvah
Two weekends earlier was Zach’s Bar Mitzvah. It was the biggest party I’ve ever
been to that wasn’t a wedding. His mother went all out and the way the adults were
treating him you’d think he’d run a marathon or cured cancer. We were a bit jealous but
we’re also happier for him than any of them. After all, we’re his best friends and that is a
stronger bond than family since it’s dictated by choice and not circumstance.
A good portion of the extravagance was due to Mrs. Brooks spending a small
fortune on the party. Since her husband is the best neurologist in the state, she had an
unlimited amount of money to spend on the affair for her only son.
Zach looked older than ever in his black suit and a tie – that matched his dad’s
perfectly. With so many relations on hand he didn’t have much time for us, so Colby and
I were one man down.
The three of us have been best friends since our first day of kindergarten when we
found Linus. He was a lizard we trapped in Tupperware. The only person more angry
than my mother, who said ruined her pristine food container, was Ms. Gayle our teacher.
She jumped three feet off the ground when his twitching discarded tail fell on the
linoleum. It was Colby’s fault we were caught and punished but our friendship was
cemented on that fateful day.
As excited as I was for Zach I was envious too. In the Jewish tradition a boy
comes of age at thirteen, that is to say Zach was a man. So why wasn’t I? Why was I
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considered a boy when I’m four months and three days older than Zach? I’ll tell you
why. Because my family is Catholic.
I have another four plus years before they’ll see me as a man. There is no way the
celebration will be a thousandth as phenomenal as Zach’s. If I am very lucky, I may get a
car. My sister Amanda got one with the provision she share it with our sister Tracey,
who is a year younger.
There are minor concessions that I’m aging. For one, they started calling me Ted
instead of Teddy. My sisters still called me Teddy but they were both at college so other
than Christmas and summer, I don’t have to hear it. And my bedtime and allowance go
up regularly provided I keep my stuff “tidy” and mow the lawn.
We had shared Zach enough and Colby called him over. We pilfered some
champagne flutes to toast. Of course it was Colby’s idea. Giving a cursory glance
around I met my mother’s eyes. She diverted Dad’s attention away as she slyly held up
one finger to denote that I would not be having seconds. Mom is good like that.
“Happy Birthday/Bar Mitzvah Zach!” Colby declared and we drank.
It didn’t taste so good. If soda had a shelf life and eventually went bad – it would
taste like champagne. Not wanting my friends to think I was a kid – I sipped small
amounts and swallowed as fast as possible. Bad flavor aside, it did make you feel dopey
in a good way. Before we were half way down I couldn’t hold back a snicker.
Zach, who had already enjoyed a few celebratory cheers, was laughing harder
than me and his face was flushed red. I mean bright red too. Brighter than the Cardinals’
uniforms.
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Even the coolest kid in school, Colby couldn’t fight off the liquid tickle. “Man,
this stuff tastes like carbonated piss.” He joked pretending he wasn’t feeling tipsy.
Not that “piss” is really that bad of a word but it was on the gray line. None of us
could contain ourselves. We roared.
“Drinking much pee lately?” I shot back and pulled far enough away to be out of
the punch-zone. His arm swung my way but it was a lazy effort.
“I like it.” Zach lied through his hysterics. “Kids can’t appreciate the fine
flavor.”
“Dude, I’m a full year older than you.” Colby bragged and exaggerated. He only
has ten months on Zach.
“Yeah!” I chimed in. “Just because they throw you this party doesn’t make you
older than us.”
“The Chosen mature quicker than you gentiles.” Zach defended.
“You did not just call us gentiles.” Colby warned and closed in on Zach ready to
tussle.
“Stay back.” But Zach had failed to keep a safety distance between them.
It was like David and Goliath. Colby was the oldest, tallest and fasted. He
towered over Zach by half a foot. Without a mystical slingshot, Zach didn’t have a
chance. They tumbled from their chairs and the older had the younger pinned to the grass
in less than a minute.
“Get off! You’re ruining my suit you uncircumcised Philistine.” Zach said
laughing so hard he snorted as he pleaded helplessly.
“Take it back!” Colby had the birthday boy trapped in a half nelson.
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“Gentile.” The obstinate fool repeated.
Finally I moved to referee. “That’s enough. He can call us whatever he wants on
his birthday. We’ll discipline him later.”
Reluctantly Colby released his captive and they both ironed out their wrinkles
with their palms. The grime wasn’t going to disappear as easily. Mrs. Brooks glowered
our way but let it pass.
“What did you get?” I asked knowing Zach had big expectations for his gifts.
“Grandma and Grandpa are taking us to New York for Spring Break. They
wanted to take me to Jerusalem with one friend but I negotiated.”
I understood. None of us could ever choose between the other two – ever – so he
talked them into a cheaper trip with two friends.
“Grandpa didn’t like the ‘change of venue’ but Grandma joked I’d see just as
many Jewish people and traditions in New York City. I tried to get them to go to
Scotland and see Loch Ness but no dice.”
“New York is excellent.” Colby approved. “We’ll have to go to the new Yankee
Stadium.”
“What did you get from your parents?” I asked.
“Dad finally agreed to go to Roswell next summer. We’re going to try to make it
for the UFO Festival.” He had earned the trip with years of pleading, bargaining and
outright begging.
“You and your nutty mysteries.” Colby shook his head.
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Zach has an obsession with all kinds of crazy legends and myths. Aside from the
big puzzles in life – aliens, sea monsters, Bigfoot, Chupacabra – he also keeps up on
ghost stories, lost treasures and legends local, national and abroad. We’ve pressed him
countless times to see if he really believes these stories. He never confirms or denies.
My theory is that he hopes that at least one is proven true some day.
“Does that mean you’re going to skip out?” Zach tested Colby.
“No.” He wasn’t a fool. An adventure was an adventure and we didn’t split up
often. “But we aren’t going to meet normal girls in Roswell, New Mexico.”
Girls! Now there was a problem quickly approaching us on the horizon. We
were all taking more notice of the fairer sex but Colby was embracing them whole-
heartedly. And since, unlike Zach and me, he was taller than most of the girls in our
class, he got attention in return. He was a brazen connoisseur and found something
redeeming in all the ladies – even Jen who was a self-absorbed brat and inches taller than
him. Per Colby, she had great hair. It was shiny and wavy and went down to her waist
but she was still mean.
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Mysterious Things
Perhaps the booze had slowed our senses because I struggled to keep my eyes
fully opened. Zach gabbed on about his research for our Roswell trip and Colby had a
faraway look.
“Sasha is kind of hot.” Colby mused glancing into the crowd.
“Hello! That’s my cousin you’re sexualizing.” Zach slugged his arm.
“And she’s a senior in high school.” I reminded Colby, not that I thought he
considered her a viable option. Colby merely admired the scenery. I didn’t always agree
with his eclectic taste but I couldn’t argue against Sasha.
“True.” Colby relinquished and scanned the crowd.
Following his example I scoped out prospects but lacked the knack. It wasn’t that
girls weren’t fascinating – which was frustrating since it wasn’t so long ago that they
merely annoyed me. It was that they were all removed from me in some inexplicable
way. Knowing you weren’t on their radar made it harder to enjoy them on yours.
Except for Margo and Becca. Those were two girls that any man of thirteen could
appreciate even if they didn’t acknowledge his existence. And there they were not
acknowledging my existence and looking even more glorious than usual.
Maybe since they were inseparable they had morphed to look alike but that made
them twice as nice. Margo’s hair was a bit blonder and straighter than Becca’s. Both
were as tall as me or really I should say I was as tall as them because they reached the
height first. Unfortunately, they were in heels. I’d keep my distance or they would
notice I was a runt. Keeping away was a good option. My brain tended to shut off in
their presence and it completely disappeared if they so much as smiled or looked my way.
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How long had I been staring? Too long. Margo caught my eye and then
motioned to Becca. In unison, they waved at me and giggled. Didn’t that make me feel
better? Blushing I turned away and focused on the empty glass in front of me.
Colby’s head oscillated as he continued to spy. “Isn’t that a lovely sight?” He
pondered looking in the direction of the two beauties.
“Why don’t you ask her out?” Zach asked. Like me, he thought it was time for
Mr. All-talk to step up and hit. “She obviously adores you.”
“It’s tempting.”
“Which one? Becca or Margo?” I was unaware that Colby had zeroed in on
either of them. How did he ever prioritize one over the other? It wasn’t until school
started that year that I was even sure which was which since Becca got braces.
“Ellie!” Colby said mildly miffed. “And I’m better off approaching Becca or
Margo. At least they’re predictable.”
Ellie? She lived two doors down from me and was not usually a topic of
discussion. As far as girls went – she was pretty all right. I mean, she could throw a ball
and she liked all animals. And I don’t just mean cats and rabbits but snakes and spiders.
When Mr. Titus brought in a tarantula for the class, Ellie was one of the few girls that let
it walk on her hand. Even Zach didn’t manage that level of comfort with Sheila the
spider. His forte was cryptids not arachnids.
“I’ve never seen her dressed up before.” Zach agreed with Colby’s appraisal.
If only I had the will power to take no notice of them I wouldn’t have to look
back. But I didn’t so I looked and standing with Margo and Becca was Ellie looking –
well looking like a girl. She was shorter than the blonds and her soft brown hair was not
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in the usual ponytail. In fact, it was curled in ringlets and a pink ribbon separating the
loose strands from her bangs. The bangs were new. And I had seen her in a dress but not
one as frilly as her pink one.
“Act normal. She’s coming this way.” Colby said but ignored his own good
advice as he primped himself. It was needed after his roll on the grass with Zach.
It was only Ellie – dress or no dress she wasn’t going to judge Colby harshly. For
one thing, she could hardly speak in his presence or Zach’s. And to prove my point, she
was as bashful as ever.
“Happy birthday Zach.” She managed.
“Thanks.” He grinned.
“What happened to you?” She noted his disheveled appearance.
“Colby tried to kiss me.”
A sudden gasp of a laugh escaped my lips as Colby blushed. Ellie turned to a
pretty shade that matched her pretty dress. Zach was the clown of the three of us and
always had a witty comeback especially when you didn’t want one.
“Oh.” She didn’t know how to respond to such an absurd accusation.
“I wasn’t kissing him even though he begged for it.” Colby quickly recovered.
“He needed some putting in his place.” And surely there would be another bout for
Zach’s latest transgression of embarrassing him in front of Ellie.
She fudged with her pendant – she was actually wearing jewelry – and scrunched
her eyebrows together. “Well, um, I wanted to thank you for inviting me.”
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My eyes rolled and she glared at me. I didn’t mean to be critical but Zach invited
the whole class and half of the town as far as I could tell – even Edgar the scariest kid in
class. “You look nice.” I blurted out to change the topic.
Her cheeks went pinker and then she reverted to her old self – the one that didn’t
take compliments. “I look like a Barbie reject.”
“No you don’t.” Colby countered.
“Not as nice as you boys.” She smiled but didn’t look at us.
If Ellie liked how he looked, I don’t get why she averted him. Sure, I’ve been
embarrassed before but if I thought Becca or Margo was interested in me, I wouldn’t look
away. Perhaps Colby’s clues weren’t clear enough for her. It must be harder to see it
when someone appreciates you. Since he mentioned it earlier, I could tell he was
intrigued but without the heads up, I’m not sure I could have deciphered his intentions.
“Anyway, Aunt Claire has to work tonight, so we’re leaving.” She tucked her
hands into her pockets causing the skirt to flare out a bit.
Ellie’s aunt was her guardian and a nurse with odd hours. Her mother had passed
away when Ellie was born. Claire’s brother was Ellie’s father but for some reason she
lived with Claire. It wasn’t the usual family unit but Ellie was loved. She saw her father
often and always came back with a fantastic tale of some grand adventure. They were
always short trips. After hearing her last tale of New York, I was enthralled and glad that
I’d get to visit the Big Apple for myself.
“We’re hanging out at Ted’s tomorrow if you want to stop by.” Colby invited to
my sheer annoyance. For one, I didn’t know that was the plan for Saturday and then
there was the little fact that it wasn’t his house to be extending invitations.
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“Maybe.” She went from a soft pink to a sharp crimson and walked off.
As soon as she was gone I hit Colby. “Why did you do that?”
He watched her snake through the crowd towards her aunt. “Was she wearing
perfume? I think she was wearing perfume.”
It wasn’t that I didn’t think the time was coming that we would have to hang out
with girls. It was that I didn’t want to be there on his dates. Okay – and it bothered me
that he chose Ellie. I decided not to make a stink and instead filed the information
knowing that the day would come that I would need his help. And let’s face it. I was
going to need a lot of help if girls ever got around to noticing that I existed. The odds
were better that aliens would notice me before girls would.
“Hey, do you think we could spend the night tomorrow?” Zach inquired. “To
celebrate my birthday.” They were over so often, it wasn’t a surprise they saw it as their
home too. At least Zach had the decency to ask permission.
“It won’t be as nice as this party.” I admitted easily.
Zach sighed. “This is great but it’s great when it’s just us too.” He may be a man
but we were still his best buds.
“I’ll let you know if Mom and Dad say no.”
“They won’t.” Colby predicted knowing my parents well. After my two older
sisters eroded their sense of discipline, I usually got what I wanted provided it wasn’t
outrageous. They were even tolerant of the “wild” Colby’s potentially bad influence on
me.
“We need an adventure.” Zach surmised. “We haven’t done anything fun since
August.”
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It had been a good summer. We expanded our world taking full advantage our
bikes allotted us. With the stretched circumference we explored parts of town that had
been otherwise off limits. Our favorite spot was up in the canyon by a creek off the
beaten path and teeming with all kinds of creatures.
“Let’s ride up to the creek. We can take a tent and spend the night.” I suggested
missing our long treks without parental supervision.
“Your dad won’t let us do that.” Colby said and it was probably a good call.
Camping alone would be deemed Outrageous by Ted Sr. “We need something new,
something BIG.”
“Hi guys.” Becca practically sang as the two girls strolled up.
“Fab party.” Margo added.
Terror locked my jaw shut and I grinned stupidly hoping to disguise my muteness.
“Happy Bar Mitzvah.” They said in synch and gave Zach a big hug.
He was paralyzed with fear and Colby and I exchanged knowing glances. All the
girls loved Zach because he was so nice and cute. Mom often said he was going to be a
lady-killer when he got older. I looked it up. She meant girls would chase him and
nothing homicidal.
“It will be hard to top this bash.” Becca nodded to Margo.
“What mine will lack in size, it will make up in panache.” Margo promised.
“Dad got front row seats to an upcoming concert his company is organizing.” She was
being purposely mysterious but we got the picture.
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My mouth dropped to the floor. There was one major tour that all kids were
buzzing about and no doubt Margo’s father, who was big in the music business, was able
to score fantastic seats.
“Sirens of Love?” Colby spoke the name with absolute reverence.
“With back stage passes.” She confirmed with relish. If there was anything that
wasn’t perfect with Margo and Becca it was their overconfidence. Margo, more than
Becca, was spoiled – maybe not rotten but spoiled nonetheless – way more than Zach.
The party wound down but the girls stayed for another hour and chatted with us.
By us, I mean Colby and Zach because every time I thought of something cool to say,
someone beat me to it or I reevaluated it to be lame. Still, I was right there nodding and
listening to every word that was spoken.
Colby had them captivated and Zach was his sidekick. Even so, as soon as they
went their merry way, he asked if Ellie would really come by the next day. The first
time, it wasn’t too bothersome but after the fifth I felt like he forgot that I was his friend
not her. Plus, Ellie and I used to be friends and I didn’t want to work her like that. Then
there was the little known fact that we had a falling out.
“I don’t know.” I repeated apparently without disguising my disgust because he
frowned.
“I’m too eager.”
“Kind of.” Zach admitted.
“When did you start liking Ellie anyway?” It was news to me and not of the good
variety kind.
“I don’t know.” He evaded. “She’s just kind of different and that’s cool.”
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“Different is an understatement.” I grumbled.
Ellie is the kind of kid that over-analyzed everything. She even went through a
vegetarian phase because she hated how humans lorded over animals. Something that I
guess was a sin against nature. Her aunt put an end to it by showing her that even
without human interference, there’s a food chain and everything had its place. After that,
Ellie got into yoga and meditation. Her aunt and her are in my mother’s class at the gym.
Mom adores Ellie and Aunt Claire is probably her best friend. It’s good to see
Mom hang with someone her age once in a while. She had spent all her time taking care
of the family that she kind of went weird when Tracey left for college. Dad called it
maternal overdrive. It was last year and it was too much attention for me to handle alone.
My house became the usual haunt for us. Colby and Zach were able to dilute some of the
hovering but it wasn’t until last spring that Mom really eased up thanks to Aunt Claire.
On the flip side, Claire and Ellie were over often. It didn’t take me long to
remember to change out of my pajamas before going to breakfast. The few mistakes I
had made were scarred in my memory. Iron Man was cool sleepwear before Ellie saw
me parading around the kitchen.
Then there was the fact that Ellie would get bored with the women talk and
wandered until she found me. Mother said she was a naturally curious girl that liked to
explore with a friend her age. It was plain nosiness by my account. I never told the guys
or Mom but I made Ellie cry once when I shooed her out.
Just thinking about it brought back the guilt.
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“Is different good?” Zach asked Colby.
“Trust me.” He answered sagely. “My dad dated for years before he met my
stepmom. Before they got married I asked why he chose her.”
Because she’s gorgeous. I thought.
“He said because she knew how to have fun and be a lady.” Colby saw we
weren’t getting it. “She can camp and hike and he even took her fishing once. Maybe
she didn’t like fishing, mostly because of the smell, but she tried. Dad said that was the
kind of girl to fall for.”
It still didn’t make any sense. One day I’d probably get it better but all I could
think was if Becca or Margo didn’t like fishing, I wouldn’t fish. How hard was that to
figure out?
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Costco Day
Saturday is Costco day. We always eat breakfast at a diner and try to get to the
store before it’s so full we have to circle for a parking stall. Mom and Dad go regardless
but I like to accompany them since they have memory lapses when it comes to some of
my favorite snacks.
“Mom?” I said as she put her ID back in her purse getting the obligatory head
nod from the greeter. “Is it okay if Colby and Zach spend the night?”
“I don’t see why not?”
Dad sighed. “Any special occasion?” He thought we were eating him out of
house and home. It had been voiced before. When my sisters were still in high school
three kids wasn’t a problem but apparently teen boys eat their weight in food everyday.
“Zach’s birthday.”
“Yesterday’s party wasn’t big enough?”
“Honey.” Mom chided. “Should we get a little cake?”
Another sigh as my dad envisioned dollar bills flying out of his wallet. His frugal
side started after Amanda went to college. When Tracey followed, he got way too close
to cheap.
“We don’t need it but could we?” I made sure all my teeth showed as I smiled
hard to preempt Dad’s rebuttal.
“Chocolate or yellow? Ooo, or we can get short cake and strawberries.” She
gave a gentle but firm face to her spouse that it wasn’t going to cause bankruptcy and
ruin.
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“Definitely chocolate.” I was partial to yellow but Zach’s fave was chocolate and
so was Dad’s. Got to keep the old man happy.
“Good thing I got promoted.” He muttered and shoved the cart forward.
“You got promoted.” I don’t really understand what my dad does at the office but
he wears a suit every day. “That’s great.”
“It means more travel.” From his tone, he saw that as a catch.
“And a company car.” Mom added. “A Caddy. Can I say Caddy or does that
sound gauche?”
He squinted his eyes and shook his head. Then he went to get a bag of dog food.
Joey was on the eat-them-out-of-house-and-home plan with us.
We got the usual items; beef jerky, sodas, juice boxes, cereal (some good and
some sugar free), and healthy snack foods. Dad didn’t want to wait for the cake to be
iced with a birthday greeting so we went without.
By two in the afternoon the guys were over and we joyfully killed alien invaders
from outer space in my living room. Joey was curled up on the couch watching with one
eye. He was a rescue puppy from the pound and we had no idea how large he would
grow or that he would look so much like a wolf. His appearance and his possessiveness
make him a solid watchdog.
“Should we call Ellie and tell her we’re here?” Colby tried to sound nonchalant.
“She’ll figure it out.” I moaned. Was this how it would be with girls in the
picture?
“But we didn’t give her a time. She may not feel welcome.” He had a tone that
added I didn’t do enough to ensure her attendance.
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She wasn’t really welcomed but I didn’t comment. At least not with them there.
Not without me fixing things between us.
“What’s going to happen next year?” Zach’s voice squeaked.
“We’ll lose our head of school status.” Colby was pleased when we passed
seventh grade and were officially the dominant class. High school meant we were
bottom of the caste system again with three long years before we ruled.
“But what about us?”
This I understood. Would we remain friends when we got into high school? It
was a fear that I held secret and after hearing it from Zach, I kind of wished he hadn’t
mentioned it either.
“What do you mean?” Clearly Colby hadn’t caught on.
“He means you’re kind of cooler than us.” It was out of the bag and I took the
opportunity to express my like concerns.
“And you’re both cooler than me.” Zach overstated.
“Nonsense. We’re friends forever.” It was believable when we were sitting in
my den but how would it pan out in a cruel world of cliques and peer pressure. In our
class we were all liked but Colby was so popular it overflowed onto Zach and me.
Losing the popularity I could live with. But life without Colby would be dull.
“How many grade school friends do your parents still keep in contact with? And
Facebook doesn’t count.” I challenged.
“Two.” Colby answered easily. “And I plan to follow in his footsteps.”
That was the best thing he ever said. I felt a warm happy fuzzy inside.
“Hello.” Ellie said shyly from the doorway. “You’re mom let me in.”
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“Ellie.” Colby stood up leaving his video character to be slaughtered by an alien.
Joey followed to greet Ellie as well. For some reason, he adored her and that was the
lone demerit on his guard dog resume. When she was ten, he frightened her but he won
her over the hard way. By knocking her to the ground and licking her to near drowning.
It was rare for him to approve of anyone and never that quickly. Ellie said animals often
took a shine to her.
“Nice going Colby.” Zach complained as we defended our spaceship against an
onslaught with two soldiers.
“Sorry. I didn’t mean to disturb your game.” She scratched Joey’s ears and
fidgeted on her feet. She fidgeted a lot. Kind of annoying really.
“Nonsense. Want to play?” Colby held out his arm inviting her to choose a seat.
“I’ve played a couple of times.” She hung her head. It was with me before I
scared her off.
“Sit down.” Colby gave her a controller and restarted the game even though we
were coming back after his retreat. How would we stay friends in high school in the light
of how much he changed around Ellie? She was one girl. A full school of kids would be
even more imposing to our triad.
It had been weeks, maybe months, since I rudely excused Ellie but she hadn’t lost
the feel of the game. After a while, it felt like old times. Admittedly, it wasn’t all bad.
In her shorts and tee, she was one of the guys again instead of the creature that muted the
loquacious Colby. Then he decided we should play in pairs and of course his plan was to
team up with Ellie. At least Zach and I managed to take the lead.
LisaMarieArnoppCampBigfoot
21
“So Ellie, how’s that vegan thing going?” Colby asked as we cornered him
without proper backup.
“We try to keep it meat-lite but every once in a while we eat filets and I feel like a
monster for a week.”
“We’re having burgers for dinner.” I announced with glee. “Extra rare.”
“You’re staying.” Colby missed my poignant point and waited with bated breath
for Ellie’s affirmative. Somehow I needed to reclaim my house from these guys. It was
my space I shared with them and not a communal hotspot for all.
“I can.” She said as she murdered Zach and me with skills no girl should possess.
I tossed my controller down. “Anyone need a refill?”
“I’ll help.” Colby shadowed me into the kitchen. “What’s up with you?”
“What?” I pulled the door of the fridge so hard the ketchup fell out. The bottle
was plastic, so no mess but it proved I was playing dumb. I grabbed the soda and shut
the door.
Colby glared at me waiting for a real answer.
“You get so airheaded around her. We’re your friends.”
“Is that it?” He smiled and put fresh ice in our cups.
“How are we suppose to survive into our middle ages if you toss us aside for the
first skirt that flutters by?”
“What if it was Becca in there? Or Margo?” He took the 2-liter bottle from my
hand and poured.
“I wouldn’t ignore you guys.” And that was the truth because the ladies would be
fawning over him like he was the last man on earth.
LisaMarieArnoppCampBigfoot
22
“Relax. She’ll leave after dinner and then it will just be us again and you’ll wish
you had a distraction.”
“She isn’t a distraction for Zach and me.”
“Don’t be mad because she shot you. It’s only a game.” He was giddy and that
only soured my mood more. “You know what we need to do? We need to go out on a
triple date. Maybe with Becca and Margo to their concert.” His eyebrows eagerly
bounced. “That could be our big adventure plan. Do you think Zach will go for it?”
Sidestepping him, I stormed back to find Ellie showing Zach some tricks on the
game. And if that wasn’t bad enough – and it was – she was explaining how to expose a
weakness in my strategy.
“You’re really good for a girl.” Zach praised.
She rolled her eyes and accepted her refreshment. “Is it okay if I stay through
dinner?” Translation; is the banishment lifted?
I wanted so badly to say no but at that moment Mom walked in and answered for
me. “Great idea. I’ll call Claire to join us. We’re having cake for Zach.”
“Gee. That’s nice.” Zach hadn’t known about the cake. So much for the surprise
factor.
Why were women ruining my dinner party?
“We’ll make tofu burgers.” Mother decided knowing our neighbors were partial
to vegetarian fare.
“Mom!”
“For the girls. You men can eat beef.” She amended and went off to the market
to get fake food for our unwelcome latecomers.
LisaMarieArnoppCampBigfoot
23
“You’re mother is super nice.” Ellie needlessly remarked.
“Ellie, what do you know about Margo’s birthday concert plans?” Colby probed.
“Nothing. What concert?”
“Sirens of Love.”
“She is so spoiled.” She said enviously but accurately. “Are you guys invited?”
“No.” I said coolly.
“You will be.”
“Why?”
“They were asking me about you yesterday.”
Looking back, it was odd that they were conversing at the party. The blondes
were selective in who they chummed around with and Ellie was not their type. “You
mean asking about Colby.” I surmised.
For a second she had a sad expression. “Him too. All three of you. I guess they
realize if they want one of you to go, you all have to be invited but Margo asked about
you Ted.”
We both got kind of uncomfortable but Colby was charged with the tidbit of
gossip. “Margo likes Ted?”
I didn’t take my eyes off Ellie too enthralled with the potential of what she was
saying. It would be better than meeting an extraterrestrial but don’t tell Zach I said that.
I surveyed for any signs of deceit. She wasn’t like that but my self-doubt was
exceptionally high.
Ellie nodded. “She thought, well she thought we were an item or something but I
set her straight.”
LisaMarieArnoppCampBigfoot
24
Her words flew out so quickly I wasn’t wholly sure she said what I heard. Why
would they think that?
Colby gave me a fist bump – well he moved for one but I was stone solid – so he
softly socked me. “Outstanding. We’ll be backstage with the band.”
Stunned I couldn’t do more than blink. Maybe Margo was playing a prank. Now
that was her style. “She’s pulling your leg.” I finally muttered.
“Doubt it.” She deduced. “Why bring it up to you if she wasn’t going to ask you
along? I mean – she’s vain but not malicious.”
“We’ll see.” Hope battled fear as my mind processed the possibility of the
prettiest girl in school wanting to ask me to her party. After that time flew by at
supersonic speeds until it was time to get ready for dinner.
LisaMarieArnoppCampBigfoot
25
Backyard Barbeque
Colby helped Ellie set the patio table and I wanted to hurl. In a flash of genius, I
redirected my energy into lighting the barbeque. Zach must have been on the same
wavelength because the flames flared up taller than the house before subsiding.
“Careful.” Dad said nervously. “Go help your mother in the kitchen. If the fire
marshals arrives tell him the inferno is contained.” As you can tell, Dad isn’t a funny
man. Not that that fact stops him from trying.
After all the fresh toppings were sliced, the condiments fetched and the salad
tossed, we ate. There is something about a grilled burger that makes it better and no one
is as great as Ted Sr. when it came to backyard cooking.
Aside from the fact that Colby had a tofu burger instead of beef, it was a pleasant
evening and somehow more true than the gala the day before for Zach’s birthday. Even
Joey enjoyed a small patty. It’s easy to take simple moments for granted but for some
reason I didn’t miss the pure satisfaction.
“We’ll have to have a girls night out next week.” Mom said to Claire.
“I’m only gone for one weekend.” Dad sassed. “Don’t get too crazy.”
“We won’t.”
“Another time. Ellie and I are going to see my mother.” Claire declined.
“We are?” Ellie said sitting between Colby and me, which I took as symbolic.
Immediately I started making Ellie-free plans beginning with a monster movie
marathon, video games until our eyes bug out and of course all red meat meals.
“She left a voice mail this afternoon.” Claire sounded foreboding. “Didn’t
explain what the urgency was.”
LisaMarieArnoppCampBigfoot
26
“Where does she live?”
“She runs a property up in the hills. Lots of cabins for camping, if you count
running water and air conditioning camping.”
“Sounds idyllic.” Mom was never much for roughing it and those provisions
were incentivizing.
“All weekend.” Ellie sat up straighter enthusiastic over the chance of seeing her
grandmother.
“We leave after school on Friday.” Claire picked at her cake with her fork
lacking the energy of her niece. “Vicky, you could come with us.” She asked my mom.
Colby eyed me. He was thinking my mother takes me and we take them.
Dad snickered. “Vicky doesn’t camp.”
“It’s hardly camping. The cabins are fully equipped.”
“With satellite and internet?” I asked hoping those were too civilized for
mountain life.
“No.” Claire confessed. “And even the cells are a bit sketchy but there are plenty
of hiking trails, canoeing, rock climbing and horses.”
She had outdone me. It sounded like fun and I found myself wanting.
“I don’t need television or computers.” Mom hypothesized. “An unplugged
couple of days would be nice for the boys.” She was already calculating bringing Colby
and Zach with us. “And if there’s no television, there’s no video games.”
At that revelation, I could have started packing. Mom had tight restrictions on the
number of hours I was permitted and I never stayed under par.
LisaMarieArnoppCampBigfoot
27
“I’m in.” Colby casually leaned in towards my mother as he brushed shoulders
with Ellie. “We’ll have so much fun.”
Aunt Claire considered Colby more carefully than ever as he flirted with Ellie.
“You boys will be in one of the cabins. We’ll stay in the main house with Mom.” She
clarified critically.
“Can you horseback ride?” Colby missed Aunt Claire’s veiled warning.
Ellie nodded.
“You’ll have to teach me.”
I held my tongue. If he hadn’t ever ridden before, and I found that hard to
believe, he would just get on and try without lessons like he did everything else. He was
making a play. You have to give him points for effort. As Dad always says, no guts, no
glory.
LisaMarieArnoppCampBigfoot
28
Making Big Plans
The good news was Claire and Ellie left after dinner. The bad news was Colby
decided to talk about Ellie at nauseam. Blah, blah, blah, isn’t Ellie so cute? Blah, blah,
blah, do you think we’ll go camping? Blah, blah, blah, blah, blah.
“Does Ellie come over all the time?”
I knew he was jealous but it made me feel guilty because she use to. “Some.” I
dodged, as was my way.
“Try to fish for some info next time, okay?”
“Yeah, yeah.” I guess that was my fill because I decided then and there to find a
way to end this before it started. What I needed was a new interest to get his mind off
Ellie. No, that wouldn’t do. It would just reset with a new girl in sight and maybe that
girl wouldn’t be as cool as Ellie. Yes! Ellie bugged me to no end but she also didn’t.
My mind mulled it over. Perhaps getting them together would get us through the
infatuation phase faster. Was that only a phase? I’d have to search on line and see if
there was any timelines in cyberspace about relationships life cycles. Somehow, that idea
didn’t set well with me either.
“Have you ever kissed a girl?” Zach asked Colby.
Yuck! I didn’t want him kissing Ellie. Why couldn’t we stay the way we were?
Why were we even wasting our time talking about girls? And if we were going to
discuss the mystery of girls, why did Colby have to like Ellie?
“No.” He shook his head. “Well, Becca kissed me in fourth grade but that doesn’t
count.”
“Why not?”
LisaMarieArnoppCampBigfoot
29
“We were nine for one.” He mouthed off. “And it was because I saved her from
a snake. She didn’t know it was my pet snake that had escaped from my backpack or else
she wouldn’t have rewarded me.”
“Was it on the mouth?”
He nodded. “But it wasn’t romantic or anything. She was practically hysterical.
I don’t think it counts if she’s crying at the time.”
“You kissed on the mouth.” Zach was in pure awe. Admittedly it was impressive
news.
“It isn’t the same. Just the thought of kissing Ellie…” He held his hand over his
stomach.
It made me feel the same.
“Holding her hand, I’ll start there.” As usual, Colby had a well-laid plan.
“Then you’ll work up to a real…” Zach hugged his pillow and proceeded to
make-out vigorously.
Colby leaned back on the floor with his hands behind his head. “Some day.”
“Camping sounds like fun.” I schemed to move on to a more enjoyable
conversation and end his fantasizing.
“If I work it right, we’ll be on the same horse together. That means she’ll have
her arms around me.”
My scheme failed miserably.
“What if you’re sitting in the back?” Zach teased.
“Better. I can smell her hair.”
“Coconut.”
LisaMarieArnoppCampBigfoot
30
“What?” Zach leaned on his elbow with a quizzical face towards me.
“What what?”
“You said coconut.”
“Did I?”
“Ted, what if Margo asks you to the concert?” Zach thankfully brought up a more
tolerable topic.
If we were going to talk girls, this was the way to do it. “I’ll say yes.”
“If you don’t forget how to talk.” Colby joked and reclined.
“Then I’ll nod. She probably won’t ask.” It seemed unlikely it would happen.
“Don’t think like that. Baby steps. At school, be friendly and don’t avoid them.
They’ll need an opportunity to ask.”
“They?”
“Well, she isn’t going to ask you alone. Margo is tied to Becca’s side and vice
versa.”
Great. I’ll have to face them both. Even if they planned to talk to me, I could
never manage both of them at once. Who was I kidding? One was enough to send me
running for the hills.
“Be cool.” Zach offered. He understood the fear factor that Colby missed.
“Anyway, this camping trip could be a lot of fun and I’m not talking about getting a
cheap feel pretending to need riding lessons.”
“What could be more fun than…”
“What do you have in mind?” I cut Colby off.
“A Bigfoot hunt.”
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31
“Bigfoot? There’s no such thing.” Colby blasted without thinking.
“Who cares?” I said to Colby’s surprise and he remembered we agreed not to rain
on Zach’s insane beliefs. “We’ll go on line and see if there are any reports of Sasquatch
in the area and we’ll retrace their steps.”
“Exactly.” Zach voice went a little too high and cracked. “There are reports all
over the hills so I’m sure we’ll find a good one close by. Please Colby. It’ll be so much
fun and I can take my new camera Uncle Ben got me.”
Uncle Ben had done his shopping well. He got Zach a great digital camera. It
was of the smaller persuasion but it had all kinds of enhancing techniques built in
including panoramic images and night vision.
Colby’s mouth turned up at the corners. “If we do this, we do it right.” The fever
spread to our unofficial leader. “We only have a week to prep. We’ll print a map of the
hiking trails.”
“Screw that. We’ll get a satellite image of the area. It’ll have everything on it.
I’ll have it by Monday.” Zach had his new laptop humming to life prepared to start his
research right there.
“What about Ellie? What if she wants to come?”
Zach threw a pillow at him. “Shut up about Ellie already.”
How Colby pounced so quickly from flat on his back, I couldn’t say. All I know
is they were rolling on the floor towards me and then the three of us were knotted up like
an old shoelace. Dad barged in to quiet us down and ordered us to get ready for bed. Ten
minutes later he stopped by for lights out.
LisaMarieArnoppCampBigfoot
32
Once Dad was gone and the house was still, we got online and started mapping
out our Bigfoot hunt.
LisaMarieArnoppCampBigfoot
33
The Girl Invades
As promised by lunchtime Monday Zach had printed copies of a detailed map
showing the best trails that lead near Bigfoot encounters. Three locations were right off
the designated paths and easy to find. One was further in by a remote lake that was
probably a mile from the road. Both Colby and Zach were certain this was our best bet at
finding any incriminating evidence. Colby’s adventurous side was talking and Zach’s
inner nerd was one hundred percent in accordance. It was a verified combination for fun.
“Have we confirmed that we’re all going?” Colby asked as his eyes wandered
over to Ellie who sat in her customary spot reading a book that wasn’t part of our
mandatory list. As usual, she was solo.
“I guess so. Sounded pretty for sure on Saturday.”
“I’ll be back.” He moseyed over to the lone bibliophile and struck up a
conversation. It was amazing that he could set his fears aside to act but there were subtle
clues that he was shier than normal. He was rigid and kept swiping his hair out of his
eyes, a habit that drove Mom nuts.
Before long he sat next to her and she handed him the book. He closed it to see
the cover but never lost her page. Smooth.
“They’re going to start dating.” Zach prophesized.
“How serious can it get?” My parents didn’t let my sisters date until they were
sixteen. Not that they obeyed but things on the down low moved much slower. And
furthermore we were only in eighth grade.
LisaMarieArnoppCampBigfoot
34
“What’s this?” Jen snatched a map from Zach. Margo and Becca flanked her.
That was new. Jen didn’t pal around with the glamour girls because she considered them
trivial. “Bigfoot sightings? You believe in Bigfoot?”
“Never mind.” Zach tried to get it back but she was already showing the blonds.
“You didn’t answer my question.”
If the blondes weren’t there, I may have been braver. As it was, I kept quiet as a
chicken.
Since Zach didn’t say anything either, Jen continued. “What a couple of morons?
You think you’re going to get proof of an imaginary animal.”
“Give him his map.” Becca tentatively suggested. It was hardly commanding but
then she was more courageous than me.
Jen silenced her with a glare. “Just admit it. You believe in fairy tales.”
“We’re going to find one.” I snapped finally getting too angry to let her
intimidate me. Why did I say that? Oh yeah, I’m an idiot.
Her laughter was maniacal. “Why does Colby bother with you two losers?” She
crumpled up the map and threw it at us. Margo followed in her wake and so did Becca
after a soft “sorry” to us.
“Jerks.” I muttered.
“Becca’s cool.” Zach surprised me.
It crossed my mind that he may have a crush on her and for a moment I feared I’d
be forgotten by my friends. But Zach didn’t sound as dreamy as Colby did when he
talked about Ellie. His statement was defensive but not protective. “I guess she’s all
right. Jen, however, is a monster.”
LisaMarieArnoppCampBigfoot
35
“Probably a hostile alien life form from a barren wasteland planet. We’ll prove
that after we find Sasquatch.” And we laughed.
I looked up and saw Jen reporting to Edgar and his crew about us. I’m not that
paranoid but it was obvious when they looked our way and chuckled. Jen and Edgar
weren’t really friends so much as they liked to be in the middle of things when trouble
got started. Since both were instigators, they kept tabs on each other.
With ten minutes to spare, Colby returned to us with bleak news. “The camping
trip is off.”
“Why?” Zach’s face fell.
“What did you do to piss her off?” I mocked to cover up that it secretly pleased
me he might have messed things up so quickly.
Colby glowered my way and then explained his vague comment. “Change in
plans. Her aunt is going without her.”
“That sucks.” Zach frowned.
“We’ll save our plans and reschedule later.” I offered as consolation. Colby was
still disappointed and it had nothing to do with mythical woodland beings.
We gathered our trash and marched to our classroom quieter than the other eighth
graders. When I got home Mom had my traditional snack waiting for me. I plopped
down on the stool ready to eat my worries away.
“Everything all right?” She asked picking up the signs. Moms are smart like that.
“We heard that the camping trip is cancelled.”
“I didn’t know you were that eager to go a full three days without television.”
I snickered a little. “I’d make up lost time when we got back.”
LisaMarieArnoppCampBigfoot
36
“Claire felt bad about it. Next time they go we have an open invitation.”
“Cool.” I took a slice of apple and crunched down.
“We have some cake left over if you would like a piece.”
“Yeah.” Wait. That’s suspicious. Did I look that depressed to earn special
treatment?
With precision accuracy, she cut a slice. She slide the chocolately goodness over.
“Since Claire is going alone, Ellie will be staying in the girls’ room.”
“Here? Ellie is staying with us all weekend?” The cake was to soften the blow of
having to host a girl in my home.
“It’s so tragic. How will you ever survive?” Mom teased. “You do have two
sisters that lived here full time until recently.”
“And I just got rid of them.”
“Ted!”
“Honey?” Dad walked in earlier than usual and gave Mom a peck on the cheek.
“Not you. Teddy.”
I hate being called Teddy. Until I was eleven everyone called me Teddy but I
insisted that we shorten it to Ted when I got in sixth grade. The family took the longest
to adjust and neither Tracey nor Amanda even tried. Mom only reverted to it to
distinguish between Dad and me.
“Teddy was explaining how glad he is that the girls are gone.”
“Kidding, only kidding.” I explained.
“It’s okay son. We have the makings of a splendid man cave if we only got rid of
the big one.” He jabbed his thumb towards Mom who rolled her eyes and shook her head
LisaMarieArnoppCampBigfoot
37
as she sliced a second piece of chocolate for Dad. She used one cake to cushion two
blows.
“Mom’s not a girl.”
“I beg your pardon. I most certainly am a girl.”
“You’re a woman. Something must self correct when girls reach adulthood.”
My dad laughed so hard he spewed cake. It was seldom that he really gave a
bellyache-sized chuckle. “Write that down and note the date and time.” He grabbed
wildly for the notepad by the phone and started jotting. With a mischievous look he told
me he would remind me what I said several times in the course of my life including
prom, when I got engaged, married, found out my wife was pregnant and the day of my
child’s birth. He would have gone on if Mom didn’t put her hand over his mouth.
“Why are we discussing the female mystique?” Now his look was pensive. “Is
there a particular girl that we’re talking about?”
“Ellie.” Mom answered.
“Oh. She’s cute.” He smiled at me and I felt my face warm with embarrassment.
“No she isn’t. She’s invading my home.”
“What?”
“It turns out Claire is going to see her mother alone and she asked if we could
watch Ellie while she’s gone.”
“Oh.” Dad’s face wasn’t fully worry-free and glanced at me. “How long will
Claire be gone?”
“Really you two? It isn’t like Ellie has cooties.”
I wasn’t so sure. Something about her infected Colby in a disease like way.
LisaMarieArnoppCampBigfoot
38
“Ted, why don’t you get to your schoolwork?” Dad hinted for me to clear out.
I put my plate in the sink and collected my things. At my computer, I typed in
Colby and Zach’s name for a three way chat but only hovered my cursor over the begin
chat button. “Think about it.” I said to no one. “Colby is going to want to be over all
the time if he finds out she’s here.” Even if he wanted to, from the sounds of my dad, he
may ship me off to one of their houses for the duration. He didn’t like the idea of a girl
staying over night.
Closing the chat box I got out my history book and began our next chapter. Then
the computer binged at me. Did they already hear the bad news? But the IM wasn’t
from Colby or Zach.
Hello? It was from Ellie.
Hi. I wrote back and sat down wondering if we had ever chatted before.
Did you know I’m staying at your house for a few days?
Mom just told me. Was I supposed to tell her it would be fun or
something? I struggled for a moderate term of kindness without lying.
I promise to stay clear.
I gulped. Why?
She didn’t write back. Actually her status went to “offline.”
Often the guilt crept up but never so strong. Flopping on my bed I tried to drown
out my memories with loud music. I cranked my earphones up to the max but it didn’t
stop my brain from thinking or me from sleeping.
LisaMarieArnoppCampBigfoot
39
Guilty Nightmare
Is it considered a dream if it only replays a terrible moment in your life? My
psychotic brain decides to play out the full drama seeding my guilt. It all started at the
end of the summer when it was hotter than hell and I was grumpier than Grandpa when
dinner is running late.
I was in my room reading a graphic novel. The air pumped through the vents and
it was still too hot. The August sun shined in my window and I wasn’t paying attention
to the comic for two reasons. One, I had read it a few times. And two, Zach and Colby
were out of town with their families. I wasn’t happy about it since both had invited me. I
couldn’t go with either because we followed my sisters to college to help them settle in
even though it was already Tracey’s second year and Amanda’s third.
We had returned home that morning and the house hadn’t shaken off that
staleness from the lack of life it had over the few days of disuse. If it weren’t sweltering
out, my window would have been opened to air out my room.
Colby managed to send me an email since he had access to a computer. He was
visiting family so he used his cousin’s computer. Zach was unplugged in Florida. His
old laptop had died shortly before he left. A true nerd like him had everything backed up
on an external drive but that wasn’t going to give him access to email away from home.
His grandparents hadn’t embraced modern technology and his mother doesn’t allow Dr.
Brooks to take anything more than a smart phone on vacation.
Just as I began to nod off from boredom, Joey ran in at top speed and hopped on
my bed to give me a slobbering welcome home. It was great to see him but I knew that
downstairs was Claire and/or Ellie.
LisaMarieArnoppCampBigfoot
40
“Did you miss me?” I asked and he slobbered a big wet yes.
“He did.” Ellie knocked on the doorjamb. “Did you have fun?”
“Not really.” I answered. Joey, who hadn’t seen anyone but Ellie since we left,
went to her side and that made me mad.
“He’s a great dog.” She tried to look blameless as the traitorous pet pawed at her
shorts. Maybe she had dog treats hidden on her person to lure him away.
“Joey.” I patted the bed to tempt him back but he didn’t move until she scooted
him with her foot.
“It’s going to be awful empty around here without Amanda and Tracey.” She
liked my sisters a lot. That summer, they had taken her in as an honorary little sister and
Tracey especially enjoyed Ellie’s idolization.
“We’ll manage. Like we did last year.” I rolled my eyes. She hadn’t really
known them until that summer so it made sense that it was novel for them to be gone but
it was old news in the Miller family.
She cautiously moved to my desk and sat at the chair. “Want to go down to the
park?”
“It’s a hundred degrees out.” I barked.
“Yeah. I guess so.” She kicked her feet nervously.
Why didn’t she go hang out with Mom and Claire? Knowing them they were
about to go shopping or something dreadfully girlie like that.
Then she made another offer. “Maybe we can play some video games. I’m
getting the hang of Alien Army.”
LisaMarieArnoppCampBigfoot
41
Last time we played, she almost beat me so giving her a chance to actually win
didn’t appeal. “Nah.” I poked my nose deeper into my graphic novel hinting for her to
move along.
“That’s a good issue.” She pointed to my reading material.
“You read comics?” I gasped with more respect that I’d liked after a second
thought.
“Some. Not usually one so sexist. Aunt Claire got it by mistake when I was sick.
It wasn’t so bad. And in the end, the girl ends up saving him.” She covered her face
thinking she spoiled the story for me. “I shouldn’t have told you that.”
“I’ve read it.” It would have been wiser to let her think she ruined it for me but,
as usual, my mouth spoke before my brain thought.
“Oh good. I hope you don’t mind but we took Joey up in the hills.”
His ears perked up. I casually held his collar so he wouldn’t ditch me again.
“You didn’t? He could get ticks or run into a bear or something.”
“He’s fine.” She said wounded from the chiding. “We were at my grandma’s
campground. It’s completely safe.”
“Whatever. I’ll make sure Mom gets him checked out.” It wasn’t like we hadn’t
taken him camping before. He was more a beach hound but he did love to be in the wild.
Still, we didn’t give them permission to take him off the premises.
“I’m glad you’re back.”
“Me too. Can’t wait for Colby and Zach to get home.”
“Have you read any of our books for school?”
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42
“I have one more to go.” I should have been reading that instead but I wasn’t in
the mood.
“Are you going to read the Hobbit? I did and then I read the Lord of the Rings
trilogy. They were really long but I couldn’t stop.”
Honestly, the Hobbit was top of my list until I saw how thick it was. I didn’t have
that kind of time or dedication for one book let alone to read three even more daunting
follow up tomes. Heck, I barely made it through the Goblet of Fire and that was with
much nagging from Mom. She still expected me to finish the Harry Potter series but I
was willing to live off the movies even if they did cut out some of the crazier characters.
“Do you want to go swimming?” She hunted desperately for some activity.
“Maybe later.” It was tempting considering the weather but not with her able to
see me shirtless.
“Your haircut looks good.”
I ran my hand through my hair. Mom cut it before our trip because it was
touching my collar. “Thanks.” But I didn’t sound thankful.
She fussed with her hands as she stared out the window thinking. “Want to go to
a movie? Theaters are great on hot days because they turn up the air so high. Aunt
Claire can drive us.”
As if I hadn’t been rude enough, my mind snapped and I went too far. “Don’t you
have any friends? Geez. You’re always bothering me.”
For a second she was stunned. It felt much longer. Then she cried and ran out of
my room.
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43
“Wait.” I jumped up too slowly. She was gone. Mom and Claire were in the
kitchen catching up. From their cheery expression they must not have seen the distraught
Ellie’s escape. Back in my room Joey stared at me with judgmental eyes. “I didn’t mean
to do that.” I told him and he forgave me.
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Busted
Suddenly my earphones were ripped off my head and Dad stood next to my bed
very upset. “You’ll get these back in a week!” He shook the confiscated item in his
hand. “Are you trying to blow out your eardrums or something?”
“No. I um…” I stuttered without an answer for him or me. “Sorry Dad.”
“Clean up. It’s dinnertime. It’s probably cold since we called you fifteen minutes
ago.” He stormed out emphasizing how pissed he was.
When I got to the table Mom gave me a quick frown but it converted to a smirk.
“We’ll talk later.”
Goody. A lecture. The day wasn’t going to get better.
“And you’re grounded.” Dad said taking a bite of his meal.
I didn’t need to ask for how long. It was for a week, just like the iPod.
“I thought we were going to let him stay at one of his friend’s houses this week.”
“Not now. He had his music so loud I could hear it from across the room.”
I swallowed a poorly chewed veggie and almost gagged.
“And you are not to have girls in your room.” Dad declared the new house rule.
It was a small gesture of penance to do the dishes without being told. Dad didn’t
think it was enough. He directed Mom to let me do it alone. She did, mostly. Mom was
particular on preserving leftovers. She stowed the extra food safely in the fridge in
Tupperware marked with the date before letting me complete the task.
Since I dozed off earlier, my homework waited patiently on my bed.
“Got a minute.” Mom poked her head in and whispered.
I nodded that I was ready for the sermon.
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45
“What’s wrong with you and Ellie?”
If I hadn’t sighed I might have had a chance to avoid the interrogation but she
heard and knew she was onto something. “In the summer, I kind of kicked her out and
made her cry.”
“Ah.” How long had she suspected something? “And you haven’t gotten around
to telling her you didn’t mean it?”
I shook my head.
“You didn’t mean it, did you?”
“Kind of at the time – maybe a little – but I didn’t mean forever.”
“I bet she’d like to hear that.” She gave me a hug. “We aren’t so complicated.”
“Not you. You’re easy to live with but other girls don’t make sense.” Even my
sisters were too moody for me to handle at times. I did miss them now and again.
“Don’t listen to what your father said. We don’t get more complicated. You’re
just going to care more about what we think and feel as you get older.”
Was it a threat? It sounded like a veiled one and my head pounded harder as if it
was.
“Want some advice?”
Hadn’t she already given me some? “Sure.”
“Tell her what you told me before she comes over. The time will go a lot faster if
you do.”
“Okay Mom.”
LisaMarieArnoppCampBigfoot
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Saying Sorry
Tuesday came and went without an opportunity to talk to Ellie. Well, I could
have hurried up to walk with her to school but my book bag was really heavy that day.
And after school, I didn’t think to slow down until I was already on our street.
Oddly enough, I didn’t mention my guest to the guys. So it wasn’t so odd but I
was grounded and if Colby tried to come over, I would only get in more trouble. Dad had
left on his business trip that morning but he made it clear that Mom was to keep watch.
Five minutes left on Wednesday and my time was running out. The next day Ellie
was going to be at my house and Mom wanted me to reconcile before then. I wanted it
too and Mom knowing held me accountable. When she learned I hadn’t gotten to it, she
said it was part of growing up and good for me. You know what would be great? If there
were things that were part of growing up that were easy. Why aren’t there any of those?
The bell dismissed us for the day and I told the guys I would see them later.
Sprinting to the soccer field I waited for Ellie. We usually crossed the field as a shortcut.
Sure enough, Ellie wasn’t long behind me. She turned around confused when I waved at
her.
“Hey.” She stammered when she got close.
“You know, we live right next to each other and since we’re going the same
direction, I thought we’d walk together if you want to because I would totally understand
if you didn’t because that one time I was cranky and said things I totally didn’t mean and
I could tell it hurt you which wasn’t my intention and I really don’t know what came over
me but it could have been a heat stroke because it was like a million degrees if I recall but
then again I can barely remember it and you probably don’t even know what I’m talking
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about.” And then I breathed realizing I was nearly out of air from my soliloquy. A little
longer and I would have passed out.
“Okay.” She said probably still trying to interpret all the information that was
thrown at her.
“Okay.” If I nodded my head any harder it would have popped off. At least it
was behind me. The weight on my shoulders should be easing. And no, it wasn’t. We
headed home.
“So, why did you do it?”
“Huh?”
“Why did you say it?”
“I guess, I thought I meant it at the time but I didn’t. I had been on a road trip
with the family, it was hot, the guys were out of town and Joey was happier to see you
than me.”
“And it’s true. I don’t have any friends.”
“Well, not like a pack but you have friends. Colby and Zach like you and, and
we’re friends. We were before that day anyway.” It was a weak argument. She didn’t
have the gaggle of girls to cling to like most girls our age. It had dawned on me as
strange but she wasn’t an outcast. All the guys thought she was cool.
“Come on. You got stuck with me just like you’re stuck with me this week.”
“Doesn’t mean we aren’t friends.”
She glared at me and her eyes sparkled. Or they looked like they sparkled but
they were watering. Quickly she rummaged for sunglasses and deftly wiped them as she
hid her emotions behind Ray-bans.
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“Ellie.” I held her arm so we could finish our talk before we got to our street. “If
you weren’t my friend I wouldn’t feel so bad since that day.”
Even her shades weren’t enough to hide that she cried.
“Friends.” I held out my hand and after a momentary inspection she shook it.
“We’ll see how this weekend goes. If you’re even around.”
I had never been so grateful to see a smile. “It’s just us all weekend. Grounded.”
“What did you do?” She started walking again.
“I was blasting my earphones.”
“You could ruin your hearing.”
“So I was told.”
“If we’re really friends will you tell me why Colby is always so chatty with me?
If he thinks I have the inside scoop to the Bobbsey twins, he’s wrong.”
“He thinks you’re cool.”
“You didn’t correct him?” She tested.
“You’re not? Why didn’t you tell me?”
“I was going to but you kicked me out of your room.”
“Wouldn’t have believed you if you had.” We stopped walking and I realized we
were at her house. “Wow, the walk sure is faster when you have good company.”
“You’re overdoing it.”
“I’ll meet you here at a quarter till if you want to walk in together in the
morning.”
Her face contorted in doubt but she nodded.
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“Mom, I’m home.” As usual, I made a beeline for the kitchen like one of
Pavlov’s well-conditioned dogs expecting a treat. There was a plate of crackers, cheese
and pear chunks next to a tall glass of water.
“Guess you got to business today.”
“How’d you know?” Some cracker crumbs fell out of my mouth as I spoke.
“Honey, it shows and don’t talk with your mouth full.” She held my chin and
debated giving me a kiss on the cheek. She knew it made me feel like a baby so she
simply smiled and that was enough to let me know how proud she was.
“It wasn’t easy.”
“But worth it?”
I nodded. “We’re good again.”
LisaMarieArnoppCampBigfoot
50
Another Man
The next morning I waited on the sidewalk by Ellie’s house but not long. She
hollered that she was off to school to her aunt and we walked.
“So, did Margo ever invite you to her concert?” She asked.
“No.” It hadn’t even crossed my mind what with important things like Bigfoot
and making amends occupying my thoughts. That and finding Bigfoot seemed like better
odds to me.
“She’ll wait until a week or two out.”
“Maybe.”
“Well, assuming she doesn’t find a new interest, she’ll ask you.”
Another glitch in the messy road of romance. Timing. “Probably already has a
new target in her scopes.”
“She is kind of finicky.” Ellie admitted.
“What about you?” I asked coyly. “Who is in your scopes?” Immediately I felt
the invisible barrier that I had vanquished the previous afternoon slide in between us.
Was it too personal too soon?
“Um, no one.” And if vagueness wasn’t a personal favorite tactic of mine, I
wouldn’t have known she had specific variable in mind. “And it doesn’t matter. I can’t
date until I’m eighteen.”
“Eighteen?”
“Grandma says she’ll get that lowered in time.”
And I thought Dad was strict. “What if a guy wanted to ask you out?”
“Don’t know. No one has yet?” Her voice was faint.
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“What if you could date? Are you saying there aren’t any guys that you’d want to
ask you out?” Please don’t say Colby. I was sure she had someone in mind. All I
needed was his name and for it to be anyone else.
“I’ll cross that bridge when I get there.” She averted for a second time. “What
about you?”
“Well, I’m not going to tell Margo no if she asks.”
“Do you like Margo?”
An arm grabbed around my neck and Ellie’s and pulled us in close. “Good
morning Ted and Ellie.” Colby said in iambic meter.
“Hi Colby.” Ellie ducked out. “See you guys later.” She ran off.
“Did I scare her away? And if so, is that because she doesn’t like me or because
she does?”
“She’s interested in someone.”
“Who?” He challenged.
“Not sure.”
“So it could be me?”
“Technically.” And suddenly that seemed likely. Why else wouldn’t she name
her mystery man? If it were one of my best friends, she would think I would reveal her
crush. If it wasn’t him, it could be Zach and how would that play out? Friend against
friend.
“Technically? You need to find out exactly.” Colby panicked.
“What are we talking about?” Zach asked wanting in.
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52
“Ellie.” I answered sardonically and spun towards Colby. “If you hadn’t
interrupted, I may have gotten a name.”
Zach rolled his eyes tired of the same discussion.
“Fine. Let’s see what happens when one of you guys likes a girl.” And we all
knew Colby was right. We were ticking time bombs and out there were faceless girls
holding detonation buttons in their dainty hands. A kaboom waited for each of us in the
future. “So what are our plans this weekend?”
“We’re going out on the boat Saturday. Are you up for a day in the sun?” Zach’s
folks had a sweet boat and they took it out almost every weekend when the weather was
good.
“Awesome! It’s been weeks since we did that.” Colby was pleased. “We should
look for sunken treasure.” He was bummed when our Bigfoot hunt was cancelled even if
he was a doubting Thomas. And if it didn’t matter if there really was a Bigfoot or not
then it didn’t matter if there wasn’t a treasure. A thrill was a thrill.
“Can’t.” I informed them. “Grounded.”
“Grounded?” They charged in unison.
“Through the weekend.” My sentence was over on Monday.
“Bummer.”
“Go without me.” They would but it was always easier on the other two when the
odd man out gave his consent.
“It’s only one weekend.” Zach said but his tone sounded like we’d never see each
other again. And that was how they were for the rest of the day.
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Time Off for Good Behavior
“Mom, we’re home.” I called as I entered with Ellie after school.
Mom was ready with two sets of treats. “How was school?” It was the first
question out of her mouth almost every day.
“Mr. Titus gave us a pop math quiz but it wasn’t too severe. And we got to watch
the president’s address.” Ellie gave up more details than I would have.
“Did you do well on the quiz?”
“We got A’s.”
“Two A’s to celebrate. Would you prefer brownies or pie?”
“Brownies.” I answered. “If we choose pie it will be store bought.”
“Definitely brownies then. I can help make them.” Ellie said.
“That’s kind of you to offer.” Mom played with Ellie’s hair taking it out of her
standard ponytail. Mom used to do that to my sisters all the time. “Your hair is so pretty.
Don’t you ever wear it loose?”
Ellie shrugged. “Sometimes but it gets tangled.”
“The bangs are cute.” Mom brushed them aside. “You two go play some games
but don’t mention it to your dad.”
She was giving me a reprieve that wasn’t father authorized. I got out my new
game War World. My thoughts were I would have the advantage over her since she
hadn’t played. But it was too much like Alien Army and she did fine.
“Girls aren’t supposed to be good at this.” I grunted as I barely kept alive.
“Maybe most boys are usually better than you.”
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54
“Just for that.” I blasted her avatar but it dodged behind a crate. Fair play wasn’t
working so I reached for her control.
“Stop.” She cradled her body to protect her joystick and I got a mouthful of curly
brown locks.
We laughed and reset the game since the warlords killed us during our distraction.
“Ted, Colby and Zach are here.” Mom hollered from the kitchen, which smelled
like fudge brownies. I bet heaven smells like brownies.
“Can they come in?” I went for the front door taking deep delicious breaths.
“It’s our secret.”
“Hey.” I said happily. Either it was because Ellie was over and Mom didn’t want
to be a hard-ass or because she was proud that I apologized but I was pretty sure the
grounding was off as long as we kept Dad in the dark.
“We decided to play dumb.” Colby winked at me to follow his lead.
“No need. Dad’s out of town and Mom is being super cool.”
“She always is.” He walked in with Zach in tow. “Ellie?”
“Hi.” She demurred.
“She knew before us that you were off the hook?” Zach was hurt.
“No. I’m staying here while Aunt Claire is out of town.”
“Really?” Now Colby was wounded.
“We’re playing a new game. It’s more fun that killing Aliens.”
“Nothing is more fun than Alien Army.” Zach informed her and went to
investigate this new game for himself.
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As we walked into the living room Colby held me back. “Why didn’t you tell me
she was here?”
“Because I was grounded and didn’t want you getting me in more trouble.” I
whispered the obvious.
“How did you get off grounding?”
“Not sure. Maybe the A on my quiz.” That may have been part of it too and I
didn’t have to mention my moment of evilness towards Ellie. He would give me a piece
of his mind. Mom already addressed my poor etiquette so there was no need to rehash
that with him.
“It’s Zach and me against you terds.” Ellie dared.
“She called me a terd.” Colby frowned.
“She’s joking.” I pushed him forward.
Ellie and Zach beat us soundly into submission once we switched to Alien Army.
After dinner Mom drove Colby and Zach home. There was a lot Dad wasn’t going to
learn about.
Friday was more fun than Thursday. Mom took the four of us to the mall and we
saw a movie while she shopped. It was her turn to sneak in a little self-indulgence while
the cat was away. And then we went to Game Stop while Mom and Ellie got manicures.
Colby had calmed down about pressing me for Ellie information but it was
understood I was to probe for Mr. X’s true identity. Updates were expected as soon as I
learned any valuable details. Mission accomplished due date was that weekend.
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On the ride home Colby picked up Ellie’s hand and commented how lovely her
nails looked. I was in the front seat so only Mom saw me make the gag gesture when he
added it was an excellent shade for her. We dropped off the guys and went home.
“You’re mom isn’t a good warden.” Ellie remarked when we did our schoolwork
and Mom fixed dinner.
“I think she’s great.”
“Of course you would.”
“Do you like Colby?” Beating around the bush hadn’t work and it was time to get
definitive answers.
“He’s nice.” She shut down a bit at the questioning.
“But is he the guy?”
“What guy?”
“The one you’re interested in?”
“I never said I was interested in anyone.”
“Come on. You can tell me.”
“No he isn’t. If you must know, there was someone but I’m over it and sworn off
men for life.”
“For life?”
“Until high school anyway.” She slyly countered.
Good. I’ll pass that on to Colby and situation diverted. It was even better than
finding him a new woman.
“Why do you want to know?”
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57
I flushed a bit seeing how my inquiries may have been misinterpreted. “You get
quiet around him, that’s all.”
“Because I barely know him or Zach. But I like them.”
“There’s nothing not to like.”
“They’re solid friend material.” And she emphasized the word friend to put to
rest any romantic notions. I couldn’t help but grin.
Mom made chicken salad for dinner and had an announcement to make. “We’re
going up to the cabins after all.”
“Really?” Ellie asked.
“When?” I said.
“Tomorrow morning. Why don’t you check with Colby and Zach?” I felt like
she was trying to get rid of me.
I ran up to my room and called up a three-way chat. Colby was in at the first
mention but Zach took longer. His parents wanted him to go to the lake but in the end he
convinced them otherwise. As soon as we were confirmed, I went to give Mom the good
news.
“We’ll pick them up at six.” She started the dishwasher and pivoted to face me.
“They’ll be ready.” We were alone. “Where did Ellie go?”
“Sit.” She ordered and I did. “Ellie is going to have a stressful weekend. Her
grandmother had called Claire up to have a family discussion. It seems her father wants
to get to know his daughter better.”
“Her father?”
“It’s complicated. Ellie wasn’t planned.”
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“Neither was Amanda.”
“We were married though.”
“Oh.” was all I could say not completely understanding.
“Jane, Ellie’s mother was Claire’s college roommate and that was how she met
Claire’s father David. When David left for grad school, they broke up and it was after
that the Jane learned she was pregnant. She didn’t think she could have children and
knew it was dangerous to carry a baby full term. Claire agreed to raise her daughter if the
worst should happen.”
“She had her knowing it might kill her.”
Mom nodded solemnly. “David was torn. He wanted Ellie all along but didn’t
think a student could raise a baby alone. So he reluctantly gave Ellie up.”
“And now he changed his mind?” I guessed.
“He’s got a good career and he’s thinking of getting married. He wants Ellie to
move in with him now that he has a proper home for raising kids.”
Of course he would.
“So the grownups decided to have a talk, which is why Claire went without Ellie
but now they need to talk to Ellie about her feelings.” Mom finished.
“Will David move in with Claire and Ellie?”
“David has a life in Washington?”
My stomach flipped. “State or city?” Like that mattered. Both were millions of
miles away.
“DC.”
“Ellie is going to move to DC?”
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59
“It’s a possibility.”
No wonder she wasn’t there. She was probably freaking out. I knocked on
Tracey’s door, which was closed.
“Come in.” Ellie sniffled.
“Hey there.”
“Did your mom tell you?” She sat up and wiped her face.
“Something about you might move to DC?”
“I can’t believe Aunt Claire and Dad are fighting over me.”
“Does it matter?”
She stood up and paced. “Of course it matters.”
“I mean they both love you. Either way you’ll be happy.”
She stopped. “Is it that simple?”
“Well, it isn’t that complicated. Sure it’s harder to pick between two good things
rather than a good and bad one but either way, you’ll be taken care of.”
“They want to hear what I think about all this.”
“So you have a choice?”
“Maybe.” She stood with her arms guarded over her. “Please don’t tell anyone.”
“It’ll work out.” Like I knew. She just needed to hear it. “What do you want?”
“Both to stay here and to live with Dad.”
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The Hunt is Afoot
On the trip up to the campgrounds I gave Ellie the front seat and sat in the back
with the guys. She needed space and if she was in the back, Colby would flirt. It wasn’t
a super long drive and by nine we pulled onto the property. Camp Wilderness was
carved into a wooden sign arcing over the driveway entrance. Mom had learned they had
summer camp and she wanted me to consider signing up. That was a good possibility so
long as Colby and Zach were on board.
We passed the stables and a couple of horses grazed in their fenced area. Down
the road were some cabins and off towards the right a path led to the lake. There was a
long wooden dock with paddleboats and a canoe rack. The main building looked like a
true log cabin and in front was the biggest fire pit I’d ever seen. It was the off-season and
the camp was only half occupied.
Claire waited for us with her mother. Ellie’s grandmother gave us directions to
our cabin and Ellie stayed behind to deal with her family. I felt for her and wondered if
she had made any decisions on her future. It would really stink if she moved to DC.
Since things were patched up, it was clear that I would miss her even if she didn’t give
me much more personal space than the guys.
Mom got out a book with a cowboy on the cover but I don’t think it was a
Western novel. She told us to stay close to the grounds. With that vague restriction three
feral boys were set loose on the wild to search for the elusive Sasquatch. And Joey
shadowed us wagging all the way.
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Immediately we headed up the first hiking trail on our list that led to two Bigfoot
reports. It was almost noon when we arrived at the first location and we hunted for tracks
or hair samples. We found nothing but Zach managed to get in dozens of shots anyway.
“Maybe after lunch Ellie can join us.” Colby said rummaging through the
roughage hoping to find a print that hadn’t been walked over by hundreds of hiking
boots.
“Maybe.” I dismissed thinking she wasn’t going to be in the mood or have the
time.
“She seems kind of distant.” He remarked.
“Yeah.” Zach said and took more pictures.
“Did you find out who she likes?”
“No but she said she’s over him and anyone else at least until next year.” And it
hit me. She may not be around next year. My fear was she would choose her father. If I
had to pick between my aunt and my dad, it would be my dad. On the other hand, my
aunt hadn’t raised me since birth. Perhaps there was hope but it was small.
“Well, why?”
“Why what?”
“Why did she lose interest?”
“I don’t know.” Was that my new assignment? Move on already.
Colby absorbed the data and weighed if he could persuade her otherwise or if he
should give up. Lovesick was sick. She’s not the only fish in the sea.
“Zach,” I called, “where’s the next spot?”
“A quarter of a mile this way.” He guided us down the road.
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62
The second site was as uneventful as the first and we were back at camp for a late
lunch. Mom made good headway on her book and would start a second before dinner.
She had it ready and the cover had a sailor at the helm of a ship. It didn’t appeal to me to
spend a sunny day in the woods reading but she sure did act relaxed. Ellie was AWOL
still muddled down in family affairs.
We canoed and swam before looking at the third local. This time we found a
large footprint. It didn’t look big enough to be a Sasquatch to me but it warranted enough
enthusiasm from Zach that he took a hundred pics. He made a good point that the ground
was too rough to go shoeless. I guess it could be from a young Bigfoot.
There were some huge paw prints as well and Zach clicked a few shots of those.
Bear tracks we guessed.
After our morning hike and this second one, my dogs were tired and Colby must
have felt the same because he said, “We should see if we can take horses to the last spot.”
“Horses aren’t allowed on the hiking trails.” Zach reminded him.
And for good reason. Those things could put out large droppings without losing
their stride.
“We could go in the morning before we leave. It’s five miles up and back and we
could do that in three hours.”
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Evidence
The three of us went to the stables. Colby’s eyes lit up at the sight of Ellie. She
was in jeans and a tank top with a white cowgirl hat and if you didn’t know she was from
the city you could believe she was a local. It never dawned on me before but she was
cute, especially when she smirked.
Beside her was a beautiful brown horse that nuzzled her palm affectionately as
she stroked its forehead. “Hey all. This is Cinnamon.” The mare recognized her name
and nodded briskly at the sound of it.
“Are you up for a ride?” Colby hoped. “We were going to take a stab at it.”
“Okay.” She acquiesced. One of the handlers brought out three more horses that
were as big as Cinnamon.
It wasn’t until I was being helped up in its saddle that I realized these were big
horses. If it were a machine, it wouldn’t have been so bad but this thing was a living-
breathing creature with a mind of its own. I prayed he knew who was boss but somehow
I wasn’t sure if that was going to be me.
“Do you want an escort?” The handler asked. He was so true cowboy I secretly
nicknamed him Tex.
“I’ll be with them.” Ellie said easily as she twisted in her saddle to check that we
were all mounted. “Usually we don’t let people take them without a guide.”
Colby, who was on his horse Dillon alone, looked nervous. “So they’re tame?”
“Very. And they’re used to novice riders.” Tex promised. “But watch out for
grizzlies.”
Ellie rolled her eyes. “I’ve never seen any grizzlies.”
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“They’re getting ready for the winter and bulking up. They come closer this time
of year.”
Ellie usually came during the summer and Christmas, so I took this warning
seriously. She shirked it off.
“We saw tracks earlier.” Zach pulled out his camera and found the shot. He
showed Ellie and Tex.
“See. Be careful.” Tex repeated to Ellie who was unimpressed by the evidence.
Dillon’s hooves lifted up and down like he was itching to get going and Colby
held his reigns tight. Zach was comfortable on Sugarfoot. He had experience. Max, my
horse, was calmer than theirs but I felt as scared as Colby looked.
Tex, whose real name was Jack, gave us a brief demonstration on steering and
assured us they wouldn’t veer off the trail even without our guidance. With the legalities
under our belt, Ellie kicked her horse into gear with a commanding “Git.”
As soon as Cinnamon trotted out of the corral ours followed knowing the routine.
It was a warm day for early October but the leaves were tinted yellow from the cold front
the prior weekend. Only the pines stayed green. It was serene and we didn’t say much
for a while.
The lack of dialogue was probably due to the alien feeling of the saddle. If I kept
a rhythm it was bearable. Max didn’t keep a steady pace though so I had to readjust
every time he changed up his step.
Colby tried to keep along side Ellie as Zach and I brought up the rear.
“You’re a natural.” He complimented.
“Been riding all my life.”
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Keeping up with her kept his horse’s trot uneven and he was getting sore. It was
obvious the way he stood up in the stirrups occasionally to give his butt a rest.
“Do you guys want to try running?” Ellie’s eyes sparkled with mischief. For the
first time since the heavy news of her family she looked carefree.
“This is nice.” Colby dodged.
“Running is smoother.” Zach grinned ear to ear. “Trust us.” And he spurred his
horse to haul tail.
Colby didn’t buy it and neither did I but the two seasoned riders were off and
running. Our horses weren’t going to miss a chance to stretch their legs. At first, I didn’t
know what Zach meant because my bottom ached from bouncing up and down and then
Max hit top speed. It was smoother and instinctively I lowered my torso parallel to his
neck and enjoyed the chase. Running was liberating and I didn’t want to stop.
I passed Colby and then Zach and was neck to neck with Ellie. She gave me a sly
grin and pushed Cinnamon for more speed. Without encouraging him, Max sped up. He
wasn’t going to eat their dust. A quick glance over my shoulder and Colby and Zach
were falling more and more behind.
Fifteen minutes later we entered an open field and with a firm “Whoa!” from Ellie
we halted. “This is my favorite place up here.” She confided as she leapt down with
expert skill and tied Cinnamon to a branch.
After our horses were grazing in the shade of their trees, we hiked down to a lake
that was hidden by the lay of the land until you were almost at the water. It was a
mountain paradise and Zach took out his trusty camera and took several panoramic
photos.
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“You should show those to my grandmother. She has a website and that would be
a great header for the welcome page.” Ellie suggested impressed with his talent.
Colby was right behind her looking at the camera and I suppose that was more
about her than the pictures. “It’s so quiet.” He noted.
Everything was quieter up in the hills – only the hum of insects and the occasional
scurrying of squirrels and critters. By the lake, we only heard the faint sound of insects
and I remembered Tex’s warning about bears.
To one side was a rocky hill and with some effort, I trekked up it. It was far from
the tallest point around but the height gave me a wider view of the area. It was majestic.
The top of the big house was visible as well as some of the taller buildings from town that
was a mile down the road from the entrance to the campgrounds.
The others stayed at the bank taking turns posing for the lens. Ellie had the
camera and snapped me on top of the rock.
“You aren’t smiling.” She squinted up at me.
“How can you tell?”
“Zoom lens.”
I rolled my eyes. Looking down I started to obey but was take off guard by the
lopsided clover shape of the lake.
“Ted.” She scolded.
“Guys, come up here.” I motioned for them to hurry.
“Smile first.”
I smiled and once she was satisfied, they made their way up.
“Look familiar?” I pointed at the lake.
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“What?” Ellie asked.
But the guys saw it. Zach dug out the map from his pocket. “It’s the last
location.”
“For what?”
“We looked up Bigfoot sightings and there were four close to your cabins. This is
the last one. Two campers had seen a pair of Bigfoots…”
“Bigfeet?” I corrected before realizing it sounded as erroneous as his term.
“You’re looking for Bigfoot?” She smirked.
“The truth is out there.” Colby’s voice sounded far away and ghostly.
She glanced upward with amusement. “Could explain why we don’t hear any
animals around.” She teased forebodingly.
“There.” Zach pointed to the north tip of the lake. “That’s the exact spot.”
We scrambled down the other side of the hill, which was steep and our sneakers
lacked the traction to keep us from sliding. My right foot hit loose gravel and I was down
but only for a moment.
“Smooth.” Colby joked and then did a half split against his will.
“Watch it.” Ellie swerved to avoid colliding with Colby. She was more graceful
than us.
Zach was down first. He got out his camera hoping for another spill to capture for
prosperity’s sake but the opportunities were missed. “What’s that?” He pointed towards
the far side away from the lake.
At the base of the hill was a shallow cave, just enough to keep you dry if it was
raining. From the looks of the soot, it had been used for that purpose over the years.
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“Cool. Maybe natives used this when they were on hunts.” Zach fantasized as he
approached for a better glimpse.
Colby stopped in his tracks. “No way.”
In one corner of the soot stained rock was an etched a figure. And it looked like
Bigfoot.
“Holy cow!” Zach aimed and photographed.
“That doesn’t look that old.” Ellie picked up a twig and tested its ability to write
in the smoky stain. Nothing happened other than some wood residue. “Okay, maybe it is
old.”
“This is amazing.” I said feeling the electrical charge of the adventure.
“Enough photos.” Colby decided. “We’re going to lose the sun and we have a
long ride to the stables.”
“Right.”
We scoured the area that claimed the pair of Sasquatches was seen drinking from
the water.
“The report was about four years old.” Zach told Ellie who hadn’t had the
briefing that we heard earlier that week. “I doubt we’ll find tracks but who knows.”
“Oh yeah.” I gestured to a patch of grass that was trampled down and worn in
comparison. “If they knelt to get the water, that could be from them.”
“It could be from anyone.” Ellie said skeptically and assumed the position to look
into the lake. Putting her knees close to the water in the nook of the indention her legs
didn’t reach half way back. At the end of the flat roughage were two clear round dents
with two softer smaller ones on each side.
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“Take off your shoes.” Colby told her sounding less whimsical than his usual
Ellie-is-near tone.
“Why?”
“Because those could be toe dents.” I kicked off my sneakers and ripped off my
socks. “Let me see.” She stepped back and I took her place. After rocking back on my
feet to see what kind of mark would be left in the soft ground I got up. Sure enough there
was the same pattern but on a smaller scale.
“This is proof!” Zach exclaimed. “Bigfoot, we know you’re out there!” He
shouted as he turned in his spot.
I would have gotten there on my own but when I saw how tense Ellie got, it
dawned on me that we were out in the middle of nowhere. Myth or not, I was getting the
heebie-jeebies. “Let’s get back to the horses.” I never thought a city boy like me would
ever say something like that.
We followed the bank of the lake to our steeds. My imagination may have been
running wild because they seemed as jumpy as I felt. It was harder to mount Max
without Tex’s help but pride and that eerie feeling that we were being watched motivated
me. This time even Colby didn’t fret when Ellie kicked off into a run and we were back
in half the time it took us to get to Camp Bigfoot.
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Running From Your Troubles
“Why didn’t you tell us you were going for a ride?” A tall man reprimanded Ellie
as we got to the stables.
“You were too busy arguing to notice I left.” She atypically smarted back.
Colby and Zach exchanged looks and glanced at me, but I kept my gaze
downward.
The man grabbed Cinnamon’s reigns. “We were worried.”
Ellie dropped the attitude and told us she’d catch us in the morning.
I headed back to our cabin but Colby pulled my shoulder. “Who was that?”
“Her dad, I think.”
“I assumed he wasn’t around because she only talks about her aunt.”
“Maybe not. I don’t know.”
“Let’s get my computer and upload.” Zach wiggled his camera in the air.
“Yeah.” Colby agreed trying to let the awkward family scene we encountered
pass.
“You’ve a great shutter bug.” Mom proudly stated examining our nature shots
image by image. “Oh, Ellie is adorable in that hat. Ted, you’re actually smiling here.
Can I get a copy?” Then the cave drawing appeared. “What is that?”
We told her everything and she laughed. “Wow. You may have stumbled onto
something.” I could tell she was playing to our imagination but when she saw the imprint
by the lake her brain tried to process what really made the dent.
Ellie’s family saw to it that we got a real meal and I ate more spaghetti in one
sitting than ever in my life. And four pieces of garlic bread.
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“Bigfoot hunting sure does make you guys hungry.”
“Yes ma’am.” Colby answered. He liked to call my mom ma’am because it
sounded like mom and she was his pretend mom until his dad remarried.
“What time are we leaving in the morning?” Zach asked. “We should go back if
we have time.”
I wasn’t up for that. Not sure if it was that I thought it was a waste of time or that
we may find the real deal.
“After lunch.” Mom answered. “If you must go back, you’ll have time.”
We jumped at a loud rap on the door. “Have you seen Ellie?” Claire rushed in
with a frantic look.
“No we haven’t. Is everything all right?”
“And you boys?”
“Last we saw her was at the stables.” Colby said.
Claire was shaking and my mom gave her one of her big hugs. “Claire?”
“Ellie ran off and we thought she would be back before long since it’s already
dark but she’s been gone over an hour.”
“We’ll help look for her.” I offered even though it was partly her fault Ellie was
upset.
“David and Mom have a search underway. I hoped she might have come to see
you.” She looked at me.
I shook my head worried about Ellie alone in the dark.
Mom went to the lodge with Claire to wait for word on the missing girl. After an
hour we were antsy for news.
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“I bet she’s at the stables or took Cinnamon.” Colby stated. “We should check
there.”
“I’m sure they have.” I told him.
“It’s best if we stay here together.” Zach said knowing these sort of things better
than us. He was never in the boy scouts but he may as well have been.
“I’m going to check.” Colby ignored our good advice. With a definitive “I’ll be
back” he was gone.
Zach shrugged and booted up his laptop without a better way to kill time. It was
ten o’clock. He couldn’t surf the Internet but he could post his pictures on his website
and upload when we were back in civilization.
“I know where she is.” I stared at Zach. “At the lake.”
His expression opened in revelation. “Do you think you could find it again?”
“Not on horseback but with this.” I held up his map.
“It’ll take us two hours to get there on foot.”
“Not if we run.” I picked up a flashlight. “Tell Colby. I’m going on ahead.” He
was protesting as I headed out. After thirty minutes I slowed down to make sure I didn’t
miss the turn off. Things looked different at night with only a hand torch to illuminate
the way but it was past a big tree in the middle of a wide patch in the road. I couldn’t
miss it without hitting it.
I cast the beam forward and saw the landmark tree. How far were Colby and
Zach? Being the shortest, Zach was the slowest. With a fallen twig, I drew a big arrow
on the path to note which way to go. Taking a deep breath, I steadied myself and
proceeded.
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I tried to hurry but it was hard to keep my direction off the path. Every so often I
left another marker. Finally I saw the hilltop where we identified the lake. No need to go
slow, I drew one last arrow and ran at top speed despite the painful stitch in my side
warning me to take it easy.
“Ellie!” I yelled at the waters edge. “Ellie, are you here?”
No answer. I waited and nothing but happy bugs and some croaking toads.
I had gone all that way for nothing.
Hanging my head I turned back. “Where are you Ellie?” Then it hit me. The
cave. Maybe she couldn’t hear me if she was in the cave. Grabbing my side for support,
I took off on another dash around the lake praying I’d find her safe.
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Bigfoot Finds Us
I panted like Joey on a hot day when I got to the cave but thankfully Ellie was
sitting in the dark with her arms wrapped around her knees looking so sad I almost
wished I hadn’t found her. “I knew it. You couldn’t hear me calling before.”
Her eyes were raw and red. “I heard.”
“Oh.” The thought crossed my mind to leave her be and if we weren’t in the
middle of the woods, I might have. I placed the light on the ground and pointed it
outward hoping the guys would see it when they got to the lake. Then I sat across from
her. “You can’t stay here all night.”
“I’m not going back.”
“What happened?”
“They’re yelling at each other and they expect me to make a choice that will hurt
someone either way?”
“That sucks.”
“They’re a bunch of poo-poo heads.”
I laughed and her eyes darted up. Then she giggled. “We can wait a while but
it’s getting cold.” I negotiated.
She didn’t even have a jacket.
“Do you want to talk about it?” I suggested. Please don’t.
“No.” She paused. “Let’s talk about anything else.”
Good answer. “What?”
Her mouth twisted to the right as she debated a good topic. “Did your mom make
you apologize to me?”
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I shook my head. “She told me I would feel better if I did, but I wasn’t forced.”
One corner of her lips curled. After another moment she asked, “Do you like
Margo?”
“I guess. Honestly, I don’t really know her.”
Glancing up to the sketch she pondered another question. “Why were you asking
who I liked?”
I felt like I was on the hot seat under an interrogation lamp. I guess school gossip
was more appealing than her family troubles. So I swallowed hard prepared to tell her
anything she wanted to know. “Colby likes you. He wanted me to see if you knew or
liked him back.”
“Colby likes me?”
Didn’t I sort of tell her already? “He wants me to find out who ruined you for
other guys.”
She snickered and rolled her eyes. “Never mind.”
“Well, what did he do to lose your interest?”
“Never mind.” She repeated and the distraction of junior high love lives was
helping her forget her worries.
“Can I ask you something kind of personal?”
“Do I have to answer?”
I shook my head that it wasn’t obligatory. “Why do you like to be alone?”
She shrugged. “I don’t feel accepted. I get a lot of strange looks when I talk.”
“From who?”
“Girls mostly.”
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“Girls are nuts.” I assured her. “They get all crazy about clothes and hair and
shoes.”
She smiled again. “Am I nuts?”
“We’re hiding out in a cave that is probably in the center of a Bigfoot nest.”
I must have scared her because her face went pale. Slowly she pointed behind
me. It was a great relief not to see a hairy humanoid. Instead there was a large fox
silhouette. Then two more to its left and another to its right. It was a pack of coyotes.
Knowing they were skittish creatures I picked up the closest thing to me and threw. They
were gone but the flashlight was busted.
The moon was bright enough that we could see pretty clearly in the open field and
Ellie stifled back laughter. “My hero.” She stood up and brushed the dirt from her jeans.
“Okay, I guess I’ve had my drama moment. Let’s get back.”
I stood up. “Are you ready?”
“Ready enough but I don’t know if I can find my way without Cinnamon in the
dark.”
“You rode Cinnamon out? Where is she?”
“She knows the way back on her own. If she was missing they might find me.”
Too clever for her own good. Then again, if she were really smart, she would have had
an escape route.
“I came up the hiking trail and left markers. It will be slow but we’ll get home
eventually.”
“Smart.”
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“Zach and Colby are behind me. I’d have thought they would be here by now.” I
pulled off my sweatshirt and gave it to her. She only took it because I insisted. It wasn’t
the brightest idea I had because I started shivering.
We walked around the lakeshore to where I came in. As we passed the patch of
grass we hypothesized was a print left by Bigfoot, the heebie-jeebies stirred anew.
Picking up the pace I found my last marker and we turned course accordingly. Once we
crossed into the tree line we stumbled due to insufficient moonlight.
“Ooph.” Ellie said and I found her on the ground.
Giving her a hand up, we continued hand in hand. “We’ll be fine on the trail. It
can’t be much further.”
“It’s too quiet.” She whispered and gripped tighter.
“It was like that before.” It was that afternoon, but not when I made my not a half
hour earlier.
We came to a small clearing among the trees where a grizzly was rubbing her
shoulder against the trunk of a tree. We froze but it was too late. The grizzly saw us and
growled. It was loud enough that some part of the search team must have heard but they
would only find our remains when they got there.
Protecting Ellie behind me, I slowly stepped back from the threat. We bumped
into a tree and the grizzly went up on two legs snarling. We were trapped. It closed in
stepping dead center of the opening. I turned around and held Ellie. “Run.” I whispered
in her ear.
“It’ll chase me.”
“Run when he attacks me.” Did I really just say that?
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“No.”
Another larger growl, two more padded footsteps and time was running out. “Just
do it.” Looking over my shoulder the bear was fully lit by the moon and a frightful sight.
It understood there wasn’t a hurry – we had nowhere to go fast enough to escape.
“I stopped liking him when he kicked me out of his room.” Ellie said in my ear.
My eyes stared into hers forgetting for a nanosecond that we were about to be
devoured. She grabbed my arm so tight when we heard someone coming up fast from the
left side of the grizzly. The bear heard it too because it snarled in that direction.
Faster than we could focus a dark form came dashing out of the trees tackled the
grizzly in its midsection. Two hairy beasts tumbled into the darkness on the other side of
the clearing.
“Was that a..?” Ellie’s head was turned completely around.
Her hair smelled like coconut. “Bigfoot.” My neck tingled with the sensation
that we were being watched. Maybe like coyotes they traveled in packs. “Come on.” A
flashlight beam danced between tree trunks in the direction of the hiking trail and I knew
which way to go.
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Saved At Last
“We’re here!” Ellie and I shouted as we burst onto the dirt path. We waved our
arms over our heads flagging down the searchers. Tex and David looked like a pair of
Old West lawmen tracking an escaped cattle rustler.
David flung himself with poised speed from his mount and grabbed Ellie tight
into his arms. “You are so grounded little princess.”
Did my parents’ verdicts sounded so paradoxical?
His sharp eyes fell on me and he added, “You’re probably going to get some heat
too.”
“Sorry.” Ellie sobbed more frightened by our near death experience than his idle
grounding comment. “You wouldn’t stop arguing. I don’t want to make the decision.”
He closed his eyes and tears dribble down his stoic face. “It’s that we both love
you so much and in the end, it’s your life that will change the most.”
Why couldn’t we leave and they could have this conversation in the log cabin?
“But you love me and Aunt Claire loves me so either way, we’ll manage.” Ellie
said.
“You’re smarter than both of us put together.” He savored his happiness to have
her safe again. He had no idea how bad things had gotten.
Picking Ellie up he sat her on his horse and flung himself behind her. Tex offered
his arm for me to leverage onto the back of his saddle. At an easy pace we rode to the
main house. Tex took the horses to the stables while Ellie got squeezed to death from her
aunt and grandmother.
Colby and Zach were there with Mom.
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“Where were you guys?” I asked quickly.
“We got nabbed a half a mile out by the posse.” Colby was ashamed he was
captured and probably bummed he wasn’t able to be part of Ellie’s rescue.
“Are you okay?” Zach asked being the more intuitive of the two and sensing my
jittery nerves.
“I’ll tell you later. Let’s get inside.” I needed to process what we did or didn’t
see in the woods. Not to forget that I was still reeling from Ellie’s confession that she
liked me. Truthfully, her statement was getting more attention from my simple brain than
the bear or – whatever it was that tackled it.
Mom harangued me for going into the woods alone and praised me for finding
Ellie. I debated if she could handle the bear story. In the end, she was my mom and
would listen with an open mind. So I told my two best friends and mother about how we
stumbled on the bear and that something saved us.
“Bigfoot rescued you?” Zach’s eyes were wide with awe. “Ted you are so lucky
to meet one.”
Meet one? It wasn’t like he introduced himself and we chatted. Zach spun a
plausible scenario that it was watching us – curious or cautiously making sure we left his
turf. Coming to our aid was instinct.
Colby didn’t look convinced but he knew I wasn’t playing a trick.
“It was probably another bear.” Mom told me.
“It happened so fast I didn’t get a good look and we were scared. But bears don’t
run on their hind legs, not that at that speed. Even a man couldn’t run like fast. There
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was definitely a bear and then someone or something came out of the trees. Then we
were alone.”
Zach was a true believer after that. Even I held more doubt than him but there
wasn’t a way for me to dismiss it as anything less. That night my dreams were vivid and
Ellie and I were holding on for dear life. Maybe I was recalling things more clearly in
hindsight or filling in details. Really I couldn’t tell. Either way, in my dream it was
Bigfoot – tall, hairy, human and intelligent – that saved us. I woke to find myself
covered in cool dewy perspiration.
Ellie was quiet when we stopped to thank them before going home. She didn’t
look at me. David and Claire gushed over me.
“Ellie told us what happened.” David said with an equal amount of doubt as
Mom. “What do you think you saw?”
“I wish I could tell you it was a bear or a man or that I was imaging it. And yet a
part of me is sure it was Sasquatch.” I answered truthfully.
David eyed Tex who merely smiled with satisfaction. “I’ve seen something odd
up there. My rational side says it couldn’t have been but it can’t seem to explain it
away.”
“You’ve seen one too?” Ellie gasped.
“Two. About four years ago with a friend of mine near that lake.”
“You’re Jack1965?” Zach pulled out his notes from his research.
“Well look at that?” Tex blushed. “A fan.”
“Great.” Claire sassed. “Please don’t ask him for an autograph.”
Tex winked at her. “Can’t dismiss it as easily now that we have more witnesses.”
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“Whatever, I’m just glad the bear didn’t maul you.” She grabbed Ellie and kissed
her head. Whatever happened – all that mattered was Ellie was unharmed.
Mom fretted at the impossibility. She decided it was some mountain hermit or
that was what she told herself. We piled into the car without Ellie who still had unsettled
business to sort out.
“Boys.” David called before we drove off. Mom rolled down the passenger
window so we could hear him. “If you want to come back and camp by the lake, we’ll
have a few good weekends before it gets too cold.”
“Could we?” Zach and Colby pleaded.
My stomach felt queasy. If it was the mythical creature, it had been good to us.
Did I need to be anxious? Of course, he didn’t show himself when we weren’t in trouble.
He didn’t want to be seen. Had we not stumbled onto the grizzly, we would have never
seen him.
“We’ll keep that in mind.” Mother promised and we left.
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Mocked and Ridiculed
The next morning I went to Ellie’s door to walk with her to school. It wasn’t a
complete shock that she wasn’t there but I didn’t expect David to answer the door to
make the humiliation more pronounced.
I dragged my dejected self to school and tried to hide my confusion and
annoyance that Ellie wasn’t talking to me. Ellie was at her desk looking out the window,
which wasn’t unusual. Regardless, I felt like she was avoiding me. And if not talking to
me wasn’t bad enough, I was worried if she was going to move across the country to live
with her dad. Why did I let things stay bad between for so long? We wasted so much
time.
“So,” Jen’s sarcastic tone intruded on our lunch. “You saw Bigfoot?” Margo and
Becca were at her side because that was what bad luck did when it came my way. It
snowballed until it was an avalanche.
“They did.” Zach affirmed against my wishes. How had the school heard about
this so fast? Then it struck me. He blogged about it. Why was he so obsessed with that
darn computer?
“That is the dumbest thing I’ve ever heard.” Edgar sneered as he joined in the
public humiliation.
“It’s true.” Colby would have liked it to slide by unadvertised but he wasn’t
going to let Jen’s sadistic side get away with rudeness or Edgar for that matter.
“And he rescued you and Ellie from a bear attack?” Jen doubted. More kids
gathered as the snow came tumbling on my head.
“Go away.” I managed even with Margo and Becca in the audience.
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“What were you and Ellie doing alone in the woods?” Jen oozed with pity.
My face heated up. “Go away.”
“Making out?” She added with disdain. “I don’t know who sunk lower. You or
her?”
“Her.” Edgar decided and after getting a mean glare from Jen he added
defensively, “Ellie could do better.”
“Can we go eat our lunch now?” Becca begged. She didn’t care for the scene Jen
was making.
“Are you dating Ellie?” Margo glared at me. The very thought of us together
wasn’t received well.
I should have curled up and died but instead I got mad. It wasn’t her business.
“Ellie is my friend.”
“That nut job?” Jen said derisively.
“She isn’t a nut job.” Zach snapped. “She’s way cooler than you.”
“Hardly little Jew.”
Where was defending Bigfoot when you needed one? Jen wasn’t as deadly as the
bear but she was as vicious. A good tackle would shut her up nicely. It was a strange
reaction but Zach had a knowing smile.
Becca’s scowled at Jen. “I’m leaving.”
“Why?” Margo asked.
“Because you’re an angry mob.”
“Jealous much?” Jen sneered.
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“You’re only being nice to Margo because you want to go to the concert.” She
shook her head and turned on Margo. “And you’re only mad at Ellie because you wanted
to ask Ted and it never occurred to you that he may have other interests.”
Margo went red to the tips of her ears.
Becca untied her friendship bracelet and threw it at Margo’s feet. “Call me if you
get over yourself and stop hanging out with, with…” She motioned towards Jen but
couldn’t find a good term to use.
“Uncircumcised Philistines.” Zach offered. That didn’t make much sense but it
was his default insult.
“Right.” Becca marched off leaving Margo stunned. Jen didn’t care one way or
the other. Edgar merely surveyed us all. Becca’s exit upset him. He had a crush on her.
Unfazed Jen went on. “So who was Ellie kissing? Bigfoot or you?”
“Shut up.” Colby yelled and we left before we broke the cardinal rule not to hit a
girl although Jen barely qualified as human. And with Edgar nearby, brutes would have
jumped us in seconds flat.
“What a bitch.” Zach summarized. “I knew that Jew comment would piss Becca
off. She doesn’t take crap from anti-Semites.”
“She’s one of you guys?” Colby asked for both of us since we didn’t know.
“Yep.”
We found said Becca on her cell still huffing after her public spat.
“Nice going.” Zach patted her back.
“That Jen is so mean for no reason.” She answered and then turned back to her
phone. “I still don’t want a big party but maybe something small… Let’s just say I had
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an epiphany today… Concert or no concert. How about a dinner with some kids from
temple and a few cool kids from school.” She smiled at Colby and I.
“Woo hoo!” Zach screamed. “The Bat Mitzvah is on!”
“That was Zach Brooks… Yes, Mom, Dr. Brooks’ son.” She covered the
receiver, “My mother thinks your parents are upstanding.”
“They are.” I assured her although it wasn’t needed.
“We’ll talk when I get home.” She closed her phone. “Mom wanted me to have a
real celebration but I wanted to go to the concert and act like a kid.” I guess being an
adult wasn’t as important to her. “She said I would regret it and that I hid my faith too
much.”
“It’s about time you let your sunshine out.” Zach teased.
“You are such a goober.” She joked kindly.
“Come on my Jewish sister, let’s eat some lunch before the bell rings.”
Becca laughed and we ate as a group. I didn’t talk a lot but for once it wasn’t due
to the blonde beauty, who was actually pretty fun. Looking back, it was usually Margo
who did the bulk of the chattering when they were together.
Ellie was in her spot with another non-scheduled book.
“What really happened last weekend?” Becca asked.
I told her the story. “As impossible as it sounds, Bigfoot is a better explanation
than most as to what saved us.”
Surely Becca didn’t buy it hook line and sinker but she didn’t tell me I was a
wacko either. “That’s a crazy story.” She had the best summation yet.
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“So I guess we aren’t going to be front row at the Sirens of Love concert.” Colby
sighed disappointed but proud of us for sticking to our guns.
“No but the backstage passes were provided by my dad so I’ll have that.”
“You’re dad?”
“Sure. He manages the band. Margo’s dad works with the record company.”
“Your dad is their manager?” I started laughing. It was so poetic.
She smiled at me. “For the record, is there anything going on with you and
Ellie?”
I shook my head. “Not that I know of.”
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Stupid is as Stupid Does
When school was out I ran to catch up to Ellie. She didn’t slow down at first but
then she stopped out of kindness or mercy.
“What?” She snapped suddenly.
“Why aren’t you talking to me?”
“I’ve been busy. And how did everyone hear about what happened in the
woods?” Her eyes flashed with anger.
“Zach maybe. He posted his pictures on his webpage. Who knew people actually
read it.”
“Everyone is laughing at me and Jen and Margo wanted to know why we were
alone in the woods. Do you think I want to tell them all my personal problems?”
“No.”
“Ugh! Boys are so horrible.” She stomped onward and I followed.
“It will pass.” I ran my hand nervously through my hair. “About what you
said…”
“I don’t want to talk about it.”
“But it was me. I kicked you out of my room. I didn’t know you liked me.”
She stopped again. “I didn’t say it was you.”
“It wasn’t me?” How many guys’ rooms was she in to be kicked out so often?
“Would it have mattered? If it was you and if you did know, would you have
been nice to me that day?”
“That day?” How would I know? It was months ago and honestly my mood
wasn’t about her so much as the summer blues. “Maybe.”
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“Can I walk home alone?” She asked after a long pause.
I held out my arm and let her get a head start. After she had a block lead, I started
to move but was held back by Colby’s hand. “What’s going on?” He asked looking at
Ellie and then me.
“I’m the other guy.” I hung my guilty head.
“What?” Either he didn’t understand or didn’t want to.
“I’m the guy she liked until I was a jerk to her.”
“You? Do you like her? How were you a jerk?”
“I kind of yelled at her and kicked her out of my house. She’s over me now.”
He looked down the street. Ellie was two blocks away. “And if she wasn’t?”
Everything went empty inside. “She is, so it doesn’t matter.”
He couldn’t work it out in his head. It was unexpected and he didn’t know how
he felt about it. Neither did I. Finally he said, “I’ll see you later.” He was hurt but it
wasn’t my fault. I didn’t even know about it at the time. I never did anything to
encourage Ellie.
Mom saw I was upset but I played it off as Monday blahs. In my room I debated
drowning out my thoughts with loud music again but Dad was home and crankier than
ever. Not to forget to mention, I just got my iPod back. Instead I did my homework and
watched television.
It was a miserable dinner that only got more dismal when mother disclosed that
Ellie was going to DC the following Monday. I planned to get her a goodbye gift but
didn’t know what it should be or if she’d accept it.
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The next day Colby avoided me, so that was two people not talking to me if
you’re keeping track. How could I get Jen on that list because she managed to make
snide comments from the seat behind me all through class? At least she got detention
when Mr. Titus heard her but that only fueled the fire for lunch.
I told Zach about Ellie and how Colby was giving me a wide margin because of it.
Heck, I even gave him the full story of how I threw her out of my room.
“Colby will understand.” He promised. Deep down I knew Colby would forgive
me in time.
“And Ellie is moving to DC.”
“Ellie’s leaving.” Jen screeched with glee from behind me. She snuck up without
me hearing. “She’s so nothing I doubt anyone will even notice other than you and
Bigfoot.”
She said it loud enough for Ellie to hear. Ellie slammed her book and ran off.
I was getting close to hitting a girl. Detention and grounding would be worth it.
If I did, I planned to beat her good in case I never got another chance.
“Where’s Colby? Don’t tell me all this Bigfoot rubbish has finally clued him in
that you two are worthless losers.”
The whole class was watching the show even Colby who was sitting at a table
alone. He got up and left – probably to find Ellie. They could start the anti-Ted club.
It’d grow to be the biggest in school at the rate I was pissing people off.
“Seems he wised up.” Jen said with sheer satisfaction.
I was ready to hit her – girl or not. The temptation was lost when green Jell-O
oozed down her long hair.
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“Oops.” Becca said from behind her. A stealth attack on the stealth attacker.
“Becca?” Mr. Titus called.
“Coming.” She hummed as she walked past prepared to pay the piper.
Jen and Margo were still mopping up the green goop when our teacher called Jen
over next. Way to go Becca. Normally I’m not big on tattling but Jen had it coming.
We couldn’t find Ellie or Colby. When lunch was over, they came in together
with Becca. The girls were giggling about something frivolous no doubt. It made sense.
It took a girl to understand a girl. I owed Becca again for her well-timed act of kindness.
Zach came home with me knowing I was bummed. We weren’t even to the
soccer field when we saw five guys hanging suspiciously by the picnic tables and trees.
Edgar sauntered up as we approached. “That wasn’t cool what you did.”
“What we did?” Zach puzzled.
“To Jen.”
“We didn’t do anything. That was Becca and Jen was asking for it.”
“Just because she isn’t gullible doesn’t mean she’s asking for trouble. That stupid
story isn’t even a good lie. Admit it. You made up that tall tale for attention.”
“Hardly.” Like I wanted that kind of attention.
“Seems like Colby doesn’t buy it.” He closed in and I realized it didn’t matter
what we said or did – he wanted to fight and we were easy prey.
“I do.” Colby said reaching the tense gathering.
“Colby, it’s time you chose a better class of companions.”
Colby glanced around as if he was really debating it but it was for show. “Are
there any other options?”
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I snickered.
“Are you telling me that you prefer these liars over us?” Edgar forgot me and
moved to Colby.
Colby grinned. “Ted isn’t lying. But even if he was, he’s better company than
you Neanderthals.”
That’s when Edgar took his cheap jab and the five ogres jumped us. Chubby was
squeezing the air out of my lungs with his massive weight as I kicked helplessly to get
up. Zach was holding his ground but Colby was pinned by one goon while Edgar had
clear shots at his torso.
A shrill loud shriek blasted and we all covered our ears.
“Back off or you’ll get a face full.” Becca ordered with pure authority to Edgar.
Ellie was behind her with a silver cylinder in her hand. It was a gift from Tracey
and Amanda, a personal alarm and the source of the blast.
Becca’s threat didn’t register until I saw she had pepper spray in her hand. “I said
back off!”
Edgar spun on his heel to face her. “You’ll hit them too.”
Good point but he didn’t have her confidence. At least tubby was off me and I
was able to stand.
“They’re immune. We took precautious expecting an ambush.”
What was she talking about?
“I don’t believe you.” Would Edgar call her bluff?
She walked right up to him with the spigot ready. “Could be. Of course, you’ll
get the worst of it. Now back off!”
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He looked around at his goons who were too dumb to do anything other than
follow his lead.
She casually read the label, “Pepper shot 2 ounce stream spray. 10% pepper rated
2 million Scoville heat units.” A glance to Zach, “What’s a Scoville? Whatever it is –
two million sounds like a lot of units.”
There weren’t too many random questions that stumped Zach. I’m not sure if he
was making it up but he proceeded to explain. “It’s a scale for measuring spiciness. I
think jalapenos are around five thousand. That means your spray is four hundred times
stronger.”
Thickheaded Edgar couldn’t be sure of the math but calling her bluff wasn’t
worth it. “Come on.” He decided. “We don’t need to waste our time proving these butt
wipes are butt wipes.”
Colby was released and the goons walked back to school.
“Next time ladies.” Edgar threatened.
“Becca, you have some gonads.” Colby complimented.
“Becca means ballsy in Yiddish.” Zach’s wit declared.
“It does not.” She sighed dropping the tough act she performed for the hooligans.
“You’re quickly becoming my favorite person.” I confessed to ballsy Becca as I
eyed Ellie carefully. “I wish I thought to dump Jell-O on Jen.”
“The Jell-O?” Colby gasped. “The Jell-O was routine. Any eighth grader in any
classroom in any state could have pulled that off. Reading the label on the pepper can
was inspired genius.”
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“I’m just glad it worked.” She said magnanimously. “You boys want to get a
milkshake on me?”
Those words were music to our ears. We started back the other direction to the
coffee shop on the other side of school.
Becca stopped me after telling the others to go ahead. “Not you. Not this time.”
And she turned to Ellie before following the guys, “I’ll call you later.”
“Thanks.” Ellie said and when Becca left, she concentrated on her ring as she
twirled it around nervously.
I wanted to smile but couldn’t. Even if we were talking, I had no idea what was
going to happen. One scary thought needed to be clarified. “I heard you’re going to
DC.”
“Yeah, but let me talk first.” She held up her hand. “Or I’ll lose my nerve.”
It was true. She was moving to DC. Everything inside went numb. I tried to
concentrate as she continued. But it was hard with stupid thoughts like maybe her dad
would be transferred to town. Or my dad to DC.
“I said what I said because I thought we were going to die.”
“You were only flattering me in the light of my eminent demise?”
“Not exactly. I wanted to say it but didn’t think I would have to live with the
consequences. It seemed like the right time to admit it. I know it was dumb and that you
don’t feel the same.”
“Ellie, I can’t say what I would have thought if you told me that you liked me
back when you did but I wish I was never rude to you. And I wish you liked me now.”
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Ellie looked terrified. Not life threatening-about-to-be-bear-dinner terrified but
social situational terrified. It made sense that it was too late to say I liked her too. A
week ago if Margo asked me out I would have jumped for joy but at that moment, I
didn’t care if I never saw Margo again. Rotten timing. Day late and a dollar short as Ted
Sr. always says.
Ellie hadn’t said a word and I couldn’t take it. So I did what I do. I got diarrhea
of the mouth. “I know you’re going to live with your dad and it would be idiotic to ask
you out now or to think you’d give me a second chance. Just promise me that you’ll
write me once a week until you’re eighteen and start dating some lucky guy who is
hopefully smarter than me. He’d have to be.”
She was puzzled. “I’m not going to live with my dad.”
“You’re not moving to DC?”
She shook her head. “I’m going to visit next week to meet his fiancé but I’ll be
back. It’s kind of your fault that I’m staying.”
Don’t know what I did but I was going to keep doing it.
“When he found us and I told him that either way I was going to be with someone
that loved me, he was impressed with my maturity. I didn’t mention it was wise advice
from you. He figures Aunt Claire is doing a better job than he ever could. But he made
the condition that I have to call Aunt Claire Mom, which isn’t really a problem. They
agreed that my biological mother would approve.”
I was so happy and free to ask her out. It would have been great if I wasn’t
tongue-tied and suddenly, I couldn’t look at her – which was super annoying because I
had begun to appreciate how cute she was.
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She started walking home and in a zombie state I followed. “Don’t worry. I
know you only said that because you thought I was leaving.” That wasn’t true. “If you
don’t hold me to near death confessions, I won’t hold you to that.”
It was a weird walk home. I was happy but kind of numb at the same time.
Before long we were at her house.
“I’ll see you in the morning. We can walk together if you want.” Ellie offered.
I picked up her hand. “Let’s play some Alien Army.”
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Camp Bigfoot
Colby forgave me and gave us his blessing. It wasn’t going to be much of a
problem since Ellie couldn’t date and we hadn’t kissed or anything like that. We spent
more time together but that was all that changed. That was good enough for me until
Colby told me it would progress eventually. Then I worried about the not-too-distant
future.
The next weekend, before David took Ellie to DC, he took all of us camping as
promised. Our dads camped with us but our moms were at the cabins with Claire. Even
Becca joined in for the expedition. Her dad was the funniest father ever. I guess having
a cool job managing Sirens of Love kept him young.
Zach took the responsibility of showing the others the cave and the place we
thought they drank from the lake. Tex confessed that he had drawn the stick figure after
his encounter. The fire blazed and we huddled around for warmth and marshmallow
roasting.
First Tex told his story that we found online. Then Ellie and I recapped our
unusual moment, without her confession of liking me, to the group. Enjoying the
campfire tales, Zach started reporting on the many stories he read during his research.
When we ran out of Bigfoot fodder, we migrated to ghost stories. When Dad told a tale
of an escaped maniac with a hook for a hand, Ellie held mine for security. I thought it
was inconspicuous but David had an eagle watch on me after that.
The night waned and the temperature dropped another ten degrees. We stretched
our legs and began to clean up. Tex got a bucket of sand to dowse the fire but stopped.
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His eyes were huge. You could see white around all edges. We turned and directly
across from him in the tall grass stood Bigfoot not even thirty yards away.
His hair was reddish brown and longer than I expected. Well, I didn’t know what
to expect but it kind of hung from his arms like the fringe on my mother’s leather jacket
that she keeps from her high school days. It wasn’t easy to estimate his height but he was
taller than anyone there but six inches or more. The most amazing part was his eyes that
were thoughtful and intelligent. As they drifted over the various people in our camp, they
stalled on Ellie and me. I knew he was the one that saved us.
It tilted its head as it considered us. David was the only man brave enough to
move and he waved at the cryptozoologist’s dream come true. It lifted its hand and
waved at himself as he mimicked the motion. Maybe it smiled or maybe it was baring its
teeth. Then Bigfoot turned around. He had a limp but walked at a leisurely pace.
Did the bear hurt his leg? We watched as he passed beyond the distance of the
campfire light. He was barely more than a shadowy form until he disappeared into the
trees.
“Perhaps his friends don’t believe he saw us and that we’re for real.” I teased.
Seeing him a second time erased my doubt that we only saw him due to the perilous
circumstances. This time, he made sure we saw him before he left.
“I’ll never doubt you again.” Colby vowed still fairly stunned.
“Wait.” Zach shouted and dug his camera out of his sack. It was too late – he
missed the photo op. He stared dumbly at the empty field poised to click.
“It’s better this way.” Tex sagely said. “Some things should remain a mystery.”
“Um – guys?”
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Colby and I moved over to Zach. The image on his camera had various shades of
green with three clear warm spots. All I could see with my naked eye was darkness and
maybe make out the first row of trees. The camera had picked up three tall creatures just
out of view. It wouldn’t be enough for concrete evidence but I reached over and pressed
the button to save the image. We knew what it was and my guess was there would be
days we would doubt it again. That would be all we needed to know it really was
Bigfoot.