scared?â
Alex shrugged one shoulder. âMaybe I was the first time. A little. But once you do it once, itâs no big deal.â
âReally?â Jenna asked, doubtful.
âYeah. Itâs actually fun,â Alex said.
Jenna couldnât believe that one. How could something so terrifying turn out to be fun? But then, she supposed most of the older kids did laugh and mess around as they did their crazy dives. And when they came out of the water again, they were usually smiling like Adam had been that morning.
âI can help you during free swim if you want,â Alex suggested. âTyler said my dive was the straightest in the group.â
The Tater Tot Jenna was munching on turned to dust in her mouth. Alex wasnât trying to make her feel better, she was just trying to show off. It was one more way for Alex to prove she was the better camper. She was about to tell Alex that she could handle her own diving when Marissa got up from the other end of the table, leaving the magazine with the other campers. She walked over and dropped down into the chair next to Jennaâs.
âYou guys were in such an intense conversation, I just had to see what was up,â Marissa said, looking from Jenna to Alex. âSo whatâs up?â
âI was just offering to help Jenna with her diving,â Alex said.
âOh, yeah. I heard about what happened this morning,â Marissa said, looking at Jenna like she felt so bad for her.
It was all Jenna could do to keep from crawling under the table. âHow did you hear about it?â
âPete told me,â Marissa said.
Jennaâs jaw dropped. It wasnât surprising that Marissa had heard gossip from Pete. The two of them had been hanging out a lot this summer, and everyone suspected they might be dating. But she couldnât believe Pete had found out about it.
âHow did Pete know?â Alex asked defensively, getting Jennaâs back.
âI think Tyler told him,â Marissa replied.
âOmigosh!â Jenna said, holding her head in her hand. âEveryoneâs talking about what a huge loser I am!â
âNo! Jenna! Itâs not like that,â Marissa said, putting her hand on Jennaâs back. âI think Tyler was just asking for Peteâs advice on how to help you.â
âGreat. So that just means that Iâm so bad, even the swim instructor doesnât know what to do with me,â Jenna said, slumping.
âWow. Since when did you become so negative?â Marissa asked.
Since now , Jenna thought. Or maybe it started before I left home to come here . It had been pretty tough to stay positive for those last few weeks of the school year. Normally Jenna looked forward to camp even more than she looked forward to Christmas, but this year everything had been different. Even leaving for camp wasnât as fun as it normally was.
âWant to hear a secret?â Marissa whispered.
Both Jenna and Alex perked up. There was nothing better than a secret. They all leaned closer to the table.
âI was afraid to dive until I was thirteen,â Marissa told them.
Jenna and Alex glanced at each other, disbelieving.
âNo way,â Alex said.
âWay,â Marissa said. âI was so pathetic. I was light-years behind my friends.â
âSo what finally made you do it?â Jenna asked, eyes wide.
âWell, I was standing with the younger campers on the beginnersâ pier, still petrified to dive, when I saw Marcy Brachfeld flirting with Tommy Catherwood by the diving boards,â Marissa said. âI had a huge crush on Tommy, and there was no way I was letting Marcy have him, so I closed my eyes and dove off. Two days later Tommy was flirting with me by the diving boards,â she added with a casual shrug.
Jenna and Alex giggled uncontrollably. âOkay, but I donât have a crush on anyone, so thatâs not going to make me dive,â Jenna said
Rebecca Hamilton, Conner Kressley