The Rules of Regret Read Online Free PDF Page A

day of rest. Spend it wisely because the remaining six belong to
us. Are there any more questions? ” He steepled his index fingers in front of his mouth and surveyed the room with
a sweeping gaze. “ Oh,
and one more thing. You ’ ll
be paired off. This will be your buddy, your right hand man. As you ’ ve probably already figured out, cell
reception is not one of the luxuries we have here. Instead, you ’ ll be using these. ” Curtis yanked on the clip of a
walkie-talkie and released it from his belt. He waved it in the air like he was
ringing a bell. “ This
is your line of communication, your lifeline. Don ’ t lose it — especially during
your survival overnighter. Now, do you have any questions? ”
    “ Do we get to pick partners? ” a girl with tight, ringlet-like corkscrews
that could rival Shirley Temple ’ s
asked hopefully. I couldn ’ t
help but notice her eyes fall on the boy to my left. Maybe she had a thing for
ratty looking guys with horrendous posture and weird close-sitting tendencies.
To each his own.
    “ You ’ ll be partnered with the person
sitting next to you, ” Curtis explained as he refastened the walkie-talkie to his Levi ’ s belt loop. “ Maggie and Ran, ” he continued, looking down at a
couple in the front row, “ since
you are only with us for the first three weeks of camp, you ’ ll partner together. ” They both nodded, though I was
pretty sure they had some type of partnership already. I couldn ’ t help but notice the smiles and
quiet laughter they ’ d
exchanged throughout the orientation. Watching them interact made me homesick
or withdrawl-y or whatever it actually was, and I longed for Lance, or maybe
just the familiarity of our daily routine. I was grateful this new couple would
only be here a portion of the time, because I didn ’ t think I could survive six weeks
without insane amounts of jealousy turning me green and distracting my focus
and my attention.
    Curtis
stepped down from the low platform and began weaving through the three rows of
rickety aluminum chairs, pairing off counselors as he went. He stopped in front
of me and then looked to the boy at my side. “ Tor and Darby, you ’ ll be a team. ”
    Tor. Why did that sound familiar?
    The
boy dipped his right shoulder and angled his head back. “ Howdy partner, ” he said, extending a hand toward me.
It was gloved in shabby gray yarn and the tops of all the fingers had been
haphazardly cut off so they unraveled at the edges. I took hold of his hand,
squinting to recollect where I ’ d
heard that name before.
    “ Tor? ” I asked, lifting my brow. “ Torin Westbrook? ”
    “ In the flesh, ” he smiled, two dimples piercing his
unusually pink cheeks that looked as though he ’ d been out skiing on a sunny day
without the protection of sunscreen. His lips matched their rosy color, like if
he were a girl, he would have intentionally done his makeup in a way to make
them like this. Aside from that, nothing about him was feminine at all. No, he
was quite literally a rugged bundle of tattered clothing, broad shoulders, and
long, shaggy hair.
    “ Nice to put a face to the emails,
Darby. ” He smiled and revealed a sliver of a gap between his upper teeth. If mine had
been that small and moderately charming like his, I probably would have opted
out of that embarrassing year of braces as a seventeen-year-old. It was funny
how what might be considered an imperfection to some people, could look
absolutely perfect when it was on the right person. “ You ’ ll be happy to know we have an
abundance of Lucky Charms on hand at the dining hall with your name on them. ”
    “ Oh. ” I smiled, chuckling slightly. I
tugged my hand from his grip, but Torin ’ s
still hovered in the space between us. I thought about swatting it away because
having it suspended there made me nervous, but just laced my own fingers
together instead. “ Just
because I ’ m
Irish doesn ’ t
mean I like Lucky Charms.