I was never the type of person people would find interest in. There were never times when people would want to walk with me to school or hang out with me at fairs. That said, I'm still wondering why Gemma was after me, and only me. It was like a game between a hungry cat and a mouse wanting to break free.

"Oi? Oi!"

A hand dangles in front of me, destroying my thought bubble. When I tip my head up, my eyes meet Sky's hazel ones. 

"We got to go. You ready?"

I tilt my head in confusion. She raises a hand to her forehead, sighing. 

"You and that idiot are supposed to be canoeing with me."

She points a thumb at Phoenix behind her, trying to get onto a canoe without tipping over. 

"O-Oh. Right."

Returning back to earth, I remove my oversized top, leaving me wearing my jean shorts and black one-piece swimsuit. Trailing to the canoe, I sit in the middle, Phoenix in the front, leaving Sky in the back of the boat. When Phoenix notices me, he reaches his arm to give me a fist bump. I knock my knuckles against his, smiling at him. Turning to Sky, He patted her on the back in a friendly way.

We start to paddle into the lake. Sky kept on nudging me to keep paddling, cutting my distraction sessions short. I could hear Phoenix snickering in front of me. I wanted to smack his back, but my embarrassment held me back. The lake was bigger than I thought, with moss-covered rocks stacking and surrounding the land. The further we pulled, the more lost I felt, Until I saw the other canoes across from us, nearby the raft at the swimming area. 

After a while of me turning, paddling, and third-wheeling, a heavy wave of wind is coming towards us, pushing a high wave at our boat. I slide sideways on my seat, trying to balance myself, hoping my arm would keep me in the boat. I slip. Phoenix grabs onto the gunwales, as Sky hugs the deck. The boat slides over the small waves as the water sloshes. Light wind blows, and ends up pushing a dirty napkin on Phoenix's face. He exclaims in disgust, scraping it off his face. 

"What was that...?"

Sky asks, frustrated and worried. I stay panting, my tailbone smushed between the thwart and yoke. I share the same question as Phoenix. He shakes his head, facing Sky, not answering her question. 

"It is over?"

I ask them, trying to bring myself to sit. When I bring my legs to cross, Phoenix turns himself to me and Sky, asking if we're ok. I nod in a reassuring manner. Sky raises her hand, waving it at Phoenix. 

"Don't worry about me. I'm fine."

She finishes, her eyes glued downwards to keep paddling, as if he never asked her in the first place. It's almost as if nothing happened with her. 

"Wait, where are we?"

Phoenix blurts, rubbing his head.

I shift my head to the side, only to find a pathway, leading to a forest. It looked similar to the forest Phoenix and I came across yesterday. The signs between the trees made me realize it's a different area. The canoes that were around us were probably snatched away by the waves, and the drop-off area for the boats was too faint to see from here. 

Phoenix groans, squeezing his eyes in annoyance. He worries that we're lost again. Sky stares around her, like a scientist examining their experiment carefully. 

"Would you quit groaning? If we go around this area, we'll find the path to the tetherball area."

Sky explains, her resting bitch face not wiping off.

"And?"

Phoenix asks.

"If we keep walking straight from there, the drop-off area will be there."

"How did you memorize that?"

I ask. She shrugs, closing her eyes. We turn our direction, pushing off with the canoe pedals. We shift for a few, until a fat rock blocks our path. 

"Dead end?"

I ask.

"Don't worry."

Sky replies. She hops off the canoe once she guides us to the forest area again. 

"Come on. We're going to be late."

"What about the canoe?"

She stares at me for a while. Phoenix steps out of the canoe with no hesitation, reaching his leg to reel him into the land. He acts as if he's used to her commands. Unlike me, trying to put the pieces together for what's going on in her mind. Once we stepped out, She drags the canoe to her, fishing it out. Phoenix runs over to help her. Once I arrive, the boat is already out. 

We all start pushing the boat, swimsuits with pants and shorts on, no shoes or socks on our feet, just dirt and tiny rocks splinting them as Phoenix and I follow Sky's directions. It's like we were stranded tourists in a new country and Sky was our travel guide. Luckily, it wasn't that heavy, but after a while of shoving it under the scorching hot sun while sweating, things looked different. 

"How long has this been going on?!"

Phoenix grunts through pushing the boat. 

"Who knows exactly? But It's been at least less that 10 minutes!"

Sky argues through heavy breaths.

A call, possibly from a loon, sounds near us. I ignore it the first few times, pushing myself to stay focused, shoving the canoe with my back and arms, using my legs as a long, straight steering wheel. The call won't leave. Eventually, it starts to sound like more than one. Almost like cries, cries for help. The loon calls and cries overlap. I'm betting money that there's a human there. Flashbacks of the fairy corpse leap into my mind. Squeezing my eyes tightly, I try to ignore it. My arms and hands become weak as I battle with my thoughts. 

I wonder, if it really is a human calling out for help, then that could give me two answers. One good, the other bad. A reason proving mine and Phoenix's point, that Brenowa isn't the happy, fun summer camp everyone thought, but also, a possible shortcut to death. 

Phoenix nudges my shoulder with his, moving his head to the deeper end of the forest, signalling something saying; "Let's go down there Justice, It looks fun, doesn't it?" I raise my brows. Without giving me a minute to think, he grabs mine and Sky's wrist, leading us to the forest. 

Sky curses at him, trying to unlock herself from his grip. 

"W-What are you doing?!"

I exclaim at Phoenix.

"You think I couldn't see that look on your face? Sky's like that whenever she wants an ice cream."

"What does that have to do with you dragging us to the forest?!"

"Sky wants that ice cream, but just doesn't tell."

I frown at him, trying to hide my embarasment and fear.

"You didn't have to use me as an example in front of her, idiot!"

Sky punches him in the chest angrily. 

"Why are we even going here?! We need to go back!"

"Justice wants to see something, don't you?"

He gestures towards me. I face palm myself, embarrassingly explaining my curiosity. Phoenix says he would want to help that person in danger, if there is one, and brings the positive reasons why we should go on. Sky breathes heavily, then her face turns into a mixture of worrisome and anger. He begs her to come, as I fight the urge not to. 

"Can we at least try?"

I ask stupidly. 

She walks ahead of us, then turns her head back at us. 

"This better be worth it."