I wake up at the perfect time, EJ just parked and everyone's streaming out of the sedan. I grab my bag and luggage and run out to join them. We all stop to admire how many people showed up this time.
"Camp Shallow Lake, y'all. My second home." EJ looks back at the rest of us with a goofy grin.
"Second?! It's my only home. Sorry, Ash." I add in when I can see she looks a tad bit hurt since I've been living in her attic. Upon hearing my apology, she brightens up again. I wish I could be like Ash, always so confident and cheerful...
EJ starts to walk off and we all follow behind him excitedly. "Seriously, though. I came to this camp as an athlete and came out as an athlete-actor."
"I came here as EJ's strange, shy and lonely sister who was forced to come. I came out as EJ's stranger, slightly less shy and lonelier than ever sister who was forced to come but now with a newfound passion for the arts. Until my first bestie. Then, I came out as AJ Caswell, EJ's estranged, quirky, outgoing, soon-to-be-traumatised, traumatising, popular, younger sister!" I chip in, and the group laughs. "You come into Shallow Lake thinking you know yourself, but it changes you in ways school never will."
EJ looks at me gratefully, knowing that if I didn't take over with my humour, no one would listen.
"Wow, and I thought this was a vacation." Ash jokes and now it's my turn to laugh.
"Are those Wildcats I see?" I screech in excitement when I hear a familiar voice.
"Gadget! I missed you! Like, so much. Did I say I missed you already? 'Cause I did! I missed you!" I exclaim, and Maddox chuckles at my eagerness. I engulf her in a big hug, which she returns.
"Hey, Bomb-omb! You too, Rocket Man." EJ laughs next to me.
"How's it going, Gadget?" Maddox lets go of me to give him a little hug, which Gina stares puzzledly at, probably unsure whether to be jealous or not. "Ready for a good summer?"
"You bet. Especially now that my besties are back! Just hope I don't see him..." Her voice trails off at the end, and I know just who she's talking about. Her brother, Jet, was forced to come to camp and they hadn't got along well since... Never mind.
I look at Carlos, who finally speaks up. "Alright, it's five minutes in and I already miss Seb." Hr complains as Ashlyn wraps him in a hug to comfort him.
"Oh, and I miss Biggie, but remember how we said we weren't going to do that? This is our Wildcat summer adventure and it's going to be angst-free." Ashlyn reminds him and I shake my head in amusement, no way that's happening.
Carlos sighs and looks into nowhere. "I just feel naked without my angst." He gives a sad face and I rub his shoulder with Ash then look at Maddox.
"Alright, I'm just going to need to collect your phones, snacks and all electronic devices." Maddox says, holding out a metal bucket and showing it to them. "Basically anything that brings you joy!" She jokes.
"No you aren't, " I say. "I have THREE lists of pranks and the materials so there's no way I'm giving you those"
"Already playing pranks on the boys huh AJ," Maddox sighs, and I laugh as EJ chucks his phone in, reassuring the rest that Maddox was only half-joking earlier. Still, Kourtney looks like she just broke up and Carlos looks done with life.
Maddox continues her speech as Gina and Ash throw their phones into the bucket as well. She walks over to face Kourtney and collects her phone.
Kourtney begins to fake cry as Carlos speaks. "Hey, it's only two weeks." I laugh and go to Kourtney's other side, resting my head on her shoulder.
"But Sasha doesn't know that." She kisses her hand, placing it on her phone afterwards.
I look up at Carlos and Maddox. "Sasha's her phone by the way."
"I just got her, AJ. She's too young to understand what any of this means." She lets out a sob as I take her phone.
"Here, one more picture of us, the real Sharpay, Ryan and Tiara Gold of East High." I bargain and she nods. I hand the phone to Carlos who helps lift it up to take a wefie of him, Kourt and I. Then, he places it next to his phone in the bucket.
"Don't look back." Carlos and I step in, blocking her view.
"Mama loves you!" Kourtney screams after her phone as I hug her, but not before throwing my already dead phone in the bucket. And when I say dead, I mean the battery isn't even working anymore.
"Oh, don't do that." Carlos and I say and she hugs us back.
~~~
Me, Kourtney, and Carlos butt in on Ash, Gina, and EJ's conversation.
"Okay, since you refuse to give us any clues at all, I'm gonna go ahead and assume it's Gloria Steinem." Ash starts off our guessing game.
"I'm going with Oprah because... Oprah." Kourt says.
"Legally, I'm obliged to say Greta Gerwig." Carlos shrugs and looks at me.
"I don't know who it is but I have a hunch and my hunch says it's going to be none other than the dance hero of our childhoods, the Chad Danforth, otherwise known as Corbin Bleu." I say confidently.
"It's all going down in the amphitheatre tonight. You guys are going to be all 'Damn-phitheatre'." We all look at him confused with weird looks as Gina leans on him.
"He's sorry..."
"It's just occurring to me that you two will be a thing all summer." Carlos says and Ash and I laugh.
"Gee Carlos, what gave it away? When they kissed in the car?" I ask rhetorically.
EJ gives the rest a tour but I already know where everything is. I only begin paying attention when EJ tells us about the Shallow Lake barn and playhouse.
"Where young EJ has played roles such as, Danny Zuko, of course, The Dentist from Little Shop and The Music Man." EJ lists all of his roles and I laugh.
"And I would pay money to see him play all those roles again." I snicker, and he reaches his arm over to push me but I anticipate the attack and grab and twist his wrist lightly.
"Ow ow ow." He mutters, but doesn't take it to heart. Still, I flash him an apologetic smile.
"Speaking of rotten eggs, yes, I know what you did last summer." Kourtney says matter-of-factly.
I laugh and EJ speeds up his walk. "And that concludes the tour. Now if you'll follow me this way..." He starts to lead us over to the bunks and I stand next to him and face the others. "Boys' bunk." He points behind him and looks at me.
"Girls' bunk." I point to my left and continue. "Mountains, oceans and sometimes there's bears." I point to all the spots and then try to scare them a bit while I'm at it. They all look around and Kourtney looks terrified.
"Got it, girl. Got it." She looks at me and I laugh and pick my stuff up.
"Okay, I will see you all later for tonight's big announcement." He starts to walk off but then turns around and whispers, "One more thing." He then jogs up to Gina and kisses her before turning around and walking off again.
"How many days has it been?" Carlos asks me and Kourt quietly.
"10 minutes." Kourt cries and Carlos groans as I laugh and we look back at Gina.
She giggles and we all head out to our bunks.
A/N
Yup, AJ knows about the Maddox/Jet drama.
*le gasp*
TWO UPDATES IN ONE DAY!!!!!
yall are lucky that the past 3 parts were pre-written, the rest of it... well there's no going up. I am honestly just waiting for Jet♡
Thanks for reading ♡
@isabelles_boss
YOU ARE READING
Wouldn't Change A Thing-Jet HSMTMTS♡
Fanfiction~you're the harmony to every song I sing~ In which AJ Caswell, a girl abandoned by her father and living in her cousin's attic, is bullied to the extent that she loses hope in love. That is until, she goes to her one true home, Camp Shallow Lake, an...
