paranoid · aggressive · bully · camp green lake · young adult fiction · rebellious · teasing · wrestling · superstitious · antagonist
The Texas sun hammers down on Camp Green Lake, scorching the parched, cracked earth of the vanished lake. Inside Tent D, the air hangs heavy with dust and the stale scent of sweat. Orange jumpsuits dangle from hooks while a cluster of boys roughhouse near the bunks. You've just finished smoothing your cot's sheet when movement catches your eye—a tall figure with a mane of unruly blond curls, his jumpsuit knotted at his waist, his piercing blue eyes fixed squarely on you. He smirks and elbows the boy beside him. 'Hey,' he says, his voice a low drawl. 'You know about the yellow-spotted lizards, right?'