The Wild Things Ch. 02

Music floated, people drank, ate and laughed. String lights and lanterns looped between beams of the dining shelter and pine trees, a golden net over everyone.

Kayla stood near the door with paper cup of juice, watching people eat and drink. Locals, rangers, and instructors from partner camps. Lots of new names to learn.

Vinnie elbowed Kayla lightly as they approached the main shelter. "You look like you're scanning for predators."

"Feels like I'm the predator being scanned." Kayla laughed, tugging at the edge of her camp T-shirt. There were way more people than she expected--locals, instructors from partner camps, even a few faces she'd seen on posters for regional expeditions.

"Relax," Brendan called from behind a fold-out table, where people were scribbling names onto a signup sheet. "No one here bites. Except Danny when he's drunk."

"Relax!" Danny grinned from a circle of people already buzzing around him. "We're not allowed to drink tonight, remember?"

It was the rule - whoever hosted the event had to stay dry, supposedly to keep things professional. Kayla wasn't sure why anyone was drinking at all if it was a work thing, but... they did things differently here.

There were speakers balanced on a plastic tub, music thudding gently in the background, and someone had laid out a mismatched spread of food: grilled skewers, chips, banana bread, cake.

The knotting contest started as a joke - some half-drunken dare shouted over a plate of rice - but then someone pulled a rope from their gear bag and it got serious fast. Brendan was the first to volunteer, swearing he could tie a bowline blindfolded. Then Danny jumped in. Then half a dozen others.

Kayla didn't mean to step forward. But her feet just... moved.

"Let's make it interesting!" someone yelled. "Hands behind your back!"

Laughter. Groans. Someone booed in approval. Kayla rolled her eyes but crouched anyway, her wrists tucked behind her, rope between her fingers. This happened to be a regular competition between her and her brothers, growing up.

When she stood and held up the perfect knot, the crowd cheered.

Vinnie threw an arm around her. "Our secret weapon!"

Someone handed her a free can of Pepsi as a prize, already lukewarm.

Carmen appeared soon after, freshly changed into a tight black ribbed t-shirt that clung in all the right places. Her hair was in a high plait as normal, and the soft yellow light caught on her cheekbones. She looked hot.

Kayla's breathed in sharply before she could stop herself. She'd seen what was under that top. Not intentionally - just a moment in the showers earlier that week - but the image had stuck. And now, seeing Carmen like this, commanding the space with that calm authority...

Back home, that shirt wouldn't have passed as professional. But here? Here they did things differently.

Carmen crossed to her, her gaze sweeping the crowd before landing on Kayla. "Are you okay?" she asked, voice low enough not to carry.

Kayla nodded quickly. "Yeah. Just... " she looked down briefly to catch her thoughts. "... just trying to remember everyone's name."

"Eh, they will be kind if you forget." Carmen gave a faint smile, then gestured to the group just behind her. "Come meet the others."

She introduced Kayla and Vinnie to a small crew from a neighboring camp - one of them tall and tattooed, who immediately zeroed in on Vinnie and started asking about his accent.

"Kayla, right?" said another voice. A shorter girl with auburn hair, glasses and a wide, bright smile approached. "I'm the person Danny sent that lizard pic to."

"Oh my god," Kayla grinned. Danny's girlfriend. "Georgia, right?"

"That's me."

Georgia took a sip from her drink, then grinned. "So where did it come from?"

"Dani found it outside her window," Kayla said. "But I have a feeling she accidentally killed it."

Georgia winced. "Yikes."

"Yeah." Kayla smiled faintly. "We can't all be wildlife warriors."

The conversation drifted on, but Kayla's thoughts snagged briefly on Dani. Yesterday's texts. That weird, fizzy feeling in her chest. Still there, just under the surface.

Later, Carmen took the stage - or rather, stood on a picnic table with a paper in one hand and a warm can of ginger ale in the other. People hushed. The music cut.

"I just want to say thank you to everyone who came tonight," she boomed. "These camps work because we work together. And I'm proud of the instructors I've got this year. Especially our newest ones - Vinnie and Kayla - who've hit the ground running."

Scattered cheers. A whoop from Brendan. A little warmth bloomed under Kayla's ribs.

A few minutes after the speech, Carmen disappeared.

They settled back into conversation. A few minutes after that, Kayla felt a twinge of unease.

"I think I didn't lock the gear shed," she said aloud, half to herself.

"We saw you," Brendan said. "After you put the paddles away."

"I don't remember turning the lock," she said, already stepping backward. "I'll be five minutes."

"You want company?" Vinnie offered.

"Nah, I'm good."

The trail was dark, the lights and laughter fading behind her. The frogs were louder here, rhythmic and insistent in the quiet.

The path to the gear shed was quiet, the thud of music and laughter from the main camp already fading into the trees. Kayla moved quickly, her head slightly down.

When she reached the door, she tugged the lock. It held firm.

Right. She had locked it.

She let out a soft huff of a laugh at herself and was about to turn back when something on the ground caught her eye - a snapped-off piece of plank, splintered at the edge, maybe from one of the old benches. Probably nothing. But all it would take was one drunk idiot swinging it like a sword for someone to end up in the infirmary.

She picked it up and opened the shed.

Inside, the familiar smell of rope met her. She slipped behind a row of shelves and into the little office-like nook at the back--not a real room, just a corner walled off by crates and faded tarps.

No lights. She clicked on her phone's torch.

The beam of white light jumped across a stack of gear logs and an old whistle someone had left on a clipboard months ago. She wedged the broken plank between two crates, out of sight, and paused, still holding the phone.

It was strangely peaceful here.

Muted. Still.

A break from the noise, the chatter, the buzz of new faces.

She leaned against the wall and let her eyes slip shut for just a second.

Then -

Bang.

A dull, solid thud against the back wall of the shed.

Kayla's head snapped up. She turned off her phone light and stood still, listening. Maybe an animal?

She took a step toward the door - was halfway there when she heard it:

A voice.

Low. Female.

Not speaking exactly. Just the rough, breathless sound of someone pressed too close. A laugh that wasn't casual. A quiet curse. Then another thud, heavier this time, followed by a sharp intake of breath.

Kayla froze.

She didn't mean to listen. But the wall was thin, and the voices didn't stop.

"What would your boss say, if he knew you were doing this?"

That was Carmen. And someone else. The voices were clearer now, just behind the shed's back wall. There was a muffled gasp.

"Please - " the woman said, voice shaking.

Carmen's reply came like a growl:

"Please, what?"

Another moan. The sound of something shifting.

"Tell me what you want," Carmen said, her tone dark and steady. "Say it."

The woman let out a stuttering breath. "I - I want you - "

Carmen laughed softly, breath hot and wicked through the crack in the boards. "No one's ever touched you like this before, have they?"

A sharp, pleading noise answered her.

Carmen's voice dropped even lower. "No one's ever gonna know you like pussy, cariño. Not like this."

There was another thud - harder this time. Something hit the wall.

Kayla stepped back, heart thudding. She switched off her phone light and moved carefully, avoiding the crates.

Behind her, Carmen's voice cut roughly through the wall:

"Keep your legs open. Just like that."

A gasp followed as Kayla slowly and carefully opened the door, trying to avoid any creaks.

"You like this," Carmen murmured. "You like being spread out and fucked where anyone could hear."

She slipped out as quietly as she could. Gravel crunched under her sandals. Kayla didn't look back. She just walked fast, face burning. She slowed when she got back to the festivities. She slowed as the string lights came into view again, the noise of the party growing louder with every step. She remembered how pink her face had gone after seeing Carmen naked in the showers.

Her hands were damp. What the hell just happened?

Better give it a moment, she thought, and tried to think of the unsexiest thing possible- accounting spreadsheets, maybe. Or her Year 9 maths teacher, whose desk she and Dani once covered entirely in sticky notes -

Dani.

Probably the worst person to think about right now, especially after everything they'd done the week before she left.

Nope. Abort.

She pivoted fast - mentally conjuring her childhood pastor and his unfortunate habit of sweating through sermons. The image of his patchy shirt and those sweaty armpits did the trick.

Why here? Why now?

Carmen must have thought no one would hear--must've picked the spot for the privacy. But still... that voice. That heat. The way she spoke, like she wanted to be caught.

Kayla's heart hadn't stopped racing since.

It wasn't just the sex. It was how sure she'd sounded. How sure she'd made the other woman sound. Like there was no shame in wanting. Like it was allowed.

Kayla had never felt that way. Not really. Even with Dani, there'd been nerves, hesitation, the ache of what does this mean? But Carmen... she'd made it sound simple.

Her face flamed again. What the hell was wrong with her?

She slipped back into the group.

"That was longer than five minutes!" Brendan called, punching her lightly on the arm.

Kayla forced a laugh. "Found a broken plank by the trail. Thought I'd better stash it."

"Always a model employee," Vinnie said, grinning as he mock-saluted her.

Carmen returned a few minutes later, glowing slightly. She was composed, calm -like nothing had happened.

The other woman walked in shortly after, alone, face flushed in a different way. She peeled off toward another group without a word.

Danny leaned over. "Where'd you go?"

"Checked on Luis," Carmen replied easily. "He's out cold."

Brendan misheard. "The shed all good?"

Kayla stiffened.

"What about the shed?" Carmen asked quickly, smile leaving her face.

"Oh..." Brendan said, hesitating with the look he was being given. "Kayla thought she forgot to lock it..."

"She was being extra vigilant," Vinnie jumped in smoothly. "We all saw her lock it earlier."

He winked at her - like, he was saying, I've got your back, sister.

Carmen's gaze cut across the group and landed on Kayla. Kayla met her eyes and froze.

Then Carmen smiled.

"We need more vigilance here. Take a leaf out of her book, you hear me?"

The next morning was a no-camp day. The instructors were getting ready to head into town for supplies and a break, but just as Kayla was reaching for her water bottle, Carmen called her aside.

Even Danny blinked. "If this is about locking the shed again, let me know and I'll talk to her," he said, clearly confused.

Kayla just nodded and followed Carmen across the lawn.

She found her on the bench near the playground, elbows on her knees, watching Luis clamber up a rope ladder. Carmen didn't look up as Kayla approached. She just patted the space beside her.

Kayla sat.

A pause. Wind in the trees. The soft creak of the swings.

Then, without turning, Carmen asked, "What exactly did you hear?"

Kayla froze. Carmen knew she'd heard. There was no use pretending.

"I heard you and... the other woman."

Carmen gave a small nod. "Thought so."

Another pause. Then she turned slightly, giving Kayla a side glance.

"You're bright red again."

"Yep," Kayla muttered, crossing her arms. No use trying to hide it.

"You've never heard that kind of thing before?"

"Oh, I have," Kayla said. "Back home, my roommate dated someone who loved being overheard. Paper-thin walls."

That got a chuckle from Carmen. She looked forward again. "Didn't know you were there. Wouldn't have done that if I knew you were."

"I wasn't trying to hear anything," Kayla said quickly. "I was just putting a broken plank away. It was - quiet. And then..."

"I get it." Carmen glanced at her again. "It would mean lot it if you kept this story to yourself."

"Of course."

Carmen leaned back slightly, smirking. "Hard to find another woman who likes pussy around here. So when I do, I tend to ram them into shed walls."

Kayla opened her mouth, then closed it.

There was no good response to that.

Definitely not well, actually, I like pussy, too.

What was she supposed to say - nice technique, by the way? Hope the dents in the tin can be smoothed out easy?

She settled for staring at the playground instead, hoping the ground might swallow her whole.

Instead, she cleared her throat. "The group's gonna ask what you said to me. They think I'm in trouble about the shed."

"So," Carmen said, eyebrow raised, "you need an excuse to talk to me?"

Kayla gave her a look. "Well... given I'm still bright red, what should I say?"

Carmen tilted her head, considering. Then she smiled - slow and amused.

"Tell them I was praising your vigilance," Carmen said. "And that I like a woman who pays attention."

Kayla felt her mouth go dry. "You know... You know I can't tell them that."

"You'll think of something."

The way Carmen smiled, Kayla knew she was enjoying this. To her, it was a game - and Kayla was apparently playing now too.

---

Back at the cabins, Danny asked first. "What'd she say?"

"She... she reminded me that planks of wood don't belong in the gear shed."

There was a pause.

Before anyone responded, Georgia squinted at her. "You look like you're about to cry."

Kayla blinked, caught off guard. "What? No. I'm - "

She laughed softly, half under her breath. Somewhere in the back of her mind, a flash of memory: the first time Dani made her come - she'd cried then, too. Georgia wasn't totally wrong.

"Like fuck they don't belong in the shed," Vinnie said.

"But what about all the planks for camp activities?" Brendan added.

"Those ones aren't broken," Kayla said quickly, trying to pivot.

Danny frowned. "You look shaken. She takes things too far sometimes - don't worry, I'll say something later - "

"It's fine, guys," Kayla cut in. "Think of the splinters."

They stared at her.

"I don't like getting in trouble, okay? Can we move on? I've learned the lesson on behalf of everyone: always be sure you've locked the shed."

She grabbed her phone and stood. "Now let's go bowling."