“I thought that was sort of weird.” Anna’s smile faded as she replayed the entire day in her mind. “I haven’t seen my parents all day.”
“I saw my mom this morning. I asked her what Caretaker had planned for your party. She just walked away.”
“Really?” Anna looked at the diary in Eve’s hands. “Did you put that in your diary?”
“I put everything in here.”
Anna attempted to take the diary, but Eve held it close to her chest.
“So secretive.” Anna folded her arms and grinned. “I still can’t believe you picked a diary to bring in here. I mean, we get one special thing to bring to camp, and you bring that?”
Eve pointed at a six-inch tall stuffed red chimpanzee on the nightstand beside Anna’s bed. She said, “Look who’s talking.”
“Hey! My boyfriend won Binky for me at the carnival.”
“Boyfriend?”
“Last summer. I dumped him.”
“Whatever.” Eve rolled her eyes and tugged on her robe. “They don’t even let us wear our own clothes in here. Why’d they bother letting us bring something special in?”
“Who knows. They have so many stupid rules.” Anna pointed at the diary and said, “Write all you want. I’m only interested in Billy.”
Anna and Eve looked across the room at tiny Billy glaring back at them, his hazel eyes never blinking. Anna blew him a kiss, causing Billy to roll over and look away.
“I kissed him,” Anna said as she turned to Eve.
Tina, a beautiful Latina girl in the bed next to Eve’s, sat up and said, “What?”
“This morning after class.” Anna smiled. “Why do you both look so surprised? Billy’s cute. He’s not the first boy I’ve kissed.”
“Billy’s a jerk,” Tina said.
“You’re just jealous,” Anna replied. “Every time you try to talk to Billy, he walks away. Sorry, Tina, but he doesn’t like you.”
Tina glared at Anna and said, “Te odio!” She dove under her green flannel covers and turned the other way.
“I think everyone here’s jealous,” Anna said to Eve. “I’m the only teenager in the group. The rest of you are still twelve.”
“I think Tina’s the only one who’s mad,” Eve said. “She always wants what she can’t have.”
“I can hear you,” Tina said from beneath her blanket. “Silencio.”
The lock on the door to the room snapped open, causing the children to jump slightly. The heavy wooden door swung open, the hinges creaking loudly. Anna sighed and marched back to her bed. She knew the rules and knew what came next.
The woman who the children called Caretaker entered the room. She carried a wooden tray with a small glass bowl of pills and seven glasses of water. Everyone except Charles sat upright in their bed and waited for Caretaker to come to them.
Caretaker wore a dark gray gown, similar in style to the children’s. She always kept her blonde hair tucked beneath a gray bonnet. Thin and of average height, she smiled as she used her foot to close the door behind her.
“How’s everyone tonight?” Caretaker asked. A few of the kids gave a mumbled response. “I hope you enjoyed the cake. That was my first time making strawberry filling from scratch.”
“I liked it,” Tina said. “But how come our parents weren’t there?”
“I already told you, Tina, the party was just for you kids.”
Caretaker walked to the bed closest to the door to find Charles already deep asleep clutching a puffy blue pillow. She placed the tray on the edge of his nightstand and shook him a few times until his eyes opened. Charles propped himself up on his elbows, causing the rusty springs in his mattress to squeak in protest. He looked at the tray and frowned.
“Time for your vitamins,” Caretaker said. She gave Charles a glass of water and one of the small white pills from the bowl. Charles downed the tablet and then opened his mouth to show her he’d swallowed it. “Good boy.”
Caretaker went from bed to bed, giving each child a glass of water and a pill. Her last stop was to see Anna. She put the tray on one corner of the bed and sat on the other, handing Anna the last glass of water.
“Did you like your cake?” Caretaker asked.
“I had two pieces!” Anna giggled as she sipped from her glass. “It was the best.”
“I’m so glad I made you proud. Each of you is so special to me.”
Anna looked at the empty bowl and then at Caretaker.
“No more vitamins for you, Anna.” Caretaker moved closer to Anna. “You’re all grown up.”
“What?” Tina cried out. “That’s not fair!”
“I’m a teenager!” Anna couldn’t help but smile and giggle. She cast Billy a brief but devious smile. She turned back to Caretaker and asked, “Will . . . will I ever need to take them again?”
Caretaker looked around the room, then at Anna, and whispered, “No.”
Caretaker stood up, took Anna’s half-empty glass from her hand, and placed it on the tray. She made her way around the room, collecting everyone’s drinks. Once she got to the door, she turned off the overhead light, plunging the room into darkness. Caretaker said, “Good night.” The door closed with a thud, followed by the snap of the lock engaging.
Anna rolled over and snatched the stuffed animal from the nightstand. She pulled her flannel blanket closer to try and stay warm. The sugar rush from earlier began to crash, and she soon fell asleep.
Anna awoke a few hours later, surprised to find Caretaker sitting beside her. The open door allowed light from the hallway to spill into the dark room. The incandescent bulbs and faded amber shades bathed everything in an eerie orange glow.
“What . . . what time is it?” Anna asked. She yawned and rubbed her tired eyes.
“It’s time to leave.” Caretaker ran her fingers across Anna’s wavy blonde hair. “You need to pack.”
“Pack?” Anna’s eyes widened when she noticed her rolling purple-flowered carry-on bag sitting beside the bed. Her parents had bought her
