Festival Frenzy Page 4

  ‘Shall I p-plait your hair, then?’ asked Lucy after a while.

  Abby nodded, relieved at the change of subject. She sat on a little stool, with Lucy standing behind her, and stared into the mirror.

  Finally she asked, ‘Is it really that bad – I mean with Jess? I noticed she was snappy with me in the night.’

  Lucy nodded. ‘’Fraid so. Did you ever a-apologize for shaming her on the v-vlog?’

  ‘Of course!’ replied Abby instantly. But, when she thought about it, she wasn’t sure that she really had . . .

  They got back to the campsite where the pancakes were ready, and crispy bacon too. It smelt absolutely delicious.

  ‘I’m starved!’ said Jessie, passing round some maple syrup. ‘Shall we see who can eat the most pancakes in a minute? It’d make a good vlog!’

  ‘I can, I can!’ shouted Maggie, running around with great excitement.

  Lucy’s dad agreed to film them, and Jessie started setting up the camera.

  She seems fine, thought Abby, watching Jessie wrangle with the tripod. Honestly, what is all the fuss about?

  It was a warm day, so after breakfast they headed down to the lake in their swimwear. Lucy’s parents had arranged for them to rent some kayaks.

  Abby and Hermione sunbathed on the dock while Jessie and Lucy sorted out the kayaks and life jackets. They’d decided to pair up and get two-person kayaks.

  ‘Check out my new bikini,’ said Abby, doing a little twirl. ‘I got it at Topshop.’ It was turquoise with tiny silver hearts printed on it, and she was so excited to get the chance to finally wear it.

  ‘Love the colour,’ said Hermione. ‘And your shades are cool! Can I borrow some of your sunscreen?’

  Abby passed it over. ‘Shall we share a boat, H?’ she asked. She wanted to avoid Jessie and Lucy if possible. She wasn’t ready yet to think about what Lucy had said.

  ‘Of course, ‘said Hermione, ‘but I’ll probably be useless as I’ve never been in a kayak before. ‘

  ‘Me neither, but I’m sure it’s a piece of cake,’ replied Abby, scanning the lake. ‘So where do you think those boys are today? Maybe we’ll see them when we get out on the lake. There are some other kayaks out there already.’

  ‘Perfect,’ muttered Hermione. ‘Now I get to capsize in front of a load of random guys.’

  Abby laughed. ‘You’ll be fine, H, trust me!’

  Once the girls had their life jackets on, Lucy and Jessie climbed into the first kayak. Abby watched as they paddled around in a circle and came back to the dock.

  ‘This is brilliant!’ exclaimed Jessie. ‘OK, guys. Your turn!’

  Abby noticed that despite her friendly tone, she only looked at Hermione as she spoke.

  ‘Abby, you go up to the front. I’ll get in the back,’ said Hermione nervously, eyeing the second canoe.

  ‘No problem!’ said Abby, used to being the brave one. She stepped into the kayak – it was wobblier than she’d expected – then SPLASH! Before she knew it, Abby had fallen into the freezing cold lake.

  ‘HELP!’ she cried, treading water and looking around for sharks . . . or, wait, maybe didn’t they live in lakes? There was the Loch Ness monster, but she was pretty sure that was in Scotland. Still yelping, she started swimming towards the dock.

  ‘Abs!’ the others shrieked. ‘Are you OK?’ Even Jessie looked concerned.

  ‘GIRL OVERBOARD!’ Abby heard someone shout, followed by lots of laughter.

  Two kayaks came into view – with four boys paddling towards them. It looked like the guys she had spotted yesterday. Hermione’s nightmare had happened to her!

  ‘Made a bit of a splash, didn’t you?’ one of them said with a cheeky grin.

  ‘Not funny,’ she choked through a mouthful of water.

  Hermione helped Abby out of the lake and back on to the dock. Abby gave herself a bit of a shake and thought it was lucky that her hair was in plaits. At least I don’t have straggly wet rat tails. She straightened out her baseball cap and wrapped a towel around herself.

  ‘Just testing the water to see if it was wet!’ she called to the boys.

  ‘L-let’s try again,’ said Lucy as they all regrouped on the dock. ‘Maybe Hermione should g-go with you, Jess, and I’ll p-pair up with Abby so we have somebody with experience in each b-boat.’

  Soon both kayaks were back on the lake and the girls were paddling out.

  ‘This is fun!’ exclaimed Abby, looking around to see where the boys had got to. ‘Oh, here they come,’ she whispered to Lucy as one of the kayaks surged through the water in their direction.

  ‘Hey, fancy a race round the island and back?’ called out the dark-haired boy in the stern.

  ‘I’m game,’ replied Abby and looked over to Jessie, who was nodding.

  ‘Yeah. Let’s do this!’ said Jessie.

  Abby grinned. When it came to boys versus girls, they could forget their stupid fight and join together in solidarity.

  The kayak race was a bit of a shambles as the boys were clearly more experienced than the girls. It was harder than it looked to stay on course and go fast, and Abby and Lucy capsized again. It was really fun, though, and when they’d finally all come back to the dock, they got ice creams and hung out together, laughing and chatting.

  ‘What are you guys doing tonight?’ Abby asked Finn, the dark-haired one. She ignored Jessie, who was raising her eyebrow behind Finn.

  She honestly thinks I’m not allowed to speak to boys who aren’t Charlie, thought Abby. So annoying . . . Plus, the only reason she was suggesting hanging out was that she’d noticed Hermione glancing repeatedly at Leo, Finn’s friend with the white-blond hair and a bad case of sunburn. He seemed just as shy as Hermione, so, if her hunch was correct, the bashful pair would need some help. If there was one thing Abby loved, it was a good match-making opportunity.

  Finn shrugged. ‘Dunno, nothing special.’

  ‘No, nothing,’ Leo added, reddening slightly.

  ‘Neither are we,’ said Hermione earnestly. ‘Well, you know, we’re cooking some food, obviously, but not much else, well, washing out our pans ha ha . . . ’ She trailed off awkwardly and looked to Abby for help.

  Abby smiled and dived in to rescue her. ‘Yeah, so anyway, guys, maybe you could come over to our campsite and hang out after dinner? We could play some games?’ She quickly looked at Lucy to check that it was OK.

  Lucy shrugged. ‘I’ll ask my p-parents, but I’m sure it’s fine.’

  ‘Cool, we’re in!’ said Finn after consulting with his friends. ‘Laters.’

  Abby smiled and mentally started planning outfits for Hermione. At least with the boys there, she wouldn’t be stuck dealing with Jessie’s issues and Lucy trying to guilt-trip her!

  VLOG 3

  FADE IN: ABBY, LUCY, JESSIE, HERMIONE, LEO and FINN sitting around the campfire.

  JESSIE

  Hey, guys! So here we are at the campsite with some new friends, Leo and Finn. Hoping we can upload this at the cafe here, which sometimes has Wi-Fi . . . fingers crossed. Say hi, guys.

  LEO and FINN wave.

  JESSIE (CONTINUED)

  Today we thought we’d do some fun challenges. We’re kicking off with the ‘What’s in My Mouth’ challenge, where people are blindfolded and have to guess the thing that’s placed in their mouth. It could be edible or not! So we’ve got a girls team with Lucy and Hermione, and a boys team with Leo and Finn. Abby, please put on the blindfolds!

  ABBY ties bandanas round the eyes of the four contestants.

  ABBY

  Are you ready?

  LUCY

  Yes! As w-we’ll ever be.

  JESSIE

  OK, here we go.

  ABBY approaches FINN, holding a spoon.

  ABBY

  Open wide, Finn. No – wider!

  FINN

  I don’t like this.

  (laughs)

  And I don’t trust you.

  ABBY

  You don’t trust me? Oh well
, that’s a shame. Open up!

  FINN opens his mouth slowly, and ABBY pops in the spoon.

  ABBY (CONTINUED)

  Go on, swallow it! It’s safe.

  ABBY laughs. FINN swallows, and a few seconds later, leaps up, yelping.

  FINN

  Aargh! It’s really hot! It’s burning my mouth!

  Get me a glass of water!

  ABBY

  (giggling)

  Here you go.

  ABBY hands him a glass of water.

  ABBY (CONTINUED)

  Can you guess what it is?

  FINN

  (fanning his mouth)

  Chili sauce? Tabasco? OMG. It feels like my lips are on fire . . .

  JESSIE

  Boom, you nailed it! Tabasco.

  One point for the boys’ team. Next up is LEO.

  LEO

  This is unsettling . . . the fear of the unknown and all that.

  HERMIONE

  (fiddling with her blindfold)

  I know the feeling.

  ABBY

  Open wide, Leo!

  ABBY puts the tip of a make-up brush into LEO’s mouth. LEO spits out the brush.

  LEO

  Ugh! It’s furry. Sort of tickly. Like a bumblebee.

  ABBY

  As if I’d put a bee in your mouth! Guess again.

  LEO

  A soft toy? I don’t know. I give up . . .

  ABBY

  (exclaims)

  It’s a make-up brush!

  LEO rips off his bandana to look at it.

  LEO

  What! No way.

  JESSIE

  No points for you, soz. OK, girls, now it’s your turn . . . Hermione, open up! I’ve got a spoonful of something for you.

  HERMIONE

  Oh God, I hope it’s not Tabasco again.

  JESSIE puts the spoon into HERMIONE’s mouth. HERMIONE swallows slowly and pulls a face.

  HERMIONE

  Oof! It’s really sour. Lemon juice?

  JESSIE

  Not quite.

  HERMIONE

  Lime! Lime juice!

  JESSIE

  Yessss! One point for the girls team. Next up, Lucy.

  LUCY

  Be kind!

  JESSIE

  Stick out your tongue.

  JESSIE places a cotton-wool ball on LUCY’s tongue.

  LUCY

  Eeew! W-what is it?

  LUCY raises her hands to remove it.

  JESSIE

  Hands down! You’re not allowed to touch. You can only use your mouth.

  LUCY tries to spit out the ball and fails.

  LUCY

  It’s stuck to my t-tongue! Is it a t-tissue maybe?

  JESSIE

  Close, but not quite. Guess again!

  LUCY

  Dunno. I g-give up. It’s gross.

  JESSIE

  Cotton-wool ball! So, guys, it’s a draw . . . one all.

  Last round to decide the winner.

  ABBY

  OK, Finn. Open up. I’m gonna put the whole thing in your mouth.

  ABBY places a prawn on to FINN’s tongue.

  FINN

  Argh! It smells fishy, but it feels like a worm.

  (shouting)

  IS IT A WORM? I’ll kill you.

  ABBY

  (laughing hysterically)

  No, it’s not a worm. It’s food. You can give it a little chew . . .

  FINN

  I’m not doing that!

  FINN spits it into his hand.

  FINN

  I give up.

  JESSIE

  It’s just a prawn!

  FINN

  I was close. It did smell like fish.

  JESSIE

  Soz. OK, Leo, you’re up next. Bandana back on, please!

  LEO pulls the bandana back over his eyes

  LEO

  Ready.

  ABBY places an olive into his mouth.

  LEO (CONTINUED)

  Ooh . . . it’s round and smooth. It might be a grape, but it tastes a bit salty. Maybe a pickled onion. Is it safe to chew?

  JESSIE

  Sure.

  LEO bites into the olive.

  LEO

  Oh – olive!

  JESSIE

  Bingo! Two points for the boys. Now, Hermione, here comes another spoonful.

  HERMIONE

  I’ll try to be brave.

  ABBY places a spoon into HERMIONE’s mouth.

  HERMIONE (CONTINUED)

  Yuck, it’s slimy and sharp. Quite hot.

  (thinks)

  I thought it was mayo, but now I’m thinking mustard.

  JESSIE

  Woohoo! Another point for the girls . . . so it’s two–two. Now, Lucy, it’s all down to you.

  HERMIONE

  (laughing)

  No pressure, Luce!

  LUCY

  Bring it on!

  ABBY places a piece of raw broccoli in LUCY’s mouth.

  LUCY (CONTINUED)

  Eew! It smells kind of like B-Brussels sprouts . . .

  JESSIE

  Go on, give it a chew.

  LUCY crunches the broccoli.

  JESSIE (CONTINUED)

  Whadaya think?

  LUCY pulls a face.

  LUCY

  B-broccoli. Raw.

  ABBY

  (shouting)

  Hooray! You’re right. Girls win! Three–two.

  Everyone removes their bandanas.

  HERMIONE

  I’ve got a consolation prize for you, Leo. Some homemade cookies from back home.

  HERMIONE opens up a tin and passes it to LEO.

  LEO

  Amazing, thanks!

  FINN

  Er, what about me?

  HERMIONE looks suddenly embarrassed.

  HERMIONE

  Oh yeah, sorry, for you too. That’s what I meant.

  HERMIONE passes FINN the tin, and he shakes his head in mock outrage.

  JESSIE

  (to camera)

  So, I hope you all enjoyed this video, guys. Give us a thumbs-up down below and watch out for our next video from Blackwater Lake. Bye!

  They all wave.

  FADE OUT as they continue chatting and eating.

  Views: 14,701

  Subscribers: 24,213

  Comments:

  StephSaysHi: If someone put a prawn in my mouth, I would freak. Out.

  evie_bakes: Anyone else think Hermione has a thing for Leo?

  (Reply: pink_sparkles: Totally! )

  miavlogs: Tabasco is amazing. I put it in everything xx

  foodchallengeking: These were soo easy!

  (scroll down to see 35 more comments)

  Hermione woke feeling ravenous, despite all the cookies she’d eaten the night before, after a better night’s sleep. The mouse hadn’t made a reappearance, and even the mosquitoes had left her in peace. Things were looking up!

  She’d actually enjoyed the evening round the campfire with the boys from the campsite. Leo had turned out to be a big Harry Potter fan, and they’d had quite a bit to talk about, even though he (gasp) hadn’t read the books, only seen the films. Usually Hermione would be annoyed by this, but for some reason she could forgive Leo . . . Plus his sunburn was weirdly kind of cute.

  ‘Knock, knock . . .’ said Lucy’s dad, outside the tent. ‘Everybody decent?’

  ‘Yeah,’ said Hermione, looking around. The others were still snoozing. ‘Decent and mostly asleep!’

  ‘Well, consider this your hotel wake-up call,’ said Mr Lockwood, poking his head in. ‘We have a new guest joining us later today, and we need to prepare—’

  ‘Sassy, Sassy, Sassy,’ cried Maggie, running in past her dad. ‘Sassy’s coming!’ She launched herself on to Lucy’s sleeping bag.

  ‘Huh?’ said Hermione, confused.

  At the same time, Abby sat up. ‘OMG, really? She said yesterday she was trying to get her dad to drive her, but I didn’t think he actually w
ould! AMAZING!’ She reached for her phone and started tapping excitedly at the screen.

  Hermione looked anxiously at Jessie, who had also woken up in all the commotion.

  ‘Sassy’s coming?’ Surprise flickered over Jessie’s face, ‘Cool,’ she said simply.

  Hermione gave her a little smile. She could tell Jessie was trying to be mature about the whole thing.

  ‘Thanks f-for organizing that, Dad,’ said Lucy. ‘When are they coming?’

  ‘Couple of hours, maybe – they made an early start,’ said Mr Lockwood. ‘Sassy’s father says she was miserable on her own, knowing you were all here, poor girl! He’s sorted a Chesterbury ticket too. I’ll need to drive you girls over early and then come back for your mother and Maggie when we go, as we won’t all fit otherwise. And I’m hoping we can squeeze Sassy into your tent.’

  ‘Yeah, totally, Mr L. She can sleep here next to me,’ said Abby, looking up from her phone and patting the tiny spot next to her. ‘Acres of room.’

  ‘So cool, and now that the f-five of us can do some vlogs together, our viewers will be so h-happy. Off you g-get, monkey,’ Lucy said to Maggie. ‘Dad, do you still w-want me to babysit this morning?’

  ‘Yes, we’re going food shopping. We’re running dangerously low on supplies – especially now that we’ll have another mouth to feed.’ He waved at Maggie. ‘She’s all yours – see ya, kiddo! . . . OK, I’m out of here.’ Mr Lockwood spluttered as Abby spritzed herself with a cloud of floral deodorant, and crawled back out of the tent.

  Hermione waved her hands about in the air. ‘Abs, I think you’re good now. You probably don’t need to reapply for at least a year,’ she said, laughing at the sour look she got in response.