Tomboy's Folly/Prologue
Thursday, June 15th
The day of the big hiking trip was finally here! Riley Wendel kept her eyes down as she got into line with the other boys. She was already starting to sweat, very nervous but determined to see this through.
"Alright, listen up!" The scout master's voice cut through the air like butter as they all stood at attention. "We're about to depart on a rugged and historic trail through the Rocky Mountains! This trip will take the better part of a week, but you've all been training for this. Let's show everyone back home how tough Troop 469 really is!"
The boys all pumped their fists in the air and cheered. Riley tried to join them in their fist pumps, but her apprehension took the wind out of her efforts. She was about to spend an entire week in the mountains with a troop of boys she didn't know... and they didn't know she was a girl! This had seemed like the perfect plan when she'd come up with it three days ago. What had she gotten herself into...
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Monday, June 12th (three days earlier)
Riley spun around, dropping the bag she'd been in the middle of packing. "But that's not fair!" Riley cried. "I've been looking forward to this trip for the last four years!!!"
"I know Riley, and I'm sorry." her mother said from the door of her room. "But some poor little girl got hurt on that trail yesterday and her mother is trying to sue your local Girl Scout chapter. All events are being called off until the lawsuit gets settled."
"This is so stupid." Riley's father said to his wife from the doorway. "One inept little girl doesn't follow the rules, goes off the trail and breaks her arm, and her mother has the nerve to say that it's the park and the Girl Scout's fault!?"
Riley's mother turned to her father. "Dear, calm down! Riley is upset! We said we'd stay calm for her sake." she whispered to her husband. Riley rolled her eyes - she could hear every word of her mother's extremely loud "whispering" - her mother always whispering way too loudly.
Riley's father sighed and turned back to his only daughter. "I'm sorry Riley, but this is just how it is. There's nothing we can do about it."
Riley wanted to scream. She clenched her fists, looking at the floor from beneath her bangs. "Riley...?" her mom asked worriedly. The same three words ran through the young girl's mind over, and over, and over again: "It's not fair, it's not fair, it's not fair!" Riley couldn't think of anything else.
When her mother tried to come over and put a hand on her shoulder, Riley lost it. She dropped her bag and leaped into her bed. Grabbing her pillow she screamed at the top of her lungs. She screamed so loudly that despite the pillow all the birds nesting trees within nearly a hundred meter radius of their house took to the air. When she was done screaming, she began to cry.
Her father came over and put a hand on her back as she sobbed into the pillow. "I'm so sorry, pumpkin. Maybe I can get some time off this summer and take you... I know how much you were looking forward to this."
He rubbed her back and Riley sobbed into the pillow for half an hour. Eventually the cell phone he always kept strapped to his waist rang. "I have to take this, honey. We can talk more later, just get some rest." He walked out of the room. "Yeah, sounds good. Tell them I'm on board." she heard him say as he closed her door behind him.
Riley loved her dad, but she swore he'd never taken a week off work in his life. He was always working, and hated the outdoors. They'd tried doing camping trips before, but he could never keep up with her and she could always tell he was always miserable... The best she could hope for this summer would be half a day waking up the trail before he wanted to turn back...
Still sniveling and feeling sorry for herself, Riley finally drifted off to sleep.
June 13th