The Art of Becoming Fierce

The first week of sophomore year, I got assigned to Fox cabin at Camp Pine Ridge. The counselors swore it was based on some personality quiz we took in June, but I'm pretty sure it was random. Either way, I was stuck with the clever, sneaky fox while my nemesis Jordan—varsity jacket, permanent smirk, zero chill—got put in Bull cabin. Of course he did. And Santiago? The guy I'd been lowkey obsessed with since seventh period Spanish last year? Yeah, Bear cabin. The universe had a sick sense of humor.

"You gonna eat that papaya or just stare at it like it's gonna bite?" Jordan leaned against the cafeteria table, his Bull cabin crew cracking up behind him like they'd rehearsed it.

My face burned. The exotic fruit challenge was supposed to be about stepping outside your comfort zone, but Jordan had turned it into yet another opportunity to remind me I didn't belong.

"I'm thinking about it," I shot back, but my voice wobbled.

Santiago slid into the seat across from me, his Bear cabin shirt slightly faded at the collar. "Don't let him get in your head. Fox cabin's supposed to be the smart ones, right?"

I blinked. Was he... defending me?

The papaya sat on my plate like an alien artifact—bright orange flesh, black seeds that looked like something from a horror movie. I'd never even seen one in real life before this summer. My mom's grocery shopping stopped at the safety zone: apples, bananas, maybe strawberries if they were on sale.

I picked up my fork. Jordan and his crew were watching. Santiago was watching. My whole cabin was watching.

"You don't have to do this," Santiago said quietly.

But something in me snapped. I was tired of being the girl who never tried anything new, who played it safe while people like Jordan roared through life taking whatever they wanted. Foxes were supposed to be clever, right? Resourceful? Fearless?

I took a bite.

The papaya hit my tongue—sweet, musky, nothing like I expected. Not bad. Not good either, but definitely not the catastrophe Jordan's face was predicting. I swallowed. Then I took another bite.

"Damn," Santiago said, actually smiling now. "Fox cabin's got more bite than I thought."

Jordan's smirk flickered. Whatever.

I kept eating, not because the papaya was suddenly my favorite thing in the world, but because I'd decided something in that moment. This summer wasn't going to be about blending into the background. This summer, I was done letting bulls push me around.

"So," I said, swallowing another bite. "Bear cabin doing anything after the campfire tonight?"

Santiago's eyes widened. Then he grinned. "Actually, yeah. We were gonna sneak down to the lake. You should come."

Behind me, Jordan made some comment I couldn't hear, but for the first time, I didn't even turn around.

The papaya still tasted weird, honestly. But I was starting to think that wasn't the point.