The Treasure in the Sky

By Cariel Davothe

Cameron Vargas is just a regular teenage girl. She has crushes, friends, and awkward fights with her parents. But she's not a regular teenage girl. Her friends are all imaginary, her crushes are all book characters, and her parents are nonexistent. And even if she can't control her parental situation, she can sum up all her other problems into t

• Language: English
• Publisher: Cariel Davothe
• Release date: Nov 1, 2021
• ISBN: 9781638480365

Book preview

1

Cameron stared at the looming building in front of her. She looked at the ground and tugged on her dress. New year, the same school. New kids, the same school. New foster family, the same school.

Well, no. She’d had a new foster family. They’d given her back yesterday.

She took a deep breath and tucked her hair behind her ear. She had started to walk towards the school when she heard a jeer behind her. She winced as someone barreled into her from behind, sending her flying to the ground.

Steeling herself and picking her face out of the snow, she felt someone kick her lightly in the shin. Not hard enough to hurt, but more like a reminder that she was on the ground.

She clenched her teeth as she caught a whiff of a familiar scent. The scent of cologne, cinnamon, and redwood. The smell of Oscar Winefield.

She knew it was Oscar because he’d modeled for a huge agency a few years back. Apparently he was so good they’d made him his own cologne, one that nobody else in the world had access to. And as much as Cameron hated admitting it, it smelled good.

The boy smirked as he looked down at her.

Morning! he said with a smile so fake it would put plastic to shame. When Cameron just brushed herself off and didn’t look at him, he frowned.

Hey, look at me when I talk to you, huh?

Cameron looked up and stared at him. I’m looking. That sentence wasn’t grammatically correct.

Oscar tilted his head. "Don’t talk to me about my grammar. I speak better English than you, Squirrel Girl."

Cameron’s cheeks warmed at the nickname. She’d gotten it when a squirrel had gotten into the classroom one time in third grade. It was attacking Oscar, and she’d spoken to it and told it to leave. Instead of thanking her, Oscar had just laughed at her and called her Squirrel Girl, and the name stuck.

Oscar glared at her in annoyance. You’re lucky I’m late for class. He turned on his heel and smiled brightly at Cameron, who was standing in the snow with tears welling up in her eyes.

See ya, Squirrel Girl!

Cameron balled her hands into fists and stomped towards the school building, where kids were streaming in out of the cold of northern Cincinnati.

She wiped her boots on the huge mat that welcomed her on the floor, deliberately rubbing snow on the ‘w’ in front of welcome.

She breathed in slowly and strolled down the hallway.

Most people would consider high school as a new beginning, a fresh start.

But not Cameron.

Hey! Squirrel girl!

Cameron ignored the name as someone threw a paper ball at her head. It bounced off her hair and fell to the floor.

No, this was no fresh start. She was Squirrel Girl, courtesy of Oscar Winefield. He just happened to be attractive and funny, so people followed him like sheep. If Oscar says chocolate is gross, chocolate is gross, even if it’s your most favorite thing to eat in the entire world. If Oscar says soccer isn’t a real sport, it’s not a real sport, even if you’re the captain of the star team. And Oscar had dubbed her ‘Squirrel Girl,’ so she was Squirrel Girl, even to Marinette, who used to be her best friend.

So, unlike most 14-year-old female freshmen, Cameron wasn’t gossiping about boys or putting on makeup in a hand mirror or kicking a ball down the hall while she walked to her locker with friends.

No, she walked to her locker alone, tugging at the hem of the pretty white dress her social worker had bought her. She was wearing the same puffy red coat she’d had since sixth grade, and it was a little small due to the growth spurt she had last year.

Students whispered behind their hands as she spun her new locker combination, her fingers automatically spinning to the right like she had for the past three years. She sighed in annoyance as she moved her fingers to the left.

The locker still wouldn’t open.

She spied a pretty brunette girl beside her struggling with her locker. She also spied Carter—captain of the football team—come and help her. And when the girl had gotten it open, thanking him with a huge smile, Carter looked at Cameron. He wrinkled his nose just the slightest, so imperceptive that you would have to be watching for it to catch it.

But Cameron was watching. Just like she watched as Carter made his way back down the hall, completely ignoring her as she struggled to open her locker.

She smiled as she finally opened it on the fourth try. But before she had put her coat in, she heard a familiar giggle. Cameron hid behind her hair, silently willing the girl to pass. But she didn’t. Why would she?

Marinette flipped her dark brown hair over her shoulder and raised a manicured eyebrow, accidentally slamming Cameron’s locker closed.

"Squirrel Girl? I heard a little rumor that you moved cities because no one would adopt you! Since you’re standing here, I’m going to assume that’s not true. Can you confirm my assumption?"

Cameron glared at the locker again. She turned to Marinette and frowned.

Mari, she said, can’t you just leave me alone? I’m honestly having a bad day. I’m not in the mood for this.

Marinette raised her eyebrows so high they probably hit the ceiling. Excuse me, but did I ask for your opinion? She tilted her head. "No, I asked you a question."

I… have to get to class.

Marinette glowered at Cameron and knocked the coat out of her hand. Then, she turned to the other girl that had been struggling with her locker and might’ve taken the hot drink out of her hand and dropped it at Cameron’s feet, burning her legs and staining a huge spot on her dress. Marinette faked a shocked expression.

Oops! I’m so clumsy. My bad… I didn’t mean to do that. She brightened as Cameron felt hot tears pricking the back of her eyes again. Marinette sauntered away, calling over her shoulder.

"I have to get to class! Bye, Squirrel Girl!"

Cameron grabbed her coat and ran to the bathroom. She wasn’t going to cry in front of the entire ninth grade. Definitely not.

She locked herself in a stall and sat on the back of the toilet, trying to stifle her sobs as warm tears rolled down her cheeks. She hadn’t expected any better, but she had at least hoped that this year would be different.

She stayed in the bathroom during all of first period, not wanting to deal with Oscar and Marinette at the moment. Instead, she watched videos on her phone until the battery went dead. She pulled her portable charger out of her coat, plugged it up, and placed the phone back in her pocket.

Just before the first period bell rang, Cameron washed her face and went to work on her locker, making sure to remember all of her finger movements. This time, she opened it on the first try.

Stuffing her coat in the locker was no problem, and soon she was standing alone in the hallway. She straightened her dress, fixed her hair, and rubbed her brown eyes.

I’m ready for the day. No amount of bullying is going to stop me today!

She heard a snicker behind her. Look! Squirrel Girl is talking to herself!

Cameron squeezed her eyes shut and rolled her shoulders.

She leaned against her locker as the bell rung. Kids streamed out of their respective classes, most of them ignoring her. She spotted Oscar up the hallway, Marinette hanging on his arm. She stared at the back of his head and he turned around, wrinkling his nose before turning back to Marinette and Devon, his best friend.

Cameron rolled her eyes as she started to her second-period class, eyes on the floor.

She should’ve been looking up though, because suddenly Marinette was standing in the middle of the hallway. But Cameron didn’t see her, and all of her books scattered to the floor. Cameron stared at her books on the floor, then stared at the diva with the long, dark brown hair and dark blue eyes, who sashayed away.

Cameron sighed and bent down to pick up her fallen books, just to find them already stacked in a neat pile. Someone was holding them, and Cameron cleared her throat as she stared at the guy in front of her.

He was Asian, with a pretty smile and a rectangle-shaped face. He held her books out to her. She took them.

Um… thanks? I think. Thank you.

He grinned and scratched his head. No problem, he said, you’re Cameron, right? Why does everyone call you Squirrel Girl?

Cameron blinked. No one had said her real name in so long she’d almost forgotten it herself. The kids at school called her Squirrel Girl, the people at the adoption center all called her the bouncy one because she could never stick to one family, and her teachers all called her Collette (courtesy of Oscar Winefield).

And now this friendly guy was picking up her books and calling her Cameron. It was enough to make her swoon. But she didn’t. She was simply confused.

Are you new? she asked.

He smiled a warm smile at her and held out his hand. I’m Brent. And yeah, I’m new. How could you tell?

Because I’ve never seen you, and clearly you haven’t gotten the ‘stay away from Squirrel Girl’ memo.

She ignored his hand, and he put it down. Brent frowned. I don’t know why they call you that, and I don’t like bullies. I don’t have a valid reason to stay away from you, so I’ll stick around until I do. What classes do you have?

Cameron was about to answer when a familiar face came strutting down the hall. Again.

Brent! Why are you talking to her? You know she’s social suicide, right? Marinette tossed her pretty hair over her shoulder and looked down her nose at Cameron, which looked difficult, seeing as Cameron was two inches taller than her.

She clung to Brent’s arm, who wriggled out of her grasp. Come on, she giggled, let’s go to lunch together later! I can show you around the school.

Brent glanced at her for a moment before shaking his head. No thanks, Marinette.

Marinette stood there, shocked, as he waved at her. She took the hint, marching away in a huff. Brent turned to Cameron, who was staring at them.

Cameron shifted the books in her hands as she continued down the hall to Mrs. Warbly’s class. She turned to him, shyly.

You know Mari? she asked.

Marinette? Yeah, she pounced on me as soon as I stepped foot into first period. Before that, she’d been hanging around that Oscar boy.

Cameron sighed and looked at the ground. You have Mr. Thistle for first period, right? ELA?

Yeah. How’d you know?

"Because both Oscar and Marinette are in that class."

Brent frowned. Do you have problems with both of them?

"I mean… yeah. Mari used to be my best friend, in like, third grade. But then I became Squirrel Girl, and she left. Went over to the dark side."

So Oscar has always bullied you?

"No. He never even paid attention to me until third grade. The only reason he even knew what letter my name started with was because Mari had this huge crush on him. She still does."

Brent tilted his head as he stopped in front of the door. Are they dating or something?

Nope. Oscar’s made it exceedingly clear that he isn’t interested, but Marinette is persistent. We’re here, by the way.

She opened the door to Mrs. Warbly’s classroom. Mrs. Warbly was a tall lady with short brown hair and a purple pantsuit. She smiled at Cameron and Brent as they entered the class, stopping them as they were about to take seats.

Good morning! Can I have your last names?

Cameron blinked. Oh, um, Vargas.

Arviyo, replied Brent.

The teacher nodded as she handed each of them a slip of paper. Here are your seat numbers.

Brent furrowed his brow. We have assigned seats?

Mrs. Warbly raised an eyebrow. Yes, Mr. Arviyo. If there is a problem, see me after class.

Brent pursed his lips and shrugged at Cameron apologetically. Cameron sighed. A was nowhere close to V, so Brent took a seat in the back while Cameron made her way to the front. She froze as she saw who was sitting next to her.

Oscar wrinkled his nose and smiled. He patted the seat invitingly, grinning like a Cheshire cat.

Mrs. Warbly cleared her throat as Cameron stared at the seat in horror.

Ms. Vargas? Is there a problem?

Cameron snapped her head towards the teacher. She pressed her lips together. She wasn’t a snitch, but it’s not like she could just walk out of the class. So she sighed and slowly sat down next to Oscar. The seats were too close together for comfort, but at least he smelled good.

Cameron hid behind her long brown hair as Oscar turned to her with a smile that could melt anybody’s heart. Well, anybody’s heart but hers. Cameron just reddened and mentally slapped herself for being attracted to the jerk.

Squirrel Girl, what happened to your dress? The first time you actually wear something nice, you manage to mess it up.

He shook his head in disapproval and tutted dramatically.

Cameron covered her face even more as she ignored him, watching the kids stream in.

Hey, what did I say about looking at me when I talked to you?

Even though she didn’t want to, she slowly turned to look at his face. Oscar didn’t often push her buttons, but he definitely knew how to.

So she glared at him with such ferocity he jerked back a bit, eyes widening in shock.

What’s your problem, Oscar? I’ve never even done anything to you.

Oscar thought about it for a minute before composing himself. Hm. Never thought of it. Just not a fan of change, I guess. He furrowed his eyebrows and stared at her coolly for a minute, recovering from his initial shock. Then he turned away from her.

You know what? I’m feeling generous. I’ll give you a break today. Don’t screw it up, though, and don’t look at me.

Cameron blinked. When she didn’t move, Oscar glared at her.

What part of ‘don’t look at me’ don’t you understand?

Cameron quickly turned around, silently rejoicing.

Oscar didn’t bother her that day. Not during the rest of second period when she’d asked him for help, or during lunch. Brent had sat with her, and Oscar had glanced over but hadn’t said anything. The teachers hadn’t called her Collette, like they usually did. He hadn’t bothered her during third, fourth, or fifth period, even if they did have almost every single class together. He wasn’t even rude to her when she had reluctantly asked him for help in art class (she only had art one time, to finish her credits). He’d even scolded Marinette when she’d said something rude in science class!

Oscar was known for being three things: insanely attractive, the head of the basketball team, and an art whiz. He’d recreated famous drawings and paintings that even the art teacher couldn’t fathom.

But he wasn’t known for things like this. Then again, he wasn’t known for being a bully. The only person he picked on was Cameron. If you asked anyone else, Oscar was actually very warm and affectionate.

To everyone except Cameron.

He also had his signature smell, which was… oddly refreshing?

Cameron shook her head and decided not to jinx her temporary freedom. She put her stuff in her locker before sixth period, silently pleading that Oscar wouldn’t change his mind before the end of the day.

Grabbing her books in a ridiculously good mood, she skipped down the hall to Mrs. Ashlie’s class. Math was her favorite period of the day, mainly because she was good at it. And she thought it was fun. I mean, who wouldn’t love all those numbers? Cameron loved a challenge, and math was the most challenging thing she could think of. Well, other than dealing with Oscar and Marinette.

With a smile on her face, she took a seat in the middle row, where she was most likely to get called on. The teacher was about to close the door after the last person walked in before a hand appeared, opening the door again.

Oscar stepped into the room. His hair was damp and his face was flushed, which meant he had been outside in the snow recently.

He eyed the room as Mrs. Ashlie sighed in annoyance. His eyes fell on the only empty seat in the room, which was next to Cameron. Oscar pursed his lips and tried to suppress a grimace as he trudged over and put his things beside the desk. Cameron scooted her chair away, giving him plenty of space to sit.

When he was settled, the teacher closed the door. She turned to the class. She had strawberry-blonde hair, bright blue eyes and small glasses.

Good afternoon, students, she began with a huge smile. "I know you might all be tired from the hassle of the first day of high school, so I’ll try not to be too exhausting today. Can’t say anything about tomorrow, though! Anyway, raise your hands if you’re new or don’t recognize anyone in here."

She looked around the room as no one raised their hand. Everyone had gone to the same middle school, and almost everybody had gone to the same elementary school. Then again, the elementary, middle, and high schools were all connected. Mrs. Ashlie’s eyebrows shot up.

"Oh! Okay, then. All my other classes had at least one new student, but I guess you all know each other. But I don’t know any of you, so I’d like you to fill out this sheet, please."

She handed everybody a worksheet with questions like who’s your best friend? and what’s your favorite color?

Cameron sat up in her seat and looked over the sheet. There was a short silence in the class as everyone answered the questions, then looked expectantly at the teacher as they passed their papers up to the front. Mrs. Ashlie smiled.

Okay, I’m known for always starting the year off with a project! So, you’ll have to partner up with the person beside you!

Oscar immediately bristled and Cameron almost cried. A project would likely last more than a day, and Oscar looked like he was about to blow a vein.

Cameron zoned out for the rest of the class period as the teacher explained the project. So she didn’t hear the bell when it rung, signaling the end of the school day. And she didn’t hear Oscar tapping the desk in front of her.

"Hey! Squirrel G… I mean, Cameron. Get up, come on. We’ve got to go. I’m not trying to stay here all night."

Cameron snapped her head up from the desk and looked up at Oscar, who was glaring at her impatiently.

"Dude. Come on."

She scrambled to gather her books, dropping them all in the process. Oscar groaned and rolled his eyes, scooping up her books for her and marching out the room.

Cameron blinked in surprise as she quickly followed him out the door. She had to jog to keep up with his pace as he made his way down the hall. People stared at them and whispered as they all flocked to the doors, eager to get home. Oscar reached Cameron’s locker and waited impatiently for her to catch up before he shoved her books in her arms, making her stumble back.

Oof! Oscar, what are you—?

Hush. Meet me outside the school in five minutes. Bus loop. Hurry up; I’ve got things to do today.

Oscar disappeared down the hall as Brent waved to Cameron. He walked up to her with his backpack slung over one shoulder.

Hey, Cameron! You look thoroughly confused. Was Oscar bothering you?

Cameron shook her head slowly. We have a project together. He doesn’t look happy about it, but he wants me to meet him at the bus loop in a couple of minutes.

She grabbed her coat from her locker and pulled on her boots. Brent closed her locker for her as she placed the books inside. She smiled gratefully at him before averting her gaze to the floor.

She turned to look at Brent again. Um, you have Mrs. Ashlie for…?

Second period.

Oh. So you must have the project, too.

Brent shrugged on his coat and nodded as he and Cameron walked down the hall. The halls were about empty now, so Cameron didn’t have to hide the huge stain on her dress.

She’d deal with that later. For now, she steeled herself against the cold as she stepped out of the school into the cold Ohio winter.

In Cincinnati, school had started (very) late this year due to two things: a statewide epidemic that had cleared up a few months before, and a super early winter.

So instead of a chilly autumn breeze for the first day of school, everyone was shivering and bundled up in sweaters, coats, hats, and gloves.

Cameron didn’t have a hat or gloves, so she settled for rubbing her hands together and blowing hot air onto them. Brent turned to her as he shoved his hands in his pocket. It didn’t look like he had gloves either.

So… there’s Oscar.

Cameron glanced up at the bus loop on the side of the school, where, sure enough, Oscar the Grouch was leaning against a bench. He watched the busses pull off and stared at Cameron and Brent as they made their way over.

You brought the new guy? Okay, then. Is he coming with us?

Cameron pursed her lips inquisitively. I… still don’t know where we’re going…?

Oscar frowned. Were you not listening in math class? Isn’t that your favorite class?

Cameron flushed and looked at the ground. I mean… yeah, it is. I was… I mean, we don’t have to… um, never mind. Where are we going? Wait, how did you know that?

Oscar sighed. "We have to look up some old