The Sign in the Smoke (Nancy Drew Diaries #12)(32)

“Harper,” I said nervously, “is there . . . anything else you want to tell me?”

She looked up at me, confused.

“Is flooding the cabin the only thing you’ve done to try to go home?” I added.

Harper’s eyes widened. “Oh, yes!” she said. “I wouldn’t . . . I mean . . . you must think I’m a monster!”

I shook my head rapidly. “No, no, no, Harper,” I said. “I just wanted to be clear. And I think the other girls do like you. Maybe they just don’t know you that well? You spend a lot of free time reading, which I know you love, and that’s great. But it doesn’t give the other girls a lot of opportunity to get to know you.”

Harper sniffled again. “They’re always busy giving each other pedicures or playing that stupid MASH game,” she muttered. I couldn’t help smiling, remembering the “future-telling” game (Mansion, Apartment, Shack, House) that Bess had tortured George and me with when we were younger. I always kind of thought it was stupid too.

I patted her back. “Tell you what,” I said. “How about we skip the sing-along and have a little get-to-know-you bunk meeting instead?”

Harper drew back immediately, looking at me with concern. “I’m not playing Truth or Dare,” she insisted.

Oh, Harper. We have more in common than you know. I held up my hand. “No Truth or Dare. Scout’s honor.”

“We’re not scouts,” Harper muttered, shooting me a puzzled look.

“Sorry,” I said, putting the hand over my heart instead. “I promise. You have my word. Now, will you dry your eyes and come back to the bunk with me?”

Harper looked at me for a moment. She pulled off her glasses again and wiped her eyes, which were still pink and wet. “Okay,” she said, putting the glasses back on. “But if I’d still rather be home, can I leave early?”

I tried to stifle my sigh of disappointment. What to say? “If you really feel like you can’t stay, we’ll talk to Deborah and Miles and figure something out,” I promised.

Harper nodded and stood up from the bench. “Deal,” she said, holding out her hand to shake.



“. . . we all have something that makes us special,” I said to the whole bunk a few minutes later. We were all sitting in a circle on the cabin floor, sweating in the stagnant air. Maya had run to Deborah to explain that our bunk was going to skip the sing-along, and Deborah had said it was okay. “And I think we all have more in common than we might realize at first. For example, Harper and I realized that we both hate the game Truth or Dare!”

There were squeals of surprise, and a few nods of agreement.

“Oh my gosh, I hate that game too,” said Nina in a rush. “It’s like, want to do something really embarrassing or tell everyone something you never planned on telling anyone? It’s the worst!”

Kiki pushed her playfully. “Are you kidding? It’s so much fun!”

Nina shook her head, turning away. “I clearly have nothing in common with you,” she sniffed.

Everyone laughed, but Kiki held up her hand. “Not true! We both love to watch Degrassi on Netflix.”

Nina grinned. “I will grant you that,” she said.

“Anyway, guys,” I said. “My point is that we should all make a real effort to get to know everyone here—even the people you don’t think you have anything in common with. Because chances are, you have quite a lot in common.”

Cece frowned and looked at Harper. “Harper, why do you read all the time?” she asked.

“Yeah,” Winnie agreed. “It’s kind of like you don’t want to talk to us.”

Harper blushed and looked down at her lap. “It’s not that at all,” she said. “It’s just . . . I don’t know. I’m a quiet person. Sometimes when it gets really loud and crazy in here, I just need some time to be in my own head.”

Katie raised her chin. “That’s called being an introvert,” she said. “I’m one too! I totally get it, Harper.”

Harper looked surprised. “You do?”

Katie nodded. “That’s why I like to put on my headphones sometimes,” she said, and when Harper looked stunned, she added, “You probably don’t notice. But a lot of times when everyone’s talking, I’ll put on my headphones and just focus on the music and think about whatever. It helps me relax.”

I raised a hand. “I feel like that too sometimes,” I said. “Like, sometimes? If I’m trying to solve a really complex . . . um, problem . . . I’ll try to spend some time alone so I can really think. Sometimes I find that hard to do with people around.”

Everyone nodded.

“Hey, Harper?” Cece asked after a few seconds. “Would you maybe read us some pages from your books? I’ve been really interested in learning more since you first told us about them,” she said, “but I haven’t had a lot of time to read here. Maybe if you read to all of us, we could enjoy them with you?”

Harper looked at me, her cheeks flushed with, I thought, pleasure. “Would that be okay?” she asked.

“Oh gosh, yes!” I said. “In fact, I think that’s a great idea. Let’s all relax on our bunks and you can read us a story, Harper!”