Sweat beaded on my forehead and my chest rose and fell steeply as I drew in shaky breaths. With my back pressed flush against the outside of my cabin, I faced only the lush trees surrounding the outer rim of the campgrounds. Everything was shrouded in silence, and as of now my only companion was the intense heat of the high afternoon sun. Dare I move? If any of them were to catch me without a weapon, I’d surely be finished.

In fact, they’d nearly caught me early as I had just found one of my teammates. She, too, had mud-splattered sneakers, drenched clothing, and a lack of a weapon. It seemed we had only had a moment together before a small group of them had us surrounded. She was my teammate, but she fell for me at that time. Took one straight to the back, and tumbled forwards with the heavy blow. Anxiety passed over me as I watched my teammate fall, but the only thing I could do was run.

Now I stood there in hiding, fatigued from battle as my thoughts dwelled on all those whom we had lost. Many had fallen that day, their bodies colliding one after the other with the unforgiving dirt of the ground as they were taken down by the other team. They had had a battle plan; we had simply wanted to have fun. Within the span of a few hours’ time, the campgrounds had turned into a war zone.

Taking a deep breath, I looked up at the sky, eyes squinting under the inhospitable strength of the sun. How much longer would this go on? Would I make it out alright? My breath eventually evened out and I let my gaze fall as I began contemplating my plan of escape. Hiding behind my cabin forever while my teammates fell was the last thing I wanted to do, no matter how foolish it may be to step a foot out into the open.

First things first, however, I noticed one of my shoelaces had been untied in my running frenzy. Bending over, I went to fix the problem, but nature had other plans in store for me. Under the pressure of my shifting weight, the leaves and smaller branches beneath my feet let out the loudest crunch they could muster to pierce the still air. I cringed. My body tensed where I knelt as I waited in still silence for the sign of their coming. After a few seconds, my panic passed, and I went about my task of tying my shoes with a new sense of calm.

A false calm, that was, for surely enough I soon heard the battle cries of my pursuers rise from beyond the other side of my cabin. I could’ve sworn I felt my heart stop for a moment as my breath hitched itself. I forcefully swallowed the lump in my throat as my heartbeat went aflutter and my hands began shaking in anxiety. Ever tried tying your shoes with shaking hands? The task took far longer than it should have and by the time I was done, it was too late.

Standing and turning in the other direction haphazardly, I came face-to-face with my demise. Splash! All I saw was red as the water balloon made contact with my face, the slight pain nothing in comparison with the shock of the cold water now drenching my front.

I doubt the counselors had suspected the camp ground to turn into a war zone with their suggestion of a water balloon fight that day, but that it had. After leaving my hiding spot in shame, I saw others of my team walking around in the same condition as I. We were all cold, wet, and, well, smiling. It appeared as if the other team- the red team- had gotten the best of us, but as we sat around the fire pit discussing our experiences, we couldn’t help but be content. This was when an unexpected ray of hope made its appearance. Our counselor dawned a green vest and stood before my team to present our grand weapon for the battle to occur the following day: the water gun bazooka.