S.T.O.R.M Chapter Three

Chapter Three

New Feelings



Finally, Zane was allowed out of the infirmary, and he returned to his cabin, only to be greeted by a rare horror.

There was a new boy inside the cabin Zane lived in and he, he was trouble, and Zane knew this from the moment he looked upon the boy.

But the worst was when he spoke for the first time.

“Hello, you must be Zane.” Zane’s whole body stiffened, the voice that came out of the boys voice was the same voice Zane had heard in the cave. The one he presumed to be Zoe’s ‘Master’

“Hello…” Zane mumbled, his eyes never once leaving the face of the boy. Canton and T.J watched Zane closely, searching him for signs of certain insanity.

“My name is Tyler. It is a pleasure to meet you.” The boy said, his voice light, whispery, but with a vicious edge.

“As to meet you.” Zane lied through nearly clenched teeth.  The boy nodded, smirking rather cruelly. Zane’s large hands balled themselves slowly into fists, but this only caused Tyler’s smirk to grow. 

“Hey Zane, I heard you were...” Nathan had appeared in the door.  The thickly muscled teenage boy looked at them both, taking in the situation. Tyler’s eyes flickered over to Nathan and they widened for a split moment.

“Hello, I’m Nathan.” Nathan said, looking over the thin boy, a small smile on his broad face.

“Hello Nathan, my name…is…uh Tyler.”  Tyler stuttered, glancing over Nathan’s thick body.

“Hey. Zane, you hungry? Its almost time for dinner.” Nathan asked, a small smile across his face as he looked over at his best friend who he had missed quite much over the past week.

“I’m absolutely starving, I haven’t eaten decent food in at least six days.” Nathan grinned, holding open the door, motioning for Zane to head out before him.

Zane shot a quick glance over at Tyler, whose eyes were still trained on Nathan, and stepped out of the cabin.

“Zane, that dude was weird.” Nathan muttered after they had walked from the cabin, moving slowly towards the Cafeteria.  Zane slowly nodded, an uneasy feeling settled in the pit of his stomach.

“Yeah…weird.” He wasn’t yet sure that he should tell Nathan, or anyone for that matter, about what had actually happened to him.

“It seems odd that the camp would allow someone in so late, he must be pretty important for that to happen.” The broad shouldered boy commented to Zane.

“I suppose…” Zane’s mind really wasn’t into the conversation he was having with Nathan; it was off in the cave, the words replaying in his mind, over and over.

You should have asked your grandfather about your family history before he died.  They echoed, bouncing back and forth around in his head, mixing with all the newfound information on Kellan as well.

These things mixed together, leaving little room in Zane’s mind for much else.

“Zane…Earth to Zane!” Nathan’s voice heaved him out of his thoughts and he looked upon the gentle face of his close friend.

“Yeah?” He asked, trying to block out the sounds of the cafeteria just inches away from where they stood.

“I said, what was up with you and That Tyler kid, you seemed to be having some weird stare down when I came in.”  Zane’s body stiffened slightly, he had been hoping Nathan hadn’t noticed this.

“Nothing…there wasn’t anything up with me and that Tyler kid, we weren’t staring each other down…. we were…uh…I’m starving, c’mon.” Nathan’s broad, strong jaw fell just a bit. He then put his hands up in a surrendering like gesture.

“You know what, whatever it is, I think you’ll tell me eventually, so I’m not gonna push you. But if there’s a chance that he’s going to hurt you, I need to know so I can have your back. You’re my best friend Zane; I’m not going to let you fall, all right? I’ve always got your back.” The words were said with such power behind them, it made Zane feel extremely safe standing next to this tall, strong boy.

“Thanks Nate…I trust you, and I’ve got your back too.” Nathan just nodded, cracked a smile, and shoved his brother-like friend through the open door of the cafeteria.

Standing in line, Zane and Nathan kept up a conversation, Nathan filling Zane in on all that had happened in camp during his ‘absence’. It was mostly just over who had already run from the camp and had yet to be found. What Zane found most interesting about this was the fact that the missing girls were in fact Zoe and her two little friends.

Suddenly, Zane felt something slam into his back, causing him to take a step forward. He heard a small giggle from behind him and he turned, coming face to face with Maybelle. She smiled, waving her fingers sweetly.

“Hey Zane, how you feeling?” She asked, her eyes traveling carefully over his face.

“Great, thanks. Hey, thanks for…you know…helping me.” Zane stared at her, she looked different then he remembered her, her hair seemed redder, her eyes greener, and her smile brighter. He realized then that Maybelle Beckton was actually quite beautiful.

“You would have done the same for me, that’s what friends do, right? They protect and help each other.” Maybelle’s voice was sweet and light, nothing like it used to seem. Her tone seemed almost…flirty?

“Uh…yeah, friends do that.” Zane said dumbly, a small smile plastered awkwardly across his face.

Friends that word was always the one he thought of when it came to Maybelle, but now? Now it felt wrong.

“Hey Maybelle, your cabin’s near Zoe’s, did you notice anything weird going on before she left?” Nathan asked, breaking the trance both Zane and Maybelle seemed to have fallen under when they began speaking to each other. 

“Yeah, I know someone in Zoe’s cabin and she said that Zoe and those two other girls started acting really strange then one morning she woke up and they were gone.” Maybelle said, tearing her eyes away from Zane for a moment, they flickered right back to his when she finished. “Hey Zane, do you mind if I sit with you and Nathan during lunch? This whole Zoe thing is sort of freaking me out.” Zane opened his mouth quickly to answer but it was Nathan who spoke first.

“Of course, your our friend aren’t you?” Nathan said, jabbing Zane in the arm with his elbow.

Maybelle nodded, smiling. Zane and Nathan picked up their trays, now filled with food, and carried them towards their table, Maybelle close at their heels.

They took their seats, Zane and Maybelle sitting close, and dinner began. Canton came to the table late, a new, glazed look in his eyes.

“Hey Canton, Zane’s not here right now, please leave a message after the beep.” Nathan joked, glancing over at Zane and Maybelle who were deep in conversation, their food untouched, eyes locked into each other’s. Canton cracked a small smile but was otherwise silent.

“Hey Canton, man, what’s wrong?” Nathan asked, nudging his newer friend. Canton shrugged, his mouth staying firmly shut. Nathan sighed heavily, picking at his food. “Has everyone around here gone completely insane?” He muttered to himself before stuffing a large chunk of chicken into his wide mouth.

“I have yet to go insane, thanks.” Zane muttered; his eyes still locked with Maybelle’s. She laughed gently at Zane’s comment and leaned over to whisper something in his ear.

“Will you walk me back to my cabin? There’s something I want to tell you.” She whispered sweetly, her breath warm against his ear. Zane began to nod slowly.

“Yes, there’s something I want to tell you too.” Zane felt his heart rate accelerate.

‘Why the Hell do I feel like this? I’ve never liked Maybelle before, why, why now do I want her so badly?’  The thought danced in Zane’s feeble mind, but he couldn’t seem to find the answer, for some reason, after Maybelle had saved him, Zane Black had finally found a girl he wanted.

Nathan fake gagged from next to Zane and received a death glare from both Zane and Maybelle. He put his hands up in surrender for the second time today and laughed. Zane smirked and bit carefully into the sandwich on his tray, his appetite suddenly evaporating.

         Dinner was always the longest part of the day, almost two hours long, but campers were allowed out of the cafeteria at any time to begin their free time, the hour after dinner where they were allowed to do whatever they wanted. It had been nicknamed, by several campers, the Date Hour.

Zane and Maybelle walked slowly towards her cabin, their hand only centimeters away from each other.

The night was cool and Maybelle shivered slightly. Zane stopped walking and pulled off his jacket, laying it carefully around her shoulders.

“Thanks.” She muttered, turning away to hide the huge smile that spread across her face.

The walk ended too soon and the thought of Zane having to leave was brutal on both of their minds.

“So Maybelle, what did you want to talk about?” Zane asked openly, his eyes trailing over Maybelle’s slender body, stopping on her head, taking in the complete beauty that was translated onto her face.

“Umm…well you might think this kind of weird, but something happened Zane and well… I think that I like you…” She whispered the last sentence, the words catching in her throat, her heart beating so fast she thought it was going to explode out of her chest. Zane’s own breath caught and a small gasp escaped his lips. Maybelle’s pale cheeks blushed a deep red.

“Wow, I really shouldn’t have said anything.” She muttered, rolling her bright green eyes.

“No, no, I’m sort of glad that you told me, cause I think that I like you too…I can’t explain it, but ever since you saved me, I’ve had you bouncing around in my head.” Zane mentally kicked himself for lying on that last bit, he truly hadn’t thought about Maybelle until he saw her in the cafeteria but he wasn’t about to tell her that now.

“Really?” Maybelle choked on the word, her throat tight with a sort of happiness. Zane nodded slowly, brushing a lock of his hair out of his face and smiling handsomely.

“Yes.” The boy couldn’t believe what was happening to him, just two days ago he had thought of Maybelle as nothing but a friend and now, well now he was just seconds away from asking her out.

Their eyes met and they held each other’s gaze. Zane made a split second decision and leaned closer to her. She just looked at him, her mind slowly gauging what was about to happen. Zane carefully pressed his lips against Maybelle’s, gently at first, but then he grew in intensity.

Maybelle, who had been frozen, suddenly sprung to life, lacing her arms around Zane’s neck and entwining her fingers into his blonde hair. His lips became more urgent, pressing harder against hers, stopping only to take quick deep breaths.

Maybelle began to move her hands around on the back of his neck, fingering the scars trailing around it carefully, exploring.

“Maybelle.” He whispered her name, his voice light, feathery and sweet. This was perfect; this was how things were supposed to be.

It was Maybelle who pulled away first and looked up at Zane.

“Wow.” She whispered, carefully tracing her eyes over his lean body, resting her gaze on his perfect face.

Zane was silent as he looked at her and suddenly Maybelle felt ashamed, as if there was something wrong with her.

“I’m sorry Zane.” She said, her eyes dancing with happiness, her expression the exact opposite.

“I just kissed you randomly, and you’re apologizing?” He chuckled and looked away, a smile plastered on his face. Maybelle chuckled nervously.

“I guess so.” Zane wasn’t aware of how long they had been standing there, but it felt like ages.

“Your ridiculous.” He muttered playfully, shaking his head. Maybelle laughed quietly and touched Zane’s cheek.

“So does this mean you like me enough to be my boyfriend?” She asked him, her gaze still not straying from his face.

“Yes.” Zane’s face broke into a huge grin and he kissed her forehead. “Goodnight Maybelle Beckton.” He whispered into her ear before he loped off across the camp, never glancing back once.

Maybelle just stared after him, her jaw resting on the cool ground.

“Goodnight Zane Blake.”