So, since I actually don't have a choice--I NEED to write. I tried not to 'cause I felt I was betraying The Freezer, but it was IMPOSSIBLE. I WAS GOING TO EXPLODE. So I'm using my brother's laptop, and I should not be on the internet.. But this is what I have so far:
~PROLOGUE~
A snarl.
Low, and mean. What should I do?
Thump, thump, thump.
Oh God, they’re going to kill me! I’m going to die!
Thump, thump, thump!
They’re getting close. Should I run, hide? But where? There’s only trees around me, and they’d be able to follow...
THUMP, THUMP, THUMP!
I wish I’d never visited Rossbane! I wish I’d just stayed home... with Mom... and Dad.
THUMP, THUMP, THUMP, THUMP.... THUMP.
It broke through the trees in front of me. It’s eyes were as white as the snow that lay around me... what was I to do?
Growl!
I backed away, slowly, but every step I took back, it went with me.
Grrrrrrr!
I fell over a fallen branch and landed on the ground, my brown hair splaying over the cold snow. “Please don’t kill me,” I whispered.
It stared at me... no, it watched me. It was watching me!
When I tried backing away it growled even more. I stopped, before standing up. “If you’re going to do it, then do it now! I don’t want you to kill me out of the blue. I want you to do it now. So do it!” Tears ran down my soft, pale face, and I pulled my jacket tighter around me, stretching the fabric. What did I care? I’d be dead in a minute or two anyway.
It stared at me, before revealing its large, pointed canines and attacking...
~CHAPTER ONE~
As I scooped up the remaining rug sacks I’d packed with my clothes, my mother stood in front of me looking awfully worried.
“Are you sure you want to go?” she asked, her frilly voice edged with worry.
“Yes, Mom. I’m sure. Aunt Lyd hasn’t seen me in, like, forever.”
“She saw you two years ago!”
“Mom, I want to go. Cameron said he needs my help with something, and I’m helping. I’ll only be gone for two months.”
“Only?! Darling, I can barely stand it when you stay over at Emily’s house...” Tears streamed down her face... for the, what was it, twelfth time today?
I sighed. “Please stop crying. If you want me to stay that bad then I’ll stay.” I meant it, I hated seeing my mother like this.
She suddenly pulled me in to a hug and said, “Oh, I’m sorry Zel, I didn’t mean to make you upset. Of course you can go... I’m just saying I’ll really miss you. Promise to call every day?”
“Promise.” I smiled and hugged her back.
“Time to go, you two!” my dad called from downstairs. He always had to be exactly on time. No earlier, no later.
I looked into my mother’s dark-green eyes and smiled. “Let’s go.”
***
The car ride to the airport was boring. Really boring. When Dad had started to discuss American politics with me I completely zoned out. Nothing in the world would be able to make me sit down and have a conversation about politics! Ever!
I watched as the trees flew passed. I loved trees... and forests... and rain. I guess that’s why I loved living in Ireland so much. Because that’s all it was. Trees and forests and rain. But I wouldn’t be seeing any of that for two months. Not in America. Although, in his letters, Cameron had mentioned something about a nearby forests after I’d told him I liked them. Maybe we could walk through it...
Cameron and I had been best friends when we were younger. He had been my knight-in-shining-armour-best-friend, or KISABF for short. He’d always stood up for me, saved me from potential death, and he’d just... been there. Until he and Aunt Lyd moved. My heart had nearly been torn from my chest by a rough, rusty pliers. I had cried four days straight, and hadn’t come out of my room for a week. Meals the occasional exception.
He’d said in his last letter he needed my help. Badly. That something terrible had happened and his life was in danger. That had worried me. I didn’t show the letter to my parents, of course, because they would have freaked and called Aunt Lyd. So I just broke Mr Piggybank and bought a ticket to Rossbane. It was a surprise... of course, Aunt Lyd knew, because you can’t just turn up at someone’s doorstep. But she’s keeping it from Cameron. I can’t wait to see the delight on his face.
Dad pulled the car to a stop and I legged it. I rushed out into the new downpour and turned in a circle. It would be the last time I’d feel rain on my skin in two months. I wanted to get the most out of it.
“Zelda, honey, can you get the pull-along?” my mother asked. I sighed and ran to the boot of my car, taking out my pull-along case. It was white... I liked white.
“My little girl going on a plane all by herself.”
“Mom, I’m sixteen.” I rolled my eyes and walked into the airport.
“You’ll always be my baby.” She nodded to a café called Take-Off and told me she and Dad would get things sorted while I get a drink.
“Hi there!” a perky blonde lady said when I reached the counter. The smell of coffee was really strong, and it made me kind of sleepy.
“Umm, can I have... hmm... can I have a hot chocolate, please? Oh, and can you add marshmallows?” I smiled at her and she said, “Sure.”
I sat down at a table and left my pull-along stand next to me. I caught sight of my reflection in a spoon that was on the table. Quickly, I tied my hair up into a ponytail, and started prodding at the bags under my emerald eyes. I hadn’t slept last night... I had been too excited about seeing Cameron.
I started counting on my fingers what time it would be there... if it was eleven a.m. here, then it would be... around six a.m. there.
“Here you go!” the perky blonde lady said, handing me my hot chocolate. I dug into my pocket and gave her three euro.
I smiled and she left. The hot chocolate was exquisite when I took a sip. Soft, warm, went smoothly down the throat. I wish Mom was able to make it like this.
“Darren, can you get me a coffee?” my mom said to my dad as she suddenly appeared and sat down next to me. He nodded and went off to the blonde lady.
“Zelda... I’ve just gotten a call from Lydia.” Her face was shadowed by nervousness, but also seriousness.
“What’s wrong, Mom?” The worry appeared in my face.
“Well, supposedly, Cameron’s gotten a new group of friends over the past month.” His last letter had been sent over a month ago... May 3rd, the date on it read when I took the folded piece of paper from my pocket. I’d written back, but he hadn’t... and he was the one who’d asked me for help..
“A bad group. Lydia says they’re the messers of the town. She says his new friends are the ones that cause all the trouble. And she said Cameron was arrested only last night for being caught smoking... I know he said he wanted your help, Zel, but I’m not sure if you should be around him if he’s going to be acting out like this. I just don’t know...”
Dad came back and Mom smiled up at him, before giving me a look that said ‘He knows nothing.’ I smiled at him too, before abnormally concentrating on my hot chocolate for the rest of the wait.
“I’ll call you when I get there,” I reassured my mother. She wasn’t crying now... instead, she had pasted a look of concern to her face.
“Okay,” she said, before waving and watching me board the enormous plane.
***
“ZELDA!” shrieked the shrilly voice of my Aunt Lydia as soon as I had gotten my bags from checkout. She ran to me, her too-big-to-be-real bosoms bouncing into her face as she did. Her arms extended and she engulfed me in a perfume-filled hug, before giving me a sloppy kiss on the cheek that left an enormous, pink-lipped mark.
I rolled my eyes and smiled. I really did love Aunt Lyd... why? Because she was crazy. Bonkers, as my dad had put it.
“Hi, Aunt Lyd!” I beamed.
“Oh, hon, no need for aunt! I’m not that old, y’know!” Aunt Lyd always said that... even though she was forty-five.
“Sorry. Lyd it is then!” I stuck my tongue out playfully and she slapped my arm lightly.
“Let’s go, then.”
And with that, we exited the shiny airport, and walked straight into a hailstorm.
~CHAPTER TWO~
I couldn’t believe it. I just couldn’t. A place in America that had hailstorms?! No way. It just wasn’t possible. But there it was, outside the car window, pounding on the rooftop, making it impossible to see six metres ahead of you.
“Cameron never mentioned it was like Ireland here,” I said as I turned to Aunt Lyd.
“Oh, honey, it’s worse! The only days of sunshine I’ve seen here are when meteorites fall out of the sky!” I faked a laugh with her decided that meant she’d never seen a sunny day...
“But, if it’s never hot then why’d you move here?” I asked, curious.
“Well, you remember Cam’s father, Gerald? Yes, well, he got a job here, so off we went. Then I found him cheating on me with that skank, pardon my language, and I told him it was over. I kicked him out of the house, but I never left... I just like it here. And so does Cam... well, he did, up until a month ago. Did your mother tell you?”
“About his new friends?” Aunt Lyd nodded. “Yeah, she told me. Who are they? How’d he get involved with them?”
“They’re the terrors of the town. The worst kids. They steal, they smoke, they drink, the fight... I just can’t believe Cam fell for that girl. That’s why he’s their friend. Because of a girl named Aleesha. She’s the devil’s daughter, I’ll tell you that. Worst of the worst.
“Although, I have to say one good thing about her... When she’s with Cam, he lights up. The last time I saw like that was when you two were in the same country. That’s why I think it’s a brilliant idea to have you. He’ll snap out of this spell that girl’s put him under and he’ll dump her... hopefully.”
She hadn’t taken her eyes off the road throughout all of what she’d said, but her grip on the steering wheel had tightened immensely.
“I hope that’ll happen too, Lyd. And I hope he recognizes me...” She took out the letter from her pocket again.
May 3rd 2012
Dear Zelda,
I’m fine, had some major exams the past few weeks so I couldn’t get back to you. Sorry, dude. How’re you? I hear from Mom that your mom’s birthday is in, like, two months or something. Maybe we could visit. I really miss you.
It’s great that you’re nearly finished school! Sucky American schools only get off for a month and a half. You get off for three months! I wish I still lived in Ireland. I can’t make any friends here... they don’t like me ‘cause I’m too awesome (awesome being the definition of Irish). You would’ve thought that Americans would love an Irish guy.
Okay, enough with the crap. I’m in serious trouble, Zel. Like, life or death trouble. I’ve no clue what to do. I need help. Badly. I just... I might die!! Zelda, this is me, asking for any help you can give. Please... help me.
He hadn’t even signed off. Just sent the letter. I brushed my thumb over the tear stain that he’d left.
Noticing that Aunt Lyd was trying to read the letter, I folded it and shoved it into my pocket. My jeans were warm so I dug my other hand in my other pocket. Ahhh, that was nice.
I relaxed my head against the window and shut my eyes for a few seconds.
“Zelda... Zelda, honey, wake up. We’re here!”
My eyes fluttered open. Aunt Lyd was shaking my shoulder. It took me a moment to remember I was in America.
“Oh... sorry. I fell asleep.” I pushed myself up into a sitting position and instantly gasped. There was a beautiful house before my eyes. Deep-blue paint, shiny windows, perfect wooden door. Two storeys high, and wide. Really wide.
“This is your house?!” I exclaimed, pushing the car door opened and getting out. The hail had stopped but it was still lightly drizzling. The smell of it was fantastic, and the wind blew softly against my face, waking me up.
“Indeed it is,” Aunt Lyd said, getting out of the car. “Cam’s not here right now, so we better get the surprise ready!” What surprise?
So thanks, and comments please! Also... never mind!
