Out of the Loop

Chapter Twenty-Three

Derek laughed quietly.  “He would have been my dad’s best friend here.  I was never a droid or anything nearly that elaborate for Halloween.  Did you ever have a Star Trek uniform?”

“Oh, he was very into Star Trek.  I was nearly named Kirk, and would have been if I was a boy.”

Derek gave Maz an incredulous look.  “And your mom would have gone along?”

“Well, she is significantly less geeky now than she was.  And me, well, let’s just say I’d rather have a Delorean or the Millenium Falcon than the Enterprise.”

“True, that’s what I like about you.  There is no such thing as too much geekiness for you.”

“No, sir.  ALL the fandoms!”  They laughed again.  Derek felt every iota of nervousness flit away.  This isn’t really that hard.  Maybe she does like me . . . .

“Okay, guys, can I take anything here?”

Derek and Maz jumped away from each other as Mason ambled up.  Most of the food was untouched on the table, although both had drained their cocoa.  

“Oh, right, the food,” Derek said.  That was out loud.  Shoot.  “Could we just take it with us?”

Maz carefully slid her hands out of Derek’s and stood up.  “That sounds like a great idea.  I’ll be right back; bathroom.”

Mason sat in Maz’s chair after she had disappeared from view behind the stacks.  He grinned.  “You like little Mads, don’t you?”  He asked bluntly, and leaned back with his arms crossed, but not unkindly.  

“Um, well . . . yeah,” Derek said, “but I really don’t know how to tell her.”

Mason’s smile grew even wider, if that was possible.  “Derek, I’m pretty sure she knows, even if she doesn’t realize it yet.  Whenever she comes in here, she can’t stop talking about you, and usually I can’t get three words out of her ‘cause her nose is in a book.  You don’t know how much happier that little girl has gotten since she met you.”  He gazed out the window.  The backyard was as tiny as the store.  It was as full of wildflowers, as far as Derek could tell.  “She was always a quiet kid when she came here with her mom before her daddy passed away, and then she got a little sadder.  Retreated from everything, I guess, probably because people retreated from her. But now? She’s like a new person.”  Mason turned back to Derek.  “It’s all you, kid.” He stood up.  “Okay, I’ll take these empty mugs, and package up the food.”

Derek sat quietly for a moment.  Had he really had such an impact on Maz?  Another thought struck him.  “Why do you call her ‘Mads’ and not Maz?”  

Mason smiled again.  “Well, it’s short for Madison.  Nearly everyone she knew called her that, until she found the name ‘Mazzy’ in a book.  Whoever met her from then on knew her as Maz.  Now it’s just me who calls her that.  I guess I don’t change easy.”  He turned to walk away, then paused.  “One more thing?  You better make a move, or else she won’t know what’s what.”  He winked, and shuffled away.

Maz slowly meandered back to Derek, running her fingers over the titles of the books around her.  Noticing the empty table, she picked up her bookwith her small smile.  “C’mon, let’s go to the point.”

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At the same time Maz and Derek were talking, Kelli sprinted down a trail at the point.  Her heart hammered in her chest as she skidded around a corner and ducked behind a large boulder.  She looked up and around.  There was nothing but trees and the blue sky peeking through heavy foliage.  She breathed a sigh of relief and stood up.  Her heart rate slowly fell.  

I lost him.  Phew.

She wiped sweat off her forehead and continued down the trail, doubling back after a bit and heading back to the entrance.  It seemed like the kid after her had been rather dull, as most jocks were.  She rounded a corner into a gap between two massive pieces of stone.  

Suddenly, her path was blocked by a slim silhouette.  She whirled around, but the path behind her was filled with the boy chasing her.  Turning back around, several willowy girls converged on Kelli, stepping into a patch of sunlight.

Shannon and Paige stood in front of Kelli, other members of the cheer squad filling in behind them.  Shannon waved a hand at the boy behind her victim, who forced the hapless girl to the ground.  

Kelli could feel duct tape being wound around her hands, and another jock slapped a strip over her mouth.  

“I’m so glad you showed up,” Shannon giggled in a frenzied tone.  “Now we’ll have you and the other two losers.”  

Paige grinned and nodded.  “You all are so pathetic.  Time to remind you who’s in charge.”

Shannon signaled to the boys again, and the last thing Kelli saw before she fell unconscious were the deranged smiles from the cheer captain and her protogé.