Chapter 14-Alex And Debbie To The Rescue
Back to Zoe's POV :D
I had been awake for a good half an hour. Aiden was breathing heavily next to me, obviously still asleep. I stood up slowly, testing out all of my sore limbs. I stretched my back, flexed my fingers and extended my legs, instantly feeling better.
I rigorously patted down my legs, shorts and Aiden's' jacket, brushing off branches and soil. I ran my fingers through my hair, and picked out odd bits of greenery and brown stuff. I must've looked terrible.
It was cloudy, that day. The sun was there but hidden behind huge looming blobs of dark grey. I thought about how the weather was doing well to reflect my emotions.
While looking up at the sky, I heard Aiden start to wake behind me. I panicked for a second. What sort of friendship would we have after yesterday? Yesterday, I had seen a whole different side of him as he had me. Oh my God! He had held my hand. I panicked more thinking about the hand-holding. Would he mention it?
"Hey." He said groggily, rubbing his eyes and yawning.
"Hey." I smiled awkwardly.
He propped himself up into a sitting position and leant on the tree we had picked as our shade last night. He closed his eyes and sat for a moment or two.
"Still going 'north' right?"
I let out a relieved sigh and smiled. He didn't bring up yesterday, which I was glad for. He sounded normal with his usual teasing tone.
"Seeing as you don't have a better idea-yes."
His eyes flashed open and he smirked. My stomach twisted a little but I ignored it. It had been doing that the whole of yesterday too. I blamed it on the hunger.
He got up quickly and picked up my white tee, brushing it down. He brushed off all the dirt from himself too before we fell into step and started walking again.
We walked slowly as our legs were quite sore. I dreaded thinking about having to spend another night in that forest.
"D'you think we're ever going to get home?" I asked quietly. My steps were heavy and I was dragging my feet across the floor.
"Course we will. I promise." Aiden said breezily.
I rolled my eyes. He must've noticed because he stopped abruptly.
"Hey." He turned me round to face him and gripped my shoulders. Grey eyes blazing with determination and mouth set, he shook me slightly with every syllable. "I promise we'll get back."
I nodded feebly, my own eyes locked on his.
I believed him.
***
Aiden was beat boxing. I was rapping.
"'Coz I'm walkin' in the forest with the swag I never had,
Puttin' Bieber to shame and now he's getting mad,
'Coz he's jealous of Zoe and that's just rad,
Hanging here with Aiden, he's my favourite lad,
Yeah, he's got his very own bachelor pad.
Can't think of any rhymes, and that's just sad."
I finished with a flourish, proud of my rap, while Aiden laughed uncontrollably.
Aiden wiped a tear from his face. "I never thought you had it in you, Zoe. I'm impressed." He said, nodding in approval yet trying to reign in his laughter.
"You should be. Your rap was utter rubbish compared to mine." I replied smugly.
He looked outraged. "Oi! Mine was way better than yours!"
I snorted. " How is, 'I eat some rice and I add a bit of spice so it tastes really nice and I feed it to mice, like thrice,' supposed to beat mine? Mine is relevant to where we are." I countered mockingly and gesturing around us.
Aiden gave me a look. "Actually, mine is way more relevant to where we are. And my rap is deep. I'm rapping about food and how you should take care of animals and how to find inner peace within yourself." He smiled as if impressed with the rubbish he had just spouted out.
I snorted and that was all I could manage out before bursting out in a fit of laughter. I couldn't stop and I was sure I wouldn't ever be able to stop.
"Zoe," Aiden's voice was serious, no longer riddled with bursts of involuntary giggles. "Just be quiet for a second." He held a finger to his lips and a hand gently brushing my shoulder. I shivered even though it wasn't cold.
I clapped a hand over my mouth and tried not to overanalyse the feelings that came with Aiden's subtle touch.
And then slowly, a huge smile erupted on Aiden's face and I stopped breathing for a second.
"Can you hear it, Zoe?" He asked excitedly, eyes twinkling and bright smile gleaming.
I shook my head.
"Listen!" And he did as he said, obviously loving what he heard. I strained my ears and just when I thought Aiden was messing with me, I heard it.
The beautiful sound of a rusty, old, diesel truck, roaring along what could only be a motorway.
Immediately, I squealed and grabbed Aiden. I wrapped my arms around him and squeezed, so relieved, I could cry. He hugged me back too, burying his head into my hair and whispered.
"Didn't I promise?" It was quiet but I heard and I could tell he was smiling while saying it. I just squeezed him tighter.
***
We walked towards the sound and I don't know why, but we held hands. We didn't talk anymore. Just strained our ears to keep hold of our chance to go home. And every time we heard a particularly loud vehicle, usually a truck, Aiden would clutch my hand tighter and give me a smile that would make my mouth dry.
The sound got louder. We could hear hundreds of cars whizzing past furiously and I wanted nothing more than to be in one-destination, home.
Aiden managed to break through a large clump of weeds and he helped me step over them and onto the hard shoulder of the motorway.
And we were finally there. Back to civilisation. The wind was unforgiving, smarting my skin, grabbing at my hair and making my eyes water rapidly. My knees trembled as the ground shook from all of the cars.
"Are you ok?!" Aiden shouted though I could barely hear him. He looked worried.
I nodded. "I'm fine!" I shouted back, smiling to prove it. He only clutched my hand tighter still.
We decided to walk towards an emergency point. Aiden was sure it would be no further than a mile away.
It was gruelling. The wind kept trying to push us back and the cars didn't help much either. Still, we were determined.
We had been walking for around 10 minutes or so when a green Volkswagen Beetle turned into the hard shoulder and stopped several metres behind us. We stared at it for a few minutes or so. It didn't look as if it had broken down. The driver hadn't made a move to leave the car. The car was just there, engine still on, quietly humming.
After several awkward minutes an old, top heavy brunette stepped out of the car.
"You're not going to be standing there all day now are you? C'mon, hop in!"
My eyes bugged out. Surely she wasn't being serious.
The woman gestured with her hand to come towards her and nodded well naturedly.
I turned to Aiden. He looked as shocked as I was and I discreetly pinched him. He snapped out of his temporary state of shock and looked at me as if wondering if the world had gone completely bonkers.
"Hear me out before you call me crazy but I think we should go with her." I hurried to explain before he could interrupt. "I mean, this could be the only chance to get a lift home! And look at her." We both looked at her. She was waiting expectantly with a benign smile on her face. "She won't be able to murder us or anything. We could easily overpower her. And who knows how long it'll take for us to get home." I finished with a hopeful look on my face. I was begging with my eyes.
Aiden ran his hand through his hair and sighed loudly before rubbing his eyes dejectedly. "Fine. But if she's crazy and eats us alive or something, don't blame me." He muttered the last part under his breath. I rolled my eyes but smiled at him gratefully. He visibly relaxed and smiled contently after that.
We reached the woman and as Aiden showed no indication of speaking to her, I decided to take the lead.
"Err, hello." I started awkwardly. "I don't want to seem rude but who exactly are you?"
She laughed loudly and I saw how beautiful she looked when smiling. Her laugh was rich and indulgent. I couldn't help but feel warm and safe around her.
"I'm Debbie but call me D." She winked. "I thought you kids needed a lift. You look as if you're going to drop dead any second." She smiled warmly. I noticed she had a strong Welsh accent.
I didn't know what to say so Aiden intervened. "Well hello D. I'm Aiden and this is Zoe. Could you tell us where we are exactly?"
"Well, A and Z," She winked again. "You're in Wales, aren't you!" She laughed girlishly. She was looking at Aiden as if he was her favourite nephew or something.
Aiden smiled an award winning smile. "Are you heading up north by any chance? Past Manchester maybe?" Aiden smiled again. It was so roguishly charming, it was almost sickening.
Debbie's eyes lit up. "Scotland actually! The northest of the north." She laughed at her own joke before telling us to hop in. She moved her seat forwards to let us climb in and Aiden ushered me in before him.
It was very uncomfortable. Seeing as it was a beetle, it was only designed to seat 4 people, including the driver. The passenger seat held 2 huge bags of cat litter and a cat box and one of the seats at the back was occupied by a large, fat, brown and white, tabby cat leaving one seat for Aiden and I to share.
Aiden had clearly not noticed the cat.
"Budge up." Grunted Aiden, trying to reposition his cramped foot.
"I can't!" I whispered back. The overweight cat took up more than one seat and purred contently when Debbie started to drive again.
It would obviously rip out of my eyes if I dared moving him.
"So you have a cat?" I asked Debbie while the cat glared at me and Aiden shuffled beside me.
"Yes! Isn't he beautiful? He's called Alex!" She said brightly.
"He-he is?" I stuttered. Aiden laughed silently beside me, clutching his mouth.
"Don't be scared dear." She said, misinterpreting my shaky voice. "Alex wouldn't hurt a fly! Would you my itty bitty baby!?" She added the last bit in a baby voice. Aiden only shook harder next to me.
I glanced at 'Alex' quickly and he was still glaring at me. The way only cats could. I had a feeling Alex didn't like me very much.
Debbie nattered for a while about Alex and Wales and her sister in Scotland but mostly about Alex. I was starting to wonder if she was actually sane. Sure, she was lovely and kind, but she seemed a little-err-obsessed with her cat.
Aiden hadn't stopped laughing once.
Alex stretched out and rolled on to his back, making me shrink towards Aiden to allow the cat more room. I was practically sitting on him. Slowly, Alex the cat stood up and padded his fat white paws on to my thigh. He was very heavy. He climbed on to my lap and walked across my legs, sharply grazing his claws along his path, scratching my skin. He stepped onto Aiden and I smiled, expecting Aiden to freak out.
He didn't. Instead Aiden stroked the top of Alex' head absentmindedly. The cat purred loudly, butting his head against Aiden before settling himself down on Aiden's lap.
I was surprised. I moved along and took up the space of Alex' seat and Aiden did the same, gently stroking the cat as he did so. The cat didn't move a muscle. He just sat on Aiden's lap, purring away.
"I thought you didn't like cats." I said.
Aiden shrugged. "I'm not very fond of them but I don't hate them or anything."
"Huh." I replied.
He turned to me, eyes sparkling in laughter. "Can you actually believe this though?" He muttered quietly so only I could hear.
I shook my head and he pointed a finger at Debbie and mimed a crazy sign. I laughed but hit him, feeling guilty.
"Don't be mean." I scolded him but he only smirked, completely at ease, even with a cat snoozing on him.
I snorted. "You look like a mental evil guy, about to take over the world, stroking Alex like that." I stated.
I expected him to laugh but he gave me a strained smile instead. "Don't say that thing about stroking Alex again." He looked as if he had just sucked a lemon.
I burst out laughing as soon as I got what he meant. Debbie looked at us in her rear-view mirror and smiled fondly.
"You sweethearts make a great couple." She noted. Her warm brown eyes were crinkled and she looked almost teary.
I flushed red immediately. "We're not a couple." I laughed awkwardly while Aiden sat still and silent.
Debbie frowned. "Why not?" She looked as if we were a doing her a wrong by not being a couple. I didn't know what to say. Who would ask why you weren't dating someone?
"No reason." Aiden said. His tone suggested it was the end of the subject and although Debbie was still frowning, she let it go.
She was definitely crazy.
"Would you like something to eat?" She asked, her voice high and childlike.
"Yes." Aiden and I responded simultaneously. We were starving and had been for the past 2 days.
Debbie faltered. "I was talking to Alex..." I flushed, mortified. "But sure, dear, I've got some snacks." She opened the glove compartment and pulled out a packet of cat treats, a packet of crisps and a Tupperware container full of homemade cakes and biscuits. She handed them to me and told me to feed Alex first or he could starve and get ill. I thought it unlikely for that fat blob to starve but I nodded politely and got Aiden to feed him anyway.
The cat was so lazy, the food had to be brought up to his nose before he would even open his mouth. It took ages but Aiden was surprisingly gentle and patient, even when Alex coughed out a wet treat on to his jeans.
Finally, the cat had been fed and it plonked his head back into Aiden's lap and fell asleep. He was rather cute, I guess, but he would open one eyelid every few minutes or so and warn me off with his eyes.
I was literally getting the stink eye from a cat. Called Alex, of all names.
Aiden and I shared the crisps and the biscuits but we could only eat a little since our stomachs had shrunk to about the size of a pea. It was hardly a full meal, let alone a substantial one but I was so grateful towards Debbie, I would've bought her a cat. She handed us a bottle of water too and I honestly wanted to hug her. Even if she was insane.
When we thanked her, she waved her hand in dismissal and gave us a rogue wink, "Just invite me to the wedding of A and Z," she looked into the rear view mirror to lock eyes with us. She had a mischievous glint in her own. "And believe me when I say, there will be one."
Aiden and I just smiled politely.
***
I love the play on the letters. Love it. Haha.
Hope you guys enjoyed this chapter. It's not much but it's sort of the steps to a much more explosive next chapter. The last 'explosive' chapter I promise you lovelies was I think chapter 8 whore in the house? So it's been a while.
Please leave your opinion on the new description blurb summary thingy! I would really appreciate it.
Here it is!
According to all, Alex and Zoe are meant to be. It's written in the stars, always has been, even if Zoe doesn't quite know it yet. And when she finally does realise, it will be the love story to rival that of Romeo and Juliet's. That everyone knows. Except Zoe of course.
But then there's Aiden. Black haired, grey eyed Aiden. Smirking, sexy Aiden. Gentle, sweet Aiden. And she's falling, falling hard for him... With only one problem.
No one told Zoe she was already supposed to have fallen for Alex.
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