We are all awake, seated around the bonfire now extinct of fire, only ashes and the burning wood left. Black smoke rises to the sky till disappearing.
I'm eating an energy bar that I packed, it's not the sweetest or most delicious thing I've ever eaten, but whatever.
My mind keeps replaying the messages my brother sent. Yet only one word has my total attention. News. What news? What is he talking about? He seemed worried. Did something happen?
What if our teachers already informed the cops and they are searching for us? What if they informed of our disappearing on the news? Might it be that?
"We should get going." Dylan says after cleaning his mouth with his sleeve.
"Where do you want to go?"
"I want to go back to the group, to the hotel. What else Sarah?"
"Then how do you plan to do that? We don't know where we are, from what way we came from, and this forest is similar to a labyrinth." Sarah replies him and stands from her seat on the ground.
"You don't want to stay here right?" Sarah is about to argue with when Dylan continues "Yes, we don't know where the hell we are, and we are lost, but it's crystal clear that if we stay here and don't do shit we are not going to leave." At the end he is screaming, and his face is red from anger, it seems like he is going to explode.
I remain quite, only watching the scene before me while I'm deep in thoughts.
"You all need to calm down. This isn't going to take us anywhere." Lucy interjects and like Sarah she also stands up.
"Don't tell me what the fuck to do. While you are acting all Dalai Lama, and bring the peace on Earth, I'm trying to find a way out. I couldn't even sleep."
"But she is right. If we start fighting with one another, we will not focus on the big elephant in the room but on the small mouse running around. We'll be so concentrated on arguing that we will not leave this forest." I finally decide to intervene.
A roar of laugh erupts from Dylan's mouth, the source of the sound coming from deep inside is chest, so loud that a few birds got scared and flew away "You are one to talk, not even 24 hours ago you were assaulting Ed."
"I had a good reason for that. First I was in panic from the situation we got ourselves into. Second I always say what comes to my mind. And, last but not least Ed is a jerk." I send a small smirk to the ginger guy.
On a nanosecond everyone is shouting. Ed is face to face with me, each phrase that leaves my mouth comes with a curse. Dylan is screaming profanities at Lucy and Sarah, which leaves Nathan and Beth to calm us down.
Eventually after speaking, or better, shouting some hurtful words and letting go of all the tension inside, and after many failed attempts from Nathan and Beth to knock some sense into us. We shut up, our harsh breathing, the wind and the birds the only sound.
"Have you gone mad?" Nathan's voice holds such strength in it stunning me for a second, "Fighting isn't going to solve anything. We already reached that conclusion. We are in some deep shit, this is unbelievable, all of it, this forest is creepy as fuck and we are stuck in here. So, get your shit together because our main purpose is to leave, but to do so, we need to work as a team."
I should be scared or afraid for the way he is speaking to us. I should be disappointed, ashamed because he is once again correct, and we are acting like 5-year-old kids. Yet, his dominant attitude is making me feel... hot. His legs are standing apart showing his strong thighs thanks to his tight black pants. His hands are fisted by his side and because he removed his jacket, I can see his so incredible arms. His chest is puffed, and I can see a vain on his neck dangerously close to make me want to lick it, his rose lips are in a thin line and his eyes... oh his eyes.
His orbits look at Beth, Dylan, Sarah, Lucy, Ed and me. When his green coloured eyes look into mine so similar, yet so different, everything just stops. As cliché as it sounds it's true. Such a sweet truth.
His attentive stare is piercing through me, piercing my soul, seeing me, the real me. He scans my body up and down slowly, taking his time. When his eyes connect with mine again he licks his lips and bites his bottom lip. I almost collapse right there and then.
I knew that he was very handsome and sexy but for some reason I never realized how sexy he was. I can feel my body getting all hot and I refrain myself to jump at him and straddle his hips and do God knows what.
I'm no saint, and I know my body perfectly well, which means that I know what it wants and needs. At this moment it is screaming Nathan's name.
Our moment is however interrupted with someone faking a cough, our gaze breaks and we look at our friends.
"Sorry, throat irritation." Ed says with a devil smirk on his lips. One day, I will kill you. However, that day is not today. I think while I send him a sweet smile that hopefully will show him how 'happy' I am that his throat decided to get sore now.
"I'm going to grab my things and get ready to go. You should do the same." Beth says, breaking the weird atmosphere.
"Yes Kate, you should get ready." Ed mocked to me.
"She was talking with you too idiot," Before I take a step forward and start another fight with Ed, Nathan reaches my side and grabs my arm, "C'mon, I will help you pack."
With one more glance at Ed's direction I turn around and walk towards the tree I slept leaning. Nathan remains by my side while I put my stuff inside my backpack, like the bottle of water. Neither of us speaks and I desperately want too. I know he is looking at me without me needing to turn around to see him, I can feel his burning gaze on me.
After 2 minutes most, I'm done. I get up and slang the backpack on my back, but I can't find the other strap and loop my arm in it, till I feel a warm hand reach for my hand and guide it to my strap.
"Thank you." I whisper to Nathan.
"Always at your service." A small smile appears on his lips.
"How gentleman of you." I say with laugh in my voice.
Nathan curtseys me and bows his head ,"You ready to go your majesty?" His eyes turn their stare from the ground to me instead and a smirk is displayed on his lips.
"How do you do it?"
"Do what?" He quirks an eyebrow, confused by my question.
"Make me laugh and change my bad mood to good in an instance?" I incline my head to the left and send him a warm smile, waiting for him to answer me.
"Call it a talent." His smirk gets wider.
"Oh, got it. And you share your talent with everyone?" I say containing my laugh because of our playfulness.
"No. Only the important ones." My heart skips a beat and I can't help but shake my head with a smile on my face.
"Then I'm a lucky girl." He nods and I mimic his actions.
"So, are you going to say that I can stand up or what?" I didn't give it much attention, only now noticing that during our conversation he remained the whole time curtsying me. I break into a fit of laughs while I clutch my belly.
"I don't think so. It's really funny seeing you this way." I eventually say after I calmed down.
"If you want to know I don't mind either. Actually, I have a pretty close view of your boobs from here." My eyes bulge out their sockets hearing what he said, I look down at my breast and then at his head and sure enough, his face is very close to my boobs.
"Pervert," I push him away from me making him laugh.
"You are hilarious," His smile is so bigger that I can't help and smile wider.
"Thank you, but that is not my talent," Nathan raises his eyebrows and a simple 'oh?' leaves his lips.
"My talent is my charm. You should be careful Turner, I'm quite dangerous." With that being said I turn my back to him and make sure to swing my hips a little more than usual, just to provoke him.
What can I say? I'm a really charming lady.