Sitting passively, his eyes flicked from Archie to Ethan and vise versa. A kind of distress was pulling him deep in the pit and he kept on listening their arguments, initiated by his own initial denial.
"Look, dude, am not coming and that means am not coming." Ethan said, exasperation lining his voice on being trapped between two of his friends, as usual.
"I'll pack you and take away with me" Archie declared, tired of Ethan's stubbornness.
Ashley chuckled at his remarks and sat upright. An amused smile covered his face as Archie glared him.
"Why so desperate, smartie?" Ashley taunted. He knew all this was linked to those girl but why were they effecting Archie so much was kinda boggling.
"Shut it" Archie roared, not liking the way things were going.
"Its all because of you, just you" Archie said pointing finger at Ashley who chuckled at his aggressive reaction.
After all, it wasn't every day that Archie lose his cool.
"Tell me, man, when you can spend your time with those girls, without us then why can't you go with camping without us?" Ashley questioned in a teasing tone, he knew it was the right time to play with Archie. He wouldn't get this opportunity everytime. Besides, he wanted this particular answer too.
"Not you. Just Ethan, would do. But he is so damn linked to you just.... just like twins are." Archie spat, throwing daggers towards Ethan who was holding his head with a pout.
"He was your friend before I came in scene, right?" Ashley said teasing him further, even though his head was bursting he wasn't going to let go this opportunity.
"And yet he is sticking to me more than you. That means I am right and you wrong. Try to learn something from him, Archie." Ashley said with a proud grin and egoistic attitude which pissed Archie further.
"Don't boost your ego, Ash. We both, In fact, we all knows how wrong you are." Archie said rolling his eyes
"We disagree and we ain't coming for camping either." Ashley declared leaning back and twirling the small device in-between his fingers.
"Freaking no" Archie yelled "you have to come"
Ashley tried to ignore Archie but his loud voice was intensifying his already severe headache.
"Why the heck do you want to live in forest, Archie?" Ashley groaned, feeling his head throbbing due to the excruciating loudness "Isn't this damn place, enough? That now you want us to live like primitive humans?"
"It'll be fun, Ash." Archie defended, so damn wanting them to accompany. He was desperate.
"Then go, who is stopping you?" Ashley groaned pressing his forehead with his fingers.
"Am I speaking greek here?" Archie said furious that they weren't understanding his plight "I can't go alone"
"Why not?" Ashley asked with a tired sigh. Why wasn't Archie agreeing, it was beyond his grasp. Why he wanted to go, at first place, was beyond his understanding too.
Wasn't it enough that they were living like people of fifty years back that now Archie wanted them to live like people of centuries back?
"Am here with my so called friends and I can't go for two nights without my so called friends. That's damn why you guys have to come." Archie shouted in a taunting and tired voice
"Fine" Ashley grumbled, feeling his head pounding a bit too much to bear. He might've never agreed if not for this killing headache.
"Fine?" Archie questioned, surprised that Ashley agreed without further arguments. It wasn't so of Ash.
"Fine and now get out before I change my mind" Ashley said throwing the fluffy stuff at Archie while dropping his head on bed and pressing the pillow so to alleviate the pain.
Pleased, Archie moved out leaving a boggled Ethan who sat wondering what was wrong with the world today.
His mouth remained open.
First, the aggressive nature of Archie and then the rare kind of mild and tender side of Ash.
A weird day, no doubt.
Rare too.
.
Wearing a loose dress falling down her ankles, Amelia pulled her hair in a ponytail. She wanted to wore one of those large hats, she saw girls wearing in movies, set off in old times.
But unfortunately, that stuff was long gone and she could only hope to find it somewhere in this city, considering the messed up timeline of the place.
"Amelia baby, be sure to keep warm clothes. Am guessing colder weather." Ava shouted from their tiny hall while running around to gather the necessary stuff.
"Relax darling, we can always come back for anything." Amelia said coming out of her room and watching Ava so serious about whole packing stuff as if they were going out of city.
"And spoil the fun, eh?" Ava said crossing her arms over her chest and looking at Amelia with raised eyebrow.
"Fine baby, am working on it" Amelia sighed, it wasn't easy to win from Ava. Neither she would try to win, on that matter. Ava was always logical and maybe that's why she was her best advisor.
"He coming?" Amelia questioned with a frown, suddenly recalling that they had invited their neighbor.
"Yeah, called last night." Ava answered without much reaction as she zipped her tiny bag "they all are, in fact"
"All? As in that, dragon and his tail too?" Amelia stopped in her tracks and turned back to Ava for answer. She didn't mind the tail but dragon was too heated for her bearings.
"His tail?" Ava questioned looking at her over her shoulders. She knew dragon but who was tail.
"That Ethan guy. His puppet." Amelia shrugged. She pitied the guy but he was surely the cause of his own miseries.
"Yeah, all of them" Ava said pulling her hair in bun and taking a glass of water to quench her thirst. She didn't meet any of the two guys in Archie group. It seemed to her that the group was kinda variety and she was actually excited to watch their interaction.
"Freakish death" Amelia muttered, getting back to her work. Hoping that things won't mess up, was all she could do, at the moment.
.
His frustration was skyrocketing and he could already feel the desire to strangle someone. Not someone, Ash actually.
Marching in the room, Archie saw him sleeping like a log. His face covered with pillows and his legs dangling from the bed.
They were hell late and this irresponsible guy was enjoying his own time. Too careless of the world.
Pulling away the pillow from his face and taking away the blanket, Archie shouted at the top of his lungs.
"Get your head out of sleep, you jackass"
Disturbed by the ear-piercing shout and the sudden cold air, Ashley sat up on bed with his messy hair covering his sleepy eyes.
"What the freak?" Ashley cursed, rubbing his eyes trying to lift the haze off his eyes.
"We are going, you have five minutes to join us" Archie said in ordering tone which wasn't pleasing to Ashley's ego particularly after Archie's stunt to wake him up.
"Am regretting agreeing. I think I should cancel before its too late" Ashley said, now fully awake and throwing daggers at Archie who lost his colour on hearing his last remark.
"Too late" Archie said with sweet smile after gaining his composure "Ethan has packed your stuff. Now get your ass out of the bed and be in hall, in five minutes"
Archie walked out of the room knowing well that he had just wounded the big fat ego of Ashley.
"Am not coming and neither is Ethan. Go to hell, Archie!!" Ashley shouted from his bed but he knew he had lost this battle.
When there came no comeback, an indication of his defeat, Ashley muttered thousands curses under his breath before getting out of the bed to get ready for unpleasant journey.
.
Since guys were late and Archie had already relayed this information to Ava, girls started out alone. Amelia had already found a good patch for camping amid the trees, during her photography ventures.
It was a good circle of clearing under the shades of trees with much smooth terrain which was, undoubtedly, an unexpected surprise.
"I wonder its existence" Ava said while observing the place.
She didn't expect to find such a clean and smooth place in the middle of forest. It wasn't even possible, as she remarked, until or unless someone or something was taking care of this particular patch, which was mind-boggling in its own.
"I hope its safe" Ava said turning to Amelia who was busy in pulling out the necessary stuff for basing their camps
"It is" Amelia said confidently as she threw the device letting it pump out a rubber tent on its own.
"Sure, are we?" Ava said taking the another tent device from her and letting it bubble up on a little distance from the first tent.
"I guess that'll be for our neighbours and your new friend." Amelia remarked watching the second tent becoming stable. She didn't expect the strange group to have any tent, considering their lack of knowledge about camping.
"My new friend?" Ava said surprised and raising her eyebrow at Amelia who simply shrugged off her question
"Sent the location?" Amelia asked changing the topic while taking her bags in the first tent.
"Will be here in a minute" Ava answered following Amelia in the tent.
As Ava said, the boys arrived in a minute while girls were busied in partitioning their tent and taking up their own personal space so not to mix their stuff. Not that it mattered, but for convenience.
Ava and Amelia came out of their tent and saw the trio looking at tents; two with awe and one with disgust.
"Nice thing" Archie smiled after greeting the two ladies and diverting his friends' attention from tents to girls.
"All yours" Amelia said pointing towards the second tent, a little larger than her and Ava, considering the extra person in boys' group.
"Thanks and sorry we have none" Archie said raising his hands in surrender. He was embarrassed too, for leaning on girls for support and things.
"As expected" Amelia shrugged off not really minding. Though her eyes turned to the silent friends of his.
Ashley seemed disgusted while Ethan was curious of the whole stuff.
Archie turned to silent Ava who was observing the two new people, she didn't get chance to meet before.
That's when Archie realized that the introduction was needed for the start of their camping journey which he hoped to prolong for some unknown reasons, feeling actually.
While Archie introduced Ava to his friends, Ashley scurried to his supposed tent without caring for the formal meeting.
Annoyed by his rudeness, Amelia too walked back in tent leaving Archie, Ethan and Ava all to themselves for the introduction.
"And he is Ethan" Archie introduced Ethan to Ava who was standing frozen at his spot with his eyes unmoving from Ava.
"Hi, Ethan" Ava smiled pleasantly and Ethan finally broke off from his frozen state.
"Pleased meeting you, Ma'am" Ethan said taking a dip while his eyes hovered at her. His face showing no emotions but something unknown glinting in his eyes.
"Its Ava for you" Ava said with a smile and at their first meeting, she knew all of these boys were too different from each other. It was a miracle that they were together from so many years.
Archie watched the way Ethan was unable to look away from smiling Ava. An unsettling feeling bubbled in his heart.
"I got breakfast on the way" Archie said showing the stuff in his hand and snapping the interaction of two.
"We also got some food. But let's save that for later. I'll get the table until you unpack it" Ava said with her usual smile, she didn't miss the way Ethan was still gazing her.
"I..." Ethan opened his mouth to speak but Archie cut him off.
"Help me with it, Ethan" Archie said in stern ordering tone and dragged him along with him, lest he stayed back with Ava.
Archie walked in tent with Ethan by his side and container in his hand. He threw an angry glare towards Ashley who ignored him.
Putting his bag in another corner, Archie got out of the tent pulling Ethan with him. He gave the containers to Ethan and ordered him to unpack the food while he himself sat on doing nothing but acting to be busy with some stuff.
He was surprised of his own self. He had no idea why he so wanted to come to camping and why he wanted to spend time with girls, Ava in particular.
He didn't know why it annoyed him that Ashley walked over Ava during the introduction even when he expected it from Ash beforehand. And he didn't know why it infuriated him when Ethan behaved decently and talked to Ava nicely.
He didn't know why he hated the way Ethan was looking at Ava or why he didn't let Ethan help Ava when it was what he would've actually prefer and usually preach Ashley to do.
There were so many don't knows and so many confusions but there were these feelings which calmed him when he was around Ava.
.
The flame of anger and desperation, danced in his dark eyes. Slapping his hand on the trunk of tree, his knuckles scratched the bark.
"Telling me good news, Samay, why can't you?" Audra cried in the fit of fury and desperation, he wanted to kill someone at that moment but it wasn't the right time and he damn knew that.
"They are being protected. I felt them at one moment and next moment their scent was gone" Samay answered, he was frustrated himself. The whole fiasco boggled him too.
"What do you mean by protected?" Audra asked, all attentive for the information suddenly.
"I can't say but either their scent is different in this birth or they are being protected" Samay said, it was the mystery he knew they had to solve if they were going to kill those people.
"They were killed because they lost their protection, then how can be they protected in their rebirth?" Audra asked turning around and facing his hooded companion.
"They were protected but were killed by their own" Samay corrected, reminding him the situation of fifty years back.
"Oh I wish" Audra screamed in agony, gritting his teeth and raising his head to sky "I so wish that we would've killed them. The aftereffects would've never happen then."
"We would've been killed then" Samay said quietly, it was never easy to kill Azaads. And Azaad deaths, whether accidental or preplanned, were going to effect their life anyway.
"Then we must've killed that Abhay. The root cause of our miseries." Audra gritted with insane hatred for that certain fellow vampire.
"It would've still resulted in our death or denouncement. Our fate can't be changed by any different past situation." Samay said in a bored tone, he had enough of dwelling on the past because there was no way their situation would've been different in any changed circumstances until or unless Raichands wouldn't have been vampires.
"For creatures like us, Death is rather blessing than losing our powers" Audra said in steel voice, gaining his sanity back and Samay couldn't agree more with him.
It was their reality and their truth. The very reason they harboured so much hatred and were planning revenge from fifty years that too, on dead people.
With determination, Samay concluded their meeting with his final words.
"They're here to finish the unfinished story. For that, they've to come to us. So, we won't lose them.
It's final battle!!"
__________________________
Third update in a day.
I mean third story updated in a day.
Wow that's something I never done before.😬😬
Now am off to sleep. Will see the views in morning.😴😪
Enjoy, vote comment and share.💕
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Asshi.❤️