Zoe smiled at her prince. "You're a babe, you know that?" Mark and Zoe were sitting in Zoe's back yard after school, just the two of them. Mark had his head on Zoe's lap and Zoe stroked his head, running her fingers around the little braids in his long brunette hair.
"How am I a babe?" Mark teased. His leg luckily had not been broken, just very sore.
"You saved me… and Airiana."
"Darling, I would give my LIFE for you. Any day, any time."
"Me too hon."
"Zoe, if I ever have to die, don't give your life for me. I wouldn't be able to handle it."
Zoe pursed her lips. "Don't say such things Mark, I wouldn't be able to handle it either if I had to live without you."
Mark cupped her face with his hand gently. "Hmm… think of it as a favor, okay? Please Zoe, do not. You promise?"
Zoe sighed with exasperation. "Fine, but I'm going to hate every minute of it."
"Me too, even though I'll be dead." Mark teased, a big grin on his face.
Zoe turned her head.
"Zoe please, look at me,"
"No," she blinked back tears.
"Oh, Zo, please." Mark sat up and turned Zoe's face towards his. He saw her tears and wiped them away. "Baby-"
"Why CAN'T I give up my life for you? I won't be able to live without you." Zoe grabbed his face, interrupting him.
"Mmm, what babe?"
"This." Zoe kissed him.
Mark grabbed her face and fell on top of her, rolling around on the ground, kissing.
Zoe pulled back from his mouth, panting for breath.
Mark rubbed his nose against hers "You're an amazing kisser." They lay back on the ground, side by side, watching the sun set, holding hands.
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Drake laughed to himself evilly as he looked through his filing cabinet. He took out the file of Zoe and stared at her gorgeous face. She had not smiled for the school photographer. She had not smiled in school pictures for over two years now due to her parents taking their own photos of her for her yearly school pictures. He stroked the photo from the top of her face to her chin and whistled softly. "There's a prize for Casey." he said to himself, referring to his vampire friend.
He took out Airiana's file and gazed at it with wanting. She did not smile either due to Zoe's parents also taking her own yearly school photos. Her face was more relaxed than Zoe's, it looked like an old-fashioned portrait. Drake held the photograph up to his eyes and gazed into Airiana's cold blue stare. "If only you were right in front of me." he whispered. He had stared at her the whole time she was unconscious in his bed. She had looked like a fallen angel, so peaceful when asleep. He could watch her for a lifetime. He found what he was looking for in her file. Her phone number and address.
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Airiana leaned over and whispered, "So you saw a hole in the gym storage?" The teenagers were discussing again everything they had witnessed since the beginning of the school year over lunch.
"Yeah, and two red glowing eyes," Mark replied. He had filled Airiana and Zoe in on when he was sent to the gym storage room to grab an extra basketball.
"We need to check it out." Zoe said.
Mark squeezed her hand.
Airiana could not help but smile at their romance. "Don't forget to invite me to your wedding."
Zoe smiled wickedly. "Mark, remind me to purposely throw away Air's invitation."
"Will do hon." Mark replied.
"Hey!" Airiana yelled and punched Zoe in the shoulder.
Zoe giggled, grabbing her freshly bruised shoulder.
"How's your head today Air?"
Airana gently rubbed it. "It's better."
"Well, let's go." Mark said.
"Now?" Airiana lifted an eyebrow.
"Yeah, everyone's busy eating lunch and I'm sure the high school gym storage is open for equipment."
"Alrighty then, let's go." The trio stood up and dumped their trays. They walked to the gym storage, allowing no fear to enter their hearts. When they walked in, the door slammed shut behind them.
"Why does it always do that?" Zoe asked.
"I don't know, but should I see if it's locked?" Airiana asked.
Mark smirked. "Don't bother. Come on, let's go. The hole is hidden behind this stuff." Mark threw uniforms and balls out of the way. And there it was, as plain as day.
"Wow, creepy." Airiana stated, "Let's go." They entered the hole, Airiana leading the way with her phone flashlight on. "Burr, it's cold in here."
Zoe and Mark pulled out their lighters. "It only leads one way,"
"This way is the left, right?"
Zoe nodded. They only walked 5 feet when total darkness suddenly surrounded them. "Airiana, grab my hand so I can see you."
Airiana grabbed Zoe's hand. "Fuck my phone just died. It shouldn't have since it was full battery." She put it in her pocket with her other hand.
"I don't feel right at all." Zoe shivered, squeezing Airiana's hand.
"Just hang in there, babe," Mark squeezed her shoulder in encouragement.
A cold breeze passed over them. "What was that?" Airiana asked. A nasty smell filled the air.
"Smells like a bear." Zoe stated.
"A BEAR living in the SCHOOL?! That is absurd," Mark exclaimed.
Airiana gave him a weird look. "Where have you been? Everything's absurd!"
"Guys…" Zoe breathed and pointed straight in front of them.
They gasped. Two red eyes stared back at them. "Who are you? WHAT are you?" Airiana asked the monster.
"Do you dare mess with the powers of darkness?" it growled, its voice was raspy, sounding like nails on a chalkboard and the teenagers were tempted to plug their ears.
Zoe screamed and hugged Mark.
Airiana took Zoe's lighter, holding it up to its face. "What do you mean? Please elaborate." confusion filled her face.
"You must think you're so strong, well one day we will defeat you!"
"We? Who's we?"
The monster ignored her question. "Your friends are totally unsafe, Airiannnnaaaaaa."
This time Airiana could not help but plug her ears, wincing as it drew out her name in its raspy growling voice.
The monster laughed. "Unplug your ears! The only reason I am not attacking you is because of you. But we will get them all in due time." The monster growled and snapped its jaws. Then it disappeared, vanishing right before their eyes.
Zoe opened her eyes. "Is it over?"
"Yeah…" Airiana breathed.
"Are you okay?"
"Yeah…"
"That, that THING spoke in riddles," Mark replied, "I didn't understand a word it said."
"Airiana must've." Zoe remarked, "Look at her face," Airiana gave Zoe her lighter back and they exited the hole in the wall back into the gym storage room and noticed that the door was open.
"I guess we'll never know exactly what is in there." Mark stated.
"I don't WANT to know!" Airiana kept trying to clean out her ears, the nasty voice still stuck in her head. What did it mean it is not attacking my friends because I am there? Is it because Drake is interested in me and ordered these creatures to not attack in front of me? And why am I the only one who understood what it was saying?