Ezekiel and the Fireflies
A Total Drama 'Underdog' fanfic by JokerCarnage5
The moon had just risen over camp Wawanakwa and on top of a boulder next to the lake Ezekiel was sitting with his girlfriend Beth resting in his arms. This was the place they always came to for their romantic dates. It was a small grassy spot by the bay with a single tree growing in the middle and a flat boulder right next to the water.
Beth was sitting in Zeke's lap with her head resting on his chest. Her boyfriend had his arms wrapped around her. Of all positions they took when they snuggled this was her favourite. It felt like being a little kid again embraced by a loving parent.
For Ezekiel the Island had been a life changing experience early on. He had never really interacted with other teenagers before so a lot was new to him. One pleasant surprise for him was the competence of girls (or rather some girls…). There was especially two women on the Island that had influenced him. First there was Eva. She might not have been very charismatic but she was an efficient leader and a loyal friend. It was like a sort of soldier/Sargent relationship that had developed between the two. The second was of course the girls in his arms. He only had one friend on the island, Harold, but he wasn't always around so it was nice to have someone like Beth to talk to. She was nice, understanding and patient with his inexperience of the outside world. He felt lucky to have her as a girlfriend.
He stroke some of her hair away from her forehead. She tilted her head up and meet his gaze with a big smile. He kissed her and she kissed him back before silently returning to his chest.
Beth broke the silence. "Zeke, I have always wanted this. Thank you."
"Eh, what do you mean?"
"A boyfriend silly, I have always wanted a boyfriend."
The home schooler got confused. "You mean you never had one before?"
"Nope." Beth replied. "I tried to ask guys out at my school but they just made fun of me." Her voice didn't change its happy tone. She was too deep within her happy place.
Ezekiel was a bit shocked by her statement. He then stared angrily of into the distance, almost as if he could see Beth's former tormentors. He tightened his grip around her.
She is mine now, you can't hurt her."
He started thinking on what kind of past Beth must have had. Personally his life had been spent between home school, in front of the television and out on the farm. He had his parent undivided attention. The camp was something different entirely. Here there was a lot of people in a much smaller space. With the exception of Beth and Harold most people ignored him and he had to constantly put up with being bullied by Duncan (not to mention Chris and his insane challenges). That was when it cleared to him that Beth had had to deal with that kind of stuff her entire life. That also made think on something else, something that felt like a harpoon in his chest.
"Um, Beth?"
She lifted her head to him again. "Yes Zeke."
Ezekiel gulped. "When this show is over will we still be together?"
Beth got a bit upset. "What do you mean?"
"Well, won't you have to return to your town and me to my house? Can we still be you know, a couple?" He sounded genuinely sad and confused.
With a frown she got of his lap and sat down next to him. "Well, I guess we have to work on a long-distance relationship. You know what the internet is right?"
"Of course I do, eh."
"Then we can e-mail each other and I promise I will write to you every day." Beth said and put a hand comforting on the home schooler's shoulder.
Ezekiel smiled at her. "Thanks Beth, you always know what to say." He looked down at his lap and regretted that he sort of spoiled the mood. "You know my legs are getting kind of chilly." He shyly exclaimed.
Beth punch him friendly on the arm. "You dog." She giggled before sitting back on his lap, wrapping her arms around his neck.
They stayed silently like that until Zeke heard Beth snoring. He gently pushed her of him and shooke her awake. "Beth, hey Beth."
She tiredly opened her eyes. "What?" She asked confused.
"You fell asleep, eh."
"I'm sorry. I am just really tiered." Beth yawned.
Ezekiel slid of the rock. "Here, give me your hands." He said, still with his back facing her and arms stretched back.
To tiered to figure out what he was going to do he laid her hands in his. Zeke quickly crossed her arms around his neck and she was pulled onto his back. Once her arms was safely wrapped around him he set his hands under her knees and started walking to the cabins.
"Are you okay back there?" He asked.
"Hmhm." She replied with a nod.
When he came to the girls cabin he walked up to the door only to discover that it was locked. "Oh man."
He ran to the other side of the cabin. His arms started to get sore.
He stopped by the window. "Hey Lindsey, Lindsey." He loudly whispered.
Lindsey, Beth's blond best friend, stuck her head out of the window. She yawned and Zeke could see sacks under her eyes. "Emmanuel, what do you want?" She asked sleepily.
"Beth fell asleep." Zeke replied and bowed a bit so Lindsey could clearly se her sleeping friend. "Can you please open the door and help me put her to bed."
Lindsey smiled and nodded. The blond went to open the door.
Ezekiel once again ran around the cabin. His arms started falling asleep.
Lindsey opened the door and he stepped inside. She showed him to Beth's bed and he carefully let her slid of him.
He gave a sigh of relief once she was off him. "She is kind of a heavy sleeper, eh. Thanks for the help Lindsey.
"Oh, anything for Beth." The blond bombshell said. She gave Zeke a hug before waving him goodbye. "Good night Emmanuel."
"SHUT UP LINDSEY, I AM TRYING TO SLEEP!" A newly awakened Heather shouted.
…..
Ezekiel walked back to their dating place or Bezekiel Bay as he called it. He wasn't quite tiered yet and needed to walk some energy of.
He thought back to the talk he had with her about a long distance relationship but he started realize that she probably just suggested it to cheer him up. Once they get back home a lot of guys will know what a wonderful girl she is, guys that understood this boyfriend thing better than he did. The thought made him sad but he found some comforts she wouldn't be alone anymore. He only wished he could do something to make her remember him, to make him something more than just a note in her biography.
He looked at the tree in the middle of the grassy spot and noticed that the fireflies had started their mating dance underneath it. They often came out this time of the night. This gave him an idea.
He ran to the kitchen and took out a jam jar. He brought it to the lake and held out the jam except for a handful that he ate. He cleaned the jar until its inside wasn't sticky anymore. He then went to the boathouse. He found a large hook (that he was pretty sure was used to catch sharks) and used it to make holes in the jar lid.
He ran back to the tree and tried to catch some of the fireflies. He managed to capture fifteen flies in the jar. This lamp would be the perfect gift to Beth. He ran back to the boathouse and left the lamp there, thinking that the flies would survive longer in the shade plus no one ever came here so they should be safe.
He went to bed to sleep, anticipating tomorrow to give his gift to Beth.
….
Harold woke Ezekiel up the next morning. "Hu, what is it?"
"You overslept dude, it's already breakfast time." Harold responded.
"Oh man." Zeke got up and put on his clothes before he & Harold headed to the cafeteria.
They sat down next to Eva. "Morning Eve." Zeke greeted.
"Morning." Eva responded sternly.
Zeke turned to the nerd. "So Harold, what do you wanna do today, eh?"
"I found some equipment in the tool-shed so I was thinking on making a bird house." Harold replied.
"Great, my uncle used to build those, eh, so I can help. I just need to check on something first, eh." Ezekiel enthusiastically exclaimed.
…
Ezekiel came back to the boathouse to check on the fireflies. He happily lifted up the jar but his smile turned upside down when he saw that all fireflies was either lying on there backs or was crawled on the bottom. They seemed to be dying.
"Oh no." He exclaimed and choke the jar to make them fly but they didn't react. "Come on, I gave you air-holes, what more do you want from me? Food, you want food?" the home schooler asked as if he awaited an answer.
"Ok, I'll be right back, eh." He said and darted away.
He found Harold by the tool-shed. "Harold, I need your help me man, quickly." He shouted in worry.
"What is it?"
"Tell me, what does fireflies eat?"
Harold raised a confused eyebrow. "Um well, that varies from species to species but the larvae are usually predators."
"No, not the larvae, the adults." Ezekiel impatiently exclaimed.
"If you're talking about the common eastern firefly than "nothing"." Harold said.
"Nothing!?" Zeke exclaimed confused.
"No, once they undergo metamorphosis they only live for about 30 days." Harold exclaimed.
"What about other species?" Ezekiel asked desperate.
"Well, many species are pollinisers." Harold replied.
"Flowers, got it. Thanks dude." Ezekiel said as he ran off.
"Weird." Harold said.
….
Ezekiel picked some daisies, hoping it would help and ran back to the boathouse.
"Don't worry bugs, I got your food here." He picked up the jar and opened the lid but unknown to him the fireflies was simple playing possum. They all flew out of the jar and mockingly started buzzing around Zeke.
"Oh, man."
Ezekiel tried to capture them with the jar again but this time they were too quick for him. He accidentally stepped in a bucket filled with worms.
"Get off me, get off me!" He shouted as he tried to kick the bucket away. He lost his balance and fell off the dock. He stuck his head out of the water and spit out some of the water he accidentally swallowed just in time to see the fireflies fly out from under the boathouse.
He hang his head in disappointment. "Bummer, eh."
…
It was late at night and Ezekiel waited for Beth at their special place. He leaned against the tree with his eyes facing the night sky as he contemplated his predicament. He should never had tried to capture those bugs, it was doomed to fail. He should just have given the daisies to Beth but it was too late for that now. He figured he should just break up with her, it would spare her the bother of doing it herself later.
He saw Beth walking towards him, smiling as always. A gentle fog that surrounded her was illuminated by the moonlight, given her an almost spiritual aura. He smiled as he drank in her beauty but he dropped it once she was close.
"Hey Zeke." Beth greeted.
"Hey Beth." Ezekiel said before turning his face away from her. There was an awkward silence between them. Beth started to worry.
"Is something wrong?" She asked concerned.
"Well, I was just thinking on what we talked about last night about long distance relationship and I just don't want to hold you back."
"What do you mean?"
Ezekiel's eyes was on the verge of bursting into tears. "I'm breaking up with you."
Beth gasped. "But why?"
"Couse I don't know how to be a good boyfriend and I don't want you to keep me just to be nice. You can easily found someone that knows how to do it right." Ezekiel answered in a sad tone. He placed his hands on her shoulders and looked her in the eyes. "But can you please do me a solid? Don't forget me."
Beth grasped his arms and kissed him hard on the lips. A dirty trick to make him shut up and listen.
"First off, this girlfriend/boyfriend thing is new to me too so don't put everything on your shoulders. Second, I don't want this relationship with you because I feel I have too, I do it because I want too cause I like you and you are a good boyfriend otherwise you wouldn't care so much about me." She told him with optimism.
Ezekiel smirked, wrapped his arms around his girlfriend and lifted her up to head-level. "I love you Beth."
Beth wrapped her arms around his neck. "I love you to Zeke."
The two teenagers kissed each other passionately.
At that moment the fireflies awoke and flied off the tree. Zeke & Beth stood in right in their flying route but since they didn't move the beetles simple ignored them and flew around the couple.
It was a moment that neither Beth nor Ezekiel would never forget.
Author's Note:
I didn't ask StayOuttaMyShed's (the author of Total Drama Underdog) permission to use his story as a temple for this story. If he reads this and does not approve I will of course respect his wishes and delete it.
I have always liked this pairing, ever since TDI started in 2007 but for some reason it never cached on with the fans (maybe cause the character's themselves aren't as popular as others).
Bezekiel forever!