Author's Note:
Hey, everyone! It's me, the Gamerwhogames! And welcome back to "Minecraft: Ocelot Mode"! But before we start, I have a bit of news:
I'm changing the rating of this story to T. I thought K+ was fine, at first, but I'm changing it so I can do more with the shipping and still feel comfortable. But before doing this, I checked out the profiles and stories of you registered readers. Most of you guys read and write rated T stories, so I don't think the rating change will be a problem.
So, let's take some reviews!
Ariza Luca: Wow! Thank you! I hope you like this chapter, too.
RappidSammi: Well, have some more happiness! (throws buckets of happiness around)
Emily The Avenger: Thanks! Your "Everyone is dying" just made me laugh so much! It makes me want to do the whole song!
Well, that's it. Hit it, Crisper!
Crisper: (hits it)
After a few minutes of limping and wandering, Aiden, Maya and Gill finally made it to the portal. A way out of the fiery heat. One step closer to finding Lukas. When they arrived, all three of them were hunched over and panting like a pack of tired wolves. 'Sweaty Dogs' was a far better name for them than 'Ocelots'.
Gill looked at the portal, ignoring the large beads of sweat rolling down his face. "Let's go, guys." He croaked. He straightened his sore back and walked to the purple, glowing warp. One after the other, they walked out of the Nether. The Overworld met them with a cool breeze and a surprising splash of water. None of them expected to fall into a pond on the other side of such a hot, hellish place. But none of them cared how out-of-place it seemed.
"Man, this is nice!" Gill shouted, floating backside-down in the water like a happy, tired otter. He shut his eyes to relish the moment, but before he knew it, he was snoring quietly.
As Maya slowly swam around the lake, a cool breeze blew, bringing the earthy smell of the surrounding oak trees to her nose. Her head followed the sound of birds tweeting and flying through the trees and around the white, rocky mountainside. The noonday sun warmed the top of her head while the clear water chilled the rest of her body. However beautiful her surroundings were, she wanted to know where they were and, more importantly, how far away from home they were.
"Hey, guys, where are we?" She asked quietly as she swam over to Gill. His face was the only thing above the water, and his eyes were closed. Maya shook him gently. "Gill, wake up." She made his head dip underwater and he instantly shot up in surprise, spluttering and gasping. Maya sat quietly, watching with guilt in her eyes. Gill turned and faced her, a look of fear and shock on his wet face.
"What?! What's happening?" He shouted in a strained, muggy voice.
"Where are we?" She asked quietly. Gill gave a short look around.
"Um… I don't know…?"
"Does it matter?" A quiet voice sounded from beside him. They both saw Aiden wading over to them in the waist-high pool. "I mean, for now." He sat beside Gill, looking him straight in the eye.
Gill sent Aiden a piercing glare. "Of course, it matters. Why wouldn't it?"
"But does it matter now, I mean. I was thinking we could take a break or something." Aiden saw a muscle twitch in Gill's neck, the bearded man's glare hardening. His scowl made Aiden give a defensive look. "What? What did I do?"
"We're not taking a break. Do you realize how close we could be to finding Lukas? It hasn't even been a whole day yet, and you're already asking for a break?!"
"Well, my bad. It's been a freaking long twelve hours, then." Aiden tried to match the intensity of Gill's voice the best he could with his still-shredded throat. "We all need a break, Gill. It took you ten seconds to pass out right there. We're all tired."
"No, you're tired! But we, on the other hand," he slung an arm around Maya's shoulders, jerking her close, "Are doing fine."
"Oh, please. Doing that cute "couples" thing again. Just stop, okay? You two don't agree on everything, you know. She's tired, see?" Blood pounded through Gill's veins as he slowly faced Maya. She instantly looked away. Guilt mingled with tiredness and shock was in her heavy-lidded eyes. "Thirty minutes." Aiden's bold voice caught Gill's attention, making him send a weak glare. "Is half an hour going to kill anyone?"
"No."
"Didn't think so."
Gill heaved a sigh, taking his arm off Maya and standing to his feet. Maya watched him stretch his arms and back. "I'm taking a nap." He barked, walking over to the shade of a nearby tree. He sprawled out on the coarse, green grass. His troubled frown quickly faded as he drifted off seconds later.
Aiden's glare softened and he turned to look at Maya. She glanced at him, anger darkening her face, before she quickly looked away.
"What? You too?" He muttered under his breath.
"'Me too' what? You know, your voice is getting clearer, in case you didn't notice."
"You're glaring at me!"
"Well, maybe if you'd stop ogling me, you wouldn't notice!" Heat flashed to Aiden's cheeks as he stared with disbelief.
"Okay, I was not ogling you."
Maya stood and walked away, leaving Aiden alone in the pond. With every step she took, he could feel the anger rising in him. Thirty minutes to rest, and this was the kind of thanks he was getting. Estrangement, the cold shoulder, and outrageous accusations. Maya walked over to Gill and took a seat next to his sleeping body. Aiden's nose twitched and he folded his arms, or arm since the other was already folded. His body dipped into the water as he tried to take his mind off Maya. And Gill. And everything.
So much for a break, he thought.
Maya watched Gill's soppy shirt rise and fall with each slow breath he took. His snores reminded her of a cat's purrs. If that cat was an angry lion with a cold. She began to wonder if he would've been better off, and quieter, sleeping face-down instead of on his back. When his snoring got too loud to bear, she sent him an annoyed frown and scooted a few inches away from him.
She looked across the small field and to the pond where she could only see Aiden's brown hair above the water. Her soft fingers clenched into tough fists as she imagined his green, greedy eyes jetting up and down her body as if she didn't notice. His confused, shocked stare wasn't going to make her second-guess anything. She wasn't going to play along to his little 'innocence' game.
Ever since they searched around for the minecart in the Nether, she felt—knew—that Aiden was doing everything he could to get needlessly close to her. He wasn't even hiding it! Remembering his bold approaches and lingering stares gave her chills. Or was that just her wet clothes in the cold breeze?
She began to take off her soggy jacket, her eyes fixed on Gill. He must be freezing! Deciding she could do without the jacket, she peeled it off and placed it over Gill's chest like a small blanket. It sat idly on his chest, too small to cover his legs or arms. The more Maya stared at it, the less effective it seemed.
"Oh, he's probably colder!" She fussed, taking the jacket off. She placed a gently hand across his chest, making sure he wasn't too wet or cold. A frown spread across her face and her lips parted in fear as she held the back of her hand against his shirt.
He was nowhere near cold.
Maya pulled her hand away, staring down at him with a stunned, blank expression on her face. His shirt was damp, but just underneath it his skin was steaming hot! His forehead was shiny and wet with sweat, not water! One side of her was glad that he wasn't awake to tell her he was fine. She knew he was sick, and she didn't need his second opinion on her conclusion.
Maya heard footsteps squishing towards her. She looked up and saw Aiden staring her down, arms clutching himself as he shivered lightly. His brows were furrowed into a defensive frown.
"Are you okay?"
"Aiden, something's wrong with Gill." She suddenly said, ignoring his question.
"What? He's just sleeping."
"No! He's really sick. Feel him." Maya demanded. Aiden gently knelt beside her and scooted closer to Gill's side, careful not to move his broken arm too much. He reached out and cupped Gill's neck with his hand. Seconds later, he pulled away, eyes squinted with uneasiness that tugged at his stomach. Maya's eyes begged him to say something.
Aiden reached out to grab Gill's damp shirt-collar, but hesitated. Would it be better to let him sleep, or to wake him up? Well, you didn't want to sit around doing nothing in the first place, so…. He latched onto the collar and started shaking him as much as he could with one arm.
Gill groaned in his sleep, stirring to grab Aiden's arm as his heavy lids slid open. He pushed Aiden's arm away, blinking his eyes to adjust to the bright light. Air hissed between his teeth as he drew in a breath and slowly sat up, confused by Maya and Aiden's worried stares.
"Dude, why're you grabbing my shirt?" He asked groggily, reaching back to rub his sore neck. He glanced around, seeing a blur of vibrant colors and blinding lights that overwhelmed his senses and made his head hurt even more. He quickly shut his eyes, massaging his forehead and wishing he was asleep. "Why'd you wake me up? Is it thirty minutes already?"
"Um… I hope not," Aiden answered as he studied Gill closely. "You're really hot." Gill stopped rubbing his forehead. He squinted his eyes as he studied Aiden's face with disbelief.
"Uh, thanks. You, too." He said slowly. Aiden sent him a sharp glare, clearly not amused by Gill's lame joke.
"Gill, what's wrong with you?" Maya cut in, her voice worrisome. Gill studied her for a moment, and glanced back at Aiden. Aiden stared back with the same concern Maya had, not the humor Gill was hoping for. Gill shifted uneasily, looking away from their probing stares.
"I told you, I'm fine. But I won't be if you two worry me to death." He sent them both a stubborn, angry stare. "Well, if thirty minutes is up—"
"It isn't. You need to go back to sleep." Aiden said.
"Yeah, he's right." Maya added timidly.
"Alright, fine then. Just… wake me up in thirty minutes, okay?" Gill asked, lying down and shutting his eyes. Before Aiden could answer, his loud snoring filled their ears. Aiden looked at Maya.
"Okay. He asked me a question, and I didn't answer because he fell asleep too quickly. So, he can't hold me to anything if he wakes up." He suddenly said.
"So?"
"So, we're taking an hour." He said, walking down to the pond. Maya's eyes followed Aiden before they flicked to Gill. "Don't feel guilty. It's for him!" She heard him shout, followed by splashing water as he sank in. His words were right on cue. She walked to the pond as well, hoping a swim would take her mind off Gill's mystery-illness.
Author's Note:
Oooh, stuff's going down! Will Gill continue to be a stubborn mule? Will Aiden get any closer to Maya? Will Maya have to chop Aiden's hands off? Find out in the next episode of Dragon Ball Z Kai!
So, how'd you like that little 'I woke you up 'cuz you're hot' joke? I think Aiden would've been much better off saying 'You have a fever', don't you agree? Hope I made you laugh a little on that one!
I'm gonna try to move things along next chapter with some more shipping and drama, so BE PREPARED! (cue singing hyenas)
Fav and follow if you haven't already, and leave reviews! I wanna hear more from you guys out there! And I'll see you next chapter! Close it, Crisper!
Crisper: (closes it)