A/N: Towards the end of the chapter, it strays a bit from the movie and this is where my changes come in.
I sat with Laddie and softly spoke to him, glancing over at the others every now and again. Dwayne was skateboarding throughout the cave and Paul was rocking out to the music coming from the boombox. Star had placed herself behind some sheer curtains and wrapped a shawl around her shoulders.
David had sat in a chair that I later saw was a wheelchair and Michael was near him and looking around the area in rapt interest. Michael would stare at Star every now and then before looking away.
Laddie had run off to grab a toy to show me as Dwayne passed by again but he stopped in front of the other couch and sat down. I watched Laddie for a moment before looking at Dwayne as I felt his stare at the side of my face. I saw him staring and watched as a small emotion I couldn't name flashed across his eyes. Raising an eyebrow in a silent question, his lips softly twitch in a small grin.
"I've never seen him taken with someone so quickly." Dwayne finally spoke. His voice was deep and quiet but I heard him perfectly.
I licked my lips before grinning crookedly at him. "I've been told I'm good with kids. I give off this... motherly air, I guess"
"You do have a comforting presence. It's a nice change of pace then the girls on the boardwalk." He relaxed back into the cushion as Laddie came rushing back over.
Laddie threw himself halfway into my lap, making a small 'oof' escape my lips but I laughed it off as I looked at Laddie. I listened to Laddie's words as he spoke about his toys, each of the toys meaning and how he got them. He seemed to be happier than he was on the boardwalk with Star yesterday.
I didn't notice Paul making his way over to sit next to Dwayne, who was watching Laddie and I with a soft look on his face. Paul sat down with his elbows on his knees and his hands held together in front of him.
"How old are you?" I heard Paul's voice in front of me, making me look up. Laddie cuddled into my side again. Paul's voice sounded like he was almost always ready to tell a joke or laugh at anything he found funny. His grin was crooked that sat confidently on his face.
I glance over at Michael and saw that he did the same, having heard the question. I looked back at the two in front of me. "Old enough" I teased as I leaned back into the couch.
Paul and Dwayne glanced at each other before looking back at me. Paul opens his mouth to ask another question, but he is interrupted by Marko coming back.
"Chow time!" He walks in with a carton of take-out Chinese food. "Come and get it boys and girls!" Marko walked over to David first and David took two cartons of Chinese.
"Chinese, good choice!" David told Marko as turned to hand out the other cartons to the rest of us.
I take a carton of Shrimp Lo Mein and some chop sticks from Marko and smile up at him from my position on the couch.
"Thank you." I say as I pop my chop sticks behind my ear and go to open the carton of food.
"You're welcome, my lady!" Marko teases me, making me grin.
I look over at David and Michael, seeing David open a carton of rice and tries to hand it to Mike. Michael looks at me and I nod but David sees.
"It's only rice. Don't you like rice? Tell me how can billions of Chinese people be wrong?" David teases with a mocking smirk, still handing out the carton.
Mike takes the rice after my nod. I take my chop sticks and take them from the paper, breaking them down the middle. I then take a bite of the food, while watching David and Mike out of the corner of my eye. Everyone else grows silent for a moment as they eat
Michael takes a mouthful of rice with a spoon.
I notice David smirk to himself before he speaks up. "So how do you like those maggots, Michael?"
I freeze mid chew and look over at David and Michael with narrowed eyes. I slowly finish chewing the mouthful I had and swallow.
Mike had frozen as well and grew confused. "What?..." He asked slowly.
"Maggots, Michael. You're eating maggots. How do they taste?" David asks with a very devious smirk on his face.
Michael looks down in the carton and sees something, causing him to drop the carton and spit out the rice he had in his mouth.
I put my carton down before standing up and walking over to stand at Mike's side. The spilled carton has nothing but rice on the ground. The other boys laugh behind me and David darkly chuckles as he picks at the carton in his hand.
Michael looks confused at the carton and then at me as I step next to him. "But there were..."
I look at him with a silent look and he nods as he sits up straight to wipe his mouth.
"Leave him alone." Star speaks up from behind her curtain.
David looks at her and then at me before growing somber. "Sorry, Michael. No hard feelings, huh?" He says as he offers his carton. "Here, Try these noodles."
Mike looks into the carton and his expression turns to one of disgust. He closes his eyes and turns his head.
"They're worms." I step closer at his words and look into the carton. I don't see what he sees, making me think David was playing a mind trick on him.
"Worms?" David mocks and then takes a bite from the carton of noodles.
"Hey, stop!" Michael warns in disgust as I watch from behind him.
I'm waiting for what happens next...if what I think is true.
"Why?" David pauses and looks at Mike with a dark mocking look. "They're only noodles, Michael."
Mike looks shocked as he sees the noodles in the carton.
The boys behind me are roaring with laughter. I ignore them as I stare at David, who glanced at me.
"That's enough" Star finally comes from behind her curtain where she was watching with a worry look on her face.
The laughter dies down with the mood.
I look at Michael, who looks at me in confusion. 'I have an idea...' I mentally say as I turn back to David, who waved Marko over.
David whispers "Get me my wine" in his ear, not thinking we can hear. I look at him with a suspicious look as I step to stand in front of Mike.
Marko walks back over with a jeweled bottle that had something red in it.
I smirk as I put an arm around Michael's shoulder. I was right then.
Michael, also realizing what I did, grinned as he looked down and grabbed my hand that was hanging from his shoulder.
I watched as David took a sip of the bottle. He closed his eyes in pleasure of the taste. David opens his eyes and looks at us. He holds out the bottle to us. "Here...drink this. Be one of us"
Star comes up on Mike's other side and whispers to him. "Don't Michael. It's blood."
Finally I couldn't take it anymore and chuckled. My chuckles grew into a laugh as Michael chuckled with me.
David's smirk slowly falls into an angry, confused expression as he watched me. Clenching his jaw, "What?"
I straighten up and take my arm off Michael and sigh from my laughing.
"Really? The whole blood bottle trick? Who turned you, a medieval prick?" I smirked at David as I stuffed my hands in my pockets.
The silence of the cave was deafening as everyone but Michael and I froze and the only sound you can hear was the sound of the boombox.
