Chapter Four - Firecracker

Later that evening, Madeline was curled up on her cot; once again absorbed in her work on the pad of paper. Every once in awhile she would look up at Zero, who was looking at his usual spot on the ceiling.

"Hey guys... we gotta think of a nickname for Harris," ZigZag whispered to the rest of the group. They all nodded in agreement and looked over at her.

"How about lethal threat? She nearly killed me today... I tripped over her shovel...," Armpit said. Squid rolled his eyes.

"Hey yo, Harris! What's that say on your shirt?" X-Ray asked her. Madeline looked up for a minute and then down at her shirt. Zero's eyes moved from the ceiling over at her.

"'Firecracker Fastpitch Softball Tournament'," she read. "Why?"

X-Ray grinned and looked over at the other boys.

"No reason... Firecracker."

The boys started laughing and she rolled her eyes.

"Guess I got a nickname now, huh?" she murmured to no one in particular, and went back to her pad of paper.

Zero stared at the ceiling.

***

The next morning went pretty much the same. Get up, get dressed, get shovel, get nasty tortilla, get out on the lake, get digging. It was like a constant, boring circle.

Around lunch, Madeline was almost finished with her hole. Already very tired, she leaned up against the side of the hole, sweat trickling down her back.

She finally got enough strength to climb out of her hole and resumed her spot at the back of the line, behind Zero.

"No, you go here now Firecracker," X-Ray said suddenly, pushing Zero out of the way and pulling her into his spot.

"Get off me," she said. He stared at her and went back to the beginning of the line. She looked back at Zero. He was staring at the ground. She sighed sadly and grabbed her lunch.

***

An hour later, Madeline was finished with her hole. The rest of the boys, except Zero, were still digging.

"Okay... what the crap? How can you be done already?!" ZigZag exclaimed, throwing down his shovel and climbing out of his hole.

"Look, I dug the hole, okay? Get off my case."

"No - how can you be the fastest digger in our tent after being here only a week?"

"Excuse me, but I'm not."

"Zero isn't anyone. He's stupid and is only good for what he likes to do - digging holes."

She exploded. Before she knew it, ZigZag was on his back in the dirt, blood coming from his nose.

"Don't call him stupid. He is not stupid. And if you weren't so stupid not to realize that, maybe you would be smart enough to accept that you aren't the only person here who can dig a fucking hole," she said slowly and dangerously. Spitting her in hole, she picked up her canteen and shovel, walking away, leaving ZigZag on the ground, staring at her angrily and the rest of the boys staring at her in shock.

***

Still radiating anger, Madeline stomped back to the compound, her almost-empty canteen banging against her right leg.

"Call him stupid, my ass. He isn't stupid...," she whispered heatedly, kicking a rock into a nearby hole.

Suddenly, she stopped.

'Oh my God... what-what did I just do?!' she thought, slapping her hand to her mouth.

***

"I can't believe that bitch..." ZigZag said, standing up with help from X-Ray.

"Hey - cool it. She's probably just pissed that she has to put up with us bagging on her all the time," he replied.

"It's not my fault she's a... a girl!," ZigZag fumed.

***

Madeline tiredly walked into D-Tent, still wondering what the hell she was thinking... punching ZigZag just because he called Zero stupid...

'You like him. You know you do - that's why you were willing to punch someone for insulting him,' the little voice inside her head whispered.

"Shut up... what do you know?" she growled.

Zero looked up at the sound of a voice and saw Madeline, her face red. The set of her jaw told him that she was in a dangerous mood.

Deciding not to bother, his gaze went back to the foot of the bed. She looked over at him, his calmness only worsening her mood. Fury coursing through her veins, she grabbed her canteen and threw it across the room. Hard.

Zero had never seen a girl throw that hard or that fast before.

"Softball. I played it all the time in Jr. High and my freshman year. I was the only freshman to make the varsity team because they thought I was that good," her voice echoed in his head.

Madeline looked over at him again and saw his eyes staring at the ceiling but the look on his face told her that he was noticing her.

'That's what you what isn't it?' the voice sneered again. She angrily grabbed her clean jumpsuit and stormed out of the tent.

***

Later at dinner, Madeline had cooled down some. No such luck with ZigZag though...

"Dude she can't get away with something like this," he whispered, pointing at his nose, which was covered with a spotted-red handkerchief.

"You gotta calm down, Zig. She's new, aiight?" X-Ray protested, poking through the glob of meat and gravy on his metal tray.

"That ain't no excuse," Armpit defended.

"Okay all of us gotta just shut up and deal with her. She probably just wants to prove herself to us," Squid said.

"Yeah either that or she's got the hots for Zero," Magnet said with a grin, looking over at him. They all laughed.

Madeline rolled her eyes. She knew they were talking about her. But she didn't care. She had something else on her mind right now... and it wasn't anything that had to do with anyone here...

***

Lying in bed that night, Zero found once again he couldn't sleep. He was unusually tired though. He had become so accustomed to being tired that the feeling soon left. But now he just felt so... worn out.

He looked over at Madeline. She was sound asleep - her chest rising and falling rhythmically with her steady breathing.

He stared back up at the ceiling. He didn't really understand the feelings he was feeling for her. She was so... confusing. Maybe it was because she was a girl. Or maybe it was because she just was confusing.

Zero had heard the entire conversation that the rest of the group had at dinner. Through the talk around the camp, he had heard that Madeline punched ZigZag in the nose for saying something she didn't like... but that didn't match up with them saying she had the hots for him.

Nothing these days seemed to make sense. It was like ever since Madeline Harris arrived at Camp Green Lake everyone's world was turned upside down.

Sighing tiredly, he turned over and closed his eyes.