Disclaimer: I own nothing of Jurassic World, only Rachel.
Scatter!
So maybe she shouldn't, but Rachel couldn't keep the smirk off her face as she looked down the steps at Jennifer who was glaring back at her. Ever since she found out Rachel was going, after literally asking everyone and after dropping heavy handed hints that she wanted to go. Jen had nearly shrieked her denial. Her shrill voice almost made Rachel deaf, and she was in Gray's room when Zach told her. And no amount of consoling her had made the teen any happier, not even Zach's promise to spend the rest of winter break he had left with her.
Spoiled to the core. Rachel thought as she noticed Jen's Ugg's getting wet from the snow, though the girl didn't seem to mind as she sent silent death threats with her green eyes.
Finally giving up their superior glaring contest (Jen might have cackled a little when Rachel finally broke contact and rolled her eyes), Rachel turned to enter the house to grab her duffle bag by the door. It was the last of the luggage to be packed.
"Here." Zach said as he stepped onto the landing and grabbed her bag for her and swung it over his shoulder with ease.
"Thanks." She mumbled before tugging up her scarf to cover more of her face.
Zach shot her an amused look. He was comfortable in merely jeans and a red tee with a thin gray jacket over it. While Rachel was bundled in a hat, scarf, gloves, a black jacket, a gray sweater, and a blue wife beater.
"You look like a mummy."
"I'm cold." Came Rachel's muffled reply behind her green scarf which covered half her face.
Sure they were going to an island paradise that was warm, but at the moment she was standing in snow and the cold and was nearly freezing.
Zach reached over and tugged her scarf down. "You won't be for long." He flicked her nose before moving outside.
Rachel blinked as she rubbed her nose. Ever since she told him that she was going with them on the trip, Zach had been...more animated. At least for him. Now and then when she looked towards him, he would give her a quick smile before turning away. Things almost seemed more natural around them, like they were back in the old days when she would put bugs in his hair and watch him freak, or he'd carry her home after she scrapped up her knees real bad from the skateboard he insisted she try.
Anything without handelbars is a death trap. Rachel always said after that accident. Zach must of agreed since he never tried to get her back on the board since.
As she stepped outside, he was standing in front of Jen who was pouting for all she's worth.
"You won't forget about me will you?" Jen asked as she batted her long mascara lashes.
Rachel felt the need to retch right in the snow as she moved past the pair to her bag that was now sitting on the sidewalk. She was certainly happy Zach hadn't plopped her bag into the snow, it wasn't waterproof after all. Picking it up Rachel moved towards the trunk of the car.
Passing off the duffle bag to Karen, as she double checked, might be triple now, all the bags to make sure everything was packed.
"Karen." Rachel dipped her head to look at the women's face. "Everything's going to be fine, I'll keep an eye on the boys. Promise."
A bit of the worry wrinkles around her eyes disappeared as she pulled Rachel into a side hug. "You are a wonderful person you know that?"
"I learned from only the best." Rachel smiled back up at Karen before looking into the trunk.
It was packed with only a few luggage containers. One simple black suitcase for Zach, one for Gray, which had dinosaur prints on it, and two for Rachel. Well technically it was one and a half considering that her mother insist she take her purse to carry extra stuff that Rachel classified as 'useless.' Like a hair straightener, why would she need that?
"You never know." Tanya said as she pulled out her large black purse and piling items into its bottomless pit. "You might find a need to straighten that jungle."
"W-what!" Rachel's hands briefly went to her curly hair. Sure they looked like a perm gone wrong, but there was nothing wrong with the hair she inherited from her father. "What reason would I take time out of a vacation to straighten my hair?"
"A boy." Tanya gave her daughter a sly grin as she slipped some make-up into the bag as well.
"Pft that will never happen." Rachel mumbled. "Nothing Gray." She said when he shot her a bewildered look. She pulled up the door for the kid and ruffled his hair before sliding in behind him. As she buckled her phone tweeted alerting her of a text
Sorry I couldn't take you to the airport. Have fun and try not to get eaten by any diamonds.
*dinosaurs.
Stupid phone
I love you honey.
Rachel laughed as she sent her mom a text of love. Texting was something Tanya was still getting used to.
"He's not going off to the military." Jeff commented as he looked at Karen.
Rachel looked up confused before realizing that they were speaking about Zach who still hadn't moved from his spot in front of Jen.
"She's going to miss him." Karen shrugged.
"Teenagers are so complicated and they make everything else complicated." Jeff shook his head as he rolled down the window. "Come on Zach, you're not going off to war." He hollered at his son who immediately started his slow trek to the car with slump shoulders.
As he opened the door, his parents turned in there seat to look at him.
"Are you going to be okay?" Jeff asked while putting on a sympathetic face.
"Do you need a minute?" Karen asked as she fought off a smile. These were the parents that Rachel had remembered. The goofy tag team who always seemed to carry banter on like a tennis match.
"You know I think we have room in the trunk if you want to fit her in." Rachel joked.
Zach shot them a look before reaching for his headphones, with a pointed look he put them on and cranked up his music. Rachel could only grin wider as she leaned forward, across Gray, to poke his ribs. Zach was a good friend and she loved him like a brother, but by the time he's twenty he's going to have the hearing of an eighty year old.
The drop off at the airport was a bit more emotional than Rachel had initially intended. As Karen had said goodbye to the boys, Jeff tossed his in from the sidelines. He was a man of few words to begin with so it wasn't unusual that he wasn't as huggy as Karen was. By the time it was Rachel's turn she nearly squeezed the life from Karen.
"Alright, have fun guys, and Gray listen to your brother and Rachel. Stay out of trouble, and call me when you land." Karen said as she handed the tickets off to Zach, which she had to grab his attention first.
"Don't lose those." Karen stated before sending a glance Rachel's way.
"Okay." Rachel saluted while Zach seemed to stare listlessly off to the side, not paying any attention. Rachel wanted desperately to reach out and take his hand for the comfort like she used to, but she was older and he had a girlfriend and the action might be interpreted wrongly. So she stood chewing her lip while her heart was in her throat. She couldn't tell if the anxiety and dread was from the oncoming flight or the fact that nothing would be the same when they got back.
"And if you see anything…run." She winked at Gray before ushering them off to the line.
"Love you! Don't get eaten!" Karen called as the group walked to the security checkpoint line.
Rachel had turned around and waved, only she knew that the first of many divorce settlement meetings was scheduled while they were away. Karen had told her that after Christmas they would be informing the boys. Rachel didn't know what would happen after that. Who would get the boys? Would she still see them? How was this going to affect everything?
"We'll see them when we get back." Zach assured her when he noticed her chewing on her lip and glancing back at his parents with a wrinkled brow.
"That's if our plan doesn't crash." Rachel replied as she turned back around in the line. It wasn't what she had been worried about, but now she certainly was. Sure she flew out to see her dad's parents every spring break, but that never abated her fear of flying.
"It's very unlikely that our airplane will crash. Like a .00001 percent chance our plane crashes." Gray stated as he shifted in line anxiously.
"That's comforting." Rachel grumbled as she rubbed her temple.
"No need to worry." Zach patted her shoulder, before they moved forward in the line of shuffling bodies. "Like Gray said, our plane won't crash."
"I'm starting to feel sick." Rachel admitted as she looked up at Zach. "I really don't like flying."
"Are you going to leave?" Gray asked sudden looking very worried at that prospect.
"Of course not." Rachel assured him. Especially not after all the money that went into her tickets. She shudder to think about the wasted money.
"Hey." Zach pulled her attention back to him. "Look everything's going to be alright. Okay?"
Rachel wasn't so sure, but she accepted his reassurance, if only just barely. Rachel just hoped that the trip to Costa Rico was smoother than the one she took the Texas every year.
(-_-)
"Did you know that the T-rex is actually from the first park?" Gray asked as they all sat waiting for their airplane to load.
"Nope." Zach replied as he looked at his phone. (He was playing CandyCrush when Rachel had peered over his shoulder.)
"Really?" Rachel asked intrigued. "Like the legit first park? Jurassic park?"
"Ya." Gray nodded his head. "They had to go through a lot of trouble getting her."
Rachel laughed before checking the time and standing, she had at least five minutes till the plane started boarding, and it was about time she took the motion sickness meds.
"I'll be back." She told them as she started heading over to the bathrooms.
"Where you going?" Gray asked as he stood, all prepared to follow her.
Rachel smiled and patted his head. "Bathroom."
Pouting a little, Gray sat back down.
"Try not to get lost." Zach stated as he tapped his phone.
"Please I have better orientation then you." That only earned her a snort.
Airport bathrooms always seemed to have a custodian in them every time Rachel entered them. Giving the two women a smile, Rachel moved to the facet. After pulling out the pocket sizes Dramamine and swallowing the bitter pill with a little sink water, Rachel looked into the mirror. While her skin looked pale, her cheeks were flushed. Most likely a mixture of dread and excitement.
Running a hand through her curls, Rachel took a deep breath and walked out of the bathroom. She was starting to feel warm, and had started unwinding her green scarf when a voice called out to her.
"Excuse me Miss." Rachel turned her head cocked to the side as she looked at the group of teens approaching her. "You seem to know where you are, can you tell us where F gate is?"
Rachel blinked and looked around before back at the blue eyes staring her down. "Uh well I think you have to take the transit rail to get to it." She pointed to the escalator that went down a level. "The signs will lead you, and if you get lost you can always ask a security guard."
Nodding the brown haired teen absorbed the information. Instead of saying thanks and moving on, like Rachel thought he would, he held out his hand. "I'm Stan, and this is Danny" The blond to his left nodded. "and Quinten." The brunette to his right lifted his hand and gave a little wave which Rachel returned.
"Rachel." Though she didn't want to, she took his hand and gave it a firm shake.
"Rachel." Stan rolled the name off his tongue like he was tasting it.
Suddenly feeling jitters in her stomach, Rachel took a step back. "I should get going. I hope you find your gate."
"Hold on." Stan said. "Why not have coffee with us. As a thank you." He added when she hesitated.
"Actually my flights about to board, so…." She trailed off feeling awkward, this sort of thing never really happens with Rachel. If she's out she is always with Zach or Gray, and most the time everyone thinks she and Zach were an 'item.' Sure she's dated on and off with guys, but when things got to serious, or went too far, Rachel quite them. She wasn't the type of girl that knew how to flirt. Sometimes she didn't think she was a girl. Her mother certainly thought she was an alien, preferring T-ball to dolls and make-up.
"I see, well then how about your number instead." The teen smiled, flashing dimples at her, and Rachel thought that he probably won a lot of girls this way. Give a flattering compliment, flash a smile, get in her pants, and leave her heartbroken. And she was sure that was his intention consider how his eyes never seem to go higher than her chin.
Eyes up here buddy.
Crossing her arm, Rachel opened her mouth to answer when an arm slide over her shoulders.
"Our flights about to board." The warm tones of Zach's voice had a harden tone to them that got Rachel's attention. Turning she looked up at his face to see his brown eyes glaring intently at the teen, and his two friends, who had been talking to her.
Ah Big Brother Zach had appeared. Rachel rolled her eyes. She had told him a dozen times over that she needed no help handling situations like this, but Zach never seemed to listen.
"Well..." The teen shrugged, as he turned to walk away. "Thanks for your help, Rachel."
She watched the group dissolve into the moving crowd of people before speaking.
"Are we really boarding?"
"We are now." Zach answered as he pulled her through the crowd, his arm still slung over her shoulder. Something about his stiff demeanor told her that Zach was agitated, which made her confused since she hadn't done anything to make him made.
"They just wanted directions." Rachel stated after squeezing past a couple, which was harder with the fact that Zach would not relinquish her shoulders.
"They could just ask security." Zach grumbled. Rachel frowned, was he angry that he had to come get her. Now that certainly made her a bit angry herself. She didn't ask for his help.
"Zach." Rachel began, all prepared to tell him that he can keep his nose out of her business. She never got the chance since the younger Mitchell was calling her name.
"Rachel," Gray jogged over to the pair. "did Zach help you?"
"What?"
"I told him that a group was harassing you." Gray seemed to puff up when he said this, all proud of himself.
"Uh…" She blinked, suddenly unsure what to say to the kid who seemed entirely too proud that he sent his brother to go help her. Zach didn't say anything as he released her shoulder and patted Gray on the held like an owner patting a dog for doing something good.
Rachel exhaled through her nose and took her purse from Gray, she could already tell that this flight was going to be long. After all Rachel hated flying. The seats were always too small to get comfortable, her ears never popped when they ascended which gave her a headache, and there was always that one kid screaming and crying in the tube with them. And now Zach seemed irritated with her, for no reason.
While the squeezed down the small isle, Rachel was rather glad they dropped their luggage off to be packed away. It was a lot easier the carting it around and trying to fit it into the small compartment above their seats. After finding their seats, Gray getting the window since he made the most fuss about it, Rachel just closed her eyes and tried to relax into the seat. And while they did sit together, everyone had different things to do on the plane.
Zach had his headphones, Gray had his DS, and Rachel had her drugs.
Dramamine was a heaven sent. Not only did it help with her nausea, but it almost always knocked her out for the entire flight. Giving a stretch in her seat, Rachel started to settle in her chair while Zach zoned out to his music and Gray set down his game to look out the window while they started moving.
By the time they had leveled out, Rachel had her chin to her chest, nearly sleeping but not quite there. She felt something move her armrest and made a grumbling noise before her body was pulled to the side to something warm and solid. Her last coherent thought was:
This is more comfortable.
(._.)Zzz
The sound of Gray's voice whining was what drew Rachel from her hazy dream.
"But Zach-"
"Come on man. I need your help."
"Really?"
"Ya, who else is going to be my wing man."
There was a second of silence before Gray spoke again, this time his voice lowered. "But Rachel."
Again Zach cut him off. "Is going to be happy about it."
"What-" Rachel yawned as she peeled her eyes open looking across Zach's chest, which she was sleeping on, to Gray. "Am I going to be happy about?"
"Uh..." Gray fidgeted underneath her gaze. The more seconds of silence that passes the more suspicious she was.
"That you get your own bed tonight." Zach lied.
"Mmmhmm." Rachel twisted her head to look up at Zach. "Whatever you're planning better not be dangerous."
Zach snorted. "I'm not planning anything."
Yawning again, Rachel went to move only to have her head pushed back to his shoulder.
"We still have another hour of flight."
Rachel groaned and complied with his insisting. It was better to rest her head here then to have it bobbing up and down above her chest. She, instead of sleeping like she wanted to, listened to the thump of Zach's chest as she had her ear pressed to it, and just as she started to relax again the plane hit a pocket of turbulence, shaking the plane and passengers. Gripping onto Zach's hand, which was the only available limb to grab onto since the armrest was up, Rachel grunted with each bump.
"I hate flying." She grumbled.
"The boat ride will be better." Zach promised.
"Hope so."
As it turns out the ferry to the island was better, though it had a two hour delay since there had been a storm warning. Lucky the storm had changed course. Rachel did enjoy the sightseeing in Costa Rico, and was now enjoying the salty wind in her hair as she slipped between people on the overcrowded ship.
Wrinkling her nose as some poor man throwing up over the railing, Rachel side stepped him and headed up the stairs, heading to Zach and Gray who stood at the front of the ship looking at the approaching island.
"Here's the water bottle." Rachel handed the cold plastic container to Gray.
"How big is the island?" Gray asked as he twisted the top off.
"I don't know, big?" She looked at Zach who shrugged as he stared at the water below. "It had to be pretty big if it host….alot of animals."
This had Gray perked up, talking about how the parks animal count had gone up, how many herbivores and carnivores, and the amount of food. But Rachel's focus was on the boy leaning against the railing looking rather sullen. Once again Zach's mood had shifted from being pleasant, when they landed, to being annoyingly unsocial when they boarded the ferry. If Rachel didn't know him she would have thought he was bipolar.
"Hey little man," Rachel patted Gray's shoulders. "I think I heard people talking about spotting some Bottlenose dolphins on the backside of the boat. Why don't you check them out?"
"Okay." Gray complied, but not before shooting Rachel a look that implied he knew she wanted to talk to the brooding teen.
If there was one thing no one could ever call Gray Mitchell, and that was being unobservant. The kid saw everything, and while that was good to some degree, Rachel also knew it was bad too. she had suspected for a while now that Gray knew about his parents impending divorce, the way he clung more to his parents, or how he insisted that they do more family activities certainly hadn't gone unnoticed by Rachel. This whole situation was certainly giving Rachel a headache.
"Hey," She bumped shoulders with Zach as she leaned backwards against the railing. "What's wrong?"
"What makes you think something's wrong?"
Rachel gave him a look that made him sigh and look away. "How do you always do that?"
"I don't know, because I've known you all your life." She shrugged now and waved at Gray as he gaze an energetic one at her.
"Why do girls do it?" Zach suddenly grumbled, pulling from his thoughts where he had been for the past twenty minutes.
"Do what?" Rachel asked as she tilted her head back a little to look at his face.
"Get attached so easily, confess their feelings."
"I'm going out on a limb here and saying that you're unhappy with Jen?"
Zach was silent to her conclusion which made her want to smack his head against the railing until he cracked and talked to her. It wasn't unusual that getting information from him was like pulling teeth. Long and painful.
Rolling her shoulder, Rachel leaned forward, using a new tactic. "Listen Zach, we're teenagers, and from what I understand, we think we know everything. That the world is against us, and that we think we've fallen in love when it's only hormones."
"You're sounding like your mother."
"Just what every girl wants to hear." Rachel joked humorlessly. "But seriously Zach, if you think she's….clinging to you just talk to her. Set some boundaries."
Break up with her.
Rachel shook that thought away, Zach was going to date, they were going to get older, and unfortunately they might grow apart. Which made her sadder than she wanted to admit. And maybe there was something else in Rachel that didn't like to see him dating. But she didn't dare analyze it, or acknowledge it.
"What do you think of Jen?" He asked.
"You want my honest opinion?" Rachel pursed her lips. "I think she's clinging and needs to get off her high horse. But you know that she and I don't get along, so I'm probably being bias."
Zach turned then his brown eyes looking down at her. Rachel felt herself freeze beneath his eyes. They always reminded her of her favorite chocolate, dark and smooth. The kind that melted on her tongue.
"Rachel," he rumbled and she swallowed unable to look away.
"Ya?" She asked (more like croaked.)
"You have a bug in your hair."
Rachel blinked.
A bug?
"OH!" Her hand flew to her curls, trying to dig out said bug. "Get it out!" She cried while doing little hops.
Zach merely laughed. "Hold on." He grabbed her wrist, and moved her hands before pinching something and gently lifting it from her hair. He lowered his hand to show her the green beetle whom had been making a home in her hair.
"You know you use to not be scared of them." Zach flicked away the beetle before turning to Rachel.
"That was before I woke up to two, TWO," Rachel held up two fingers just to get her point across. "Cockroaches making a nest in my hair." She shuddered at the memory. The terror of waking up to something crawling in her hair was not one she would forget.
"Can you blame them?" He asked while twirling a silky ringlet around his pointer.
Rachel's heart stopped as she looked up at Zach's eyes again. Her mind stalled as all her nerves flared to life as he pushed the curl behind her ear.
"Rachel! Zach!" Gray suddenly came barreling into the pair.
Spell broken, Rachel stepped away and sucked in a breath. "What's up?" She asked while avoiding looking at the teen standing just inches from her.
"We're here, we're here, we're here!" Gray announced excitedly while bouncing around. Rachel blinked and looked down to see that they had indeed landed, and people were getting off.
"Whoah there speedy." Rachel grabbed the back of Gray's collar and pulled him back a little. "Let's wait for the rest of us before racing off."
"But we're here!" Gray exclaimed again.
"I know, I have eyes, and we will be out having fun before you know it." She said when his face fell a little.
"Okay." Gray said as he grabbed her hand and moved at a slower pace. Rachel merely laughed, it won't be long before he won't even be doing that, holding her hand will seem uncool soon enough.
Standing admits the crowd, clad in gray blouse and a black pencil skirt with a pair of brown pumps, stood a red head looking down at her phone. It took Rachel a few seconds of staring at her to recognize the women, but Gray had known right away. (Rachel wouldn't be surprised if he memorized her picture before coming.)
"Aunt Claire!" Gray sped up excitedly, dropping Rachel's hand, racing through the crowd of people even knocking into a few.
Upon hearing her name, Claire looked up and had just enough time to open her arms for the child who was barreling into her with all the eagerness of a puppy.
"Oh." She gave a little chuckle while patting Gray awkwardly. "Aren't you sweet. And Zach," Her blue eyes widen as the teen came to a stop just beside his brother, looking bored for all that he was worth. "wow, look at you." She held her hand out, just above her waist. "Last time I saw you, you were this high."
Rachel laughed at this. "Knee high, and a barrel of trouble."
"That's right, set my good blouse on fire too." Claire laughed a little before looking at Rachel.
"And Rachel, you and Zach must be engaged by now."
"Ah." Rachel coughed a little while Zach looked off to the side, a pink tint covering his ears. "Not quiet." Rachel smiled while trying to ignore the flush feeling in her cheeks.
Claire took a step back, her eye surveying the three of them. "Wow you guys have grown so much in what four years?"
"Seven." Zach clarified in an annoyed tone.
"Right." If Claire was a women to grimace she would have just then. Clapping her hands together she started ushering them down the dock, to her waiting Mercedes. "Did you give your tickets to the dock workers? The ones to deliver your luggage to the room?"
"Ya." Rachel had done it while Zach watched Gray. "Right before we saw you."
"Good good, now tell me about everything." Claire said as she started the car.
Everything turned out about Gray asking Claire all about the park while spewing information he knew as well. Of course Zach and Rachel had gotten in a few words here and there. Yes they had started high school, no Rachel didn't play basketball anymore, though Zach did try out (he found the whole commitment to basketball tiring and quite) Rachel did play tennis still, and Zach was the president of his own video game club (which consisted of Rachel, and sometimes Gray if the Mitchell's weren't home.)
By the time they had reached the hotel, Gray having pretty much drained the conversation from the car with all his questions. Everyone was ready to go out and have fun.
When they got to their room, they were surprised to see someone else in it. Well everyone but Claire it seemed.
"Who's this?" Zach asked wryly as he eyed the woman who seemed to give Zach an elevator look before dismissing him all together.
"This is Zara, she'll be watching you while I attend a few meetings today and tomorrow."
"You're not coming with us?" Gray asked.
"I have meetings today and I'll be meeting potential investors tomorrow. So I'll see you guys in the morning and the evening tomorrow and then after we can all go see the lab Sunday, behind the scenes. Wouldn't that be cool?"
Claire glanced at her phone as she started moving backwards. "I've got to go, I'll see you in the morning."
And like that Claire was out the door.
"Whelp." Rachel turned to Zara. "Nice to meet you."
The woman, Zara, gave Rachel the same dismissal look she had given Zach. "Likewise." She brawled before lifting her phone. It seemed she wanted to be here just as much as they wanted her here.
"I'll go get ready." Rachel stated as she gave the women a nasty glare while walking by. Not that Zara noticed since she was busy typing away on her phone.
After shedding a few layers of clothing, leaving on her thin black hoodie and blue wife beater, she switched her jeans for shorts and slipped on some comfy shoes before heading back out. Gray was the first at the door, bouncing on the heels of his feet, Zach was the last one, trudging towards the door like it was a death sentence.
"Come one Edward Cullen, a little sun will make you sparkle." Zach merely glared at her, which made Rachel and Gray to giggle gleefully.
With Zara as their guide, Rachel was sure they would have loads of fun.
As it was, what Rachel thought would happen and what did happen was two different things. Under Claire's instructions and with her own knowledge of kids (which was probably something like babies smell, kids are loud, and teens are angsty.) Zara took them to the one side of the park that none of the group really wanted to be. Even if Gray did snap photos of every Dino he saw with the same enthusiasm he ate ice cream.
While Gray measured himself against the board of 'you must be this tall and this short to ride' Rachel was leaning against the wooden fence trying to remember the names of each dinosaur Gray had told her was in the 'petting pen.'
"Aw, look at the baby dino's." Rachel crooned. "We could smuggle one out of here."
"What are you going to do when it grows?" Zach asked. Unlike Gray and Rachel, who were coping with the fact that they were perpetually stuck in the kid zone, Zach was far to sulky to try and enjoy his time. He would rather stare at his phone, or some girl Rachel had noticed.
"I don't know…smuggle it back in?"
Zach merely groaned as he glared at all the passing children. "Why are we in the baby park?" She knew he wasn't talking about the group, but Rachel and him.
"Because your aunt still thinks you're thirteen." Rachel supplied, which she didn't think was far from the truth. "And we have Gray." Which again he was no baby either.
"That's it, we're leaving."
"Maybe I can talk to her?" Rachel suggested. "What? Its worth a shot."
"Go ahead." Zach shrugged as he watch Gray who was teetering on the fence snapping pictures of all the baby's human and dinosaur.
"Soo, Zara." Rachel started as she slid up next to the woman trying to stand in the shade and away from the other people. She wasn't really succeeding seeing as there was no shade really and there was far too many people walking around.
"You know, you really don't have to follow us around, we can just watch ourselves. You could take the day off, no one will tell Claire." Rachel smiled, all teeth, as she looked at Zara.
"No can do." Zara pushed up her sunglasses and looked down at Rachel. "I get it, but I have a job to do and I'm going to do it. I know none of us like the arrangement, but we are just going to have to deal with it. Maybe you can talk to Claire tomorrow about it."
Silence descended upon them as Rachel stared on ahead, racking her brain for a reason, while Zara was looking at her phone, which seemed fused with her hand.
"Well then." Pressing her lips together she slipped back into the crowd and headed back to Zach's side.
"Well I tried." Rachel stated upon reaching him. She glanced around for Gray and smiled as he stared at the long neck dino eating from some girl's palm.
"Talking." Zach responded. "You tried talking, now it's my turn."
Rachel chewed her lip then, she knew what 'his turn' meant. "I don't know Zach, this doesn't feel right."
"Do you trust me?"
"What?" She was taken aback by the question. Both because it came from nowhere, and because she had known him long enough that he should know the answer.
"Do you trust me?" He repeated, and suddenly Rachel realized he used these same words every time they were in trouble or about to be trouble.
Like when he got her to climb the tree with him, then got stuck.
"Do you trust me?" Ten year old Zach asked as he stared up at the little girl while she peered down from the thick branch.
"It's too high!" Rachel cried in return.
"Ray," Zach opened his arms, as if he wanted to give her a hug. "If you trust me, jump! I'll catch you I promise."
With tears in her eyes, Rachel had nodded. "O-okay."
"On the count to three!" Zach said as he spread his legs a little and stood directly under her.
"1…2….3"
And she jumped.
He had caught her in the end, even though she did end up with a broken arm.
Rachel sighed. That was Zach, always getting her into situations, but leading her out in the end. Even if she didn't come out completely unscathed. If there was one thing Zach was he was a protector. Any time Gray was scared, Zach was there to help. When Rachel was being bullied by some boys, Zach was there, fist up, beating the kids to a pulp. When Gray had a nightmare, it was Zach's bed he went to. Anytime Rachel dreamt about her father, it was Zach's room she snuck into.
Zach was reliable, and never backed down when they needed help.
Zach was trustworthy.
Puffing out her cheeks, Rachel nodded her head. "Of course I trust you."
"Good." He looked back at Zara, who was animatedly talking on her phone again, before grinning at her. "It's time to run."
Taking her hand, Zach pulled her behind him, as she called to Gray.
"Scatter!"
\(._.)/
Auther Notes: Well here it is, chapter 2: Scatter! This was suppose to be out earlier, but I had to go to court yesterday and testify for my sister. Don't worry she didn't commit murder, that I know yet. It was a custody case, and we won! Whooh, so that was the delay, but here it is one day later.
Now I do want to point out that I will not be following the movie in this fic for everything. Key events will be in there, but dialog will be changed. I don't like putting word for word in my fictions, it just makes things boring and predicable. Plus Rachel is there now, nothing is going to go the exact same way it had in the movie. So yes I know Claire wasn't at the docks to get Gray and Zach, but she is now, because they came a day earlier then they had arrived originally in the movie. Also I want to acknowledge my awesome reviewers and say thanks to all my followers and the people who favorited this story. THANK YOU SO MUCH FOR GIVING ME A CHANCE!
Supernova: Thank you for your review, I understand the want to read more Zach/OC fics, even though there's a lack of them. Also I'm glad you like Rachel and that she is likeable. I do hope you stick with me through this, being my first reviewer and all.
Ruby: I have written some more, please don't have a heart-attack, and I hope you love this chapter just as much as the last one, if not more. And thank you for that energetic review. You are epic!
Livia: Thank you for this thoughtful review, I am glad that you understood my need to slow things down a bit and introduce my character and relationships. You are awesome, and I hope you approve of this chapter as well. Thanks for your review!
Guest: Forgive me for not understanding your wise words, but YEET! back at you Dear!
And of course Thank you again to: Evowizard25, Just Another Netflixer, The-Effulgent-One, and ButterfliesInTheSky! You guys are awesome. Next Chapter: Splash Zone Where did Gray go?
Have a good day, and don't be eaten by dinosaurs! ~GT