TA DA!

I am going to warn you all that this only has a few more chapters written... but enjoy none the less :)

Chapter 5

Alex and Nick spend the night. Gram and Marrissa didn't say anything when they found me and Alex on the couch watching T.V and, Zara and Nick in her room. The guys slept out on the couches. That night I had a nightmare of a young red head looking scared, and dirty. I wake up and walk down the stairs.

I remember her face, it was scrunched up in horror. She was screaming in terror from something. Then I remember her screams turning into gurgles, as she starts slumping to the ground. An image pops into my head of her dead on the ground, mouth wide open in a silent scream, and eyes wide with fear.

I don't turn on any lights downstairs because I don't want to wake the guys up. I search for the remote, and eventually find it. I turn on the T.V and mute it. It's still on the news channel, there has been another killing. It was the red head I saw in my dream. She was in the same position I saw her in. I scream.

I only scream for a second because a very large hand covers my mouth. I look over at the window and see a face, a very scary/vicious looking face. I scream again. But it is muffled by the hand. "Sarah what's wrong, why are you screaming?" Alex asks. He removes his hand, and I turn towards him. "I had a dream, nightmare really about that same red head dying in an ally. I saw her the exact same way the T.V showed her dead." I whisper shakily. "You mean you saw her in a dream dying, then you turn the T.V on and she shows up on it dead?" He asks. "Yes that is exactly what I mean." He pulls me to the plaid couch where he was sleeping and sits down, patting the spot next to him which I take.

He pulls me into his chest, which now I notice is bare, and very warm. "So you saw that girl die?" He asks. "Yeah in my dream, it was like I was right there watching her die and I couldn't do anything to stop it." He kisses the top of my head. I shiver from the feeling of his warm lips. He reaches over and grabs the remote and turns off the T.V. "Then after you stopped my scream I look over at the window and I saw this wild eyed guy, with blood on the corners of his mouth." I feel his muscles tighten up, and his very large intake of breath. "I don't smell anything out of the ordinary." I don't really get what he means by that but I think it means something good. I yawn, and he chuckles, and this time I don't mind it. "Maybe you should go back to bed." He says. "I don't want to have that dream again or anything like it." I say tiredly. "O.K. Sarah." I bet he was smiling but I didn't have time to look because I fall asleep.

I wake up the next morning in my makeshift bed on Zara's floor. I get out of bed and walk downstairs to find Nick and Alex talking quietly. They stop when they hear me coming down the stairs. Gram and Marrissa had already left for work. "What are you guys whispering about?" I ask raising an eyebrow. "How you had a dream about that girl." Nick tells me. "I don't know how I did." I say. Alex gets up and hugs me. He is wearing boxers, so his chest is bare… again.

"Hey can you guys put some shirts on?" He kisses the top of my head again, since he is about 6'3 and I'm 5'10. He walks me over to the couch. I sit down, he sits down next to me. Nick eyes Alex's arm around my shoulders. I raise an eyebrow. He looks away. "So, anybody want some breakfast?" I ask. "Yes please." I hear Zara say. "Alright, I'll make some pancakes" I say as I get up and walk toward the kitchen.

I know Alex is following because I can feel his body heat flowing off of him. "I'll make the bacon, if you make the eggs." He says as he walks to the refrigerator/freezer and pulls out a pack of bacon, and grabs a carton of eggs. I grab the pancake mix from the pantry and get a big bowl and a whisk. I add 3 cups of pancake mix and 2 ¼ cups of water to make 21-23 pancakes. Since I'm making them for two girls and two guys I thought I would make a lot. Alex kept giving me compliments as I made the pancakes because they were almost perfect.

After I made the pancakes I put them in the oven to keep them warm and started on the eggs. Nick set the table, while Zara was taking a shower. By the time she got downstairs me and Alex had all the food out on the table ready to eat, with some orange juice and milk, and the syrup. Alex and Nick attack the pancakes just as I thought they would. "Wow Sarah you make really good pancakes!" Nick says. "I think she makes better pancakes than you do Nick!' Zara says smirking at Nick. After everyone is finished I tell the guys to get some clothes on, while Zara and I go upstairs and get dressed our selves.

When we get up to her room Zara asks "How are you and Alex?" She raises an eyebrow at me. "We're fine, we're closer now I guess." I tell her.

"Well that's good. I'm very happy for you Sarah!" She tells me.

"Um, why are you so happy for me?" I ask her.

"You met a boy who likes you and you like him, and I know he will treat you well since he is Nick's cousin." She says with confidence.

"Thanks Zara." I give her a big hearty smile.

When we get downstairs the guys are already dressed and ready to walk out the door. Nick kisses Zara goodbye (on the lips). Alex walks up to me and hugs me, I hug him back. Then before he leaves he reaches up and touches my cheek but this time he kisses my forehead. I blush and give him a small smile as he walks out the door.

"So are you ready for school?" Zara asks me.

"Yep, I sure am. I can't wait to meet all your other friends!" I tell her. She smiles at me. "I think you'll like them."

"Cool, so what do you want to do?" I ask her. "Why don't we go over to the school and I show you around, and maybe we could run the cross country course."

"Yeah that would be great, let me get some running clothes on first."

"Yeah sure, I'll wait down here for you." She smiles at me again.

"Um, Zara?"

"Yeah Sarah"

"Don't turn on the T.V O.K?" I tell her. "Yeah sure." Her eyebrows pull together with confusion, but before she can ask me why I bound up the stairs.

I decided not to tell Zara about the dream I had, I didn't want to scare her some more. I think she already had enough scare for a couple days. I get some running tights on, they're neon green, my favorite color. Then I put on some neon blue shorts to match with the tights, and a white shirt and a white hoodie. I run down the stairs again and grab my car keys. Zara walks out to my car and gets in while I lock the door. I turn around and walk down the steps to my car.

I turn on the heat and radio again. "Do you want to invite Nick and Alex?" I ask her.

"Not really, because I haven't spent a lot of time with you these past couple of days."

"O.k. that's fine with me." I smile at her and she smiles back. When we get to the school we walk around the campus. She points out some buildings where some of the classes she knew were, but other than that we were both silent.

After she gives me the tour she takes me to where the cross-county practice is and we start jogging. We both were quiet and I think it was nice just to do something without having to converse. I was concentrating on my pace because I didn't want to leave her in my dust. We ran for awhile, running in circles on the course. After an hour or so we stopped and headed for my hummer.

We leave the school. Zara calls Nick to see if they want to have dinner again. I also think she wanted him there just in case something happened. By the time we got back they were already there waiting for us. I walk up the porch and unlock the door. I let everyone inside then close it again. Gram and Marrissa were working late again, so I was going to make dinner. "So what do you guys want for dinner?"

"I don't know. Do you just want to order some pizza or something?" Nick asks.

"Yeah that's cool with me, since I can only make grilled cheese sandwiches." Everyone laughs, I laugh too, since I can make some pretty mean pancakes but can't make anything more than grilled cheese sandwiches for dinner. Alex orders the pizza while me and Zara change.

"I saw Alex looking at you when you got out of the hummer."

I laugh. "Was he looking at my butt or what?"

"He was looking everywhere." She laughs "Just kidding. I think he was just looking at your beautiful face." She smirks. We both crack up again. I pull on some jeans and a white tank-top. "Hey what's so funny? You guys are like laughing non-stop!" I hear Nick yell up. Me and Zara look at each and just can't help cracking up.

After we got downstairs the pizza came. Alex paid for it. I gladly thanked him. "No problem. You made breakfast this morning, so I was just returning the favor." He smiles at me. You know those smiles that guys give to girls they really care about. Well that's what he gave me. I couldn't help but blush. We ate our pizza then Nick told Zara that they needed to talk, so of course they went up to her room for some privacy. So Alex and I were alone again. I turned on the T.V and sat down on the plaid couch. Alex sat down next to me. I scooted closer to him, he put his arm around my shoulders and kissed the top of my head. "How are you doing with the murder mysteries?"

"O.k. I haven't really been thinking about them. I've mainly been thinking about other things. We went running today so I had some time inside my head."

"What were you thinking about?" I turn towards him to look him straight in the eye.

"I was mainly thinking about you I guess, I was also thinking about the mystery with my parents leaving on that trip without me." I tell him thoughtfully.

"Well I'm glad to hear it." He smiles at me and I couldn't help but smile back at him. I lean into his chest his pulls me closer to him, I sigh. Just barley though. I turn my head to look at the T.V the news report was about the weather, we were going to get a lot more snow. Out of the corner of my eye I see that man again this time he looks less crazy, he looks hurt and sad, he disappears. But I get up and walk to the window. I stare out of it and only see white and the black of a forest. Alex comes up behind me and wraps his arms around my waist and lets his chin settle on the top of my head. "What did you see?" he asks.

"I saw the man again, this time he didn't look as creepy, he just looked hurt and sad."

"I wonder why?" He says curiosity burning in his voice. "Wouldn't we all like to know?" I turn towards him his arms were still around my waist so I put my hands on his chest to look up at him. His face was so close to mine. Is this when he is going to kiss me? I would really like to kiss those lips but do I really want to kiss this guy I barley know but seem to feel like I've known him for ages. Before I think about moving closer in, he lifts his face up and his nostrils flare. I feel the intake of his breath because his whole chest moves and my hands are on it. He lets go of my waist but takes my hand just as Nick comes rushing down the stairs followed by Zara. "What's going on?" I ask both Alex and Nick.

"We need to take care of something." Nick says. He gives me a look that says: don't ask what the 'something' was so I just kept my mouth shut.

"Lock the door Sarah and don't let anyone in except for me, Nick, Betty or, Marrissa ok?" He looks at Zara and me.

"O.k." We both say at the same time. I swallow back tons of questions I would like to ask. The guys leave, they both yell out as they run across the white snow to the forest "Lock the Door!" I do and steer Zara up to her room. It just seemed safer there. I was slightly mad because the something just ruined my private moment with Alex. Zara could tell I was upset about something so she asked. "What's wrong?"

"The stupid something that they needed to take care of kind of ruined a very romantic, well sort of romantic moment with Alex." I can't help but smile. It really wasn't that romantic, it just was: Was he going to kiss me or not. So far the kissing part wasn't going to happen. "What were you guys going to kiss or something?"

Something inside her head clicks because the next thing she says is "You guys were going to kiss right? Yeah you were that's why you were upset that 'something' came up."

"Nice job genius." I smile so she knows I don't mean to be mean. "You have just figured out my life story." I say in such a dramatic, girly, damsel in distress way they we both start laughing so hard we start to cry.

You should have been there. It was that funny.

I hear a knock on the door. I run downstairs, and Zara follows. Was I becoming super human fast or something? I was about three steps from the front door when she was only half way down the stairs, weird. I look through the peep hole and see Nick standing there. I unlock the handle and deadbolt and let him in. What I was not expecting was Alex standing next to Nick with blood dripping onto the porch.