Another chapter coming right up! Okay, this chapter is more on the random side. And no, Hide and Seek isn't only for little kids.(: Well at least I hope that you don't think it that way. Anyway, what happened to the inner child thing? We should let it come out once in a while. Okay, I think shall stop talking random nonsense and begin.
Oh yeah and an early Happy Birthday to lepidopteran!
Hide and Seek
Everyone was still pretty stunned from Jay's actual confession and all of them were staring at Theresa, who felt a little embarrassed. She herself was overwhelmed by the sudden change of events, but in her heart lingered a warmth, rekindled by what he had said. Did someone really love her in that way? After spending so much alone time and with fake friends who only liked her because she was a rich kid, she didn't know if her heart could take any more hits if she'd heard wrongly, or he'd said wrongly.
But he had repeated it two times, didn't he?
And Jay wasn't the sort to bluff his way through everything. And he had sounded sincere, after all.
Atlanta cleared her throat, then said awkwardly, "Uh, okay, the next game will be Hide and Seek. You guys happen to hear of it before?"
Neil's eyes widened. "Isn't that game for kids?" he asked, rolling his eyes.
Atlanta shot him the death glare. "Don't you have, like, some inner child in you?"
Neil yawned and leaned back on the wall, closing his eyes, much to Atlanta's frustration. "Hmm? No."
"How are we going to play Hide and Seek in here?" Odie questioned, looking a little taken aback as he tried to think of possible places to hide.
"We're not," Atlanta said triumphantly, but Neil broke into her sentence.
"Oh, yay, it's cancelled?" he questioned hopefully.
"No!" Atlanta wanted to go up to him and strangle him. "We'll be playing in the park."
"Jay asked us to start without him first," Herry stated. "Does this mean we go first?"
"Uh, maybe we should wait for him." Atlanta frowned. Personally, she didn't exactly want to wait and get stuck in another bout of awkwardness and tension. But she would feel bad if she'd left their trusty leader behind. "He might get lost or something, and he won't know where to go."
"I'll stay behind," Theresa voluntered, quickly getting to her feet. "I'll wait for Jay and we'll go together."
As if the night couldn't get any more tension-filled, Archie thought with a shudder. "Umm, I guess that'll be okay."
With that, Theresa made sure the rest of the group had left before she started down the hall to look for Jay. She needed some answers.
--
Jay gazed at the door of the restroom. His hand rested lightly on the doorknob and he hesitated. Truth be known, he hadn't really needed the toilet, he had just needed to get away. Not for forever, but just for a while. He needed to think and plan his next step. He didn't want to fumble and botch his job as a leader, seeing that he was already doing a pretty bad job of it all.
A hand suddenly touched his shoulder and he almost jumped out of his skin. Turning around quickly, he saw Theresa there.
"Uhm... You need to use the toilet too?" he asked dumbly, then realised what a doofus he had just made himself sound.
Theresa laughed softly and responded, "Well, no."
"Then... Uh..." Jay blushed, scratching his head. "I'll... I'll go in first." His mind was whirling. He didn't know what to do. He was going to freeze up and die if he didn't get away right now. He needed to think about what to tell her first.
He opened the door and was just about to step in when Theresa spoke.
"You don't really want to use the toilet, do you?" she spoke softly, her voice almost a whisper, but then he somehow could hear it loud and clear. "You just don't want to face me."
Jay stopped and turned around, cringing. "No, of course not!" Seeing Theresa rub her eyes tearfully, he winced. Oh no, he'd just made her cry.
At that same time, Theresa felt crushed. So what if he was willing to admit it? He might never want to face up to it. She didn't know what to expect from him anymore. Then...
"It's not that I don't love you, or love you any less," Jay said honestly, rubbing the nape of his neck a little in embarrassment. "It's just that I need to think. About us."
Theresa blushed. "What is it about us that you need to think about?"
"Everything," Jay admitted. "We can't... We can't be together, Theresa. Not now."
There. He had said it.
Theresa's shocked look reflected how she felt. "...Why?" She looked hurt.
"Because Cronus is still around, and I know him. He may be unpredictable, but it's pretty obvious that he'd target you once he sees you're the most precious to me." Jay put his hands on her shoulders, sighing. "I don't want you to get hurt, or put your life on the line. I can't, and I won't."
Theresa's features softened, and she smiled. That was so sweet of Jay! So he had been thinking of her welfare after all... But he was overreacting. She knew he had a point there, but he shouldn't have let that gotten in the way of their relationship.
"Jay..." She was about to protest when he stopped her.
"Maybe we should talk about this later," he suggested. "I'm sure the rest of them are waiting for us."
"Hmm... Yeah..." Theresa agreed reluctantly.
Just as she was about to turn around, Jay gently pulled her in a hug. The orange-haired girl's eyes widened and she blushed, but she still snuggled deeply into his warm sweater. She didn't expect him to plant a quick kiss on the top of her head, but he did.. She felt surprised at his show of affection, but she felt happy. For the first time in years, she felt loved. And they stayed like this for a while.
After what seemed like an eternity, they broke away. "I think we'd better hurry. What game is next?" Jay asked.
"Hide and Seek. We're doing it in the park," Theresa explained. "Yeah, let's go. They're probably thinking that the toilet bowl swallowed you up."
Jay chuckled. "Very funny," he responded, and together the two turned to go to the park.
--
"Okay, who wants to play the seeker?" Atlanta asked, eyes scanning the four guys standing in front of her.
"Ooh, me, me!" Neil said eagerly.
Atlanta gave him a look. "No way," she snapped. "If you are the seeker, then we'd all be waiting for you to find us till daylight. I think we should hide now and let Theresa and Jay be the seekers."
"Yeah," Archie sniggered. "Let the two lovebirds be together."
"But that's not fair!" Neil whined. "I wanted to be the seeker! I said so first!"
"And who's the host of this game?" Atlanta said chillingly, taking a menacing first step towards Neil, who promptly shut up.
"Okay, let's hide now." Archie pointed to the thick forestation. "Odie, Herry, you guys take the east and Neil, Lannie and I will hide somewhere to the west. Got it?"
"Yeah," Herry answered. "Come on, let's go, little guy."
Odie crossed his arms in annoyance at his nickname but still went off to hide.
Atlanta pulled out her PMR to text Theresa, informing her that they'd be the catchers. Then, Archie, Neil and her tromped through the foresty part of the park.
"Ouch!" Neil glared at a tree branch, which had jabbed him in the arm. "That hurts!" Then, "Argh!" he screamed when he saw a spider crawling on a web.
"Oh, keep it down, would you, Neil?" Archie nearly yelled. "We're going to be found if you keep that up!"
"And we're going to be found if the both of you keep that same volume!" Atlanta whispered harshly. "Why did you even put him on our team anyway?"
Neil glared at Atlanta. "What do you mean by that?" he screeched in irritation.
"Sshh!" Archie and Atlanta went immediately.
After finding a thick bush, Atlanta pushed Neil down. "Sit here and hide," she said in a commanding voice.
"What? But it's so itchy!" Neil cried irrately, scratching his arm. "I'm going to get problem skin at this rate!"
The two ignored him and trooped deeper into the woods.
"Uhm, Lannie? How much further are you planning on going?" Archie said a little nervously.
"What, you're not scared of getting lost, are you, Archie?" Atlanta smirked. She pulled out her PMR. "Aren't you forgetting this?"
"Uhm, no. Nevermind." Archie gulped, though. He felt a little queasy for no good reason, and he decided to ignore the feeling.
Suddenly, Atlanta gave a cry, causing him to turn around sharply. She had just tripped over an idle tree branch lying on the floor and he caught her just in time.
"Are you okay?" Archie asked, concerned.
"Yeah," Atlanta said, pulling out of his arms awkwardly. She winced when she set her right foot down. "Ouch."
"Did you sprain it?" Archie bent down to get a better look at her knee. He pulled out his PMR to use as a source of light. True enough, her knee had swollen. "You've sprained it."
"I have? Oh great," Atlanta groaned. "I think I can walk," she said quickly before Archie could ask her.
She tried a few steps, but it was way too painful. She couldn't believe she'd actually sprained her knee on Christmas. What bad luck. Maybe she should have dragged Neil along with them after all.
"You can't walk, can you?" Archie glanced around, feeling a little apprehensive. There wasn't anyone around except him to help. "Well, at least count yourself lucky that you have me around."
Atlanta laughed shakily. "Yeah." She smiled at him, then looked down at her foot. "Now what do we do now? How am I going to get back?"
Archie thought for a while, then said resolutely, "I know! I'll piggyback you."
"What?" Atlanta asked, feeling shy all of a sudden around her own best friend.
"Yeah!" Archie said defensively. "I have to. You can't walk back, can you?"
"Uhm... Well, yeah..." Atlanta said hesitantly. She glanced at her purple-haired friend. "Alright," she replied, giving in. "But you'd better not drop me."
"Good idea," Archie joked, then he bent over, letting Atlanta get onto his back. She was quite light, but Archie grunted a little at the weight all the same. Feeling her arms go around his neck, he blushed, straightened a little and grabbed her legs gently. Then, together, they pitched forward.
"I think we should get out of the forest first, then it'll be easier," Atlanta suggested, trying to ignore the heat in her cheeks. Thankfully, it was pretty dark and she was on his back, so he wouldn't be able to see her blushing.
"That's what I'm trying to do," Archie shot back, sweating a little from the exertion. It wasn't exactly easy to piggyback someone, he realised.
They walked on quietly, or at least Archie was doing all the walking and Atlanta was just doing all the easy work. Then Atlanta suddenly blurted out what was on her mind. "Archie? Do you love me?"
"Huh?" Archie came to a halt, almost dropping her in surprise at her question and immediately became a dumb, bumbling fool. "Uhm. Well. I... Uh..."
Atlanta blushed at her question. What in the world had possessed her to say such a thing?! This Christmas was really making her wonky. She shook her head to clear it, then paused, waiting for Archie's answer. The damage had already been done, and she might as well hear his reply.
"I..." Archie stuttered, lurching forward in an attempt to make some progress in getting out of the park. He didn't know whether to say it. It had been two long years for him as well, not just for Jay and Theresa, and if Jay could be so brave as to say his true feelings for Theresa, then why couldn't he? He swallowed nervously, feeling as though his throat had some foreign object wedged in it. Jay was the courageous leader, of course. Archie himself paled in comparison to him. That's why.
"Archie? Are you still there?" Atlanta asked, her voice a little quiet and confused.
"Yeah... Yeah. I love you, Lannie."
Archie blinked at what he had said. He hadn't even seen that coming. He had uttered those words without even thinking! He didn't know whether to be thankful for his stupidity or to be shocked and scared at how their friendship would soon do a three-hundred degree turn next.
He felt surprised when Atlanta hugged his neck. "I do too."
"You... You do?" Archie stopped in his tracks again, shocked and disbelieving. He had never thought Atlanta would ever, ever like him. Of course, he'd had his dreams, but then why would anyone like a purple-haired, orphaned, grumpy closet poet? Oh, Theresa would just laugh at his insecurity if she had been there to read his mind.
"Yeah I do." came her answer. "What, you don't believe me?" He winced, envisioning her behind him glaring at the back of his head at his mistrust.
"Um, no, I do, I do believe you," he answered quickly, a little fearful that her newfound love for him would fade in her anger. He didn't want to destroy the moment.
"Well, okay..." He felt Atlanta relax. "But I have no idea why I suddenly asked you that question, or told you that... That I loved you."
"Me neither," Archie agreed, grinning. "You are so unfathomable and - Ow!"
"Archie," she said in mock anger after successfully hitting him. Anyway, she was right behind him, so it just made it all the easier. "You're insufferable."
"I know, haha - ouch!"
--
"Did you hear that?" Theresa muttered.
"Hear what? Oh, you mean my stomach growling?" Herry asked. "I'm hungry."
"No, no, not that," Odie said. "You know, the rustle of that bush."
"Yeah, that's what I meant, Herry," Theresa said, grinning.
"Whoops," Herry responded sheepishly.
So far, Theresa and Jay had found Herry and Odie. Herry had been hiding behind a huge rock while Odie had been hiding behind a tree and they had been pretty near each other, so it had been not too difficult to source them out.
"Sshh..." Jay said as they neared the bush. "It's probably one of them hiding."
They paused three feet from the bush, then Jay signalled for Herry to move. Herry, acting quickly, shot to the bush and picked up... a snoring Neil.
Odie rolled his eyes. "Didn't get enough sleep, did he?" he quipped. "He was yawning the whole night anyway."
"Neil, hello?" Herry shook the poor blonde awake.
"Wha-what?" Neil awoke with a start. Then, looking at his arms like everyone was, he let out a bloodcurdling, piercing scream. "My arms!"
"Yeah, your arms," Jay said dryly, coming closer to take a look. There were red bumps all over Neil's exposed skin. "You must have gotten rashes."
"I knew it!" Neil shouted, voice growing more and more high-pitched. "I knew I felt itchy, but oh no, Atlanta and Archie just had to force me to stay there!" The blonde fumed angrily, wailing at the same time, "Now I've got problem skin!"
Odie rolled his eyes and came over too to take a look as Herry placed the distraught Neil down on the ground, firmly on his feet. "Hmm... Looks serious to me."
"I know!" Neil cried.
"Don't touch him, Odie," Theresa warned jokingly. "It might be infectious!"
Neil, who was busy clawing at his hair, stopped clawing. "Oh no! What if my head gets the rashes?!"
"I'm sure it will," Jay kidded, then regretted it when Neil let out a strangled scream that just about shattered everyone's eardrums. "I was kidding. Don't worry so much, I'm sure Chiron will be able to ease your rashes."
"Yeah, Chiron would be able to," Herry affirmed, slapping Neil on the back to console him.
"Did you see where Atlanta and Archie went?" Theresa questioned, looking around. "I would use my psychic sense, but that would be cheating."
"Yeah, they went further down, deeper into the woods." Neil pointed.
Just then, everyone saw Archie emerging from the deeper part of the forest with Atlanta on his back.
Theresa frowned and ran to meet him. "Atlanta! What happened to you?"
"Nothing much," Atlanta said weakly, giving her a small smile. "Sprained my leg, that's all."
"Another casuality, and Cronus isn't even around," Jay said, biting his lip. Everyone glared at him and he grinned sheepishly. "Okay, okay, I get you guys."
Atlanta gave Theresa a nudge and whispered in her ear when Archie let her off his back for a while to rest his aching back. "Hey, I've got a lot to tell you later!"
"Oh! Something happened in the woods, didn't it?" Theresa squealed excitedly and held Atlanta as the red-haired girl stood on one foot. "Well, I've got something to tell you too! I'll tell you later as well..."
"Atlanta? Jay wants us to start moving to the school for the Christmas party, so get on my back now, would you?" Archie said, walking over and feeling a little suspicious to see the two girls exchanging conspiratorial looks.
"Alright," Atlanta replied, and she swiftly got onto Archie's back once more.
And together, as a team, they left for the school for the party and for the sake of Atlanta's throbbing, swollen knee and the screaming Neil.
--
Okay, here's the end of this chapter. I hope it wasn't OOC; I have a feeling some characters here weren't exactly acting like themselves. And I also hope both the A/A and J/T fans are pleased enough! The next chapter will be the last game, but it doesn't end there. It is a sort-of filler, and then about one more chapter and this fic is done.