Title: Mouse Trap.
Summary: What happens when a game of Cat and Mouse exceeds expectation. Lost in the woods, hungry, cold. When your only companion is the Cat, what can you possibly do to stay alive. This vacation has definitely turned into a Mouse Trap.
Rating: M...Definitely M
A/N: Hello Gregrick readers! It's Crazy4Beverages here, I know that a fair few of you are quite confused about how this whole collab writing system works, well it's quite simple really. Rainbow wrote the last chapter and I shall write this one, and so on so forth.
I sincerely hope you like this chapter.
The sun was streaming onto Gregory's face which woke him up from his slumber. His sleep drenched eyes opened and closed debating whether to slip back into unconsciousness or not. Finally his brain decided it was impossible to go back to sleep and he began his transistion into the new day.
He turned on his side to see his alarm clock.
6.25 AM. Great.
Greg sighed in defeat and swung his pale legs over the side of the bed, streching his limbs with a groan and yawn. Events of last night flooded back into his mind like blood rushing to his head, Rodrick's taunting laugh rang in his ears and a twisting feeling danced in his gut. Greg gulped and his eyes darted around the hardwood floor in anticipation, oh god, not that awful feeling again. He didn't know what was worse. The daunting feeling, or the fact that Rodrick was the cause of all of this.
He gathered up his feelings and trailed along to the bathroom, finally looking up at his reflection in the mirror. He looked terrible.
The rims of his eyes were red and sore from lack of sleep, his dark hair stuck up (More than usual) in different directions, and a dark, fresh bruise had already formed on his left arm where Rodrick had punched him the night before.
Greg was at a complete loss at how Rodrick could have this effect on him by the whisper of a few words. Indeed he had recieved much worse from him before, for example at the Roller Rink when he completley hijaked his chances of asking Holly to dance with him, following him being beaten up by a bunch of little girls and then a scolding by his mother. But what was so different this time? He stopped pondering and decided to try and fix his broken reflection in the mirror before going down for breakfast.
When Greg had travelled down the stairs he wasn't surprised to see he and his mother were the only ones in the kitchen, hearing footsteps place themselves lousily on the floor, his mom turned around to him in surprise. Greg was standing there awkwardly wondering what excuse he could come up with for waking up so early.
"Oh honey you look terrible!" She exclaimed in shock, walking over to where Greg wearily placed a hand upon his forehead, looking to see if he had a fever.
"You seem to be a normal temperature.." She frowned, Greg shrugged off her hand and trotted over to the breakfast table.
"I'm fine mom, really... I just didn't get much sleep last night." Greg shrugged, trying to make it seem like it wasn't such a big deal.
His mother pursed her lips and nodded as if it still was an unconvincing argument, she sighed and proceded to make toast for him. Greg inwardly sighed, for now he was off the hook from his mother, but he wasn't off the hook from his brother. He quickly gulped his cereal down and announced to his mom he was leaving, her head shot up from the papers she was signing.
"So early? Greg, maybe you should wait a while...Rodrick could drive you then." She smiled gleefully while putting the papers in a folder. Greg did a double take and looked up at her.
"No!" Greg blurted out before he could stop himself, he saw his mother furrow her eyebrows as she looked at him out of curiousity and confusion.
Greg licked his lips nervously.
"You know what Rodrick's like when he has to drive me somewhere, I really don't want to face him before noon."
Correction. He didn't want to face Rodrick at all. Luckily his mom must have believed him because she gave him an amused look and sighed.
"I can't say I blame you on that one, it's a wonder how that boy can sleep for so long..." She pondered while looking down, buttering her own piece of toast.
Greg took this moment to slip out of the door with a piece of toast in hand. While walking down the driveway he wondered what would happen at school today. Rowley would probably be so phyced that school would be out, Greg could almost imagne his wide chubby grin, he couldn't help crack a smile at the thought. He propped up his bag which was sliding down his shoulder as he turned to walk down to street to his desitination.
If he would have looked back at his house, he would have seen the silhouette of a young man glowering at his retreating form.
The school day passed in a blur much to Greg's dismay, he knows that any other kid would be counting down the minutes until the school bell rang loudly, marking the end of the school year.
"Greg!" Mr Winsky exclaimed, Greg snapped out of his thoughts into the classroom, his hazel eyes lifted to see his teacher staring at him with his hands on his hips in exsasperation.
"I know vacation is a mere few moments away but could please pay attention for the remaining lesson." He reproached, a few kids around him sniggered and Greg had to refrain from rolling his eyes so he just gritted his teeth and nodded. Satisfied, the teacher turned around and walked back to the blackboard and began writing again.
Greg sighed and looked up and his heart nearly skipped when he saw the clock was a few seconds away from the end of the school day.
"5!" Rowley whispered excitedly, Greg's heart sped up quicker, just five seconds away from the fated ring of the bell, and five seconds away from his fate with Rodrick.
"4!" The other voice of Fregley chanted with Rowley. Greg's hands started to sweat and he took a shaky breath and exhaled.
"3!" A few others joined in on the countdown, whispering as quietly as before. Was it him or was this room suddenly warmer?
"2!" Most of the class joined now, including Patty. Anxiety seemed to build up in Greg with each roll of whispering that flowed out from his classmates.
"1!" The entire class (excluding Greg) shouted out the last number and cheered. Greg shut his eyes tightly and his heart pounded in his head as the sound of the bell rang out.
"Greg! Greg! come on it's summer vacation!" Rowley almost squealed as his face lit up, Greg managed a smile at him, Rowley's smile faded seeing his best friend's facade.
"Hey Greg, what's wrong?" Rowley asked worriedly as they exited the classroom. Greg frowned, should he really tell him about what happened?
"Nothing, just a bit of a stomach ache." He smiled reassuringly, Rowley's face grimiced at the thought of stomach ache at a time like this, but decided to launch into his plans of his summer vacation.
Greg meanwhile was not so enthusiastic about his summer vacation. He also felt just the slightest bit guilty about lieing to Rowley, sure he could be a bit embarrassing at times but he had never lied to him before.
His thoughts then switched to what would happen when he got home, He knew they would be leaving at 5pm which they would then stay in a hotal considering the camping site was fairly far away.
Wait a second, a hotel? Does that mean that?... Oh no, please no! Would he have to share a room with Rodrick? Surely fate coulden't be that cruel!
"Greg! I thought I told you last night that you and Rodrick would share a room, it's only for one night." Gregory Heffley stared at his mom in complete disbelief, was his mother really that oblivious to how much Rodrick hated him?
"But mom! Why Rodrick? I'd rather share with Fregley!" Greg exclaimed, okay maybe not so much Fregley but it was enough to make his mother stare at him in dissaproval.
"No buts Greg, like I said it's just for one night, now get in the car now or traffic will be hectic!" His mother smiled sternly at him and walked towards the car with a duffel bag.
Greg sighed in complete defeat, he really didn't understand his family most of the time. His feet without his consent made their way over to the shiny silver van, his fingers trembled as they grasped the handle and slid open the car door, the sight that awaited Greg was a pair of dark wicked eyes staring at him.
"Hey there little brother, looks like we're roomies." Rodrick smiled at him devilishly. Greg gulped.
It wasn't like he had a choice.
Whoa! I wonder what could possibly happen next? ;) Wink! I really hope you Gregrick readers enjoyed this chapter, I know I certainly did. I have to thank you for all your wonderful reviews, your all too kind to us. Next up it's Radiant Rainbows!