==Hi, everyone! I'm sorry I haven't updated this story in a few weeks. I've just been experiencing a bit of writer's block, but it makes no sense because I've been really wanting to write this chapter! It's just been a real challenge getting started and not stopping after writing like five words. This is a chapter I've been referring to as "the butt chapter" because of obvious reasons. It was really funny to write, mostly because I just felt like doing something weird with the characters for no reason at all. My friends have video chatted with me while I was writing and I would suddenly start laughing about something I wrote and they wouldn't understand until I read it aloud to them. I hope that gets you excited to read. But now as I post this update, I must now go write the next three chapters for Collateral Damage in time for Saturday since I neglected to stick to my update schedule lately. Then the next chapter for this story will also be about Gorgan and Cleo. How convenient XD ==
Yellow Claw - "Krokobil" feat. Sjaak & Mr. Polska
Haunted: Collapse into Caliginosity
Chapter 71:
He Touched the Butt
After slowly tearing up the canvas Nya had brought to me, I couldn't help but feel embarrassed about telling Kai about my experience with Macca last night. It was the first time my body ever responded to such a stimulus, and frankly, I really didn't want to put myself in a situation like it ever again. But I got what I most desired. That was all I needed to really walk away with.
When disposing of the paper and wood in the kitchen, I could hear a familiar vibrating coming from the table. I went to find the Bounty's cellular phone still there where Kai left it. A picture of Macca illuminated the screen in anticipation of someone answering it. But why was she calling again? We had already spoken to her once today.
Despite my mental questions, I gladly answered the call. It was never a bad opportunity to speak with her. In fact, we needed to figure out what we wanted to do for our night out together.
The introduction into the video chat was a clear scene of Macca laying flat on her back against a patterned surface. She didn't seem to have her eyes focusing on me. "Hello," she greeted.
"Greetings once again," I calmly mimicked. "How are you?"
"I'm fine. I just spent the last forty-five minutes with a nine-year-old."
"Really?"
"Yeah, she was a fan. I figured I'd be nice and treat her to some fun."
"What all did you do?"
She plopped what appeared to be candy in her mouth as she explained, but it was difficult to make out as she continued to speak.
"Macca," I politely interrupted, "I can't understand what you're saying."
She pressed her fingers to her lips as she tried to laugh without choking. When she tried to reiterate her story, it was still incomprehensible, and as a result, she laughed again.
"Swallow it," I lightheartedly instructed.
My comment tickled her ivories for some reason, sending her into a fit of muffled laughter over something I didn't understand.
"What?"
"That's what he said!" she belly laughed.
"Who said?"
"You said!"
"What did I say?"
"You told me to...Never mind. You don't need to know."
"Why?"
"You're not ready to know. I'll just leave it at that."
"Is this why you called or is there another reason?"
"No, I actually wanted to ask you something. So I'm at the mall in the store, and I wanted to know if guys needed anything while I was here."
"Well, now that you mention it, I need a new apron."
"For cooking?"
"Yes. I used to wear one when we lived in the monastery, but it was a victim of the fire."
"Hmm...I'll go see if they have any," she indicated, flipping the camera view around to show her getting up and walking to many aisles full of items of all kinds. "Okay, I found some. What color?"
"You choose."
"That's probably a bad idea, but okay. What else?"
"Um, I believe Kai needs something for his hair but I cannot remember exactly. I'll go ask." With that in mind, I headed upstairs to the bridge where everyone was. Macca was left looking at the floor for a minute until I made it up there and presented her the same picture of the inside of the bridge that she was used to. Everyone was either at a station or sitting at the table. "Macca is at the store. Does anyone need anything?"
A moment of silence was interrupted by Jay suddenly gasping and getting up from his seat at the table just to run up to me and grab the phone out of my hand. "I NEED NEW UNDERWEAR, MACCA!" he desperately exclaimed.
"Geez, chill, dude," she laughed. "I will get you the underwear, but why?"
He kind of giggled in embarrassment before giving her an answer. "Sensei had us do a lot of lower body exercises and now my underwear is too tight."
"Your butt got bigger? I thought that only happened if you got fat."
"Well you know, the boys aren't too happy with the current situation, so if you would just get me some, I'd appreciate it."
"Okie dokie, artichokie."
"Tell her I need hair gel," Kai voiced, not stopping whatever he was doing.
"What kind, Hotshot?" she wondered.
"Just whatever it is you use. I don't care."
"Why am I the one making the decisions? Do you guys realize it's like the perfect opportunity for me to prank you?"
"I feel honored to be pranked more than I do scared."
"Get me the cream, Macca. The cream!" Cole played, sticking his face in the view of the camera.
"For your face?"
"Unless you want me to grow a five o'clock shadow, then yes."
"No, grow a beard! It would look funny."
"It would be nice if we had laundry detergent," Nya opinionated.
"I got you, fam. Imma hook you up with the nice stuff."
"Ooh! Ooh! I need cologne to impress the ladies," Jay added.
"What ladies? Your mom?"
The whole room erupted in laughter, causing them all to gather around the phone as new ideas sprang up in their minds. Macca was getting bombarded but didn't mind. Unfortunately for her, her kind gesture was becoming an unreasonable massive task at hand.
Two hours. Two hours is what it took for Macca to shop for everything. It went from toiletries to food to clothes to even a comb for Sensei's beard. She had an overloaded cart that a worker from the store had to push around for her as she operated another cart with a lighter load in it. For some reason, Macca seemed to be bullying him in her own playful way the entire time.
"Keep up, Evan. Quit being a dumbass," she insulted.
"Shut the fuck up," he annoyingly responded.
Macca just laughed as she pushed to the cash register to pay for everything. "Why are you being so mean to him?" I asked her, genuinely curious by her outrageous behavior of harassing someone doing their job.
"Evan is a friend from high school," she explained. "Nothing has changed since then. Right, Evan?"
I couldn't hear his reply, but beeping from all the scanning commenced and lasted for many minutes. I helped the others organize what all we did have in the kitchen so it could be rearranged once the new stock arrived. "How many bags are there?" I questioned.
"I have no idea. There's a lot, but nothing my car can't handle. I'm coming to you guys this time around, alright? No special pickup like what always happens to me."
"Well, we're stopped inside Crash Course Canyon. That isn't too far away for you to travel, I hope."
"No way. It just requires some off-roading," she sniggered. "I'll get there. But you know what this means?"
"No. What?"
"I'm spending another day on the Destiny's Bounty!"
"That's okay, right?" Kai asked. "You don't have to stay if you don't want to."
"Why wouldn't I want to hang out with my friends? I mean, I was planning on recording a video for my website today, but I can just do it tomorrow."
"No, do it here! I wanna be in it!"
"God, fine. But that means I gotta go home and change before I head out with your groceries."
"Hey, you get to take your groceries home first," he pointed out. "It's a good plan."
"Oh, I didn't even think about that. Okay. Sounds like a plan."
She never hung up on me. Instead, she got her car overloaded with all the heavy plastic bags in her trunk and back seat and mounted her phone on her dashboard so that I could see her as she drove back to her apartment. "You guys sound busy," she commented, acknowledging all of the rummaging around in the background.
"We're making room for the new things coming. I believe this is the first time we've been fully stocked with food and other necessities since we've had the Bounty in our possession.
"Aw, that means I'm your primary supplier," she connected, her voice getting high pitched to make it sound cute.
"Perhaps for just this one time. Don't expect us to ask you to bring us something if we run out."
"Why not?"
"Because it is not your responsibility to do it. We usually buy what we need from villages we stop at."
"Well okay. As long as you can take care of yourselves," she concluded, turning off her car and picking her phone back up. "You're going in my pocket, Zane. I'll bring you out when I get my crap," she indicated, the screen suddenly going dark.
"Ask her what kind of video it is she's recording," Cole told me, emptying his two drawers at the bottom of his cubby.
"I can't," I replied, showing him the blank screen. "She put me in her pocket."
"Which one?" Kai chuckled.
"I don't know. Why does it matter?"
He cupped his hands around his mouth and whispered. "It could be a step forward for you if she put her phone in the butt pocket."
"What? Why?"
"You'll be getting booty calls sooner or later!"
"Um...No thanks. I'm not interested in whatever that is."
"I gotta hurry!" Macca alerted, pulling her phone out as she ran down the sidewalk with her arms occupied by dangling plastic bags. "Jay's ice cream will start melting!"
"Save the ice cream, Macca!" Jay pleaded.
"I'm trying, I'm trying. You know how long it takes for a girl to get changed? I'm already in overdrive!" She went into her building and used the elevator to get to her floor. Then she unlocked the door to her apartment and started filling her refrigerator with all the bags, regardless of what was in them. "Not only do I have to change clothes," she began, putting the phone down so I couldn't see, "but I also gotta get my equipment together."
"Your DJ equipment?" Kai asked, suddenly interested.
"I have to record a set, yes," she confirmed, tossing clothes across the room. "You like those, don't you?"
"Of course I do. Do you even have to ask?"
"Then you know how things go when I record a set?"
"Well, you do your magic and you dance. Pretty simple."
"You're wrong! It's so hard to get everything to play correctly at the right time. I'll show you when I get there."
"My ice cream!" Jay reiterated from across the room.
"Okay!" she shouted, adjusting her hairstyle quickly before slipping a black cap on and disappearing out of sight. "God, my sunburn is peeling so bad. Let me get my stuff and I'll leave."
"Don't stress yourself out," I calmly informed her. "There shouldn't be a rush."
"I'll feel better once I get the air conditioning back on in the car," she explained, grabbing the phone and leaving her apartment. "I hope Wu has earmuffs. This whole video will require speakers, which means loud music will be blaring for everyone to hear."
"He'll more than likely be below deck in his quarters."
She came out of the elevator and proceeded back outside with her red wagon trailing behind her. "True. Okay, I gotta run again," she warned before doing so. The sound of wind rushing by came through the small speaker all the way until the shiny purple paint came into view. She placed the electronics in the backseat carefully and then hopped inside to turn everything on and get moving. "The ice cream is saved, Jay," she shared, mounting her phone again. "I'm now headed your way, guys."
"I'll wait for you and lead you to the Bounty," I promised.
"Okay, I'll be on the lookout for your bright white ninja suit," she replied, turning up the volume of her stereo so she could start dancing in her seat. "See you in a few minutes!" She suddenly hung up, leaving me with a warm device in my hand.
I was able to calculate how much time it would approximately take for Macca to drive from Ninjago City to Crash Course Canyon. With that at hand, I left the Bounty with plenty of time to wait on her. The hot air almost seemed to be cool as I rushed by on my Ice Speeder. Dust flew behind me with the mere contact of the vehicle against the sand. The irregular rock patterns of the canyon walls followed me on both sides throughout its natural maze. I only slowed down when the rock formations opened up to the Sea of Sand. Ninjago City was nothing but a vague silhouette in the distance. The aged road that stemmed away from it curved away from my location, but that didn't stop a tiny purple vehicle from continuing forward toward me.
The steady rumble coming from my Ice Speeder hummed against my eardrums. She was coming, and each time it happened, I felt at peace. Eventually, I could make out the massive amount of sand her tires disrupted. Beyond the engine's noises, I would begin to hear the bass radiating from her powerful stereo. Once she got close enough, I had to start leading the way. She might respond competitively, but I had to stay ahead so we could get back and unload everything.
She honked at me many times as she continued to approach fast. I used that as the indication of leading the way.
I quickly lurched forward and turned around, giving myself room to gain speed. She honked again, but I didn't look back...Not until I could sense her directly behind me. The music pounded from the inside purposefully. When I glanced, she could have easily tapped me with the front end of her car. Ice crystals flying from my engine as leftover debris went straight over her. A devious grin crossed her face as she snickered. This was all a game to her.
Shaking my head, I increased my speed. That was all it took for her to back off.
I retraced my steps through the canyon, leading Macca without a problem to the restored pirate ship that we made our home. The others were already walking down the ramp from the upper deck when we arrived. My Ice Speeder disappeared from beneath me with a bright white light, leaving me with my Shurikens of Ice in hand. Macca parked next to me so she could throw her door open and collide with me in a powerful embrace. "Hi!" she happily greeted, tightening her constricting hold on me.
"You've missed me this terribly? It hasn't even been twenty-four hours," I wondered, my hands resting on her bare shoulders. Mishaped patches and circles of skin covered them, complete with white inner edges. It was the residual leftovers from her drastic sunburn all those days ago. "You need an ointment application, Macca," I told her, rubbing flakes from my gloves.
"Hey, I already said I was peeling," she defended, looking up at me with her eyelids outlined by sharp black ink that gave her a feline appearance. "Wanna peel it for me?"
"Mac, did my ice cream survive?" Jay questioned, unlatched the door to her back seat.
"I believe so," she replied, releasing me to open the opposite door. Her new outfit was full of the color black. The skin-tight athletic leggings accented her petite body shape from her ankles to the center of her stomach, only revealing a stripe of smooth tan flesh before her sports bra entered the picture. It had small straps crossing over each other in the front and back while her breasts seemed to defy gravity. Two gold chains and headphones dangling around her neck shifted in place as she bent over to reach for something. Her backside was difficult to not observe, but I forced myself to not in apprehensiveness of my body responding the same way as it did last night.
"One trip!" she suddenly announced, standing back up straight with her arms covered in multiple heavy plastic bags.
"Oh god," Kai laughed, opening the trunk with Nya to pull out even more of them. "The whole table is cleared upstairs. Go take everything up there."
"Dinner table, not bridge table," Cole clarified.
"Got it," Macca confirmed, walking up to the ramp.
"Leave her equipment for now," I informed Jay, who was searching for his sweet treat in the bags around it all as it stayed put on the floor.
"Haha! I found it!" he declared, ignoring me completely as he held up the exact tub he requested. He then hurried back to the Bounty with his prize in his grasp and nothing more.
"So much for 'one trip,'" Cole grumbled, watching the imbecile follow behind Macca with his eyes glued to the flavor label.
"Zane can probably make up for it with his massive wingspan," Nya humorously pointed out.
"True. Load up, Frosty!" Kai encouraged.
I nodded and began sliding bags up my arms until there was so space left at all. The weight exhibited on them was enough of an exercise with the short walk, which left me ready to drop it all once I made it to the table. Macca and Jay were pulling the items out and crumpling up the bags into small clumps that could fit into one individual bag. Cole, Nya, and Kai made it after me, and their stashes maxed out any available spots to put anything.
Macca giggled from across the table. "Hey, Zane, here's your apron," she said, throwing it at me when I wasn't looking.
Pink fabric landed against my shoulder, and when I pulled it off, I saw it was almost exactly the one I had before. The outer edges were frilly and the pattern had colorful flowers all over it. "Thank you. My other one was pink as well," I shared with her, tying it around my waist for whenever I went to put it away.
Her arms went slack in disbelief. "What?! Aw, come on. I can't prank you?"
"Oh, was pink your practical joke?"
"Yeah, but don't worry, I found you these, too," she annoyingly stated, throwing something light blue at me.
When I instinctively caught it with my free hand, it unfolded to reveal long pajama pants covered in rubber ducks.
The others laughed. "Zane keeps hitting the jackpot," Cole joked, gathering items that belonged in the fridge. "This whole day is gonna be interesting. I can already tell."
"I know just the thing..." Kai promised, slowly rubbing his palms together and stepping into the kitchen.
Music began playing, causing Macca and Jay to glance at each other and suddenly start punching the air as the beat played. "Alright, alright," Macca enthusiastically supported, grabbing items and having Cole help her with where it all went. Kai grabbed a cooking utensil and began using it as a microphone when lyrics were sung, trying to get Macca's attention so that she would join him. Everything around me became controlled chaos full of laughter, work, and playfulness. The table was getting cleared up as the organizing continued. What was being left were things that didn't belong in the kitchen and would have to be taken downstairs and distributed down there.
An explosion of sound erupted from the radio, and sudden cheering and laughter commenced. I turned around to see Macca doing some kind of crazy coordinated dance that she was oddly very talented at. Her legs swung, her hands mirrored each other, all without missing a beat. "Macca, what are you doing?!" Jay loudly laughed.
She stopped and just stared at him straight in the eye. "I'M EATING ASS!" she instantly bellowed, sending the whole room into a frenzy of uncontrollable laughter by her unexpected and outlandish response.
My eyebrows raised. Eating...what?
She then squatted and started moving her hips in an exotic way that I had seen before in her videos full of concerts and shows. Nya shook her head when Kai urged her to compete. Embarrassment was apparent in the light blush of her cheeks. Taking her place, Jay jumped in to quickly do his reps and then give up because his hips just couldn't move the same way. Nya shrieked and giggled at Jay's shenanigan, but Cole was unamused. "God, Jay, you suck," Cole snickered, covering his face with his hand.
"Like you could do better!" he challenged.
"Do the red cup challenge!" Kai suggested, opening a cabinet to pull out a red disposable cup.
Macca laughed, practically reading his mind, and leaned against the countertop with her elbows against it. She slipped her hat off and stroked her luscious brown locks across her scalp as Kai placed the cup on her tailbone upside down. Before our very eyes, Macca flicked her hips in a wave-like motion and the cup did a complete flip, landing exactly how it had started. Cole and Kai cheered at how easy she made it look, but when Cole tried to do the same, his hips didn't move as gracefully as hers. The cup toppled to the floor, and Jay burst out with glee in his snigger. I stood there awkwardly, not really participating in any of this because I was uncomfortable.
"C'mon, Nya, just try to twerk," Kai pressed, nudging her forward.
"No way! I have no butt!" she refused, stepping away from him to find something else to put away.
"Sorry, I've just had plenty of practice," Macca reasoned, sliding her hand down Cole's chest and grinding her hips against him. His fingertips crept to the small of her back to hold her closer but then resorted to spanking her backside three times.
The sound that resonated from the consecutive strikes made me cringe each time. "No!" I accidentally yelped, making everyone look at me funny. "Uh..." I trailed, stumped with what to say.
Macca backed away from Cole with a guilty expression that was still riddled with rambunctiousness. "Oops. Too much," she said. "No more twerking!"
When things simmered down, everything was put away and the kitchen was quiet once more. I had been on my feet for hours, so I sat at the edge that looked over the upper deck with my legs dangling. After blurting out in protest of the way Macca was being touched, I tried to not speak another word. I was embarrassed but conflicted. Macca was not acting in any serious manner whatsoever, so why was I so disturbed that I wanted it to stop? We were different in many ways - behaviors included - but surely that wouldn't cause me to blur right from wrong. It just bothered me. I didn't want her to be treated that way...even if she initiated it.
"Zane," she chirped, not knowing she was all I was thinking about. She sat down next to me. "You okay? You've been quiet."
I nodded and gave her a smile. "I'm okay."
"You sure? I know things got crazy back there."
"I'm sure. I was just uncomfortable with...that."
She slowly hugged my arm and rested her chin on it. "It's been a weird day for me. I was just playing around to let loose. If it was too much, then I won't do that stuff around you anymore."
"It's quite alright. Maybe I'm just too much of a gentleman to have seen it as harmless in the moment."
Instead of responding straightaway, she looked down to ponder my sentence. But the others emerged from below deck by walking directly underneath us. They all headed to the ramp for her car. She had promised to let us be in the video if we wanted to, so this was her time to depart from me for now.
Holding my hand with both of hers, she quickly and innocently kissed it and moved my arm back into my lap. "You're sweet, Zane. Don't ever change," she pleaded, getting up to go follow them.
Again, I'm really sorry that this chapter is long overdue. I have to take care of business with Collateral Damage now before I can update this story again, but I will be back! Thank you PixelatedNinjas, Melodie in My Heart, AuroraRain18, and RandomDragon2.0 for reviewing the previous chapter! And thank you HyperSonicLugiaNinja and JustAFemaleGeek for favoriting this story since the last update :D
Melodie in My Heart - I'M SORRY I USED EVAN'S NAME GEEZ XD We all know Evan is not actually like that! He is a hecking good boy.
AuroraRain18 - I'M SORRY XD IT WAS JUST A JOKE. HAHA.
RandomDragon2.0 - Hey, the TurtleneckSweaterBunch3.0 would like to officially invite you to our group chat on Google Hangouts. You are really nice and you get around easily in the fandom XD Let me know if you want to join or not. You are totally welcome to! :)