He froze, his ribs feeling like they were being squeezed. He couldn’t breath. He looked over his shoulder. "Why would it matter if she’s with Seth?"
Vikki took a step forward, tapping her chin mockingly as she pretended to think. A corner of her lips upturned. "Oh, I don't know. I might not matter to Red, but for Seth? He just might get the girl he’s been going for."
Zane turned around so fast he felt a crick in his neck. Then he realized he had lost his cool and refolded his arms, pretending to look unbothered by her comment. Because he was. Really bothered.
"Seth wouldn't go for a girl like Red," he assured himself, before continuing down the hall.
Vikki hurried to his side and looked up at his unwavering expression. "Oh, I’m not too sure about that. Tell me, ever noticed any unusual behavior from him when it comes to Red? Does he talk about her? Does he worry about her?"
Zane swallowed down the emotion that was rising in his throat, hoping he could wish it away. He looked around distractedly, unaware that his steps had slowed.
Vikki began to grin in victory.
“I don't think that innocence is fake. Can't you tell when you look into her eyes? It's like she’s just woken up after eighteen years of being asleep."
“She's pure."
"Zane, be careful with her."
"We've been together since the day she played piano."
"It's not appropriate to bring a lady out this late at night. Especially not Red."
Zane clenched his fists and his breathing came out in heavy, angry pants. Now that he thought about it, it was clear that Seth had probably asked Red to stay in his room to keep her to be close to him all the time. Had he been planning to capture her heart when he’d let her stay in his room?
He wouldn't let him get away with it. As his best friend, Seth was supposed to tell him things like that. He was supposed to tell him when he had feelings for a girl. He was using a cheap method to get the girl that he liked and with Red being so naïve, it was obvious that she hadn't noticed. What did Seth think he was doing? Why had he been trying to get Red for himself?
Zane entered his own room and instantly his eyes snapped to Seth.
Casper and Seth had been told to wait in his room for him until he came back from his chat with Leo, so they could all go out for dinner.
But the moment Zane entered that room with a furious expression on his face, it was clear to even Casper that he wasn't happy and that dinner had probably been cancelled. The blonde on the bed opened a yogurt pot, looking between Seth and Zane. Seth was expressionless as Zane stormed towards him.
"Would you say we're friends, Seth?" Zane said in a cold, harsh tone.
Casper looked between his friends, his eyes wide. The yogurt that was half way to his mouth dropped off of the spoon and fell into the pot.
Seth stood up, so he could look meet Zane on an equal basis. "Yes."
Zane snorted and looked away, then snapped his eyes straight back to the man in front of him. There was a short moment where the two just stared at each other. Then Zane said simply; "You love Red."
Casper gasped and his spoon fell onto the bed on its way to the floor.
Seth didn't look surprised at Zane’s statement. No emotion passed over his face. He just stared back at his friend. There was a long period of silence before anything was said. "Yes." Seth answered just as simply as Zane had accused.
Zane's eyes widened and his jaw throbbed where he gritted his teeth. "Inviting her into your room under false pretenses was selfish and crude. Did you think for a minute, that if it was discovered that Red wasn't your real girlfriend, you'd come out looking even the least bit innocent?" Zane was right in Seth's face now, hissing through his teeth and his chilly, ruthless gray eyes flicking in rage.
Casper gulped and scooted back on the bed, just in case the two boys exploded in anger.
Seth's eyes were alight now, like Zane's accusation had ignited his emotions. “I was there for her when she needed someone to lean on." The brown haired boy opened his mouth to say something else, and then hesitated, as though knowing it would be taking it a step too far. But after a flash of defiance, he spoke. "That's more than I can say for how you've acted towards her. You tried to fend her off using cheap pranks and humiliation and then when you realized it was no use, you decided to become her friend." Seth's voice was getting louder and louder.
Casper had never seen his friend look so filled with emotion before.
Zane even looked a little shocked.
“While you were being a total jerk, I was helping a friend. What have you done, Zane, but push Red away?
* * * * *
At the end of the Sports Activity week – three days later – it was known throughout the camp that Red Hart had been fully accepted and even Mr. Zane Noble was prepared to confirm that. Since that announcement, Red Hart had received a lot more male attention than she had previously.
This had been known to irritate Mr. Noble, Mr. Cooper and Mr. King and therefore every male was advised to keep a safe distance away from the spunky, black-haired girl who spent lots of time with one or more of the Noble Cooper King trio.
She'd heard about the strange rule that all males were to keep away from her. She figured it had been another silly rumor made up about her. She found it weird that everywhere she went she had people greeting her, asking how she was and asking her questions. It was strange.
When it had first been announced that she was Seth Cooper's girlfriend, she hadn't received this sort of reaction. It was only after they had found out that Vain Zane had accepted her, that they began to treat her like a human being. She wasn't complaining.
Rupert had started to speak to her again, too. He apologized, saying that he thought she’d wanted him to leave her alone after she had made friends with everyone else.
She had greeted him with open arms and had even spared a day to go with the twins and him for a picnic.
However, there was one thing on her mind that bothered her. She could move now. She had told Vikki that, she might move in with her at Royal Nature.
Vikki’s roommate had already left camp, so her friend had an empty bed. She didn't want to be a burden to Seth anymore and in order for her friendship with Zane to progress, she was sure she had to move out.
She was supposed to keep close to Zane, but she was hardly able to do that when all the rooms in Royal Haven were taken, her old room, destroyed. She was having a hard tome telling everyone her plans.
She had figured out that she would still be able to keep an eye on Zane, even if she lived in the other dorm. It wasn’t like Blaine would be stupid enough to enter the camp just to capture Zane.
She raised a hand to knock at Zane's door. It had been a week and a half since he had told her he was her friend. Since then, nothing had really changed between them. They spent time together, acting just the way they always had. But deep down, she was glad that he had accepted her so there was no need for her to fret when he was harsh.
She entered Zane's room after knocking politely. She grimaced when she noticed that everyone was gathered in the space. It was the perfect time to make her announcement.
But Casper was the only one looking at her.
Zane and Seth were staring each other down. Zane looked furious, which was unnerving, but not abnormal. The strange thing was that Seth's eyes were alive with emotion. Anger, frustration, hatred. It sent a chill down her spine.
What was going on?
Neither of the two boys noticed, that she’d come in the door. They were too busy being mad, and saying cruel things to each other. Things that had been buried for a very long time were now being forced out into the open.
Red's slight cough brought their attention to her. She sent them both a weak smile and looked down at her feet.
They waited.
When she looked up again, she had a sad look etched on her face. It was as though what she was about to say was going to take a lot out of her. Finally, she breathed and let it o
ut.
"I’m moving to Royal Nature with Vikki."
Chapter 22: Scarlet
The three boys were stunned. Silence hung heavy in the room and they all wore varying expressions of disbelief.
Red. Moving.
That would mean they wouldn't be able to see her every day. That would mean that many activities would be separate. That would mean she wouldn't be around anymore.
Zane stepped back from Seth, unsure what to say, what expression to wear, or how to act. Everything he did now would affect friendships, and his own feelings. He didn't want the wrong action to ruin everything.
Unfortunately he couldn’t control his fear and anger for long. He let out a loud, sharp, humorless laugh and glared at Red. "Great. That's just great." He ran a hand through his hair and then swallowed before looking at the naive girl again. "The whole reason you came here was so that you could make friends with the most important people on campus, and now you want to just throw all that away? Was that your motive all along? You're not really as innocent as you make yourself out to be, right? Are you just one big walking lie?"
He let out another loud laugh. “I can't believe I fell for it. You're moving to get away from us, when we accepted you. Does that boost your confidence?" Zane was filled with such an indescribable emotion. Too much was going on in his head at once – betrayal of his best friend and now a strange anger at Red's need to leave. He didn’t see this as a good thing, her moving out of Seth’s room.
He couldn't stop the words spewing out his mouth, "You're ridiculous." He stared at Red like she was something unpleasant he'd stepped in, not even noticing the entire room shocked into a horrifying silence. "Everything we’ve done has just been a huge big waste of time. I’m glad it meant nothing to you," he stormed forward and swung open the door, nearly hitting her in the side of the head. He leaned right into Red's face, his hand still on the door. "Because it meant nothing to me."
And with that, he slammed the door in her face, leaving Seth and Casper behind with a frozen, dejected girl.
It'd meant nothing. It'd been a waste of his time. Everything.
Not even Casper's reassuring words were enough for her this time.
She couldn't believe it. She hadn't expected a reaction like that at all. She had thought Zane would be happy to get some space, but she didn't know he'd have a sudden outburst like that. She sunk to the floor and grabbed her knees.
It meant nothing to me, he’d said.
Why did those words hurt her so much? He was a mission. He was a person she was supposed to be protecting. He was a friend she’d just allowed to run out of the door. She was supposed to chase him. They were friends.
But she couldn't do it. Her legs refused to carry her. She didn't even cry. She was sick of crying, fainting, and collapsing. She was relying on too many people to help her. She was an undercover agent—she could beat up a group of seven men if she felt like it. She could shoot a gun, legally. She was after an infamous villain from the underground, criminal world.
So why had five little words destroyed her world? It meant nothing to me.
She felt hands lifting her up. She didn't react. Her body didn't respond. She should have been happy that she no longer had a phobia of physical contact, but under the circumstances, she found she couldn't even force herself to act normal.
She couldn't even direct a fake smile at Seth, who had wrapped his arms around her neck and pulled her close.
Casper left quietly, not looking her way once. Did he feel the same? Did he think she was wasting his time?
She allowed Seth to pull her close, her eyes still wide and expression frozen as it had been when Zane began to yell at her.
It meant nothing to me.
He'd said such harsh words to her at the beginning, but she truly felt like they knew each other now. To find out that all this time, she was nothing to him…hurt.
She felt Seth press his lips to the top of her head and his hand raise up to cradle her head to his shoulder.
"You were never a waste of time. Even if Zane says you mean nothing to him…" He leaned forward, so his mouth was by her ear, "…You mean everything to me."
* * * * *
So that was it. Zane stepped back, pulled the door shut, and slowly, as if he were in a trance, headed back down the staircases he had just sprinted up at incredible speed.
After he’d said those things to Red and stormed out, he ran as far as he could away from the dorm, away from Red. It hadn’t taken long before his anger had cooled, and he’d been horrified at the things he’d said. He was wrong. He ran all the way back to apologize. He was willing to do it. Zane Noble was prepared to apologize to a girl he had hurt.
But now it seemed like it was too late. He made it back to his room, only to see that Red was finally allowing Seth to touch her. To hold her. It was the last straw. He was livid, and apologizing was the last thing on his mind.
Was it a case of, 'Hey, Zane is out of the picture let's finally confess our love for each other?’ It definitely seemed like that. He'd left the room mere moments before and yet they were already at each other. It disgusted him.
He slammed his fist so hard against his chest, he was sure the action would leave a bruise. The constant strain, the constant throbbing, the constant pain in it was frustrating. He just wanted to rip out his heart and give it to anyone who happened to pass by.
He slumped down on the steps outside of the dorm, his head in his hands. It hurt so much. He would go and see the medic in the morning. There was definitely something wrong with him.
His own eyes were watering. They were watering, stinging and throbbing, just like his chest. This wasn’t a familiar feeling. He rubbed his sleeve along his gray eyes, muttering angrily under his breath. He looked up to the moon that had risen in the sky, hoping the cool night air would ease the strain he felt over his entire body. It didn't.
Nothing he did would change the way he felt. He hurt. He hurt so much.
He heard footsteps and watched as a familiar figure made its way down the dorm stairs, then set off in the direction of the tunnel of trees. As she was about to turn the corner, leaving the black gates, Zane felt his fury and pain jumble up inside, creating a firestorm of emotions he couldn’t control.
He leapt to his feet and sprinted after the figure, turning her around with force. Red looked up at him, a deep frown on her face and a wobbly bottom lip. It had obviously taken a lot to walk past him and ignore him completely. He glared with so much hatred he hoped it would outweigh the pain.
Red shrugged his hand off. "Leave me alone," she muttered, turning away again. He pulled her around to face him.
"You know what you are? You're a thorn branch," he hissed in a slightly wobbly voice. "Whoever approaches you gets hurt. But for certain people, you turn into a pretty rose." He tightened the grip on her shoulder “I bet Seth loves roses."
She glared at him. It was rare to actually see anger on her face. There were glistening trails of tears down her cheeks that the moonlight illuminated. She swept his hand off of her.
"Why come close to me if I’m so thorny and dangerous?" She sniffed and wiped her sleeve along her nose. Her voice was unsteady, but determined. Zane stared at her.
"How can I stay away? When a thorn branch is stuck to your trousers, even if you shake it off, all you have to do is walk in the same direction, and it gets stuck again," he stepped forward. "It was you who followed me. Don't get it wrong."
Red sniffed and let out a laugh. "A thorn branch is willing to try to be a rose for some people. What is it supposed to do when all it gets in return is hatred?" her voice rose suddenly and she slammed her arms down to her side, letting out a cry. "What does it matter to you anyway? You've said what you wanted to say! I mean nothing to you." She let out a quiet sob. "Just like you mean nothing to me."
Zane felt the pain come back tenfold. So he meant nothing to her. Although he had accused her of this in the first place, he hadn't expected it to hear the words come f
rom her mouth. Now they had, it felt like he'd had another ton of bricks pushed onto his chest.
She raised her hand and pressed it to her forehead, crying again.
He let out a snort of disbelief and ran a hand through his hair, then gritted his teeth. He lost his cool. "You drive me crazy! Why did you come into my life, mess around with it, and then rip it all apart." His voice shook, he felt his control snap completely, he was unable to handle his emotions and so just let them run free. “I didn't ask for you to be here! I didn't want my life to be shattered into a million pieces, and then put back together wrong. What right do you have to come into my life, mess around with me and then fall in love with my best friend—?”
"Seth is just a friend—" Red screamed, and then she lowered her voice. "He was the first person to hold out a welcoming hand I arrived at the camp. He was the first person to compliment me, and not sneer or try and get rid of me. He was the first person who allowed me to lean on him when I was being bullied."
Zane let out a soft laugh and ran another hand through his hair, his bangs flopping down in front of his face again. "Seth loves you."
Red sniffed, but didn't reply. She looked up, her eyes looking sad, lost and filled with pain. “I don't know what love feels like."
Zane crossed his arms. "Right. That's just another part of your innocent façade. Why don't you take the mask off already? There's no one in this world that can be as clueless as you and still be alive—"
"WHY DON'T YOU TRUST ME?" Red yelled suddenly, interrupting him. She wiped away a tear with her knuckle. "You are so mean! Do you know what it feels like to have the only person you think you might care about; say they've never trusted you? That they don’t believe what you tell them. You said that you never meant anything you ever said or did for me?" She cried hysterically now, not bothering to wipe her tears away. She let them fall.
Zane watched her with wide eyes.
But it was too late for her to stop. “I tried so hard to be your friend. You were the only one that mattered. Since I met you, I've fought to make sure you saw me! I had to live with the fact you wouldn't let me in. That you didn’t want me here, or want anything to do with me! To have the only thing that was important to me suddenly say that I meant nothing to them—you'll never know what that fe—"
Sunnyside Up with Red Ketchup Page 19