Finding ( Safe and Sound Trilogy: Book 2 )

Chapter 4: Violet - Return

I was beginning to get a little bit worried abour Kris and Bry. I knew Kris liked Bry, it was kind of obvious. And now Bry is hitting on Hayden. I know I just met him, but I can't help it if I like someone. In this case, I know it sounds bad, but Bry liking him too makes me like him even more. She should be with Kris, anyway. She's going to break his heart. And him sitting across from us at the fire all alone makes me suspect the heart breaking has already started.

"Ew, why do you like that?" Hayden's voice sounded annoyed when he talked to Bry about her favorite color: pink.

Bry moved her hair off her shoulder and shrugged, smiling. "I don't know! I can't help it! It's pretty."

I glanced at Kris, he was glaring at Hayden. Then he looked at me, and his eyes said something very rude. Like I said before though, it's a PG rated story. Leave out the blood and violence. I think I need to talk to one of them. Bry, Kris, or Hayden. If I talk to Bry, I'll just tell her Kris likes her. He needs to do that for himself. If I talk to Hayden, it'll seem like I'm jealous after one night together. Even though he did give me his jacket, and he slept closer to the entrance of the cave in case someone tried to come in...

"Kris." I said, and everyone stopped talking, all of their eyes focused on me. I gulped, now self-conscious about my eyes. I continued, "We need to talk."

Everyone watched me as I looked at Kris. "Now."

"Well? Say it." He flipped his hair.

It took everything in me not to first facepalm, then slap Kris across the face. Could he possibly be so stupid? "Not here, Kris."

"Oh, no. NO." Anne said angrily, standing up. "You are not walking away again Violet."

"I'm not a baby, Anne." I said, annoyed with her. "I can talk to my brother."

"Well, at least go where I can see you."

"Okay, mother." I replied sarcastically. I saw Hayden smile out of the corner of my eye and tried not to react to the butterfly feeling in my stomach as I grabbed Kris's wrist and 'helped' him up, taking him to a spot by a tree outside the cave, near where Hayden complimented my eyes.

"Ouch, Violet!" Kris complained, rubbing his wrist. "What did he do to you, give you super-strength?"

I rolled my eyes. "If anything, he made me weaker."

"What? How? What did he do to you?" Kris asked angrily, then glared at Hayden. "I knew we shouldn't trust him."

"No, Kris.. I didn't mean it like that." I said. "Look at me when I'm talking, please?"

Kris looked back to me, a confused and angry look in his eyes. "What?"

"Well. I have a couple things to say to you." I said, then prepared myself. Whispering, I continued, "I know you like Bry and it's obvious she liked you."

He blushed slightly. "Why the past-tense?"

I sigh. "I didn't mean it like that."

"Then say what you mean!" He yelled, and the group looked at us. "We've only been over here, what, ten seconds, and you've said that three times! Stop trying to be mysterious or something, Violet!"

"I'm not!" I yelled back angrily. "I didn't want to come right out and say it, though!"

"Just do it!"

"No!"

"Why?"

"Because!"

"Because why?"

They were all still staring at us. I turned to them and waved my hand, as if to say, 'Go on!' They all turned around and began trying to make conversation again.

"Fine. You want me to say it?" I whisper. "I know you love Bry. I know she loves you. But she's fourteen, right? She's probably just trying to make you jealous, to make sure you like her. I like Hayden. Kind of. I don't know yet." Kris's face softened at that comment. "Just... Give him a chance, okay? Does it look like he's flirting with her?"

We both looked at Hayden and Bry. Bry was leaning toward him, but Hayden was leaning slightly away, and then Hayden looked at me with a facial expression that read: Help. Me. I grinned and turned back to Kris, who kept staring at Bry.

"He's staring at you." Kris said when he looked to me again.

I automatically blushed and tried to stop. "He.. He is?"

"Violet, you should see his eyes right now. It's the way I look at Bry."

"I think I figured out my power." I said to change the subject.

"What? Why didn't you start with that?" Kris raised his voice, double facepalming.

"Woah there, don't mess your hair up." I said, rolling my eyes. "Because I'm not sure, and I knew you wouldn't listen to me talking about Bry if I started with that."

Kris looked at me with eyes full of hurt, anger, and curiosity. "Of course I'd listen to you talk about Bry. I'd listen to anyone talk about her. It's her." Then, he blushed and looked away. "What's your power?" He asked, kicking the grass and not looking at me.

I sighed. "Well, I woke up in the middle of the night from a nightmare. I walked into the forest to get things of my mind and I ended up getting so angry, I punched a tree. And you won't believe me, but it fell down."

"Did not."

"It did. It doesn't make sense, I know. But then, these people..." I told him everything. From the tree to me running away. "And then I finally found this cave to hide in. And Hayden tried to attack me with Sheila."

"Sheila?"

"That's what I said. His guitar. He calls it Sheila."

"What, is he Austalian?"

I tried to hold it in, but I couldn't. I laughed for what felt like a whole minute, and then Kris joined in. It was so stupid, it was funny. You could always count on Kris for a laugh, even in a situation worse than death. Like our's.

"So, that's all you had to tell me?" Kris asked.

"That's all?" I questioned, hand on my hip. "Kris, I just told you-"

"Anne is watching." He interrupts me, and I stop right in my tracks. 

"It's cold, though right? Let's go back." I said, changing the subject, and then we walked back together. 

That night when everyone picked a spot in the cave, Bry completely ignored Hayden when Kris came and laid by her. They stared at each other for a second, then Kris said something to her, and Bry smiled. He rolled over, and she closed her eyes. Hayden came a laid by me, Anne and Duke near the entrance of the cave.

"Need my jacket again?" He asked, standing over me as I sat down, hugging myself from the chilliness of the floor. He smiled.

"Nah. You can use it. I did last night." I said.

"Oh please." He rolled his eyes and smiled at me, staring into my eyes. He walked around me, behind me, and bent down. He put his jacket over my shoulders, and then he paused.

"Thanks." I said.

He gripped my shoulder like a dad would. "No problem, Hailey."

I grinned. "You can call me Violet now."

He layed down next to me, propping his head up on his hand. "Nah, I'll always know you as Hailey."