Endless || Jonah Marais ✓

♪ TWELVE ♪

"Hey, Carmen," Zach all but shouts im the younger girl's ear, resting his chin on her shoulder. "Carmen. Carmen."

"Yes, Zach?"

"You're beautiful."

"Why can't you do that to me, Jonah?" Aurora questions, raising an eyebrow. "Am I not beautiful?"

"What?" Jonah asks confusedly, sitting down at the island.

"You don't think I'm beautiful?" Aurora gasps, a shriek escaping her lips. "Well then, Mr. Marais, I don't think we should be together anymore."

"What? No! No! You're beautiful," Jonah exclaims, rushing over to her. "You're beautiful."

Aurora continues to joke with Jonah, causing Carmen to giggle and Zach to roll his eyes.

"I think we should go buy a cake," the brunette states. "If we're getting married next week, we need cake."

"Next week?" Zach chuckles, looking at them from over Carmen's shoulder.

"You doubt it?" Jonah questions with a serious expression, wrapping an arm around Aurora's waist.

"Uh, well, not exactly," the younger boy admits. "I'm not surprised at anything the two of you do anymore."

"So you'd believe me if I told you I was arrested before for stealing ice cream from Dairy Queen?"

"Yes, Aurora, I'd believe it," Zach says, shaking his head. "But I'm not sure if that's such a good thing to say in public."

"I have no shame, Heroin. I am a queen."

"That's not a surprise either."

"Hey, Aurora," Carmen interrupts their bickering, glancing down at her phone. "Elle says her and Mark are outside. Do you want to come to the movies with us?"

"Oooh! Does it involve shoplifting?" Aurora asks excitedly.

"No."

"Then no." She frowns. "It's not fun if you're not breaking the law."

"But I don't want you to go," Zach whines, following Carmen to the door like a lost puppy. "We can watch a movie here."

"Why can't you do that to me, Jonah?" Aurora turns back to him. "Am I not good enough to miss?"

"What?"

"You don't think I'm good enough to miss? Well then, Mr. Marais, I don't think we should be together anymore. Blondie will come with me to get the cake instead!"

××××

"How much cake did you two eat?" Daniel asks warily, sliding into the kitchen.

"Three," Corbyn answers confidently.

"Three slices?"

"No, silly," Aurora giggles, nearly falling out of her seat. "Three cakes."

Daniel glances between the empty cake platters and the two teens laughing absurdly, debating whether they should be sedated. Zach remains at the island, oblivious to the ongoing madness as he sends text after text to Carmen's phone.

Jonah appears in the kitchen a couple of moments later, taking in the scene before him for a solid three minutes before saying anything at all.

"Corbyn," he finally sighs. "We've talked about giving my girlfriend drugs."

The blond holds up his hands in attempt to plead innocent. Unfortunately, Aurora's cackling didn't do him any favors.

"I didn't give her anything," he defends himself. "I merely encouraged her eating choices."

"That's not any better!"

"Blondie," Aurora says, her expression becoming serious in the blink of an eye. "Are you ready for the skeleton war?"

"Yes?"

"You know about the skeleton war too?" Daniel asks, hurtling across the island to stand in front of her.

"Yes! Have you been drafted?"

"I'M NOT THE ONLY ONE!" He exclaims, dancing around the kitchen happily.

Jonah furrows his eyebrows together, taking a seat next to Zach, who had yet to glance up from his phone.

"Zach!" Aurora calls out, hoping to get him attention. "Zach!"

In a matter of seconds, he finds himself tackled to the kitchen floor with Aurora on top of him.

"YOU'VE BEEN DRAFTED!"

- - - -

Aurora opens her eyes sleepily, finding herself cuddled into Jonah's side on the couch.

Across from the couple, Corbyn and Daniel are sleeping peacefully on the loveseat, Corbyn's head resting on Daniel's shoulder. Zach sits in a recliner, boredly watching an episode of SpongeBob SquarePants.

Careful not to wake Jonah, Aurora slowly reaches for her phone. Finding no new notifications, she sends a text to Mark before snuggling deeper into Jonah's embrace.

Just as she's about to doze off again, Zach's phone rings harshly. The boy jumps, immediately reaching for it.

"It's Carmen."

"Put it on speaker," Aurora mumbles, wanting nothing more than to take another nap.

"Carmen?" He answers.

"Zach?" Carmen's voice cracks through the speakers, panic lacing her tone.

"Hey, what's wrong? Where are you?"

"We were in a crash," she answers as sirens blare in the background. "Mark and Elle work answer me. They aren't moving. I'm trapped in the car."

"Are you-"

Police and ambulance sirens grow even louder, not giving Zach a chance to ask anything else as the phone cuts out.

"CARMEN?"

Zach's yells wake up the others, causing all of them to jolt upwards. Aurora doesn't move, remaining laying on the couch.

Jonah frowns, worry lines creasing his forehead as he takes in Zach frantically running to put on shoes and Aurora laying unresponsive.

"Aurora?" He asks warily, crouching down in front of her. "What's going on?"

"Carmen's hurt," Zach rushes, heading towards the door. We need to get to the hospital."

Aurora squeezes her eyes shut, tears slowly sliding down her cheeks. She willed herself to wake up, not wanting to believe any of it.

This all had to be a terrible dream. She was simply still napping, sleeping off her sugar high from earlier.

"CAN WE PLEASE GO?" Zach pleads, a sob wracking his body. "CARMEN IS HURT."

His cries are what snaps the girl out of her stupor, causing an anguished wail to escape as she realizes she's already awake.

Jonah jumps back at her sudden response, grabbing his car keys off the table. Steadying Aurora on her feet and wrapping an arm around her waist, the group follows Zach out the door.

'Mark and Elle won't answer me. They aren't moving.'