My Brother Zach

The Storm

- dedicated to redheadadventure for being really nice to me :) -
Also, a SHOUTOUT to ProfessorBear! Seriously guys, check out her book, 'The Other Side of the Story'! It's really good! :D
Ok, well here's your chapter! :) Oh, and Farro and Abbily's mum in the pic

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"Mmph."
I tried to smile at Brenda as she finished rubbing the cool, jellyish sap onto my bloated, swollen face. It felt refreshing and made the burn of the rash numb.
"I'll be right back for you, Zach," she said, then left the room. Zach grunted and looked at me.
Both of us were lying on two basket-weave single beds with thin blankets pulled over our knees.
"My fathe ith tho itchy," Zach muttered.
"Mine too," I replied. "How come we didn't thmell the peanut butter in thothe cookieth?"
"I thought I thmelt thomething weird but I thought it would be rude to not try one."
I snorted. "Yeah right! You jutht wanted food!"
Zach sighed. "Fine." He sat up and took a sip of the water on the table beside him. I scratched my cheek (quickly in case Brenda came in and saw), then stretched and yawned.
Elloella, Farro's cat, leapt onto my feet and curled around, falling asleep. I peeked through my puffy eyes at the fluffy white fur-ball, then sighed again and shut them.
"Hey," Farro said, coming in.
"Hey," Zach and I said in unison.
"How are you guys?" Farro picked Elloella up off me and sat down on the stool next to my bed, placing her on his lap.
"Ok," Zach and I said, in unison again.
A corner of Farro's mouth tilted up into a crooked smile. "Stop doing that, it's creepy!"
"Thowwy," Zach and I said together on purpose, and he laughed.
"Tongue a little sore?"
I rolled my eyes. "Tell me abouth it."
Farro shook his head, grinning. "Mum's really sorry. She didn't know you guys were allergic. You don't know how bad she feels right now. Oh, and Liberty, stop scratching." I moaned and tried to swipe my chin one last time, but Farro caught my hand and held it down onto the bed beside me.
"Get your hanth off her!" Zach snapped, glaring at him. Farro quickly withdrew his hand.
"Sorry."
"You better be."
There was a long awkward silence after that. Most of it was spent with me staring at Zach, annoyed, Zach watching Farro like a hawk, annoyed, and Farro constantly stroking an irritated Elloella, worried.
"Where's Jacob?" I asked after a while. "Is he ok?" Then I gasped. "I can speak again!" I smiled triumphantly and turned to Zach. "Can you?"
"Thweet thrawbewwy thweeties. Nope," Zach sighed, and I laughed gleefully.
"Good. You could do with shutting up for a while."
"Hey!"
"Whatever. Rest your tongue," I teased, grinning. "So," I said, turning to Farro and sitting up again. "Jacob?"
"I think he's sleeping in Abbily's room," Farro said. "I dunno, he wasn't in the living room when I went by."
"Oh, ok."
Zach stretched and yawned. "What time is it, Farro?"
"Night."
"Oh, wow," I said. I hadn't realised it was that late.
"No, I mean what time is it?"
"We don't have a proper clock on the island, but I'm guessing it would be about eleven or twelvish."
At that moment, the curtains blew open and cold air rushed over us. I gasped and pulled the blanket up to my chin. Suddenly lightning sparked the sky and a drum roll of thunder followed.
"Woah," I said, and shrank into the bed, curling up.
"Aw, Libby's scared of storms," Zach cooed, then punched the air, realising he could speak properly again. I groaned and hid under the blanket.
"I'm scared of storms at night," my voice came muffled. "There's a difference."
Zach scoffed. "Pfft."
"Pfft you!"
Suddenly there was a bang and another flash. I screamed and rolled off the bed onto the floor, shaking.
Zach laughed.
Elloella hissed (kinda 'cause I landed on her).
Farro helped me up.
There was another rumble and I clutched Farro tightly.
Resulting in Zach halting his laughter. And glaring at us. And leaping off the bed and wrenching me away from him.
"Lib, if you needed a hug, you coulda asked me," he said, shooting daggers at Farro. Poor boy.
"Ew, get off me, Zach, you stink," I gasped when he buried my face into his armpit. "Gross! I think there were mushrooms in there!"
Zach looked alarmed and sniffed under his arm, which should not be done, by the way! Yuck!
Then he sighed with relief. "Nah, I can still smell the remains of my super-strong Axe deo. Whew, you scared me for a sec." He wiped his forehead as I stared at him.
Unbelievable, that guy.
Farro was just opening his mouth to speak when Brenda and Abbily ran in. Brenda was wailing and looked really worried, her face distorted in fear.
Abbily?
Well, she looked like she wasn't very happy about someone interrupting her beauty sleep.
No, seriously, she had a few curlers in! But just saying, I think her hair suits straight. I'll tell her that sometime. Maybe then she'll be kind and kill me with one less knife. Oh, how generous that would be!
"Jacob! I can't find Jacob!" Brenda moaned, clutching her hair. "He's not where I left him last! What if he went outside? There's a sto-"
"Mum, calm down!" Farro snapped sharply, and gripped his mum's shoulders. "Now tell us exactly what happened."
"I put Jacob to sleep on the bed in my room, and then hurried to the kitchen to finish brewing the soup. But when I came back, he wasn't there! I've searched the whole house and I can't find the boy!" Brenda cried. "I'm so sorry!"
I felt my heart come up into my throat and my blood ran cold. "No," I whispered.
"Maybe you didn't check properly enough," Zach suggested, glancing at me.
"I checked every nook and cranny," Brenda said miserably. "I don't know where he is!"
"We'll find him, Liberty, don't worry," Farro said. "Come on, Zach, let's go and search outside. He might have wandered over to the volcano - it's not very far."
"Oh, no!" I gasped. "I'm coming too!"
"No you're not," Zach and Farro said in unison, and began leaving the room.
"Yes I am," I said. "I am going with you and there's nothing you can do about it."
Farro looked at Zach. Zach looked at me. I stared right back, arms folded.
"We don't have time for this," he eventually sighed. "Hurry up." Brenda shrugged off her poncho and pulled it over me.
"Thanks," I said gratefully. The soft wool kept me snug and warm compared to when I wasn't wearing it.
"No problem," she said. "Now go and find that boy."

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"The wind is howling like this swirling storm inside," I murmured as giant cold hands of air slapped me in the face.
"Liberty!"
"Sorry, couldn't keep it in, heavens knows I tried," I sang quickly.
"Liberty!"
"Sor-ry, Grandpa," I muttered.
"I heard that."
"Well, maybe I don't care!" I shouted back.
It was dark, really dark, and the torch Farro was trying to use chose to have cancer in its batteries and die. The night was noisy with thunder and wind, and cold, really cold. I shivered and pulled the poncho tighter around me, but it didn't help much.
"See anything?" I yelled.
"No," was Farro's reply.
My hair whipped out of my face and I scrunched up my stinging eyes. I could barely see, but I made out the two shadowy figures of my brother and Farro stumbling over the rocky side of the volcano path.
"This is so dangerous!" Zach shouted. "Lib, I don't want you coming any closer!"
"But Jacob!"
"Stay there!"
"No!"
I rushed forward and kept close to Zach.
"Scared?" he asked quietly after a while.
"Definitely."
Suddenly Zach stopped and I smacked into his back.
"Ouch!"
"Sorry," Zach shouted. "Farro! Farro?"
"Over here!" came a yell.
We shuffled carefully to where the voice came from.
"I've got Jacob!"
My heart pounded and I leapt onto a ledge and pulled myself up onto the mouth of the volcano.
Woah.
I was on a volcano.
On a dark stormy night.
Woah.
"Jacob!" I screamed. "Jacob!"
The lava inside the volcano was bubbly and red, but there was too little of it to explode. A warm glow lit up our faces.
"Liberty! Liberty!" Jacob cried, and began running towards me.
"What on earth are you doing here?" I screamed, opening my arms for him.
"Liberty!"
And then, at that brief moment, the world stopped and my heart broke.
If only he hadn't tripped over that tiny stone, if only he hadn't been running, if only, if only, if only.
"JACOB!"  I shrieked as he rolled, screaming, down into the lava.
"No!"

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Well, that was a dramatic chapter!
Question: What's gonna happen to Jacob? Remember to say what you think in the comments!
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Bye!
- wansari-dragon :)