This Girl

Chapter 10: Don't play Fortnite around Natalie

"HELP!" I bang on the doors, screaming my head off. Alex sits on the floor, playing a game on his phone.

"Will you shut up?" he doesn't take his eyes off his phone. "I'm pretty sure if someone was here they'd have let you out."

I slump onto the ground beside the door and take out my phone. I dial Bubbles and hold the phone up to my ear. The static sound is so loud I have to pull my phone off my ear. I groan and call Mum, Dad, Kate and Meghan. The same sound greets me.

"Alex, can I try your phone?" I ask.

"Huh?" he doesn't look up from his screen. I roll my eyes.

"Can I borro-"

"I'M NUMBER 11!" his head snaps up and he grins, I stare at him blankly.

"Anyway," I roll my eyes again. "Could I please borrow your phone? There's no signal on mine."

"Sure," he holds out his hand with the phone.

"Thanks," I say. I hold out my hand for it but he pulls it back. I groan. "Alex, please?"

"Not until I get to 8th place," he rotates his phone and looks down.

I walk over to the cupboard containing all the equipment and search in there for a good five minutes before emerging and watching Alex, waiting for the perfect time to strike. He's deep in concentration and I stalk over, ten meters in front of him.

"Hey, babe?" I ask, he drags his eyes away from his screen reluctantly. I pull back the basketball in my hands and peg it at his face. It hits him square in the head and I chase over to get the phone that releases from his hand.

I try calling Callum, because he's one of the only people I know on his contacts that go to this school, and calling his parents would be totally awkward. The static sound is there again, and I groan and turn to Alex.

"There's no reception on yours-" I turn round and my heart skips a beat. "Either..." I say slowly.

Alex is lying on the ground, sprawled out, un-moving. The basketball is still rolling metres away from him. My heart starts to pound. I crawl over to him and toss the phone aside. "Alex?" I ask. he doesn't respond. "Alex, stop mucking around, honey," I hit his face with my hands but it doesn't twitch.

"Alex? Alex? I'm serious, stop playing. Alex?" I'm starting to get really worried, my heart rate increases and I think I'd be pacing around if I was standing. "Alex? Please, are you dead?"

I sit cross legged above him and pull his head into my lap. I check his pulse, grateful that he's alive. Probably shouldn't have pegged a basketball at him...

"ALEX?" I pat his face and pull his eyelids up. "Hulloooooo?" his eyes shut and I conclude that he's only fainted. Phew.

I go in search of water and find a bottle in lost property, still half full. I pull his head back into my lap and undo the water bottle cap, an evil grin on my face. I pour it over him and he stutters, his eyes opening immediately.

"NATALIE! Dude, what the hell?" he asks, wiping the water off his face. I grin at him. "You are so annoying," he closes his eyes and sighs before his eyes open again and widen.

"You look like my brothers when Fortnite's glitching," I say to him. He looks around before sitting up and blushing. "Ha! Now you've just killed one of those warrior girls on that BORING video game."

He comes to his senses, blinking a few times before returning to himself, the trademark smirk appears on his face. "You were playing with my hair," he teases.