BRIGHT (Larry Stylinson AU)

Chapter 5

Louis~

My Buddies Niall, Liam, Zayn , and Harry had come to keep me company. Just like I do with my parents, I create them. And if you think about it, creating is the best superpower of them all. It's a whole lot better than being part spider.

''Survival training. I love it,'' Niall said, punching fists with me. ''The great outdoors! The Pacific Northwest! Wow! You know how to travel, Lou.''

Liam is younger than me or so. He's always ready, willing, and able to try anything, and mix it up with any thing. If anyone enjoys chasing down aliens as much as I do, it's Liam. The guy is fearless, loyal to a fault, and all heart.

''Chex Mix! Righteous!'' Niall said, plopping down and snatching the bag out of my hand. Ni-Ni, on the other hand, is more like all stomach. Which is crazy, because he's skinny but not much skinny. He's also messy, an athlete at nothing but competitive eating, and the most sarcastic, funniest motormouth I know.

''Oh, wow!'' Zayn said, twirling around. ''Spruce, cedars, Douglas firs, cypresses. Amazing! I love it here. Great spot Lou.''

Zayn's a month's younger than Liam, and they were brothers. He's also our little group's Earth Mother. Compassionate to a fault, Zayn loves two things: the planet Earth and all of its animals, even the insects.

''Hey, you,'' Harry said, smiling at me with a jaunty shake of his head. ''Decided to take us camping, huh? Interesting. I mean, heat and indoor plumbing, how overrated are they?''

I smiled back, my mouth suddenly dry.

What can I say about Harry? He's tall, with that curly hair brown. He's probably the most handsome boy I've ever seen... just my opinion, of course... but the neat part is that hands down. Harry's the most genuine person I've met. No ego, no big head, no agenda.

I have a crush on Harry, so bad that it makes me physically shake sometimes. It's embarrassing! Like when I look into his eyes, which are in the green family, which between the forest and nature.

I know I'm gay tho'. But that's not important.

I stared at him in the firelight across from me and felt my wet, cold carcass instantly warm up.

''Way to go, Louis!'' Niall said, his cheeks bloated with Chex Mix, wincing as he sat on a hard root. ''Sweet spot you picked here, buddy. I mean, I love the cold by itself, but wet too? And lousy grub.''

''Niall's actually right for once'' Liam said, whittling a stick into an arrow with my pocketknife. ''This place is a dump.''

''A dump?'' Zayn said, outraged. ''The Pacific Northwest is like one of the biologically richest area in North America. Maybe in all the temperate areas of the world. Besides all of the coniferous growth, it's home to the mourning dove and the western fence lizard.''

''Hey, you're right, Zayn. This eco-biosystem thingy is really starting to grow on me.'' Niall said. ''In fact ...''

Niall got down on one knee in front of the Douglas fir besides him and mimicked opening a jewelry box. ''Will you marry me?'' he said to the tree. ''Seriously. I love you, tree.''

''Enough, clown boy,'' Harry said to Niall. ''I call Trival Pursuit.''

~

What can I say? We like to play board games. All right, so we're a little nerdy. And since this whole scene was my creation, we could bend the rules any way we wanted.

''First question, Harry,'' Zayn said, drawing a card. ''Category is entertainment. Who played the role of Jamie Sullivan in Nicholas Spark's movie, A Walk To Remember? I know you know it, haz.''

Niall finished my Gatorade and gave a deafening burp. ''Kim Kardashian,'' he said. ''No, wait. It was Taylor Swift?''

'' Mandy Moore,'' Harry said.

''You go, haz!'' said Zayn. ''Next Question... Niall. Category is theoretical physics. In quantum electrodynamics, what is the full scattering amplitude the sum of?''

''Theoretical physics!'' Niall said, outraged. ''E equals MC squared. How should I know? Let me see the card!''

''Incorrect,'' Zayn said. ''Louis, your turn. Science and nature. What does elephant mean in Latin?''

''An elephant question!'' Niall said, rolling his eyes. ''I get the thermo whatzit and Louis, the elephant nerd, gets an elephant question? Beside, he knows Latin.''

''And about a hundred other languages,'' said Harry.

''Huge arch,'' I said, ignoring them. ''Ele means arch and phant means huge.''

After we played Trivial Pursuit for about an hour more, I finally said, ''You know what, guys? I think I'm gonna hit the sack. I've had a long, hard one today.''

''Where we headed this time?'' Liam said.

''LA,'' I said. ''On the trail of Number 5. He's nasty, and I think he's getting ready to make a big strike at Terra Firma. He already sent a henchman to warm me off.''

''LA, cool!'' Niall said. ''Number 5, cooler. The scarier the better. The few, the proud, us.''

''You got my back tonight?'' I said to Liam as I stood up and stretched my arms toward the moon.

''Anything gets close to this campfire that Niall can't eat,'' Zayn said, punching my leg as I stepped past him ''you're going to be the first to know.''

Harry poked his head down close as I slid into my sleeping bag. He looked incredible in the pitch black... but in the firelight, wow!

''Hey, you,'' I said.

''Just wanted to say good night,'' he whispered, leaning in. ''You handsome devil, you. You are gorgeous, you know? Good night, Lou-bear.'' The last thing I felt was the sweet brush of his lips on my cheek.

And then I was dreaming.

-Welcome to my nightmares!

I have these incredible, vivid dreams that are like high-definition virtual reality. The one I had that night was a recurring one where I was a warrior in a world like Middle Earth in The Lord of the Rings, or maybe 300. I was on a battlefield, holding a shining sword, surrounded by a Yankee Stadium sized crowed of seething, hopelessly evil creatures. They were heavily armed, and every one of them was there to fight me. They all wanted their piece, but especially the real treasure, my brain.

I turned to try to run but then saw that Liam, Niall, Zayn, and Harry were at my side. ''We've got your back, well... kinda!'' Liam yelled.

And then, as always, I saw The Prayer coming at me.

And, as always, Number 1 killed me! Set me on fire, cooked me to medium rare, and then ate me.

I really, really, really hope I haven't just given away the ending of this story.