10 feet Under

Chapter 8

AN: Hope it was worth the wait! Taking some time out of my birthday to get this up for you ^_^ Please comment your thoughts! (: P.S. Excuse the funky indenting; my computer was acting up :p

Chapter 8:

I woke up face down in the packed soil, with a mouth full of mushy dirt. It was apparently on my face too, because I could hear Marino chuckling in the distance. I sprung up from my sleeping position and began coughing up the dirt. The taste it left in my mouth was everything but pleasant, and my face felt as if I had stuck it in a toilet. Marino on the other hand, looked as good as he did yesterday. He was leaning on the tree with his arms crossed, an amused look on his face. I scowled at his perfectness, and dusted myself off. He let out a silent chuckle before speaking.

"Hey, I think you missed a spot", he said, wiggling his finger in my face. I angrily slapped it away; he would soon learn not to mess with me in the morning.

"Save it, pretty boy. I am not in the mood."

He put his hands up in an 'I surrender' gesture, and frowned.

"Okay, okay. Lets get a move on, then."

He slung the black bag over his right shoulder, and started walking. I slowed my pace and trailed a few feet behind him, so I could think. How in the world was I going to get him to tell me where the sacred crystal is? Should I drug him? Torture him? Seduce him?...

I shuddered at the thought. Compared to Marino, I wasn't much to look at. I didn't have platinum blonde hair, or sky blue eyes- it would be like trying to get Ursula to seduce Prince Charming. The problem was, if I ruled out all of these options, what other options did I have? I didn't even know where the hell I was.

I power walked to Marino, and lightly tapped him on the shoulder.

"Hey Marino?"

He gave me a quick glance, his eyebrows raised in question.

"Hmm?"

"Where are we going, exactly?"

"Cannes. There's a little place called Hôtel de Ville that my father partially owns. We'll be safe there for a day or two."

"So, we're just going to walk in there and expect for them to give us two rooms?"

He smiled.

"One room, princess."

My face turned a deep shade of red. He looked at me, then laughed.

"Come on, it's not that big of a deal. Smart girls would take advantage of such a priviledge", he said, wiggling his eyebrows at me.

Oh, I'd be taking advantage of this way differently than you expect, I thought.

"Yeah, because we'd all love to stay with a bipolar jerk", I retorted.

He frowned, and we walked in silence for a few miles.

"Nadlynn."

I didn't respond, but he knew I was listening.

"I...um....er.....I'm sorry about yesterday. You just really struck a nerve and I overreacted. It's just I try my best not to be like him, and-"

I placed a reassuring hand on his back, and he stopped talking.

"It's okay. I understand."

"That's the thing - you don't. Everyone expects me to be just like him; a great captain and all that crap. As for me, I don't want to. But at the same time he's my dad, you know? And even though I hate admitting it, I want him to be proud of me. Everything I do is never enough for him. I'm never enough. The only thing that would please him is if I became captain, and I just... feel like a crappy son."