The trees rustled in the wind as Johnny walked his way down the slope. He stopped in front of a very familiar spot—the signboard that stood an inch away from the entrance to Springview High School.

Springview High, he read and sighed.

Soon, he would never be able to do this anymore. Tomorrow, he would be standing in a godforsaken ring, gloved, and ready to die. There was no changing the fact that he would be served death. He had made up his mind to plead with Fitch to teach him some moves, but the playboy came home drunk out of his depraved mind last night.

Now, what possibility was there that Jonathan Anders who wasn't good with any other thing except studying would be able to fend the ruinous punches that Dylan would throw at him? It was zero point zero zero zero zero zero...

"Johnny!" Someone called behind him, jolting him back to the moment. Someone girly and possibly outrageously beautiful. At once he turned and found Maddie approaching with her brother, her skirt rustling as she walked. Johnny could find himself smiling as she finally stopped an inch away from him. Her smile made him smile even deeper.

"Why aren't you going in?" Maddie asked, fixing Johnny with a concerned stare. "Is Dylan already here?"

"No, it's still quite early for him to be here. Nothing is wrong. Just thinking," Johnny replied, looking down, sadly.

"About tomorrow?"

"Guys, come on," Jerome interrupted. "Let's go to the library and talk."

"Right." Johnny managed a smile as Jerome walked on, into the school.

"He is still a total jerk," Maddie said, glaring at Jerome who kept walking.

"Well, he is getting better," Johnny beamed, as he began walking along with Maddie. In one very memorable second, their hands connected.

~~••~~••~~

The hallway was very quiet as the three nerds walked through it. Except for the tapping of shoes, it was very quiet. Johnny's and Maddie's hands were still tangled as they walked. Jerome took no notice of what deep intimacy those two shared behind him. FIDDLESTICKS! There was no such thing as intimacy between them, Johnny reassured himself. It was simply holding of hands which any two persons, regardless of the contrast in their gender, would be permitted to do. What harm could there be if they held hands?

Once they made it to the row of lockers, their hands parted much against Johnny's wish. He still wanted to keep that delicate, girly hand in his.

"Johnny," Jerome called while opening his locker.

"Huh," Johnny replied, taking out a book from his locker.

"I think we can do this together," Jerome said, slamming his locker shut.

"Do what together?"

"Fight Dylan together. You don't have to do that alone."

A soft, lovely chuckle came from the corner. It was definitely too girly to be Jerome's. Johnny lifted his gaze and found Maddie masking her mouth with both hands. She was trying to surpress a laugh. What did she ever find funny in anything Jerome said?

"Jerome," Johnny called, breathing a soft sigh. "This is my fight. You don't have to meddle."

"No, it's not. If..."

"Stop it," Maddie interjected, keeping Jerome shut. "Who ever asked you to try and be something you're not?"

"What's that?" Jerome asked, cocking his slightly bushy eyebrows.

"A hero," Maddie replied. "Just stop it."

"But you said..."

"I know what I said and it clearly didn't include killing yourself," Maddie interrupted again.

Sticking out a finger, Jerome threatened, "If you cut me off again..."

"I don't want the world to see a fifteen-year old pee in his pants because of a duel. Not in front of students of Springview High. You will be mocked for ages," Maddie divulged, rolling her eyes playfully.

Why does she look so cute? Johnny thought.

"I don't plan to stay here forever," Johnny said with a shrug.

"We all don't, but you won't fight alongside Johnny tomorrow. Even he won't fight that monster. Someone will save us somehow."

Johnny breathed. "Can we get to the library now?"

"Of course!" The twins beamed as they heeded Johnny's suggestion, Jerome walking ahead.

With the blonde in front of them, Johnny thought he could go back to holding hands with Maddie, and she didn't have an objection to it. He held her hand as they walked their way to the library.

~~••~~••~~

The library was just as quiet as the empty hallway. No, much quieter. The scent of old books and newspapers provided the warmth which the hallway lacked. In such an environment, a nerd would find reading much more relaxing.

At once, Johnny let go of Maddie's hand. He was finally in a place his soul would wish above every other place to be. Not even holding hands with a crush was a better choice to reading. Nothing was a better choice. He shrugged his bag off him and dropped it on the table closest to him.

"I don't feel like reading today," Maddie stated.

And what a painful statement. What sort of nerd would reject an opportunity to read? Definitely a nerd who was yet to become a nerd. Much to Johnny's chagrin, Maddie was yet to become obsessed with her books. If a whole year in close association with a nerd couldn't give her such an obsession, what would? Johnny wanted to begin with lectures on how dangerous it was for a nerd to keep turning down opportunities to read, but he knew that would lead to a terrible argument, and would ruin everyone's day.

"Well, what do you want to do?" Johnny asked, managing a smile before silently adding: hold hands with me?

Maddie possibly didn't catch the last part or she chose to ignore. She just went on to say, "Anything, but reading."

"Too bad," Jerome, who was already peering into a thick textbook, said without looking up from his book.

"Shut up!" Maddie snapped. Her angry scowl made Johnny smile. Was there even a second she didn't look beautiful?

"I know what you need," Johnny informed with a huge smile, but Maddie didn't smile back. She didn't even look at him. She just went on to drop herself on one of the settles.

"What?" She asked without looking still.

"A book."

Maddie whipped her head to Johnny, fixing him with an askance stare.

"Come on, you have to study. Exams is in a week," Johnny urged, walking closer to her table. Holding her hand was the objective.

"I know, but I'm tired of studying History, Math, or Chemistry. I want something new and different. Just for a while and I will go back to reading those stuff," Maddie stated, tiredly.

Jerome yawned behind them. A very loud, intentional yawn that attracted stares from Johnny and Maddie.

"Jerk!" Maddie hissed. Jerome smiled.

"You should stop letting him get the best of you. He is just messing around.  Come, let's look for something new," Johnny suggested, extending his hand towards her.

"I am not pregnant," she said, lifting herself from the settle, completely ignoring Johnny's extended palm.

For a second that seemed like forever, Johnny let his hand remain stretched in front of her. Afterwards, he withdrew his hand, his face contorting with shame. He shouldn't have. She didn't even have a dot of affection for him, so what was he trying to achieve by making a contact?

"It may take us till forever to find something different," Maddie stated, stepping out of her table as she walked towards the shelves. Johnny, abashed, followed behind her.

"We just have to keep looking, I think," Johnny stated in the quietest kind of tone which he couldn't even hear himself.

They went shelf after shelf, rolling fingers across the line of books, but Maddie never actually picked one. Johnny made three suggestions—the world book, guinness book of records, history of medieval Europe—but she didn't find any of those recreational enough. What was she looking for?

They continued searching nonetheless. Johnny, tired of making any more suggestions, kept thinking about the very flustering moment she refused to take his hand. She always did, so why at that moment did she choose to do such a thing? And worse, in front of Jerome. Even if Jerome didn't see, it terribly weakened Johnny to know that she didn't care as much as he thought she did.

"Johnny," she called from the other side of the shelf. "Please, get over here."

Sighing, he walked to her.

"Can you see that?" Maddie asked, pointing at something as Johnny averted his gaze from her to the book she was pointing.

"You want to read that?" Johnny quizzed, as he stared at the giant book she had shown him.

She smiled and nodded playfully. She looked so cute, but what did it matter? Johnny meant nothing to her anyway.

"Help me bring it down," she pleaded.

Johnny motioned to the book which was in the topmost layer of the shelf. He stood on his toes before his hands could reach the big book. Why on earth did she want to read this? She didn't even know what it contained yet. He went on to pull the book,
slowly until it was out of the shelf.

Johnny regretted the very moment he had pulled the book out of the shelf well enough. It was thrice the weight he had thought it would be, and he hadn't mustered enough restraint to hold it firmly.

So, it fell.

On him.

He fell.

And wished he could die from the fall.

There was a lady who was supposed to be impressed with his adroitness, but here he was, falling clumsily to the floor. Death was a better option!

"Oh my God!" Maddie yelled, motioning towards him. Johnny chewed on his lower lip. He was teed off. Why wasn't he dead?

"I am all right!" Johnny yelled, making it to his feet before Maddie could lay a hand on him. He rubbed on his forehead, wishing the pain he felt there wouldn't morph into a bump soon. That—having a bump before his supposed duel with Dylan—would be even more embarrassing.

"The book was quite heavy," he added.

"I am so sorry," she apologized, fixing him with an affectionate stare which stilled him to the spot. He stopped soothing his forehead, but his hand remained there. He stopped breathing, but his heart kept beating, and even harder. He stopped thinking, but he was still very much alive. Just oblivious to everything else except those depths of blue.

"Jerome!" Maddie yelled, averting her gaze to the book on the floor. "Come and help us."

Why, why, why? This was usually in the movies. The boy and girl would get lost in gazes. Everything would seem dead to them. Their heads will begin inching close until their lips touch. Why was his story different? Johnny made a grimace as he continued rubbing his forehead.

Maddie bent down to the book and attempted to lift it. It didn't look as if she was trying, but she breathed.

Looking up to Johnny, she said, "You are really strong."

She complimented him!

Nah, that shouldn't be a reason to be jubilant. Any girl could compliment any boy and still wouldn't have the faintest of affection for him, right?

"Thank you," Johnny replied.

Jerome approached them and asked, "What has happened?"

"It's this book. It is very heavy." Maddie replied, staring at the black cover of the book which didn't have any thing on it.

"How will that better your grades in the exam?" Jerome asked as Maddie fixed him with her trademark deathly glare.

"Okay, okay, okay. Fine, I will help with it," Jerome stated as he bent to pick the book. Jerome wasn't any brawnier than Johnny. In fact, Johnny would make a better athlete than him, but Maddie felt that three pairs of limbs would be able to lift that book.

The three nerds tried to lift, but the book didn't move an inch. They tried several times more, but it availed to nothing.

"How did you guys bring it out of the shelf?" Jerome asked.

Maddie pointed at Johnny.

"Have you opened the book?" Jerome asked as Johnny and Maddie shook their heads.

"Cuddies," Jerome snappied with a smile. "Let's see what we have in there."

A book without a title or any inscription on its cover had enough clutch to fillip the interest of very curious nerds. Jerome held the hard, thick cover of the book and opened it. The first page was blank. He turned, the page and the second was yet blank. He continued flipping page after page and found nothing.

He stopped turning the pages and said, "There is nothing..."

Jerome couldn't finish up what ever he intended to say as he stared, wide-eyed, at the book. The pages of the book was flipping, but Jerome wasn't even touching the book. It continued flipping even faster as Jerome stood on his feet and took a step back.

"What the..."

Johnny kept shut as a rush of wind evoked from the book. At once, Johnny was off his feet and was being pulled towards the whirl. A scream which he wouldn't have permitted on a normal event left his lips before he could stop it. He didn't care much if he was embarrassing himself because this was no normal event.

He yelled even louder as he held on to the edge of a shelf. The wind intensified with a loud whir, quaking the floor and rattling the shelves.

He had thought he was the only one affected, but Maddie's and Jerome's screams were even louder than his. He whipped his head to where Maddie stood and found her holding firmly to a shelf, but she was still on her feet. She was holding on to the furniture with everything within her as the wind persisted, swaying her hair and clothing. The latter seemed so much very close to leaving her body. What a sight that would be! Johnny smiled.

The breeze pulled at him even more, as his hands were almost slipping off the shelf. That shouldn't happen. He flicked his gaze to Jerome who was also holding onto something.

"Jay, could you try to close that book? I think that's where the wind is coming from!" Johnny yelled through the whir.

"I can't!" Jerome's terrified response came. "If I let go of this furniture, I will be blown away!"

"Just try!" Maddie moaned. "You opened that book, you close it!"

For a moment, Jerome didn't speak. Soon, there was a bloodcurdling moan that lasted for about three seconds and then, nothing. Johnny, still clutching hard the edge of the shelf, looked at the spot Jerome was  earlier and couldn't find him. At first, it all seemed like a joke that could be ended by shutting the book, but at the realisation that his friend was now gone in the wind, fear tormented his soul.

"Johnny!" Maddie called, distress leathering her voice. "What happened? Where is Jerome?"

Johnny remained silent as he kept staring at the mass of wind that was revolving around the book which lay on the floor. That was definitely where the rush was coming from. If only he could reach to it and close it. No, no, no, Jerome had been taken by it.

"Johnny!" Maddie bellowed.

"I-I think," Johnny muttered. "I think he vanished."

"What?"

That was no question to pay attention to. Not when the shelves were now juddering in the wind. A loud crash came from the extreme. A shelf had fallen, and soon, another fell. Johnny kept holding firm until he could see the shaking base of the shelf that gave him support.

It would fall.

It was falling.

On him.

And that would mean instant death!

No, that shouldn't happen

He let go of the edge at once and was pulled violently by the wind.

"Maddieeeeeeeeeee!" he wailed, but  was too late. He was long gone in the mass of wind.

~~••~~••~~

Greetings loves!

-sighs-

I tried so much to paint the picture of terror in this passage. It was very difficult. However, what do you think about it?

Do you know that your votes
and comments would go a long way in attracting more readers to this book?

: )

Please click the little star button and leave your comments!

Love you!

GShaquille. ♥