Burning Slow

Stop 'em with a bang... and confessions?

"Wait, wait, wait." James interrupted everyone before they had a chance to work on their push-ups. "So you're telling me that you guys have already planned for that to happen?" He waved his arms in the air.

"Oh no, Jacob started the plan. Years before, as he says, we just wanted to get mixed in with his plan. And in our defense, we weren't even supposed to enact this plan but you admitted that you were bullied and it gave us the perfect chance to put the plan into motion." Rocco answered as everyone else dropped on the ground. "Though Ember was only supposed to punch the man once. But you gotta admit, what she did was hot as fuck." James shuddered at this.

"Let's not talk about your thoughts on the opposite sex." James ended as he also began to work on his push-ups.

Rocco chuckled, shaking his head.

"Caiola, I'm not seeing you working on those hundred push-ups!" Alex barked from afar which immediately got Rocco on the ground.

*****

"Are we clear on that?" Everybody nodded at the short girl that has been leading them since the first day that all of them met.

"Does anyone want to add anything else?" She looked at each of them in the eye.

"Yeah, I have a question." Nick raised his hand and Astraea, who was sitting beside him, face-palmed.

"What is it?"

"Can I still hit this... psychopath if they're a girl?" Adding air quotations around the word psychopath.

"This is a person that aims to put an end to human race so regardless of their gender, all of you have permission to hit this someone, and if it comes down to it, you can kill. None of you will hesitate in this matter, got it?" Everybody reluctantly nodded. "We will not save one life over ninety percent of our population."

"Anything else? None? Good, then. And now we proceed to the living room for the annual movie watching."

"Dibs on choosing the movie!" Astraea yelled before dashing to the living room.

"Hey no fair!" Grace followed after her.

"Someone get the popcorn." Nick winked before leaving the dining room.

"Where's Dad? And Alex?"

"Greyson turned in already and Alex said that he'd wait in the living room." Nathan answered.

"I'll just kiss Daddy goodnight then. Someone get the popcorn." Ember innocently grinned at all the boys before making her way upstairs.

"Now's your chance, bro! Confess before we all die tomorrow." Kenneth nudged Rocco.

"We aren't going to die, idiot." Jacob slapped Kenneth at the back of his head.

"Yeah! After all that planning? And what's this person got that could kill us?" James piped up.

"But Kenneth is right though, Rocco." Nathan placed a hand on Rocco's shoulder. "Follow her up the stairs now." Rocco heaved a deep sigh before nodding.

"Good luck!" James yelled before he disappeared up the stairs.

"Last one to the living room will get the popcorn!" Kenneth yelled as he dashed out the dining room.

-

"So what were you going to confess?" Rocco jumped upon hearing Ember's voice.

She was leaning on the wall next to the stairway, hidden from Rocco's sight.

"Y-you heard that?" Rocco's voice cracked which caused a giggle to escape Ember's lips.

She quickly caught herself though as she coughed once.

"Every. Single. Word." She pushed herself off the wall, facing Rocco, playing it cool. "So what is it?"

"Uhm..." Rocco fumbled around in his pockets, pulling out his wallet. "Why were you eavesdropping?"

"I wasn't. I just happened to hear your conversation. Now, spit it out."

The green eyed boy sighed, pulling out a picture from his wallet, playing with it for a while before handing it over to Ember.

She snatched it from his hands, narrowing her eyes at him before looking at the picture. "How... How did you..."

"Your mom gave it to me." His voice was barely above a whisper as his gaze only rested on the picture.

A picture of Ember and her mom. He was told that it was taken a year before Liz died.

"The little girl in the picture... I have absolutely no idea how long I've had a crush on her." He breathed out, chuckling to himself. "Hearing stories about her practically every day, it's impossible not to fall for her, right?"

Ember hadn't noticed until now how close Rocco was getting to her.

"The way that she can just wrap me around her little finger," he gently pick up Ember's hand, placing it on his chest, "and the way she can easily make my heart beat so fast, it feels as if it would jump right out." He whispered, his eyes darting between her eyes and her lips.

Ember's back touched the wall, her heart beating as fast as Rocco's - the green eyed boy that her mother had been telling her about in her dream.

Rocco rested his hand right above Ember's butt, the same exact spot where the scrawny boy touched him. She didn't even bother suppressing the shiver that raced up her spine, enjoying the tingling feeling that she felt upon his slightest touch.

Seconds prior, they were inches apart. Ember wondered to herself how the distance between them is slowly being erased in such little time.

Until their lips brushed against each other, and neither of them couldn't resist giving in.

But Rocco pulled away. Too quickly. "I'm sorry, I didn't even ask if you-" Ember only replied by connecting their lips again.

"I..." Ember licked her lips, her eyes still closed as both their foreheads were still pressed together. Neither of them making a move to pull away.

After a few moments, Ember's eyes snapped open only to be met by huge green orbs staring right at her soul.

She grabbed onto his shoulders, pushing her away from him and returning the picture.

"Saving humanity is our top priority." Her voice a bit hoarse.

"Goodnight, Rocco." Her final words before she entered her room.