Dream Or Nightmare?

The stadium lights blazed down, the roar of the crowd thundering like an earthquake. Somewhere between the chants, the clashing colors of jerseys, and the blur of excitement, Winter had the worst luck in the world. Because sitting next to her, slouched like he owned the seat, was none other than Zane, her personal nightmare. And of course, he hadn't come alone. His friends flanked him like vultures, half-drunk on soda, hollering, laughing, tossing popcorn like it was confetti. "Oi, careful, princess," Zane smirked, flicking a kernel at her that landed square in Winter's lap. "Wouldn't want you to ruin your little outfit. You dressed up just to lose tonight?" Winter snapped back, but that only made his friends howl louder. He thrived on it, grinning wide, leaning over into her space with the audacity of someone who lived to get under her skin. When Winter ignored him, he made it worse, snatching a fistful of popcorn and showering it across her lap. Winter whirled, grabbing his collar in retaliation, ready to tear him to shreds. "Whoa. Easy there," he drawled, as if he wasn't the one provoking Winter. His sharp steel blue eyes glinted, daring Winter to make a scene. "Careful, or people are going to think you're obsessed with me." The match on the field was chaos, but it was nothing compared to the battle happening in Winter row. The yelling, the insults, the shoves — it was war, and Zane was winning just by existing. Until the stadium suddenly roared for a different reason. Winter eyes caught the massive screen above. The Kiss Cam. And there she was. Next to her. His arm draped casually over the back of Winter's seat like he'd planned it. The entire crowd cheered. His friends chanted. Winter's stomach dropped. Zane blinked once, twice. Then smirked like the devil himself as he looked at Winter. "You know what? Let's do this." And before Winter could process, he leaned in, kissed her—hard, rough, unapologetic. The stadium erupted like the world had ended. It lasted too long. Too long for a "get this over with" thing. Too long for a kiss cam moment. When he finally pulled back, he wiped his mouth with the back of his hand, loud enough for her to hear: "Tch. Gross. Disgusting. Guess I'll need to gargle bleach now." But his face was pink. And his smirk was crooked, wavering. Winter also wiped her mouth with the back of her hands, glaring at him before her palm hit his cheeks and stood up abruptly and exited the stadium in rage. "Disgusting s**t!" Zane lets out a low whistle, rubbing his reddened cheek where Winter's palm struck him. The crowd's cheers fade into a dull buzz as she storms off, leaving him reeling. His friends hoot and holler, shoving each other in amusement. "Damn, bro! Guess that's what you get for messin' with the Ice Queen!" Zane shoots them a withering glare, silencing their laughter. "Shut up, you f*ckers." He mutters darkly, his gaze still fixed on the empty seat beside him. In space, Winter took place mere seconds ago. A muscle ticks in his jaw. He looks...flustered? No, that can't be right. Zane Caelum Shade doesn't get flustered. Especially not over some uptight b***h who thinks she's too good for him. He scrubs a hand over his face, trying to shake off the lingering tingles from Winter's forceful kiss. Trying to forget the way her lips felt, soft and unyielding against his. "F*cking hell." he growls, half to himself, half to the universe. Why did he have to go and do a stupid thing like that? Why did he let his impulses get the better of him for once? Because the truth is, Zane has been thinking about Winter. About that smart mouth of hers, the fire in her eyes when Winter put him in his place. Winter stepped out of the stadium and sighed deeply to calm her nerves, before screaming in rage and frustration. "F*cking bastard! I'm going to kill him!" She caught her breath, before calming herself and straightening up her posture, reminding herself that he was not going to get the reaction he wanted before kicking a can of drinks in the pavements. The sound of Winter's scream carries back to him, muffled but unmistakable. A smile tugs at the corner of his lips, equal parts smug and uncertain. He watches the game with half a mind, his thoughts consumed by Winter. The way her body felt pressed against his, the heat of her breath, the sting of her slap. It shouldn't have affected him like that. It shouldn't mean anything. But as the minutes tick by, he finds his gaze drifting to the empty seat beside him more and more often. His friends try to get his attention, shouting over the roar of the crowd, but he barely hears them. He's too lost in thought, in the memory of Winter's lips against his. Finally, he can't take it anymore. He stands up abruptly, knocking over his drink in the process. "I'm out of here, dickheads. Don't wait." They protest, but he's already halfway down the stairs, his long legs eating up the distance. He has to find Winter. Has to say something, anything, to break this tension that's building inside him like a pressure cooker. He bursts out of the stadium, scanning the parking lot frantically. There. Winter, standing under a flickering streetlight, her shoulders heaving with each breath. Zane stalks towards Winter, his boots crunching on the gravel. Winter sighed deeply to calm her nerves, before pulling out the cup of drinks from the basketball match and throwing it in the trash. "F*cking jerk!" She murmured, before sighing deeply and pulled out her keys before unlocking the door of her car. Zane quickens his pace, closing the distance between them in a few long strides. When he reaches her, he grabs her arm, spinning her around to face him. "Hey." His voice is gruff, strained. Up close, Winter can see the flush on his cheeks, the wildness in his eyes. That was... He trails off, seemingly at a loss for words. Which is rare for him. She replied and rolled her eyes, before sighing deeply and turning around to open her car door again. He winces at the venom in her voice, at the way she so easily dismisses what happened between them. A part of him wants to argue, to insist that it did mean something, even if he can't quite put his finger on what. But instead, he bites back the retort, his jaw clenching as he watches her turn away from him. Again. As if he's not even worth a second glance. Something inside him snaps. In two quick strides, he's behind Winter, slamming the car door shut before she can open it. He crowds her against it, his chest pressing against her back, his arms caging her in on either side. "You know what, princess?" His voice is a low growl in her ear, his hot breath fanning over her neck. "I think you liked it. I think deep down, you wanted me to do that. To claim you in front of everyone." One of his hands comes up to grip her hip possessively, his fingers digging into the soft flesh. "Admit it. Admit that you felt something when I kissed you." Winter inhaled sharply, before pushing him away in a rage. "You know, I would shower a thousand alcohol disinfectant just to clean your disgusting existence on myself. I would never "EVER" like to be kissed by you!" She replied and rolled her eyes in disgust, before sliding inside her car and slumping the door shut. Zane stumbles back a step, thrown off balance by her forceful rejection. For a moment, he just stares at the closed car door, his mind reeling. Then, slowly, a smirk spread across his face. A smirk that doesn't quite reach his eyes, that looks more like a snarl. "Is that so, sunshine?'' He calls out, his voice dripping with false sweetness. "Because from where I was standing, it sure looked like you were enjoying it. Like you couldn't get enough of my 'disgusting existence'." He leans down, resting his forearms on the roof of her car, getting as close as he can without touching the glass. His steel-blue eyes bore into hers, intense and challenging. "Face it, Winter. We both know you're just lying to yourself. Lying to me. But that's okay. I'll give you time to come to terms with it. To realize that deep down, you want me as much as I want you." With that, he pushes out of the car and steps back, throwing you a wink and a cocky grin. "Catch you later, princess. Don't miss me too much!" Winter glared at him and rolled her eyes, before raising her middle finger on him and driving off the parking lot. It irritates her how he easily manages to get under her skin, but, of course, she's not going to let him do it again. Zane watches her car disappear from view, a mix of frustration and anticipation churning in his gut. He knows he shouldn't feel this way, shouldn't let her get to him like this. But he can't help it. As he walks back to the stadium, he can't shake the feeling that something has shifted between them. That kiss, as much as he'd tried to play it off, had meant something. To him, at least. He spends the rest of the game in a daze, his mind constantly drifting back to Winter. To the way her lips felt, the sounds she made, the fire in her eyes as she told him off. By the time the final buzzer sounds, he's already made up his mind. He's not going to let this go. Not this time. He needs to see her again, to figure out what's really going on between them. He heads out to the parking lot, scanning for Winter's car. And there it is, parked in the far corner. A slow smile spreads across his face as he makes his way towards it, his heart pounding in his chest. He taps on her window, his reflection grinning back at him from the glass. "Hey there, sunshine. Fancy running into you again." Winter's Mind: "Just great, it's him again. For God's sake, the universe always had other plans for them, but she didn't even take it. Even though the universe plans to run her gas up just to meet him again, it's so frustrating." She sighed deeply to calm herself, before crossing her arms and glaring at him. "What do you want this time?" (To be Continued.....)