Jump | Zach Mitchell

eighteen

I'D like to say that we handle the situation well. 

...we do not.

I'm screaming, Zach's screaming, Gray's screaming. Part of me wants to make a smart remark, like not so funny now, huh? But words are hard to come by.

Zach's arms lock around my waist, keeping me from smacking all over the Gyrosphere. His seatbelt digs into my ass. We hit a bump and he comes free of his restraints, sending us flying forward into the protective glass.

"Fuck, fuck, fuck!" He yells as we sprawl across the limited bottom, bodies cramping one another and smashing into the hard sides of the ride. "Gray, hit the-"

"I can't reach-" His little fingers stretch as far as he can, unable to grasp the steering stick.

It's like he has no brain.

Gray undoes his seatbelt.

My voice is shrill. "Why the hell would you-"

He keeps his left arm inside the harness and places his feet firmly against the glass in front of him. Then he reaches with his right hand and yanks the steering stick back.

The Gyrosphere stops abruptly, a few feet from the foot of the hill. Zach lurches forward, forehead smacking into my temple. He groans while I whimper, both of us tenderly touching our new sore spots.

But, hey, we're stopped.

...so maybe Gray is pretty smart.

"Are you guys okay?" He asks with wide eyes.

"I've been better," I say. "Jesus, Zach, you're got a really hard head."

"You should feel my other one."

I laugh, shoving his shoulder lightly. "Gross. But nice. Way to take advantage of the moment."

Zach shrugs nonchalantly, grinning.

Gray looks puzzled. "I don't get it." He stares at us intently. "Was that a penis joke or something?"

Zach sighs. I blush. Gray just waits.

"Um, yeah," Zach eventually says. He climbs back into his seat awkwardly. "That was a dick joke."

"...does that mean you want to have sex with Jonelle? Since you said that she should feel your other one? Like, feel your penis? You want Jonelle to feel your penis?"

Zach pinches the bridge of his nose. "Oh my God..."

I plop back down in my seat, avoiding any and all eye contact. "Gray, it was just a joke." I don't mean to sound so harsh, but that's the way it comes out. "You're giving me a bigger headache than Cement Skull did."

A ringing sound fills the Gyrosphere, causing Gray and I to jump. Zach leans against me to dig his phone out of his pocket. He glances at the screen and rolls his eyes. Then he answers, "Hey Claire."

I kick his leg and mouth, "Put her on speaker." He gives me a look but complies.

There's fuzziness on her end. Her message comes out garbled. "Zach... God! ...Gray? What... Jonelle? ...together?"

Gray and I look at each other. She sounds way too frantic. Zach isn't good at picking up on those kind of things though. "I can't really hear you. We're in one of those hamster balls."

"Gyrosphere," Gray mumbles.

Claire takes a deep breath – or maybe that's more static. "Zach... get... ride..." Then there's more distorted static.

"Hello?" Zach frowns. "You there?"

More jumbled words.

Zach stares at the phone before grunting, shrugging, and hanging up.

"What was that about?" I muse.

"Your guess is as good as mine." He wipes the screen across his jean-clad thigh. "Not like I can call her back right now. So... oh well." He settles his arm on my leg once again, preparing to direct us down the hill.

"Wait." Gray bites his lower lip. "Don't you think that we should go back?"

"No," Zach snorts. "Why? You bored of your precious dinosaurs already?"

Gray shakes his head. "I just think... if the ride closed, and then Aunt Claire called us... maybe something's wrong."

"I doubt it," Zach says. "Zara probably ratted us out."

"But-"

"How about we let Jonelle decide?" Zach proposes suddenly. "If she thinks that we should go back, then we'll go. But if she wants to stay a little longer..." He turns to me expectantly.

I think about what Gray said. It would definitely make sense for Claire to call us to make sure we were okay if there was something wrong. Even if everything's fine, she'll still be alarmed that she wasn't able to properly speak to us. It would be smart to go back and check in with her, let her know that we're okay.

...but at the same time...

How often do I get to ride around alongside dinosaurs? This is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

A few more minutes won't hurt, right? Then we'll head back and meet up with Claire. I'm getting kind of hungry, anyway.

I purse my lips. "Five more minutes?" I look back and forth between the boys.

Zach smirks. "Whatever you say."

___

"WHOA."

Zach stops us in front of a gate. It's tall and made of shiny metal. It looks pretty tough.

...except for the gaping hole in the middle of it, of course.

"What happened here?" Zach asks.

"We're in a dinosaur park. What do you think happened?" I reply.

He rolls his eyes. "Oh, shut up." He leans around me. "What do you say, dude? Off-road? How cool would that be?"

Gray stares at the hole for a few seconds. "...hasn't it been five minutes?" He asks hesitantly. "Maybe we should go back."

"I'm just worried that you're not getting the full Jurassic World experience," Zach claims.

I mockingly cough, "Bull shit." Zach smiles and nudges me.

Gray still seems skeptical. "Jonelle's right. This is probably dangerous, and-"

"That's what makes it fun," Zach says. "You're not scared, are you?"

Gray doesn't answer. He stares straight ahead into the dark jungle.

I try to pry Zach's fingers off the steering stick. "If he doesn't want to, then-"

Zach places his arm across my body, holding me back in the seat. He stares at Gray expectantly. "Are you scared?"

"No," Gray says pitifully.

"Liar," I snap. I grab at Zach's arm. "You're such a manipulative dickhead."

He smiles. "And you're a mouthy bitch. That's why we're friends."

I shake my head. "We shouldn't go in there, Zach."

"Where's your sense of adventure? Get into the Jurassic World spirit, jackass."

"No."

He snickers. "Well, we're going."

"No we're-"

"Be quiet."

"Don't tell me to-"

He places one finger against my lips. "Sh." He smirks as he drives us into the restricted section of the park.