Page 63 of Stranded

“ZEE!”

“Zee, where areyou?”

Relief floods me at the sound of their voices.

They came.

“Can you see her?” I hear Kingsley ask.

“No. ZEE!” Bower yells from somewhere close by.

“I’m here!” I yell, my head turning in every direction, unable to tell which way their voices are coming from.

“Zee!” They all yell at once.

“Over here!”

A noise to my side has me turning to see West in the tree beside me.

Did he climb up here?

When he locks eyes on me, a range of emotions seem to go through him at once. I see relief there but also something else, something a little closer to fear.

“I’ve found her!” He calls towards the ground before his eyes travel up my body to my foot. “You’re stuck.” He doesn’t ask, so I don’t answer.

His eyes snap back to mine as he finally seems to take a good look at the state I’m in, gasping for breath with a tear-stained face and what I presume is puffy, red eyes. I try to wipe my tears away, but it’s too late to hide it from him. He knows I‘ve been crying.

His eyes soften as he asks, “Are you hurt?”

It’s on the top of my tongue to lie, to shrug it off as no big deal. After all, I’ve survived this long on my own, haven’t I? But even I can’t deny that I need his help, as much as it pains me to admit that.

Unable to speak the words aloud, I give him a simple nod of my head. His jaw tenses for a moment before he looks towards the ground and yells, “Get up here, I’m gonna need your help!”

His eyes find mine again, and he reaches towards me. “Don’t worry, baby, we’re gonna get you out of there in no time, okay?”

I reach my hand out towards him, but our fingers don’t quite reach. I try to sway towards him, but the movement makes the pain in my ankle flare. “Ah!”

He manages to grab my hand as he whispers, “Baby.” I open my eyes to see his pained ones looking back at me. “Try not to move, I’ve got you now.” I nod my head, feeling tears roll down my forehead again. I don’t dare try to move, so I just let them fall as Weston watches me, looking almost as pained as I feel.

“Geez, Tink, what have you got yourself into here?” Bower asks, suddenly appearing behind Weston in the tree as he glances at my predicament.

“I think she’s hurt her ankle or foot. We have to extract her… very carefully.”

“Fuck,” King says, peering up from below them.

I stay silent as they make a plan to get me out of the tree. Luckily, it appears I’m not that far from the skywalk, but I’m also not close enough that it helps them get me free.

West and King move to where my foot is stuck, and somehow they manage to lift me by my calf and free me without letting me drop. Honestly, with all the blood rushing to my head and my need to focus on breathing properly, I have no idea what’s happening until I suddenly find myself the right way up in Bower’s arms.

“Tink, did you hear me?”

“Huh?” I ask, my fingers reaching up to feel the scruff on his face.

God, he’s handsome.

He chuckles at me. “Glad you think so.”

“Did I say that out loud?” I ask in confusion. “Why does my head feelso weird?”

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