Zenon's Game Chapter 171

A bruised Jake emerged from the patient's room with a prescription and some pain relief. He touched the side of his face, not able to move it comfortably yet.

"You're going to need a legal guardian to sign you out," Dr Thomas informed us.

"That's obviously you," Axel told his mom.

"No Axel, I can't do that. I'm your legal guardian, not theirs."

So we were left in a pickle. Neither Mr nor Mrs Albert knew what happened tonight and the original plan was that they would never find out. The original plan was fading fast.

Annika's suggestion was futile, "Can we pretend like I'm the patient? I'm over eighteen."

Jake waved the paperwork, "It's all in my name."

There was a tense pause in the waiting room as we realized what needed to be done.

Jake sighed, and painfully removed his phone from his jacket pocket. "I'll take the hit."

"Wait," Zenon ordered, stepping towards me.

He glanced at Axel who nodded. Then he turned towards me and I could see the concern in his eyes.

His expression was softer as he gazed at me, "Axel will take you home, Candy. You shouldn't be here when my mom comes. I don't want her to associate this with you."

I slipped my hands into his and he closed his fingers around mine. I didn't argue with him, but I still found it a very thoughtful gesture.

"Uh..." Annika interrupted the romantic moment, "Can I go with her?"

~Axel's POV~

These scrubs were itchy.

I had taken them from my mom's room when I got the call. I don't know what the h*e*l*l led to this, but Jake looked like a golf ball got stuck inside his cheek.

I was still half-asleep when I showed up, so it took me a while to realize that there was a redheaded girl I hadn't met. Aside from the usuals, she was new.

"In all the chaos, we haven't properly met yet," she introduced herself, offering her hand for me to shake.

It was a formal greeting, but I shook her hand anyway. "I'm Axel."

"You made an unforgettable entrance," she told me, "I take it you go to school with the others?"

I nodded, "And you?"

"I'm visiting Jake for a couple weeks. I model in New York but I'm originally from South Africa."

She definitely seemed older than us.

Candace and Zenon were sitting next to each other in the hospital waiting room, their heads almost touching. Jake was at the reception, trying to sign himself out.

We watched him glare at Zenon before turning around to respond to the receptionist.

"Imagine Jake and Zenon getting along," Annika mused.

"Hmm," I said, looking around the waiting room for a vending machine.

There had to be something to eat around her.

Annika still didn't give up on a conversation. She switched subjects, "I don't know if you got the full story, but Jake and Zenon fought earlier tonight."

"Zenon did that?" I asked, pointing at Jake's golf ball.

Of course Zenon did that. I already knew, but I didn't want her asking me more questions.

"Yes, it was a crazy fight. They left blood on the living room. Do you think Zenon's..." she trailed off and switched up the question, "You seem like you're very close to him?"

"Ya."

She waited for me to say something else. There was nothing else I had to say about it though.

"Like he has your back and you have his type thing?" she clarified.

"Zenon's been there for me during some very dark times. He's like a brother to me."

I could tell she was fishing, but she wasn't going to catch much.

"Oh, OK," she frowned, scratching her head, "I found it hard to connect with him this weekend at the lake house. He's not hugely talkative to me and he didn't really seem to care much about... most things."

"He does care," I said, "Haven't you figured that one out yet? He only really cares when something happens to her."

I pointed at Candace.

*Candace's POV*

We sat on the back rim of Dr Thomas's open-top car and looked out at the sunrise.

There was a stillness in the air now that the boys had gone. Zenon, Axel and Jake were still inside the hospital and we were waiting for Axel to drive us home in his mom's car.

Annika glanced over to me and said, "When I first met Jake, he had this bad boy vibe about him but he's actually a total sweetheart. I never expected that, when I came to his hometown, his brother was the heartbreaker around here."

"Zenon?" I asked, surprised she was bringing him up like that.

"Yeah. I mean," she gave me an obvious look, "He's hot. You've obviously noticed that. How did you choose between them?"

In the short time that Annika's been here, she's managed to dive deep into the crevices of the Albert's family psychology.

So I gave it my best shot. "Zenon's got this energy, this determination, about him. He treats life with no fear. He's fun, kind, smart and caring," I said and chose my next words carefully, "He makes me feel like I can be somebody."

I am somebody.

Truthfully, my self-confidence has been a real holdup for me. I've seen a lot of disappointment in my life that I hesitate to dream.

"I hope you don't mind if I ask," Annika continued, folding one leg under the other, "Jake told me that you agreed to go on a date with him not long before you started dating Zenon. What was that about?"

I stared down at my hands. I could hear the judgement in her voice, and I didn't blame her.

That self-confidence problem - I've really gotten myself into a pickle because of it.

"Looking back, it was a mistake," I admitted. "I was confused. Doesn't that happen to others?"