Heat

Chapter One

A/N: first of all MAJOR shoutout to Pentatastic for helping me work out plot stuff. Still don't have everything nailed down, but I'm working on it.

Also this would have been published earlier but I got about four lines from the end of the chapter and Wattpad froze. When I came back to it, the entire thing was gone...... I'm v sad and not entirely satisfied with this chapter because I don't think it's as good as it was before. Anyway, without further ado, here's this short story.

Scott felt his eyes fluttering, trying to open, but they were too heavy. He took a moment to mentally check himself. He was lying on his back, on a surface none too soft. His muscles were stiff, as if he'd been there for quite some time. In fact, he was having trouble moving at all. He focused on trying to wiggle his toes and found that he couldn't.

He started to assess the situation around him to avoid freaking out. It was warm, to say the least. He could tell he was wearing only basketball shorts and a tank, but he still felt entirely too hot. He thought he must be outside because he could hear water flowing in the distance. Plus the warmth he felt on his skin, pressing in on him, had to have been from the Sun.

But then, why wasn't anyone helping him? Did no one notice the gigantic unconscious man lying on the ground?

He knew he wasn't alone. He could hear hushed whispers and shuffling footsteps echoing toward him.

Scott tried to recall what he'd been doing before this. Before he apparently fainted. But he wasn't sure. The last thing he could remember was unpacking his groceries.

There were suddenly voices much closer to him, yet still very hushed. He strained to hear them.

"Anything?"

"Nope. Still out. I'm just keeping and eye on things."

"Mhmmm. I'm sure you are."

"Hey! It's literally my job!"

"Whatever you say."

A third voice appeared, quieter, softer, "Guys, keep it down."

"We are."

"Y'all are not and you know it."

Scott tried to hear more but footsteps told him the people were walking away, taking their conversation with them. He continued to lie there, listening to everything he could, trying to find something familiar and occasionally drifting back to sleep.

His toes finally moved, and he quickly became fully aware again. It was then that he noticed how quiet it had gotten. There were no more voices and no more footsteps. Perhaps all of the people had left him there to die. He focused on trying to move, twitching his fingers, turning his ankles, pushing back on his shoulders. Very carefully, he thought about opening his eyes before actually trying it.

But as soon as the thought occurred to him, it happened. He blinked carefully, afraid of closing them again in fear that they would glue themselves shut forever. When he was finally able to focus, he was met not with the blue sky and bright Sun he thought he'd find. It was very dim... wherever he was and he couldn't quite make out the ceiling, but he thought it might have been made of rocks.

"Hey there, kiddo."

Scott was startled by the voice, still assuming that he was alone. He turned in the direction from which it came, and he found the most stunning creature he thought he'd ever seen. He was sitting nearby him on a rock, his knees tucked into his chest. One hand was under his chin, his fingers resting delicately on the side of his face and his pinky tucked in between his teeth. His hair was bright blonde, unmatched by his dark brows, and sweeping dramatically to one side. It was his grin that had Scott's attention. It was hopeful but apprehensive and seemed to know more than it should.

Scott looked around and was surprised to find more people there than he'd originally thought. "Where am I?"

"Do you want me to be nice or just to tell you?"

He sat up, glancing around and realizing nothing about this place was familiar. He tried to keep himself calm as he answered, "Just tell me. Please."

"You're dead, Scott."

"WHAT?"

He was desperate for air, gripping the hard floor below him and closing his eyes tightly. He felt a warm hand on his shoulder and the man continued speaking, his voice soothing, "I know. It's going to be okay, kid. Take a deep breath."

Scott tried to follow his directions, breathing slowly and regaining the focus in his vision. Then he hesitantly looked over at the man again, "But if I'm dead, where am I? Are you an angel? You must be an angel."

The man's face changed. He seemed to be upset, and it was almost as if he was nervous. "No Scott. I'm not an angel."

"Surely you are. If I'm dead, you must be," he responded quickly, unbelieving that this creature could exist in any place besides Heaven.

"Scott, no," he continued quietly, "You're in Hell."

Scott's breath left his chest and his vision darkened as he tried to process what he'd heard. "But- Hel- how... it's not... I'm not. No, I don't. It..." He could feel himself slipping back into the unconscious, but suddenly there were arms looping under his, lifting him to his feet. The man came around to face him, gripping his waist and trying to keep him from falling over. Scott looked down, somehow feeling incredibly small while towering over him.

He looked around the room again, noticing a few people whispering excitedly and on more than one occasion, he saw someone's gaze dart away the moment he made eye contact. They were scattered around the room but seemed to be forming a circle around him. There was an air of anticipation in the room.

"You with me, kiddo?"

Glancing back down, he asked, "Why.. why is everyone staring at me? Do people always act like this when a new person show up?"

"No."

Scott almost didn't want to know, but he knew he had to ask. "Then why? Why are they...?"

The other man looked up at him, waiting for Scott to meet his gaze, "Because you're not supposed to be here."

A/N: hey so there's this! So this is only gonna be a few chapters. It's a short story for y'all. I'm still kinda upset about losing the chapter, but I'm REALLY excited for this story. Hope y'all like it.

Send me love babes!

Love y'all v much!

-Emily