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Crossroads - Zack - Chapter One

BEEP! BEEP! BEEP!

THUMP!

_ _ A large paw slammed down on the bothersome alarm clock that dared disturb its owner's sleep. The black-furred arm retracted back under the covers as the canine rolled over to stare at the ceiling. He tried to go back to sleep, but the alarm had done its work. He had purposely bought a loud alarm to make sure he woke up on time. No way was he going to be late.

Because Zack Bailey had better discipline than that.

The jackal threw off the covers and swung his legs over the edge of the bed, taking his time to get his bearings. His bedroom was lit by the dull hazy glow of the cloudy morning outside. The room was mostly tidy with bits of furniture that lined its perimeter. In one corner sat a pile of abstract paintings as well as some art supplies. Some more paintings hung on the walls, providing the only splashes of color on the otherwise pale walls.

These details were overlooked as the jackal walked towards the small bathroom that appended his bedroom. After a cold shower, he stepped in front of the mirror, feeling clean and considerably more awake. As he began to dry his fur, he watched his reflection. A tall jackal stared back at him, his muscular physique accentuated by his smooth black fur. Zack looked himself over and allowed himself a conceited smirk.

Still got it.

_ _ Zack walked back into his room, towel discarded, and searched for something to wear. After donning a pair of boxers, he went to his closet and easily found a pair of dark pants and a black and crimson shirt that fit his body nicely. Cleaned and dressed, the jackal headed to another room down the hall.

Zack pushed the door open quietly and flipped on the light. In a bed against the wall, a lump of fur rested underneath the covers. Zack approached the mass and laid a paw on it gently.

"Tristan," he whispered as softly as his deep rumbling voice could muster. "Time to wake up."

A groan sounded from under the covers as the person rolled over. "I don't wanna..."

"You gotta." Zack shook his brother again. "You don't want to be late for school, do ya?"

"Mmm...fine..."

"Thatta boy." Zack prepared to leave. "I'll have breakfast waiting for ya."

He waited for Tristan's halfhearted mumble of assent before leaving the room. Heading downstairs, he found the kitchen quiet and empty. He wasn't surprised; both his parents had left on a business trip and likely would not return until the end of the week. Whatever, it didn't bother him. It just meant he had the whole house to himself for the week. And his brothers, of course.

The jackal set out three bowls on the counter and filled them with cereal. He could hear some telltale thumps in the room directly above him. Seth, his now thirteen-year-old brother, had awoken. Good.

As he began to pour milk over the cereal, Tristan walked in sleepily, followed shortly by Seth, who looked just as exhausted. Zack slid two bowls forward for them to eat, but Seth veered off in a different direction.

"What are you doing?"

"Getting somethin' else," Seth said matter-of-factly, grabbing a protein shake out of the fridge. "Don't want cereal."

"Hey, put that back!" Zack snapped, raising his voice. "Those are mine! And you'll eat what you're given."

"Well, I don't wanna." Seth took a long, exaggerated gulp from the plastic bottle. "Don't tell me what to do. I ain't twelve."

"Then stop acting like it. And watch your language!" Zack wasn't about to put up with Seth's shit. His brother certainly enjoyed getting on his nerves. "Just eat the cereal. It ain't that complicated!"

Meanwhile, Tristan sat at the table glancing from Zack to Seth and back again. It wasn't uncommon that they fought like this and he was caught in the middle.

"You're not my mother."

"Ma ain't here!" Zack snapped, barely managing to keep his anger in check. "And go take a shower. You stink."

Seth scoffed as he turned to leave the kitchen. "Whatever."

"And make it quick!" Zack shouted after him. "Your bus gets here in half an hour!"

Seth ignored him and stomped up the stairs. Zack gritted his teeth and closed the refrigerator door, which had been left open. Not even an hour into the day, and Seth had already managed to fuck things up. Why couldn't he just grow up already?

In his anger, he accidentally knocked over the milk carton with his paw, the contents spilling over the surface and onto the floor.

Just fucking great...

The school was buzzing with activity when Zack arrived. After having parked his truck in the lot, the jackal entered the building with the other students and headed toward his new locker. No one seemed to want to approach him or talk to him as he moved down the hall. Good. Anyone with half a brain in this damned place knew better than to -

He felt someone bump into him roughly, enough to make him stumble to the side. Temper flaring, Zack spun around to glare at the culprit. There he found a scrawny white wolf standing there shocked. He towered over the wolf due to his size, causing the latter to back away sheepishly. The wolf gazed up at him in mild interest before his expression morphed into one of fear.

Yeah, you better be scared.

_ _ "Stay out of my way," Zack growled.

"I didn't see you," said the wolf. Who the fuck does this guy think he is? Must be new.

"Watch where the fuck you're going then," the jackal shot back. "And don't run into me again."

"Or else?"

Oh, you're asking for it. Hardening his glare, Zack took a single menacing step forward. The wolf tried to step backward, but tripped over himself, falling to the ground and causing his bag to rip open and spill its contents everywhere.

Zack chuckled to himself. "Bitch." He turned around and walked off; as he strode away, the students around him moved to the side to allow him passage. As they should. Anyone else who got in his way wouldn't be so lucky this time. As long as he didn't have to deal with that stupid wolf again, there wouldn't be a problem.

Luck was not on his side that day. But then, it never was.

Zack stood in the locker room getting ready for his favorite class, PE. This was the only class where he got to stretch him limbs instead of sitting at a damned desk for long periods of time. Here, he could do virtually whatever the fuck he wanted. The jackal quickly found his locker and began to change into his gym uniform. He was completely silent while other people chatted idly beside the lockers next to him.

"...only class worth taking, am I right?" Said a cat cockily as he pulled on his t-shirt.

"Nah, man, I hate this class," a tiger answered. "They're all fucked."

"You just hate having to shower more than once a day," the cat chuckled.

"Do you?"

Zack snorted at the absurd conversation. Apparently they heard him, because the cat looked his way and decided to comment.

"What about you, Zack? Think it's worth?"

Everyone in the room held their breath. No one bothers Zack Bailey while he's minding his own business. Zack turned his head to face the cat and fixed him with a glare. Dumbass cat's got guts...

_ _ "Don't give a shit," he rumbled, swinging his locker shut and exiting the room. He could hear the other kids reprimanding the cat behind him for his obvious mistake.

Zack soon entered the gym and began jogging around the room as he knew to do. Every class period, they were expected to jog around the room until everyone had finished changing, and they couldn't stop until Coach Salt told them to stop. The coach certainly knew how to push his students, and that was something that Zack was able to appreciate.

Just ahead of him, he spotted that wolf from earlier jogging in just his ordinary jeans and t-shirt. The jackal's spirits deflated somewhat. Stupid bitch doesn't even have a uniform. May as well just sit it out.

Zack was moving considerably faster than the wolf, so he quickly reduced the distance between them as his powerful legs propelled him across the gym floor. The wolf must have noticed him approaching, because he quickly stepped aside as the tall jackal passed. Good. Bitch learned his lesson.

"EVERYONE UP FRONT!" Coach Salt's booming voice echoed across the room.

Everybody headed toward the front of the gym where the big dog was waiting for them. They formed a half-circle around the coach, that wolf standing on the opposite side of Zack.

"Hope you all have had a good weekend," the coach began, clipboard in paw. "Today we're going to keep it simple and break in some new blood." New blood. I like it. "Dodgeball."

The class cheered at the announcement and Zack allowed himself a pleased grin. This day had just taken a turn for the better.

"Can I trust you all to split up evenly?"

A half-hearted round of affirmation sounded from the students, and Coach Salt went back to the storeroom to retrieve equipment. Everyone separated into two teams, Zack not really caring which one he ended up on. When the coach came back out again, he appraised the groups and shook his head.

"ARGENT! GRADY! OTHER SIDE!"

That cat from before and the wolf, presumably 'Argent,' switched teams, the latter doing so rather stiffly. Zack rolled his eyes. Just man up, fucking newbie.

The whistle blew. Everyone scrambled around the room to try and grab a ball. Zack was easily one of the first to get ahold of one, soon backing off to a safe distance. He began to dodge expertly while pelting his opponents with precision. The jackal jumped left and right, ducking occasionally when a ball zoomed overhead, and he never got hit. Not once.

Out of the corner of his eye, Zack spotted that new wolf, Argent, about to get hit. The opponent was getting ready to send a ball speeding toward him, and Argent seemed clueless as to what was about to happen. Zack dashed forward, snatching the ball just before it hit its target. He instantly threw it back hard, hitting the assailant in the chest and eliminating him from the game.

Zack glared down at the wolf. "Pathetic. Step back and stay out of the way."

To his surprise, Argent stood up straight and retaliated. "I'm not in the way!" He said before immediately getting struck in the side of the face was a speeding dodgeball. "Ow..."

Zack gave a snort before walking off. "Of course not..."

Stupid wolf.

After school, Zack pulled into a parking spot at the elementary school and waited for his youngest brother to walk out. He had arrived a bit late, so there were students already funneling out of the building and boarding the buses out front. The younger jackal soon approached with his backpack and climbed into the car beside him.

"Hey, kiddo," Zack said as they began to leave the school. "How was school?"

"It was fun!" Tristan chirped. "We had pizza for lunch today!"

Zack chuckled. It was always about the food with him, wasn't it? Couldn't blame him. "I'm glad you had a good time. Do you have auditions for the play tomorrow?"

"Yep!" Tristan said before frowning. "When did you say Mom and Dad are coming back?"

The bigger jackal grunted, keeping his eyes on the road. "Should be this Saturday. Why?"

"Do you think they'll be there at the play?"

Zack paused. It was perfectly possible that they wouldn't be able to attend. "I'm sure they will," he said begrudgingly.

Tristan sighed. "I just hope I get a part..."

"Hey, don't worry about it," Zack rumbled, taking a paw off the wheel to rustle his brother's hair. "I'm sure you'll do great."

Tristan smiled. "Thanks."

"Have you got homework?"

Tristan nodded.

"Why don't you finish your homework and we can play one of your games after dinner?"

"Okay! I might need help..."

"I can help you if you want. Just call of me if you need anything, okay?"

"Great!"