An Unexpected Rivalry

Zachary grumbled as he crossed over the dining hall toward Heather. He was mingling and meeting people, making him wonder what his cousin wanted that could be so urgent. As he approached her location, he noticed the tall, muscular, blond boy next to her and recalled Grace’s boytoy comment that Ashley promised to explain and never got around to.

Well, no time like the present, I guess, he thought while crossing the remaining distance with a friendly smile.

“Finally!” Heather said in an exasperated tone. “You already playing captain or something?”

“Something like that,” Zack responded before turning to face his cousin’s companion and trying to gauge him only by the appearance.

“Zack, meet Peter Grayson, an old friend of mine,” she happily said. “Peter, this is Zack Bishop, that cousin I mentioned the other time.”

“Oh, the estranged one?” Peter inquired, extending his hand toward the dark-haired boy. “Nice to meet you, man.”

Zack watched the hand for a second, a feeling of worry for Heather briefly taking over before he smiled and shook the other boy’s outstretched hand. “It’s great to meet you, Peter. I guess you might know more about my cousin’s earlier life than me,” he said. “Well, more than Ashley was willing to cough up, at least.”

Peter laughed as Heather’s eyes widened. “I’m sure I can think of an interesting story or two over this week.”

“Oh, no, you don’t,” Heather warned, suddenly getting all serious on the two young men. “Besides, Zack was already leaving. He needs to mingle,” she smirked at her cousin. “Isn’t that right, Captain?”

“That’s true, actually,” Zack replied, reaching over to shake Peter’s hand again. “Well, it was nice meeting you, Peter. I’ll find you later this week for those stories.”

“Sure, man,” the blond boy nodded with mirth written all over his face at the indignant expression on Heather.

Zachary laughed and got out of the dining hall again, enjoying the evening air falling over the Valley. He walked a few steps and it didn’t take long for another teammate to spot him, this one sharing the company of two other competitors from other towns.

“Hey, Zack!” Madison animatedly waved him over. “Over here!”

He smiled and walked closer, unwittingly appraising the two girls with her. The first was a beautiful redhead that vaguely reminded him of Chloe back home, but her most striking feature was the pair of heterochromatic eyes, a blue and a green one. The other was a gorgeous, toned girl with her blonde hair in a cute bob and hazel eyes. Zack exchanged a longer smile with her and was pleased to see she returned it.

“Hello,” he smiled warmly at them before turning to Madison. “I see you took the mingling thing to heart.”

Madison laughed and pointed first to the redhead, and then to the blonde. “Zack, those are Quinn Greene and Aurora Rusk.”

“Call me Rory,” the blonde reminded her.

The tall brunette laughed again. “Alright, but let me finish this intro properly. Girls, this is Zachary Bishop, the captain from my town.”

Zack exchanged handshakes with both girls. “Call me Zack,” he couldn’t help but return the joke, which had Aurora, or rather, Rory, giggling. "I hope Maddie here hasn’t been giving you two a lot of trouble.”

The blonde and the ginger laughed as the brunette pouted at the joke. “Zack!”

“Madison didn’t tell us she had such a funny captain,” Rory remarked, still chuckling softly.

“He’s not normally like that,” Madison said, frowning cutely at the dark-haired boy.

“I’m just trying to lighten up a little bit,” Zack justified himself while smiling at the girls. “We won’t have fun on this thing keeping a dark and gloomy mindset, you know?”

Madison looked at him as if he was crazy. “Ignore him, girls. He’ll be all fired up when the competition actually starts,” she told them before making a shooing motion at her captain. “You, go. This is a girl talk and boys aren’t invited!”

Zack grinned at his teammate and winked at the other girls. “Sure! Please, Rory and Quinn, let me know if Maddie goes out of line, okay?”

The brunette blushed as the blonde and the redhead laughed harder. “Oh, you can count on us, Zack,” Rory assured, returning the grin.

“We’ll be sure,” Quinn agreed.

“GO!!!” Madison shrieked, earning another round of laughter from the other three before Zachary waved at them and walked away with a spring in his step.

---

Nearby, Taylor and Hannah had retrieved Gavin and Grace from the dining hall and were guiding the young teenagers along a trail in the camp. Grace had her arms crossed and a pout on her lips as she followed the other three.

“Where are we even going again?” She inquired, the two older girls hadn’t really given them any details.

“A few of the other teams have guys and girls with a lot of similarities to you and Gavin,” Taylor explained. “So, me and some of the other staffers thought it’d be interesting to introduce you all. If anything happens, you can hang out with each other.”

When Gavin and Grace still looked confused, Hannah snickered. “She means the geek squad, you guys.”

Grace frowned a bit, never having considered herself a geek. However, giving her interests and things she liked to do for fun, the green-eyed blonde supposed she probably fit the description. Taylor elbowed her friend and turned back, a worried look on her face. “I didn’t mean to make it a stereotype, but… yeah, it’s kinda like that.”

“Don’t worry, Taylor,” Gavin suddenly said. “I… appreciate it.”

Taylor smiled at the brown-haired boy and Grace rolled her eyes at how subservient he was acting. It made her wonder if the guy had a crush on his best friend’s sister. Soon enough, though, they arrived at one of the fire pits near the shore of Shimmer Lake, where a few other people were waiting for them. Staffers and teenagers, they were eleven in total. An older guy with Sandy-brown hair was standing near a bespectacled boy with reddish-brown hair. Then a busty blonde girl that resembled Hannah a little bit was standing behind another busty girl, a younger one with red hair that reminded Gavin of Chloe, and a quiet, skinny guy with brown hair. Lastly, a brown-haired older girl was chatting with a blond younger boy who also wore glasses.

“Is everyone here?” The older guy inquired, regarding Taylor with a friendly look.

“Yeah, I think that’s everyone we discussed,” the blue-eyed brunette responded, giving him a smile in return.

“Nice,” he grinned before clearing his throat. “Well, I believe you guys were told why you’re here, so I’m just gonna start the introductions, if that’s okay,” he said. “I’m Finn Singer and this is Wesley March,” he put his hands on the redhead guy’s shoulders. “We’re from Honey Hollow.”

The older brown-haired girl had a pretty smile on her face as she wrapped an arm around the younger blond boy’s shoulders. “I’m Sydney Clark, and this guy here is Avery West. We come from Greenwall.”

The Hannah-like blonde was the next one as she grinned and bumped the redhead girl with her arm. “I’m Daisy Holland, and these are Amy Blackson and… David Johnson. We’re from Amethyst Shore.”

“Alright,” Taylor cleared her throat before pointing to herself and Hannah. “I’m Taylor Bishop and this is Hannah Woodsen,” she announced, and Sydney and Daisy chuckled at the mention of Hannah. Yeah, her best friend had been a popular person during the staff’s training. Rolling her eyes, Taylor placed her hands on Gavin’s shoulders. “Those are Gavin Westher, one of my brother’s best friends, and Grace Smith. We’re all from Azure Rocks.”

Sydney stepped forward this time. “Basically, we brought you guys here so you can talk and make friends,” she said, her gaze scanning the faces of all six teenagers. “So, that’s what you’re gonna do.”

Daisy smiled at Amy next and leaned in to whisper in her ear, which made the young ginger shiver. “Let me know if David doesn’t play nice, okay?”

Taylor wrapped her arms around Gavin and Grace’s shoulders. “You guys don’t exactly need to get along with everyone, but it might be fun, you know?” She told them. “Like I said, if the competition isn’t what you guys think it’ll be, you all can hang out together in the camp.”

“Really?” Grace inquired, skeptically.

Hannah laughed. “I doubt Zacky will hold it against you, don’t worry.”

“But I wanna try and help our team,” Gavin argued. He was mostly worried about what Grace’s reactions to the tasks would be along the week.

“That’s the spirit!” Taylor squeezed his arm. “This here? It’s just precaution.”

Nearby, Finn tapped Wesley on the shoulder. “Okay, I need to go, but if something happens you can find me or Sean, okay?”

The teenager rolled his eyes. “You don’t need to treat me like a kid, Finn,” he softly whined.

“I know, I know,” Finn laughed. “Just in case, okay?”

The younger crowd had all the signs of being uncertain about being haphazardly thrown together for a chat, but once their older counterparts began walking away, it seemed like Grace was the first one to speak and Amy followed her, trying to bring the boys into the conversation.

“Looks like things might actually work,” Finn commented, falling into step with Taylor as Hannah walked with Sydney and Daisy a few steps ahead. “It was a great idea, Taylor.”

“It was nothing,” a faint blush covered the brunette’s cheeks, but it thankfully was too dark for anyone to notice. “Thanks for getting on board so quickly, Finn.”

“No problem, as I said, it was a great idea,” the brown-haired boy chuckled. “I really think it’ll be good for them to have that safety net if the YSC gets too intense, you know?”

“Oh, totally!” Taylor quickly replied. “I know how Gavin can get, at least. He’s like a surrogate brother to me,” she said, letting out a nervous chuckle. “So, where are you going now?”

“Gonna check out on things,” Finn responded with a smile. “I have to see if Peyton needs something, and hell, if Eoin is behaving himself. You saw how he could get during training.”

“Ah, of course, good luck,” Taylor awkwardly said, feeling some disappointment as the group approached the dining hall again and Finn set out to do just what he told her. Hannah said her goodbyes to Daisy and Sydney and went back to her best friend’s side with a shit-eating grin on her face.

“I’ve got a crush and I can’t hide it from my bestie,” the busty young woman began singing, pretending to dance a waltz with an imaginary someone.

Taylor rolled her eyes in annoyance. “Fuck off, Han!” She set off toward the shores of Shimmer Lake, under a hearty round of laughter from the teasing blonde. Perhaps Peter would be able to hold a more mature conversation.

---

Meanwhile, Zachary was wandering the camp, or at least the immediate area outside the dining hall, where most of the other competitors and staffers seemed to be hanging out, when he actually entered the path of one Rex Hardaway. The man seemed incredibly excited about finally meeting him.

“Zachary Bishop!” He boomed, sticking out his hand. “It’s great to meet Daniel’s boy at last!”

Zack smiled and shook the man’s hand. “It’s nice to meet you too, Mr. Hardaway.”

“Please, call me Rex, we’re all mystery solvers here, my boy,” Rex said before abruptly turning to his left. "Mystery! Come over here. I have someone I'd like you to meet," he called over and immediately turned back. “So, tell me how’s Daniel! I never saw him again and your sister wasn’t exactly forthcoming with information.”

The young man felt a little bit dizzy with all the turning the older man did, but managed to regain his bearings. “Oh, he’s great, actually. Dad owns a tech company in Azure Rocks.”

“Oh, yes. I remember Dan saying he wanted to follow that career. It's quite a shame he didn’t want to be a detective, eh?” Rex inquired before letting out an amused laugh. “So, how’s Alexis?”

“Who?” Zack replied with a confused frown.

“Your mother, of course,” Rex responded as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. “I caught Dan with her once during one of the tasks that time,” his laugh became even louder. “Boy didn’t know where to stick his face, I tell you!”

I so didn’t need to know that, Zack grimaced, thinking about the mother of his classmate, Duncan Lennox. “Uhn, you must be talking about my father’s ex-girlfriend, Rex. My mother’s name is Monica,” he explained. “Dad dated her before Alexis and they got back together soon after he came back from the YSC.”

“Oh, that’s surprising,” Rex said, genuinely taken aback. “I’d have thought that if Dan went for another woman, it surely would’ve been Vanessa. They were such close friends.”

Dammit, what a nosy guy, Zachary thought, forcing a smile. “No, he didn’t, but they’re still friends. Her daughter, Madison, is in my team.”

“That’s marvelous, Zachary! Already following your dad’s successful recipe, eh?” Rex playfully elbowed the young man before turning in the same direction as before. "Mystery! We're waiting!"

“She’s making you wait again, Rex?” A smug voice inquired, making both Zack and the older man turn toward its source.

What greeted Zack was a bizarre sight, something like an alternate reality version of Gavin, but one that would have grown conceited over one thing or another instead of the meek, polite incarnation of his best male friend. The face was quite similar, with glasses and all, but the dark, frizzy hair and the smugness were quite weird to see in those features. Still, having read the Wanton Riddle site a few times, he knew very well who that boy actually was.

“Oh, right on time, Plato,” Rex beamed. “Have you met Zack Bishop?”

Plato Quest turned in his direction, the smug smile never leaving his face. “Can’t say I did,” he replied, immediately turning back to Rex. “You better summon her quick, Rex, She was talking to the Tarver guy, you know?”

Zack raised a confused eyebrow as Rex’s skin began turning a weird shade of red. He didn’t understand why it was wrong for the man’s daughter to be chatting with Sean Tarver. The boy seemed really cool a while ago when Peter introduced the two of them.

Rex caught sight of his wife passing by them. “Tish, go get Mystery, please. I want her to meet Zachary,” he requested, barely able to mask his fury. The beautiful woman nodded and went to retrieve their daughter.

“What’s so wrong with Sean?” Zack wasn’t able to hold himself back anymore.

Plato chuckled and Rex let out a suffering sigh. “You shouldn’t worry about it, my boy.”

“Tarver’s only here because Fawn Graff put it as a condition to come work in this year’s edition,” Plato told him and laughed obnoxiously. “Really, after what his aunt did, he should never have been allowed near the YSC.”

“Don’t question it, Plato,” Rex tiredly warned.

At that moment, Tish Hardaway showed up with her daughter in tow. Zack had noticed her at the presentation, but up close, he had to admit Mystery Hardaway was simply gorgeous with her strawberry blonde hair, blue eyes, and a slender, fit body.

“Okay, Dad, let’s get going with this,” Mystery requested, making it a point not to even glance at Plato. “I was talking to some friends over there, you know?”

“I just wanted you to meet Zack Bishop, from Azure Rocks,” Rex ignored his daughter’s outburst and gestured at the young Bishop boy. “You know, his father won the first edition of the Young Sleuths Challenge.”

“Uhn…, it’s nice to meet you,” Zack stammered a bit before getting on with the program. She was really beautiful, he thought, while extending his hand.

Misty gave him a small, polite smile while shaking his hand. “Hi, I’m Misty,” she emphasized the nickname while focusing on his face with an enigmatic expression on her own features. “Pleased to meet you.”

Right then, Tish whispered something in Rex’s ear and he grinned at the teenagers. “Okay, kids, something came up that requires my attention, but feel free to chat and get to know each other,” he said, and then began walking away with his wife, but not before calling out for his daughter. “Mystery, play nice.”

“It’s Misty!” She angrily shot back.

Zack chuckled in amusement and then turned to Plato, who was still there, being quite obvious about checking out Misty’s physical attributes. “Hey, back to Sean Tarver. I don’t know what his aunt did, but don’t you think it’s kinda unfair to judge the guy based on that?”

“Yeah, let’s talk more about that,” Plato nodded, a sinister grin on his face. “Why should you be here for something your father did?”

Zack shrugged, the anti-Gavin guy continued to rub him the wrong way ever since they met. “Well, I don’t know,” he shrugged. “Would you rather have the Clue Coterie alone in the competition?”

Misty grinned next to the two boys, crossing her arms and glaring at the Cherry Cove native. “Yeah, would’ve been real easy for you, wouldn’t it?” She provoked.

Plato spluttered, not expecting that exact reply. “I just meant to ask what have you done to be here, Bishop?” His smug smile slowly came back. “Last I checked, your town doesn’t even have a detective club. You’re just like Tarver.”

“Shouldn’t a mystery club be a secret, though?” Zack grinned at him. “If you’re fighting for spots in a ranking, bad guys will eventually expect you to come.”

Plato’s eyes widened in disbelief as Misty’s grin grew wider, splitting her pretty features. “Y-you’re… bluffing! Everyone wants to be in the rankings!”

Zack cocked his head to the side, a challenging gesture. “Am I?” No one would have heard about the Flawless case, of course, as the people involved in it were so big that a non-disclosure agreement had to be signed between all involved parties, but yeah, he, Scarlett, and Alice had solved a big case back home earlier in the year. They just weren’t an official mystery club. “You said it yourself, right? What have I done to be here?”

Misty just enjoyed the sight as Plato spluttered a bit more, growing red as Zack held his gaze with a confident grin. He doubted Rex knew about the Flawless case, though, but just the possibility of such a win in his competitors’ minds was enough to put the seeds of doubt there. Of course, though, he only needed those seeds in Plato’s head, and maybe in the white-haired girl’s.

“Well, it doesn’t matter,” Zack took a step forward and patted the other boy’s left shoulder twice. “You’re the big guys in the rankings, everyone in the mystery scene is cheering for you, surely you’re gonna win, right?” He asked, a Ravers-like smirk on his face. “I mean, you wouldn’t lose to a bunch of amateurs like us, would you?”

Plato glared deeply at him and opened and closed his mouth several times before raising his finger in a threatening manner for a few seconds. The Cherry Cove native then just let out a huff and stormed away from the other two, not even once looking back.

“Shit, I’ve never seen him so worked up,” Misty said, taking a couple of steps forward to face Zack. “You really have a mystery club?”

Zack laughed. “No, but he doesn’t know that,” he responded. “And by acknowledging him and the Clue Coterie as the only official club, I just heaped pressure on Plato, which makes him a lot more likely to make mistakes, or so I hope,” he clarified, recalling a strategy his cousin Clark practiced before basketball games in Azure Rocks.

Misty chuckled, she wanted to find him likable, but even though he just provided her with one of the most funny sights of her entire life, that strategy meant he was just as much of a mystery-obsessed guy as Plato and her father. A shame, she thought, because Zack Bishop was one hell of a cute guy.

“Well, so, it was nice meeting you, Zack,” she smiled at him. “But I gotta go find the other staffers. We’ve got a lot of stuff to do, you know?”

“Oh, of course, Misty, don’t let me hold you back,” he replied, returning the smile. “See you this week?”

“Sure,” she nodded, finding herself grinning as she recalled how he fended off Plato. “Have a good night, and good luck in the competition.”

“Thanks,” Zack briefly watched her tight ass as she walked away and he was soon alone near the dining hall. If his initial intention had been of just having a fun week with his cousin and friends, Plato Quest had just given him a big reason to try and actually win the YSC. There was just one important question nagging at him, though. Should I really go for it?

---

Taylor was starting to get bored as she strolled amongst the competitors and staffers. Now that there wasn’t stuff to be prepared or things to do, she was actually finding it all a bit boring. Back in high school, she wanted to be in one of the teams, looking for clues and solving mysteries, but that wasn’t possible, and being a staff member ended up being quite different in her opinion.

Lost in her musings and wishes, she almost didn’t notice when a younger guy, blond with dark green eyes, rather handsome if she could be honest, entered her path. “Hey,” he greeted. “Taylor Bishop, right?”

“Yeah,” she responded, getting a bit suspicious as she recalled this guy was a member of the last-minute team that came in place of the Blackbridge group. “You are…?”

“Oh, I’m sorry, Sam Wayne,” he apologized, giving her a toothy grin while pushing his hand in front of her. “I’m a friend of your cousin, Harry.”

Taylor nodded, she never had much of a relationship with Harrison, as their side of the family didn’t visit the Bishop side over the years, and she wasn’t in the same year as him in school. His older sister Millie, though, always made the effort to get to know her and Zack, and she had been enjoying her cousin’s company at Green Hills that year. She could see Harrison in the distance, talking to Peyton Tarver, and from the look on her fellow staffer’s face, he was being just as annoying as Zack always claimed their cousin acted.

“Nice to meet you, Sam,” she gave him a small, quick smile and shook his hand, despite everything. “Is anything wrong? You need something?”

The younger boy flashed her another grin and leaned closer. “Oh, no, I was just here wondering something,” his voice came out huskier than before. “Is it true you have two tongues in your mouth?”

Taylor frowned at the question, wondering where the hell he could have come up with something like that. “Uhn, no?” She readily replied. “Why?”

“Well, you want to?” Sam asked, the grin on his face growing even larger.

The tall brunette blinked twice in surprise at the astonishing pick-up line, before she just shook her head and walked past the younger boy without even dignifying him with an answer. If Harrison was trying something similar with Peyton, then she could say for the first time since she arrived at Wicked Waley, that she sympathized with the blonde. Shit, she let out an annoyed sigh. Maybe if I hide in the nurse’s office, this night will go on faster.

---

Sometime after Misty left, Zack found himself alone once again, and since he was now near the lake, he decided to check out the docks, as he could see all of his friends involved in a conversation or another at different spots in the camp. He headed to the one farthest from the boat house, watching over the calm waters of Shimmer Lake.

Damn, it’s still hot as fuck here, he thought, pulling on the collar of his t-shirt. The evening hadn’t helped much with the weather problem, that much he could say.

Heading back from the dock, Zachary continued strolling toward the right side of the camp, passing by one of the fire pits and eventually reaching another group of cabins. They were the same size as the one he and his group were staying on, though judging by the lack of activity, he wondered if one of the teams was even staying there. He was just imagining that the Hardaways had assigned those cabins to the staffers when a sound made the Bishop boy stop in his tracks, eyes widening in complete and utter surprise.

”Fuck, yes! Drill me with that cock!”

“Impossible,” Zack muttered. He knew that voice, and as much as he didn’t want to, his cock throbbed in his pants and it didn’t stop there. The traitorous appendage slowly hardened as his feet carried him toward the sound against his will. Peeking through the open window of the cabin closest to the lake, the shock was complete.