Chapter 8

Zoe

I reached to ring his doorbell, but swiveled on my heel, chickening out. I was halfway down his front sidewalk when I whirled again, ran to the door, and jabbed my finger at the button for the bell as fast as I could so I wouldn't have time to bail again. I tapped my foot and looked around, anywhere but at the door. A red Mustang was parked behind Zack's car on the street in front of the house.

I wonder whose that is? It's pretty sharp.

"Zoe?" He stepped out and closed the door behind him. "What are you doing here?"

What was I doing here? I lived next door.

His question mystified me, and I didn't know what to say. "Uhh... I-I...." I laced my fingers together loosely, palms up, and twiddled my thumbs.

"That's a pretty dress."

Heat blazed across my cheeks, but it gave me the surge of confidence I needed. "I was wondering if you could come with me to my Aunt Samantha's wedding next Saturday." The words ran together. "I know it's late notice but...."

The door creaked open and he dropped his head. Hillary Cantrell slid her hands over his shoulders and smiled at me, caressing his pecs. "Oh, hi, Zoe."

My mouth hung open for a second, but I tried to regain my composure. "Uhh... hi."

Zack found his voice and my gaze returned to him. "I'd like to, Zoe. But I have a date. With Hillary."

I tried to force the words out, but the deserters wouldn't come.

I need to say something. Anything.

Finally, some air came out and I coughed up my voice. "Oh, okay. Sure. I'll see you later." I spun around and compelled my feet to move away from the scene.

"Come on, Z-man. You can walk me to my car."

I paused at that. Z-man? That was my nickname for him. The sound of smacking lips about made me want to puke. I knew it wouldn't look good, but I took off running to my house. Rather that, than become a puddle of tears on his front walk. I wouldn't give Hillary the satisfaction.

Dani was on the couch when I stormed in, slamming the door and stomping up the stairs.

"Zoe?"

I didn't respond, but seconds later I'm sure she caught my door banging shut. I threw myself on my bed and scrunched a pillow under my arms. The tears wouldn't come at first, but the scene replayed itself over and over in my mind. The happy rush when he opened the door. The sweaty-palmed fumbling when I asked him. Hillary. I really hated her. A few hot tears squeezed out and tracked down my face, then a few more. I closed my eyes and they came faster.

What an idiot! I looked like a little fool standing on his doorstep and asking him to a wedding. Then I had to retreat from the field, just like Lee.

My voice came out in a whisper. "Why did I do that? Why?" It would have been better to never make a move and still think we had a chance than to know for sure we didn't. I pounded the pillow and buried my face in it as the first sob escaped.

* * *

Danielle

Zoe marched in, up the stairs, and slammed her door. I wasn't sure what it was about, but I'd wager it had something to do with the red sports car in front of Zack's house. She wasn't too forthcoming with me earlier, so I thought I'd give her some time to simmer down. Our relationship had been rather strained of late, and I understood why. Who would want some stranger moving into their house—with a child in tow, no less—and taking their dad's attention away? I'd encouraged Tucker to make a special effort with her, but, well, he'd been out of sorts lately, too. Was the change in his life overly dramatic, as well? Taking on a new child and wife. A wife who acted like a child at times.

Thinking about childishness, an urge to call my bud surfaced.

"Do you think Bonnie Tyler wore those special glasses when viewing her total eclipse of the heart?" I said as soon as she answered.

"Probably not. I mean, have you seen her on the music scene lately?"

"No. But she is in her sixties."

"True. But look at Mick Jagger. He performed in his seventies. That boy must have worn his glasses."

"Hmm. I never read him as the responsible type." I smiled and stretched my legs out on the couch. "How's work been without me?"

"Well, the serving's slow because of all the times we have to break down and have a good cry over your absence."

"Well, of course. How's the new girl working out?"

"Umm... she's decent, but she's no Dani Capodice/newly McCord. She doesn't anticipate my needs the way you did. Like, when I have to go get more food out of the warm pass. You would always continue to make up the trays, minus whatever I was retrieving, so we could get the food out more quickly when I returned. She stands there."

I had to admit, it was nice being missed. I had some guilt, though, about leaving them with new people. "Give her time. She'll figure it out."

"I don't know. Even serving with Maxi isn't the same as serving with you. And she's been doing it longer than both of us."

"Well, that's because we share a brain."

She yawned. "Yeah. Good for me. Bad for you."

"Whatever." She was always putting herself down because, getting married so young to Bill, she never attended college. I knew it was a crock, though. She could run circles around any college student I knew.

She changed the subject. "How are the kids?"

I picked up a wayward piece of popcorn from the couch. "Oh, you know... okay."

"That doesn't sound very convincing."

I glanced up the stairs to check if anyone was around. "Well, it has its challenges. Good thing Kyle doesn't have any kids."

"You can say that again. What are these challenges you speak of?"

"Just... tension. Especially with Zoe. I think she's having a hard time right now. It might be because of her crush on Zack. But also because... she's used to being the only woman of the house. All of a sudden, there are two more."

"You know, my stepdad and I had a difficult time at first. Then he gave me a bouquet of flowers. My first bouquet of flowers. With a sweet card that said something about not wanting to be the 'evil stepfather.' That made an impression on me."

"Yeah. I've wanted to do something special for her. Like a girls' night out with Tabitha."

"She'd love that. Do it."

"Yeah. I think I will." I wanted to get at what was really on my mind. "So, have you heard anymore from Bill?"

"Oh, yeah. All the time. It's getting old. But that's not what's bothering me."

"Is it the wedding planning?"

"No. I'm all ready for that. Quackers in a row and all that."

I sat. "Then what is bothering you?"

"Oh... these girls have been picking on Elise. Bullying her."

"Like how?"

"Mostly over social media—"

"It's so easy to do when you're not looking someone in the face."

"Oh, I don't think they have any problem with being mean face-to-face either."

I frowned. "But Elise is such a sweetheart."

"I know," she whined. "I think they're jealous of her. Because she's a looker."

I smiled. "You wouldn't be saying that because she looks identical to you, would you?"

"Well, maybe.... Oh, shit. She just got home. We'll have to talk about this another time. I've got to get ready to take her to gymnastics."

"Okay, girl. Miss you."

"Miss you, too, Dani. Hang in there with those kids."

"You, too."

Talking to her always made me feel better.

Now... to come up with something special I could do for Zoe....

* * *

Zack

It'd been a week and a half since that first study date with Hillary. We'd both been busy with practices, my job, and her modeling, but we hung a lot at school. She'd been good about not pushing things too far and I was starting to be more comfortable with her.

I knew Zoe was upset about us not spending a lot of time together since Hillary came into the picture. And I always promised myself I wouldn't be "that guy" who abandoned his friends when he started dating someone. But Hillary was very... demanding. I thought if someone was in a relationship, they should put the person they're in a relationship with first. But I also believed it was healthy for couples to have at least some time apart. To tell the truth, as a newb, the whole dating thing was confusing to me. I hope I get the hang of it.

But Zoe avoided me at school. Even going to the extreme of getting to school early, which was unheard of for her. I missed her. Missed her more than I was comfortable with. I needed to make things right with her.

It was the Saturday of my big date with Hillary. I had an hour before I needed to pick her up. She let me know, very clearly, she expected me to take her somewhere nice. The wallet was a tad light, but, if I didn't do anything else all week, I could afford it. Since I was momentarily free, I decided to check in with Zo.

I knocked on her front door, but when she opened it, I was blown away. For several reasons. One, because she looked absolutely beautiful. She wore this strapless dress, so from forehead to where the dress began was perfect, creamy skin. Her hair was up and she had on this flower headband thing. She also wore makeup, which was a rarity. She really didn't need it. The smidge she did have on, though, really enhanced her already gorgeous features. She totally floored me.

The second reason I stood gawking at her on her doorstep was because of her reaction to me. Before she realized who was there, she wore this relaxed, welcoming expression. The second she recognized me, her facial appearance became fluid, changing so fast I could hardly discern the emotions. I'd always been able to read her in the past, but I was clueless. She took in a sharp breath through her pretty little mouth, as if something surprised and stung her. She held onto the door with one hand, the frame with the other. Her hands were shaking. Why were her hands shaking?

"Oh. Hi." She shifted her weight and looked away. "Did you need something?"

Did I need something? That's something one says to a neighbor borrowing a cup of sugar, not to a best friend.

"Uhh...." Damn. She was even wearing jewelry. I licked my lips, suddenly unsure of what to say. "I just...."

She straightened her spine. "I thought you had a date with Hillary."

"I do. But I had a little time."

She blinked rapidly. "So, what? You thought you could spare me a few minutes?"

I took a half step back. "Hey, I—"

She held a hand up. "Wait." Pausing, she took a breath. "That wasn't fair. I'm sorry." She stared at the floor.

Before I could figure out how to respond, Mr. McCord's voice drifted to us from somewhere beyond Zoe's shoulder. "Zo, you ready? Everything packed?"

She turned her head to the side. "Yes, Dad."

"Okay, good. We're rolling on out of here in five minutes. You may want to use the restroom."

Panic shot through me. She couldn't leave like this. "Zoe. I don't want you to be mad at me. I—"

She stepped out on the porch and closed the door behind her. "No. I was being stupid. I guess, I...." She clasped her hands together in front of her, then began wringing them. "I knew this day would come, and I tried to prepare myself for it, but...."

What the hell is she talking about?

"Prepare yourself for what? I don't understand."

"I just can't—" Her voice broke and a giant tear splashed onto her hand, hanging on as if it were an accusation of some sort.

I moved forward and touched her arm. It was killing me that she was hurting, and apparently, I was somehow to blame. "Don't cry, Zoe," I pleaded. "You know I can't stand that."

"I'm being stupid. I must be hormonal. It's no big deal." She turned to go inside.

I held on to her. "Zoe, please. I want to understand."

She spun back around. "No, it's nothing, Zack. Really. Don't worry about it." I released my hold, and her hand went to play with her necklace, sliding pieces back and forth along the chain. "I don't deal with change well." She gave me this pathetic attempt at a smile, but she could only get a part of her mouth to cooperate.

I wanted so badly to comfort her, to take her tears away and make everything right with us again. "What change? Nothing's changed."

Her face drained of emotion and became cold. "It has for me," she said flatly.

Then she turned around and left me standing on her porch, staring at the door she'd closed in my face, my heart aching for her. I didn't move. A flurry of thoughts invaded my brain as I tried to decipher what happened, seeking a clue in every word and nuance we'd shared. I guess I must have been there for a while because her dad's SUV backing out of the driveway was what finally got my attention. I moved with the sound, turning, crossing the porch, and coming down a few of the stairs. Mr. McCord stopped, put it in park, and hopped out, putting a foot on the doorframe, one hand on the roof of the car, one on the top of the door.

"You need something, Zack? We're heading out to a wedding and are staying overnight, so we won't be back until tomorrow."

Since the windows were open, and she sat on the side closest to me, I caught her response. "Dad, he knows." She was looking at the floor.

I tore my gaze from her and muscled up a smile for Mr. McCord. "I'm good. Thanks."

"Are you sure? I could get you whatever you need. We've got enough time."

I waved him off. "I'm good. Have a safe trip."

"Okay. Thanks. We will." He slid back behind the wheel, and Zoe's window went up as he put it into reverse, but he didn't move at first. He was looking in the rearview mirror and saying something. I watched with interest. Zoe responded, but her head was still bent. Mr. McCord gave me one last look, waved, and they left.