Part 37 I took a shower thinking about how I was going to explain this to Chloe. Just tell the truth Zach, it'll be okay. I got dressed and ran back to Chloe's room. I walked in and saw her sitting on her bed, facing the wall. She looked sad. I ran over to the side of her bed and knelt down in front of her. A tear escaped her eyes and rolled down her cheeks. I reached up to wipe it away but she pushed my hand away. I felt my heart breaking. "Baby, what's wrong?" She took her phone out and handed it to me. I saw a text on the screen. I don't know who you are, and quite frankly, I don't care. Stay the f*ck away from Zach you slut. He's my boyfriend. I quickly pulled out my phone and checked the number. It was Tori's. "Zach.. who is she?" Her eyes were filled with tears. I sighed and took her hands in mine, she hesitated and tensed up, but then she relaxed. "Chloe, I can explain. It's not what it looks like. People use that excuse a lot, I know. But this time it actually isn't what it looks like. I promise." She gave me a look signaling me to keep going. "This girl, her name is Tori Sears. I swear, she doesn't mean anything to me. She stalks me, I'm not joking. I had like 2 classes with her my 10th grade year. All of a sudden, she thought we were dating, she was everywhere I went. I've tried telling her a million times that we aren't dating and that I don't like her. She never leaves me alone, Chloe. But please." I looked into her eyes, and took her hand and held them in mine. I was still kneeling in front of her. My voice came out just above a whisper, because if it were anything above that I probably wouldn't have been able to talk. I felt tears start to sting at my eyes. "Don't let her take you away from me. You have no idea how much you mean to me Chloe."
Part 38: Chloe's Point of View Zach was kneeling in front of me, almost to the point of crying. Was he really that afraid of losing me? I looked down at him. He had his head resting across my lap and he was holding my hands tightly in his. I could feel a wet spot starting to form on my jeans. I slowly lifted his chin up so he was looking at me. "Zach.." I whispered trying to get his attention. His eyes were watery. I ran my fingers through his gorgeous black hair. "I'm not mad." His eyes looked hopeful. "You're not?" He managed to choke out. I shook my head. "No." I whispered. But, I need some time to think, be alone." That sparkle in his brown eyes faded. "Take all the time you need.." He got up and kissed my forehead, he then walked out of my room. I decided that I had to get out of the house, go somewhere new. The beach has always been a safe spot for me, a good place to think and clear my head. Get all of my thoughts organized. I went downstairs and asked Janice to take me to the beach. She dropped me off and then left, telling me to call her when I wanted to come home. I sat on a rock, listening to the waves crash. The wind was blowing my hair around like crazy. I loved the sound of the ocean, it was so peaceful. I sat there thinking. Zach is honest, he's sweet, kind, compassionate, and he's probably the best person in the entire world. Being attractive is just a bonus. I smiled to myself. I could trust him with my entire heart. He wouldn't abuse that privilege. I'm sure of it. I frantically dug my phone out of my pocket and dialed Janice's phone number. I told her that it was urgent that I needed to get to the house immediately. 5 minutes later, she sped into the parking lot and did a doughnut. "Take me to Zach." I whispered. She smiled at me. "He's been sitting in his room looking at the wall since you left 7 hours ago." I looked shocked. She laughed at me. "Time flies when you're lost in your thoughts sweetie." I nodded. It sure does. We pulled up to the driveway, I opened my door and I sprinted into his mansion, up the many staircases, and down the maze they call hallways. I finally reach Zach's door, out of breath. I knocked on the door, there was no answer so I kept knocking. Finally, I just barged in. His back was to the door. His voice came out weak and raspy. "I said go away." He grumbled. "I need to be alone." "Oh come on Zach." He whipped around to face me. His eyes were red and puffy, he had been crying. "You're not getting rid of me that easily." I smiled. He ran up to me and hugged me so tightly I had trouble breathing. "I thought you were gone for good. You took so long." He whispered into my hair. I shook my head. "I was at the beach thinking. You know what I realized Zach?" He shook his head and raised his eyebrows, his once sparkly brown eyes were filled with sorrow and tears. "The only person worth my love is the person who will take my heart and never give it back." I looked into his eyes. He looked right back at me and slowly leaned closer to me. He cupped my cheek in his hand, his other was wrapped around my waist. Pulling me closer to him. He leaned down and kissed me. This kiss was different, this one had urgency and passion in it. Like his life depended on it. I wrapped my arms around his neck and played with the hair on the back of his head. He pulled away slowly, I could tell he didn't want to. His forehead was resting against mine and he was breathing heavily. "I'm not going abuse that privilege. Your heart is safe with me Chloe." He whispered and kissed my forehead. "I will never let go."
Part 39: Zach's Point of View Two hours ago, I told Chloe that I was never going to hurt her. I meant it too. Tori is just a dumb girl who had to go and screw everything up. But Chloe and I are stronger than that. A misunderstanding isn't something that's going to tear us apart. I realized that when she left. I kept trying to convince myself that everything was going to be okay. And it is, there will be ups and downs in our relationship but at the end of the day, she's the one I want to be right next to. She's the girl I want in my arms. She's the girl I want to kiss in the rain. The one I want to be the mother of my children. The woman I will marry one day. The one thing that stayed in my mind that wouldn't go away is what she said to me. 'The only man who is worth my love is the man who will take my heart and never give it back'. She should know not to tell me things like this. I had given her my heart when I first saw her. As corny as it sounds, she had me at hello. Her features captivated my attention, my eyes weren't wandering anywhere else. Why keep looking when you have the perfect, amazing, talented, beautiful girl. Your dream girl. I had mine. She was laying right next to me, her back was pressed up against my bare chest. She was making circles on my palm, drawing random shapes. Even the silences were comfortable with Chloe, nothing was forced. She still controlled my heart with a remote she didn't even know she had. I leaned closer to her, and whispered into her ear, "Chloe.." I just wanted to get it off my chest, if I have to wait one more minute to tell her, I would explode. "I'm in love with you.. did you know that?" She shook her head. I leaned down to kiss her cheek. "Baby, you had me at hello." My whispers sent a shiver down her spine. Her cheeks started to burn. We still made each other nervous. Well, she made me nervous as hell. She closed her eyes thinking. I didn't need her to say anything. Chloe doesn't have to say anything back, my feelings for her will never change. Her voice came out small as she recited something. I recognized it. You say that you love rain, but you open your umbrella when it rains. You say that you love the sun, but you find a shadow spot when the sun shines. You say that you love the wind, but you close your windows when wind blows. This is why I am afraid you say that you love me too. (Shakespeare). I kissed her cheek again. "Chloe look at me." She turned her body to face me. "I love the rain because I love the thought of kissing you while it pours down on us. I love the sun because of the way it makes your eyes shine when it hits you, perfectly." I intertwined our fingers together and kissed them. "I love the wind because it makes your hair fly perfectly around you, like a beautiful princess." I looked at her and tilted her face so I could kiss her. "Doubt me in any way you want. But please, don't ever question my love for you. Even for a second." She squeezed my hand in hers. "My love for you is so much more than a fat kid loves cake." She laughed at my comparison. "I love you to the moon and back baby, forever and ever." She turned around and kissed me. When she pulled away, she settled back down in my arms, where she belonged. "I love you too Zach." She started drifting off to sleep. "So much.."
Part 40: Zach's Point of View I was standing outside in my shorts. No shoes, no shirt, no socks. Rain was pouring down on me. My eyes were blurry, tears. They kept falling down one by one. "Please Chloe! You don't understand! I swear it's not what it looks like!" My heart was breaking as I watched her walk away. I ran to her and spun her around. "Chloe please, just listen to me." She stood and crossed her arms. Her eyes were filled with hurt. "You have 5 minutes." She spat in my face. It didn't seem real to me. It was more like I was standing there watching myself. Watching myself pour my heart out to her. "She doesn't mean anything to me, I was trying to fill the empty space in my heart that you made when you left." Her cold hand slapped against my cheek. My hand instantly flew up to hold where her hand had just been. I stood there with wide eyes. I could see steam coming out of her. She pointed her finger at me and gritted her teeth. "Don't you DARE blame all of this sh*t on me Zachary. I didn't do anything except love you.. and I got my heart stomped on." I watched myself frantically search my mind trying to put my thoughts into sentences. "You really don't know how much I love you, do you?!" We were yelling at each other now. Why? What happened? "Zach! Don't be so selfish! What about our child?! Did you even think about him for one minute? Did you ever realize what you were doing?!" I watched myself stand there, tears pouring down my cheeks. "Of course I thought of him! Chloe you left me three MONTHS ago! I haven't eaten, haven't slept." I reached up to touch her face but she slapped it away. My heart shattered. "Don't you dare touch me Zachary." She was livid. I couldn't help but notice how gorgeous she looked when she was angry. "We don't need you." I tried to grab her hand again but she shoved me away. "I don't want him around you. Stay away from us Zach." "Chloe please!" My tears were rolling down rapidly. "I love you." "I'm tired of playing your games Zach." "This isn't a f*cking game Chloe!" I was yelling at her now. "Why can't you see that?! It never has been! It never will be! I love you, with all of my heart! I always have and I always will! Please Chloe, I want to grow old with you. I want to have a big family and grandchildren! We can work this out. We have before, we can again. I'll do anything." I was begging her now. "We can get through this." "What if I don't want to work it through Zach?! What if I just want to trust you again." She shook her head. "I can't do it anymore Zach. I can't keep forgiving you.. and I can't trust you." I needed to have her believe that I still love her. That's it! I reached into the pocket of my shorts and dug around. Chloe stood in front of me, staring at me with hate-filled eyes. I took out the promise ring I had given her two years earlier. I got an identical one, which is the one I was now holding in my palm for her to see. I always had it with me. "You.. Zach. You still have that?" I saw her eyes widen as I nodded. I heard a voice in the distance. "Zach.. Zach, baby.. Zachary James Bennett!" I felt my eyes flutter open and Chloe was laying next to me with a worried look in her eyes. "You were crying in your sleep." She explained. I wrapped my arms around her body, pulling her into a tight hug. "Never leave me. Please, never ever leave me." "Never." She agreed.
Part 41: Josh's Point of View I woke up at around 4:30 a.m., to see my girl watching me sleep. I closed my eyes and smiled. "Stalker." She laughed and kissed my cheek. "I couldn't sleep." I stuck out my bottom lip. "You look really pitiful babe." I winked at her. "That's the point sweetcheeks. That's the point." I started going back to sleep, but Ali poked my stomach, hard. "Baby, what the f*ck!" She laughed. "We have to get ready! We're going to Zach's house!" She got up and started jumping on the bed like a four year old. "Get up get up get up!!" I grabbed her leg and pulled her back down. She was facing me, I shut my eyes and wrapped my arm around her waist. "F*ck Zach." I grumbled. I'm NOT a morning person. I could feel Ali slip out of my arms, I heard a door shut and water started to run. Ali was probably taking a shower. I rolled over and went back to sleep. About 15 minutes I heard a giant crash. I looked up to see Ali in her underwear and bra. I could feel a smirk creep onto my face. "Damn baby." I saw her jump and I laughed. "You're soo sexy." She grabbed her towel and covered herself up. "Hopes and dreams = shattered." I was standing now, slowly walking towards her. She looked down and started laughing. I looked at her confused. She looked down again. "You um, you have a friend." I looked down. "Sh*t. I'll be right back." Smooth Josh. Reaaal smooth. I came back from the bathroom and saw that Ali had already packed clothes for me and she laid out an outfit. Girls. They think we're incapable of packing our own outfits. I got dressed and ran outside. "Crap, I forgot something!" I heard Ali's voice come from behind me. "The gummy sharks are in the front Josh." I smiled and kissed her. One of the many reasons I love this girl. I couldn't leave without my sharks. That's a big no-no. "Have I told you how much I love you babe?" I looked back to see Ali standing in the doorway with a smirk on her face. "No, you never tell me." I said pouting. She started walking closer to me, very sexily. She grabbed the collar of my jacket and pulled me closer. "I love you with all of my heart, mind, body, and soul." I smirked at her. "Oh really?" I wagged my eyebrows up and down. I picked her up so her legs were wrapped around my waist. My arms were wrapped around her waist, as hers wrapped around my neck. F*ck yeaah, I'mma get luckyy. She was breathing hard in my ear. One of my major turn ons. She kissed my nose. "Yes." Ali let go and started walking towards the car. "Come on Josh!" She smiled. "We're going to be late!" God damn it. I walked towards the car, already incredibly pissed off. "What. A. F*cking. Tease." I grumbled.