Hooked on Him - Zach Herron

Chapter 8

Chapter 8
Chloes POV: It's the time of night where my house is silent, everyone else having already gone to bed. The world feels like a different place, like you could do whatever you want and get away with it. I hear faint thunder in the distance. My nose is buried deep into a book and I'm all cuddled up into my blanket on my bed when I suddenly feel my phone buzzing. Checking the time, I see that it's 11:28 and Zach is calling me.
"Hey princess. I'll be over in 5."
I laugh. "And where are we going at this time of night?"
"On an adventure." His voice is breathless and he hangs up before I get the chance to answer. I'm excited, but also a little nervous. It is Zach, after all. Taking a look in my mirror, I see that I'm wearing my comfiest pair of sweatpants and an old raggedy t-shirt. My hair is thrown up in a messy ponytail, and my face is bare, stripped of any makeup. Whatever. It's fine.
After a few minutes have passed, I hear a cautious knock at my window. I quickly go over and unlock it, pushing the screen out of the way. Zach grins at me from the other side with wide eyes.
"You're a bad influence, Mr. Herron," I say teasingly as I put my foot over the side and hop out. "Sneaking out?"
"Anything to see you," he responds earnestly, and helps me get down. He sets me down, and we smile at each other. "You look beautiful." I start to laugh a little, but he cuts me off. "No- I'm serious. You look happy, and that makes you beautiful. Your smile, the sparkle in your eyes, the sound of your laugh."
"It's because I'm with you," I say, and grab his hand. He leads me to his car and opens the door for me. I slide in and he goes around and lets himself in. Zach starts to drive, but after a while he looks a little lost.
"Where are we going?"
He glances at me. "Wherever the road happens to take us." I close my eyes and settle back into the seat. Zach eventually pulls into the parking lot of a Target and parks.
"A Target?"
He shrugs. "What better place to go out on a Friday night?" he asks jokingly.
We head inside and he gets a cart. I hear an old song start to play and I grab his hand, pulling him close to me as I sway. Zach laughs, and wraps his arms around me. We stay like this, in the middle of the aisle, dancing through life. He rests his head on mine and we sway back and forth to the music. Zach spins me out and I can see the weird looks we're getting, but I just don't care because I'm here with Zach, having the time of my life. He dips me a little, and I feel myself falling into his strong arms. I decide that we're going to play a bit of a game.
"Tag, you're it!" I shout, and escape from his grip, touching him lightly as I see a grin spread across his face. I can tell he wasn't expecting this, and I have a head start. I run throughout the aisles, skidding on the floor as I debate which way to go. I hear his footsteps pounding after me.
"Chloe I'm coming for you!" He calls after me. "You'd better run!" I squeal a little, and take off in one direction, almost knocking down a display of cans in the process. I run down the chip aisle, and it's obviously the wrong choice because he suddenly appears at the other end and starts running towards me. I scream and start running the other way, but it's too late, his arms are around me and I'm suddenly scooped up into his strong arms and placed into our empty cart.
"Zach!" I shriek with laughter and swat his arm.
He looks down innocently at me. "Yes?" We're both out of breath, and he starts to push me down the aisle. Faster and faster, picking up speed until he lifts up his feet and stands on the bar. We're soaring down the aisles, together, and I can tell that we are starting to piss people off, but I really don't care. We round a corner sharply, and this empty aisle is our next runway. Zach pushes the cart and I sit on my knees in the front, enjoying the speed and put my hands out into the open air.
He starts to slow the cart a bit and we eventually come to a smooth stop in front of the frozen dinners. Zach lifts me up gingerly into the air and I wrap my arms around him, giggling. He's a little out of breath from pushing me. It's hot. He tangles his fingers into my hair and pulls me close to him. Our faces are mere inches apart. I close my eyes and he cups my face with his hand gently and-
"Get out of this store!" I hear someone yell, and turning around quickly, I see a very angry security guard making his way towards us. "Zach, Zach, we gotta go! Now!" I shout, giggling, and he grabs my hand and pulls me to the front of the store while the guard chases after us and cusses us out. We run across the parking lot and stumble into the car. He fumbles with the key for a minute, and then we're off, headed towards safety. Both of us are breathing fast, and it's silent for a minute. We look at each other, and burst into laughter.
"Did you see-"
"The guard-"
"His face!"
"Priceless!" I shout, and fall back into my seat. "We have the best adventures together, Zach."
"Yes, we do." He pulls into the driveway of the boys' house. I raise my eyebrows at him.
"And what will the boys think of this?"
"They're all asleep right now, and I'm craving your company for a bit longer." We cautiously make our way into the house and upstairs. The house is silent, and I see the closed door to Jack's room, and I'm suddenly thinking of him, but Zach pulls me up the stairs and into his room. He shuts the door quietly and pulls off his sweatshirt, exposing his sculpted abs. He tosses it to me, and I pull it on over my t-shirt, breathing in his scent. It's warm and cozy, and it's the best thing I've ever worn. He flops onto the bed and I sit down, grabbing blankets. Zach lays down and I crawl into the space next to him, leaning against his bare chest. I can feel him breathing, and the sound is steady and reassuring. He puts his arms around me and buries his face into my hair.
"Penny for your thoughts?" I say.
He looks up. "I'm just thinking about how much I enjoy being with you and how happy you make me and how incredibly lucky I am to have met you by chance." Zach looks at me adoringly.
My cheeks flush. "I'm so glad I have you," I whisper. And nothing can stop us this time. I wrap my arms around his neck and his lips are on mine, finally, and it feels so right. We break apart after a few seconds, slowly, and I rest my forehead against his.
"Wow," he says with a smile on his face. "I've been wanting to do that ever since that first day in the gas station." Zach pulls me into his side, wrapping his arm around me.
"I adore you," I say, looking up at him. He reaches over to the blankets and throws them on us. I snuggle into his side and I want to stay awake, but I can slowly feel myself drifting off to sleep as he plays with my hair and hums quietly. The world fades to black as I fall asleep in the arms of Zach Herron.