Chloe's POV: Zach and I haven't been talking at all lately. He hasn't reached out, hasn't even tried to apologize. It kinda stings. He treated me really badly, and I just let him. Just thinking about him yelling at me makes my heart hurt. The old Zach would have never talked to me like that. I was only trying to help him.
But however mad I am at him, I also miss him a lot. He deserves better than all the hate he's been getting. No one should be treated like this. I constantly feel like a piece of me is missing without him in my life, and I want to hold him tight and never let go. My poor baby.
Sitting on my bed, I bring up his profile on Instagram and stare at it. He hasn't been active on social media at all, probably just waiting for the drama to die down. I click on his latest post about the Talk music video and scroll through the comments absentmindedly, taking them all in.
"Your career is over."
"You're cancelled."
"Fuck you."
"#zachherronisoverparty"
It's a never ending stream of hate on him in the comments. My cheeks grow hot with anger. These comments are disgusting. He's a human being too. I click on the hashtag and look at the posts, appalled that people would actually create something like this.
Why do people think its okay to treat other human beings like this? It's obviously not. These "fans" don't see how much their comments affected him, how upset they made him. It's disrespectful and rude. Now I know why he was acting distant and moody. These comments really hurt him.
Going back over to his page, I look at his profile and sigh. I just miss him so much.
My phone buzzes with an incoming message and my heart leaps. Zach? I check it and see that it's from Jack.
"Come over. Now. I miss you." I smile at his message and type out a quick reply. I would love to go hang out with Jack, but I'm not really in the mood to see Zach.
"I miss you too but I don't think Zach wants me there."
I see three dots typing and he replies. "Doesn't matter. I want you here." I let out a breath I didn't know I was holding. The sweet message makes my cheeks turn slightly pink.
I still don't know how exactly I feel about him anymore, especially after what Zach did to me.
I pause. Do I want to go over there? I do miss Jack a lot. My fingers hover over the keyboard as I debate how to respond. Closing my eyes, I picture the curly-headed boy and smile softly to myself. He's always been there for me, always put a smile on my face when I'm feeling down. Okay. I think I could use a little time with Jack right now.
I sit up and slip on my shoes. "Okay, okay, I'm on my way : )" I text back and head out to my car. The drive is quick, and before I know it I've pulled up to their house. I lean back into the seat and think for a second. Zach's in there, mere feet away. I shake my head. I'm not here for Zach, I'm here for Jack. It will be good for me to spend time with him, get my mind off of my argument with Zach. I get out of my car and go up to the door. It's unlocked, and I slip inside.
"Hello?" I call out. The house is eerily silent, and I frown. I hear footsteps from the kitchen and Jack suddenly appears, grabbing my wrist and tugging me up the stairs. I flush at the contact and look down at his fingers on my skin.
"Oh- where are we going?" I laugh, and let him take me. Jack tugs me up the staircase as I stumble along, trying to keep up. I almost fall on the steps but catch myself. Why is he acting so weird? He looks back at me, not saying a word, his mouth set in a thin line.
Jack's hair is unkempt, and a part of me wants to run my fingers through it, feel his soft curls in my fingers. "Jack?" I say cautiously as we come to a stop in front of a closed door. "What's wrong?"
He takes my hand in his and squeezes it hard, smiling a little sadly at me.
I laugh nervously and squeeze back. "What's going on?"
And then I realize who's door we're standing in front of. My heart sinks a little bit and my cheeks flush with slight anger. "Oh. I'm leaving." Nope. I didn't want to deal with this today.
I start to leave but Jack doesn't let go of my hand and pulls me back to him. "Wait!" he says pleadingly, the first thing he's said to me.
He pulled a little too hard because I'm suddenly pressed into him by the force. I look up at him and flush. Our bodies are touching, and he looks down at me with an expression that I can't read. Jack Avery. What a sweet boy. I study his face curiously, trying to imagine what he is thinking about. And then his face changes and he steps back, letting go of my hand. He knocks gently on the door and I flinch a little. He's right. I do need to talk this out with Zach before it gets any worse.
"It's about time," he says quietly as he swings the door open, revealing Zach sitting on his bed. Zach's eyes widen and he looks at me in shock. I shift nervously from side to side and wring my hands together.
"Hi," I say softly. He looks conflicted, and Jack gently pushes me in the room.
Zach's eyes go past mine and land on Jack. "Why is she here?" he says, confused. I don't even hear his reply because I'm too busy looking at Zach. I really have missed him a lot. He doesn't look as upset, but I can tell that he's still hurting. I really just want to go give him a hug, but I don't think that's what he wants right now.
I'm brought back to the present by Jack gently closing the door. It's suddenly just me and Zach. I sit down on the far end of his bed and he hugs his knees to his chest. The silence is awkward, but I don't know what to say to him.
"You probably hate me," he says quietly. "I don't blame you if you do." He looks listlessly at me and my heart breaks for him. I'm silent for a moment, and he nods a little. "That's what I thought," he whispers, mostly to himself. "I could never hate you," I say tenderly. He's hurting. I need to be there for him.
He shakes his head at my reply. "No, no, no..... you're a liar then. I should have never talked to you like that." Zach's face crumples like paper. "I don't deserve you." He rocks back and forth. "No one should ever talk to you like that. Ever."
I sit on his bed, mute, and he takes this as encouragement to keep talking. "The fans- they were saying some pretty awful stuff about me." His face contorts and I remember all the nasty comments I saw. "I took it all out on you," his voice rises.
"You were there for me, and what did I do? I yelled at you. I pushed you out. I sent you away." A few angry tears escape his brown eyes and he tries to blink them away. "I was such an asshole. You-" he looks down. "You were only trying to help," he says. I sit like stone as he continues to rant.
"And I know I shouldn't have treated you like that! I've spent every minute since that day thinking of you, thinking of how upset you must be." He's practically yelling now, but it's not at me. He's yelling at himself.
"I screwed up. I ruined us. You deserve so much better than me!" Zach sits up and looks at me.
"And god damn it!" he buries his head into his hands for a second. Looking up, he bursts into tears, destroyed. "Damn it, damn it, damn it......." he says again and again, hiccuping. "Can't you see I'm falling in love with you?" he asks weakly and sniffles.
My breath catches in my throat. Did I hear that right? My thoughts are all over the place. I certainly wasn't expecting that. I blush hard and he looks at me, tears streaming silently down his cheeks.
"I'm so sorry, Chloe," he cries out. Zach looks broken. And I can't take it anymore. I crawl over to him and embrace him fiercely, holding him in my arms. He seems surprised and tenses up at first, but then he leans back against the headboard and wraps his arms around me, holding me tight as he sobs. I try to wipe away his tears and then I start to cry too, quietly. We cling to each other like our lives depend on it. He kisses the top of my head and then rests his chin on it. I'm smushed up inside his arms as tears roll down my cheek and I taste the salt.
His face is streaked with tears as he looks into my eyes and tucks a strand of my hair behind my ear. I give him a small smile.
"I understand," I say gently and take his hand. "Just......." I trail off, unsure how I want to finish this sentence. "Please don't do it again," I chuckle a little.
He laughs through his tears and squeezes my hand. "I won't. I promise." I give him a final hug, relived that we're speaking to each other again.
I really do appreciate his apology but I'm not sure if I fully accept it yet. I'm not going to tell him it's okay because he hurt me really badly, and I need time to heal. I would be lying to myself if I said I wasn't still a little mad at him. I'm sure our friendship is going to be different now. A little less trust, a little more rocky. But as long as he's okay, that's all that matters to me.
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Hooked on Him - Zach Herron
FanfictionA chance encounter leads to Chloe meeting the famous Zach Herron at a gas station, and a Tweet brings them back together once again. However, it seems that Jack also has his eye on Chloe, who quickly becomes his best friend, leading to a riff betwee...
