To Speak.

Flu season. It's a wonderful season. Especially if a certain Amber Jones is very prone to getting the flu and therefore misses Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday of school. Indy and Zacky had enjoyed the first half of that week of school. And although Amber was back on Thursday, it was their last week before Spring break. Two whole weeks without her. Can you believe it?

"Zacky, I'm still kinda sick." Amber pouted the next day before English. Zacky glanced at her with a 'what?' look before turning his attention back to Indy who smugly smiled before leaning in closer to him just for kicks.

"Will your parents be home for spring break?" Indy asked.

For the first two days only. Then they're off. Again.

"My mom told me I was allowed to sleep over as much as I wanted. If that's alright with you."

Zacky was fast to respond. Of course it is!!

Indy laughed and said, "She also told me you were allowed to come over. She has to work really really late on Fridays, because she gets to start at like 5 in the afternoon. I think she thinks I need some sort of a babysitter."

So things went well.. Until Math.

Amber had the whole class pressure Zacky about talking. She started off by say out loud, "Doesn't anyone ever wonder why Zacky doesn't talk?"

No one had dared question him before, but now that someone had started the flame, the class decided to fuel it by taunting him, trying to trick him, trying to make him crack.

In anger and frustration, Zacky packed his things and left the room. He was going to skip, he decided, and went to a field he knew to calm down.

This field wasn't anything special. He and his friends came here to vent or relax. Or drink. Zacky got down on his back and started to tear blades of grass into pieces.

In only a few minutes he got a text from Indy. Where did you go?

After sending her directions, he sat up, leaning against a tree, and waited.

"Zacky!"

He turned to see her running towards him from a little away. When she reached him, she got down closely besides him and whispered, "Hey."

Indy figured Zacky was in the mood for some silence. She crawled onto his lap and unzipped his jacket, deciding to play with his shirt until he had calmed down enough. When she felt his arms wrap around her, she asked softly, "Are you okay?"

He nodded, eyes still closed.

They spent more time in silence. Zacky's anger had gone away sufficiently when he had thoughts about how this place was the perfect place to make out with Indy without anyone interrupting them. The only courage he could muster up, though, was enough to press a kiss to her temple, letting his lips linger for a second longer than a usual friendly peck.

"Wanna eat? I got your lunch from your locker before looking for you."

Zacky smiled. Only Indy would remember his lunch and not let it rot overnight. He was glad he didn't have to go back to school to get it himself.

He had a sandwich, as usual, while Indy's mother made her some sushi. They fed each other bits of their own food and enjoyed the calm. "I like it here." Indy had commented.

After eating their early lunch, the two of them headed to Zacky's house. Brian's school wasn't going to let out until about another three hours so the two of them would be alone for a while.

"It feels weird skipping school." Indy said, lying down on his bed. She snuggled into the covers and discreetly took in Zacky's scent, closing her eyes.

Zacky nodded even though he knew she couldn't see and sat down on the edge of his bed, watching Indy slowly, but surely, fall asleep. He knew she was sleepy from staying up last night doing math homework. She was complaining about it this morning while they were walking to school.

He reached over to readjust the blanket and to remove a piece of stray hair from her face. Zacky had never gotten the chance to examine Indy when she slept. He liked how her lips were parted just slightly and how relaxed her face looked. He smiled to himself and placed a kiss on her forehead.

Zacky lied down on his bed next to her but tucked his arms underneath his head and stared at his ceiling. He certainly wasn't sleepy but didn't really want to do anything else but lay down there and think.

He was content with his life, he thought. He didn't exactly have a loving family, but his friends were as close as family could ever get. His grades weren't bad, he wasn't exactly unathletic, he had his band.. And he had Indy. She probably wouldn't ever see him as more than a friend.. But there was still that small possibility that gave him hope. He was glad he was so close to her, and that he was able to make her smile and laugh and be happy. What more could he want?

Oh. Right. How about a nice and steady relationship with her? Yeah, that'd be nice to have, too.

In her sleep, Indy turned over and draped her arm over Zacky's chest and snuggled into his body. He smiled and moved to lie down on his side to get more comfortable. And to get a better view of Indy's pretty little face.

Déjà vu, huh? Zacky lightly kissed Indy on the nose and then her forehead and nuzzled his face in her hair, and let his fingers get tangled in those silky brown locks. He couldn't help but let out a small chuckle as she sighed in her sleep, her breath tickling his neck.

Oh yeah.. Life was good at the moment. He really couldn't ask for anything more.

------------------------

The following day, the last day of school, which was a half day, Indy was sent to the office to run some errands for their English teacher at the end of the period. She would be late for Math because of this, so Zacky had to go to second period alone.

Yesterday, Zacky had fallen asleep and woke up to Brian and Michelle's whispers. He could hear Michelle telling Brian how cute they looked and Brian shushing her. When he got up, carefully as to not wake Indy, all the chatter stopped and Brian said, "Did you finally ask her out?"

Zacky rolled his eyes and shook his head. He went to his bathroom to wash his face before rejoining the other two. They went downstairs to the living room so they could talk without disturbing Indy.

"Did your school let you out early or something? I'm always here earlier than you." Brian had said.

Zacky had to tell him about what had happened and why he skipped, while Brian and Michelle listened with frowns on their faces. They didn't like what was going on, but decided not to do anything since Friday would be the last day of school.

So here he was, on the way to Math class. He was halfway there when someone grabbed his hand and pulled him all the way outside.

Guess who? It was Amber!

He was pushed against the wall and Amber leaned in. "I'm sorry about yesterday, Zacky." she said in a baby voice.

Zacky was about to get away from her when she suddenly leaned in, her lips dangerously close to his.

"I didn't mean to get the whole class started. I feel so bad now. Forgive me?"

Now stunned, Zacky froze. He couldn't move or do anything. It was just like the night at the get-together.

Amber soon snaked her fingers into his hair and pushed her hips against him. "I miss us," she whispered seductively, before suddenly pressing her lips against his.

Zacky's eyes widened as he finally came to his senses and pushed her away.

"I'm really sorry for what happened before, Zack baby. Let's start over, hm?"

He frantically shook his head and walked away, but Amber grabbed his hand and kissed him again. If only Zacky were a bit more meaner, he'd have the strength to push her to the floor. However, if he had done that, he'd feel too guilty afterwards and might have even gone back to her as an apology.

"Zacky?"

Startled, both Amber and Zacky pulled away. The office was in another building, so Indy had to go outdoors to run the errand. She came back, however, to find this.

Amber smirked and said, "Hey, Indy. Zacky and I were just.. catching up." She stepped closer to him, only to have him step back again.

It was a good thing it was the last day of school, so there wasn't any real school work. The three of them were 10 minutes late. Some students skipped the last day, actually.

Indy wanted to feel confident and take Zacky's hand and lead him away from Amber. She wanted to insult her, swear at her, yell at her, and make her cry. But she was faltering. After all, they were practically making out. Instead, she felt like crying.

So instead of doing what she wanted to do, she could only stammer, "O-oh... Then.. I'll.. leave you two alone.. See you in class, Zack." and walked away.

Zacky stared after her, shocked. He glared at Amber and went back inside the school to look for Indy. Too bad for him, when he went to Math, she wasn't there and he was scolded for being late. He had to sit through math, they were given a study hall, and wasn't able to leave the school because he had no chance to. It was only a half day, though and he sure was glad it was.

Now where could Indy be? He knew she wasn't at her house. It was Friday, so her mother would be home. Indy wouldn't go home if she were upset. She'd try to cheer up before heading back.

There was no reason for her to be at anyone else's house, either. Unlike Indy and Zacky, the rest of the group still had about a week of school left until break.

That left... the fields.

Zacky sprinted to the fields and made it there in 5 minutes instead of the usual 15. His eyes brightened when he saw Indy, but darkened again when he saw that she was crying.

If the situation weren't so dire, he would have though that Indy was quite cute. She was sitting cross-legged, arms also crossed, pouting at the floor, with tears streaming down her face.

He ran to her and knelt down in front of her and took out his phone.

Indy, I swear to god I wasn't kissing Amber. And I know this sounds ridiculous and cheesy but she was the one kissing me and I would never go back to her or try to interact with her in any way.

She sniffled as she read the message and whimpered, "Oh.. W-well.. S-sorry for running away.."

He gave her a pleading look and wiped at her tears with his thumbs before pulling her into a warm embrace. Indy cried into his shoulders and said, "It's not fair, Zacky."

Pulling away, he gave her a questioning look while tucking a strand of her hair behind her ear.

"Why does.. Why does Amber get to have some sort of history with you and I don't? Why is it that she knows you better than I do and I'm always left in the dark when it comes to her? It's not fair."

Zacky felt horrible. He cupped Indy's face with both his hands and wiped more tears before kissing her gently on the cheek. He so badly wanted to kiss her properly, but it didn't feel right. After all, he just had a forced one with Amber.

I'm sorry, Indy, I really am. But you were wrong when you said she knew me better than you. She used to know me, yes, but not anymore. I'm different now. I've changed and you know be better than she ever will. Don't feel upset. Please?

Indy slowly nodded and leaned in against Zacky's shoulder. He changed their position so that Zacky was leaning against the tree with Indy sitting in between his legs, her back against his chest.

"I'm glad today was the last day of school." Indy said softly.

Me, too. Brian said we should sleep over at his house tonight since his parents are out. He said we could go early and wait for the others until their schools end.

Indy slowly smiled and nodded. "Carry me to his house?" she asked in a small voice.

Zacky grinned at her and got up, then let her climb onto his back. He had no problem carrying Indy and both their school bags. They had no homework anyway.

While going to Brian's house, they stopped by Indy's house to see her mother. They were given a snack to eat before they were on their way again. Indy walked the rest of the way.

At Brian's house, they decided to go to his room to wait.

Unlike Zacky, Brian didn't care if his things were organized or not. It was often his girlfriend who cleaned his room for him when he was on the verge of being grounded for not tidying up. Michelle always did a good job, but it would be ruined in only a few weeks. For now, there were a few discarded shirts lying around, the bed was unmade, and the desk was a bit cluttered. Other than that, it was okay. Indy picked up the shirts and put them in a neat pile on Brian's desk chair to give her and Zacky more walking space in the room. The two of them then decided going to the living room would be better and sat down on the couch, turning the TV on.

"So what do you wanna do next week while the others are at school?"

We can just hang out by ourselves after my parents leave. Go to the mall, get icecream, anything you want to do really.

"Really? Anything I want to do?"

Zacky shrugged and nodded.

"What if I wanted go to your house and have you cater to all my needs?" Indy asked, tilting her head to one side, wriggling onto his lap for emphasis.

He playfully rolled his eyes and shook his head. "Aw, come on, Zacky. It'll be fun."

Yeah. For you.

Indy giggled and said, "I'm only joking. Besides, I already know that all I have to do is pretend to be sick and you'll do anything I want."

Zacky scoffed, causing Indy to laugh more. In reality, though, she didn't know how true that statement was. He'd do anything to help her out if she ever needed him. All she needed to do was ask.

They became silent as they continued to watch TV. Zacky couldn't help but wonder why Indy was crying over what had happened earlier. He knew she was upset, but really had no clue as to why she was crying. Although.. she did say she cried easily..

But.. Still..

He glanced down at Indy who had buried her face in his shirt, not wanting to watch the gory scene unfolding on the screen. He changed the channel and settled on some Comedy. Indy gratefully thanked him and resumed watching.

"I think I'll sleep before the others get here."

How're you gonna sleep tonight then?

"I'll manage. I love sleep."

Zacky laughed causing Indy to smile. It wasn't often she got to hear him laughing, but when she did, she loved it. Indy knew that she was already captivated by his wonderful voice, even though it was so rare for her to hear it. She constantly thought about Zacky and wondered about his childhood. She wanted to know, so badly, too. But she wasn't going to force anything out of him anytime soon. He would tell her when she was ready. She just hoped it was soon. When Preston or Addy weren't with them, she sometimes felt excluded from the rest of her friends. It seemed like they all had a connection with Zacky that she didn't have. But when it was just the two of them she felt great. She more than enjoyed his presence, talking or not.

But really.. She would do anything to have him laugh his gorgeous laughter or to even just... speak....