Angel, Put Me Back Together Again

Angela's POV

I woke up the next morning groggy, sore, and glowing. Last night began to replay itself in my head and I shivered. It was all real. Zack is all mine, and he loves me. He's in love with me. I let out a sleepy sigh and turned over to look at his face only to find the other half of the bed was empty. My eyebrows furrowed as I sat up and looked around the room. I got out of bed and fished around on the floor until I had retrieved my clothes. I pulled them on and made my way out of his room and down the stairs. I thought he might be cooking breakfast again but unfortunately the kitchen was also empty. I began to rack my brain as to where he could be. I trudged back up the stairs to his room, flopped back on the bed and retrieved my phone from the bedside table. I had a few text messages. The usual message from Gerard that I conveniently ignored and one from Zacky. My curiosity was finally peeked. I swiped the screen to open the message. It read as followed:

"Sorry I didn't tell you goodbye this morning. You looked so peaceful I didn't want to wake you. I have a few errands that I have to run, so I won't be home most of the day. Feel free to anything you want while you're at the house. There is something I'll need you to do for me, though. I need you to run back by your dorm before one o'clock today. I left something there from yesterday and need you to get it for me. See you later today. Love you. ZxV."

Although I was bummed that I didn't get to at least see him this morning, the text did make me all giddy again. We had both established that we love each other but it was still fresh and new and made me grin like an idiot. I bit on my lip and sat back up on the bed, staring around the room blankly. I wonder what kind of errands he could be running. He didn't mention anything yesterday, and what am I supposed to do now that he's not here? I glanced around the room and my eyes fell on his desk across from the bed. I felt a little guilty, but part of me kind of wanted to see what he had hiding in the cabinets of it. I slowly crept off the bed, though there was no one who could possibly walk in on me.

As I approached the desk, I stopped dead in my tracks, my stomach lurching with bile. Something didn't feel right. Besides the fact that I was about to go through Zack's stuff without him knowing. It wasn't like that. It was almost like ... déjà vu. I had a flash back of a time in Jersey. It was super fuzzy, possibly because it was one of the few memories I never actually got back. Still, this felt too familiar. Though I couldn't recall the memory, I was almost certain I knew what it was reminding me of. I might not remember it, but I do know that Frank had cheated on me and at some point I found out. I had a sudden sinking feeling that Zack could be doing the same thing. Lying about where he is so he could get away for a while. Why would he do something like that, though? After what he said last night. There's no way.

I took a deep breath and pulled open the top drawer of his desk. Bingo. Notebooks. I dared to pick up the top one and flip it open. It was filled with what looked like poetry, but upon further inspection, I realized they were songs. Everything from love songs, to angry, "I wanna rip off your face" songs. Some of them were really good. Others were obviously written pretty hastily. I sat down that notebook and picked up another one. The first page of it had a date written at the top. It was written not too long after his mother had died. It was essentially a diary. I skimmed through the first page and began to feel extremely guilty.

"I guess I'm supposed to write down how I feel each day. My therapist thinks this will help me cope with what happened to mom. I think it's a load of shit." That is how the first line of the notebook read. I kept looking over my shoulder, afraid someone might barge in. I flipped toward the last few pages, and one in particular caught my eye. I saw my name sitting in the middle of the page, and my heart began to race.

"I told my therapist about the girl I met at the airport. Angela. I can't stop thinking about her. He said that's progress. I don't know what that has to do with my dead mother? It's a good distraction at best..." I felt my cheeks burning as I turned the page. "I was worried I was never going to find her, but I ran into her at the beach, literally. I invited her out to the bonfire later. I'm pretty nervous to really get to spend time with her. Is that dumb?" I bit my lip and tried to stop the grin from spreading any further across my face. I worried about finding some horrible secret behind these pages, but I got the exact opposite. There were more pages but I decided against it, being more than satisfied with what I found. I slid them back in the drawer and closed it.

It took a moment after the butterflies had settled in my stomach to come to the realization of my findings. Zack is seeing a therapist to help with losing his mom. It just crossed my mind that maybe that was the errand he was running today. I felt guilty for being so self-centered to think that it might have been something about me. I mean, I guess it technically was, but not how I was expecting it. It felt good to know that I could still trust him. I glanced over at the clock and decided to hop in the shower before I made my way back to my dorm room.

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

I wasn't sure what he left there, but it better be pretty freaking important if I have to deal with Charleen. I held my breath and opened the door to the room. Thankfully there was no sign of Charleen. I began to search the room for whatever he could have left. I was starting to wonder if he really did leave anything here when I saw a letter taped up to the back of the door with my name on it. I pulled it off and began to inspect its contents. It was from Zack.

"Ok, so I obviously didn't leave anything here, but I have left a few notes around town for you. As of right now, you are on a scavenger hunt. This is stop number one. Just a few more before you get your surprise. The next stop should be pretty easy. It's the first place we met. Go there for your next clue. Love you. ZxV."

I was grinning from ear to ear. I had never been on a scavenger hunt. I wondered what the surprise could be. I can't wait to find out either. I took no time hopping a cab to the airport where I first met the boy with snake bites and a pack of Marlboros. As I climbed out of the cab onto the walkway at the airport, I began to wonder where he could have possibly left a note at. This place was so big, but I met him right out front.

"Angela?" Someone called my name from behind me. I turned around and saw a boy of about 16 standing a few feet away. He looked down at something in his hand then back up at me. "You're Angela right?"

"Umm... me? Yeah, I guess so. I mean, yes." I shook my head and walked over to the boy with caution.

"I have a letter for you." He reached in his backpack and retrieved a slightly crumbled envelope.

"How long have you been standing here?"

"I dunno. I got paid fifty bucks though." He smiled as he slung his backpack back over his shoulder. I groaned at how much money he spent just for a kid to wait on me.

"Well, thank you." I shook my head in awe of the lengths he was going to make this work. I ripped open the envelope as the kid took off on his skateboard. In this envelope there was a picture. A picture of the two of us from the night of the party. I was obviously very drunk from the look of my red cheeks and disheveled hair. Also, I don't remember the picture being taken. Zack looked as handsome as always. I flipped it over to find a note on the back.

"I'll never forget this night for several reasons. The party, the car ride (definitely not the car ride), and the rest of the night that followed. But above all, I couldn't get over how beautiful you looked in that dress. You're next stop is the store I bought this dress at. Love you. ZxV."

My face was extremely flushed now. He would make me read something like that in public. I slid the picture into my bag and went to hail down a taxi. To my surprise, there was one waiting for me.

"Angela?" The taxi driver asked as he opened the back door. How much money did he spend on chauffeurs and page boys? I gave him a shy nod as I climbed into the taxi.

"I assume you already know where we're going?" I asked sheepishly.

"Yes ma'am." He said as he had already started to drive out of the airport. When we arrived to the boutique I went to pay for the fair but he held up his hand in protest. "No need. Mr. Baker took care of it."

"Oh... ok. Thank you." I grumbled to myself as I climbed out of the taxi. I made my way into the expensive store. I walked in and began to walk aimlessly around the store. I felt a hand on my shoulder and turned around to find one of the sales women.

"Angela? So nice to see you again."

"Thank you." I nodded. I'm assuming she was referring to the store welcoming me back because I don't remember seeing her before.

"Mr. Baker has already purchased you're outfit and would like you to change here."

"Of course he has." I mumbled to myself. She must not have heard me as she led me back to the dressing room.

"Let us know if you need any help."

"Thanks." I smiled as I stepped into the spacious dressing room. I saw the dress hanging on the back of the door and gasped. It looked amazing and expensive. I ran my hand over the sequencing that seemed to burst from the torso area and trickle up and down the dress. It was a cream colored cocktail dress with a sweetheart cut and gold, brown, and silver sequence. There was also a pair of champagne colored satin stilettos to match. I was nervous about wearing something like this but Zack had picked it out specifically. Now I was wishing I had done more than just let my hair lay flat. When I had changed, I walked back out into the lobby, feeling exposed in the short dress and high heels. The women by the register saw me and gave small, impressed gasps.

"You look absolutely stunning" one of them gushed. My face flushed slightly and I just nodded my head. "You're ride is waiting for you outside." She ushered me back out the door to reveal a small, three windowed limo. As I climbed into the backseat and I wondered what else he could possibly have in store. Upon getting into the vehicle, I found a bottle of wine and a note.

"I hope you enjoyed your little scavenger hunt. I'll quit being so mysterious when this limo takes you to your final stop. I can't wait to see you. I've been waiting all day. Love you. ZxV."

I bit at my lip as I folded the note back up. The limo had already started to drive toward our destination which I had gathered I wouldn't know until I got there. I decided to try a glass of the wine that I'm sure he spent too much on. When we arrived at what appeared to be a fancy restaurant, I had already had two glasses and could feel my cheeks starting to blush. The limo driver came to my side and opened up my door for me. I nodded awkwardly as I tried not to stumble on my high heels. When I had my bearings straight I looked up and felt my stomach twisting in knots with girlish pleasure.

"Angela..." Zack said, seeming just as stunned as I was. He stood in front of me in black dress pants and shoes, a white dress shirt with the sleeves rolled, black vest, and a champagne colored tie to match my dress. His hair was laying in the sexy way it does right after a shower and he hadn't bothered to hide his piercings. I clutched my purse to my stomach and offered a smile. He held his hand out to me and nodded toward the entrance of the restaurant.

"What's this for?" I asked as I draped my arm through his, feeling far fancier than I actually was.

"For you. I want you to know that I was serious when I said I loved you. I know the shit you've been through and I want it to be clear that I will never let that happen to you. I want you to trust me." He kept his voice low as we made our way to the reserved table. My face was flushing even more as I gave his arm a squeeze. As I sat across from him, unable to find the words, I could only think to myself that I do trust him. I really do.