Paint Me an Image

I rushed into the house and went to Zacky once I located him. I stood next to him with my arms crossed over my chest as he danced with a petite red-headed girl.

"Zack." I said loudly over the music. He turned to me immediately.

"What's wrong with you?" he questioned as we stood in the middle of the dance floor. The girl he was dancing with seemed discouraged, as if she thought I was going to cause a seen about her dancing with him.

I just stared at Zacky blankly, waiting for him to catch on.

Before he could speak the little red-headed woman did. "If you sleeping with both of those guys, do you really think you need him too?" she jabbed her thumb towards Zacky and then added, "Because M. Shadows just doesn't go and fucking beat people up unless someone has slept with his girl friend or something," She said in a "duh" voice as she rolled her eyes. She grabbed onto Zacky's arm and put a pout on her face, telling him to dance with her again. She sent me a intimidating look when neither Zack nor I moved. "Go find M. Shadows to sleep with, Zacky's interested in me," she hissed in my ear, protectively as she ran her arm up and down Zacky's arm.

I rolled my own green eyed and whispered back to her, "I only think his girlfriend has that claim, honey."

She looked dumbfounded then huffed before turning away to find some other man to grind against.

I chuckled at her naiveness and grabbed Zacky's other arm, pulling him away from the music. "Some people talk just like they know Matt better then anyone in the world," I murmured offhandedly as I yanked Zacky into the laundry room so that we could drown out the music.

Zacky tilted his head to the side like a confused puppy. "And you know Matt?"

"No," I stated calmly, trying not to let his words effect me, "but I know the jackass better then that girl out there. I hate it when fans of a band act like they know things about the members. Not like names and birth-dates but like... personal things..." I trailed off as Zacky sent me a confused look. "I mean, how does that girl know if Matt would beat the hell out of someone for sleeping with his girl?"

Zacky rolled his eyes. "Matt beat a guy up for touching you. How's that any different?"

"Because I didn't want to be touched. It'd be different if I wanted to be. Then we wouldn't have a problem." I giggled after those words left my mouth.

"Matt just doesn't go and beat people up. Very often anyways. I think he likes you," Zacky said smugly as I sat on the drier, glaring at him harshly.

"Or he just wants to sleep with me."

Zacky laughed loudly, "No, he wouldn't risk a fight for sex."

"Zack. Matt hates me. End of story."

Zacky sat on the washing machine next to me. He rested his hand on my knee like he was about to tell me something serious. "Imogen," he started, his tone completely serious, "You forgot to say that you hate him to." He cracked a smile as I groaned, feeling warm all of a sudden.

"I do. You know that. I just feel like I shouldn't have to scream it to the world. It should be pretty damn obvious by now. He drives me in-fucking-sane all the time." I growled out, remembering the incident on the beach all of a sudden. I wondered if Matt had made his way into the house yet or if he had been following me just to mess with me. The second option seemed more likely to me.

Zacky shrugged and slid down off of the washer. He reached his hand out and took my own as I slid down too. I felt like a child at that moment, back in high school when Zacky and I used to sit up in the tree house behind his parents house, and talk about everything that happened at school since the last time we had hung out.

I glanced at Zacky and smiled when he was looking back at me. He then pulled me in for a hug. I rested my chin on his shoulder with a sigh, remembering all the other times I had hugged this person, when he was just a child, a teenager, and now, my first sentimental hug when he was an adult. It was a new memory for the two of us to add to our mental scrap books. I smiled at the thought and leaned in to kiss his cheek.

Zacky, however; turned his head so that his pierced lips met mine. I froze and then shoved him away. "You jerk!" I shouted after he started laughing, "You almost gave me a heart attack! I thought you were seriously kissing me!"

Zacky shook his head, "Nahh, just a little kiss to rile you up. I know you think to much, I had to bring you back to the present day!" He started laughing even harder as I wiped his germs off my mouth like a child.

I just glared and shoved past him roughly. He followed after me, laughing the whole time.

"Aww, Image, it wasn't that bad! Everyone says I'm a great kisser!" He joked loudly, causing people to stare at the two of us, as he followed me into the kitchen. I glared at him as I went through the kitchen door. Brian was standing there and Johnny was too, filling up his little plastic, red cup.

"Get away from me, Zachary James Baker! That's the last time you'll ever do that. You're no longer my best friend!" I shouted as I grabbed Johnny's drink from him and gulped some, feeling the burning on my lips and throat.

"What'd you do man? She seems pretty mad this time." Johnny laughed as I handed him back his cup with a disgusted expression on my face.

Zacky shrugged as he answered, "Just kissed her."

Brian and Johnny bursted out laughing, causing Zacky to laugh more too.

Zacky smirked at me as I mixed my own drink, hating the taste that Johnny's left in my mouth.

"I guess it brought back a few memories for Image, here," Zacky cracked as he pulled a Heineken from the fridge.

"Yeah," I nodded grimly, "Horrible ones too." I slipped up onto the kitchen counter as Brian, Johnny, and Matt made jokes about when Zacky used to kiss me all the time because he had a crush on me in middle school. They laughed about the time Zacky walked into my house with Mat and my brother and saw Collin Peterson and I making out on the couch. Zacky then pretended that we were dating and I was cheating on him. He threw a big fit in my living room that day, told Collin Peterson to "get the hell out" and then acted hurt for days when I was mad at him for scaring away my only real chance at having a boyfriend.

"What's going on?" Matt questioned as he walked in, referring to the guys that were laughing loudly once more.

Brian shrugged, "Zack kissed Image again," he said as if was no big deal, an everyday occurrence (Even though it was something that hadn't happened in 10 years).

Matt glanced at Zacky and chuckled, though I could tell that he was more annoyed with me then anything. I was curled up on the counter, my knees to my chest (my dress wrapped around my legs) and my cheek on my hands, feeling a headache settle in from the loud music around me. I could tell that Matt obviously hadn't seen me when he walked in and Zacky was about to test his theory.

"She's gotten better at it too," Zacky joked, "I think that I really enjoyed it. Although she got mad I think she was just covering up for the fact that she might be in love with me."

He winked at me and then continued, "Her lips are soft. Really soft. I think she has had a lot of practice with the kissing thing..." Zacky trailed off, contemplating saying something more. I glanced to Matt right away, trying to see if he was bothered by this at all. His arms were hanging at his sides and his lips were pursed. I could tell that even though he had a bored expression on his face that he was still listening intently to the words that were spilling out of Zacky's lips.

The other guys, Brian and Johnny, were watching Matt too. Waiting for him to react in one way or another. However, when he did speak my mouth dropped, outraged at his accusation.

"I doubt that's the only thing she's gotten a lot of practice at."

Before he could even chuckle at his own joke I jumped off the counter and reached out to smack him in the back of the head. He hissed and turned around, his eyes growing wide for half a second before he smirked, his eyes narrowing as he looked down at me.

"You're a jackass, Matt," I growled as I turned to storm out of the room. I stopped one I got to the doorway, realizing that I had no where else to go in Brian's house.

"Zacky," I said, not turning to face the group of men, "Take me home right now."

I heard Zacky sigh and speak, "I don't have my keys."

I took a deep breath in attempt to calm myself.

I heard Brian talk next. "Image, you and Zacky can share the second guest bedroom. Matt already has the first but the other one's just as nice."

I nodded. "Thanks. Where is it?"

I felt an arm wrap over my shoulder and Zacky's face come into my view. He led me through the groups of people and up the stairs that were near the back of the house. We climbed the stairs together, Zacky's hand laced with mine. Zacky pointed to a random black door and told me that was Brian and Michelle's room. The one to the left of that was the first guest room. Zacky told me that each room had a bit of a different style in it, kind of like a themed hotel except not as cheesy. The room that Matt would be staying in had a modern approach. Everything was the best of the best and the whole back wall was just glass, a window that over looked the entire backyard.

Brian and Michelle's room was victorian. Everything old and antique. With beautiful paintings and a high ceiling went up into a point. Zacky said the room had a four post bed frame that was huge, with old dark royal purple and scarlet blankets. The remodel of the rooms had been a birthday present for Michelle a while back, after she and Brian first moved in together.

We walked to the end of the curvy hall. Past the three other doors until finally we came to the last door on the right, almost across from the bathroom, where the door was open. I could see that the bathroom obviously had a beach theme. There was a shower, surrounded in glass to keep the heat and steam in. The bathtub was situated in the far corner, a jacuzzi tub. The walls were light blue with white crown molding around the ceiling. The floor was the color of sand and looked almost realistic.

I turned back to face the door leading to our room for the night when Zacky pushed it open. Our room was right next to Matt's, causing me to sigh but give in and go along with it. I glanced up when the door was all the way open. This room had dark grey walls and red everything. There was a platform bed with deep red blankets on the floor and a maroon couch against the far wall, next to a door that lead out to a small balcony. There were large windows on that same wall, framed in black. A t.v was on a small black table against the wall that Matt and I would share for the night.

On each side of the bed there were two more black end tables that matched the t.v table. I smiled at the room, liking the colors. I laid down on the bed, across the middle with my feet hanging over the side. I heard Zacky chuckled huskily and the bed shift next to me. I turned my head and looked up at the green eyed man as he laid on his side, his elbow bent and his hand holding up his head.

"What?" I croaked, my eyes drooping.

"Nothing," Zacky said softly.

I shifted around and then groaned, uncomfortable because my dress was rubbing against my skin as I laid in it. I turned and sat up.

"Take off your shirt," I said to Zacky as I began to slide my dress off.

"What?" Zacky stuttered, sitting up immediately, shocked.

I glared at him, knowing where his thoughts were at. The gutter. Zacky did was he was told and pulled his shirt over his head, messing up his hair in the process. I smiled and slipped his shirt over my head, covering up my body, leaving me in his shirt, a bra, and matching boy short underwear. Zacky sighed in relief and grinned up at me lopsidedly, kind of like an apology for thinking that I wanted to sleep with him.

I reached out and flicked his hair back into place, smiling when it did the opposite of what I tried to have it do. Zacky stood up and shimmied out of his jeans, leaving them and the studded belt on the floor. He crawled into the bed after pulled the blanket and sheets down. I climbed in next to him and buried my face in his shoulder. I laid on my stomach as Zacky pulled the warm blankets up over us, shielding our half-clothed bodies from the nipping air conditioning.

I took a deep breath, automatically having Zacky's scent filling my nose. His smell had changed since childhood, matured in a way that was hard to explain. I sighed contently as Zacky slipped his arm around my waist. He nestled his nose in my hair and hummed, obviously content as well.

"Goodnight, Zacky." I murmured, no longer feeling drunk, only tired.

"Goodnight, Imogen. I've missed you," he whispered back and tightened his arm around my waist.

"Missed you too, babe."

Zacky and I drifted off together at Brian's house in Huntington Beach, California, a town that I hadn't come back to since I was 17 years old. Before my life had even started. Before my life had taken a few wrong turns. Before I let myself get hurt, broken, defeated.