Sequel: Glass
Status: Complete

Pieces

Eight

Zack was fuming. Literally. I could have sworn I saw steam was leaving his ears with how mad he was.

"Why would you do such a thing!?" He yelled at me.

"Because it was for your own good," I defended firmly.

"Ignoring my fiancee's calls were for my own good!?" He yelled and I rolled my eyes.

"One, she's not your fiancee anymore. Two, you would have been a lost puppy at the convention. She can fuck with your emotions all she wants, but not when you have a job to do. Any of your other friends would have done the same," I explained.

So Zack was pretty upset about the whole phone call thing. While Val and I were out shopping, Amber had called Zack. He, being the idiot he is, answered and she ripped him a new one. Yelling about how he ignored her call when she was missing him and needed him. She jumped into a whole spiel about how she couldn't live without him. The same old story.

"You're a really jealous bitch, you know that?" He hissed.

That's it. I pulled my hand back and slapped him firmly across the face. That seemed to knock some sense into him, because I could see tears starting to prick the corner of his eyes. He put a hand on the red handprint and looked over at me, eyes wide. A flash of hurt crossed his face and I couldn't look him in the eyes.

I had punched Zack in the shoulder and maybe roughly shoved him once in a while. Never, though, had I hit him out of anger. I've never slapped him across the face like he was dirt. That wasn't me. That wasn't supposed to be me.

"I will tolerate you being a little pansy. I will tolerate you being the most egotistical ass on the planet. Hell, I'll even tolerate Amber. But I will not stand here and let you ridicule me into thinking that I'm actually jealous of that fucking twat," I snapped. "I am not jealous of her, Zack. I'm doing what I'm supposed to do, and that's keep you fucking sane long enough for you to get through a weekend without her. You may think that the world revolves around her, Zack, but you would have nothing without this band."

"Violet," He whispered, "I-I'm..."

"Sorry!?" I snapped, "Sorry that I'm the one who has to constantly pull you out of these random states of depression she puts you in! Open your fucking eyes, Zack!" I yelled and he shrunk away from me.

"I... I love her," He shrugged and I rolled my eyes.

"Well then get used to her being a bitch to you. And as long as she's around, get used to me having to kick your ass every month. I am not going to let her get in the way of your job, or mine. So be a man for once and stop moping around like a romantic novel," I hissed.

He stood up and nodded, rubbing his face. I sighed at the sight of the red handprint on his cheek and guilt consumed me. I knew what it was like to have someone put their hands on me, and I never wanted to stoop to that level. I stepped forward and softly put my hand on the stinging area and he winced, "I'm sorry, Zack," I whispered as I bit my lip.

"It's okay, Vi. I deserved it," He replied and I shook my head.

"No you didn't," I sighed, "Let's get you some ice. You can't walk into a bar with that on your face," I replied and grabbed some ice from the mini-bar in the corner of the room. I wrapped it in a towel and placed it firmly on his cheek as he sat on the edge of the bed.

"Val told me what happened earlier. She said you were really upset about it," Zack mumbled and I tensed. I didn't want him to know that people now thought we were engaged.

"It kind of just slipped from her mouth. She means well," I defended her and he nodded.

"You know I don't mind her saying it. I mean," He scratched the back of his head, "If you need to tell your ex that we're, you know, engaged or whatever," He shrugged.

I smiled, "Thanks, Zack, but that doesn't really fix anything," I laughed and he nodded.

"Who's Craig?" He questioned suddenly. It felt like he had taken a knife and stabbed it into my chest, twisting and turning the blade until I felt every inch of it.

"My ex-boyfriend," I muttered, "It's complicated... Vegas really isn't a good place for me," I confessed.

"But it's your hometown," He replied and I shook my head.

"This place is a wasteland to me. I'd much rather consider California as my home."

"What happened?" He questioned.

"Nothing we should talk about now," I said and pulled the ice back, "The redness is gone, but it might still sting a bit. You should get dressed so we can head out."

He nodded and stood, leaving the room and leaving me alone.

-

"All I'm saying is that I can drink these two beers before you can down both those shots!" Johnny drunkenly challenged Brian.

"You're on, Bro!" Brian threw down two hundreds on the table, followed by Johnny. I watched in amusement while Val just groaned, rubbing her temples with her hands as she watched the two of them order their drinks.

"Wait till Michelle hears about this one," She mumbled and I laughed.

I turned to her and pushed the Martini she ordered me aside, "Hey, Val, I really am sorry for yelling at you earlier. I didn't mean it," I stated and she turned to me with a big smile.

"Sweetie, don't worry about it," She put a comforting hand on my arm, "I don't know what the deal was with that bitch, but I know I shouldn't have opened my big mouth. I just wanted to protect you, know know. You're like the little sister I never had," She smiled.

"Thanks, Val," I grinned and she leaned over and hugged me.

We were pulled apart when a very loud crash followed by Brian's cursing. We turned to see Johnny finishing his second beer, and Brian trying to lap amber liquid that has spilled across the table. He was on nearly falling over the table when Johnny set his empty glass down, throwing his hands up in triumph.

"I win!" Johnny exclaimed.

"You cheated, you little shit!" Brian yelled and leapt for him, beginning to chase him around the bar. I laughed, watching in pure bliss as we all erupted into laughter at the sight.

I felt happy. I didn't have to worry about running into people I didn't want to. Matt had closed down the bar for the night so we wouldn't have to deal with any fans or unwanted people. It was just quality bonding time, and I actually felt free. I didn't have a care in the world.

I felt a familiar hand settle on the curve of my waist and I looked up to see Zack's green eyes, "Having fun?" He asked, setting another drink in front of me.

"For now. I won't be tomorrow if you keep getting me these," I noted and took a sip. He laughed and sat down on the bar stool next to me, taking a drink of his beer, "How's the face?" I asked.

"I haven't felt any pain since my third beer," He noted and I laughed. I leaned over to see if the redness was gone. It was, and it didn't seem as swollen as earlier. Luckily no one had noticed anything different about Zack, which we were both grateful for. He really didn't want to have to explain to the guys that I had basically bitch-slapped him in the hotel room.

"Zack," I sighed, "I'm sorry. I shouldn't have even ignored the call. I was just looking out for you," I noted and he nodded.

"It's just..." He looked down, "You make it a lot harder for me to fix things with her, Vi."

"Why bother fixing things with her anyways?" I scoffed and he shot me a look. I mouthed a sorry and took another sip of my drink and he sighed.

"I know I'm a handful, Violet. I'm an emotional mess and I'm probably mentally unstable. But despite what it seems, I really love her."

"I know, Zack," I forced out.

"Let's forget about this and get drunk. It's our last night in Vegas and you're not even nearly as drunk as I want your to be," He grinned and I rolled my eyes.

"I don't get drunk easily, Zack."

"You haven't been out drinking with me yet, Babe," He winked and turned back to the bar, "Can we get four shots of Jack?" He questioned and I groaned.

I would definitely feel it in the morning.

-

My head felt like it was going to explode by the time we landed in California. I felt like a walking zombie as we all made our way to baggage claim. The only ones that seemed to be in a good mood were Jimmy and Val. Jimmy was immune to hangovers and Val didn't drink as much as the rest of us. We all felt like we were moving in slow motion as we walked across the terminal.

I was glad to be out of Vegas, despite how much fun I really did have. I really didn't want to go back, and I was hoping that Zack wouldn't make me ever again. Hopefully with some knowledge of Craig, he wouldn't protest to it.

Now we had to go back to our daily lives. Zack and I had a whole list of orders to catch up on for the new Vengeance University line. He also had a whole lot of hell waiting for him when he got home. He had yet to fix things with Amber, due to the phone call. He now had to run home and coax her into being apart of him once more.

I told Zack to tell the truth. That I had ignored her call on purpose. I was content with letting her believe anything she wanted about me. As long as Zack didn't have any plans to fire me, then I was fine. I still didn't approve of him wanting to take her back. This whole scenario was getting ridiculous. It was quite difficult to run an international clothing-line while nursing a love-sick rockstar. My tasks were not easy, and I was glad that Zack was finally starting to realize that.

"I really am sorry, you know. I know you're not a jealous bitch," Zack said softly as we made our way towards baggage claim. He had been silent for most of the morning since he was nursing his own killer headache.

"I know, Zack. We don't have to bring it up again," I assured and he sighed.

"I don't want you to think that I see you that way. Because I don't think you're a bitch. I was caught up in the moment and I was only repeating what Amber was saying," He replied and I stopped. The rest of the guys continued to walk as I turned to him.

"Do you hear yourself?" I asked and he turned to face me, "Amber has a control on you that you can't fight off. Either she's gripping you by the balls or she's just that great in bed," He blushed, "But this relationship isn't healthy for you."

"I appreciate your help, Violet," He pursed his lips, "But your job is to handle my business, not my personal life," He stated lowly.

I could have protested and caused a huge scene. I could have explained every detail in how I always had to pick him up when Amber was having a hissy fit. I had a list of things I could very easily bring up, proving him wrong in every way possible. I wanted to, but I wasn't in the mood to get into that conversation. I just wanted to go home.

"Of course, Zack," I said softly, "Is there any thing else I can do for you?"

He looked at me and shrugged, "I need you to order something from the new Versace line," He scratched the back of his head awkwardly, "Uh... like a purse or shoes or something," He mumbled shamefully.

I wanted to roll my eyes. I really did. I wanted to slap him again, shake him by the shoulders, and maybe push him out a window. I didn't, though.

Zack would forever be broken, and I just had to face that.

"I'll get right on it," I assured him.

"Thanks, Vi. You're the best."

I shrugged, "I know."
♠ ♠ ♠
I've gotten a few messages regarding this story. I'm sorry I'm dragging this out, but I just wanted to write some background information before giving everything away about Violet. But, if you all must know, the first part of Violet's past is going to be revealed in the next chapter.
Please understand that this is only my second story. Also, I'm writing on behalf of Violet's character and Zack's. Both of them have issues, not just one of them, so I'm trying to write without sounding cluttered. I'm sorry if my story sounds cliche or boring, but it's how I chose to write it.

With that being said I'd like to thank everyone who has commented.
fiction246, INKEDA7X, Bunny-on-Drugs, HerNameIsAlice, Ravenhair24, AshlynnTheRevLover, AJ9, pixy vamp calabrese, Spoilddxbrat, Haylie Jaed, lilacs., Noblesse, synluvr, Mockingbird;;, ToBeDetermined, xShadowsSwag, SevenfoldGirl, Kasey J Vengeance.

Thank you!