Home for Christmas

He guided her through the streets of Los Angeles with  precision. They exited the city itself and ended up in the hills  somewhere. Finally, he instructed her to pull into the driveway of a  huge house. She turned the bike off and took off the helmet, shaking her  hair out behind her.

"Where are we?" she asked him,  and it immediately became obvious. "Why the hell did you bring me to  your house, Shannon?" she asked, and he laughed.

"Calm down. I'm not going to kidnap you. We're going hiking," he told her, and she looked at him, confused.

"Hiking? That couldn't wait until tomorrow?" she asked him and he shook his head firmly.

"I have to be in the recording studio tomorrow."

"It couldn't wait 'til the next day?"

"Just  shut up and come with me, would you?" he asked, and she was going to  argue, but when she looked up again he was already walking around to the  back of the house. She followed and noticed quickly that there seemed  to be a huge hiking trail right behind his house. "It's why I bought the  house in the first place. It's beautiful. Come on," he said quietly  when he saw her staring at the trail with wonder in her eyes.

He guided her up the trail, holding his phone's flashlight up so that they could see through the parts that weren't blanketed in bright moonlight. It was about a half hour hike, and they went most of the way silently. When they got to the top, it was everything Zane could do not to gasp. It really was absolutely beautiful. The lights from the city beneath them glowed enthusiastically, like they had just been sitting there waiting for them.

"It is beautiful," she whispered, and when she looked at him, a wide smile had covered his face.

"It's not the only thing," he whispered, and when she looked up again, he was much closer to her.

"Shannon-" she started, but he put a finger to her lips.

"Don't. I'm not going to kiss you, promise," he said, a hint of a smile still on his lips. She wondered how he'd known she was going to tell him not to.

He led her to a bench on the edge of the hill that overlooked everything around for miles. They sat and she shivered slightly against herself.

"Are you cold?" he asked, looking at her intently.

"Only a little. I'm fine," she said, shaking her head.

"Here," he said, slipping his hoodie over his head in a swift movement, revealing a stark white t-shirt that hugged him in all the right places.

"No, it's fine," she said, shaking her head again.

"Take it or I'm going to shove it over your head," he told her, smiling that intoxicating smile again. She slipped it on wordlessly and was instantly overcome with his scent. It was exactly as she'd smelled it before, but now she was completely surrounded by it. It was fantastic.

"Are you trying to seduce me, Leto?" Zane asked him a few minutes later, and he laughed slightly.

"I don't know... is it working?"

"No. But I can't even pretend that this isn't the most amazing thing I've done in a long time," she told him, sweeping her arm out to gesture to the view that sprawled out in front of them.

"Good. Wanna know a secret?" he asked, and she could've sworn he was much closer to her than he had been a few moments before. She nodded.

"I had the biggest fuckin' crush on you in high school. I know you probably wouldn't believe that, but I did."

"Bullshit."

"I did. I swear!"

"You showed it really well."

"Yeah well I was an idiot."

"You still are if you think these lines are working on me."

"I didn't figure they were. Had to try, though."

"Ass."

"The crush thing is true, though," he whispered, and something about his tone made her wonder if it really was.



They sat up there for a long time, just enjoying the view and, to Zane's frustration, each other's company. The more time she spent with him, the more she was starting to almost believe Jared when he'd said Shannon had changed. He seemed like he'd changed. He was still the same in a lot of ways, but he was so different in the ways that seemed to matter the most. She still wasn't willing to throw around the whole 'forgiveness' thing yet, but at least she didn't feel as bad for finding him so ridiculously attractive.

"It's three-thirty in the morning," she said in surprise, looking at her phone for the first time since they'd been there.

"Shit, is it?" he asked, but something told her he didn't actually care about the time.

"I don't even remember the last time I stayed up until 3AM," she said, and he chuckled like he 100% believed that.

"You can crash at my place. I've got a great guest room," he told her, and to her surprise she didn't feel at all like he was probably just trying to get her into bed.

"Only because I suddenly can barely keep my eyes open," she said, and she could see him nodding out of the corner of her eye.

"I promise I won't try to touch your butt," he said, and she couldn't help but laugh.

"Pinkie promise?" she asked and he laughed with her.

"Pinkie promise I won't try to touch your butt," he said, raising his pinkie for her.