(Happy Valentine's Day! And happy early birthday to kokinu09~ Here, have a quick little Zebelle short :D )
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"That's why I love you."
Izabelle couldn't help but tense up, almost instinctively. He said it right in the middle of an otherwise normal conversation and suddenly, it felt more... serious, "... You love me...?"
"Yeah," he said. So simple. For a moment, neither of them said a word, "You don't have to say it back. It's OK if you aren't ready."
She didn't know what to say. For some reason she couldn't bring herself to say that, but she couldn't pin down any one other thing in her mind.
"It's not..." she let out an aggravated sigh, "I just... I don't..."
She knew he wouldn't be upset, or hurt, or mad. This was Zeke, he was too understanding for that. But it was frustrating nonetheless. He waited for her to try and find the words, and when she still couldn't...
"Is it an autism thing?" he asked but Izabelle just furrowed her brow, "Or a greyro thing?"
"I don't know," she tipped her head back, onto his shoulder, "Maybe it's both..." her eyes flickered up just enough to look at him, "Can we just, like... understand that I do?"
Because... she did. She loved him. She felt it. The words just wouldn't slip off her tongue so easily. The need to say it barely crossed her mind. But she thought it, and she felt it.
Zeke smiled and rested his chin on the top of her head, "I know you do."
Izabelle scowled but she didn't move, "How?"
"Well," he thought for a second, "Nobody else gets to call you 'Belle' without risking their life. You wanted to get to know my little brother and sister even though you don't really like little kids. You always hated cheerleaders-"
"I still do."
"Yeah. Except for me. You were actually happy for me when I joined the squad," he reminded her, "And I'm one of the only, like, four people who've ever seen you cry. And I got that privilege pretty fast, considering Bonzo had it for his whole life, and Zadie and Riza have been your best friends for years. I think you're making it pretty clear you love me."
That made Izabelle finally smile back at him, "Good. I'll just let you know if I ever stop."
YOU ARE READING
Limelight
Fanfiction[Part of my ZOMBIES fic series] You know Zed. You know Eliza, Bonzo and Zoey. You may even know Zevon and Mr Zeck. But don't the other residents of Zombie Town deserve a day in the limelight? A one-shot collection exploring the background zombies, w...
