BEHIND THE PAINT

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN

CHAPTER SEVENTEEN
The drive back to Los Angeles was quiet. Too quiet ,in fact,for her liking.Although he had no idea what caused this sudden change of behavior in Zendaya's character, Tom complied.
"So how was the meeting with Timothy?" He let out,the silence almost conditioning him.
"There wasn't one" she answered simply with a sigh, her back turned away from him as she looked through the window.
"But I thought..." he started off but couldn't even finish his sentence when she turned, finally facing him.
"Chloe lied to me..." She bursted out.
"Pardon" he begged.
"She told me, Halle was pregnant but then she was the one pregnant and now she won't even tell me why " she complained. This statement alone was enough to make him stop the car as questions and concerns flooded his head.
"Who told you that..." Tom heard himself ask before anything else.
" wha..ah..the doctor at the hotel" Zendaya replied,not understanding why he had to stop driving.
"You know we have a long way before we get home .. right" she asked him, gesturing towards the wheel.
"What doctor? What happened" he asked, pushing her question on a mental cliff.
"Ok,are you even listening to me..." Zendaya wondered about, getting in his face.
"She lied to me" she strongly stressed out.

"Yes I am...now answer me ....what happened " he rephrased.
"She fainted on our way up the elevator and ..now that I'm saying this sentence outloud," Zendaya trailed,then looked investigatively in his brown coated eyes.
"What?" Tom asked.
"Why are you so worried about her.." she said.
"Umm I'm worried about her health..." Tom replied.
"Shouldn't you?... you're her best friend " he told her.
"Not anymore " she replied,with a sorrowful expression.
"What do you mean,not anymore... Zendaya, Eliza is the closest thing you have  to your childhood"  Tom reminded her.
"Kk so" she hinted a little laugh.
"Ahh..soooo.. don't you think you're overeating? Just a little" he asked her,still not believing it.
"No,ok...Chloe and I have always..and I mean always...told each other everything " she defended.
"Well...you can't know that for sure,love" Tom began.
"There are just somethings that people would rather have no one know about..." he said.
"Like what " she scoffed.
"Exactly....the fact that you're asking that just means..you have no idea what " Tom explained,not needing to give away too much.
" but why would she even..." Zendaya trailed , holding back her tears.
"To protect you" Tom responded out of instinct. It was the only reason he saw fit. Why else would she decide burry the fact that something happened between them.
"Kk why would she feel the need to protect me from knowing about the baby" Zendaya laughed lightly by  herself, giving Tom's own heart beat increase. Her not knowing the answer

to this question was the only thing keeping his relationship alive and it scared him.
"Kk wired ...must be the hormones" he joked and she laughed at that.
"Kk or the baby daddy " she let out with the same sarcasm attached to her sentence, not really giving it a second thought.
"Orrrrrr...the hormones" he stretched, reaching out for her hand as it glided over his shoulder. Tom let her move over onto his lap , taking his other  hand off the wheel and behind her bare back.
"Kk you're right...those hormones are.. something" she moaned at his touch  then he kissed her.
"Yes they are ..." Tom said, with his eyes closed.
"Mmmmmmhhh, woah" she breathed out, almost sounding like Chloe. Tom lost it, feeling her grinding on his excited center.
"Fu..Elizabeth" he let out but covered it by burying his mouth in her neck. It was always strange how , even without trying,

Chloe would easily cross his mind in ways he couldn't control.
"Oh God...oh my God,stop" Zendaya said after catching her breath, pushing him away.
"What's wrong,love" tom asked as she made her way back to were she was sitted.
"Or the baby daddy" he heard her say, almost to herself, sounding overwhelmed with sadness.
"Zee...zee, what's.." Tom paused, praying that he it wasn't what he was thinking.
"I just...just realized something" she said, her voice cracking.
"Baby" he called.
"Yeah" she responded, immediately.
"Are you..ok" he stretched with a whisper.
"Kk yeah.. I'm.. I'm, just overreacting.." Zendaya said, trying to convince herself.
"Just overreacting?" He asked, rubbing her shoulder but then she shook her head, failing to contain her tears.
"Atleast,tell me..I'm just overreacting..please" she begged. Tom sighed, laying his head back on his seat. It would have been so much easier to lie as usual.

But what is a lie when the truth is practically already there, staring at you.