Zoe And The Beast

Chapter 9 | Classy Motorcycles | Part 1

AN// A big thank you to cokonut  for the cover above! //

I stared at Zach from the corner of my eye, carefully. He was lying down on the couch casually, an arm draped around a pillow, his eyes glued on the television as he watched his favorite zombie show.

I snuggled against a cushion on the sofa next to him, closer to the door, and with full access to the window. From this position, I could see exactly what was going on outside.

Quickly checking the time, I anxiously glanced back and forth between Zach and the front door. It was six in the evening. The Beast would be here any minute from now.

And I would be dead soon.

I didn't have a game plan for tonight; I had no idea what I was going to do when Vince showed up. Would I finally have to face Zach? Or would Vince just not show up?

"Are you okay, Zoe?" Zach's eyes suddenly popped over to mine, concerned. "You look a bit anxious."

"Oh, I'm fine." Flipping my hand, I shot my brother the most reassuring smile I could form. "I'm just thinking about the show."

Lies, lies, and more lies.

Straightening his back, Zach decreased the television's volume. "Is this scaring you, Zoe? If it is, I can change it to something else. Do you want to watch a comedy or something?"

"Nah." I shook my head, wanting to keep him distracted with the television. "You can keep watching. I'm fine with this."

Still perplexed, he sank back into the couch. "Whatever you're comfortable with."

"Yep."

An awkward silence passed between us.

"You know what, let's just switch over to something with comedy."

"No, Zach." My hands finally went up. Raising my eyebrows, I used a more assertive tone to keep him calm. "It's fine! I'm not scared of the show."

His eyes watched me carefully, before hesitantly peeling back onto the screen. After a few moments of watching Zach, my eyes wandered over to the TV, too.

Watching TV made me forget about Vince and the time. Completely immersed in the drama, I hardly noticed the time when a loud chime rang through the house.

Shoot. The Beast was on my doorstep.

Before I could stop him, Zach muted our TV, stood up, and stretched.

"It's a Thursday night," he mused, turning to look at me questionably. "Who would be coming to our house on a Thursday night?"

"That...is a great question." I nodded slowly, doing anything to stall the situation. "Who would be coming to our house on a Thursday night?"

He shrugged. "I better go check and see who it is."

"You know what, Zach?" Improvising rapidly, I feigned pain on my abdomen, keeping Zach's eyes away from the window and the front door. "I think I'm getting severe cramps. Could you go get my painkillers from my room for me? I'll get the door."

Zach's eyes immediately widened, partly concerned, partly petrified, as he speechlessly scrambled up the staircase and headed to my room, ready to go on a long search for painkillers. He was well aware of how terrible my period cramps could get, and he knew he wouldn't want to be around me when my girl stuff was happening. If I ever felt any sort of discomfort, Zach would be the first to relieve it.