Beneath His Mask

Chapter 17-

Hey everyoneeee... sorry for disappearing for so long.

These chapters are taking long to update because I'm trying to make them lengthier and higher quality. Writing on here just makes me so happy, and it gives me an outlet. When everything else fails me I still have wattpad to take my mind off things. I am forever grateful for that.

And BTW- does anyone have any romance book recommendations? I LOVED  I Sold Myself to the Devil for Vinyls and Chasing Red. Currently I'm reading the Bad Boy's Girl- but I'm looking for less of a cliche- not that they're bad! Everyone needs some cliche in their lives...

Ok I'm rambling but enjoy the next chapter! This one is suuuppppperrrr short but I will most likely come back and add to it. I just want to get something up to show that I'm still here! ****************************

For the past few days I have been laying in bed, my throat has been improving and I've dropped my fever. Today is the first day I feel 100%.

I start off the morning by making myself scrambled eggs and toast with a big glass of orange juice. Seating myself at the outdoor table on my deck, I admire the beautiful sun raising in the sky. 

I've slept SO freaking much, at this point, I could honestly run a marathon. 

Whipping out my phone, I take a bite out of my toast and text Zach.

Let's do something crazy today, I send, nervously biting my lip by accident. I'm flabbergasted myself about how I sent the text courageously. 

I finish eating and clean up the dishes by the time I get a reply. He was probably sleeping. 

What do you have in mind? He replies to my text, and I sense the playfulness in his response. 

What do I have in mind? I don't really know the area... I know there are some amusement and water parks here and there. But who hasn't gone to one before?

I want to do something different. Something that fills me with joy and gives me an ultimate high. A few weeks ago, I would have never done something that would be risky. I want to do it now. I've seen a new side of life that I want to continue living by. It's like I am exposed to a whole new concept, a whole new perspective of things...

Cliff diving. 

I text Zach this with ultimate certainty, a smile playing across my lips. We're going to the nearest cliff and jumping into the cool water beneath it. 

Get you in 20? Zach asks me. 

Ok, I agree.

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Exactly 20 minutes later, (not that I was counting or anything), Zach pulls up in his shiny convertible even though he lived right next door. 

I open the passenger door and slide in, giving Zach a shit eating grin in the process.

"You better not wimp out," he tells me, switching the car into reverse as he pulls out of the driveway.

"You wish. I'm doing this. I might even push you in."

Zach gets a kick out of my response, taking his eyes off the road to give me a cocky smile. His hair falls over his forehead as he responds, "I'd like to see you try." His eyes lock with mine for a second and an emotion, maybe happiness, flickers in his eyes.

We drive for 10 minutes, the windows down and air flying in and out. The warm air blanketing me gives me the reassurance I need to know I am really going to do this. 

"Second thoughts?" Zach asks in a low tone, his grip loosening to turn the steering wheel to the right. I hear the softness in his voice.

I continue observing the small town bustling, hearing occasionally laughs and couples kissing on the sidewalk. PDA much?

"No," I say with confidence in my voice, turning my head to look at his face which is turned towards the road. "Just excited to see you scream like a girl."

Zach lets out a chuckle as we pull into the site. 

We keep up with chatter as we get out of the car and approach the trail into the woods. There are plenty of wildlife and birds chirping everywhere I walk. It calms me down to inhale the scent of flowers, and, even though I hate to admit it, having Zach by my side. I feel protected. 

The trail to the woods widen and Zach and I are a little farther apart now. In from of us, a large scenery comes into view. A small, green colored body of water is in front of the land that comes to an abrupt stop.