fameless → ZACH HERRON ✓

s i x

CHAPTER SIX
( TELL HER )

     CARMEN SITS DOWN on the couch. Currently, Carmen, Aurora, and Callie are being questioned by Logan Paul on how they met the Why Don't We boys. As Callie finishes up her story about how her dog attacked Jack, Logan begins to laugh.

"Okay, that's one way to get a guy," Logan jokes, earning a wink from Callie.

Logan then looks at the couch of which Zach, Carmen, and Corbyn are seated on. "How did you meet Zach?" He asks, raising an eyebrow.

Carmen looks up as Aurora answers for her.

"She fell for him," Aurora teases, looking between the two. "Didn't she, Zach?"

"I wouldn't put it that way," Carmen murmers, her cheeks flushing a bright red. "I just tripped at the mall, and he happened to catch me."

"And how did you notice her?" Daniel asks out of nowhere. "You never told us that."

"I bet he was staring at her!" Corbyn chimes, patting Zach's back. "It's not hard to miss, buddy. You stare every time you're around her."

This time, Zach blushes, causing a grin to appear on Carmen's lips. He hides his face, muttering a, "Shut up, Corbyn."

"It's true," Jack snorts. "Who doesn't see it?"

"Carmen," Aurora answers, looking at the girl meekly. "Isn't that right, Caramel?"

Carmen averts her gaze, wanting to change the topic. Yet the conversation still went on, against her hopes.

"So you caught her?" Logan asks Zach, causing him to uncover his face. "Did you drop her afterwards?"

"No," Zach says in a 'duh' tone. "Why would I drop her?"

"I mean, for all I know, you may not have muscles," Logan shrugs. "I was just asking. And what did you say after it happened?"

"He asked for my name," Carmen says softly, fiddling with her thumbs as she thinks back to the day at the mall. "But Elle drug me away."

"But," Daniel chimes in, "thanks to Jonah's obsession with Harry Potter, Zach ran into her later on that day at Barnes and Noble."

"Which is where he met me!" Aurora interrupts, laying her head on Jonah's shoulder.

Carmen smiles at them, adoring their relationship, and grateful of the topic change. Zach watches her reaction in awe, wondering how anyone could ever be as beautiful as her.

"So what happened with you two?" Logan asks Aurora and Jonah.

"She threw hot coffee on me," Jonah replies, somehow smiling.

"Damn," Logan looks to Aurora. "She sounds crazy."

"You have no idea," Zach mutters from beside Carmen. She nudges him slightly, before nestling into the couch, and laying her feet on his lap.

He is surprised at the contact, but relaxes as he realizes she is finally opening up a bit. Zach settles down too, a grin plastered onto his face.

"I didn't do it on purpose," Aurora defends herself. "I turned around, and I hadn't noticed he was there until it was too late."

"But that was fine with me," Jonah continues. "While I bought her another coffee, she wrote her number down in my book."

"And now it's HAPPILY EVER AFTER!" Corbyn finishes, throwing his arms around grandly.

"Now, if this interrogation is over," Carmen declares, standing. "I'm going to go get something to eat."

"Get me something too!" Aurora shouts at her retreating figure, receiving a thumbs up.

Zach frowns as the warmth vibrating from her is gone, leaving him cold. He sighs, waiting for her to return.

Just then, Zach's phone vibrates, signaling a call.

"It's an unknown number," He announces, looking around the room.

"Put it on speaker," Logan says.

"Zach?" Elle's voice echoes from the other end of the line.

Aurora opens her mouth to say something, but is silenced as Jonah covers her mouth with his hand. In return, she licks his hand, and gets her way.

"Yes?" Zach responds.

"Okay, good. I'm Elle, Carmen's friend," Elle tells them. "Is Carmen anywhere within earshot?"

"No."

"Fantastic, now listen closely." Simotaniously, everyone in the room leans closer to the phone. "Tommorow is Carmen's birthday and I want to throw her a surprise party. But if I do it at her house, she'll know."

"You can throw it here," Zach suggests, his face brightening at the mention of her birthday. "A few of us can keep her away from the house while the others get things set up."

Out of the corner of her eye, Aurora notices movement from Carmen in the hallway, who holds an armful of snacks. Seeing how no one else notices, Aurora snatches the phone from Zach, taking it off speaker.

"Sounds like a plan, Mark. Bye," She says quickly, before Elle could say anything else.

They all have her  questioning look, but realization dawned on them as Carmen dumped the food on the coffee table. The conversation was soon dropped as Jack and Aurora both lunged for a box of Cheez-it's.

"JACK AVERY! I WILL NOT HESITATE TO END YOU IF YOU DO NOT LET GO OF MY DAMN CHEEZ-IT'S."

"OUCH! JONAH, SHE BIT ME!"

"KARMA'S A BITCH NAMED ME, SUCKER!"

Carmen giggles, laying down on the couch again, watching as the two began their long-lasting fight for cheese-it's.

---

Aurora leaves soon after, saying that she needed to tell her friend, Mark, about plans that she had made for the day after. Carmen, however, decided to stay with the others without asking permission. Her mother, however, called her later on, saying that she was okay with Carmen being out with friends.

Carmen currently naps on the couch, across from Zach who has his eyes glued on the television. He glances over at her sleeping figure wearing his sweatpants and hoodie, and smiles.

"Have you told her yet?" Daniel asks from the corner of the living room, leaning on the wall.

"No," Zach says quietly, not wanting to wake the sleeping girl.

"You know, Zach, love is a serious thing." Daniel states, moving to sit next to him. "Especially when you know how rare it is. You shouldn't wait. You could lose her."

"That's what I'm trying to avoid," Zach says, studying Carmen.

"You can't expect for her to stay if she doesn't know."

"I don't want to rush anything," Zach frowns. "It's been three days, Daniel. She might freak out. Besides, she already said she doesn't do relationships."

"You could change that." He points out, standing from his spot, before patting Zach on the back. "Trust your instincts, Zach. You'll get the girl. I know it."

And so Daniel moves out of the room, leaving Zach to himself and his thoughts.

_____