IMAGINES ▹ ROSS BUTLER

↳ a blessing in disguise

( A BLESSING IN DISGUISE )by onemorefanaccount

You knew you had been distracted, distant even, recently. You also knew that Zach was hurt by this. Something else you were certain of, was that while he so desperately wanted to know what was going on-he would never push you for an explanation, but instead wait until you were ready to tell him yourself.

You loved that about Zach and you were grateful you had fallen for someone so considerate.

Sighing softly, you rest your chin on your books that had been piled on the desk in front of you and close your eyes.

Zach, who glanced down at you in concern, wrapped an arm around your back and started rubbing it soothingly all while continuing to converse with your classmates at the table in front of yours.

You smile and turn your head to the side so you were looking up at him. You take your time, letting your eyes trace all the features of his face and neck, watching his mouth move as he replies to questions, the way his eyes light up when he meets your gaze.

Zach shifts in his seat slightly after a while, turning his body in your direction, before leaning towards you, "Are you okay?" he asks softly.

You hum a response and close your eyes, biting back any sound that threatened to come out as his fingers moved and started to trail your back. "There's something I have to tell you," you mumble unintentionally, you didn't expect to bring it up right now. Your eyes remain closed-not wanting to see the expression you imagined etched in his face.

His hand momentarily freezes before continuing to gently knead your lower back with fingers, "Are you okay?" he asks finally.

"I guess that depends.," you chuckle.

"(Y/N)," he warns.

Opening your eyes, you meet his concerned stare, "Try not to worry about it for now, we'll talk later."

This wasn't a conversation you wanted to have at school, in front of all your classmates.

Zach shakes his head, spinning back around to face the front, "You know I'm probably not going to be able to think of anything else, right?"

"I'm sorry," you murmur, suddenly feeling lethargic. "I just want to sleep," you continue, releasing a small yawn.

"How much sleep did you get last night?"

You think for a moment before frowning, "Not much," you admit. "I couldn't fall asleep, too much on my mind." Zach sighs, forcing himself to hold back his questions. Knowing him too well, you offer him a small smile, "I'm fine," you try to reassure him but he doesn't reply.

You slide under your covers as soon as you reach your bedroom, having craved the warmth and comfort it offered all day. Zach followed you into your room, but sat on the edge of the bed and took your current state in.

"This isn't like you," he says quietly, "what's going on? You've been ignoring me and you're not sleeping, I've been so worried but I didn't want to overstep."

"I've just been a little stressed lately," you begin, hugging a pillow to your chest as you roll to your side and try to meet his eye.

"Why?" he questions, his frown deepening.

You take a deep breath, "I wasn't sure how to tell you..." you trail off.

"Tell me what?" he inquiries, bringing a leg up on the bed and shifting so he wasn't craning his head to look at you.

Feeling the tears pool in your eyes, you release a small, nervous laugh, "I'm pregnant."

The room fell so silent, you could hear a pin drop.

"Are you going to say anything?" you ask, suddenly finding interest in the material of your doona.

"I don't know what to say," he tells you quietly.

"How about 'it's going to be okay, (Y/N)' or 'we'll work it out (Y/N)'," you suggest. "'I'm not going to leave you' would also be something I'd appreciate," you tell him, feeling your tears break free and run down your face.

Zach seems to snap out of his daze and crawls closer to you, you sit up and let him take you into his arms. "Of course I'm not going to leave you," he insists. "I would never do that to you."

Releasing a small sob, you clutch at his back, "I don't know what we're going to do," you cry. "This wasn't supposed to happen."

Zach refuses to loosen his hold and keeps you close to his chest, "We'll figure it out," he whispers. "This is not something I thought we would have to deal with, but we will."

His words only made you cry harder, "I'm so sorry."

"It's not your fault, (Y/N)," he insists firmly. "This isn't something we could have predicted."

"We should have been more careful," you mumble.

"I know," he sighs. "But we can't change the past, okay? We need to look forwards."

You hesitate for only a moment before pulling back so you could look him in the eyes, "Is this something you want?"

Zach looked conflicted, "I don't know," he admits. "I want to have a family with you one day..." he tells you, "I just-it's so soon and we're so young."

"I don't know if I could..." you trail off, not even able to say the words. "And I know this is really bad timing and it at first seems like something really bad...and our parents! What are out parents going to think? Our friends? I just...I don't know anything at the moment."

Zach squeezes you gently in reassurance, "We have a lot to discuss."

You nod, moving forward to rest your head in his chest. Sighing, you place your hand against your flat stomach, "There's a baby growing inside of me," you state, the concept seeming completely surreal. "It's...weird to think about." Zach moves one hand from your back to rest on your leg.

"I imagine it would be," he murmurs. "Maybe this is something really good for us. I know it's unexpected...but this baby could be a chance of us to-well, I don't really know but maybe it's a sign? Maybe we can really make something from this situation?" he shrugs. "But (Y/N), I want you to know that whatever you decide, whatever we decide-I'm going to be here for you. I'm not going anywhere. We will figure this out, okay? Together."

"You promise?"

Zach kisses the top of your head, "I promise."