the photographer. [zdh]

eight

no. no. no.

"leah!" i screamed.

the four figures turned toward the sound of my voice. i was not able to see the facial features of the hooded figures from a distance, but i saw leah's face clearly. her hair was messed up and her eyes wild.

a loud mmph sound came from leah. she could not talk; there was a gag in her mouth.

upon seeing me, they pushed leah roughly to the door. "move! faster, or you'll suffer worse than kicking," one snapped harshly.

jonah, jack and i dropped the boxes we were holding on the pavement and dashed towards them. everything fragile in those boxes must have shattered, but there were more important things to worry about.

jack went after one of the guys, while jonah dealt with the other two on his own. i rushed to leah and pulled the gag out of her mouth.

"zach!" she gasped.

"don't be scared," i muttered, struggling to untie the rope around her wrists.

"just pull that part- that's right!"

leah was untied, her hands free.

but as i turned around, ready to help the boys out in the ongoing fight, i came face-to-face with one of the figures. i could see his face clearer now that i was standing right in front of him.

ethan forrester.

"you!" i snarled.

"yes, me," he smirked.

i glared at him.

ethan continued speaking. "well, what a touching moment, don't you think? leah being rescued by her knight in shining armour, zach herron."

i should have punched him at the moment, but revenge was not my main concern right now. getting leah away from ethan was.

bad choice.

"what do you want," i said harshly, grabbing leah's hand. it came out more as a statement than a question.

"isn't it obvious? leah. but it seems that i can't have that today. so, i'll lower my expectations and settle for a bit of your blood, i think."

i refused to show ethan my fear and stood my ground.

"i think the heck not," i snapped, and side-stepped him, pulling leah along with me.

"oh?" ethan scoffed.

i felt a sharp pain in my side and heard a cry from leah immediately after. i looked down and noticed a dark red staining my yellow shirt.

"oh, crap," i muttered.

a shout from jonah, and i saw ethan being punched by jack in my peripheral vision.

a tug on my hand, which pulled me down to the asphalt. then everything went black.

**

"leah?"

i was awake and aware of someone saying my name, but i didn't want to open my eyes.

"leah? leah!"

that voice was annoying. well, i knew i could not sleep if he/she kept calling my name, so i opened my eyes slowly.

"hmm?"

my vision was blurry for a moment as i struggled to adjust to the bright lights of my surroundings. i had to blink several times before everything was focused.

daniel and corbyn were hovering over me. and judging from the look of the room i was in, i was probably in a hospital ward.

"leah! you're awake," said corbyn thankfully. daniel let out a sigh of relief from the side of my bed.

"do you know what happened?" he asked me tentatively.

"uhhh...i think i remember?" i responded softly. "ethan, right? and the van?"

daniel was clearly shocked that i remembered. "yep."

"did the cops get ethan and his friends? they're connor and jay, also from dallas." i told him.

"they got ethan and connor, but jay managed to escape."

oh. jay was on the track team. no wonder he managed to run.

"okay, then how about- oh no."

"what is it?" asked corbyn.

"zach," i whispered, shooting up straight in my bed before i felt a sharp pain in my side and had to lie back down again. "zach. where's zach?"

corbyn shifted on his feet. "uh, zach's also hospitalised. he's in the next room." seeing me about to get up, he hastily added, "he's been awake for about an hour, and he'll come to see you tomorrow. doc won't let him leave his bed."

zach was okay, then. i now directed my attention to the pain i had felt earlier. "what's this?" i muttered as i lifted the blanket covering me up, only to reveal a large bandage. "ahh."

daniel looked pitifully at me. "yes, well, ethan had a cutter in his hand, and managed to slash both you and zach with it before jack punched him."

i nodded. suddenly realising jonah and jack weren't in the room, i asked, "where are they? jonah and jack?"

"they're fine, just that jonah has a small cut on his forehead. jack's unscathed." daniel replied.

i nodded, and proceeded to sink back into the comfortable pillows before something hit me.

my job. how was i supposed to do photography in this state?

"guys," i mumbled, "please help me call tyler here."

**

i had woken up an hour ago, and i was feeling restless. jack was trying to entertain me by telling jokes, but it was doing nothing to stop me from wanting to see leah.

actually, what was stopping me was the cut in my side and the doctor. he absolutely refused to let me leave the hospital bed before tomorrow, and i was annoyed, and incredibly jealous of daniel and corbyn.

okay, not really corbyn. but was i jealous of daniel?

yes.

definitely.

i doubted they were dating, or even liked each other in that way. leah would definitely tell me. but i couldn't shake the feeling that they shared a connection that went deeper than friends.

i dismissed that thought as delirium and closed my eyes, trying to ignore the pain.