Rivals

First Date

During the next couple of days, Becky and Jade noticed their friend was very distracted. If she wasn't riding Raven, she often could be found staring at her phone. Zoe hadn't told the others about her trip to Holloway, knowing that too many questions would come up. Questions she couldn't even answer herself.

Pin had already texted her the next day, and she had been over the moon. She didn't know why she felt like she was thirteen again, but she felt light headed and dizzy, whenever she thought about him. It was so not like her. The texts had only been small talk so far, but he had asked her to meet for a soda this Thursday, which meant two days to go.

Untacking Raven, Becky and Jade came up to her. They didn't say anything, they just stood there and watched her. "What?" she asked, not knowing why they were suddenly observing her. "Are you okay?" Becky asked and cocked her head to the side. Zoe looked back and forth between them. "Sure. Why?" she asked, and took the saddle off the black horse."You just seem... distracted", Jade told her, and Zoe tried to look casual, but failed miserably. "I'm not", she stated simply, walking towards the tack room, with her friends following her closely.

"You have been obsessively cheking your phone the last couple of days, and not really been listening to anything we've had to say", Becky told her and crossed her arms in front of her chest. "We know something is going on", Jade continued, as Zoe put the saddle back onto its mounting, considering whether she should tell them or not. She decided against it. She wasn't ready to face the huge amount of questions, she knew would be thrown her way. "Nothing is going on. I'm fine", she assured them, and left the tack room, leaving her confused friends behind.

Thursday arrived, and Zoe stared at herself in the mirror for the 30th time. Clothes were spread all around her room, as she had tried on a million different outfits, before finally being somehow satisfied with the one she had on. She wanted to look good, but still be casual, so she had decided on a white shirt, jeans and a red jacket. She sighed loudly, looking at her phone. //Half and hour to go//, she thought and glanced at herself one last time, before leaving the room, running down the stairs.

"Where are you off to?" her mom asked, when Zoe was almost at the door. It was obvious that she wasn't going to the stables in that outfit. "Um... off to meet a friend", she said, which really wasn't a lie. "Oh is it Jade or Becky?" Maggie asked, and Zoe decided to bolt, avoiding any more questions. "Neither", she answered with a nervous smile and disappeared out the door, leaving her mom puzzled.

There wasn't really much to do on the island in terms of going out, so Pin and her had decided to meet at the café. Zoe had been so relieved that he had suggested Thursday, as it was Becky's day off. She didn't need her friend prying on them.

She arrived five minutes before time, and sat down at one of the tables, looking around. It was 3pm, and the café was half full. She then suddenly became nervous. //What if we don't have anything to talk about? What if he doesn't show up?// the questions were clogging up her mind, and she had to shake her head to come back to reality, when she noticed Pin walking in the door.

He looked around and their eyes met. He smiled at her and walked over to the table, sitting down opposite her. "Hi have you waited long?"he asked and she shook her head. Zoe couldn't help but stare at him. He wore a grey striped t-shirt, black jeans and a grey jacket. It was a change to see him in something other a than his Holloway uniform,and she smiled at him.

"So how are things going at Holloway?" she asked, not really sure how to start the conversation. He shrugged casually and took off his jacket, hanging it on the back of his chair. "We are training for Nationals, as are you", he told her and Zoe bit her lip, not knowing what else to say. She looked down at the table, her hands rubbing together nervously, when he reached out and put his right hand on hers. "I really didn't come here to talk about Holloway", he told her with a gentle smile. "I want to know about you", he inquisitived,and she gazed up at him, getting lost in his eyes.

"Well, what do you want to know?" she asked and stole a glance at his hand, which was still laying on top of hers. "Everything", he smiled, and Zoe couldn't help but laugh. "That's a lot", she told him raising an eyebrow. "I'm not in a hurry", he answered and they both chuckled.

They ordered a soda, and Zoe started to tell him about her life in LA, her mom, her dad, and why they came to the island. Pin listened patiently, and she felt so comfortable in his presence. She told him how she met Raven, about their ups and downs, and how she rescued him from the horse thieves. Suddenly she looked at the clock and two hours had gone by.

"Wow I have just rambled on about myself", she exclaimed, surprised that time had just flown by. "I enjoyed it", Pin told her with a genuine smile, and she grinned. "But I almost didn't get to hear anything about you", she told him, and he once more took her hand. "We'll get to that next time", he whispered, and she got goosebumps. "Will there be a next time?" she asked him, and leaned forward in her chair to be closer to him. "Definitely", he answered with a sly smile, and she felt warm inside.

Zoe stared at him, but suddenly noticed Mia and Marcus walking into the café. She quickly panicked, hoping that they wouldn't notice them .But within seconds, she got eye contact with Marcus. His smile faded as he noticed Pin sitting opposite her, and she swallowed hard. She knew that there were going to be a lot of questions asked, when she got back to Bright Fields.

Pin had noticed her getting tense and looked in the direction her eyes were fixed. He also got eye contact with Marcus, but didn't say anything. Pin nodded slowly, looking down at the table, moisteringhis lips. "I guess you haven't told anybody about this date", he mumbled, and Zoe looked at him. "Pin I'm sorry... I just... I just wanted to have this all to myself... Have you to myself", she finished, and started to blush. He smiled at her. "I understand", he said softly and pushed back his chair, standing up. "Wanna get out of here?" he asked and held out his hand to her. She nodded and took his hand, both of them grabbing their jackets, looking one last time at Marcus, before leaving the café.

They sauntered down the few steps in front of the café, then stopped, and Zoe looked to her right. "Well, I'm going this way... so", she trailed off, pointing in the direction she was going. Pin nodded and smiled at her. "Thank you, I had a really great time", he told her and put his hands in his pockets. "Me too", she answered and her knees felt weak, as she stared at him.

There was silence between them, for a minute, and Zoe could tell that he was thinking of something. "Do you wanna go for a ride tomorrow?"he asked her, finally finding his courage, and she thought that he was adorable. "Sure I would love to", she answered and he let out a sigh of relief, which made her chuckle. "I'll see you tomorrow then", he said softly, and she nodded, holding her breath, as he leaned in close and gave her a light kiss on the cheek. It was just a little peck, but it was enough to make Zoe's heart beat twice as fast. And she just stared at him open mouthed, as he turned and walked away. Then a smile formed on her lips, and as she started to walk home, she had never felt better.