Our Last Moments

Chapter 2

I wake the next morning to bright sunlight streaming through the windows. It's winter so it must be pretty late. I try to count how much homework I'm going to have to make up this weekend. My arm falls to my side, and I suddenly pat the bed urgently, not finding Zachs body next to mine. I look around the room, when the door opens and he walks in, carrying a pile of my clothes, and my backpack.

"Hey Gallagher girl, how're you feeling?"

"Much better. I slept so well last night" I say truthfully.

"I'm glad."

"What time is it?"

"11:30, your mom figured that you could resume classes after lunch? Since I'm not technically fully on the curriculum yet, she said that I could stay with you to make sure you're okay."

"Thank you"

"It's really not that big a deal"

"No, for everything. Especially the past few days"

"Anytime Cam" he sets the clothes down on my bed and I sit up. I check over the clothes quickly to make sure everythings there, when a thought pops up in my head.

"You didn't go through my underwear drawer did you?" I ask, turning bright red, while he suppresses a laugh.

"nooo...I was going to. Trust me I would have been happy to" he smirks at me. "but then your mom decided to come with me and grab everything for me" he playfully snaps his finger in a "damn" expression.

"She's a wise woman"

"Oh c'mon Gallagher girl, even if I did would you even care that much?"

"No." I say truthfully with a shrug. I pause for a moment. "Can you help me get up?" I hate being this weak but those drugs were insanely strong. I don't want to think about how bad I was to warrant this medication in the first place.

"Of course" he says, and he grips my hand with one of his, and my elbow with the other as he slowly pulls me out of the bed. I stay sitting upright on the edge of the bed for a second, letting my head adjust, and then I stand up slowly. His grip loosens as I take a step, but I my legs buckly underneath me and I feel myself falling before Zach hauls me back up.

"Are you okay?" his voice filled with concern.

"Yeah I'm fine, just a little woozy from the sedatives"

"Yeah, that's strong stuff"I nod in agreement. I take another few steps and Zach keeps his grip on me. After five or so, I can walk pretty much on my own and Zach looks relieved to see me able to function normally.

"Do you need help getting dressed?" he asks. It's a cheeky question on the surface, but I know that he is genuinely offering to help. As amazing as that sounds right now, as I'm still not 100%, I'm not quite ready for him to help me like that yet.

"No I'll be okay. But could you wait outside, you know in case anything happens?" I hate showing this much vulnerability.

"Of course. I'll be right outside the door." When I hear the door close, I slowly pull off my short pajama shorts. I reach for my t-shirt, to find a black hoodie instead. How did I not notice it before? It's not mine...I'm confused until I realise who's it is. It's Zachs. He must have put it on me at some point in the past 24 hours when I was sleeping. I pull the neckline up to my nose to confirm, and sure enough, Zachs scent engulfs me and I'm reluctant to take it off. I quickly throw on new underwear and tiny shorts to go under my light and dark blue, and white kilt. I button up my white shirt and throw on my navy vest on top of it. I pull on my worn out converse, and then shrug on Zachs hoodie again. I can't bring myself to leave it off, and technically I'm not breaking any uniform rules since everything's underneath. I slowly pad towards the small bathroom connected to my room, and rumage through the bag of toiletires that my mom/Zach brought me. Speaking of my mom, I wonder where she's been the past day that I've been here? I comb my hair and brush my teeth, then apply a little bit of makeup to make me look less pale than I am. I then throw on some eyeliner and mascara because who could it hurt to look a little better for my boyfriend. My mom knows girls very very well. You know considering the fact that she's the headmistress of an all girls school and all. But more importantly, she knows me better than anyone, except for Liz, Macey, Bex and Zach of course, and knows that I want to return to normal as fast as possible.

"You can come in now" I call through the door, and I hear it open and close. Zach stands leaning against a wall as I come out of the bathroom. He grins a little when he sees the sweatshirt still on me.

"Thanks for the hoodie" I say.

"Anytime. It looks much better on you than it does on me anyway." He smirks again.

"Good because I'm not taking it off, and you're not getting it back."

"Fine by me" he says, and he picks up my backpack for me as we leave the room. We walk slowly through the hallways, as we have a few minutes before lunch and I'm still trying to walk off the drugs. By the time we make it to the grand hall, I'm already exhausted, and it is already packed full of girls of all ages, stuffing their faces with tomato soup and grilled cheese. It's one of my favourite meals that Chef Louis makes.

I thought that I got a lot of stares when I walked into the grand hall with Liz and Bex in our sophomore year when our hair was literally an afro from an electric shock in a failed trial of Dr Fibs' new "no electric shock" formula for extra credit. I thought that I got a lot of stares when I returned from summer vacation a month late, with no memory, and a uniform that fit a version of me that was 15 pounds heavier. I thought that I got a lot of stares when I walked into the grand hall with my hair its usual colour again and holding a boys hand. It turns out that that is nothing compared to that day when I walked into the grand hall with Zach by my side. Looks like my roomates weren't the only ones to have heard my screams and the commotion surrounding them. From the looks of it my entire school has heard. Add that to the fact that I have walked in with a boy who happens to be holding my hand (this is completely deja vu) and carrying my backpack, who I happen to be wearing the sweater of. I can feel myself blushing, and Zach rubs soothing circles on the palm of my hand as we walk to the senior table and take our usualy seats. I'm glad to sit down, because although I'd never admit it, I'm completely dead after that short walk.

"Are you okay Cammie?" Courtney and Eva ask simultaneously, the rest of our table chiming in. I don't know what to say and am at a loss for words.

"I...Uh...I" So many stares. So many people. So many words. Yet nothing comes out, I can't stay anything.

"She's fine guys, just a small panic attack from what happened this summer. It's nothing to be worried about and she'd really appreciate it if you didn't talk about it anymore" Zach answers for me. The rest of the girls give us "you two are so adorable smiles" as I lean into Zach's shoulder and he wraps and arm around my shoulders, and presses a quick kiss to my forehead.

"thank you" I whisper so that only he can hear me. I'm okay with this type of attention. I know that I have something that they'll never have. Something, or someone, that makes me happy all of the time. For some unknown reason he chose me, and I choose him. Every single day.