Again

Chapter 16

A/N: This one's a bit of a filler, sorry!  A new update should be posted tomorrow.  Enjoy! :)

Kayla woke up from her sleep with a startled panic in her chest.  She immediately tried to remember if she'd been having a nightmare, but could only remember waking up feeling scared.  Not the actual cause of the panic.

She grabbed her phone and looked at the time, 2:14 A.M.

"Shit," she said out loud.  Ike had suggested she take a nap hours ago.  Sitting up, she reached over to her bedside table and grabbed the glass of water that Zac had left for her earlier.  She gulped it down, not realizing how thirsty she'd been.  She set the glass down, and then allowed herself to sink back into her bed, realizing that her stomach felt better.  

At the thought of that, Kayla shot straight up again into a sitting position.

"Shit," she repeated, this time slightly above a whisper.  "Shit, shit, shit," she said again as she got up and paced back and forth next to her bed.  She let out a deep breath before sitting on the edge of the bed, "Okay, Kayla, calm down and think.  Just think!  When's the last time you got your period?  It had to be at the beginning of the month right?  No that's not right.  Okay.  When is the last time you ate something gross.  The carnival?  No.  I mean, yeah carnival food is gross but no... worse than that?  Ugh, you sound crazy!" she said, stopping to realize for the first time that she'd been talking out loud.  She took another deep breath and closed her eyes, the answer to the real question plaguing her mind becoming more obvious.  Shaking her head, she re-grouped, "Okay, seriously, think Kayla.  Ketchup on your tacos?  Yes!  When was that?  The bowling alley with Olivia and Devyn.  When was that?" she continued to ask herself as she reached for her phone.  She opened up her text messages scouring for a message regarding their group date before her friends went off to spring break. "Yes! Here, finally!" she said opening the text message.  She looked at the date: March 23rd.  Her eyes grew wide.  The carnival and the incident that occurred that same night, were about about two weeks after that.  She counted on her fingers, mixing days and numbers up as she did.  She stopped and opened her phone again, checking the current day's date: May 7th. "Fuck!" Kayla said out loud throwing her phone back onto her bed.  Her eyes welled up with tears immediately.  This could not be happening.  

***

The sun seeped through Zac's window later that morning, waking him up.  Cursing himself for not making sure his curtains were completely closed before going to bed, he huffed and turned his back to the window, willing sleep to come over him again.  He laid for a few minutes before giving in to the fact that sleep wasn't going to happen again this morning.  He rose from his bed and made his way to the bathroom.  He relieved himself before washing his hands.  He brushed his teeth, washed his face and then brushed out his long hair.

"Maybe it is time to cut it," Zac said to himself as he looked in the mirror at his tresses.  His hair was the longest it had been.  He put his hairbrush away and made his way out of the bathroom.  He looked over to Kayla's room and noticed her door was open.  Making his way over, he quietly peeked into the room only to find that she wasn't there.  He walked back into his own bedroom and sat on his bed, grabbing his phone and flipping it open.

One New Text Message From: Kayla
Morning sleepy head.  Took Taylor to his last fitting and his haircut appointment.  Text me when you wake up.

Zac smiled at himself.  Here goes Kayla, too sick to sit up one day, running everyone around town the next.  He hit "reply" and typed out a text back to her.

Zac: Hey.  I'm up.  
Kayla: Why? lol jk morning.  but seriously why are you awake?
Zac:  I forgot to close the curtains last night.  Did you sleep good?  Where are you btw?
Kayla: That dreaded sun, how dare he?! :) I did sleep good, thank you.  I feel better.  We are finishing up at the tux shop, heading to Claire's after then probably to get food.  Wanna meet us?
Zac:  Yeah I probably will.  Text me when you're done at the tux shop so I know how much longer so I can stop my stomach from eating itself.
Kayla: Haha!  I doubt it will listen to you when it needs food.  Walking out of the tux shop now so I'm thinking less than an hour.  Text you in a few once we decide where we're going.  love you!