Again

Chapter 46

The ground opened up underneath him as he dodged, what seemed to be, asteroids falling all around him as he kept running.  He couldn't see where he was going, all he knew was he needed to run.  He took off as the shaking of the ground made him lose his balance.  His body felt out of control.

"Zac!" he heard a voice call.  He opened his voice to call back, but no sound came out.  The ground beneath him crashed again, "Zac, wake up!" he heard.  He was moving in slow motion now, his body becoming heavier and heavier with each step!  Another crash, another jolt; "Zac!" 

He snapped his eyes open, lying still, trying to take in his surroundings.  He turned his eyes to see his older brother's face, "Zac," Taylor called out, this time a little less loud, "Dude.  Do you know what time it is?  Are you okay?" he asked when he noticed his brother's expression.

Zac sat up a little bit, throwing the blankets off of him.  He was seating.  He moved his eyes across the room and saw his brother, Isaac, sitting in one of the lounge chairs next to the closet.  He furrowed his brow and turned back to Taylor, "Yeah, sorry I guess I was having a nightmare.  What time is it?" he asked as he rummaged around for his phone.

"9:27 in the morning," Taylor answered.  He removed himself from the bed as Zac got up and made his way to the bathroom.  He quickly turned on the water in the shower as he removed his boxers and grabbed his toothbrush and toothpaste.  When he emerged from the bathroom, his room was empty again.  He quickly got dressed, threw his shoes on, and went back to his bed to continue to look for his phone.  Once he'd found it, he stuffed it in his pocket.  He made his way down the stairs, and walked into the kitchen where Taylor and Isaac were waiting for him.

"Sorry.  I'm ready," he breathed out.

"You wanna ride with us or you wanna take your truck?" Taylor asked.

"I'll meet you guys there," Zac replied.  Taylor nodded.  He and Isaac rose from their seats as they made their way into the living room towards the front door.

"See ya, Kate," they called out in unison as they gave her a quick wave.  They continued outside.

"Shit, I didn't even see you sitting there," Zac said as he walked into the living room.  

"You alright?" Kate asked.  Zac stopped on his way to the front door and turned to face her.

"Yeah.  Why?" he asked.  

"You just seem distracted," she said.  She went back to reading her book as she sat on the couch.

"You not going in to work today?" he asked.

"I took the week off," she said.  

Zac hesitated, "Oh, alright," he said as he walked over towards her.  He bent over and kissed the top of her head, "I'll see you later."

"Have a good day," she said as she watched him walked out of the front door.  She let out a low sigh and went back to her reading.

By the time Zac was in his truck, his brothers had already left.  He was glad he'd chosen to drive his own vehicle to work.  The morning had started in such a whirlwind, and he could definitely use the drive over to get his thoughts together.  He started his engine, and began the ride to his office.  As soon as he stopped at the first light, he allowed his mind to wander.  Immediately, they went to Kayla and the night before.  He shook the thoughts out quickly, deciding now wasn't the time to get into them.  Instead, he thought about Kate.  He knew he still had to talk with her about the plan she'd proposed, and how exactly they'd go about executing it.  

He pulled into the parking lot of 3CG Records and huffed as he reached the back door.  He pulled it open and walked down the hallway toward his office.