I get out of my house just in time to see Zach turning the corner. I groan and start running after him. He walks through the streets at a brisk pace for a while before stopping at a corner.

As Zach looks over his shoulder, I quickly hide behind a trash bin, hoping he doesn't spot me. I curse under my breath as I slip and nearly fall. I warily peep out of my hideout. We reached a very doubtful are, which is known for its bad gang fights. I'm not surprised Zach lives here. It fits his bad boy appearance just right, yet I don't like seeing him in this place.

After making sure no one's chasing him, Zach rushes over to a stoop and easily takes the few steps with one jump. He inserts a key in the door lock and turns it. The next moment he vanishes inside the old and rundown building.

I peek over my shoulder, no one's around.

Now what? Should I just walk in and see what Zach's doing?

No, I would come across like a total weirdo. Maybe I should just be on my guard and only go in when I spot something suspicious.

My thoughts get interrupted by loud shouting. I freeze as I notice it clearly comes from Zach's apartment.

"Fuck!" I curse and sprint upstairs. I place my hand on the door handle and take one last, deep breath before I open the door as quietly as possible.

A tall, beefy man is standing just one or two yards away from me with his back turned towards me. He doesn't seem to have noticed me walking in. My heart races so fast that I can hear it pounding in my head.

"I know you hid it from me. Where the fuck is it?" I hear the stranger yelling.

"It's not here, T!"

That's Zach's voice. I can't see him as the other guy is blocking my view with his brawny back.

Without hesitation the man pulls out a gun and aims in the direction I assume Zach is standing.

Suddenly everything happens real quick. I look around the room in panic, my eyes are searching for anything to protect Zachary. I spot a baseball bat leaning against the wall in the corner and instantly run to grab it. In the next moment I aim for the back of the beefy man's head and hit him hard.

He slumps to the ground and I quickly run to Zach, who looks at me if he just saw a ghost. He seems to be unhurt though.

"Olivia?! What..." He gets interrupted by the slight movements of the muscleman lying on the ground.

Oh, seems I didn't hit him that hard after all.

"Let's get out of here!" Zach shouts and grabs my wrist.

He pulls me with him through the front door and down the stairs.

My heart skips a beat as I hear a roaring voice behind us.

"You fucking, little slut. I will kill you!"

I look over my shoulder and gasp as I see the guy, I just knocked down standing in the door frame. He points his gun directly at me and before I can react Zach pulls me with him once again.

"Run, Liv!" Zach yells and with that we start running down the street. I hear footsteps behind us, but don't dare to look back. A gunshot fills the air, makes me wince, and I instantly feel nauseous.

We pick up the pace and I hear a few more shots. Luckily, none of them hits Zach or me. We take the first corner and my legs slowly start burning, but we continue running as fast as we can.

Zach, who's still holding my hand, leads me through his neighborhood and eventually the footsteps behind us fade. I risk a glance over my shoulder. The guy is gone. He must have lost track of us.

Finally, we turn into my street, and I feel big relief flooding through my body as we rush right inside my house and slam the door shut behind us.

Zach and I bend forward, both struggling for our breath.

The next second, Zach grabs me by my shoulders, and faces me with his eyes wide open. I instinctively step backwards and feel the door against my back.

"Olivia..." His voice is nothing more than a whisper.

"Why?"

The sudden closeness leaves me at a loss of words. I just stare back into his piercing eyes with a shy look. Beads of sweat glisten on his forehead from all the running.

"Why did you follow me? I told you I don't want you to get involved! You could be dead by now!" his voice is low and weak.

I can feel his breath brushing my lips as he speaks and before I know what's happening, Zach's hot lips are pressed against mine and he cups my face in both his hands. His tongue desperately fights for entrance into my mouth and I allow it, completely taken by surprise. Zach pushes his body against mine, lets me feel every inch of his ripped chest. When a desperate moan leaves his lips, I realize what's happening and instantly push him away.

"What the fuck, Zach?!"

He looks at me in shock and runs his hand through his hair, turning away quickly.

"Shit! Sorry Liv. I don't know what came over me." He sighs and walks over to the living room where he plops down on the sofa, leaning back his head.

I follow him and sit down beside him.

"Uh... It's okay!" I breathe.

He looks up and faces me.

"Thank you for saving me!" he says and adds hardly audible, "...again!"

I just give him a shy smile in response and lean back, closing my eyes. I'm totally exhausted and my heart is still beating in my ears.

"Why?" Zach's whispering voice lets me look up again.

I tilt my head and face him quizzically.

"You don't even know me. Why did you just follow me, risking your own life for a stranger?" Zach asks me and watches me poignantly.

I think for a moment.

"I don't know myself, Zach!" I reply and shrug my shoulders.

Zach glances at me for a second and then smiles weakly.

"I'm glad you did though!" he retorts quietly and closes his eyes.

I sigh and start massaging my temples since they start hurting really bad. This day was meant to be a relaxed Sunday. Instead, I nearly got killed and had to run for my life.

I close my eyes and try to calm down.

~

As I open my eyes again, I hear soft snoring from my left side.

I blink sleepily and turn my head to spot Zach's head resting on my shoulder. His chest slowly raises and falls as he breathes peacefully.

I rub my eyes and stifle a yawn. The wall clock above the door tells me it's almost 3pm. Zach and I slept for nearly a full hour. I cautiously lift his head off my shoulder to get up.

Zach's eyes open and for a second he faces me completely lost. After he looked around the room, he sits up and yawns.

"Are you okay?" He asks with a worried frown.

"Yeah, I, guess." I nod and smile at him.

"How about you?"

"I'm fine. I'm used to this... This is my life ever since I can remember." Zach shrugs.

I know I should rather be mad at him for dragging me into this whole shit, but somehow, I feel sorry for him. Besides, I decided to help him and I'm a grown up, self-responsible woman, so I kind of dragged myself into it on my own.

As if he's reading my mind, he sadly says, "I'm sorry I caused you so much trouble, Liv."

"It's okay, Zach...," I answer with a sincere smile.

"No, and that's the fucking point Olivia." Zach raises his voice.

"It's not okay. Every time I enter somebody's life, I fuck it up." He sighs and looks down.

"I think I am the real problem. Everywhere I show up, bad shit happens!" He avoids making eye contact and fumbles with his fingers.

"To me, you don't seem like a dangerous or bad person at all," I try to encourage him in a soft tone.

Zach looks up with a dead serious face.

"Don't you dare doing this!" he whispers menacingly, and his eyes meet mine. They're cold and dark and he watches me warily.

"Doing what?" I look at him with a puzzled face.

"I don't want you to feel sorry for me. I'm just a fucked-up, pathetic guy whose mission it is to fuck up his life. I don't want to do the same to your life too..." Zach clenches his teeth and inhales deeply.

He jumps up and grabs his jacket.

"And I fucking won't!" he hisses, rushes to the door and speeds out.

I jump up and run after him.

"Zach, wait!" I try to keep up with him, but he's too fast. He turns the corner and as I reach it, he's already out of sight.

For a moment, I just stand there, breathing heavily, and feel completely lost. It's getting dark already, so I slowly turn around and head back home.

I call Abbey and tell her everything from the beefy guy and Zach's sudden fleeing. She is shocked about the fact someone actually tried to kill me. I talk about how strange I'm feeling when Zach's around and Abbey tries to cheer me up.

The rest of the day I just hang around in my apartment. I look up at every single sound I hear, thinking Zachary returns, but he doesn't.

***

It's almost 2pm the next day. I'm just about to serve some of Jack's burgers to a bunch of youngsters as I look through the window and spot Zach standing across the street. I nearly let drop the plates I'm holding and quickly serve the burgers and then rush outside just to see Zach turning the corner.

No way I'm chasing him again. I let out an angry snort and return inside.

Abbey, who's standing behind the counter, looks at me with widened eyes.

"Olivia, was that Zachary?" she questions me with a whisper.

"Yeah," I answer and scowl.

"God damn, Livie," Abbey states with raised eyebrows and lowers her voice, "He's fucking hot!"

"Come on Abbey, shut up!" I don't want to talk about Zach right now.

"I'm sorry, Livie... I just wasn't expecting such a hottie. You didn't tell me he was that good-looking!" Abbey shoots me an apologizing glance.

I look at my best friend and roll my eyes.

"It's probably the best if I don't see him again. He only causes problems in my life," I say with a firm voice and shake my head, as if convincing myself of the words I just said.

Abbey eyes me with a frown for a second. Suddenly her face lights up and a big, knowing smile appears on her lips.

"You like him," she states, and I instantly feel my face blushing.

"No! What gives you that idea?" I question her in disbelief, trying to keep my voice nonchalantly.

Abbey just smiles at me softly and remains silent. I close my eyes for a second and turn around to go back to work.

~

I'm on my way home as Abbey's words come back into my mind.

Maybe she has a point and I do like Zach?

One thing is certain, I can't stop thinking about him. No matter how hard I try to distract myself, his piercing eyes keep turning up in my head again and again.

I'm still not sure why exactly I put myself in danger just to help him. I could've died and it doesn't even bother me that much. It was as if the voice inside me had forced me to follow him.

A loud growl from my stomach interrupts my thoughts and I notice how hungry I am.

As I turn into my street, a full bag of foods in my hand, which I just bought on my way home, a familiar sight appears. Zachary is sitting on the doorstep of my house. I roll my eyes but can't help but smile in relief. I continue walking towards him and sigh before sinking down onto the steps beside him, putting the bag onto my lap.

Zach doesn't look up and we just sit side by side for a while without saying a word. Then he whispers barely audible, "I'm sorry!" He faces me sheepishly.

I lay my hand on his arm and squeeze it gently.

"Let's head inside," I say and get up, opening the door for both of us.

After hesitating for a second, he stands up and walks past me, inside the house.

In my apartment, I head straight to the kitchen to stow away the food I just bought.

"Hungry?" I question him without turning around.

"Uh... Yes, indeed. I haven't eaten since we had breakfast together yesterday," he mutters. His voice is different today. Softer and somehow reluctant.

I turn around and can't help but giggle at his sight.

Yesterday he appeared so harsh and unapproachable but right now, as he's standing there, he looks like a young boy, who behaved badly and is now afraid of getting scolded.

Zach tilts his head and squints at me with a questioning look. I turn around with a big grin on my face and start to prepare dinner.

"What's that face?" He steps closer.

"What face?" I ask without looking up.

"That face," he states and comes to a stop right beside me. Again, the closeness between us makes me nervous and I turn to face him. Zach's only inches away from me. He gently tucks a strand of hair back behind my ear, making me swallow.

"You're beautiful, Liv," he whispers with a soft voice.

I hold my breath and give him a shy smile.

I wonder where this sudden softness comes from.

I nervously turn away and continue cooking, even though I can't concentrate on it properly.

Zach clears his throat.

"Listen, Olivia. I want to tell you about Terrence and this whole thing. I want you to know what you're dealing with, so you can choose whether you're still willing to let me into your life." His voice is serious and quiet.

Surprised by Zach's words, I put the knife away and turn to face him again.

"Terrence? Is that the guy who tried to kill us yesterday?" I ask him slightly confused.

He nods.

"T is my stepbrother. I was willing to help him out with his drug trade once and since then he forced me to help him every time one of his minions fucked up a deal. The last mission he sent me on was a huge job."

He looks down, scratching his head.

"Oh..." Surprised by his sudden opening, I don't know what else to say.

"I told you I'm just a fucked-up guy, and I meant it." Zach shrugs and pulls himself up to sit on top of the counter.

"What was this huge job about?" I question him, purposely ignoring his last sentence.

"I had to hand over a big delivery and get the cash for it. The guy who ordered the drugs is a very dangerous and well-known gang leader. It was stipulated he shows up alone, but he brought the whole gang with him. Of course, he did..."

Zach lets out a sarcastic laughter.

"Well. Needless to say, he took the whole delivery and didn't pay. I was all by myself, so there was no chance for me to win a fight. So, I just ran off. Terrence was fucking fuming when I returned without the money. He had to pay his dealer and without the money he couldn't do it as arranged. So, he got into big troubles with his dealer and therefore he blames me."

Zach snorts and then adds with a bitter smile, "Who else?!"

"But you couldn't know that this gang dude would bring along his whole pack. This could have happened to anyone," I state in disbelief.

"Sure. But it happened to me, so it's me who's to blame." Zach shrugs his shoulders.

"T is a very bad brother, far less friend and if you are his enemy, you're as good as dead," he says with a scoff.

I let out a deep groan and then ask, "And what's that thing you wanted to get from your house?"

He leans to the side, so he gets better access to his pockets and pulls out a massive bundle of money. My eyes widen at the sight of all the banknotes.

"That's what my stepdad left for me. He started that drug business which T took over after his dad got shot," Zach says.

I look at him in shock.

"I'm sorry for your loss, Zach," I whisper empathically.

Zach shrugs his shoulders and smiles weakly.

"He was like the dad I never had. My mom died from cancer when I was ten and my biological dad left me and my mom when I was a baby. So, he was the only family I had left at that point. Terrence was always envious of the relationship I've had with his dad."

Zach closes his eyes and pauses for a second. Then he speaks on.

"He's a few years older than me and always accused me of ruining his relationship to his dad, but they never got along very well at all. When my stepdad died, T was so proud to take over his drug business, but when he heard about the money his dad left me, he was fucking fuming. Since then, he always tried to get it from me. And now after that fucked deal, he's more furious than ever and wants to get his revenge at any price. He says I owe him that money." Zach sighs deeply. It's visibly hard for him opening up like that.

"How much money is that, Zach?" I ask in a low voice.

"One hundred thousand," Zach states and raises his eyebrows.

My eyes widen and I look down at the money Zach's still holding in his hands.

"When I followed you yesterday, you got surprised by Terrence. When did you get the money then?" I ask him, thinking of the day before.

"I was able to get it before T noticed me." Zach shrugs his shoulders, and a mild smile passes over his face.

"You have to store it away, Zach!" I state and look into Zach's eyes.

"You can't carry it around with you. It's too risky."

"I don't know where," Zach says with a lost expression.

"My place is not safe as you know."

"You can hide it here," I say and quietly add, "... I mean. If you want. If you trust me."

Zach's expression is soft and his voice sincere as he replies, "There's no reason for not trusting you! You already did so much for me."

I smile at Zach's flattering words and look around, searching for a suitable place. I open the cupboard and bring out a small wooden box. My little brother once gave it to me as a birthday present with some family photos in it. I open the box and smile at the lovely memories before carefully taking out the photos and holding the empty box out to Zach.

He hesitates for a short moment and then puts the money in it. I close the box again and place it in the very last corner of the cupboard. He smiles at me slightly insecure.

"Is that you?" Zach points to the picture on top of the pile.

A faint smile appears on my face as I take it in my hand and eye it.

"Yes, that's me with my mum and my younger brother, Jude. They moved to Vancouver three years ago. The picture is from my mother's and my stepfather's wedding," I explain to him and Zach smiles softly at the photo in my hand.

"You miss them, huh?" he questions me in a low voice.

I nod sadly and lay the picture aside.

"So, what are we going to do about Terrence? How can we save you from his desire for revenge?" I then ask, changing the topic.

"Are you trying to say after everything I told you, you still want to harbor me and help me out of that shit?" Zach looks at me in disbelief.

"But I am already in the middle of it," I state, shrugging my shoulders before looking down and adding in a whisper, "...and for any reason I care about you... more than I'd like."

Zach slides down from the counter and faces me narrow-eyed.

With his forefinger and thumb he gently tilts up my chin until he's able to look into my eyes. He watches me as if he's trying to read out of my eyes what my last words mean before pulling me closer to his body.

Our faces are only inches apart and my eyes wander to Zach's perfectly shaped, full lips. He lowers his head until our noses nearly touch.

"Are you serious?" he asks in a whisper, searching my eyes and I just nod, not able to utter any words.

Then he fills the remaining space between us and gently presses his lips against mine. I let out the breath I was holding without noticing it. Zach cups my face in his big, strong hands, gently stroking my cheeks with his thumbs.

Wow! I never knew a kiss could waken such strong emotions in me.

I place my palms on his chest since I don't know what else to do with them and feel his muscles slightly tensing under my touch.

Zach's kiss is so tender and without any pressure. I can say for sure that I have never experienced a kiss like that.

After a few moments, he pulls back and rests his forehead against mine. Our eyes are still closed, and we stay like this for a second, both short of breath.

"Uhm..." Zach takes a few steps back and runs his hand through his dark hair.

I like this little motion he seems to always do when he's nervous or confused.

"You need some help here?" he asks, pointing to the mainly uncut tomatoes in front of me.

"Uh, sure...," I reply quickly and turn to continue cutting the vegetables.

"You can boil some water for the pasta," I tell him without looking up. My cheeks are glowing, and I feel slightly dizzy after our little intimate moment.

Zach quickly nods, grabs the pot, and pours in some water.

~

The next thirty minutes we prepare our dinner in silence. The atmosphere is slightly awkward. Neither Zach nor I dare to look at the other and every time we accidentally touch, we exchange nervous smiles.

Once finished with cooking we set the table, sit down opposite each other, and start eating.

I don't even feel hungry anymore. Zach on the other hand gulps down his food as if it's his last meal.

I watch him eating and suppress an amused smile.

Zach looks up and notices me watching him. He swallows down and then points on my nearly untouched plate.

"Aren't you hungry at all?" he questions.

"Not really, no," I reply and push back my chair to stand up.

"I'll be right back!"

Zach nods and I walk into to the bathroom.

I lean against the door and take a few deep breaths before looking at my reflection. My cheeks are still dark pink.

My thoughts wander back to our kiss and I instinctively touch my lips. I shake my head and force myself to stop.

What is happening to me?

I turn on the tap and splash some cold water into my red-hot face. Then I look back at myself in the mirror.

I'm not falling for him, am I?

I know him for not even a week. That even breaks the record for me as a sensitive plant.

I take one last deep breath and unlock the door.

Zach is just about to load the dishwasher as I close the bathroom door behind me. The kitchen is almost fully cleaned.

"Oh, thank you," I state in surprise. Zach smiles at me.

"Hey. About that kiss... I'm sorry if I took you by surprise. It's just..." He pauses and fumbles with his hands and then looks up and faces me.

"I'm not used to have people around me who actually care about me. This is new to me. Girls usually just want me for my body, and all my 'friends' turned their back on me eventually."

I don't say anything when he pauses for a moment and just look at him with an open smile.

"I don't trust anyone, but somehow with you it's different. I feel like you're the first person in a very long time who sees the real me. When I first looked into your blue, innocent eyes that one night I somehow knew you were different."

This is so cliché, it's like watching one of those movies. I feel a bit overwhelmed by his sudden confession, but his words come across honest and sincere.

Zach gaze drops and he speaks on in a low voice, "That's why I showed up. I asked you to give me shelter because I thought you could understand me. Then I was overwhelmed by your honest concern and ran off. Nevertheless, you are still determined to help me. That made me loose control for a second. I'm sorry!"

"I'm sorry you've never experienced being loved." I whisper and then add, "And don't worry about that kiss! I...uh..." I pause, searching for the right words.

"At least it was a good one," I then say and chuckle lightly.

A relieved smile plays upon Zach's lips.

"It was a good kiss, indeed," he agrees and steps closer.

I feel my face redden again and quickly ask, "Fancy a movie night?"

"So down!" Zach replies and we walk over to the couch and sit down next to each other.

After picking a movie we both lean back, and I place my feet on the coffee table. A few minutes later, Zach wraps his arm around my shoulder. I let it happen and hesitantly snuggle up to him smiling quietly.

I can't deny that it feels amazing being that close to him.