I know this is an early update but I just finished writing this phase of the story and I am SO DESPERATE for you guys to read everything! I'm so excited about what's happening! I have been waiting to finally hit this part of Teddy and Zoe's lives for literal years! Also, this is gonna be the last chapter of 2019 which is super cool because the first phase of this story also ended last December. How fitting. Each phase takes me about a year to write and publish. And in the story we only made it two months.. 😅😂

~

"Can I ask you a super personal question?" Teddy asked with his phone pressed to his ear as he inspected the box of condoms in his hand.

"How personal?" Howl asked as he lounged back against his bed and through his free hand behind his head.

"Like... dick-size-personal." Teddy grimaced, keeping his voice down so others that might be in the convenient store didn't hear him.

"Dick-size-personal? Wow... Do you actually want to know how big my dick is or are we just talking about something equivalent to that topic?" Howl chuckled.

"I don't want to know measurements or anything. I don't want anymore information about your dick than necessary but..." Teddy raised his eyes to the rows and rows of condoms sitting in front of him. "You've bought condoms before, right? I assume you have safe sex, especially with multiple sexual partners. How do you know which ones to get?"

"Are you buying condoms?" Howl perked up with a soft gasp. "To have sex? You? With who? Please tell me you're going to have sex with Zoe and finally put us all out of our misery."

Teddy let a heavy sigh fall off his chest as he rolled his eyes. "You don't know need to know anymore information than is necessary, Howl. The point is, I'm staring at four shelves of condoms and I don't know what the hell I'm looking for. Which ones do you use?"

Howl happily snickered to himself and relaxed again. He could not have been more pleased with the reality that Teddy Morgan was getting ready to finally have sex, likely, with Zoe Yang. Everything was finally falling into place.

"I just grab the Trojan ones, to be honest." Howl shrugged.

"Well, that's a bit vague, Howl." Teddy groused and reached for the black box with the Trojan brand on it. "Holy shit. This one says Extra Large. Whaaat the fuuuck?"

Howl laughed at the shock in Teddy's reaction but also laughed at how quietly he had exclaimed said reaction. He could tell Teddy was trying to be quiet in a public place and compromising setting but he was still blown away by what he was looking at. Howl actually wished he could have went condom shopping with Teddy to see his reaction to everything. It had been awhile since awhile since Howl was a virgin and even longer since he had virgin eyes.

Howl couldn't imagine how funny it would be to drag Teddy into a raunchy sex shop.

"Judging by your reaction, you do not need Extra Large." Howl laughed.

"No, I do not." Teddy grumbled as he put the black box back and reached aimlessly for another Trojan box. "I mean, I'm not small... Not that I'm trying to save face or whatever the fuck because I know I have to be forthright here but... I'm also not like... huge, either. It's just a dick. It's average.."

"That's good to know." Howl snorted a laugh. "No weird bumps or extra testicles we have to worry about?"

"Oh, shut up, Howl." Teddy retorted and Howl laughed. "And don't say we as if you and I have to worry about my dick. Only I have to worry about my dick."

"And Zoe. I mean, if it's going inside of her, I'm sure she has plenty to worry about." Howl teased.

Teddy could feel his face heat in embarrassment at how shamelessly Howl was willing to say something so crude. Teddy was trying not to think about this too deeply otherwise he was either going to sink into the floor or have to find a restroom somewhere to deal with himself. The dreams in the middle of the night were enough, he couldn't just walk around picturing himself inside of Zoe. The very graphic and explicit image was too much for him.

"Howl, are you going to help me with this or not?" Teddy quietly groaned, checking over his shoulder to make sure nobody had joined him in this isle and was overheating anything personal.

"I'll help, I'll help." Howl chuckled. "Just tell me what you're looking at and I'll try to help you choose something. And go for something of average size for now. If it's too big or small, the convenient store is right across the street from Zoe's anyways so you can buy new ones in a pinch, no problem."

Teddy rolled his eyes, knowing Howl was purposefully inserting Zoe into this conversation just to tease him. He wasn't wrong, though. It wasn't like Teddy was buying these to prepare himself for any other woman. It was only Zoe. She was the only one he could even picture himself with at the moment. She had consumed him and claimed residence in that dirty, hidden, embarrassing part of his brain.

"These ultra thin ones scare me, if I'm being honest. I mean, how thin can they get? That can't be safe. I can't imagine these are very durable." Teddy frowned down at the new box his hand.

"If it's latex and depending on the circumstance, that can be dangerous. Well.. things that aren't latex have their own downfalls as well I suppose. Nothing is 100% guaranteed." Howl said.

"How do you mean?"

"Well, temperature can weaken latex so if the condom is in your back pocket or something and you let it warm up for too long, there's a possibility it could break. And oil-based lubes can wear down a latex condom pretty easily so choose water-based lubes if you're thinking about it. Which is also important if there's a lot of friction, like if Zoe isn't wet enough. Condoms can break with too much friction and then you'll need lube—water-based lubes—if you've got a latex condom."

"Oh my god, how do you know all of this?" Teddy groused and tossed the ultra thin condoms back on the shelf.

"Safe sex is important to me, Teddy. Do you not remember me telling you about the lube I got Fisher for his first time? I have my priorities."

"Yeah, yeah, I remember." Teddy chuckled. "But I don't remember you telling me about which condom you bought? Because your little lesson about latex condoms only made this harder for me. Ultra thin is no longer an option now."

"I'm not saying ultra thin is unsafe, Teddy. I'm just saying you have to be careful. You should be careful no matter what, honestly. Thin or thick, you can still break them if you're uneducated."

"Then tell me which ones to get!" Teddy complained. "I'm getting dizzy over here, Howl. There's some targeted towards men's pleasure and women's pleasure and there's a Fire & Ice one here that also looks fucking terrifying. There's like eight varieties of ribbed condoms and there's even flavored ones at the bottom."

"Are you more concerned with Zoe's pleasure or your pleasure?" Howl asked with a smirk on his face, ignoring Teddy's request for a simple answer just so he could dive even further into Teddy's mind.

"Stop saying her name." Teddy lowly growled. "You can't just assume that I'm going to have sex with her."

"Why else would you be buying condoms, Teddy? To have sex with Kim?"

"No! That ship sailed a long time ago. I don't want to have sex with her."

"Then are they for me? You want to fuck me?"

"I would rather strangle you with my bare hands right about now, Howl."

Howl laughed but Teddy ground his teeth together in annoyance. "Just answer the question, Teddy. Are you tempted to buy the ones that are ribbed for her pleasure or not?"

"Of course, it's a temptation, Howl. I want it to be good for her. I don't just want to piston in and out of her until she gets bored. But I don't know which kind she wants so what if the ribbed ones freak her out like this Fire & Ice one freaks me out?"

"Like I said, Teddy, the convenient store is literally right across the street. You could even buy ten different ones now if you end up hating one of them when the time comes." Howl reassured.

"That's a lot of condoms, Howl. I'm gonna look like such a perv pulling out ten different types of condoms and asking Zoe to try them out with me." Teddy groused and scoffed in disgust at the idea.

"You just admitted you're going to have sex with Zoe! Ha ha!" Howl cheered in triumph.

"Oh fuck off! I'll do this myself!" Teddy groaned and pulled his his phone from his ear.

Luckily, Howl was loud enough to catch him before he couldn't hear him anymore and hung up. "Wait! Let me help! I know what you should get!"

Teddy groaned once more as he raised his phone to his ear again. "What? Which one? Hurry up."

"I've used the ultra thin ones, Teddy. I know I scared you but they're safe, especially for you, an innocent virgin, who isn't about to get into any risky bdsm stuff. Find ones that say extra lubricant too because that's important for the inexperienced ones. And you don't have to tell me what you pick, I know you won't, but grab whatever third option entices you." Howl calmly explained, making this process a whole lot less embarrassing just by the casual demeanor in his voice.

"You want me to buy three packs of condoms, Howl?" Teddy groused as he grabbed a box. "There's like ten to twenty of these fuckers in these boxes."

"I want you to be well prepared, Teddy. Multiple condoms with multiple uses." Howl defended.

"Yeah, alright. Thanks, Howl. You always prove to be a big help but it always seems to come with a cost."

"What cost?" Howl asked.

"Your big, unfiltered mouth." Teddy retorted.

"Ehh, it's part of my charm, Teddy."

"Yeah, I guess so. See ya, Howl."

"Good luck Teddy~"

Teddy sighed and hung up on Howl, shoving his phone in his back pocket before he returned to staring at the condoms stacked in front of him. He eventually reached for the ultra thin condoms and extra lubricated condoms, like Howl advised. They looked like good options so Teddy didn't have much to complain about. The third option, however, had Teddy stunted for a moment. There were so many options and all were so foreign to him. Ultimately, Teddy gave up on making his own decision and simply walked off.

The desire to get out of here and run from this anxiety within him was far greater than his desire for another pack of condoms. Finally coming to a definite decision on which condoms he would be using suddenly got Teddy's heart pounding, though. This didn't mean they would definitely be doing it together but now... the door was open. The could if they truly wanted to. Protection was no longer a concern or excuse that would hold them back.

Teddy's thoughts were thrusted in a whole new direction when he nearly ran into someone who was stepping into the isle while he was rounding the corner to step out of it. For a moment, it was just a mess of blonde hair and pink fur as the girl yelped in surprise at the man she nearly collided with and took a stumbled step back. Luckily, Teddy realized who it was before she did and put his hands behind his back in the blink of an eye.

"Z-Zoe?" Teddy stammered in surprise with his eyes wide and heart hammering against his sternum. Zoe stared back up at him, looking just as shocked at his presence as he was by hers. "I thought you were home..."

Zoe's mouth opened as she tried to speak but she was still reeling with internal embarrassment. She was trying to come up with some kind of excuse but she was so caught off guard that she couldn't think about anything besides the fact that she came here for condoms and then suddenly Teddy appeared. There was no way she could tell him why she was here. She could barely have this embarrassing conversation with Carmen. There was no way she was going to say a thing to Teddy.

"And I thought you left for work..." Zoe awkwardly forced a smile as she pointed at him. Maybe it was just his overwhelming anxiety in this moment but Teddy looked bigger than usual. "What are you doing here?"

"Grabbing a snack." Teddy lied, relieved by how quickly that lie came to him. "We were on a bus for six hours and now I have to run to the shop for another few hours. Didn't get to eat. At all."

"Oh. Right... Of course." Zoe nodded in understanding as her eyes descended down Teddy's broad chest and his sleek leather jacket.

That made sense. He must be hungry.

"What are you doing here?" Teddy cautiously asked, slyly attempting to take the attention off of himself.

Zoe's eyes snapped up to Teddy's and she simply shrugged. "Grabbing a snack. Same as you. I was craving gummy bears.."

"Gummy bears. Yum." Teddy said.

Zoe silently nodded, her forced smile awkwardly fading as she dropped her gaze. Teddy was also silent, anxiously fidgeting with the boxes hidden behind his back as he looked over Zoe's head at the register a few feet away. They were both desperate to get out of this exchange but didn't know how to do so with this tension hanging between them. Teddy had boxes to hide as he passed her and Zoe had to figure out how to linger without revealing that her target was the shelves of condoms a few feet from them.

They just stood in silence.

And more silence.

Their eyes awkwardly shifting and hands fidgeting.

"I've got to get to work." Teddy suddenly blurted, deciding to simply rip the bandaid off and make a run for it.

Zoe's brown eyes lifted to meet his and she understandably nodded. "Right! Of course. Work.. See you later, Teddy."

"Yeah. Bye.." Teddy said.

Teddy attempted to sidestep Zoe so he could escape and she also attempted to sidestep him to let him through the isle. They both went in the same direction, however, and Zoe reflexively put her hands to Teddy's chest as she stumbled a step back from him. Their eyes met again but neither of them said anything as they sidestepped in unison on the other direction to get out of each others way. Zoe had to bit back a laugh as she kept her head down.

"You go left, I'll go right." Teddy calmly instructed as a he took a deep breath.

"Okay." Zoe quietly agreed.

Teddy took a step to his right and Zoe took a step to her left, which put them in the same direction for a third time. Zoe put a hand in front of her mouth to stifle a laugh but quickly collected herself before she looked up at Teddy with her bottom lip between her teeth.

"I meant my left... Not yours." Teddy cringed.

"Right.. We both go right.." Zoe blushed.

"Right. I mean, correct." Teddy cleared his throat.

This time Zoe took a step to her right and Teddy also took a step to his right as they both tilted their bodies so they didn't hit each other's shoulders. As they passed, Teddy was able to slip the boxes into his jacket with one hand as he lifted the other to wave a silent farewell to Zoe. Zoe also waved a goodbye with a shy smile and watched him leave the isle. She wanted to make sure he was out of sight before she directed her attention towards the condoms.

When he was out of sight and checking out with the cashier, nervously looking over his shoulder to make sure Zoe didn't catch him or sneak up behind him, Zoe pulled her phone out of her pocket to make a call.

"Howl, I need your help with something.." Zoe whispered, peaking out of the isle to see Teddy leaving the store with his bag in hand, clenched close to his body.

"I'll help you, Princess. I'm helping everybody tonight. But why are you whispering?" Howl asked on the other side of the phone.

"Because I'm looking for condoms and I just ran into Teddy and almost completely embarrassed myself. He could've just caught me looking, which would have been your fault!" Zoe whisper-yelled as she rushed down the isle to get to the condoms at the end.

"You almost ran into Teddy? On your way to get condoms?" Howl asked, bewildered by the strange sequence of events that was unraveling. "Why would that have been my fault?"

"Because you're the one who encouraged me to seduce him and now, here I am, looking for condoms." Zoe sighed. "How embarrassing."

"But he didn't see you looking for condoms?" Howl asked with a bit of suspicion in his tone.

"No."

"What did you see him getting?"

Zoe looked back towards the counter lined with registers, despite the fact that Teddy was already gone, and shrugged to herself. She didn't actually see what he was buying. She didn't even see anything in his hand when they had briefly ran into each other. Zoe was so caught up in her own anxiety that she didn't even think about it.

"I don't know. I didn't see what he had in his hands. He just said he was grabbing a snack for work." Zoe said.

Howl snorted a laugh. "Oh, you two little idiots. You're so made for each other."

"What's that suppose to mean?" Zoe gasped.

"Nothing, nothing." Howl chuckled before forcing the conversation forward. "You're looking for condoms, right? Don't know which to choose?"

"Yeah..." Zoe cringed as she stared at the array of condoms in front of her.

Howl recalled his conversation with Teddy and began spewing everything he told Teddy. He advised Zoe about his personal choices so that she knew he was speaking with experience, not just aimlessly firing. He then told her the same thing about water-based lunes, if she was considering the option, but reassured her that Teddy would treat her just fine so he hoped she would be quite wet enough. Zoe had to stifle an embarrassed groan as she blushed but let Howl continue on his rant.

"And you should choose a third one that entices you. I would recommend Fire & Ice but I'm not that big of a jerk." Howl snickered.

"Why? Is Fire & Ice a bad one?" Zoe curiously whispered as she reached for said box of condoms and inspected in.

"Not that I know of." Howl shrugged with a big grin on his face. "It's just a bit intimidating to some virgins, I hear. Might be fun, though."

"No, I don't want it either.." Zoe muttered and put the box back. She looked around at the boxes as she tried to make a decision. "Oh my god... There's an Extra Large pack here. How big are these? How big is Teddy...?"

"I can't tell you if those Extra Large ones are good or not. They're a bit snug on me, but of course, it's going to be different for others." Howl jokingly bragged.

"Oh, shut up, Howl." Zoe laughed and put the box back.

"You don't believe me, Zoe?"

"I never thought about it until now but no, I do not believe you need extra large condoms. Not when you have to brag about it."

"It could be true. You'd never know."

"I guess it could be." Zoe chuckled and rolled her eye. She still didn't believe him but she was going to move on anyways. "Have you ever tried these flavored ones? These look cool."

"Of course, you, little angel, virgin saint, Zoe Yang would go for the flavored condoms." Howl scoffed.

"What? I have wants and desires just like everybody else!" Zoe defended as she inspected the box of flavored condoms in different varieties. "Ooh! Strawberry, banana—that's ironic—grape, blueberry, pineapple. These are cool."

"Are you seriously going to pick the flavored condoms, Zoe? You're going to scare him." Howl blurted.

"Scare him? Why would this scare him? It's not like he's the one that has to put these in his mouth."

"No, it's just... Teddy scares easily. Although, it's you, so he's probably willing to do a lot of things as long as you're involved."

"You don't know that, Howl.."

"Well, we can hope, right? You've got flavored condoms in your hand, Zoe. Let's hope he's willing to do a lot of things as long as you're involved." Howl smirked, the expression audible in the lightness of his voice.

"Okay, that's fair." Zoe giggled. "I'll just stick with these, then. Thank you for the help, Howl."

"No problem, Princess." Howl happily smiled on the other side of the phone. "Have fun, be safe, and tell me every fucking detail when it's over. Promise me."

Zoe scoffed and started towards the register with the three boxes in hand. "I will tell you some details, depending.."

"That's good enough for me, babe."

"It better be."

-

"Come look at this, Zoe." Carmen chimed as she pointed at the screen of the laptop in front of her.

Zoe stepped away from the fridge to stand at Carmen's side at the dining table. She wasn't surprised to see the website for a water park pulled up on the computer but it did make her blush. Zoe even glanced guiltily towards Teddy, who was in the living room with a big smile on his face, an Xbox controller in his hand, and Bailey in his lap as she watched him play. He was completely oblivious to the lewd thoughts flashing through Zoe's mind and it made her feel ashamed.

"They have a perfect little indoor kiddy pool and there's a dry activities area with a mini rock climbing wall for Bailey and a whole jungle gym." Carmen explained in awe as she scrolled through different photos on the website. "It's so crazy. It looks like a baby version of an indoor amusement park, if that existed."

"Yeah. It's nice." Zoe nodded, although, her mind was distracted. "Might be a lot of work to keep track of Bailey and Malik at the same time, though. And one of them could get hurt. Sounds dangerous, honestly."

Carmen shot Zoe a playful, knowing glare and scoffed at her. She could tell Zoe was trying to talk her out of this overnight trip. "I am perfectly capable of taking care of my children in any environment, Zoe. I'll keep them within five feet of me at all times around the water and then Malik can stay in his stroller while Bailey is on the rock climbing wall. I've got it all covered."

"And what about me? You're not going to be here for me." Zoe pouted and cried as she threw her arms over Carmen's shoulders to lay heavy and sad like a child. "I'm so scared.."

"I told you, Zoe, you don't have to do anything." Carmen reassured, although she still laughed, and gently caressed Zoe's arms. "If you're not comfortable making a move or you're not ready to lose your virginity, then you guys can just stay in, order a pizza, and watch a movie."

Zoe glanced towards Teddy, thankful that he couldn't hear them from across the house with his video game volume so loud. "But if I don't take this chance... what if I never get another one and I regret passing up this opportunity? Or, even worse—what if I make a move and Teddy rejects me. I will literally die of embarrassment and sadness, Carmen. I will stop breathing."

"You got this, baby girl." Carmen confidently declared as she crane her neck to look into Zoe's brown eyes. She was still pouting and she looked like a little puppy when she pouted. "When the moment is right and you're comfortable, you're gonna kill it. I know you will."

Zoe only whined even harder and buried her face in Carmen's shoulder. She wasn't scared of losing her virginity, and with Teddy as her target, it sounded perfect. The only thing that scared Zoe was possibly being rejected. Everything she got close enough to Teddy to finally satiate some of her hunger, he ran like the wind only a moment later. The only thing that he had warmed up to recently was holding her hand. Maybe she was rushing this if that was all he was willing to do right now.

Zoe's internal dilemma and her dramatic sulking were interrupted, though, when the gate buzzer chimed throughout the house. Zoe raised her head and looked towards the door, curious as to who would be approaching the house without knowing the code. Carmen and Teddy were also curious, both drawing their attention away from the screens they were staring at, but only Teddy moved. The second he saw Zoe take a step towards the door, he reflexively moved to beat her to it.

Teddy was still careful in tossing his controller aside and lifting Bailey out of his lap before he jogged towards the front door but he still got to it before Zoe. She skidded to a halt beside him and stared at him in awe when she realized how fast he ran to the door.

"Who is it?" Teddy called into the iPad by the front door that was linked to the entire security system in the house.

"Edible Arrangements. Special Valentine's Day delivery for Zoe Yang." The guy in the truck on the other side of the gate said.

Teddy's eyebrows furrowed and he glanced at Zoe, who simply shrugged. Teddy even looked towards Carmen but she didn't look like she knew what was going on either. Very reluctantly, Teddy pressed the button to open the gate and watched out the window in the front door as the white delivery truck slowly ascended the driveway.

"Did you order that?" Teddy asked Zoe just to confirm.

"No. Sounds neat, though." Zoe said.

"Yeah.. But it could be dangerous,." Teddy frowned and slipped on his work boots. "You stay inside and keep the door shut."

Zoe snorted a laugh. "What? Do you think it's a bomb or something? It's suppose to be just a basket of fruit that's shaped like flowers."

"I know, I know. Just don't move." Teddy calmly insisted before he threw the front door open and slipped outside.

Zoe stayed inside and hugged herself from the cool chill that fought its way inside when Teddy left. He stayed close to the front door and tried not to shiver in the cold as the delivery truck rolled to a stop and a man hopped out to retrieve the order. Teddy studied the truck driver but he didn't see anything fishy about him. He was just a guy, kinda older, in his normal uniform, jacket, and winter gloves. Even the truck seemed legit. It didn't look like anybody was about to get kidnapped and the guy didn't look like the type to be carrying a weapon.

"Happy early Valentine's Day, young man." The older gentleman offered a smile as he approached with a basket in his hands.

Teddy could tell the older gentleman had been making deliveries all day by the redness of his nose and cheeks, which made him seem even more legit.

"To you as well.." Teddy reluctantly replied as he accepted the basket.

The older gentleman only nodded his head and hurried back to his truck before he descended down the driveway and returned to the street. Teddy looked at the basket and turned it twice to make sure there wasn't anything suspicious. He even held it to his ear to make sure their wasn't a ticking bomb hidden inside. There wasn't. It didn't smell weird either. Granted, there was too much plastic covering to smell much in the first place.

"Who's it from?" Zoe excitedly asked once Teddy stepped back inside.

"I don't know. It looks like there's a little card inside, though." Teddy said with a permanent frown.

Zoe followed close behind Teddy as he brought it into the kitchen and she could hear Bailey audibly gasp from the living room when she realized what Teddy had in his hand. Carmen wanted to join them but she had to hurry and pluck Malik out of his walker first so she could share some fruit with him as well. Teddy still had his eyes glued to the basket of cut up, chocolate covered, and funnily shaped and arranged fruits. He didn't trust this.

"Look at those chocolate covered strawberries!" Zoe gasped from just over Teddy's shoulder as she stood on her tippy toes to try and look at it. "Those pineapple flowers look so cute too!"

"Here's the card." Teddy reached to pluck the card from the arrangement once the plastic wrapping was peeled off and turned it over to read the note aloud to Zoe and Carmen. "From your secret admirer. Z."

"It's from Z or for Z?" Zoe asked with a cocked eyebrow. That was a very odd and ominous way to leave a letter.

"The delivery guy said it was for you." Teddy shrugged.

"Zoe, why are you hiding?" Carmen chuckled as she joined Zoe and Teddy around the kitchen island with Malik in her arms and Bailey glued to her leg.

Teddy lifted his arm and twisted to look behind him, realized that Zoe was much closer to him than he realized and even looked like she was ducking for cover. Just a moment ago she was making fun of him for being suspicious of this package and now she was hiding from it like it was about to attack. Teddy was bewildered.

"I'm just making sure there's no kiwi before I get close to it.." Zoe admitted.

"Are you scared of kiwi?" Carmen teased.

"No. I'm actually deathly allergic."

"What?!" Teddy exclaimed and dropped his arm to hold it protectively in front of Zoe to keep her a safe distance from the fruit. Zoe, Carmen, and even, Bailey flinched at his booming voice as they all looked up at him. "You're not going anywhere near this, then. No. Absolutely not. Give this thing a very wide birth, Zoe."

Zoe's jaw dropped as she stared back at Teddy. "You're telling me no? I got a giant bouquet of arranged, chocolate covered fruits delivered to me and you're telling me I can't have any of it?"

"Every single fruit in this bunch could be contaminated somehow, Zoe. You can't have any. I don't want to bring you to the hospital because some dumbass fan tried to spoil you." Teddy declared.

"You think a fan ordered it? Not someone from school or something?" Zoe asked, completely forgetting about the kiwi.

"That's not the point." Teddy glowered.

"Should we try it for you? Make sure there's no kiwi. I don't see anything so far anyways." Carmen proposed.

"Sure." Zoe shrugged.

There was an overwhelming amount of chocolate covered balls skewered on wooden sticks. So many of them actually that Teddy went for one of the sticks first while Carmen aimed for the pineapple pieces shaped as flowers. She handed one to Bailey and shared a bite with Malik as she ate a second one. Meanwhile, Teddy pulled one of the chocolate covered balls off the skewer with his teeth and chewed it to make sure it wasn't kiwi.

Luckily, Carmen didn't taste any kiwi in her pineapple so at least they knew the other fruits weren't tainted and Teddy was munching on a chocolate covered cherry. Zoe anxiously waited as she watched Teddy and Carmen eat, her mouth already salivating as she imagined just how good it all tasted.

"So I can eat, right? The coast is clear?" Zoe asked as she stepped out from behind Teddy and went for the fruit.

"I don't taste any kiwi." Carmen chimed as she took another bite. "And I don't see any either. We might be in the clear."

Zoe's excited smiled and reached for the fruit before Teddy caught her arm. "What else are you allergic to, Zoe? I don't like knowing you could just die out of the blue over something like kiwi."

Zoe sighed. "Kiwi is the only thing that'd be most likely to die from. I think I've gotten minor skin rashes from nickel but it's not life threatening."

"Why have you never told me this?"

"What is wrong with you, Teddy?" Zoe laughed and lifted his arm over her head so she could reach for one of the chocolate strawberries. "You don't need to worry so much. Carmen said the coast is clear. It's literally just fruit."

"Fruit that could kill you. There's a lot of stuff in here. We still don't know for sure that there's not any kiwi." Teddy argued but reluctantly let Zoe help herself to the basket of fruit anyways. He didn't see any kiwi so he was just hoping for the best at this point.

Teddy carefully watched Zoe's every move as she plucked a chocolate covered strawberry from the bouquet and looked it over before she took a bite. Teddy held his breath while she took a bite, but then suddenly his train of thought was violently derailed as he watched her plump, soft pink lips meld around the strawberry and slide over the chocolate coating as she pulled it from her mouth. Teddy only snapped out of it when she placed a hand in front of her mouth and blocked his view.

Despite the sudden rise in temperature in this room, Teddy returned to worrying about Zoe. "You're not dying, right?"

Zoe laughed through a mouthful of chocolate and strawberry as she politely covered her mouth. "No, Teddy. I'm not dying. It's just a strawberry."

Teddy let out a relieved sigh but still watched as Zoe took another bite. It only took a second bite to finish the strawberry before she threw the wooden stick away and went back to the basket for another one. There were a number of different fruits that were all clustered together but Zoe still went for the little balls that were covered in chocolate. The chocolate covered cherry's that Teddy ate looked good and there were sooo many of them in the bouquet.

"Mommy!" Bailey cried when she finished her pineapple flower. "Give me another one! Mommy!"

"No. Ask nicely or you don't get anymore." Carmen sternly warned her daughter.

Bailey wailed dramatically in protest and Teddy chuckled as he reached for another pineapple flower and handed it to Bailey. She happily squealed and attached her little mouth to the pineapple flower to suck on it. He was surprised that she could inhale her first pineapple flower so quickly when she was only sucking on it.

"Teddy!" Carmen groaned. "You're not teaching her manners. If you keep spoiling her like that, she's going to be a nightmare her whole life."

"I'm suppose to be the fun uncle, Carmen. I can give her whatever she wants." Teddy smirked.

"Wait until I leave you to deal with one of her famous temper tantrums. You'll regret being the fun uncle real quick." Carmen warned.

Teddy opened his mouth to make a snide retort but never got any words out before he heard Zoe breathlessly gasp on the other side of him. He turned to her in an instant panic, his heart already racing. Zoe was holding the stick with two chocolate covered balls on it as she spit the chewed up third one into her palm. Her breathing was already labored and her eyes were wide as she looked up at Teddy and Carmen.

"It's kiwi.." Zoe said, her voice quiet and hoarse.

"Jesus Christ, Zoe! This is exactly why I told you to stay away from it!" Teddy nearly shouted as he plucked the wooden stick out of her hand and scooped the chewed up kiwi and chocolate out of her palm so he could toss it on to the counter and away from Zoe.

"I thought it was a cherry, like the one you had." Zoe heaved, waving her hand in front of her mouth as if her mouth was on fire. Truly, it was more itchy and dry than it was hot but she could feel the pain growing inside her mouth and throat. "I didn't know they could make kiwi into little balls like that."

"Can you even breathe, Zoe?" Carmen asked, sounding just as panicked as Teddy.

Zoe opened her mouth to speak but her words got caught in her slowly closing throat and she hurried to shake her head.

"Fucking Christ.." Teddy hissed under his breath and stepped forward to scoop Zoe into his arms. "We're going to the emergency room."

"I'll be right behind you!" Carmen called after Teddy as he hurried towards to slip his shoes on again with Zoe in his arms. "I have to get the kids in their jackets and car seats but you take care of her."

"Yeah, got it." Teddy said and threw open the door to hurry outside and hop in one of the sensations.

Zoe kept her arms wrapped tight around Teddy's neck as he carried her to the smaller Sensation of the two in the garage and carefully placed her in the passenger seat. He kneeled beside her for only a moment to cup her face in his hands and get a good look at her.

"Your poor little cheeks are swelling already." Teddy frowned as he gently rubbed his thumbs over her warm, red cheeks. "It's okay, Zoe. You'll be okay. I've got you." He whispered, mostly to reassure himself, before he placed a kiss on her forehead and moved to hurry and get her to a hospital.

Zoe tried to stay as calm as Teddy as they drove but she was losing air and he was speeding, which was not helping her mental state right now. He was quiet, though, his eyes forward and both hands firmly on the wheel. She trusted that he had as much control over this situation as he could. So Zoe tried not to panic as she felt her face, her throat, and especially her tongue swell. Everything was dry, itchy, throbbing, and she couldn't help but wheeze every time she took shallow and strangled breathes.

That was all Zoe could really remember because, by the time they made it to the hospital, she was passed out. Teddy cursed maybe a million times as he rushed her into the hospital and shouted for anybody to help her. He actually wished Carmen wasn't ten minutes behind him because he was panicking and the comforting reassurance of his sister would really help in this scenario. He didn't know what he was doing or where he was going but he knew Zoe was going to die and he couldn't let that happen.

Teddy's heart beat had never been louder in his ears than the moment when he rushed into the hospital with Zoe unconscious in his arms. It was a moment he knew he wouldn't forget, whether the outcome be good or bad.