Darkness engulfed the plane as the newly reunited pair sat in an awkward silence. The flight to Madrid wasn't long but it was long enough that they had time to just sit and reflect on the events of the day. Whilst both of them had everything they wanted sitting next to them, the weight of the was going on was weighing heavily on both of them. Max had just given up his life in Holby, with only moments to think about it he'd left his job, his house and his family all to follow the woman he loved. The sacrifice wasn't anywhere near as large for Zoe yet still she couldn't stop the pangs of guilt left from the mistake that almost cost her everything, the guilt that still tore her apart every so often. Fear plagued her mind as the reality of what was happening kicked in, Max had given up everything for her and still she feared her own ability to let herself be happy once and for all.

"Are you sure this is what you want?" Zoe asked a few hours later, having now arrived at the hotel and settled into their room. The view from their window wasn't too dissimilar to the view they'd had when they'd shared a flat, making Zoe quietly wonder whether they'd gone around in a circle. The traffic on the streets down below filled the silence, the silence that seemed to last just a moment too long. She turned slightly so that she was no longer watching out the window, but instead focused on her husband who was sat on the edge of the bed with his still illuminated phone discarded beside him.

"I told you before, you're the extraordinary thing, there's no where I'd rather be right now than wherever you are." He told her, calming the fear that had been consuming her in the way that only he'd ever been able to. Slowly he rose from the bed and made his way over to where she was stood and gently took her hand. "You're the flame that was never meant to go out. We let it die temporarily but it never went out within me, no matter how hard I tried. You were the person that was impossible to get over and that I could never forget." Zoe took a step closer as she wrapped her arms around his neck, whilst his arms went around her waist. Her head still fitted neatly into the crook of his neck, for a few minutes they stayed like that neither wanting to let go for fear that the day had been like the many cruel dreams that both had experienced in their time apart.

"I couldn't even try to move on from you, there's never been anyone like you or anyone that came anywhere close to you. You're the one extraordinary thing in my life, the one thing that makes everything worthwhile, when you aren't there nothing makes sense anymore. I just don't know how this works anymore." She admitted sadly as she finally stepped back, content that this wasn't the dream that she so frequently had when he didn't disappear. No longer was she scared to admit that she was out of her depth, to admit that maybe she didn't know it all.

"Zoe, are you happy?" He asked as he watched her bite her lip, her anxiety playing out across her face. His question didn't require her to think, instead she closed the gap between them again and gently kissed him.

"Of course I'm happy Mr Walker." No longer did it matter that she didn't know if he wanted to forget about their time apart and continue as it was before, or whether he wanted to start again. In that moment she figured out that it didn't matter, that they'd navigate this in the same way they did everything else; in their own way special way.

"So tell me more about America, about our new life." Max asked a while later as they both sat on the bed, the TV was on but neither paid much attention to the Spanish shows being played. Instead they lay cuddled up chatting.

"What do you want to know?" She asked, failing to hide the smile that had crept onto her face when she thought about the rest of their lives together.

"What's our house like?"

"Bigger than our old flat." She spoke but laughed slightly at her own words.

"I was thinking…actually forget it." Max pulled away from Zoe slightly as he reached again for his phone, silently scrolling through whatever social media he came across first.

"No, what is it?" Zoe asked, anxiety creeping up on her again as she noticed the change in her husband's demeanour.

"It's a new start so I thought maybe I could actually do something with my life, I don't know what exactly but I was thinking that maybe I could take some sort of course and do something more than a dead end job." She took the phone out of his hand as he spoke, placing it on the table beside her before moving back over to Max.

"I love you and you're my husband. That means I'll support you in whatever you want to do and whenever you want to do it."

It wasn't more than a few hours later but Max was now asleep, the duvet pulled up to his chin to combat the cold that surrounded the bed. Zoe couldn't help but watch her husband, still somewhat unable to believe that he was back in her world and her bed. A slight snore escaped from his lips, causing Zoe to smile, this was the start to married life that she wished she'd had. The change in time zones was preventing her from falling into the same peaceful slumber as the man next to her, so she moved slightly to reach her phone, being careful not to wake Max as she did so. For a while she went about sorting things out for their new life. After booking a plane ticket for Max and informing people that, especially Nick, that Max was coming back with her, she found herself scrolling through Facebook. It took only a few seconds for it to inform her that Max Walker had changed his relationship status to married and that his profile picture was yet again a photo of the two of them. She'd always claimed to hate the photo he'd chosen, she hadn't been ready for the picture as she stared at him rather than the camera, but as she looked at it now she couldn't help but love the picture. His change in relationship status seemed to have attracted quite a few comments so she clicked on them.

Robyn Miller: I'm happy for you, remember to visit us or pay for us to come to you. I'm sure Charlotte would love the plane!

Lofty Chiltern: Zax! I always knew you'd work it out

She smiled as she scrolled through many more similar comments, everyone seemed to be happy for the pair.

"Zoe, go to sleep." Max mumbled as he felt her fidget yet again.

"I can't sleep, I'm too happy. Everyone is happy for us too." She replied as Max sat up a little, grimacing as his change in position meant that he was exposed to the cold for a few seconds.

"Of course they are, I thought you'd be angry once you saw my profile picture." He admitted, studying her face for any hint of anger but finding none there.

"No, I've decided I like the picture."

"Good, now Dr Walker I think it's time you tried to sleep. You have a busy day at your conference tomorrow and then we begin the first day of our new life, now I know you don't need the beauty sleep because honestly I'm not sure people come any better looking than you, but you will need the energy for everything I've got planned."

The rest of their life lay ahead of them now, what had once been a meaningless fling was now the most important thing in her life, the thing that was never meant to end. Through CurlyWurlys, hours spent in cupboards and a botched wedding they'd found their own way in life, they'd found their soulmates. Once upon a time the thought of forever would have scared both of them, but now forever didn't seem quite long enough. Whilst they were unsure of what lay ahead of them now, one thing was sure, it was Zax forever.

So hello, it's me again back from writing retirement. Finally we had Zax back in our lives and now I intend to make this a series of their life posted whenever I get the chance in my life (expect little).

Thanks,

Beth