Author's Note: Thank you all so much for your reviews. You are all so sweet. I hope you enjoy this chapter and keep the review coming. Have a nice day.

Chapter Nine

The light was blinding even before his had completely opened his eyes. Great. A hangover, he thought, just what I need right now.

He heard a loud banging, indicating he was not alone. Once upon a time, this would not have been all that unusual, but it had been a long time since he'd been that guy. Sleeping with other women to forget Zoe had helped a little at first, but after that, it just reminded him how far those other women were from being Zoe. He just couldn't do it anymore. He hoped it did not last forever, because he'd have a bigger boner than the ones they had in Lysistrata by 2020. Now, he was just a little horny, but he could deal. His feelings for Zoe served as an uncomfortable but effective distraction.

When he looked around, he realized he was at Zoe's. That freaked him out even more. What had he done? He could not imagine any scenario that would have ended well.

Looking down, he realized he was dressed. That was a good sign … probably.

Zoe came out of the bathroom, "You're up." Wade grabbed his head, "Oh, sorry." She said, this time in a whisper.

Wade nods, trying to indicate that it's okay. "What, time is it?"

"A little after one." he looked at her questioningly, "p.m." she clarified.

He looked at her awkwardly, "What, um, what exactly happened last night?"

"Well, what do you remember," Wade noticed that Zoe stiffened a little as she said this.

"Um," he ran his hand across his forehead, shaking his head, "I remember beer, and music, and then, more beer." He gives her a guilty smirk.

Zoe nods, "Okay, well, when I got home you were on my front step-"

"Wait," Wade said, putting a hand up, "Slow down. Got home from where?"

"Fancies, where I went to celebrate with George. Remember? Woody Allen triumph."

Zoe saw something flit across Wade's face, but it was gone before she could figure out what it was.

"Right. Yeah. Okay, continue. Just, you know, slowly and quietly."

Zoe held in a chuckle, "Right, well, like a said, you were on my front step, and you were really drunk, so I brought you in-"

"All by yourself?" Wade asked, eyebrow raised.

"Hey, I resent that. I could have-"

"Did you?"

"No," Zoe said, looking down, "I got you to help out a little, put in a little drunken effort," Wade smirked, "but you didn't have to act so surprised."

"I was surprised."

Zoe hit his arm playfully.

"Anyway, I brought you in, got you onto the couch, laid you back, propped you up, and got you a bucket."

Wade sighed, relieved, "Propped me up? And you call yourself a doctor. The best position when you're drunk is on your stomach, Doc, makes it easier not to choke on puke."

"Oh, well, I didn't know that. Guess I wasn't much of a drinker."

"You could hold your own, long as it was bottled wine." Zoe smiled. "That it?"

"Pretty much." Zoe said with a shrug.

"Well, thanks for nursin' me back to health, Doc." Wade said. After Zoe nodded, he started to sit up. He'd had enough hangovers to know how slowly to go.

"Okay if I use your bathroom?"

Zoe nodded, "Yeah, sure. There's a spare toothbrush in one of the cabinets."

Wade nodded his thanks.

"So, listen," Zoe called to him, "you said some things last night," Wade winced. He thought he had dodged a bullet when she told him what happened, but a confession would be worse than inappropriate behavior.

"Yeah?"

Zoe nodded, even though she knew he couldn't see her, "I was just wondering, well," Zoe took a deep breath, here goes nothing, "You were talking about … that is, you said you made a mistake, that there was something you should have done-"

"I say what it was?" Wade asked as he came back into the room. Zoe wanted to say yes, hoping to trick information out of him, but then he might ask her about it, so she just shook her head, "Look, Doc, you can't really take anything a drunk guy says seriously." He chuckled nervously.

"Well, I don't know about that. After all, en vino veritas."

Wade looked at her, confusion etched on his face, "Um, what?"

"It's an expression. It's Latin. It means 'in wine the truth.' "

"Can't remember drunks need to lie on their stomach, but you can remember Latin?"

"It's just one phrase."

"More 'an I know. But then, you always were smarter than me."

Zoe was going to make some joking comment about how obviously she would be smarter, but there was something in his face, behind his cocky façade, that made her think he might really believe what he said, "I'm sure that's not true."

Wade pointed to Zoe, "Med school graduate," then he pointed to himself, "high school graduate."

"That doesn't mean anything."

"Where's this sudden rush of faith coming from?"

"I just mean there are other kinds of intelligence. Not everybody is book smart. That doesn't mean they're not- wait, is this you trying to change the subject?"

"And what subject were we on exactly?" Wade asked. Zoe was not quite sure how to answer. She knew there were some pretty major things Wade was keeping from her, and she had a feeling it was beyond the 'don't-tell-her-let-her-remember-herself' crap.

She stood up, gathering her courage, and turned to him, "Look, Wade, I know you're keeping something from me."

Wade shook his head in frustration, "You know we can't tell you-"

"It's more than that. There's, there's something that you don't want me to know."

"Zoe-"

"Tell me I'm wrong. Go on." Wade didn't speak, "Well?"

"Doc, look, all friends have secrets."

"My whole life is a secret right now. Everybody knows all the details except me. Do you have any clue what that feels like? To know nothing about yourself, and have everybody else know all the intimate details of your life? Ever since I woke up I have felt confused, and helpless, and god, I HATE feeling helpless. The only person who made me feel slightly normal, was you. Okay, when everybody was treating me like some helpless doll, you treated me like a person. Around you, I felt like I could recover, okay, I felt like … like I could do anything. And then you disappeared. And then you reappeared. And then you disappeared. I know something happened. Something happened between us before all this started, didn't it? Before I lost my memories, something happened and that's why you're avoiding me?"

"I don't know what you want me to say." He said, avoiding her gaze.

Zoe sighed, "Just tell me the truth?"

"I …"

"You …"

"I can't. I'm sorry Doc, I just-"

"Why then? And don't feed me that bull about amnesia victims because I know what you're keeping from me goes beyond that."

"Why can't you just let it go? Whatever did or didn't happen between us, it doesn't matter now."

"Yes it does. It matters. Maybe more than anything."

"Why?"

"You said I was killing you, Wade. You told me I was making your life hell, killing you more and more every minute. Do you have any clue how much that hurt?" Wade looked up at her, his eyes filled with a mixture of compassion, guilt, and surprise, "You are probably the most important person in my life right now. The only one I know I can trust with my life-"

"Doc." Wade said, putting his hand up. His voice was horse, and his eyes were begging her to stop, but she didn't.

Zoe's eyes started to tear up, "I just wish I knew what could have happened to make it so painful for you to be around me. I want … no, I need to know why you hate me so much."

That tugged at his heart, more than anything else, "I don't hate you Doc. I couldn't even if I wanted to, and believe me, I've tried, but no matter what you've done over the years, no matter how much you piss me off or screw me over, I ain't never been able to hate you. It's just not physically possible."

"The things you said last night-"

Wade shrugged, "I was drunk-"

"Wade. Come on, we both know there was something to what you said. You joke your way around things, and you try to comfort me, but you keep pulling away from me."

"I'm not pulling away, Doc."

"Really?" she asked sharply, Wade nodded. Zoe had a defiant look in her eyes, and it made Wade nervous. And with good reason, because after he nodded, she started walking toward him. They had been standing maybe a yard apart, but it was slowly becoming two feet, then it was one foot, and then it was six inches. "How about now?" she asked, looking up at him.

She was standing so close that he could smell her hair. She still used that damn guava shampoo. He tried to clear his head, but she was to close. He couldn't think with her this close. She was looking up at him, expecting something.

"That's, uh, a little to close for comfort, Doc." He finally choked out, chuckling awkwardly.

"Why?" she challenges, "Are you afraid of me or something?"

He can't think with her standing there. A second later, she takes a step back. He lets out a breath that he did not know he was holding.

"I ain't afraid of you Doc, and I don't hate you. Sometimes you frustrate the hell outta me, but at the end of the day, you mean more to me than just about anybody. You could never know just how much." The words come out before he can stop them, but as much as he regrets them, a part of him can't help get a small thrill by the look on her face. She's flushed, confused, but her eyes are all lit up with this trusting innocence. It's a shy look. Once again, she closes the distance between them. This time, when she looks up at him, her eyes are not challenging or angry. They are full of trust and compassion. Her head inches up, and he feels his own dip down. And for a second, they're kissing. It's a million times more amazing then he remembered, or could ever have imagined. It feels so … right; her soft lips against his, her arm starting to snake behind his neck. And for a second, he forgets. He forgets why they can't do this. He forgets all the reasons its wrong, because there is only her and him, melting into each other.

But then, the second is over, and he remembers. He pulls back, and gently removes her hand from behind his neck.

"Doc, we can't do this." He says it in a whisper, almost like he hopes that if he says it quiet enough, it won't be true.

She looks at him, hurt, confused. She looks like she is going to say something. Her mouth opens, but nothing comes out, so she closes it again.

"Look, Zoe," he struggles for the right words. Really, he has no clue what to say, but then, he remembers, "Zoe, uh, amnesia patients can become vulnerable to this thing called transference. The doctor told me. Um, I don't completely get it, but its something like, well, the first person you see when you wake up, you start thinking you have feelings for them, because you're confused, and lost, and they're there for you." That sounded right, from what he remembered, "Or … or something like that. Look, the point is, this stuff that you're feeling for me, it ain't real." He sighed, "Now, I'm pretty immature, slave to my hormones and all that, so if something has breasts, and is under 160 pounds, I'll probably sleep with it," well, it used to be true, "but see, you're my friend. I actually care about you, and I could never take advantage of you like-"

She cuts him off, kissing him again, harder this time. She pushes him up against the wall, and he responds wrapping his arms around her and running his hands up and down her back. It takes him a little longer this time to remember himself, considering she upped the heat this time, but at the end of the day, Wade Kinsella is a good guy. And he hates that, now more than ever.

He steps out of her grasps and walks behind her. She turns to face him, flushed and breathless.

"Dammit Zoe! Didn't you hear a single word I just said?" he yelled. This girl was going to kill him.

"Yeah. I heard."

"So! What the hell was that?"

"You didn't seem to mind at the time." She said under her breath.

"That's on account'a that whole breasts thing! Good figure and I'm good to go! It doesn't mean…" he runs his hands over his face in frustration, then lowers his voice to a normal level, and says as calmly as he possibly can, "Look, Zoe, you gotta stop this, because you're confusin' the hell out of both of us."

"What makes you so sure that it's this transference thing?"

"Maybe it's not, but you're vulnerable, and I respect you too much to take advantage-"

"But what if this is what I really want?"

"What if it's not what I want?" She looks like she's been struck, and starts to back away, "Look, Zoe, I didn't mean-"

"No, you've made your point." Her eyes were starting to water again, "Um, I'm sorry that I, God, this is so embarrassing."

"Zoe-"

"I get it Wade. I'm sorry. I guess I just thought … I'm sorry."

He watched her back out. She seemed to have forgotten they were had her place. For a second, so had he. When he remembered, he headed out the door. He needed to go home, and figure out how he was going to make this up to Zoe. But first, he needed a good cold shower.

Zoe just wandered for a while. She felt so stupid. How could she have been so wrong? She had just wanted answers, but then she had started getting emotional and things had just spiraled. Damn it!

"You sure you should be wanderin' about?" a voice asked from behind her. She turned to see Lemon, carrying a small bag from The Dixie Stop. She tried to turn away before Lemon saw her face, but she was too late, "Hey, you been cryin?" Zoe shrugged, "You wanna talk about it?"

"It's not a big deal."

"Something that makes you cry is a big deal. I know you, and it takes a lot to make you cry."

"Yeah, but now I'm vulnerable so my behavior is irregular and not to be taken seriously."

"Well that statement had some bite to it."

"It's nothing."

Lemon looked around, "Look, why don't you come over? We can have some coffee, maybe talk?"

Zoe wanted to protest, but after what had happened this afternoon, she just didn't have the energy.

"I only came because you said it was about helping Zoe." Rose said coldly. Her arms were crossed, and her glare could kill. Wade hated that she was so mad at him, hated that he hurt her. He had no clue how to make it up to her, but he needed her help right now, and hopefully somewhere between now and when she was done helping him, he would figure out how to fix things.

"Listen, Rose, about what happened-"

"I'm not here to talk about that," she said shortly.

"Okay. Got it."

She looked up at him, "Well, didn't you say-"

"Yeah, yeah I did. Um, okay, divin' right in here." She stood there, tapping her foot impatiently, "Right, well, first off, you were right. About me I mean. About how I, well-"

"That you like Zoe." She finished.

Wade nodded, "Thing is, her not remembering she's with George, she's developed some, well, feelings for me. And, uh, she tried to act on 'em this morning, or afternoon, I guess." He looked at Rose for a response, but she just nodded for him to continue, "See, knowing that she is with George, I know it would be wrong to do anything, so I pushed her away, and well, I couldn't explain why, so I had to tell her that I didn't, um," he sighed, "Point is, she was pretty upset when she left. Looked like she'd been slapped. I think I really hurt her."

"So you shot your mouth off again and the result was a wounded girl. Shocking."

"Look, Rose, I get that you're mad at me, and I know I deserve it, but Zoe's been going through enough, and she doesn't need any extra pain. You were the only person I could think to call."

"Why me?"

"You know the score, who likes who an' all that, you're a girl, so you get the whole girly romance thing, you've known her for real long time, and, well, I was also kind of hoping maybe I could figure out how to make stuff up to you in the process. Ya know?"

Rose was silent for a minute, then she surprised Wade by asking, "Do you love her?"

"What's that got to do with-?"

"You want my help or not?"

"Yes."

"And you want me to forgive you?" Wade nodded, "Then answer the question."

"Yeah. Yeah I do. I love her."

"How long have you known? That you love her, I mean?"

Wade thought back, "Well, I don't know if there was anyone moment, really, it was more like a slow awakening. Things like getting jealous of her and other guys, or how no matter how much she annoyed me, I'd still drop everything to help her out." He paused, "I guess maybe it was when I thought she was with the vet. You know, when she was sneakin' around with somebody and everybody thought she had a secret boyfriend. I tried to hook up with this girl, Joelle, maybe to make Zoe jealous, or maybe just to, you know, make myself feel better, but when it came down to it, I just, couldn't do it. I kept getting distracted by stuff that made me think of her. Peanut butter and pickle jars" Rose looked at him curiously, "You had to be there. Point is, I couldn't go through with it. I mean, Joelle was tall, thin, and buxom, and blonde, and she was certainly … adventurous sexually. Used to be that was the dream. But after Zoe … it just wasn't enough anymore."

"Whatever happened with Joelle?"

"Oh, she up and left town. Good thing too, she was all kinds of crazy."

"Now, the vet, that's Judson Lyons?"

"How many other vets has she dated?"

"You realize that was like, three years ago, right?"

"I'm aware, yeah."

"So, why didn'tcha ever do anything?"

Wade shrugged, "I guess I just knew what my chances were. Zoe went for doctors and lawyers and vets. I never even went to college."

"But you've been taking those night classes."

"How'd you know about that?"

"I snoop."

"Uh huh. Well, that's more recent. And I'd be lying if I didn't say Zoe had something to do with me decidin' to do that. But truth is, unless she has no clue who she is, she'd never look twice at me. Didn't seem worth the effort just to get shot down. I mean, if she'd given me some sort of sign … I gave her plenty of chances, but she always made her affections clear. George. That's who she's always wanted. Who am I to stand in the way, right?"

"So you're just goin' to sit back and let the girl you love marry someone else?"

"I ain't got much choice."

"You could tell her how you feel."

Wade shook his head, "That'd just confuse her. She shouldn't have to feel guilty for getting her happy ever after. She deserves one."

"And you don't?"

"Well, I'm a jackass, remember." Rose giggled, "So, this heart to heart over?"

"I just got one more thing to say." Wade nodded, and gestured for her to go ahead, "if she's got feelings for you now, that doesn't necessarily mean it's just 'cause she got amnesia. Maybe she's just seein' you in a new light. Don't you owe it to yourself, and to her, to be honest with her?"

"And George?" Wade asked.

"If deep down, Zoe really loves George, she'll remember it. But maybe that bump on her head woke up a part of her that she didn't know was there. Nobody's said 'I do' yet. Maybe she needs a chance to figure out her feelings, and she deserves to. Better to straighten this all out before they reach the altar."

Wade nodded, "I'll take that under consideration." He said with a wry smile. "So, um, we good now?"

Rose nodded, "Love can make people do dumb things sometimes. I get that. Besides, I've always known you were kind of a jackass. I still like you."

Wade laughed.

Lemon and Zoe had been sitting in silence drinking coffee for almost fifteen minutes, and it was driving both of them crazy. Neither woman was one for silence. Finally, Lemon broke the ice.

"So, why were you wanderin' out there?"

Zoe sighed. She did need to talk to somebody, as embarrassing as it would be. And supposedly, her and Lemon were friends, "Um, have you ever felt so strongly about somebody, that you're completely blinded to the fact that they don't?"

It was a general question, but all it did was confuse and shock Lemon. Was she talking about George? She had to be, but …

"Um, I need more." Lemon pressed.

"Okay. So, since I woke up in the hospital, there's been this one person that I felt this … connection with. And I guess, I don't know, I thought he … god, it all seems so stupid now." She took a deep breath, "I guess it just seemed to me that the connection must be mutual, because it was so strong, and I had no idea where it came from. I thought maybe we were together or something, but clearly that's not true, judging by the way he reacted, when I, um, well, kissed him."

"How did he react?"

Zoe looked down and played with her mugged, "Pushed me away." she mumbled awkwardly.

"George pushed you away?" Lemon said shocked.

Zoe looked up, confused, "George? It wasn't George."

Lemon's face paled a little. Oops. "Sorry, I, um, just assumed that …" she trailed off.

"Why would you assume that I was talking about George?"

Lemon put on an awkward fake smile and tried to act clueless

Then, Zoe started thinking about things. How George always seemed to get sad for a second when she called him her friend. How he had reacted when she told him about Wade. How happy he always was to see her. How he had wanted to celebrate just the two of them. How Wade kept pushing her to spend time with him, to celebrate with him, to hell her news to him. What Wade had said about the phone call making his week. How he said wow when she came to the door. How much like a date the night had felt. She closed her eyes, and she saw him. It was just tiny flashes: Him stroking her hair gently with his hand, him twirling her on a dance floor, her kissing a bruise on his head, as he looked up at her adoringly.

"Fuck."

George had been reading the books Wade gave him. It made him feel better and worse at the same time. He tried to think of what a nice time him and Zoe had had last night. It had been almost perfect. Yeah, he had wanted to kiss her goodnight, and he knew he couldn't, but still.

There was a knock on his door. When he opened it, he saw Zoe. She was giving him a nervous, awkward smile.

"Um, can I come in?"

Author's Note: Okay, please don't kill me. I am a little nervous about how people will react.

I almost made this two separate chapters, but somehow, they just came out as one.

I was not sure about taking the story in this direction, but it just sort of happened. Character's control stories, not writers.

For those of you who don't know, Lysistrata is a Greek play about a woman who decides to make countries stop fighting by getting all women to agree to withhold sex until their husbands come home for good.

I love Latin. I edited the Wade/Zoe scene a bit, and I almost cut that 'en vino verities' bit out, because they were getting off topic, but I knew I had to find a way to keep it, because I love Latin.

I hope you enjoyed this chapter.

Please review.

Have a nice day.