Zach and I began to make our way back across the playing field holding hands. We were talking about goodness knows what, but it was nice to hear him laugh. As we reached the cafeteria, a sudden panic ran through me. I slipped my hand out of Zach's.

'What's wrong?' Zach asked

'We can't go in there holding hands'

'And why not?'

'Because I haven't told Macey first and she's going to kill me if we just walk in' I said quickly

'Okay…' Zach folded his arms 'So tell me the real reason'

Curse him, his good looks and his intuition.

'Everyone is worried about me right now because of people from Gallagher coming to town. I'm worried too; I have this constant bubble of butterflies in my stomach. Then making us official, but I don't know if we're official or whatever, but I'm just…' I took a deep breath 'I need you, Zach, just not holding my hand' I looked up at him, waiting for him to explode. Zach looked away from me, took a deep breath and then looked back at me.

'So we're doing a secret romance then?' His eyes danced with amusement. I rolled my eyes.

'You wish' I said 'But seriously, are you okay with this?' I asked

'Sure' Zach smiled 'As long as I get a second date'

'Deal' I stood on my tiptoes and gave him a quick peck on the cheek. I made my way to the cafeteria door 'Are you coming?' I asked.

'Nah, I'll let you go first, I'll follow in a sec' He gave me a wink. I smiled back and made my way through the cafeteria. It was a hive of activity. The social hub of any typical teenage film. I spotted Macey and the others at our usual table, I began to make my way over there when…

'Cammie' Josh seemed to appear from nowhere, he had a smile on his face like we were friends. We're not friends.

'Hey, Josh. How are you finding Roseville?'

'It's going well, thanks. Listen, can we talk?' He asked

'I don't think there's anything else to talk about' I tried to step past him.

'Cam-' Josh tried to reach for me at the same moment a pink explosion came into my eye line.

'Josh!' Deedee exclaimed. She came to his side, giving him a kiss on his cheek. So that was the reason why she hasn't answered any of my calls.

'Deedee?' She noticed me for the first time

'Cammie?' She looked at me carefully 'Oh my gosh! It's so good to see you!' She tried to give me a hug but I stepped back

'So are you two...when did this happen?'

Josh and Deedee looked at each other quickly

'It kinda just happened'

'Right' I didn't believe a word 'Was that before or after I left?' I folded my arms

'When you were in the hospital' Deedee said. I shot daggers at Josh, ready to explode.

'Seriously? Are you fucking kidding me?'

'It's not like that Cam-'

'You were at my bedside every single day, and whilst I was in pain, you and my best friend were getting together'

'No' He narrowed his eyes 'It was nothing like that'

'Then what was it like, Josh? Hm? Have you taken her to our spot?' I turned to Deedee 'Has he told you that you're special to him and that no other girl has made him feel the way you do?' Her eyes dropped in shame. I snorted 'I never realised how stupid you were, Josh. I can't believe I ever liked you'

'You didn't' He snapped 'You were only using me for the drugs!' There is was those words out in the open for all to hear. I could feel all eyes turn to look at me. I hated it. I was under the microscope again. Josh could sense this too. His face dropped, regretting what he just said.

'Cam, I'm sorry' He said

'Is that what you really think?' I replied, the eyes brimming.

'Cam-'

'Does she know about your little secret?' I hissed, feeling the anger build inside me. Josh's eyes widened. He shook his head slightly.

'What secret?' Deedee asked, looking between me and Josh.

'Cam' I felt Macey at my side. Her hand on my shoulder.

'Don't' Josh whispered. This is the second time that I've seen Josh worried about me, worried about what I could do. He knows that whatever I was about to say could not only ruin him but me as well.

'Forget it' I said turning away from Josh and Deedee. 'You're not worth it' I pushed passed him and sat down with my friends. This was turning to hell. Everything that was going right was beginning to fall apart again.

...

My friends sat around the table, not saying anything but communicating through looks. I tried to keep my breathing down.

'Cammie,' Macey began

'I don't want to talk about it' I hissed. Zach casually strode to the table, he placed a tray of food in front of me.

'Eat' He ordered

'I'm not hungry'

'Eat' He said again, there was a look in his eyes. Eat by yourself or I'll make you.

I grabbed the apple and took a massive dramatic bite. The corner of Zach's mouth turned upwards into a smile, satisfied that I was eating. As I was chewing, my phone buzzed. It was a text. From Josh.

I'm sorry, Cam. I didn't mean to embarrass you. Can we still talk? J x

I looked up and by chance or fate or dumb stupid luck, my eyes connected with Josh's from across the room. He gave a weak smile and then looked away. Being in the same place as Josh was going to be really hard, even if it's just for a few days.

...

Thankfully, I avoided Josh, Dillion and Deedee for the rest of the day. It wasn't hard. I just tried to avoid eye contact with everyone. Zach waited for me after school. He leant against his motorbike, looking suave and just drop-dead gorgeous. He smiled when he saw me, causing my stomach to flutter slightly.

'Hey, Gallagher Girl'

'Hey, Blackthorne Boy'

'Do you want a ride?' He asked, reaching for his spare helmet.

'Actually, I'm going home with Macey'

'Oh,' He slowly pulled his hand away 'Can I see you later though?'

'We live next door to each other Zach, we'll see each other later' I smiled at him.

'How about for our second date?' He raised an eyebrow.

'Um,' I blushed 'What do you have in mind?'

'If I told you, Gallagher Girl, it wouldn't be much of a surprise' His smile widened and his eyes twinkled mischievously.

'What...what time were you thinking?' I asked

'About 7? I'll come and pick you up' He winked.

'Okay. I'll see you later'

...

Filled with excitement at the prospect of a second date, the journey home was very quick. I was bubbling with excitement ready for our next date. But nothing good ever lasts long in my life. When Macey and I pulled up at my house, there was another car parked outside. It wasn't Joe's, nor was it Abby's. There was also someone sitting on the steps. It was someone I never wanted to see again.

'Cammie, whose car is that?'

'Call Joe, then the police' I said

'What? Cammie?'

'Stay in the car, I've got this.' I leapt out of the car, slamming the door behind me. The person stood up when they say me.

'What the hell are you doing here?' I snapped

'Where is she?' He responded

'Like hell, I'm going to tell you' I hissed 'How the fuck did you find us?'

'That doesn't matter. I need to know where Abby is'

'You've done enough to her. You need to leave' I stood my ground. I've faced far worse than this big bad wolf.

'I'm not going anywhere' He took a step towards me 'Where's Rachel?'

'On her way' I lied 'She's going to tell you the exact same thing'

'Where's Abby?' He tried again, taking another step forward.

'You're drunk' He wasn't too close to me, but I could smell the alcohol seeping off of him. He laughed, a hollow belly laugh.

'How have you been, honey?' He tilted his head looking at me up and down. 'You've grown since last time I saw you'

'That kind of happens when you get older' I quipped. He refused to move. 'I'm not going to tell you where she is, so stop embarrassing yourself and leave'

He took another slow step forward, his face morphed into anger.

'Not till I find out where my wife is' He said slowly

'Ex-wife' I added 'Cause she divorced your sorry ass'

This tipped him over the edge. His hands curled into fists just as another car pulled up.

'Get the hell away from her' Joe shouted. His voice booming.

'Joseph Solomon' He laughed 'What's this? Your turn to shag a sister'

'Get away from her' Joe repeated, his teeth clenched. Joe stood just in front of me, squaring off to a man I once called family. 'You need to leave, Steve' Joe said slowly

'Or what?' He threatened

'The police are on there way' I interjected, knowing that with Joe here, Steve wouldn't hurt me. 'You wouldn't want to arrested for breaking the terms of your restraining order' I looked at my aunt's ex-husband in the eyes. He was a monster that needed to get locked away, not kept back by a court-ordered piece of paper.

'Leave' Joe said once again. Steve laughed.

'So Matthew's barely dead and you're already stepping into his shoes' Steve was taunting Joe, and I was hoping so much that Joe wouldn't rise to the challenge. Thankfully, before anything could happen between these two alpha males, the police showed up.

'What seems to be the problem here?' One of the officers asked. Joe and Steve were still staring at each other.

'That man's breaking the terms of his restraining order' I said quickly. Steve's been given too many changes, he's got away with too much.

'Sir, can you put your hands where we can see them' The officers began to take control of the situation. Joe wrapped his arm around me and pulled me aside. Macey got out of her car and came towards us.

'What the hell was that?' She asked. Macey was shaking. 'Cammie, who was that?'

'Abby's ex' I replied, my eyes never wavering from Steve's figure.

'Him?' Macey was shocked 'Abby married him?'

'Steve was a doctor, a very good one in fact. He toured with Matthew.' Joe said 'Then the PTSD set in and instead of getting help, he turned to drink' He shook his head 'Abby was lucky to get out when she did'

'How did he find us?' I asked, looking up at Joe. He thought for a moment.

'I don't know' He said honestly 'Hopefully because he's drunk, acting erratic, and broke the court order, we won't be hearing from him again'

'How did you get here so quickly?' I asked. Joe didn't answer my question straight away 'You were on your way over here anyway, weren't you?'

'I came to make sure you were okay after today'

'Thanks' I gave a weak smile which Joe returned.

'Sorry to disturb' One of the officers said 'But I need to get a statement from each of you'

Macey looked at me, I looked at Joe.

'How about I make us all some hot chocolate?' He offered. Macey and I nodded. Joe grabbed the keys from his pocket and headed towards the door. He has a key. As Joe reached the front door, he looked back at me, sensing that I would have this reaction. He gave me a brief nod before unlocking the door and inviting the officer in.

Zach pulled up just as the police car carrying Abby's ex drove away.

'I need to call my mom, let her know I'll be late' Macey said, excusing herself as Zach came over.

'Are you okay? What happened?' His eyes darted around, worried at what was happening.

'My aunt's ex-husband came looking for her' I tried to wave it away like it wasn't a big deal

'So why were the police here?' He asked. Ah shit.

'We have a restraining order against him. But nothing happened so we're good. They just need statements from us'

'Do you need me to do anything?'

'No it's fine. I'm going to need a rain check on our date though. Is that okay?'

'Yeah, it's fine. Don't worry about it' Zach sent me one of his signature smirks. 'I'll see you later'

Zach walked back to his house. I could tell that he was upset I just wished he could have just said so.

Author's Note: Long chapter today just for you! Cammie's just not having the easiest time, is she? First Josh, then Deedee and now Dr Steve? Ohhh it's the beginning of EVERYTHING! I watched Avengers: ENDGAME last night and I'm deceased. Anyone else seen it? Please, no spoilers for those who haven't seen it. Respect, please. See you all next time xxx

GirafeRosie: Zammie are just so cute! They will be getting better, trust me! Dillion is a dick. Trust me, he will be dealt with. I found it so hard to try and worm in Blackthorne Boy into the story but I found a way...I hope it worked though! Thank you so much! I've got lots planned! xxx

Smiles180: Zammie are together (for now) but it won't be long till something tries to get in the way. Thank you! It was definitely tricky to get the Blackthrone in there and I wanted it to be natural (or semi-natural because these characters are most certainly not). Josh & Zach will have a showdown...mark my words xxx

GallagherGirlEmbassyRowFan: YAY (for now). Zach's respecting Cammie's space right now, but when Josh crosses the line, Zach will be ready... Thank you as always xxx

Guest: Thank you! xxx

ALLY CARTER 4 EVER: Perhaps...Zach keeps his cards close to his chest though. Always the mysterious one. Finally they are Gallagher Girl & Blackthorne Boy. Order is restored to the Zammie universe. xxx