Chapter 34 – Zay's Secret Girl

Lucas had told Riley that he didn't know who Zay's girlfriend was, and he was concerned because they had never kept secrets from each other. Riley decided that since Lucas helped her she would help him and figure out who Zay was hanging out with, she didn't like sneaking around to find out the truth so instead she sent him a message to see if he would want to have lunch with her, instead of saying yes he sent her a message that he was busy at the moment but they could have coffee and talk about their Literature midterm after class. Instead of sitting around she went to grab some food at the student union and wait for Zay there, as she sat down she noticed that Zay was sitting at one of the corner tables that were hidden in a book nook towards the side of the union. She saw him smiling and talking to a brunette with long hair, his eyes were shining. That was when Riley realized that he was with his girl, she didn't want to intrude on the moment and let them talk. Riley got her midterm back that day and she received top marks so she was happy, she was hoping that Zay was happy as well. She pulled out her phone and sent a text to Lucas,

Riley: Hey Lucas, I'm going to talk to Zay about our midterm, is there anything you want me to ask him for you?

Her phone buzzed quickly with a reply

Lucas: Nah I'll probably talk with him later, since we're roommates.

Riley: Well I'm waiting for him and I see him sitting with this girl…

Lucas: Ahh the mystery girl surfaces, if you find out who it is tell me I need to know that she's good enough for him.

Riley: Aww the bromance is so cute

Lucas: Don't worry Riley you're still number one in my heart

Riley put her phone down and started eating her food while she looked over her midterm, she knew it didn't matter she passed but she still wanted to look at it. She answered all of the questions even though she was only supposed to answer a certain amount but she had been so nervous she accidentally answered everything. When Riley looked up from her test she saw that Zay was getting up from his table, his mystery girl had turned around and was walking with him. It took Riley a minute to realize who she was looking at, it was Sarah, someone from her old life was going to this school and secretly dating Zay. The two of them were smiling at each other as he said his goodbyes. It took him a minute to realize that Riley had been staring.

He walked over to her and ran his fingers through his hair, "So I guess you saw that?"

Riley nodded and smiled. "You didn't have to hide it from your friends you know."

"It just felt like… I don't know, I guess I didn't want to jinx it," he said as he sat down next to her.

"So how long has this been… you know… going on?"

"Officially about a month, but we've been talking all summer and we really liked each other but I didn't know where she was going and she didn't know where I was going so we kept it quiet until I ran into her at one of my classes. We just laughed it off but I think it was fate."

"Oh geez, you're so cute," Riley said realizing that it was the cutest relationship she had seen since Farkle and Smackle started dating. She didn't count her own relationship with Lucas because she saw him as the center of her world, but when it came to her friend's relationships she thought they were adorable.

Zay blushed and pulled his chair closer. "Um Riley can I ask you a question? It's kinda personal but I need your opinion on this."

"Sure go ahead," she smiled knowing that this was something she would probably keep from Lucas until Zay was ready to talk about it.

"When did you know… um… that you loved Lucas?"

"Aww," she said thinking that it was cute.

"So?"

"Well I think I realized back I loved him back in middle school, but I think the best way to think about this is in how you think about the person."

"What do you mean?"

"Well I look at my phone a million times a day to see if he sent me a text, or how he's the first thought I have in the morning when I wake up. How my heart pounds in my chest whenever I see him, even if it's just a short moment, or when I hear his voice on the phone."

"That's kind of poetic in a way," he said to her.

"Do you feel like that thought?"

"I get excited when we talk, and whenever I see her I can't think straight."

"There's your answer."

Zay looked up and smiled at her, "I didn't know before but I guess I do now."

"You should probably invite her over one day, I mean we know each other already but it would be nice to hang out and talk or even have a movie night," Riley said trying to act inconspicuous.

"Are you trying to tell me something?"

"Yeah that you should tell Lucas, who has been wondering where you get to everyday, that we worry even though you say everything is fine."

"Okay, I'll invite her over one day, maybe on Friday since we're done with exams."

"Movie night," Riley said as a suggestion and Zay nodded. "I do have one question though."

"And what would that be?"

"Why did she come to this school? Considering who her father is and all, she could have gone to any school in the country."

"It's not because of me, she told me that she wanted to pick a school where no one knew who her father was and that she would be able to make a name for herself without riding on her father's fame, so she came here because it wasn't a big name school."

"And somehow she found you, which just makes it a cute fairy tale," she said smiling.

"Stop with the cute, it's going to ruin my cred."

"Zay, you have no cred here you're a newbie just like me."

"Yeah but still, I'm a guy."

Riley laughed and soon Zay started laughing too. She had found out the secret of Zay's love, and she knew Lucas would be happy for his friend. Just as happy as she was for him.