A/N: I never expected this to be my most popular fic, because it's light on Zade right now and heavy on the Zoe & Lemon friendship, so I give big thanks to those happy few that do keep on leaving me such nice reviews :) For those waiting on the Zade, please rest assured that we will get there...

(For disclaimer, etc. - see chapter 1)

Chapter 7

"Lemon!"

Zoe hoped her room-mate would respond to her screaming her name from the bathroom. She ought to know she wouldn't be bellowing quite like that if it wasn't urgent. After all, they had been living together quite a while now and there had been some serious bonding in all that time. Lemon really should come running when Zoe yelled, understanding an emergency had to be occurring.

"Good Lord, Zoe Hart. Are you dying in there?" asked Lemon, quite loudly from the behind the closed door.

"No, no death. Just proof I'm still very much living, and female, and physically capable of bearing children," she explained, albeit the long way around. "Um, I just don't seem to have what I need here. I mean, I thought I bought more, but apparently not, and... yeah, it's not good."

There was a general grumbling and movement beyond the door, until pretty soon Lemon was announcing she was coming in. She had one hand over her eyes as she crossed the threshold, arm outstretched with the package Zoe so desperately needed in her other hand.

"Thank you," her friend told her gratefully, grabbing for the box. "I will buy more and replenish both your supply and mine, first thing tomorrow, I promise," she said definitely. "Thank you!" she called again, watching Lemon rush right back out of the room.

Able to deal with her situation at last, Zoe finished up in the bathroom, washed her hands and headed through to the living room. She found Lemon on the couch, flipping through her organiser, with a very weird look on her face.

"Again, thank you for that," Zoe told her room-mate. "I'm usually pretty good at keeping track and making sure I always have what I need on hand, but I guess it's happened to us all at one point or other, right? I swear, I'm at least two days early, which is so weird, because most of the time I am freakishly on time."

She didn't wonder too much at Lemon not answering her. After all, when she hit organisation mode, there wasn't much that could break through her concentration. No doubt she was planning and scheming on Lavon's behalf, in preparation for her work as his campaign manager. That part Zoe felt she could take some of the credit for. After all, it was her who had encouraged Lavon to accept Lemon's offer when he came by to visit with her yesterday and told her all about it.

There was no doubt in Zoe's mind that Lemon would make a great campaign manager, not least because she seemed to hate Ruby Jeffries more than she had ever hated anyone, Zoe herself included. Of course, Zoe also knew Lemon would never do anything but her best for Lavon. Those two made an odd pairing to her mind, but a pairing nonetheless, apparently.

"Okay, so, I'm going to head out," she said, purse on her shoulder as she gestured towards the door. "Time to face the music. Well, there is no actual music, but I'm going to go talk to Wade, about us. You know, him and me and whether or not there's anything there? Probably a dumb idea, at least, I think so, but George says if he's going to take my advice on dating, I should take his. Plus, Lavon agreed when I talked to him about it, and you seem fairly certain that Wade's whole 'I was just in it for the sex' routine was a front, so here I go."

She said the words, but the actions didn't follow. The truth was, Zoe still wasn't exactly sure what it was she was going to say to Wade or what she expected him to say back. Though she suspected his feelings ran deeper than he was willing to admit, and she had three more fairly independent people backing her up on that theory, it didn't actually prove anything. Wade could still deny it and make her feel stupid all over again, if he had a mind to. She really wasn't sure how she would handle that right now.

"Maybe I won't go," she said aloud. "Maybe this is a dumb plan and-"

"Oh, my Lord, Zoe Hart!" Lemon exclaimed, suddenly on her feet and glaring at her room-mate. "You like Wade. We all know that you do, in spite of your so-called feelings for George Tucker. We all know Wade also likes you, though he is clearly too dumb to admit to such a thing. Now, the only way this thing with the two of you is ever gonna be resolved is if one of you starts behaving like an adult and being real honest with the other person. Do you think perhaps you could do that, before my head explodes from the pressure of waiting on you to?"

She got louder and louder as she spoke, to the point where Zoe actually felt herself rock backwards on her high heels, as if hit by the force of a hurricane rather than a fiery speech from her room-mate. Of course, despite the yelling, Lemon probably did have a point. Until Zoe bit the bullet with Wade, she was never going to know for sure what he felt, or perhaps even entirely what she felt either.

"Okay," she said eventually, nodding her head. "Okay, I'm going. Just, take deep breaths, okay, Lemon?" she advised her friend, even as she moved carefully towards the apartment door. "I know this whole thing with Lavon and Ruby and the election is stressful, but seriously, breathe!"

Lemon muttered something as Zoe finally left the apartment, but she really didn't hear the words. She figured it was probably just some minor insult or other and chose not to worry about it. She had bigger fish to fry, after all. She was going to the Rammer Jammer to figure this thing out between her and Wade, once and for all!

Lemon was pretty sure she hadn't taken a decently deep breath since the moment Zoe mentioned the early arrival of her latest visit from Mother Nature. It was hardly something to worry on, her room-mate's dates shifting around a little and all, but that wasn't what had Lemon's head spinning. It was the troubling realisation, as she retrieved her own supplies to share with her friend, that she hadn't had any use for those same supplies in quite some time herself.

Flipping the pages in her organiser, she went back four, five, six weeks, and then more. She saw the date of her cancelled wedding go by and then a little more time ahead of that before she finally saw the symbol marked in that let her know she had her own ride across the red river.

"Oh, my God!" she gasped in shock, her hand shooting up to cover her mouth.

She must have sat there for at least a half-hour, alternating between panic and shock, until finally her cell phone rang and she picked it up fast, accepting the call without even looking at the screen.

"Hello?"

"Lemon? It's Lavon."

Swallowing hard, Lemon fought for composure and thankfully managed to find just a little.

"Mr Mayor, how are you?"

"Well, I'm doing just fine myself," he told her, "but I was startin' to worry a little about you. Didn't we say you were gonna come over around seven to discuss strategy?"

Lemon's eyes widened as she looked to her watch and realised she was just every kind of late today. She almost laughed at the joke inside her own head, but caught herself just in time.

"I'm so sorry, Lavon. I'll be right there."

The moment she was done saying it, she closed up her cell phone, threw everything into her purse, and all but ran for the door. She moved on automatic, just got in the car and drove without even thinking about what she was doing. When she arrived on the plantation, Lemon switched off the car and sat staring a moment, reality hitting her like a smack in the head when she realised she had no memory of driving to Lavon's home at all. God only knew how she hadn't gotten into an accident.

Shaking herself, Lemon climbed out of the car and walked up to the front door, only for it to open before she ever had a chance to knock.

"Well, there you are," said Lavon with a wide smile, an expression that soon faded, no doubt because he wasn't getting anything similar back from her. "Lemon? Are you feeling okay?"

"No, I'm not," she told him, tears welling up in her eyes as she finally focused her gaze on Lavon and realised how concerned he looked. "Oh, Lavon, I am such a damn fool," she told him, a sob escaping her throat as she covered her face with her hands.

"Come on now, that ain't true," he told her gently, pulling her into the house and straight into his arms.

He held her close and rubbed her back as she clung to him, unable to do anything but cry and cry for a long time. Though he asked what was wrong, Lemon hadn't the words to tell him for quite a while, dreading what he would think of her when she finally admitted the truth.

"Lemon, please," he urged her. "Please, tell me what's goin' on. I only wanna help you, sweetheart."

Swallowing hard, she finally lifted her head from his chest and met his eyes.

"Lavon, I... I think I'm pregnant."

"Come on, you can totally do this," Zoe told herself, as she stood outside the Rammer Jammer, trying to will herself to go inside.

She wanted to go in, she really did. She needed to see Wade, needed to talk to him and finally figure out this mess between them. It made sense, Zoe knew it did, because she absolutely could not go on like this. She needed Wade to understand how she felt, and she really hoped to find out from him that maybe he felt the same. That he missed her being around, that he maybe wanted to find out if something real could exist between them. Unfortunately, Zoe had been hurt before and she really didn't want to go there again.

"If he laughs in your face, then tell him you were kidding," she said to herself. "He'll buy that, right?"

"You okay there, Doctor Hart?" asked Dash as he walked by her towards the door. "You're not talking to yourself, are you? Because while I am not the one to be dispensing medical advice out of the two of us, I did hear that is the first sign of madness," he said with a look.

"I was just..." Zoe began, before shaking her head. "Forget it, it doesn't matter," she insisted then, pushing forward and following Dash into the bar.

He went straight over to join some friends at a table, while Zoe herself went right up to the bar, pulling herself up onto the nearest stool before she became tempted to change her mind. A minute later, Wanda was there, ready to take her order.

"I'm guessin' white wine, right?" she asked with a bright smile.

"Oh, well, yeah, that'd be nice, but I..." Zoe faltered. "Yes, thank you, white wine would be great," she told her friend, painting on her best smile.

"Okay then," said Wanda, pouring the drink into a glass. "Are you feelin' okay, Dr Hart? 'Cause you seem kinda jumpy."

"Not jumpy," Zoe insisted, picking up her glass the moment it was placed before her and downing the entire contents in one.

Wanda's eyes went a little wide at the sight.

"Wow. Thirsty, right?"

"Something like that." Zoe nodded. "Refill, please?"

It was only when the glass was once again full and Zoe had it half way to her lips that she remembered what a bad idea this was. She really had been using alcohol as a crutch these past few weeks, trying to make herself feel better about a situation that could never be solved by anything other than what she actually came here to do tonight.

"Wanda, is Wade around?" she asked quickly, before she could change her mind.

"Well, he went out back a while ago to bring some more bottles of beer from the stock room, but he should be back any second," she explained, just as Wade himself put in an appearance. "Well, talk of the devil," she said brightly when she saw him. "Dr Hart has been looking for you, Wade."

"Has she now?" Wade grinned too much as he switched places with Wanda, her going on to serve other patrons while he leaned on the bar beside Zoe. "Since you already have a drink, I wonder what it is that I can do for you, doc?"

The look he was wearing was so damn obvious, Zoe was half tempted to slap it right off of his face, or maybe kiss it off. Closing her eyes, she drew in a deep breath and let it out slow. It didn't help as much as she wished it would, because just as soon as she looked at him again, she felt exactly the same - completely overwhelmed.

"Wade, I... You know, what? It doesn't matter. I'm being an idiot," she said definitely, picking up her wine glass and taking a sip before setting it right back down again. "I came here looking for something that I know doesn't exist, so to expect it was just so stupid of me. Sorry to waste your time, Wade."

She was down off the stool and heading for the door so fast, Zoe was amazed she didn't knock herself off her own feet, but she didn't. She made it to the door, but no further, a hand reaching out to grab her arm as Wade called for her to wait a second.

"Come on, doc," he urged her when she glanced back at him. "You know, it ain't been the same around the plantation without you."

"Really?" she checked.

"True as I'm standing here," he promised her, seeming to notice in the next moment that anything said or done in the doorway of the Rammer Jammer was going to be made as much everybody else's business as just their own. "Look, you wanna take a walk or something?"

"Okay." Zoe nodded, unsure where exactly this was going, but hoping for the best.

After all, it wasn't often she saw Wade with a serious expression on his face, but he seemed to be wearing one right now. It was all she needed, just a few minutes of him being his sweet and genuine self, something she knew he was more than capable of when he put his mind to it. He just didn't seem to want to do that too often lately.

They walked away from the Rammer Jammer, heading nowhere in particular and not even talking for the first little while. Zoe had a feeling she should start, after making such a big deal of coming here to see Wade. Still, she would prefer that he said something first and was glad when she got her wish a moment later.

"Look, Zoe, I... I feel like I owe you an apology or somethin'."

"Oh, really? Why?" she asked, trying to look innocent, knowing before he ever called her on it that she was failing badly.

"Like you don't know." Wade rolled his eyes and smiled slightly before turning serious again in a heartbeat. "After that night that we spent together..."

"The one that was just sex?" she checked, bristling a little at the mention of the night she thought had really meant something to the both of him, at least until he acted so badly the next morning and made her feel otherwise. "Because that's all it was, right?"

"Geez, woman, will you let me say what I'm tryin' to say?" Wade urged her, sounding just a little annoyed. "Did I not just say I owed you an apology?"

"Yes, I guess you did," said Zoe, nodding her head. "Sorry."

"Thank you. Well, what I'm trying to say is, I'm sorry for the way I talked to you after that night, you know, the morning after and all?" said Wade with a sigh as his hand rubbed the back of his neck. "I know it was dumb to be that way, after everything, it was just... I don't know."

"I do," Zoe admitted, raising her hand as if she was trying to give an answer in a classroom. "I mean, it had been a pretty intense day which led into a pretty intense night, and then what happened with you and me, and George showing up..."

"Gotta admit, kinda put me on the defensive."

Zoe knew that was true. Lemon had said she was almost certain Wade's behaviour after sleeping with Zoe was all him throwing up the walls and trying to be tough because he was hurting and scared. She almost didn't believe it before, but seeing Wade now, looking so awkward and pained when talking about the subject, even apologising for how he talked to her, she knew now that Lemon, and Lavon, and George were probably right in everything they said about Wade and his feelings for Zoe. Besides, she ought to know how that went. When she realised Wade was going to play off their night together as just sex and nothing more, Zoe had done the exact same thing and claimed she couldn't care less either.

"I mean, all o' that stuff that happened, and then you moving in with Lemon Breeland," Wade was saying then. "Kinda been a rollercoaster around here lately."

"Can't really argue with that," Zoe agreed.

Silence fell over the scene then. Zoe had a hundred things she would like to say but none of them felt right. It was crazy to think that she was the one who came here to talk things out, and now, anything profound that was said seemed to be coming out of Wade!

"I meant what I said," he told her after a while, "about it not being the same back home without you."

That made Zoe smile wider than she ever thought possible.

"Are you trying to tell me you miss me, Wade Kinsella?"

"Yes, Zoe Hart," he replied in kind, grinning just as much as she was, "that is exactly what I'm tryin' to tell you."

"Well then, I guess then I should admit that I've kind of missed you too, actually, and that no matter what I said afterwards, that night we spent together really did mean something to me," she confessed, backing up a step when he suddenly moved in closer. "But what I told you months ago, in a certain heatwave that I'm sure you recall, it's still true. I'm not the kind of girl that just..." she said, shaking her head, certain he must know just exactly what she meant, "and even though we did, that night, I can't just be one more name on a guy's long list of women, Wade. That's not me."

"I know that," he told her, meeting her gaze.

"So...?"

"So, I was thinkin'," he said eventually, "since we don't see each other at the plantation anymore, maybe we could see each other someplace else. Like maybe go out together sometime?"

Zoe felt as if she could genuinely have been knocked down by a feather when she heard that.

"Really?" she checked, braced and ready for Wade to suddenly bust up laughing and tell her he was joking, that she was just so dumb to have fallen for it too. "You're being serious right now?"

"Wouldn'ta said it if I didn't mean it, doc," he told her softly. "So, what do you say?"

If anything, Zoe would've said that Wade actually looked a little nervous, which was new, but then she suspected that's exactly what this situation was, for him as well as her. After all, Wade tended to have conquests rather than actual dates, until now.

"Yes, Wade," she told him then, "we could definitely go out sometime. I'd actually like that a lot."

To Be Continued...