Chapter 61: Uneasiness

Alicia's Point of View

I walked off the stage with Cheryl and Diana, in complete shock at myself.

Who the hell was that, and what did she do with Ali? I thought.

"Oh my god, that was amazing Ali!" Diana said.

Cheryl was grinning.

I felt my face flush.

"I don't know where that came from…" I said, somewhat quietly.

"Oh, I think I know…" Cheryl said in a sing song voice, giving me a knowing smile.

I gave her a "shut up" look.

Diana just laughed, seemingly not catching on to Cheryl's thought.

"Thanks for letting me join guys, that was a blast. I'm going to go hang with the hubby for a bit," Diana said, smiling at both of us before walking up to the DJ booth, where Billy welcomed her with shock and admiration.

I felt Cheryl elbow me gently.

"You're falling hard for him, aren't you?" Cheryl asked, with a smile on her face.

Oh god…I am…I thought.

I felt my heart start racing a bit in panic.

Cheryl laughed quietly, she must of seen the panic on my face.

"Relax sweetie, I think it's almost guaranteed he feels the same way," Cheryl said.

What if he doesn't…?

"Please don't say anything…" I said quietly.

She picked up on my seriousness, because she rubbed my arm gently.

"I won't," she said reassuringly. "Now come on, let's go back to the booth," she added, and started walking back toward our booth.

I took a deep breath before I started to follow her, but after only a few steps, I stopped and glanced around at the crowd.

I felt like I was being watched, and not in the way that my social anxiety could sometimes make me feel.

I was positive someone had to be watching me, but I couldn't see anyone paying attention to me.

I felt a sense of unease run through me.

"Ali? You okay?" Cheryl suddenly asked, drawing my attention back to her.

I took one last look around before I focused my eyes back on her, and walked the few steps to catch up to her.

"Yeah…just felt weird for a minute, it's gone now," I replied.

She looked momentarily concerned, but then nodded and started walking again.

When we reached the booth, Jay and Ashley were in the process of exiting the booth, having decided to head to the dance floor.

"Holy crap Ali! I didn't know a voice like that could come out of someone so tiny!" Ashley exclaimed.

I couldn't help but laugh, despite my face flushing a bit.

"Seriously girl, that was awesome," Ashley said with a smile, before her and Jay headed to the dance floor.

Zak and Aaron were also standing now, to let Cheryl and I slide into the booth.

"Do your thang honey!" Aaron mocked, in a high pitched, female sounding voice.

Cheryl and I laughed.

As Cheryl slid into the booth, I felt Zak's hand rest lightly on the small of my back as he kissed my cheek.

"You were amazing," he said softly, looking at me intently.

I smiled despite my shyness.

"Thanks," I replied quietly, doing my best to ignore my once again, racing heart.

He smiled in return before I slid into the booth and sat down, with Zak sitting down close beside me.

"And the best part, I got it all on video!" Aaron exclaimed with a grin, causing the three of us to laugh.

But I also groaned in fake annoyance.

"Fantastic," I grumbled, causing the three of them to laugh.

I felt Zak wrap his around around me and gently rub my arm.

I looked at him and smiled, and he smiled in return, his hazel eyes bright with joy.

I was falling.

Hard.

Some time had past, and the four of us were mainly talking about the upcoming trip to Romania.

We'd be leaving tomorrow afternoon, and for the first time, Cheryl would be coming with us.

She had been so excited for us when she had learned we were going, but I knew she was partly upset, because we would have time to go sightseeing, and she was jealous of the fact.

But a few days ago, Aaron had surprised her with a ticket to come with us, and she was thrilled.

She had some initial hesitations, saying she didn't know if she could afford a hotel room and other travel expenses right now, but Aaron had assured her that he would take care of everything.

I still wasn't sure what exactly their relationship status was, but I assumed they were at least dating, if Aaron was willing to pay all expenses for Cheryl to come along.

On the other hand, Zak had given me his expensive, custom made, diamond cross as a gift when we'd only known each other a few weeks.

I think both Cheryl and I were exploring new territory in regards to relationships.

Suddenly, the uncomfortable feeling of being watched had come over me again.

I looked around the booth in the general vicinity, wondering if Emily was trying to get my attention.

I hadn't see her at all since the "Queen Mary" disaster, and that wasn't even really her.

Not seeing anything out of the ordinary nearby, I changed my focus to the crowd outside the VIP section, the people on the dance floor, at the bar.

Nothing.

What the hell is wrong with me?

But then I did notice someone watching me.

There was a man sitting at another booth in the VIP section, and despite the group of people he was with, he was staring at me.

From what I could make out, he had blonde hair, looked to be of average height, and looked fairly fit under his clothes.

I would of thought he was kind of cute, if he wasn't staring at me.

My thoughts were suddenly distracted when I felt Zak gently pull some hair back over my shoulder.

"Are you okay? You're so quiet all of a sudden," Zak asked.

"I felt like I was being watched when Cheryl and I were coming back from the stage," I started softly. "And there's a guy now, over there in a booth. He's staring at me…" I added, looking toward the guy again.

He was still staring at me.

Zak looked concerned, and then casually looked in the general direction of where I was looking.

The guy suddenly turned his attention away from me, and back to the group he was with, instantly joining in their conversation.

Zak looked back at me.

"Maybe he thinks you're hot. He's not wrong," Zak teased, with a smirk on his face.

I felt my face flush.

I risked a look at the guy again, and saw him glance at me briefly, smiling at me as he did so.

I looked away and shifted a bit closer to Zak.

He frowned slightly and wrapped his arm around me.

"We can leave if you want," Zak suggested.

"No…it's okay. It's probably nothing," I replied.

I was just being my socially anxious self.

"Alright, well, if you change your mind, let me know, okay?" Zak asked and I nodded in response.

"I will," I replied.

Zak smiled and rubbed my arm soothingly.

"Oooo, I love this song!" Cheryl suddenly exclaimed as a new song started blasting through the club, seemingly oblivious to the conversation between Zak and I.

Aaron jokingly started slouching down in his seat as if he wanted to hide.

Zak and I laughed.

"Aww! I want to dance, please?" Cheryl asked, doing her best pouty lip and puppy dog eyes impression.

Aaron laughed and sighed.

"How can I say no to a beautiful woman?" Aaron asked, sitting up and winking at Cheryl, before turning and sliding out of the booth.

Aaron then turned and held his hand out to her.

Cheryl smiled, looking slightly embarrassed as she followed Aaron out of the booth, putting her hand in his and standing up.

"See you guys later," Cheryl said.

"Have fun," I replied, and watched them briefly as they walked away.

"Finally, we're alone," Zak said, turning his full attention on me.

I smiled.

As much as I loved Cheryl, my best friend, and loved all of the others, I loved spending alone time with Zak too.

"Yes we are," I said, feeling a bit unsure of what to say, or what to do.

Especially after my realization earlier.

Should I tell him how I feel? Or is it too soon? What if he doesn't feel the same way…

"Ali…I want to tell you something," Zak said, gently rubbing my arm still.

Oh boy.

This was either going to be good, or going to be bad.

I did my best to remain calm.

"What is it?" I asked.

Zak seemed to hesitate, as if he were nervous.

"Well, I-" Zak was cut off by his phone, which suddenly emitted a ringtone.

Zak looked slightly annoyed.

"Sorry," Zak said, taking his phone out from his pocket and checking his texts.

"It's okay," I replied, although I was dying inside to know what he had wanted to tell me.

I saw Zak's expression change from annoyance to excitement.

He pulled his arm back from around me, and I saw him quickly type a reply, then pocket his phone.

He looked at me with a slightly sheepish look on his face.

"I'm sorry, I gotta go meet someone at the entrance for a minute, but I'll be right back. I promise," Zak said, standing up from the booth, and then he was gone.

What was that all about?

I figured it just had something to do with business.