Laughing in the Face of Death – Chapter Three
Freddy's eyes widened in shock. Had Zack just said what Freddy thought Zack said?
"There. I said it," Zack mumbled quietly. "I love you, Freddy. I always have and always will. You wouldn't know what it was like when I thought I had lost you. I can't live with out you. You're like my life support or something."
Freddy was still speechless. He had always wished that Zack would profess his love to him, but he had to admit that he wasn't entirely prepared for it. Zack stood up abruptly. He coughed nervously.
"Well, I think I'll be going," Zack said. "You should probably rest after last night."
He turned to leave when Freddy's hand shot up to his shoulder. He tugged the dark haired guitarist back down onto the hospital bed, and looked him straight in the eye.
"Kiss me."
Zack blinked up at the blonde drummer. Had Freddy just said what Zack thought Freddy had said?
"What?"
"I said 'Kiss me' you fool!"
Zack still didn't know what to make of Freddy's sudden statement. He was confused. Did that mean that Freddy liked him back?
As for Freddy, he was getting a bit annoyed at Zack's lack of response. He rolled his eyes and, upon deciding that Zack was never going to kiss him, that he would kiss Zack.
Which was exactly what Freddy did.
Zack was surprised when Freddy's lips collided with his. He was a very fierce kisser, Zack noted, and he seemed to know what he was doing. Zack decided to respond, and he returned Freddy's kiss.
Freddy knew that he had full control of where this kiss was going. He ran his free hand through Zack's hair, feeling its texture. His other hand was around Zack's waist. He pulled Zack closer to him so he could feel the warmth of his body. He was using one of his legs to gently massage Zack's own leg. Zack moaned loudly. Freddy smiled to himself.
Now there was only one thing that was left for Freddy to do. He prodded his tongue on Zack's lips, demanding entrance into the boy's mouth. Zack reluctantly opened his mouth. Freddy slide his tongue inside. Zack moaned loudly again.
Both boys would have liked the kiss to last longer, but Freddy ended it when a searing pain shot through his stomach. He rolled away from Zack, breathless, amazed, and hurting slightly.
"Wow," Freddy mumbled. "I didn't know I could do that."
"I didn't know that you could do that either," Zack mumbled as he sat up. Freddy was pleased to see that he was blushing furiously and that he looked slightly dazed. "Man, I never knew that my first kiss was going to be that intense."
Freddy looked at Zack. "Your first kiss?" he asked him.
Zack nodded. "Yeah. How lame is that? I'm sixteen years old and I just had my first kiss."
Freddy sighed. "It was my first kiss too," he whispered.
"What?" Zack looked at him curiously. "Did I just hear that Freddy's never kissed anyone before me?"
Freddy was reluctant to answer, but he nodded eventually. Zack laughed.
"Wow," he giggled. "Wow. Freddy 'The Lady Killer' Jones never kissed anyone but me."
Freddy sat up, grabbed one of his pillows, and threw it at Zack's face. Zack caught it and beat Freddy over the head with it. Freddy finally managed to grab the pillow from Zack's hands and smiled at him.
"Don't go calling me a lady killer, Mooneyham," he stated, nudging Zack with his foot.
"Why not?" Zack questioned. "Every girl in the class thinks that you're gorgeous." He paused for a moment. "I think you're gorgeous."
"Well," Freddy started, "I think that you are one sexy guitar player." He ran his hand through Zack's hair before pulling him down for what turned into a fifteen-minute make-out session.
This time, Zack was responding with much harder kisses then he had been responding with before. Freddy was amazed. He never knew that his best friend could do that.
He was very disappointed when Zack pulled away. Freddy was about to protest to Zack ending their kissing when he yawned loudly.
"Man, I am so tired," Zack whispered. "I swear, I am never going to sleep for only two hours again!"
Freddy sat up. "You need to rest," he said. He pointed his index finger towards his pillows. "You can take a nap in my bed."
Zack shook his head. "No, no," he protested. "I didn't come here to sleep. I came here to be with my best friend."
Freddy sighed loudly. "Well, I personally don't want my best friend to start suffering from insomnia. Just take the damn nap, Zack!"
Zack continued to protest with Freddy.
"I'm serious, Freddy! I don't need to sleep!"
"I demand that you do!"
"No!"
"Yes!"
"No!"
"Zachary Thomas Mooneyham! You take that nap or I will never, and I repeat, never talk to you again!"
That seemed to do the trick. Zack sighed and pulled himself up to Freddy's pillows. Freddy pulled his blankets over Zack. Zack closed his eyes. Freddy crawled up to Zack and rested his head on his stomach.
"I love you, Freddy," Zack mumbled.
"I love you too, Zack," Freddy whispered. "I mean it. With all my heart."
Zack smiled as he drifted off to sleep. Freddy remained awake, with his head still resting on Zack's stomach, for what felt like an hour. He was busy stroking Zack's cheek when the door to his hospital room opened and then closed.
Freddy panicked. Looking over at the door he saw Zack's twenty year-old sister, Liz, standing by the closed door. Freddy was about to say something when Liz put her finger to her lips and then pointed at her brother. Freddy nodded. Liz went out the door for a moment, and then came back with a chair. She placed the chair at the edge of Freddy's bed and then went and looked the hospital room door. Liz patted the edge of Freddy's bed. Freddy was a bit reluctant to leave Zack, but he did as he was told. He crawled up to the edge of the bed.
"Hey," he said to Liz nervously. She smiled at him. "Look, what you just saw..."
Liz cut Freddy off. "Freddy, it's okay. I knew Zack liked you."
Freddy raised his eyebrows. "You did?" he asked.
Liz nodded. "Of course. You should have heard him when he called me last night. He was in tears, screaming about how he thought he had lost you and what not."
Freddy nodded thoughtfully. "So, what are you doing here?"
"I came to get Zack," Liz answered. She leaned in towards Freddy and whispered, "Our father doesn't know he's here."
Freddy's eyes widened. "What?" he said. "Mr. Mooneyham doesn't know?" He leaned back slightly. "That can't be good."
Liz nodded in agreement. "Dad called me last night, screaming in frustration at how Zack said he had gone to the library for an hour and never came back. He asked me if I knew where he was. I said that he was staying with me."
Freddy nodded. Liz went to New York University. She lived in the same apartment building that Freddy lived in. Freddy knew that Zack liked spending time with his sister. Zack hated his father. Infact, Freddy thought to himself, he was sure that everyone hated Mr. Mooneyham.
"Dad barely let that one slide by," Liz was saying. "He started screaming about how Zack was a liar and how he was going to regret lying to him when he went home."
"When does Zack have to go back to your parents?" Freddy asked anxiously.
"Tomorrow," Liz answered. She grimaced. Both looked over at Zack. He was still sleeping, oblivious to the fact that his sister and his best friend where discussing him.
"I swear," Freddy started, "That if your father dare lays a hand on Zack in any way that could hurt him that your father will pay." He turned to look at Liz and see her reaction. She smiled at him.
"I agree with you," she said. "He's done enough. He's given all of us – my mother, Zack, me – emotional scars. I can't remember a night that my mother wasn't crying, or a time when Zack wasn't hiding with me, both of us holding each other in fear." She stopped. Then she looked back at Freddy. "Promise me that you'll never hurt Zack," she whispered. "Promise me that you'll be there for him in a time when I can't be there for him. Be there for him when he was no where else to turn. Protect him, Freddy. Zack loves you so much." She paused as tears began to slip down her face.
"I'd die for Zack," Freddy whispered back. "I promise that I'll take good care of him." Liz smiled. She and Freddy hugged for a moment. When they pulled away Liz asked:
"So, what did happen last night?"
Freddy smiled. "I'll tell you the truth."
So he told Liz his story. She listened intently. Soon after they began to talk about other things, and two more hours flew by. Suddenly, Zack stirred.
"What's going on?" he asked, sitting up and looking around. "Liz!" he cried out, jumping off the bed and hugging his sister.
"Good morning," she said to him. "It's time to take you home."
"You look better," Freddy said to Zack. Zack smiled at Freddy as he went red.
"Thanks," he mumbled.
"You two are the cutest couple I have ever seen," Liz said jokingly. Zack nudged her slightly. Freddy laughed.
"Why, thank you!" he exclaimed. He stood up next to Zack and slipped his arm around his slim figure. "I just couldn't keep him away from me!" Zack opened his mouth in shock. Liz laughed.
"I can't keep myself away from him," Freddy whispered in a serious tone of voice. Zack looked at him.
"Do you mean it?" he asked. Freddy nodded.
He kissed Zack.
Zack kissed him back.
They both kissed each other, and started in on what promised to be a good make-out session when someone started rattling the hospital room door.
"I think I better go," Zack said, pulling himself slowly away from Freddy. Freddy nodded. Liz unlocked the door, and Nina came bustling in.
"Dear, please don't lock the door next time!" she exclaimed. She looked at Liz and Zack.
"We were just leaving," Liz said, grabbing Zack by the arm. Nina nodded.
"I came to tell you that your parents' managed to catch another plane to New York," Nina said. "They will be arriving shortly."
Freddy nodded.
"Also," Nina began. "The doctors say that they will be able to take you off the intervenes and send you home tomorrow." Freddy and Zack cheered. Nina smiled and left the room.
"Let's go," Liz said, tugging at Zack.
"Hold on!" he said to his sister. He walked up to Freddy.
"See you tomorrow?" he said to Freddy.
"Of course," Freddy answered. Zack kissed him. He then left with his sister.
Freddy ran to the hospital room window and peered through it. He saw Zack walking with his sister. He turned and waved at Freddy. Freddy waved back. Then they got into Liz's dark blue Ford Explorer and drove off.
Freddy smiled to himself and sat back down on his bed. Then something crept back into his head.
Would Mr. Mooneyham do something to Zack when he went home tomorrow?
Xxxxxxxx {tbc}
Freddy's eyes widened in shock. Had Zack just said what Freddy thought Zack said?
"There. I said it," Zack mumbled quietly. "I love you, Freddy. I always have and always will. You wouldn't know what it was like when I thought I had lost you. I can't live with out you. You're like my life support or something."
Freddy was still speechless. He had always wished that Zack would profess his love to him, but he had to admit that he wasn't entirely prepared for it. Zack stood up abruptly. He coughed nervously.
"Well, I think I'll be going," Zack said. "You should probably rest after last night."
He turned to leave when Freddy's hand shot up to his shoulder. He tugged the dark haired guitarist back down onto the hospital bed, and looked him straight in the eye.
"Kiss me."
Zack blinked up at the blonde drummer. Had Freddy just said what Zack thought Freddy had said?
"What?"
"I said 'Kiss me' you fool!"
Zack still didn't know what to make of Freddy's sudden statement. He was confused. Did that mean that Freddy liked him back?
As for Freddy, he was getting a bit annoyed at Zack's lack of response. He rolled his eyes and, upon deciding that Zack was never going to kiss him, that he would kiss Zack.
Which was exactly what Freddy did.
Zack was surprised when Freddy's lips collided with his. He was a very fierce kisser, Zack noted, and he seemed to know what he was doing. Zack decided to respond, and he returned Freddy's kiss.
Freddy knew that he had full control of where this kiss was going. He ran his free hand through Zack's hair, feeling its texture. His other hand was around Zack's waist. He pulled Zack closer to him so he could feel the warmth of his body. He was using one of his legs to gently massage Zack's own leg. Zack moaned loudly. Freddy smiled to himself.
Now there was only one thing that was left for Freddy to do. He prodded his tongue on Zack's lips, demanding entrance into the boy's mouth. Zack reluctantly opened his mouth. Freddy slide his tongue inside. Zack moaned loudly again.
Both boys would have liked the kiss to last longer, but Freddy ended it when a searing pain shot through his stomach. He rolled away from Zack, breathless, amazed, and hurting slightly.
"Wow," Freddy mumbled. "I didn't know I could do that."
"I didn't know that you could do that either," Zack mumbled as he sat up. Freddy was pleased to see that he was blushing furiously and that he looked slightly dazed. "Man, I never knew that my first kiss was going to be that intense."
Freddy looked at Zack. "Your first kiss?" he asked him.
Zack nodded. "Yeah. How lame is that? I'm sixteen years old and I just had my first kiss."
Freddy sighed. "It was my first kiss too," he whispered.
"What?" Zack looked at him curiously. "Did I just hear that Freddy's never kissed anyone before me?"
Freddy was reluctant to answer, but he nodded eventually. Zack laughed.
"Wow," he giggled. "Wow. Freddy 'The Lady Killer' Jones never kissed anyone but me."
Freddy sat up, grabbed one of his pillows, and threw it at Zack's face. Zack caught it and beat Freddy over the head with it. Freddy finally managed to grab the pillow from Zack's hands and smiled at him.
"Don't go calling me a lady killer, Mooneyham," he stated, nudging Zack with his foot.
"Why not?" Zack questioned. "Every girl in the class thinks that you're gorgeous." He paused for a moment. "I think you're gorgeous."
"Well," Freddy started, "I think that you are one sexy guitar player." He ran his hand through Zack's hair before pulling him down for what turned into a fifteen-minute make-out session.
This time, Zack was responding with much harder kisses then he had been responding with before. Freddy was amazed. He never knew that his best friend could do that.
He was very disappointed when Zack pulled away. Freddy was about to protest to Zack ending their kissing when he yawned loudly.
"Man, I am so tired," Zack whispered. "I swear, I am never going to sleep for only two hours again!"
Freddy sat up. "You need to rest," he said. He pointed his index finger towards his pillows. "You can take a nap in my bed."
Zack shook his head. "No, no," he protested. "I didn't come here to sleep. I came here to be with my best friend."
Freddy sighed loudly. "Well, I personally don't want my best friend to start suffering from insomnia. Just take the damn nap, Zack!"
Zack continued to protest with Freddy.
"I'm serious, Freddy! I don't need to sleep!"
"I demand that you do!"
"No!"
"Yes!"
"No!"
"Zachary Thomas Mooneyham! You take that nap or I will never, and I repeat, never talk to you again!"
That seemed to do the trick. Zack sighed and pulled himself up to Freddy's pillows. Freddy pulled his blankets over Zack. Zack closed his eyes. Freddy crawled up to Zack and rested his head on his stomach.
"I love you, Freddy," Zack mumbled.
"I love you too, Zack," Freddy whispered. "I mean it. With all my heart."
Zack smiled as he drifted off to sleep. Freddy remained awake, with his head still resting on Zack's stomach, for what felt like an hour. He was busy stroking Zack's cheek when the door to his hospital room opened and then closed.
Freddy panicked. Looking over at the door he saw Zack's twenty year-old sister, Liz, standing by the closed door. Freddy was about to say something when Liz put her finger to her lips and then pointed at her brother. Freddy nodded. Liz went out the door for a moment, and then came back with a chair. She placed the chair at the edge of Freddy's bed and then went and looked the hospital room door. Liz patted the edge of Freddy's bed. Freddy was a bit reluctant to leave Zack, but he did as he was told. He crawled up to the edge of the bed.
"Hey," he said to Liz nervously. She smiled at him. "Look, what you just saw..."
Liz cut Freddy off. "Freddy, it's okay. I knew Zack liked you."
Freddy raised his eyebrows. "You did?" he asked.
Liz nodded. "Of course. You should have heard him when he called me last night. He was in tears, screaming about how he thought he had lost you and what not."
Freddy nodded thoughtfully. "So, what are you doing here?"
"I came to get Zack," Liz answered. She leaned in towards Freddy and whispered, "Our father doesn't know he's here."
Freddy's eyes widened. "What?" he said. "Mr. Mooneyham doesn't know?" He leaned back slightly. "That can't be good."
Liz nodded in agreement. "Dad called me last night, screaming in frustration at how Zack said he had gone to the library for an hour and never came back. He asked me if I knew where he was. I said that he was staying with me."
Freddy nodded. Liz went to New York University. She lived in the same apartment building that Freddy lived in. Freddy knew that Zack liked spending time with his sister. Zack hated his father. Infact, Freddy thought to himself, he was sure that everyone hated Mr. Mooneyham.
"Dad barely let that one slide by," Liz was saying. "He started screaming about how Zack was a liar and how he was going to regret lying to him when he went home."
"When does Zack have to go back to your parents?" Freddy asked anxiously.
"Tomorrow," Liz answered. She grimaced. Both looked over at Zack. He was still sleeping, oblivious to the fact that his sister and his best friend where discussing him.
"I swear," Freddy started, "That if your father dare lays a hand on Zack in any way that could hurt him that your father will pay." He turned to look at Liz and see her reaction. She smiled at him.
"I agree with you," she said. "He's done enough. He's given all of us – my mother, Zack, me – emotional scars. I can't remember a night that my mother wasn't crying, or a time when Zack wasn't hiding with me, both of us holding each other in fear." She stopped. Then she looked back at Freddy. "Promise me that you'll never hurt Zack," she whispered. "Promise me that you'll be there for him in a time when I can't be there for him. Be there for him when he was no where else to turn. Protect him, Freddy. Zack loves you so much." She paused as tears began to slip down her face.
"I'd die for Zack," Freddy whispered back. "I promise that I'll take good care of him." Liz smiled. She and Freddy hugged for a moment. When they pulled away Liz asked:
"So, what did happen last night?"
Freddy smiled. "I'll tell you the truth."
So he told Liz his story. She listened intently. Soon after they began to talk about other things, and two more hours flew by. Suddenly, Zack stirred.
"What's going on?" he asked, sitting up and looking around. "Liz!" he cried out, jumping off the bed and hugging his sister.
"Good morning," she said to him. "It's time to take you home."
"You look better," Freddy said to Zack. Zack smiled at Freddy as he went red.
"Thanks," he mumbled.
"You two are the cutest couple I have ever seen," Liz said jokingly. Zack nudged her slightly. Freddy laughed.
"Why, thank you!" he exclaimed. He stood up next to Zack and slipped his arm around his slim figure. "I just couldn't keep him away from me!" Zack opened his mouth in shock. Liz laughed.
"I can't keep myself away from him," Freddy whispered in a serious tone of voice. Zack looked at him.
"Do you mean it?" he asked. Freddy nodded.
He kissed Zack.
Zack kissed him back.
They both kissed each other, and started in on what promised to be a good make-out session when someone started rattling the hospital room door.
"I think I better go," Zack said, pulling himself slowly away from Freddy. Freddy nodded. Liz unlocked the door, and Nina came bustling in.
"Dear, please don't lock the door next time!" she exclaimed. She looked at Liz and Zack.
"We were just leaving," Liz said, grabbing Zack by the arm. Nina nodded.
"I came to tell you that your parents' managed to catch another plane to New York," Nina said. "They will be arriving shortly."
Freddy nodded.
"Also," Nina began. "The doctors say that they will be able to take you off the intervenes and send you home tomorrow." Freddy and Zack cheered. Nina smiled and left the room.
"Let's go," Liz said, tugging at Zack.
"Hold on!" he said to his sister. He walked up to Freddy.
"See you tomorrow?" he said to Freddy.
"Of course," Freddy answered. Zack kissed him. He then left with his sister.
Freddy ran to the hospital room window and peered through it. He saw Zack walking with his sister. He turned and waved at Freddy. Freddy waved back. Then they got into Liz's dark blue Ford Explorer and drove off.
Freddy smiled to himself and sat back down on his bed. Then something crept back into his head.
Would Mr. Mooneyham do something to Zack when he went home tomorrow?
Xxxxxxxx {tbc}
