Cammie came home to an empty house. She checked her answering machine to find a message from Zach. "Hey, Gallagher Girl, I'm not going to be home tonight. Grant and I have a little work we need to finish up. I'll see you in the morning. Love you."
Cammie sighed a breathe of relief. She was in a crummy mood and didn't want to risk being exposed. She went into their bedroom and started to pack for the trip. There were casual and dressy outfits for whatever mood she was in. Cammie also packed some sweats for relaxing in. She hoped Macey wouldn't go through her bag and take them out. Cammie hadn't gained much pregnancy weight yet, so she couldn't say that nothing fit her besides those.
Cammie thought of what kind of dad would Zach be. Her dad was vivid in her memories. She remembered going to daddy-daughter dances and having him twirl her around in her pretty dress. Cammie remembered dancing with her dad when she was older, singing along to the music as they cooked in their DC townhouse. She remembered him explaining to her what spies were. The idea itself had mystified Cammie, and she demanded to know more. He wouldn't tell her anything, stating that it was all "classified". Cammie now knew that her dad had just been trying to protect her from the bad parts of their life.
The only bad memory Cammie had of her father was the day she found out he died. They had a tradition; Cammie would make him pinky swear to always come home and he'd make her pinky swear to keep their family's secret. One day, she came home from school, a smile and an A in hand, to find her mom sobbing on the couch. The sight scared Cammie, who was only use to seeing her mother strong. She had forgotten that her mother was human too.
"Mom? What's wrong?" she had asked worriedly. Rachel Morgan tried to smile at her daughter, but it came out as a grimace. She felt like punching a wall but knew it would only make a huge hole like the one in her heart.
"Your dad's gone, sweetheart. He disappeared on a mission. They couldn't find his body." Rachel answered as calmly as she could. She watched her daughter break before her eyes. It was painful to watch.
"You're wrong!" Cammie responded angrily. "You're wrong! He promised he'd come back! Like always!"
Rachel waited for her to calm down before continuing. "I'm not wrong, honey. Joe confirmed it, and you know Joe wouldn't get something like this wrong." Cammie stared down at her feet; it was all she felt like doing. A big hole formed in her stomach. Cammie knew that her Uncle Joe was never wrong about anything.
Her family changed after that. Her mom took the job at Gallagher, and the school became Cammie's new home. It was a good move for both her mom and her. Rachel got to go back home and Cammie now had a home. The students there were her family, her sisters, and she never felt alone there. Living at Gallagher also sharpened her spy skills. Cammie was always the Chameleon, but she really formed that persona at Gallagher.
Cammie flipped on the tv to see that Agent Cody Banks was on. She watched it just to see how warped they made the CIA. Cammie loved watching spy movies just to make fun of them.
Cody was just about to blow up the evil guys' lab when the phone rang. Cammie picked it up, slightly annoyed but curious to see who would call her at eleven thirty. "Hello?" she asked cautiously.
"Hey, Cam, miss me?" Cammie smiled at the familiar voice. It was hrt first spy best friend, Oliver. Oliver and she had met when they were seven years old at some holiday party where both sets of parents had been undercover. The two children had been instructed to blend in and play. Cammie had been sitting a chair coloring when Oliver approached her and asked if he could color too. She said yes, and it was the beginning of a life-long friendship. Oliver would go down in history as the only boy to regularly visit Gallagher at least once a week. The two were both top spies and had gone on a few missions together.
"Yes! When did you get back?" Cammie replied. She always felt better after talking to Oliver; he could make any situation better. The only setback in their friendship was Zach. Oliver though Zach was a jerk, and the feeling was mutual. There was no love lost between them.
"This afternoon. So, how are you and lover boy?" Oliver asked sarcastically. He extremely disliked Zach for a reason he couldn't really pin-point. Maybe it was because he seemed to hold so much power over Cammie. Whatever it was, Oliver tried to push it to the back of his mind.
Cammie bit her lip. She wasn't sure if she should tell Oliver the news. But, at the same time, he'd been her best friend for a long time. "I'm pregnant," she whispered fearfully.
Oliver didn't know what to say. He knew that Cammie was afraid of messing up a child and bringing it into their world of lies. Oliver knew she would trade anything for a normal life. He also knew that Cammie loved her job, but she didn't think it was worth the risk. He listened to Cammie cry softly. "It's going to be okay." Oliver reassured his best friend.
While Cammie was filling Oliver in, Zach and Grant were at a bar, drinking their troubles away. Grant was tipsy while Zach was full-on drunk. Grant couldn't remember ever seeing his friend this confused. He knew Zach would never leave Cammie, but Grant did know that Zach was afraid of becoming a dad. The guy had never even had one, after all. Grant temporarily forgot his own problems and listened to Zach complain.
"You think that would be something she'd been excited to tell me, but no. I have to find out about it from my friend." Zach grumbled while nursing his beer. He wasn't upset about Cammie being pregnant, but he would've like her to tell him herself.
Grant shook his head, realizing what an idiot his best friend is. "Dude, she's probably afraid you're going to bolt or something," he replied logically.
Zach thought about it. Grant did have a point. He did have a reputation for running off all the time. Plus, Cammie's dad had disappeared one day, leaving her family in shambles. How could she be sure Zach wouldn't do the same thing? Her heart had been stitched together, but those stitches were loose.
"Why doesn't she trust me?" Zach asked in desperation. Cammie was like an onion; she had a lot of layers. Ones that he was getting tired of tearing down.
"Why should she?" Grant fired his question right back at him. "All you ever do is run away. All the more reason she'd think you were going to bolt the minute you found out." Zach's mind wandered to the early years of their relationship. He'd always lied to Cammie, but only for her safety. Or so he thought. Were all those lies really for Cammie's protection or his? Zach was also an onion, probably the reason he'd been attracted to Cammie. She was just as broken as he was.
Zach put down his drink and got up. "Where are you going?" Grant asked his best friend worriedly. He was afraid Zach would do something crazy in his bad state of mind. That's why Grant had brought him to a bar, to drink his anxiety away.
"Home. I'm going to prove to her that I won't bolt." Zach replied confidently. He was going to be there for Cammie no matter what. No one could keep Zach away from his family; not the Circle, not anybody. He'd fight to the death to keep Cammie and their child safe.
Grant nodded his head and watched Zach leave. He smiled to himself; Everything seemed to be working out for his friends. Grant pulled a tiny velvet box out of his pocket. Their vacation was definitely going to be an exciting one.