A/N: Let me start out by saying I'm so sorry! I totally forgot to tell you guys that I just got back to college so things are a little hectic. I will still be updating the story, just maybe not as often as usual. Secondly, I have noticed that I've been getting less and less reviews, which makes me sad Mainly because your reviews are what motivate me to write more. Anyways, here is the next chapter. I hope you like it.

Zac waited until Vanessa was safely inside the airport with her manager before driving away from the airport doors, leaving the paparazzi behind. Zac pulled out his cell phone and called Dylan as he looked in his mirrors, changing lanes.

When Dylan's voicemail picked up, Zac sighed and put his phone back in the console of his dash. He tapped his steering wheel, singing along with the radio as he cruised his black Audi towards his house on Woodrow Wilson Drive.

He arrived twenty minutes later and punched in the code on the gate, opening the metal door. He drove through and waited for it to close before continuing up the driveway. Not bothering to open the garage, he pulled through to the front door of the house. He grabbed his phone before getting out and walking to the front door.

He used his key to unlock the door and he was met with the sound of his little brother snoring loudly. He closed the door and walked into the bedroom.

He chuckled when he saw Dylan laying face down in his boxers with his arm hanging off the bed. Zac decided to be nice and hit him on his back softly with the back of his hand. "Yo, Dyl. Wake up."

Dylan's eyes opened slowly before he groaned and buried his head in the pillow. Zac stood there with his arms folded across his chest with an amused look on his face.

After a minute, Dylan lifted his head and wiped his eyes.

"What time is it?" he asked groggily.

"Six. You better get up if you want to go to the game. What did you do? Come back here and go back to sleep?" Zac asked as he walked into the bathroom to pee.

"Yeah, dude. I was exhausted. Did Nessa catch her plane?" he said, getting up and putting on some clothes.

"Yeah. I just came from the airport. She was excited because she is meeting up with Mo for dinner when she lands," Zac said, walking out of the bathroom, zipping up his jeans.

"When is she getting back in?" Dylan asked, grabbing his phone and running his hands through his tousled hair.

Zac replied to a text as he listened to Dylan, "Ummm, late tomorrow night. She is leaving there about four am, New York time."

"Dang, I'll be gone before she gets back. I gotta head back up to SLO tomorrow afternoon. I have an exam the next day."

Zac locked the front door as they walked out and got into the car. "Has Katie called you anymore?"

Dylan shook his head, "No. She has texted me a couple of times, but I haven't replied. I wish she would just leave me alone. It makes it easier if I don't have to think about it."

Zac squeezed his shoulder. "That's why we are having a bro night, little brother." Dylan smiled as they pulled out of the driveway.

Vanessa got off of the plane after landing at JFK International Airport and sighed when she saw paparazzi waiting outside. As she waited by the baggage claim, she pulled out her iPhone to type a quick message.

"Just landed. Hope you and Dyl are having fun. Ttyl. Love you."

She slid the phone back into her back pocket and grabbed her bag when she saw it come to her. She placed the strap of her Louis Vitton duffel bag on her shoulder and started walking towards the exit where her car was waiting on her.

She looked down as the flashes started to go off. She nearly stopped in her tracks when she realized they were all taking pictures of her hand. "Dammit Vanesssa!" she said in her head, scolding herself for not hiding the ring.

"Vanessa! Are you engaged?! Are you and Zac getting married?!"

She sighed and continued to ignore them as she made her way to the car. She got inside and relaxed slightly when the car door was closed, shielding her from prying camera lenses. She pulled out her phone when it started ringing.

"Hello?" she said, not looking at the caller id.

"Hey Sweet girl, how are you?" Starla said sweetly through the line.

"Hey mom," Vanessa sighed happily. "I'm good, I just landed in NYC."

"Oh gosh! I totally forgot you were flying out today. How was your flight?"

"It was good. I'm just really tired. I hate changing time zones. And I didn't get much sleep last night. How are you and David?"

"We're good, sweetie. I just wanted to talk to you so you could tell me what's really going on with my sons. I could tell by Zachary's tone that something was up yesterday when I called him back."

Vanessa giggled softly, "Mother's intuition?"

"I guess you could call it that," Starla replied, laughing softly.

"I'm sure Dylan will tell you when he's ready to talk about it, but Katie cheated on him…with Carlos….more than once."

Vanessa pulled the phone away and looked at the screen when it was quiet. "Mom?"

"I'm here…..I'm here. I just…..that little….whore. Excuse my language. I just can't believe it."

Vanessa was slightly shocked at Starla's response, but felt the same way. "I know. We were at the Malibu beach house when Dylan called and he was at the house looking for us and so he came down there and told Zac the story. He didn't want you to worry, but he didn't want to talk about it to you guys yet. I think he just needed his big brother, although Dylan will never admit it."

Starla laughed, "Never in a million years. So he is there with Zac still? He isn't by himself?"

"Zac was taking him to a Lakers game and out to eat and stuff tonight and they were going to play video games and hang out at our house afterwards tonight. Zac didn't want him to be alone."

"Have Katie or Carlos tried to get in touch with him?"

"Yeah, constantly. But Dylan is really upset over the whole situation, but especially about Carlos."

"I'm worried about him, but I know Zac will take care of him."

"Definitely. He was really excited to get to spend some time with him, even if it is because of these circumstances."

"I bet so. What all do you have to do in New York?"

"I have to go to this appearance for one of the charities out here and I have some interviews on radio stations about the album. Then I'm leaving here about midnight tomorrow, LA time."

"Good gosh, that's an action packed day. You sound stressed."

Vanessa sighed as she ran her hand through her hair and leaned her head against the cold window, looking out at the city. "I am, mom. I just walked out of the airport and forgot to hide my hand. So when I wake up, everyone will know about the engagement and Zac and I weren't ready to share it with the world yet. I don't…..I don't want him to be mad at me. And this guy last night came up to us and was hitting on me, but when Zac stepped in and told him to leave the guy said that he had already seen me naked, along with the rest of the world and Zac punched him and I just…..I can't help but think that deep down Zac resents the part of me that took those pictures. It still interferes with not only my life and career, but his too and it's not fair. And I….what if he decides he doesn't want to marry me?"

Starla could hear the tears being held back by the softness and vulnerability of Vanessa's voice. When she went to speak, Vanessa spoke up again.

"Hold on, mom. I'll call you back in a few minutes. We just pulled up to the hotel."

"Okay, bye sweetie. Love you." She said quickly as she hung up.

When Starla hung up the phone, she immediately pressed the second speed dial button, waiting for a familiar voice.

"Talk to me."

"Zachary?"

"Hey momma, what's up? It's getting late, what are you doing up?"

"Have you talked to Nessa tonight?"

"Not yet, me and Dyl just got back to the house. I was driving, but I got her message saying that she had landed. Why?" Zac asked, throwing his wallet and keys on the kitchen counter.

"Sweetheart, you need to call her in a few minutes."

"Why? What's going on? Is she okay?" he asked, worriedly, grabbing a bottle of water and walking outside to sit on the patio chair while Dylan changed inside.

"I probably shouldn't be telling you this because she told me in confidence…"

"Mom, you're worrying me. Tell me."

"I just got off the phone with her. I called her and she picked up while she was in the car and we chatted for a little bit. I could tell something was really bothering her."

"Yeah, I know. I asked her about it all day, but she just kept saying it was because she didn't want to leave. I could tell there is more, but I know better than to push her. When she is ready, she'll tell me."

"Well I guess she has finally cracked, because she told me what was bothering her. It's a couple of things. And I'm sure leaving you was one of them, but firstly she is scared."

"Of what?"

"She forgot to put her hand in her pocket and the paparazzi got pictures of the ring. She said that she knows you two weren't ready to share it with the world and she is scared you will be mad at her."

The silence coming from her eldest son's end of the conversation showed he was deep in thought about what she had just scared.

"But I think the thing that is really bothering her is something way bigger. She told me about what happened at the beach house last night. About what the guy said and how you punched him. Ever since then, she said that she couldn't stop thinking about it. She said she can't help but think that deep down, you resent her for taking the pictures and because not only does it still interfere with her life and career to this day, but it also interferes with yours. She said that she is afraid that because of that, you will decide you don't want to marry her. Before I could say anything else, she had to go because she was getting out at the hotel."

She heard Zac take a deep breath.

He squeezed his eyes shut as he put his head in his left hand with his elbow resting on the table. "I've gotta call her."

"I love you, sweetheart."

"Love you too. Thanks momma." He said sweetly before hanging up the phone. He pulled the phone away from his ear and hit 'end.' He quickly dialed the most called number in his phone and placed the phone back against his ear as he stood up, pacing around the backyard with his free hand in his pocket.

Vanessa placed her bag on the floor before changing into one of Zac's t-shirts. She washed her face and laid down before turning off the light. Her phone lit up with her favorite picture of a certain brown-haired, blue-eyed boy. Seeing his picture made her burst into tears. She knew she couldn't answer otherwise he would instantly know something was up.

"Hopefully he will think I'm asleep," she mumbled to herself.

A minute later, the screen went dark.

"Dammit," Zac said as he immediately hung up and redialed the number.

When she didn't answer again, he decided to leave a voicemail.

"Hi this is Vanessa Hudgens. I'm sorry I can't come to the phone right now, but I'll call you back as soon as I can!" BEEP

"Ness, baby, please call me back or answer the phone or something. I need to talk to you. Just…..just know that you are my entire world, Vanessa Anne Hudgens. I love you. Please call me."

He hung up his phone and sighed, walking back into the house.

"You okay. Dude?" Dylan asked, about to walk upstairs to go to bed.

Zac ran his hand through his hair as he walked up the stairs behind him after turning off the lights. "Vanessa thinks that because of what that douchebag said last night that I'm going to change my mind about marrying her. And she is scared I will be mad because the paparazzi saw her ring tonight. She won't answer my calls."

"I'm sure she will. Just give her some time. Don't do anything like jump on a plane and fly there."

Zac looked down sheepishly.

"You already bought a ticket, didn't you?" Dylan asked, crossing his arms and giving him a stern look.

"No, but I was about to." Zac admitted. "I just don't know what to do if she won't answer my calls. I need to talk to her and tell her she is crazy for thinking that."

"I'm sure she will answer. She might be sleeping. Worse case scenario is she doesn't call you back, but at least she will be home tomorrow night."

Zac sighed in defeat. "Fine. I guess you're right."

Dylan hugged him, "She'll call bro, don't worry."

Zac nodded and gave a weak smile, hugging him back. They pulled apart and Zac went into the master bedroom and closed the double doors. He got ready for bed, never putting down his phone in case she called.

He turned off the lights and laid down in bed, before opening his phone again.

He decided to try again. "Baby V, I'm so worried. Please just let me know you're okay. I love you."

When Vanessa read the text, she couldn't help the new wave of tears. She was about to listen to his voicemail for the thirteenth time before she saw a call pop up on the screen. She took a deep breath before answering the phone when it said 'Bro-in-law.'

"Hello?" she said quietly.

"Nessa? Are you okay?"

She didn't reply, but he could hear her tears on the other side of the line.

"Sis-in-law, you're worrying Zman. Please call him."

"I-i-I c-c-can't Dyl," she choked out between soft sobs.

"Well then send him a text message or something. He has been pacing around the backyard and staring at his phone. He isn't going to get any sleep until he hears from you, you know that. I just had to convince him not to buy the plane ticket he was about to get."

He heard Vanessa cry a little harder before he softened his tone.

"He is scared you are going to do something irrational and break up with him. Please just talk to him, Nessa."

He heard the phone beep, signaling the end of the call. He decided not to call her back. As he put his phone down, he heard "Forever Your Girl" by Paula Abdul ringing from his brother's cell phone.

Zac was laying on his back, looking at the ceiling with his phone resting on his bare chest. When a familiar song began to come through his phone's speakers, he quickly sat up and grabbed his phone.

"Ness? Baby?" Zac said, waiting to hear her voice.

He heard her suck in a few breaths between tears before whispering his name softly. "Zac."

"I'm here, baby girl. Please don't cry. Can you do me a favor? Can you listen to what I have to say?"

"Yeah," she said, barely audible.

"Baby, first of all, I am not mad at you. Not in the slightest bit. If they got pictures of the ring, who cares. We can either ignore the questions or we can confirm it. Whichever you want to do, is fine with me. I'm just happy to be the one beside you and be the one who gave you the ring. Secondly…..Vanessa I don't want you to ever doubt how much I love you and how badly I want to be your husband. Hell, I've wanted to be your husband since the first time I kissed you. I said that day that I never wanted another man to share that feeling with you besides me. When the whole photo thing happened, I could have easily ran from the situation. I could have broken up with you and gone our separate ways. But I didn't, Ness. I didn't run, because I loved you. I said to hell with my career if it affects it, because without you in my life, it didn't mean shit anyways. When it happened again, I could have taken the easy way out, but once again I didn't. I didn't want to. You needed me and I wanted to be there for you no matter what. If I didn't take the easy way out either of those times, what makes you think I will ever take it? I've never been the type of guy to take the easy route of things and now that I know what it is like to have you in my life, I'm not losing you. Not because of premature news of our engagement, not because of false rumors people start, not because of the stupid things people say, and certainly not because of mistakes that were made in the past that we stuck together through and came out stronger as a result of it. If we got asked about it from this day and everyday forward, I would still want to be by your side, punching guys for asking it. If I need to fly to New York right now and get a minister and marry you in your hotel room, I will. I want to marry you Vanessa Hudgens. But I know how excited you are to plan the wedding of your dreams and I will be more than happy to help with whatever you need me to do. But I need you to do me a favor. Promise me that no matter what, you will never doubt that I want to be the one to look you in the eyes and say 'I do.' And never doubt that I don't love you. Because I love you with every inch of my mind, body, and soul."

There was a moment of silence, aside from the soft tears on the other end of the phone. Finally he heard the voice that was music to his ears.

"I promise. I love you too, Zac. With all my heart."

Zac's muscles relaxed and he laid back, resting his head on his pillow, still holding the phone to his ear.

"I'm sorry for not answering. I just needed to let it all out and I knew if I answered you would instantly know something was wrong and worry, but then I realized you would worry yourself sick if I didn't call. And I was worried that you were worried."

Zac chuckled softly, a smile on his face. "It's okay, baby. I'm just glad to finally hear those tears stop. And I can tell by that crazy sounding sentence that my girl is tired. Right?"

"mmhmm," she mumbled, already half asleep. "I love you, Zac."

"I love you too, baby. Sweet dreams."

He smiled to himself when he heard her breathing even out on the other side. He instantly relaxed as he continued listening to her even breathing, calming himself and joining her in slumber.