The mountain cabin was filled with the warmth of a crackling fire. Outside, snow fell gently, creating a serene winter wonderland. As Zac helped lower Vanessa onto the plush sofa, he propped her injured leg on a couple of cushions.

The doctor had just visited and examined her thoroughly, confirming an ankle sprain and instructing her to rest and recuperate in order to be in fit shape for her premiere the next day.

Zac knelt beside her, concern etched on his face. "You okay?" he asked, gently brushing a strand of hair away from her face.

Vanessa managed a half-smile, appreciating his care. "I'll survive, haha. Thank you."

"Okay, good. Here are your painkillers…" Zac handed her the pills with a glass of water.

Zac replied to a few text messages from their friends, updating them on Vanessa's injury. Out of the corner of his eye he noticed she was struggling to fix her pillows behind her neck.

"Hey, let me get that for you."

"No, it's fine. I'm fine, really," Vanessa said as she continued to struggle.

Zac knelt down and propped up her pillows.

A subtle tension hung in the air, the crackling fire mirroring the warmth building between them. Zac's gaze lingered on Vanessa's lips, and the room seemed to shrink as their proximity increased. He could feel the magnetic pull drawing him in. Suddenly, Zac leaned in, his lips hovering just above hers, as he dropped his hold on the pillow abruptly and stood up.

Are you kidding me? Thought Vanessa. Not this again.

"Nina was right. You're being a gentleman," she sighed under her breath as Zac caught her words.

"Aw, shucks. I haven't really done anything for you, though - just the bare minimum."

"Nope." She sat up with a slightly unamused expression. "Don't start self deprecating because that wasn't a compliment."

"Huh?" confused at her sudden change in tone and demeanor he looked at her with wide eyes.

"It's annoying." She sat up with a determined glint in her eye.

"Hey you need to lie- "

"I'm not going to break, I'm not fragile. Come on. Come closer."

He tentatively took a step closer to her, unsure of what was happening.

"Quit being such a gentleman. I'm not going to break. Every time we get close, you back away. At first I thought it was because we were in public but now… when it's just us… Are you gonna kiss me or not, Efron?"

"What?" he stammered, stunned at her boldness.

"You heard me." She maintained eye contact with him.

"Your foot…" He made a futile attempt to discourage her by alluding to the fact that she was injured and he wouldn't want to put her healing at risk but she knew there was more to his hesitation. Yes, there would need to be bigger conversations about where their lives were headed and their priorities but right now all she wanted was to act on the feelings she had had since they reconnected. Maybe it was silly, maybe it was selfish but she deserved to act impulsively for once.

"Is messed up, yes. But the rest of me isn't," she challenged.

"I-"

"You've come close to kissing me more than three times today. So are you going to or not? Or maybe… I've misread this whole situation and if that's the case let's just forget I said anything and chalk it up to the painkillers."

"You haven't…misread anything…." Zac said in a gentle but promising tone.

"Yeah… well then don't overthink it. I want this too. Unless you really want me to make the first move… except I'm injured and I actually can't quite reach you…"

Before she could utter another word, Zac's movements were swift and decisive. Without hesitation, he closed the distance between them, as he crashed his lips onto hers. Zac's touch was both gentle and commanding. With one hand, he tenderly tangled his fingers in the soft strands of Vanessa's hair, while his other hand found its place on the column of her neck, his touch firm yet tender against her skin. The sensation sent a shiver down her spine, the gentle tug pulling her closer to him, as if anchoring her in the moment.

The kiss was explosive. Familiar and comforting but with a new fire. Nothing either of them had ever experienced before.

A few moments later, Zac reluctantly broke the kiss to explain his earlier hesitation. "I'm sorry, I've just been nervous…" he admitted in a whisper. He didn't want her to think he didn't want this. But he also wanted to be honest about where his mind was.

"Yeah, well join the club…" she smiled softly confirming that she hadn't figured everything out yet either. She ran a hand through his hair as he leaned into her touch. "That doesn't mean I want to kiss you any less. Whatever happens … we'll figure it out. Right now I'm just acting like a girl who's finally got the guy who was flirting with her all day to herself…. Is that okay?"

"Well as long as you're talking about me, that is MORE than okay," Zac replied with a playful grin, his demeanor shifting back to its usual light-heartedness in response to her candid admission.

"Mhmmm," she replied with an intoxicated smile as she pecked his lips.

Without breaking their kiss Zac scooped her up, carefully maneuvering her ankle, and led her to the bed.

"Hmm," she sighed. "Such a gentleman…."

"Oh, is that meant to be a compliment now?"

"Yes… My gentleman…" she kissed his cheek.

He blushed as he held her tighter before gently laying her on the bed. He was in awe as he stared at her beauty, watching her curls fan around her face.

He peppered her face with kisses before he leaned his forehead against hers. Their huge grins mirrored one anothers.

Time and space melted away. Neither the past nor the future had any pull on them. They were in the now. And it was beautiful.

AHHHH. Did you like it??? I HOPE YOU DID! P.S. I just realized I made them reconnect at a ski lodge. TOO FUNNY OF A COINCIDENCE. Only magical things happen at ski lodges! That's a fact forever ingrained in our subconsciousness I suppose!