Hidden Elements

I just stood there. How could I? He took a bullet for me and I just stood there.

Hilary took me to my room and kept reassuring me he's okay. I don't believe her. I don't know if he's dead but that's a horrible outcome. If it's true, he died, for me. I gotta think differently about this. He'll be okay...I hope.

"It's okay Krista, he'll be fine. Now get some sleep, Zach would want you to." Hilary soothed. She said goodnight and left my quarters. I won't get to sleep tonight but I climbed up to my bed and cried quietly. I heard a noise from Becky and I saw her head pop up on the side of my bed. Her smile turned to a frown. "What's wrong?" She asked worried as she climbed up the ladder and sat down next to me. I explained what happened and she was in tears, she really does like him.

"Shut up the two of you!" Gera called out. I was about to give her a piece of my mind before Becky grabbed my hand. "Don't worry about her." She sniffled.

After an hour, Becky fell asleep on my shoulder and I clicked my fingers. On. Off. I drifted in and out of sleep until the bell rang for wake-up. I took a shower and got dressed but something in my heart wasn't the same. The breakfast bell rang and I slowly walked to the dining hall. I sat on the edge of the table and stared at the door,  hoping Zach would walk in.

Matt sat down next to me and gave me a hug. "How are you?" He asked and I shrugged. "I thought you would like to know, you can go see Zach after breakfast." He whispered in my ear. "Is he okay?" I asked. "He'll be out of the hospital tomorrow." I cocked my head to the side. "But doesn't a bullet wound take months to heal?" Matt smiled. "Our doctor is amazing. He's found medicine from all around the world that heals wounds in seconds. All that'll be left is a scar for Zach, it won't hurt a bit. He'll even be able to start training tomorrow."

A smile covered my face and I hugged Matt again and tears of joy sprung into my eyes. Time took forever to pass and once the bell rung, I jumped out of my seat and ran to the surgery. I knocked on the door and a doctor with jet black hair opened the door. "You must be Krista. The patient here has been asking for you all night." The doctor said. He side stepped and let me come in. I had to suck up my fear and I shook the memories out of my head. The doctor left the surgery to leave Zach and I to talk. Zach was laying down on the mattress with his top off and a large bandage covering his left shoulder-blade. He was staring at the ceiling looking absolutely bored. I walked over to the mattress and his head turned to see who it was. His eyes brightened up when he saw me.

"Hey," he smiled. I sat down next to him on the mattress as he sat up. He brought me into a hug. "I thought you were dead."I muttered into his chest. He hugged me tighter. "It would've been a pleasure to die for you." I let go of him and looked into his eyes. "We need to talk." I said and he frowned. "What's wrong?" He asked. I smiled. "Don't worry, it's not bad."

He grabbed my hand and listened carefully. "What you did for me last night was so, so brave. You put your life on the line, just to save mine. And then having that feeling that I thought you were dead, I broke inside." I put my hand over his heart. "You proved yourself, I definitely believe you now." His smile returned to his face. "Zach, I have feelings for you that run deep. I really like you."

He seemed shocked, but a good shocked. "Well, we can finally agree on something." He joked and I laughed. I like laughing with Zach.

There was an awkward silence between us before Zach broke the quietness. "Krista, remember that being with me may be dangerous. If something happens, I want you to run. Run from me." I looked at him confused and I hugged him tightly. "I will always be here. Even when I become annoying and I get on your nerves. It seems more like you will have to run from me. Especially when I get a temper. Let's just say, lots of things have caught on fire when I get angry, even people's hair, why do you think Jade had to cut her hair last month?"

We laughed for a long time until it hurt. Once we stopped, chills ran down my spine, I was still in a surgery. The memories flooded in and I let go of Zach's hand and jumped up. "What's wrong?" Zach asked. "I-I need to go. I'll talk to you when your out of this place." I said as I reached for the door. Zach had a worried look on his face. "Don't worry about me, I'll open up one day." I muttered as I opened the door and walked out.

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Teaser for chapter 18: What happens with Zach and Krista’s relationship? And what about the mission?

Thx for reading!!
HT12