Fic #1 for The Mixtape Challenge
Jan. 26th, 2011 05:38 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
writefictionTitle/Chapter: Starbucks Girl (01/01)
Author: Amanda W. /![[livejournal.com profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/external/lj-userinfo.gif)
writefiction
Pairing: Zac / Kate
Rating: Um, G? It’s tame.
Notes: Written for the Mix Tape Challenge for the song “If Only”
Other Notes: title taken from an Evan Taubenfield song.
Warning: None
Word Count: 2,707
Summary: Zac writes a song to let the Starbucks Girl know how he feels.
STARBUCKS GIRL
-Zac-
The first time Zac had seen her at the Starbucks closest to his house, he’d been with his brothers, the older boys were having a heated discussion over a song they were writing. Zac didn’t wanted to get in the middle of it and had decided to people watch and make up stories for whoever walked into the coffee shop.
He was just finishing up some silly story about a man that had an uncanny resemblance to Santa when she walked in. She was gorgeous, with long brown hair and bright green eyes. She stood at the door for a moment, her eyes scanning the crowd. Zac was so captivated by her, that he couldn’t even think to come up with one sentence for her story. Nor had he noticed his brothers talking to him, saying his name until one of them snapped their fingers in his face.
Zac shook his head to release himself from the girl’s hold and when he looked back up, she was gone. He pouted like a four year old instead of the just barely fourteen year old he was as he turned to his brothers and crossed his arms over his broad chest. “What?” he grumbled. Taylor and Isaac raised their brows at each other.
“You okay, man?” Isaac asked.
Zac shook his head. “It’s nothing,” he said. “I was just people watching.”
Taylor grinned. “So did you see something you liked?” He waggled his eyebrows suggestively. Zac balled up a napkin and threw it at his brother.
“Shuddup,” he muttered as his older brothers laughed.
“I take that as a yes,” Isaac stated, clearly amused. Zac balled up another napkin and threw it at his eldest brother which only made him chuckle. Once the older two had gotten over their fits of laughter, the trio got back to work on their song writing.
The second time Zac saw her was in the same Starbucks. Once again, she seemed to be looking for someone. And once again Zac’s brothers pulled him back to reality. After a couple of weeks, Zac had figured out her routine; what times and days she would come to Starbucks. He also figured out that she met up with what looked like a study group. By the fourth week, his brothers were catching on to him from the way he always had to have the seat that faced the door and how his head would snap up whenever the chime above the door went off. They also noticed how he’d stare intently at the door at a particular time of the day like he was waiting for someone to come in. Little did they know, that was exactly what he was doing.
Zac stared as the green-eyed girl walked into Starbucks just like any other Friday afternoon. But something new had begun to happen every time he saw her. His palms would get clammy and his heart would pound. He knew it was because of her and he knew what it meant. He knew he’d fallen for her even though he didn’t know her name or had ever spoken to her.
“Zac!” Taylor exclaimed, which snapped the younger teen back to the present.
Zac shook his head and let his gaze drift back to his brother. “Hmm?”
“Man, what is up with you?” Taylor asked.
“What do you mean?” Zac responded as he felt himself blush and looked down at the pad of paper he’d been doodling it on. It was all hearts and flowers and made him want to gag with how sappy he was being.
Taylor and Isaac shared a look. “We’ve noticed you’ve been… distracted,” Isaac began.
“Distracted?” Zac asked. “And by that you mean…?”
The older boys shared another look before speaking. “I mean, when we’re writing at the studio, you’re fine. But when we come here you get distracted. Like you’re not focused on the music or something,” Isaac explained with a shrug.
“I am, too, focused,” Zac argued.
Taylor rolled his eyes. “Yeah, focused on that brunette that comes in for that study group every Wednesday and Friday.” Zac sputtered but couldn’t come up with a quick retort, so he just stared at his brothers, jaw slacked. Taylor grinned and turned to his older brother. “See, I told you, Isaac, he’s been watching that girl for, like, a month now!” Zac buried his flushed face in his hand.
“Aw, Zac, there’s no reason to be embarrassed,” Isaac told him.
Zac peeked between his fingers. “Says you.”
“No, really,” Isaac replied. “Tay and I have been through it. We understand how you feel.”
“Yeah,” Taylor agreed. “Now you’ve just gotta get the balls up to talk to her. Ask her on a date.”
“What?!” Zac screeched, then ducked his head as everyone in the small café looked at him. In a quieter voice he said, “I can’t do that.”
“Why not?” Taylor asked.
“Because,” Zac muttered. His brothers raised their brows at each other. This was so unlike their crazy, outgoing brother. He’d never been one to be scared of going after what he wanted and it was obvious he wanted this girl.
Isaac frowned trying to think of a way to help his little brother. Suddenly and idea hit him. “Why don’t you write her a song?” he suggested.
“What?” Taylor and Zac said together.
“Write her a song,” Isaac repeated. “We can record a demo of it and you can give it to her. Then you wouldn’t really have to be awkward and explain anything. Just… give her the CD, ya know?” Zac thought about it for a moment. He was better with words when he was able to put them to music. This could be a perfect idea.
Zac smiled broadly at Isaac. “That sounds… good,” he said. “Like, really good. I mean, our best songs are about girls and feelings and whatever. So why not?”
“You want our help?” Taylor asked. Zac shook his head and turned to his laptop. He brought up a fresh word document and began to type furiously, the words were coming so easily for him. He just hoped that these words could be put to music and actually sound like a song. But… that’s what his brothers could help him with when the time came.
And the time came later that afternoon. The brothers went down into their basement studio and began to work out the melody and the beats. After quite a few long hours, they had a very well put-together song on their hands. The only thing left to do was record it. But Zac didn’t want to be the one to sing it. “Why not?” Taylor asked him when he’d flat out refused.
“Because, sometimes my voice still cracks when I’m nervous and this song makes me nervous,” Zac explained as he looked down at his drums.
“Do you want me to sing it?” Taylor asked. Zac nodded without looking up. “Okay, then lets do this.” With that, the teens got to work recording the instruments and then finally the vocals.
When they were done, Zac was pretty proud of what they had accomplished. It said everything that needed to be said, everything he was feeling. He hoped that the girl wouldn’t think he was crazy for writing a complete stranger a song without ever having talked to her before. But he guessed that was a chance he’d have to take.
The next day that was a Starbucks Girl day was the following Wednesday. Zac waited nervously with his brothers as he watched everyone that entered the building. When she finally came in and the chime above the door rang, Zac felt as if his heart had stopped. This was the moment. But his mouth was cotton-dry and his feet felt like they were bolted to the floor. “Go, Zac,” Taylor encouraged and gave his younger brother a nudge with his elbow. Zac took a quick swallow of his water and got to his feet.
Zac made it over to the girl before she could sit at the table with her friends. “Excuse me,” he said. She turned and looked at him. Her eyes were a brighter green than Zac had ever realized and she was using them to look at him expectantly. “Oh, um, here,” he said, holding the CD out to her.
“What’s this?” she asked in a soft voice.
“I um, I know this is going to sound strange,” Zac began, “but I wrote you a song.”
The girl looked up at him and cocked her head to the side. “But why?”
Zac shoved his hands in his pockets and looked down as he scuffed the toe of his sneaker against the floor. “It’s just… it’s just easier,” he managed to get out.
“Easier?” she questioned.
Zac nodded and let his gaze drift back to hers. “To tell you how I feel,” he murmured. “But um, it’s not me singing. It’s my brother Taylor. I just… I couldn’t do it.”
“Oh.”
“Yeah.” Zac looked back down at his worn chucks again. “So um, listen to it and get back to me?” he asked looking back up at her again.
She nodded. “I’m Kate, by the way.”
Zac smiled. He liked that name. “I’m Zac,” he replied.
“I’m gonna go listen to this now.”
Zac nodded. “Okay.” The pair stared at each other a moment later before turning and walking off in separate directions.
“How’d it go?” Taylor asked eagerly once Zac had sat back down with his brothers.
Zac blushed. “Okay, I guess.”
“Just okay?” Isaac questioned.
Zac shrugged. “She said she’d listen to it now and… her name’s Kate.” He smiled shyly. Isaac and Taylor couldn’t help grinning at their little brother. They hoped this would work out for him. The last girl he’d been with had really messed with his head. She’d only wanted to be with him because of the band and the fame, not because she actually cared about him. So they were keeping their fingers crossed for him.
-Kate-
Kate sat down at the table her study group usually met at each Wednesday and Friday afternoon. She was early and the first to arrive. She shrugged out of her coat and pulled out her Discman. She gently placed the CD into the device and put her headphones on, then hit play. She was eager to find out how this Zac fellow felt about her. She’d noticed over the last few weeks that he was there a lot and had seemed to have noticed her too. Whenever she felt eyes on her all she had to do was look up and there he was, staring at her. As the song began to play she listened carefully to each word.
Well every single time I see you, I start to feel this way. It makes me wonder if I’m ever going to feel this way again. And there’s a picture and it’s hanging in the back of my head. I see it over and over.
I want to hold you and love you, in my arms and then, I want to need you because I need to be with you till the end. And then I hear myself reply, “You’ve got to hold it in this time tonight.”
If only, I had the guts to feel this way. If only, you’d look at me and want to stay. If only, I’d take you in my arms and say, I won’t go cuz I need you.
Kate’s heart started to pound and her hands started to sweat as she listened to the song. The lyrics were amazing and gave her butterflies in her stomach. She glanced through the curtain of her hair at Zac. He was jiggling his leg up and down and fiddling nervously with a pen.
Wow, Kate thought, he must really like me. She kept a watchful eye on him from her peripheral vision as she listened to the rest of the song.
I sit here waiting, wondering, hoping that I make this right. Cuz all I think about is your hands, your face and all these lonely night. And there’s a feeling and it’s screaming in the back of my head. Saying over and over…
I wanna hold you and love you, in my arms and then, I wanna need you cuz I need to be with you till the end. Then I hear myself reply, “She’ll never let you in this time tonight.”
If only, I had the guts to feel this way. If only, you’d look at me and want to stay. If only, I’d take you in my arms and say, I won’t go. Cuz I need you. Please don’t go. Cuz I need you.
I wanna hear you say, it’ll always be this way. And we’ll be hand in hand for every night and every day. I wanna scream and shout. Cuz I’m losing any doubt. And all I care about is you and me and us and now.
If only, I had the guts to feel this way. If only, you'd look at me and want to stay. If only, I’d take you in my arms and say, I won't go cuz I need you. Please don't go cause I need you now.
If only… Cuz I need you. If only… Cuz I need you. If only… Cuz I need you now, yeah.
-Zac-
Zac watched discreetly from behind his computer screen as Kate listened to the song. He knew that the ending was coming up as he had been watching the tiny clock on his laptop. When he saw her take off her headphones, he took a deep breath, scared at what she was thinking, what she was going to say.
He watched as she looked up at him and smiled. Then she beckoned him over with a nod of her head. “Well, guys, wish me luck,” Zac said to his brothers.
“Luck,” they both replied quietly and watched their little brother head in the direction of Kate.
Zac wiped his hands nervously on his jeans and sat down across from Kate at the booth. She smiled at him again and he couldn’t help the blush that rose to his cheeks. “So um,” he cleared his throat, “how’d you like it?”
“It’s a beautiful song, Zac,” she answered honestly. Zac could only nod and whisper thanks. There was a moment of silence between the pair. Finally Kate spoke up. “Did you mean it?” she asked.
“What?” Zac questioned, a little confused. He couldn’t concentrate with her so close. He was too nervous.
“Did you mean it?” she repeated. “What the song said, did you mean it?”
Zac took a deep breath. “Yes,” he murmured. “Those are my real feelings.”
“So… you like me?” she asked point-blank. Zac blushed, ducked his head to hide his rosy cheeks and nodded. “And you couldn’t just tell me on your own? You had to write and record a song about it for me?”
Zac felt his cheeks burn hotter, but lifted his brown gaze to her green one. “Yeah, I did. Like I said before, it’s just easier to express myself through my music.”
“So, are you, like, in a band or something?” Kate asked.
Zac grinned. “You could say that. Ever heard that song ‘Mmmbop’ that came out in ‘97?”
Kate made a face. “One too many times.”
Zac laughed and the smile made the corners of his eyes crinkle. “Yeah, well, my brothers and I wrote that song,” he told her.
Kate blushed. “Oh. Oh god. I’m so sorry,” she apologized.
“Don’t worry about it,” Zac dismissed with a wave of his hand. “I was, like, ten when we wrote that. But I mean, we’re grateful for it because it gave us a chance to become world famous.” He shrugged. “That was what we always wanted: to be able to travel the world and have as many people as we could get to hear our music and it worked.” He shrugged again.
Kate smiled. “That sounds pretty exciting. Have you really seen the world?” she asked.
Zac nodded. “Yeah, I have. Well, most of it anyway.”
The pair chatted for a while longer and exchanged numbers. Then they said their goodbyes and Zac went back over to his brothers with a wide grin on his face. “So how’d it go?” Taylor asked.
Zac’s grin widened, if that was even possible, and answered, “Good. Really good. We’re going to a movie Saturday night.” Zac’s brothers gave him high five’s and congratulated him.
That day seemed like a lifetime ago and now here they were dancing to their first song as a married couple. Zac smiled down at Kate and she smiled back. “What are you thinking?” she asked quietly.
Zac kissed her forehead and laid his cheek on top of her head. “I was just thinking about the day I gave you the ‘If Only’ CD,” he told her.
“I remember that day like it was yesterday,” she murmured.
“Me too,” Zac replied.
“That will always be my number one favorite Hanson song… even if you didn’t sing lead on it.”
“I was too nervous. I thought my voice would crack. Back then it still cracked sometimes when I was really nervous and I really, really, really didn’t want to mess it up.”
Kate laughed lightly and drew back far enough to look up at her brand new husband. “You couldn’t have screwed it up, Zac, not in a million years.”
“Oh, and why’s that?”
“Because, as cheesy as this sounds, you had me as soon as you said you’d written a song for me.”
“I did?”
“Yeah. It could have been the worst song ever and you still would have gotten that first date out of me. It was the action you took that spoke to me, told me how great you were.” Kate shrugged. “And once I heard the song, there was no going back.”
Zac chuckled. “That had been my plan.”
“And it worked,” Kate murmured with a special look in her eye. The look she saved only for him.
“I love you,” he whispered.
“I love you too,” Kate replied. As if they were listening in on their conversation, everyone in the room started to tap their glasses with their knives. Zac grinned at his wife and leaned down to lay a sweet kiss on her lips.
-the end-
Author: Amanda W. /
writefiction Pairing: Zac / Kate
Rating: Um, G? It’s tame.
Notes: Written for the Mix Tape Challenge for the song “If Only”
Other Notes: title taken from an Evan Taubenfield song.
Warning: None
Word Count: 2,707
Summary: Zac writes a song to let the Starbucks Girl know how he feels.
STARBUCKS GIRL
-Zac-
The first time Zac had seen her at the Starbucks closest to his house, he’d been with his brothers, the older boys were having a heated discussion over a song they were writing. Zac didn’t wanted to get in the middle of it and had decided to people watch and make up stories for whoever walked into the coffee shop.
He was just finishing up some silly story about a man that had an uncanny resemblance to Santa when she walked in. She was gorgeous, with long brown hair and bright green eyes. She stood at the door for a moment, her eyes scanning the crowd. Zac was so captivated by her, that he couldn’t even think to come up with one sentence for her story. Nor had he noticed his brothers talking to him, saying his name until one of them snapped their fingers in his face.
Zac shook his head to release himself from the girl’s hold and when he looked back up, she was gone. He pouted like a four year old instead of the just barely fourteen year old he was as he turned to his brothers and crossed his arms over his broad chest. “What?” he grumbled. Taylor and Isaac raised their brows at each other.
“You okay, man?” Isaac asked.
Zac shook his head. “It’s nothing,” he said. “I was just people watching.”
Taylor grinned. “So did you see something you liked?” He waggled his eyebrows suggestively. Zac balled up a napkin and threw it at his brother.
“Shuddup,” he muttered as his older brothers laughed.
“I take that as a yes,” Isaac stated, clearly amused. Zac balled up another napkin and threw it at his eldest brother which only made him chuckle. Once the older two had gotten over their fits of laughter, the trio got back to work on their song writing.
The second time Zac saw her was in the same Starbucks. Once again, she seemed to be looking for someone. And once again Zac’s brothers pulled him back to reality. After a couple of weeks, Zac had figured out her routine; what times and days she would come to Starbucks. He also figured out that she met up with what looked like a study group. By the fourth week, his brothers were catching on to him from the way he always had to have the seat that faced the door and how his head would snap up whenever the chime above the door went off. They also noticed how he’d stare intently at the door at a particular time of the day like he was waiting for someone to come in. Little did they know, that was exactly what he was doing.
Zac stared as the green-eyed girl walked into Starbucks just like any other Friday afternoon. But something new had begun to happen every time he saw her. His palms would get clammy and his heart would pound. He knew it was because of her and he knew what it meant. He knew he’d fallen for her even though he didn’t know her name or had ever spoken to her.
“Zac!” Taylor exclaimed, which snapped the younger teen back to the present.
Zac shook his head and let his gaze drift back to his brother. “Hmm?”
“Man, what is up with you?” Taylor asked.
“What do you mean?” Zac responded as he felt himself blush and looked down at the pad of paper he’d been doodling it on. It was all hearts and flowers and made him want to gag with how sappy he was being.
Taylor and Isaac shared a look. “We’ve noticed you’ve been… distracted,” Isaac began.
“Distracted?” Zac asked. “And by that you mean…?”
The older boys shared another look before speaking. “I mean, when we’re writing at the studio, you’re fine. But when we come here you get distracted. Like you’re not focused on the music or something,” Isaac explained with a shrug.
“I am, too, focused,” Zac argued.
Taylor rolled his eyes. “Yeah, focused on that brunette that comes in for that study group every Wednesday and Friday.” Zac sputtered but couldn’t come up with a quick retort, so he just stared at his brothers, jaw slacked. Taylor grinned and turned to his older brother. “See, I told you, Isaac, he’s been watching that girl for, like, a month now!” Zac buried his flushed face in his hand.
“Aw, Zac, there’s no reason to be embarrassed,” Isaac told him.
Zac peeked between his fingers. “Says you.”
“No, really,” Isaac replied. “Tay and I have been through it. We understand how you feel.”
“Yeah,” Taylor agreed. “Now you’ve just gotta get the balls up to talk to her. Ask her on a date.”
“What?!” Zac screeched, then ducked his head as everyone in the small café looked at him. In a quieter voice he said, “I can’t do that.”
“Why not?” Taylor asked.
“Because,” Zac muttered. His brothers raised their brows at each other. This was so unlike their crazy, outgoing brother. He’d never been one to be scared of going after what he wanted and it was obvious he wanted this girl.
Isaac frowned trying to think of a way to help his little brother. Suddenly and idea hit him. “Why don’t you write her a song?” he suggested.
“What?” Taylor and Zac said together.
“Write her a song,” Isaac repeated. “We can record a demo of it and you can give it to her. Then you wouldn’t really have to be awkward and explain anything. Just… give her the CD, ya know?” Zac thought about it for a moment. He was better with words when he was able to put them to music. This could be a perfect idea.
Zac smiled broadly at Isaac. “That sounds… good,” he said. “Like, really good. I mean, our best songs are about girls and feelings and whatever. So why not?”
“You want our help?” Taylor asked. Zac shook his head and turned to his laptop. He brought up a fresh word document and began to type furiously, the words were coming so easily for him. He just hoped that these words could be put to music and actually sound like a song. But… that’s what his brothers could help him with when the time came.
And the time came later that afternoon. The brothers went down into their basement studio and began to work out the melody and the beats. After quite a few long hours, they had a very well put-together song on their hands. The only thing left to do was record it. But Zac didn’t want to be the one to sing it. “Why not?” Taylor asked him when he’d flat out refused.
“Because, sometimes my voice still cracks when I’m nervous and this song makes me nervous,” Zac explained as he looked down at his drums.
“Do you want me to sing it?” Taylor asked. Zac nodded without looking up. “Okay, then lets do this.” With that, the teens got to work recording the instruments and then finally the vocals.
When they were done, Zac was pretty proud of what they had accomplished. It said everything that needed to be said, everything he was feeling. He hoped that the girl wouldn’t think he was crazy for writing a complete stranger a song without ever having talked to her before. But he guessed that was a chance he’d have to take.
The next day that was a Starbucks Girl day was the following Wednesday. Zac waited nervously with his brothers as he watched everyone that entered the building. When she finally came in and the chime above the door rang, Zac felt as if his heart had stopped. This was the moment. But his mouth was cotton-dry and his feet felt like they were bolted to the floor. “Go, Zac,” Taylor encouraged and gave his younger brother a nudge with his elbow. Zac took a quick swallow of his water and got to his feet.
Zac made it over to the girl before she could sit at the table with her friends. “Excuse me,” he said. She turned and looked at him. Her eyes were a brighter green than Zac had ever realized and she was using them to look at him expectantly. “Oh, um, here,” he said, holding the CD out to her.
“What’s this?” she asked in a soft voice.
“I um, I know this is going to sound strange,” Zac began, “but I wrote you a song.”
The girl looked up at him and cocked her head to the side. “But why?”
Zac shoved his hands in his pockets and looked down as he scuffed the toe of his sneaker against the floor. “It’s just… it’s just easier,” he managed to get out.
“Easier?” she questioned.
Zac nodded and let his gaze drift back to hers. “To tell you how I feel,” he murmured. “But um, it’s not me singing. It’s my brother Taylor. I just… I couldn’t do it.”
“Oh.”
“Yeah.” Zac looked back down at his worn chucks again. “So um, listen to it and get back to me?” he asked looking back up at her again.
She nodded. “I’m Kate, by the way.”
Zac smiled. He liked that name. “I’m Zac,” he replied.
“I’m gonna go listen to this now.”
Zac nodded. “Okay.” The pair stared at each other a moment later before turning and walking off in separate directions.
“How’d it go?” Taylor asked eagerly once Zac had sat back down with his brothers.
Zac blushed. “Okay, I guess.”
“Just okay?” Isaac questioned.
Zac shrugged. “She said she’d listen to it now and… her name’s Kate.” He smiled shyly. Isaac and Taylor couldn’t help grinning at their little brother. They hoped this would work out for him. The last girl he’d been with had really messed with his head. She’d only wanted to be with him because of the band and the fame, not because she actually cared about him. So they were keeping their fingers crossed for him.
-Kate-
Kate sat down at the table her study group usually met at each Wednesday and Friday afternoon. She was early and the first to arrive. She shrugged out of her coat and pulled out her Discman. She gently placed the CD into the device and put her headphones on, then hit play. She was eager to find out how this Zac fellow felt about her. She’d noticed over the last few weeks that he was there a lot and had seemed to have noticed her too. Whenever she felt eyes on her all she had to do was look up and there he was, staring at her. As the song began to play she listened carefully to each word.
Well every single time I see you, I start to feel this way. It makes me wonder if I’m ever going to feel this way again. And there’s a picture and it’s hanging in the back of my head. I see it over and over.
I want to hold you and love you, in my arms and then, I want to need you because I need to be with you till the end. And then I hear myself reply, “You’ve got to hold it in this time tonight.”
If only, I had the guts to feel this way. If only, you’d look at me and want to stay. If only, I’d take you in my arms and say, I won’t go cuz I need you.
Kate’s heart started to pound and her hands started to sweat as she listened to the song. The lyrics were amazing and gave her butterflies in her stomach. She glanced through the curtain of her hair at Zac. He was jiggling his leg up and down and fiddling nervously with a pen.
Wow, Kate thought, he must really like me. She kept a watchful eye on him from her peripheral vision as she listened to the rest of the song.
I sit here waiting, wondering, hoping that I make this right. Cuz all I think about is your hands, your face and all these lonely night. And there’s a feeling and it’s screaming in the back of my head. Saying over and over…
I wanna hold you and love you, in my arms and then, I wanna need you cuz I need to be with you till the end. Then I hear myself reply, “She’ll never let you in this time tonight.”
If only, I had the guts to feel this way. If only, you’d look at me and want to stay. If only, I’d take you in my arms and say, I won’t go. Cuz I need you. Please don’t go. Cuz I need you.
I wanna hear you say, it’ll always be this way. And we’ll be hand in hand for every night and every day. I wanna scream and shout. Cuz I’m losing any doubt. And all I care about is you and me and us and now.
If only, I had the guts to feel this way. If only, you'd look at me and want to stay. If only, I’d take you in my arms and say, I won't go cuz I need you. Please don't go cause I need you now.
If only… Cuz I need you. If only… Cuz I need you. If only… Cuz I need you now, yeah.
-Zac-
Zac watched discreetly from behind his computer screen as Kate listened to the song. He knew that the ending was coming up as he had been watching the tiny clock on his laptop. When he saw her take off her headphones, he took a deep breath, scared at what she was thinking, what she was going to say.
He watched as she looked up at him and smiled. Then she beckoned him over with a nod of her head. “Well, guys, wish me luck,” Zac said to his brothers.
“Luck,” they both replied quietly and watched their little brother head in the direction of Kate.
Zac wiped his hands nervously on his jeans and sat down across from Kate at the booth. She smiled at him again and he couldn’t help the blush that rose to his cheeks. “So um,” he cleared his throat, “how’d you like it?”
“It’s a beautiful song, Zac,” she answered honestly. Zac could only nod and whisper thanks. There was a moment of silence between the pair. Finally Kate spoke up. “Did you mean it?” she asked.
“What?” Zac questioned, a little confused. He couldn’t concentrate with her so close. He was too nervous.
“Did you mean it?” she repeated. “What the song said, did you mean it?”
Zac took a deep breath. “Yes,” he murmured. “Those are my real feelings.”
“So… you like me?” she asked point-blank. Zac blushed, ducked his head to hide his rosy cheeks and nodded. “And you couldn’t just tell me on your own? You had to write and record a song about it for me?”
Zac felt his cheeks burn hotter, but lifted his brown gaze to her green one. “Yeah, I did. Like I said before, it’s just easier to express myself through my music.”
“So, are you, like, in a band or something?” Kate asked.
Zac grinned. “You could say that. Ever heard that song ‘Mmmbop’ that came out in ‘97?”
Kate made a face. “One too many times.”
Zac laughed and the smile made the corners of his eyes crinkle. “Yeah, well, my brothers and I wrote that song,” he told her.
Kate blushed. “Oh. Oh god. I’m so sorry,” she apologized.
“Don’t worry about it,” Zac dismissed with a wave of his hand. “I was, like, ten when we wrote that. But I mean, we’re grateful for it because it gave us a chance to become world famous.” He shrugged. “That was what we always wanted: to be able to travel the world and have as many people as we could get to hear our music and it worked.” He shrugged again.
Kate smiled. “That sounds pretty exciting. Have you really seen the world?” she asked.
Zac nodded. “Yeah, I have. Well, most of it anyway.”
The pair chatted for a while longer and exchanged numbers. Then they said their goodbyes and Zac went back over to his brothers with a wide grin on his face. “So how’d it go?” Taylor asked.
Zac’s grin widened, if that was even possible, and answered, “Good. Really good. We’re going to a movie Saturday night.” Zac’s brothers gave him high five’s and congratulated him.
That day seemed like a lifetime ago and now here they were dancing to their first song as a married couple. Zac smiled down at Kate and she smiled back. “What are you thinking?” she asked quietly.
Zac kissed her forehead and laid his cheek on top of her head. “I was just thinking about the day I gave you the ‘If Only’ CD,” he told her.
“I remember that day like it was yesterday,” she murmured.
“Me too,” Zac replied.
“That will always be my number one favorite Hanson song… even if you didn’t sing lead on it.”
“I was too nervous. I thought my voice would crack. Back then it still cracked sometimes when I was really nervous and I really, really, really didn’t want to mess it up.”
Kate laughed lightly and drew back far enough to look up at her brand new husband. “You couldn’t have screwed it up, Zac, not in a million years.”
“Oh, and why’s that?”
“Because, as cheesy as this sounds, you had me as soon as you said you’d written a song for me.”
“I did?”
“Yeah. It could have been the worst song ever and you still would have gotten that first date out of me. It was the action you took that spoke to me, told me how great you were.” Kate shrugged. “And once I heard the song, there was no going back.”
Zac chuckled. “That had been my plan.”
“And it worked,” Kate murmured with a special look in her eye. The look she saved only for him.
“I love you,” he whispered.
“I love you too,” Kate replied. As if they were listening in on their conversation, everyone in the room started to tap their glasses with their knives. Zac grinned at his wife and leaned down to lay a sweet kiss on her lips.
-the end-
