Zac sat, perched upon a large rock, overlooking a small pond. The water of the pond was crystal clear, and if one looked closely, fish could be seen swimming around. He was surrounded by thousands and thousands of rows of rose bushes. He was at the Municipal Rose Gardens in Tulsa.
Zac often went there to stare in the water and think. Zac could be one of the hyperest people in the world, but there were times when he longed for solitude and quiet. So he came there. He would just sit there and watch the fish swim for hours.
It was October, and Zac and his brothers had just finished their 4+ month tour. They were home in Tulsa for a few weeks to rest, and then they would go to L.A. to begin recording their next album.
Zac wasn't really there to think. He just needed to get out of his house and away from his huge family (There were eight other people besides him). Things had been kind of crazy since they got home. Taylor was off in his own little world most of the time, and Isaac was still exhausted from touring, so he slept a lot. His parents had been rushing around running errands, taking Zac's four younger siblings here and there. No one really had time for him lately. Not even his mom.
"Hi," a female voice said. Zac looked up and saw a gorgeous girl standing in front of him. His stomach hit the ground, and every thought disappeared from his mind as he looked at her. She had long blondish-brown hair and blue eyes, petite with a tiny waist. She seemed pretty harmless. "You're Zac Hanson, aren't you?"
"Yeah," he said reluctantly, standing up. "And you're?"
"Adia Fischer. I'm 14," she replied.
"Well, hi, Adia. I'm Zac Hanson, the drummer from the band Hanson." They shook hands. Her touch was enough to send his heart and his mind racing. "Do you want to go eat something over at the Garden Café?" he asked. He knew better than to be doing this, but there was just something about this girl. He just had a feeling that she was okay. Not to mention the fact that she was absolutely gorgeous.
"Sure," she replied. They walked around to the other side of the pond, where a small restaurant was located. They were quickly seated at a table for two, overlooking the rose gardens. The waiter took their orders. Zac ordered rose chicken, while Adia ordered a garden salad. They sat calmly, waiting for their food.
"So where do you go to school?" Zac asked.
"Andersley Middle School. I'm in the eighth grade," Adia replied. "I play the guitar. I've been taking lessons since I was five."
"Cool. I play drums, of course. And I can kind of play piano, but not as well as Taylor," he said.
"You are so lucky to have Taylor for a brother. He's so cute!" she exclaimed.
"Yeah, I guess. He's okay. He's been a little out of it lately, though," Zac responded.
"I just love the way he sings. How his voice cracks on the high parts. It makes me melt," she said. "Taylor is soooo hot!" Zac was beginning to get annoyed. This girl seemed more interested in his brother than she was in him. "And the way he looked at the Atlanta concert . . . ooo bay-" she began.
"Could we please stop talking about my brother?!" he exclaimed. "He's not that great really . He drools in his sleep. He's just your average guy, okay?"
"Okay," she said quietly. "Sorry." She sniffled, tearing up. Instantly, Zac felt awful.
"I'm sorry, Adia," he said, taking her hand in his. "I shouldn't have yelled at you. It's just that all every girl I've ever met talks about is Taylor. I get so tired of it. I didn't mean to take it out on you. But you're at lunch with me, not my brother. So can we please talk about something else other than him?"
"Yeah," she said, sniffling. "I'm sorry, too. I didn't know it would make you angry." She sighed.
"It's okay," he said. "I really shouldn't have yelled at you." He looked into her pale blue eyes. They were bloodshot form crying. "Let's start over. Okay?"
"Alright," she answered.
"Hi, I'm Zac Hanson," he said, putting out his hand.
"Hi, I'm Adia Fischer. Nice to meet you, Zac," she said. They shook hands.
"Nice meeting you, too, Adia," he said smiling.
"Mmmmmmmmm . . . " Zac said, twenty minutes later, as he shoveled the last piece of rose chicken into his mouth. "That was good."
"Yeah, I bet," Adia said, picking at her salad. She'd barely eaten a bite and had only a few sips of water.
"Why don't you eat something?" Zac asked.
"This salad is really gross, believe it or not," she replied.
"Let me try some," he said, picking a bit up with his fork. He put it into his mouth and chewed. "It needs some fresh lettuce," he responded, scrunching up his nose.
"Yes. It's not the best salad I've ever had, that's for sure," she said, laughing at the face he was making. Zac looked down at his watch. He did a double take. It was 3:30.
"Uh, Adia, I have to go! I was supposed to have been home half an hour ago!" He stood up quickly, leaving some money on the table for the food.
"Well, can I see you again?" Adia asked.
"Yeah, I guess," Zac replied, starting to walk off.
"When?" she asked.
"What's your phone number?" he yelled, from halfway across the bridge over the pond.
"555-2342!" she yelled back.
"Okay! Bye!" he yelled.
"Bye!"She sat back in her chair as he hurried away.
Zac ran into his house and quietly shut the door. He tiptoed over to the stairs, hoping no one had heard him come in.
"Zachary Hanson, get your butt in here right now," his father said. He was busted.
"Aw, man," he mumbled angrily. He turned around and walked slowly into the den. "Yes sir?" His mother and father sat on the couch, with intense looks on their faces.
"You're half an hour late getting home, Zac. Where were you?" his father asked.
"Eating at the Garden Café with someone," Zac replied.
"Who?" his mother asked.
"A girl," he responded.
"Do we know her?" she asked.
"No. I met her at the rose gardens. She's a fan," Zac replied, shrugging his shoulders.
"A fan? What, so, you went to lunch with some girl that you barely knew, just because she was a fan?" Mr. Hanson said. "Zac, you know better than to do that. She could have been some psycho who wanted to kill you."
"But she wasn't," Zac said.
"Still, you can't go around eating with someone you just met. Especially when we haven't met them. We trusted you enough to let you go out without Jason," Mr. Hanson said. "And you've shown us that we can't trust you."
"What?! All I did was go out to eat with a very nice girl that I had just met!" Zac exclaimed. "You never gave Taylor or Isaac flack for doing that when they were my age!"
"They were a little younger when they did that kind of stuff. Like, maybe eleven or twelve. The band wasn't world famous then. It had just been discovered. You are famous now. We have to keep you safe," Mrs. Hanson said.
"So, to teach you a lesson, we're grounding you for a month. No T.V., no internet, no visitors, and no going out, unless its band or family related," Mr. Hanson said. "We're not taking your phone privileges away, because we're not total ogres. Now go up to your room."
"Man!" Zac exclaimed, turning around and trudging up the stairs. He walked into the bedroom that he shared with his older brothers, Isaac and Taylor. Taylor was sitting on Zac's bed with his back to Zac, listening to a CD. Zac looked into the hall to see if anyone was coming, and then crept up behind Taylor. He gave Taylor a hard push.
"Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!" Taylor shouted, falling off the bed. Zac laid down in his place. "Zac, why did you do that?" Taylor stood up and rubbed his tailbone.
"You were on my bed, and I wanted to lie down," Zac replied.
"Well, you could've just asked instead of shoving me off the bed like that! I would've moved!" Taylor exclaimed, walking over and sitting down on the bottom bunk of his and Isaac's bunk bed. "So, did you get in trouble for being late?"
"Yeah, I'm under house arrest for a month. No T.V., no internet, not visitors, and no going out," Zac said. "And I don't understand what I did wrong. All I did was eat lunch with someone I'd just met."
"Who?" Taylor asked.
"A girl," Zac replied. Taylor gave a Zac a mischievous look and moved his eyebrows up and down. "No, nothing like that, Tay. She's just a fan. Her name is Adia Fischer, and she's 14."
"Well, I hope she was worth getting grounded for," Taylor said. "Because you're gonna get really bored hanging around here."
"Oh, she is, Tay. Believe me, she is," Zac said. "Long blondish- brown hair, icy blue eyes." He closed his eyes and imagined her at that moment they first met. She looked so sweet.
"Well, did you bother to get her phone number?" Taylor asked.
"Yes, I did. 555-2342." Zac replied, triumphantly.
"Go, Zac!" Taylor exclaimed, giving him a high five.
"Well, get out, alright? I'm going to call her," Zac said.
"Ooooooooo . . . "Taylor cooed. "Little Zackie is growing up!"
"Shutup, Taylor!!" Zac exclaimed. Taylor left, as Zac picked up the phone. He dialed her number, and waited for someone to answer.
"Hello?" Adia said.
"Hi! It's Zac," he said.
"Oh, hi!" she said, sounding surprised. "Wow, I didn't actually think you'd call!"
"Well, I wouldn't have asked for your number if I hadn't intended to," he said.
"Yeah, I guess. So, did you get in really big trouble?" Adia asked.
"Well, I'm grounded for a month. No T.V., no internet, no visitors, and no going out," he said. "But the weird thing is, I'm not grounded for being late. I'm grounded for eating lunch with you."
"Why?" she asked.
"Because they don't know you, and I had just met you. They're worried about my safety since we're famous now," he replied. "It's just a bunch of crap. They let Taylor and Isaac get away with doing that kind of stuff when they were my age. It's not fair."
"Well, that sucks. I won't get to see you again for another month," she said, disappointedly.
"But you could sneak over! I can let you in through my bedroom window!" he exclaimed.
"Are you sure? I don't want to get you into anymore trouble," she said, hesitant. She wanted to meet Taylor Hanson more than anything in the world, but she didn't want Zac to get into more trouble, just for her.
"Nah, it's okay, really! I'm gonna get bored extremely fast, so I need some company. And Tay and Ike can keep a secret. Please?" he begged. "I'm gonna go nuts hanging around the house if you don't!"
"Alright. What time do you want me to come over?" she asked.
"Tomorrow morning at nine. My parents will be gone by then. My address is 169 West Seventy-Seventh Street. My room is on the right side of the house, first window. I'll be waiting," he said.
"Okay. Bye," she said.
"Bye." He hung up the phone.
Adia quickly dialed her best friend Dru's number.
"Hi! Dru? You'll never believe who I met today . . . . "
