I stood alone in the middle of a field of tall grasses, the grasses waving slightly with the breeze. It was a nice day, the sky a clear blue. The field was the perfect place to be alone and think.

"Hey, Gallagher Girl." The voice that had crossed my mind so often in the past month jolted me out of my reverie. I turned to see Zach slightly hunched, his hands in his pockets. He looked around and gave me a half-smile. I couldn't say how much I'd missed that half-smile of his, or the smirks he gave me when he knew something I didn't. He knew a lot of things I didn't, and I promised myself I would figure them out. "What are you thinking?" Zach asked.

"I'm thinking…wondering, actually, why you haven't come in so long," I replied, taking a step towards him. My eyes were drawn down to the warm bundle I held in my hand: Zach's jacket. I handed it to him wordlessly, waiting for a response.

"I couldn't," Zach said, accepting the bundle from me while running one hand through his hair.

"Why?" I asked. He'd trailed me while I was with Macey when her father was campaigning. Nothing had ever stopped him before.

"It's complicated. I mean, after all, we're spies."

"I think," I voiced, taking another step towards him, "that's the most honest thing you've ever said to me." After the words left my mouth, I couldn't tell if I'd meant them to be accusing or what. So many emotions were flying through my mind; confusion, frustration, wistfulness, and slight annoyance. Zach knew so many things that he wouldn't tell me, when all it would take to tell would be for him to just open his mouth. Zach's face softened.

"Well, Gallagher girl, I've got one more truth to tell." He took a step closer. We were so close now that our bodies touched, ever so slightly.

"What?" My breath caught. I didn't know what I wanted to hear.

"I love you." As the last word left his mouth, I was already closing my eyes and reaching upwards, while Zach's eyes closed and he bent his head downwards. He let go of his jacket as his arms circled my waist. My hands found their way around Zach's neck, and I moved one of them into his hair. His lips met mine, gently at first, then, just a little, we deepened it. As we stood there amid the grass, bodies entwined, I couldn't help smiling as we kissed.

It's about time, I thought.