Isolation passes by in a blur, helped along by Caleb who spends countless hours telling me everything I need to know about vampires, hunters and their history. It's all very fascinating, if a bit monotonous at times, but at least it serves as a good distraction for both of us.

I do my best to concentrate, but I often find my mind drifting to the medical ward above us. In the moments before I fall asleep at night, all I can see is ocean blue and reluctant smiles. When I wake up, it's broad shoulders and cropped blonde hair. Those few minutes every day, when I'm consumed with thoughts of Zach are what get me through the time in the cell.

Though Caleb and I talk non-stop during the days we are stuck in isolation, the one subject that he never brings up is Zach. Not that I can blame him for it. The emotional wound is still as fresh as our physical ones, and I need to give Caleb the time to heal before I callously bring it up.

By the time Angie comes to take a sample of my blood, I already know it's going to come back clear. I watch as she pokes the needle in my skin and draws the crimson liquid without so much as a flinch, which I'm quite proud of myself for. Despite all my injuries, and the copious amount of pain killers coursing through my body, I feel relatively normal.

Well, I don't want to eat anyone, and I take that as a good sign.

Caleb's the same, and I marvel at how lucky he is, escaping turning not once, but twice. I'm convinced it must be a record, until Caleb tells me about a Hunter called Ezra Nottingham, who was bitten six times and never turned.

Lideri has visited us twice, to let us know Zach's progress, and to check on ours. Apparently, Zach is on the mend after multiple blood transfusions and too many stitches to count. Lideri says he's recovering really well, but I won't believe it until I see it myself.

As soon as Angie arrives back to inform us of our clean blood work, I pounce. "So, can I go to the medical ward now?"

She eyes me warily, assessing my injuries. "I wouldn't recommend it, Peyton. Your body has been through a lot and you need some time to recover. I've already had to redo the stitches on your stomach once, I don't want to do it again. It might be better if you stay down here for another few days, instead of straining yourself."

"But, technically I am allowed to leave, right?" I look towards Caleb's cell, where he sits on his bed watching our exchange with interest.

"Yes," she agrees hesitantly. "But like I said, I think you should stay here."

"Angie, Angie, Angie." I shake my head with a small smile. "It's like you don't even know me. Even after all our time together."

"I'm not going to convince you, am I?" She asks, letting out a chuckle when I cross my arms in defiance. "Just please be careful and don't walk too fast."

"Thank you." With her permission, I'm out of the cell like a shot. Well, technically, I move about as fast as a limping tortoise, but it's as quick as I can manage.

The journey takes me three times longer than usual with many breaks in between. My body screeches in agony, pulsing and throbbing in time with my footsteps. But, as soon as I see the familiar exterior of the medical ward, I quicken my pace, ignoring the pain that shoots through my abdomen.

I poke my head around the door, breathing a massive sigh of relief when I see Zach sitting up on his bed, taking small sips from a glass of water. Time seems to slow down as his ocean eyes look up to meet mine and a wide smile crosses his face.

Butterflies erupt in my stomach, dancing around like they're at a nightclub, and I wonder how the hell I didn't notice this feeling before. How could I have missed this? Even now, as I stand in the doorway, it's as though an invisible thread is pulling me towards him.

How did it take me so long to see it?

"Peyton," he says and my heart leaps at the sound of his voice. "I thought I'd never see you again."

"Well, I thought I'd lost you." I choke back tears and plaster a watery grin on my face, finally stepping into the room.

"I'm right here."

"I see that." I quickly wipe under my eyes and make my way over to sit on the chair next to his bed. He reaches a hand out, palm facing up, and I place mine on top of it, revelling in the warmth and comfort I always get from his touch. "I'm so glad you're okay."

"And I'm so happy that you are as well." The smile leaves his face for a moment, replaced by a frown. "Although, I believe your common sense leaves much to be desired."

"I couldn't just," I pause, taking a deep breath and begging the tears not to come. I'm not even sure why I feel so emotional. It could be the relief of seeing him alive, it could be the overwhelming feelings I have for him, or it could even be a combination of the two. All I know, is that I am so incredibly thankful to have met the man sitting in front of me. "Leave you out there. Not when I knew there was a chance that you could be alive."

"I'm very grateful." He threads his fingers through mine, and I swear my heart skids to a halt for a moment. "But it was foolish. They took me to lure you out. You could have died."

"But I didn't," I whisper. "And neither did you. That's all that matters."

"Yes." He picks up our entwined hands and brushes his lips over my bruised knuckles. "Thank you, Peyton. I owe you my life."

"You owe me nothing, Zacharias," I tease, enjoying the way his lips twitch upwards at my use of his full name. I can't help but remember how much it used to annoy him when I first did it. I also recall the last thing he said to me before he left.

If only so that I can hear you call me Zacharias again.

"I've missed you saying that." He manages a short laugh, his face crinkling in pain straight after. "It sounds different coming from you. Is that weird?"

I think of the way my name sounds falling from his lips, beautiful and as soft as a caress, and shake my head. "I know exactly what you mean."

He grins, his ocean eyes sparkling. "And, you're wrong. I owe you everything. Not only did you save my life, you changed it. You changed me."

"You did the same for me," I tell him, thinking back to the person I was when I met him. Terrified and alone. Now, despite all the injuries on my body, I feel strong and safe. I feel as though I'm becoming the person I was always meant to be.

We lapse into silence, his eyes communicating more than his words ever could. In them, I see the moments we could have shared together, the life we could have had. I see the future I want, one that is just out of my grasp. One that we can never have.

Our lives were always meant to collide, to shape us into who we are now. Zach is my true north, a weapon that I can't survive without. He's my anchor and my guiding lighthouse in the storm. He is the person I was always meant to fall in love with, the man who brings out the best in me. But, there is one thing that he can never be.

Mine.

The problem isn't the flings. It's when the relationship becomes a risk to the mission.

What Zach and I have is way more than a fling. The feelings we share are so real and intense that they scare me. I know for a fact, that if we let this go any further, we would probably have to leave headquarters, the same way that my parents did. Lideri would never allow it, especially after seeing my reaction to Zach being taken.

Add in the fact that Lideri has been grooming Zach to be the next Lideri since day one, and we're doomed before we even begin.

"Zach, I-,"

"You only ever call me that when you're being serious," he interrupts me with a grin.

I chuckle sadly, feeling my eyes threatening to tear up again. Clearing my throat, I say, "in this case I am being serious."

"I'm not sure I can handle our roles being reversed, Peyton," he teases. "I'm supposed to be the serious one. If you take that away from me, then the entire world will shift on its axis."

"Look at you, making jokes," I sniffle, wiping a tear off my cheek. "You've come so far from the Ironman I met."

He shifts forward, his free hand cupping my face, the sincerity in his eyes almost derailing my train of thought. "It's all thanks to you."

I smile weakly, leaning into his touch. "You're in line to be the next Lideri."

He nods once, as though that's exactly what he was expecting me to say. "Yes I am. But Peyton, say the word and I will step back. I'm sure Caleb will happily take my place."

For a selfish moment, I let myself consider it. I picture Zach and me leaving together and having the life we deserve. I think of all the happy times we would share if we were allowed to be together. I envision a future that revolves around Zach, one that doesn't include mythical creatures or weaponry.

But, it's just that; a selfish moment. The world is plagued by vampires, werewolves and all the other beasts that hunt and kill people, and we can help get rid of them. Zach is the best person I've ever met. He's fair and kind, loyal and noble, and there's no doubt in my mind that he will be one of the greatest Lideri's the organisation has ever seen.

I can't take that away from him. More importantly, I can't take that away from the rest of the Hunters. When Jackson Marshall steps down, we will need a leader who's as good as he is.

And that Leader is Zach.

"You know I would never ask that of you," I finally tell him, my heart squeezing as I say the words. "Besides, this place needs you. You're the most honourable man I've ever met. Just like a good Lideri should be."

"Where does that leave us?" he asks, his eyes swimming with sadness.

I scoot my chair forward and lean my head against his shoulder on the bed, closing my own eyes and enjoying his proximity. "It leaves us nowhere," I tell him sadly. "But, we have right now. So let's just enjoy the moment."

He doesn't say anything in response, but I feel his lips touch my forehead softly and his other hand come up to stroke my hair. We stay like that for several heartbeats. Its a little cocoon of happiness that I want to lock us up in, throwing away the key and stretching out the moment forever.

Eventually, Zach breaks the comfortable silence, his lips brushing my temple as he speaks. "I was wrong before, Peyton. It would be impossible not to fall in love with you."

It takes me straight back to my first dinner in the dining hall, when I barely knew Zach, right after my kiss with Caleb. Zach had said that it would be impossible to fall in love with me, and at the time, I would have said the same about him.

Look at us now.

My life has changed so much in the last couple of months. If someone had told me back when I first met Henry that this is what my future looked like, I would never have believed it. But, now I can't imagine my life without this man in front of me, or a certain green eyed Hunter who's probably making his way to the medical ward as we speak.

I look up at Zach, knowing I shouldn't, but unable to stop myself from placing my lips on his, just once. The butterflies in my stomach dance a jig, and my heart clenches tightly as a smile crosses my face. He kisses me softly, and I realise that this is what I've been missing my entire life, this feeling of being home.

And though this one stolen moment is all we have, all we will ever have, it's enough. In this crazy world of vampires and werewolves and windigos, I have Zach and Caleb and the three of us make an unstoppable team.

Together we will take on the vampires that plague our world, one by one, until there's none of them left.