Here to Win Rewrite (Walker Boys Sequel)

Zoe's POV - Mason's Visit Home

Zoe's POV



"How did glitter get on the fan?" I asked, standing on the top of the ladder with a duster.

"Don't ask me," James muttered, running his fingers through his hair.

"Last night was amazing," I said, as I brushed glitter onto the ground. "You did awesome."

"Thanks," he said, with a smile.

"I loved having a carnival in the backyard," I confessed, climbing down off the ladder and trading my duster for a broom.

"I loved the idea," James said, with a smile.

"Total props," I said, high-fiving him before I began to sweep up the glitter I just dusted onto the floor.

"Three things I love seeing when I wake up with a hangover," I heard Ethan saying.

I rolled my eyes and James cracked up.

"And what's that?" Joseph asked, amusedly.

"My wallet, my phone, and my keys," Ethan said, triumphantly.

"Didn't he pass out on the Ferris wheel?" I asked, finishing sweeping up the glitter in the living room.

"More than once," James said, causing the two of us to crack up.

I dumped the glitter in the trash before moving onto the next disastrous room.

"The grizzly awakens," Carson warned, coming down the stairs.

"Uh-oh," I sang, as I began to sweep up the glitter in the kitchen.

"I'm surprised to see you awake," Carson said, with a smirk.

"Give it to me straight," I said, leaning against the counter. "How bad was it?"

"You did a keg stand," Carson admitted, with a smirk.

"I did not!"

"I have it on video."

"Shut up."

Carson pulled out his phone, and I watched myself drunkenly doing a keg stand.

"Awesome," I muttered, shaking my head.

"Not as bad as last year," Joseph said, poking his head in the kitchen.

"Shut up," I warned.

"You mean when she did a pole dance?" Carson asked, with a smirk.

I dumped my dust pan full of glitter on Carson's head.

"What the hell was that for?"

"I warned you," I said, with a shrug, before heading out of the kitchen and into the hallway.

I began to pull streamers down off the walls, shaking my head.

I heard a crash behind me, and I turned to see Mason standing behind me, a very pissed off Mason.

"What was that?" I asked, trying to bite back a smile.

"I just ran into a fucking wall," he growled. "How do I run into a wall?"

"You're my idiot boyfriend?" I suggested, giving him a quick peck on the lips before going back to pulling stuff off of the walls.

"How long have you been up?" he asked, in a husky voice.

"A little over an hour," I said, wrapping a streamer around his neck with a smile. "Pink is definitely your color."

He smirked at me. "How do you not have a hangover right now?"

"Oh I do," I said, grabbing my broom to begin to sweep up all the crap on the floor. "But focusing on my hangover isn't going to make this house presentable for when your parents get home."

"So what do you remember about last night?" he asked me, grabbing the dust pan to hold while I swept.

"Absolutely nothing," I admitted. "But if you mention my keg stand or my pole dance from last year, you'll end up like Carson."

Mason raised an eyebrow at me. "And what happened to Carson?"

"He turned into a glitter fairy."

Mason chuckled. "So if you don't remember anything from last night, how do you remember the keg stand?"

"Your lovely brother has it on video."

He laughed to himself, dumping the now full dust pan in the trash. "Sounds like him."

"What do you remember about last night?" I asked, as I began my next round of sweeping.

"Just bits and pieces," he said, with a yawn. "But I do remember Ethan passing out in the Ferris wheel."

"Apparently he did it more than once," I said, with a smirk.

"Wouldn't surprise me?"

I finished sweeping the hallway, and Mason dumped the last of the dust pan in the trash.

"Can I just say that you really pull off the hangover look?" I teased, wrapping my arms around Mason's neck.

"Is that so?" he asked, wrapping his arms around my waist with a smirk.

"Now is not the time for your make-out session!" I heard Ethan yell. "Someone still has to deal with the upstairs."

Mason shook his head, his eyes boring into mine. "I feel like we're always interrupted."

"That's why we should go back to your dorm," I whispered.

"So tempting," he whispered, bending down to kiss me.

As desperately as I wanted to continue to kiss him, I knew that Ethan had no problem with personal space, and would soon come barging in here to make us get a move on.

"Later," I whispered in Mason's ear, giving him one last peck on the lips before shimmying out of his grasp.

He let out a groan.

"Come on," I said, slapping his butt. "We have a lot to get done."

"I should've stayed in bed," he muttered, following me upstairs.

I turned around and gave him another kiss. "But then you wouldn't get to see me."

"True," he agreed, his eyes boring into mine again.

He made it so hard to resist him when he did that.

"Now love birds," Ethan said, passing us on the stairs. "Before I do it for you."

Mason let out a growl, narrowing his eyes.

"Just a few more minutes," I promised, with a smile. "Patience is a virtue."

Mason scoffed, following me up the stairs. "Yeah, one that I choose not to have."

~*~

I checked my reflection in the mirror one last time before heading down to Mason's room.

I didn't bother knocking, instead just letting myself in.

Mason had his headphones in, and his back was turned to me.

And he was shirtless.

I couldn't help but stare as Mason rose up on his toes to grab something off of a shelf in his room, his calf muscles even more defined than they already were.

His body was absolutely to die for.

His back was completely ripped from track, and it extended down his arms, each muscle clearly defined.

College track had definitely suited him well.

Mason turned around, and his eyes widened in shock when he saw me, and then he smirked.

"And what are you up to?" he asked, taking out his headphones.

"What time are you heading back?" I asked, leaning against the door frame.

"A couple of hours." He smiled at me. "Do you have something in mind?"

I rolled my eyes. "I'm not making out with you until your shoulder heals."

He smirked at me. "Just one kiss."

I couldn't help but smile. "Okay," I relented. "One kiss."

He didn't waste any time crossing the room and crashing his lips against mine.

I loved the feeling of his bare back, his protruding muscles. We hardly ever make out when he's shirtless, because he's hardly ever shirtless.

I often wondered about that. Carson walked around shirtless every opportunity he had, as did most boys I know. But Mason was the exact opposite. And I wasn't sure why. It's not like Mason didn't have the body, he was more ripped than Carson, and that was saying something.

I pulled away before the kiss went too far, and Mason let out a growl.

"Why aren't you shirtless more often?" I inquired.

"What?" he asked, raising his eyebrows at me in surprise.

"Why aren't you shirtless more often?" I repeated.

"That's an odd question?"

"I like it," I confessed, with a smile.

He rolled his eyes, laughing. "I'll keep that in mind."

His phone went off around the room, and he turned to grab it, my eyes landing on his pod.

I couldn't help but wonder if he was self-conscious about his pod, his diabetes.

Mason tossed his phone onto his bed, ignoring whoever texted him.

"You have that look on your face," Mason said, raising his eyebrows at me.

"What look?" I asked.

"Like you're over-thinking something," he said, studying my face. "What's running through your mind Ms. Baker?"

I love it when he calls me that.

"Nothing," I lied, not really wanting to talk to him about my theory on his self-consciousness.

"What?" he pried.

I opened my mouth to answer, but I was interrupted by someone squeezing in-between me and the door and running into Mason's room.

"What's up little man?" Mason asked Chase, with a smile.

"Mommy's looking for you," Chase informed him.

"Tell her you couldn't find me."

"But I did find you," Chase said, confusedly.

"Don't listen to him," I said to Chase, glaring at Mason. "Mason will be right down."

Chase nodded and then darted back out of Mason's room.

"Don't teach him to lie," I chastised.

"But she's going to grill me about my shoulder and my ER trip," Mason whined.

I felt a sense of anger bubble up inside of me, still a bit upset that he hadn't talked to me about it.

"Will you go with me?" Mason asked, oblivious to my anger.

"Sure," I agreed, with a shrug.

"And for the record," Mason said, slipping on a shirt, "I'm still sorry."

I couldn't help but smile. I guess he wasn't as oblivious as I thought he was.

I grabbed his right arm before we left the room, studying the bruise from the IV. It was larger than it was yesterday.

"Is it sore?" I asked.

"Why does it matter?" he snapped. He immediately pressed his eyes closed and cursed under his breath. "I didn't mean that."

"What's the matter?" I asked, my eyes searching his face.

"Nothing," he lied, stepping around me to head downstairs.

He wrapped his hand around mine as we headed downstairs, and my heart practically melted. I missed this so much.

"Hey guys," Emma greeted, as we came into the kitchen.

"Hey," I said, with a smile.

Emma's eyes almost immediately zeroed in on Mason's bruise, which was fully exposed because he his hand was dangling to his side as he held my hand.

"What's that?" she demanded, and I released his hand as she grabbed his arm.

"It's nothing," Mason snapped, the same tone he used with me just a few moments before. Regret immediately crossed his face, and he let out a slow sigh.

"It's obviously something," Emma said, brushing off his attitude.

He explained the ketones story to her, and I expected her to be angry with him.

But instead her eyes filled with tears.

"What's the matter?" Mason asked, furrowing his eyebrows.

"Why would you keep this from me?" Emma asked, her voice full of hurt.

Mason's jaw dropped, obviously not the reaction he was expecting either.

She left the kitchen, a single tear falling down her cheek.

"Did you guys plan that?" Mason asked me, still in shock.

I shook my head. "But she did a lot better than I did."

He rolled his eyes, standing up and following her out of the room, probably before Rob found her.

That would be World War 4, World War 3 happening the last time Mason made Emma cry two years ago, and Rob almost hit him.

"Hey Zoe," Rob said, coming into the kitchen. He tossed his keys on the counter and emptied his pockets. "Have you seen Emma?"

I felt like a deer in headlights.

"Zoe?" Rob asked, raising an eyebrow at me.

"She's with Mason," I said, with a nod.

"Is everything alright?" he asked, grabbing a beer out of the refrigerator.

Why did I always get stuck in these awkward situations?

"Mason was just telling her about his weekend," I said, sticking to the truth.

Rob seemed confused. "About his weekend? You mean about Friday, his shoulder?"

"Kind of."

Before he could question me any further, Mason came back into the kitchen.

"Everything alright?" Rob asked Mason.

"Yeah, fine," Mason answered.

"That's a nasty bruise you've got there," Rob said, raising his eyebrows at Mason. "I swear, one of you kids always comes back injured from that party." He took another swig from his beer before leaving the kitchen.

"Smooth things over?" I asked Mason.

"I guess." He sat down next to me. "Do you feel like I betrayed you?"

I wasn't used to Mason starting deep conversations.

"Betrayed me?" I asked, raising my eyebrows at him.

"Like, when I didn't tell you what happened on Friday?"

"Kind of," I said, my eyes boring into his.

He stood up and walked out of the kitchen without a second glance back.

That was a douche move.

"So that's it?" I called after him. "You're just going to walk away?"

A few seconds passed, and then I got up and went to Carson's room, knocking twice before letting myself in.

He was shirtless, no surprise there, and had music blasting through his room while he worked on what looked like a school project, papers strewn everywhere.

He paused the music, raising his eyebrows at me. "Yes?"

"So you know how I have this best friend named Carson?" I asked, closing his door behind me.

"That awesome guy? Yeah, I know about him. Why?"

"Well you know how he has two sides? A jackass, douche, football, jock side and then a nice, caring, and advice-giving side?"

"That's hurtful," Carson said, pointing his pencil at me. "But I might know something that about that."

"Well can I get my nice, caring, and advice-giving best friend Carson?"

"I'll see if I can find him."

I glared at him.

"Take a seat on the Carson tell-all couch," he said, pointing to his black leather couch.

I rolled my eyes, but plopped down on his couch, stretching out across his and propping my head up so I was looking at him.

"And what can Dr. Carson do for you today?" he asked, making himself comfortable in his desk chair.

"I'd like to know why your brother is being a jackass."

"If this brother's name is Ethan, it's because he was born that way."

I rolled my eyes. "The one named Mason."

"Oh, that brother," Carson said, with an annoying smirk. "Right, well there are two possible reasons. One is that he's sort of diabetic and he might be in grizzly mode."

I shook my head. "That's not it, because he was only a jerk when we talked about a certain thing."

"If this certain thing has to do with his ER visit, then I also have that answer."

"What?" I demanded.

"That's not a nice way to ask your best friend-"

"I'm running on zero patience here," I warned.

"Okay, okay," Carson conceded, throwing his hands up in surrender. "Mason's a bit touchy about Friday's events surrounding the ER."

"Why?" I asked.

Carson let out a sigh. "I'm kind of conflicted here. I mean, you're my best friend, yeah, but Mason told me this in confidence, and I'm not sure I should be revealing that to you."

"I won't tell him my source," I promised.

"It's not that hard to figure out."

"I won't tell him at all then."

Carson let out a frustrated groan. "I feel like I'm betraying confidence, and I'm not comfortable doing that, so I'm going to kind of give you an answer, but not really."

"What?"

"Mason likes to have control," Carson said. "Which is all I'm going to say regarding what's happened. You, my dear, are going to have to put the puzzle pieces together."

I stood up, kissing Carson's cheek. "You're the best."

"I know," Carson promised. "Now leave."

~*~

"What does this say?" Chase asked Carson, holding up his medical ID tag.

"It says that I'm your favorite brother," Carson said, with a smirk.

"Okay," Chase agreed.

"No it doesn't," I said, pulling Chase into my lap and taking the medical ID tag from him. "You can read it." I pointed to Carson's name.

"Carson Walker," Chase announced, proudly.

I pointed to the words Alcohol Allergy.

Chase stared at the word, puzzled.

"Sound it out," I encouraged.

"Al-co-hol," Chase sounded out.

"Alcohol," I pronounced for him. "What's the next word?"

"All-er-gy," Chase sounded out.

"Allergy," I agreed. "So what're those to words together?"

"Alcohol allergy," Chase announced, proudly.

"High-five," I said, with a smile.

Chase high-five me. "What's it mean?"

"It means that if I drink alcohol, I'll die," Carson called from the other couch.

Chase's eyes widened.

"It means," I corrected, glaring at Carson, "that Carson can't have alcohol."

Mason came into the living room, and Chase immediately shot up off of my lap.

"Can we talk?" Mason asked me.

"Are you going to walk away this time?" I snapped.

That was probably uncalled for, but I still hadn't forgiven him for that.

"No," he said, with a tight-lipped smile.

"I can read this," Chase announced, proudly, showing Mason the medical ID tag.

Mason took it from him and quickly scanned it. "I don't believe you."

"It says Carson Walker, alcohol allergy," Chase said, with a smile.

"You got me," Mason promised, with a smile.

"What's that mean?" Chase asked.

"That means that you proved me wrong." Mason handed the tag back to Chase. "You should give this back to Carson."

I followed Mason out of the living room and upstairs to his bedroom, where he was all packed and ready to leave.

There was a pang in my heart as I saw his suitcase. Even though I was upset with him, I still didn't want him to leave.

"I don't want to leave on a sour note," Mason said, reaching around me to close his bedroom door.

"I don't want you to leave on a sour note," I agreed, crossing his bedroom and taking a seat on his bed, letting my legs dangle off the side.

"I didn't mean to snap at you," Mason said, leaning against the opposite wall.

"Why'd you walk away during our conversation?" I asked. "I'm not mad about you snapping at me, it happens. I'm mad that you walked away."

Mason's eyes flickered everywhere around the room but on me, obviously uncomfortable.

It'd been a long time since he'd been uncomfortable to tell me something.

"Look," I said, deciding to take the high road here. "I know that whatever happened on Friday shook you up. But I don't want you to be uncomfortable in talking to me. I want us to be able to have an open conversation, to be able to talk about these things."

"It's different," he explained, finally meeting my eyes.

"How so?" I challenged.

"Because we're dealing with my diabetes now."

I gave him a soft smile, my resolve fading a little. "Mason, I've been dealing with you and your diabetes for just about two years now. You shouldn't feel uncomfortable in talking to me about it."

He let out a sigh, shaking his head. "It's not that exactly."

Okay, he was starting to get on my nerves again.

"Then what is it exactly?"

He sighed, rubbing the back of his neck. "I just don't like admitting when I have a problem controlling it," he said, shaking his head. "I hate it."

Carson's advice rang in my ear, about Mason needing control.

"I wish you would've talked to me," I said, my resolve completely fading. "But you do know that you can't be perfect?"

Mason rolled his eyes. "I'm not perfect, but things shouldn't get that out of hand."

He was still touchy.

"So what time are you leaving?" I asked, standing up.

"A soon as we finish this conversation."

I crossed the space between us and wrapped my arms around his neck, dissolving the tension between us. "Then let's never finish."

"I thought you weren't going to endanger my Olympic future," Mason said, with a smile.

"Shut up and kiss me you idiot."

**************************************************************************************************************

So what did you guys think of Zoe's view on Mason? What about her theory on Mason's shirtless-ness? Do you agree or disagree? Were you expecting Emma's reaction, or did that surprise you? And Zoe's friendship with Carson, that's new eh?

Big Anatomy test today! Wish me luck. I'm so incredibly nervous. I'm up so early so I can study.

Teaser: Mason returns to college & hopes to be cleared to train. Terrence comes back, hope you remember him. And Carson has some more college drama.

Update: Friday