Zack takes a vacation

After dropping Chloe’s mom off at their house, Zack went home. His parents were surprised to see him a week and a half before his trip’s scheduled end. After informing them of all that transpired at the cabin, they decided it was best to let him deal with his problem on his own as best he could, and was welcome to talk to them if he needed to.

As was expected, both Zack’s cell and his home phone lit up like a Christmas Tree as soon as his friends caught on that he was no longer at Silver Lake. Chloe was the first to call. Then Heather. Then Taylor. Followed by everyone else who cared that he had left. The only person who didn’t contact him was Victoria. While most of his friends voiced their concern towards his well-being, the message that Ashley left him was less than courteous. She thanked him for leaving and for dicking over her best friend like every other guy she cared about, save for Dustin. She also told him to watch his back when school started up again. Zack didn’t respond to any of them. Eventually, he just shut off his phone.

The next day, Chloe rang the bell on the Bishop’s porch. Zack’s mom answered the door. Chloe was near to tears when she explained that Zack wasn’t up for company just yet. Her heart ached for her best friend, but understood and respected his wishes for privacy. “He’ll come around!” she swore to herself. But he never did.

Vacation came and went. Zack’s friends came home and school started up again. The first day back, Zack was a no-show. It wasn’t until the middle of the week that anyone saw him at school. Brandon caught a glimpse of him in the hallway. When the football star tried to approach his friend, Zack just shook his head to let him know that it wasn’t a good time. Gavin saw him in their math class, but Zack moved his seat away from his friend. He stopped sitting with them at lunch, and he no longer gave Chloe a ride to school. And life went on. Eventually, everyone got the hint that Zack didn’t want to open up to them. After three weeks, his name stopped coming up in group conversation. The closest anyone got to him that last month of school was when Ashley saw him coming down the stairs as she was heading up. Her hand shot out and caught him by the ankle. The heart-broken teen fell and twisted his ankle pretty bad.

“Oops!” Ashley laughed. “Walk much, Loser?”

Zack didn’t respond. He just limped off to class. And life went on.

The school year came to an end. Prom was held and diplomas were handed out. That year, Azure Rocks graduated its largest class ever. All but one student was at the ceremony. Two days after graduation, Zack drove to pick up his diploma. After turning in his unworn cap and gown, he walked into the dean’s office in a pair of old jeans and a tee-shirt and officially ended his high school career.

Despite his parents’ best attempts, there was no party for Zack. The invitations he received for his friends’ parties all went unopened. The only way he acknowledged his accomplishment was by cashing all the checks he had received from relatives. With the money he was given, Zack bought himself a two-week vacation to Europe. The day he left, Chloe, Gavin, and Heather went to the airport to see him off. Zack hugged each one of them and thanked them for coming. Then he boarded his plane.

Three weeks later, a parcel truck dropped off his luggage at his house. There was a brief note explaining that he wouldn’t be returning and that he was sorry for leaving the way he did. And with that, Zachary Bishop disappeared without a trace.