❛ SUPERMARKET FLOWERS ♪ ❜ - z. herron

sixty-six: zach's song.

"ONE TIME FOR THE BIRTHDAY BITCH." Laila screams as she enters my room. 

I've been home for the past 2 months. After that night at dinner, I realized there was no reason for me to stay. I wasn't going on tour, I dumped my boyfriend, and my best friend was coming into town anyway, so I packed up the rest of my dorm and left. Since then, I've been reading and working and trying everything to distract myself from the aching feeling that crawls into my heart whenever I see a particular brunette on my explore page. I realized the day I landed that I was in love with him, but I swallowed all my pride to not text him and seem pathetic.

"Laila, it's 5 am. It's still going to be my birthday in the next 3 hours." I say, looking at her groggily. I didn't get much sleep last night; the thought of Zach kept me awake. Just thinking about him now makes my eyes burn. I feel like such an asshole for letting my pride getting the best of me but why could he not just let me be?

Maybe because you were totally ready, but you're a coward because your high school boyfriend made you think that you weren't good enough for anyone, especially someone as compassionate as Zach. I felt like I could never love him as much as he loves me.

Lailas voice takes me out of my thoughts. "Isn't this the perfect time to play it? Get up, get ready, sunrise on the rooftop, just like when we were growing up." She smiles, reminding me of all the times I and her, Keagan, and Em would sneak onto our building's roof and watch the sunrise and see the city waking up. I sit up, rubbing my eyes, and I reach for my phone. "NO, don't grab your phone." Laila yells, causing me to retract my hand.

"You don't want me to check my phone on my birthday?" My face drops. "How am I supposed to reply to any messages or phone calls throughout the day?"

Laila scratches her head. "Well, it's a little confusing. I would avoid twitter. Instagram too. You know what? I'd also avoid apple music. Add Spotify onto that, you can never be too sure. See-" I see a ramble start to form, so I nip it in the bud.

"Spit it out." I speak, cutting her off.

"There's a song." She immediately speaks. She surprised herself at how fast she spit it out. Honestly, I'm surprised too. Usually, it takes years to get it out of her, but I didn't even have to try today.

"A song?" I ask skeptically. Did Sault decide to drop an album the day I finally go to sleep at 11 pm, and no one thought to tell me?

Before she can explain, Keagan waltzes in. "Good morning ladies." He places a kiss on Laila's cheek and wraps his arm around her. She eases into him, whispering, good morning. He looks at me, "Happy birthday ugly! How's it feel to be 3 years older than me again?"

"I hate you, I'm only 2 ½ years older." I say, throwing a pillow at him.

He catches it immediately, tossing it on the bed. I hate the fact he had to be the athletically gifted sibling. "Noted, glad I can add your hate to my resume." He smiles sarcastically.

"Continue about the song." I turn my vision to Laila, waiting for her to resume.

"Oh shit, you're telling her about it? Zach wrote-" Keagan says, surprised.

My jaw drops so vastly, I can feel it on the verge of unhinging. "It's Zach's song?" I slept for 5 hours unknowing of a song being released about me ON MY BIRTHDAY by my old best friends. Well, friend, the other boys talk to me every day. But whenever we are on facetime or call, the line goes dead. The second Zach walks into the room.

I expected it to be anyone else on planet earth, but the fact it's the boy's heart who I shattered right in front of me because I can't accept trust makes it a billion times worse. He's probably saying how I couldn't have just sucked up my pride and kissed him on the spot. But every single day, I kick myself more and more.