After You Left

Chapter 3

"Lea." He says again, I start walking away without looking back, he calls my name again and again, I feel his footsteps right behind me before he grabs my hand and turns me around and I am met with Drew's handsome face.

"You got the wrong person." I say shortly before pulling away from his grasp and walk away.

"Lea stop that alright, I would never forget you." Drew says and pulls me back, his eyes are filled with hope.

"Please Drew, just go away." I say and pull away once again.

"Liv is here too." I halt in my steps. "She hasn't stopped searching for you and she found out you're here." Drew says softly, I take one step and I feel Drew take another. "We have a baby boy." I know that I am close to having a meltdown. "We named him Connor."

"Please go away Drew." I say and sob breaks out.

"Come home Lea, it's been 20 months, please just come home." Drew says and slowly turns me around to face him.

"I can't Drew, it will bring the pain back and I won't be able to control it." I say as memories of home start flashing through my head.

"At least see Liv and Connor, she'll want to see you." Drew says hopeful. "Or just Liv if you prefer but please don't walk away again."

"For goodness sake Drew, you nearly gave me a heart attack because I thought someone kidnapped you." My knees threaten to buckle underneath me as Liv's voice comes from behind me. "I swear if you say you're cheating on me I'm stealing all your chocolate ice cream and your favorite blanket." I hear the rage in her voice and her footsteps get closer.

Drew curses softly and puts me behind him.

"Sorry love, I had gotten distracted." Drew says with a nervous chuckle, I keep my back against his.

"Fluff off Drew, who's the girl behind you?" Liv asks angry.

My heart hammers in my chest and I step away from Drew and turn to Liv, she goes pale and staggers back, Drew is instantly by her side and he takes the beautiful baby boy from her arms.

"I took too much cough syrup." Liv says confused and closes her eyes.

"Hi!" I say quietly, her eyes snap open and she stares at me.

"Love maybe you and Lea will want to catch up on stuff so you go with her and I'll take Connor back to the hotel." Drew says smiling, he pecks her cheek and waves at me before walking away with baby Connor.

"My apartment is right around the corner." I say nervously and start walking, Liv's footsteps following close behind me.

We got to my building and than it was the elevator, the air was suffocating as neither of us spoke for a solid minute.

"Coffee?" I ask when we enter my apartment.

"You didn't say goodbye." Liv says with a frown.

"I had to leave immediately Liv, if I had stayed for goodbyes than you guys would have convinced me to stay." I say with a sigh, the windows were blowing in cold air that made my bones chill.

"I was going to help you Lea, it's what bffs are supposed to do, they're supposed to be there for each other and I was going to be there with you." Liv says.

"I did what was right." I say determined.

"No you ran away because the pain was too much too handle and you didn't want to accept his death." Liv snaps.

"I didn't want to stay because everything there reminds me of him." I snap back.

"Oh wow, that's a great excuse Lea, your whole apartment has his pictures and you're wearing his hoodie." Liv says frustrated.

"I am fine here, I don't need you all to come and tell me how to live my life." I say just as frustrated, she grabs a pillow and chugs it at me.

"You're supposed to be my bff, you were supposed to have been there for the birth of my child, we were supposed to be there for each other." Liv yells angry.

"Why, why should I be the one there, it would basically just remind me of the fact that I will never be able to get that happily or have a child with the love of my life." I yell back.

"Stop being such a fucking idiot Lea." Liv yells.

"I'm being an idiot, whoa Liv, as my bff, you're really acting like a bitch." I say through gritted teeth.

"YOU LEFT ME ALONE LIV, IT MADE ME FEEL AS IF I COULDN'T HELP YOU, I DIDN'T KNOW HOW TO FUNCTION BECAUSE MY WHOLE LIFE HAD REVOLVED AROUND YOU AND I DIDN'T KNOW HOW TO FIX IT." Liv yells and tears roll down her cheeks.

"I had to leave Liv, if I had stayed than it would have killed me, he died saving me and it hurts, it hurts so much that I want to drag a blade through my wrist." I say and tears roll down my cheeks too.

"But I would have been there for you." Liv says, her voice breaks slightly.

"I know that and I don't doubt that you wouldn't be there but he was my universe and when the car crashed and I woke up to him laying on the ground and he told me to live, I acted on what was right for me Liv, it was our wedding night and-" I break off as I sob again and again.

But than Liv pulls me to her and hugs me tightly and we both cry.

"I just wanted to be there for you Lea and when you left than I thought that maybe because I wasn't a good enough best friend." Liv says sobbing on my shoulder.

"You're the greatest friend anyone could ever ask for Liv and I'm sorry for just leaving without a goodbye." I say and pull away.

"How about some catching up?" Liv asks with a chuckle.

"That sounds great." I say smiling. "I am positive that I still have my whole stash of chocolate in the kitchen."

"Why keep his pictures?" Liv asks as she stares at one from us in the town.

"I still can't believe that you got down on your knee to offer me a rose." I say excitedly, Damien smirks and he leaned in closer to me, his breath on my ear, he softly bit my earlobe and my whole body was already heated.

"My sweet princess, I will go down on both my knees for you anyday, whether it's to save you or to worship you."

"It keeps him in my head and it reminds me of why exactly I'm doing what I'm doing." I say staring at the pictures. "Anyways we have lots of catching up to do."

"I had been busy scrolling through your comments section just before I had bumped into you when one caught my attention." Liv says smirking.

I know exactly which one she is talking about.
"I haven't sat with my phone since this afternoon." I say as I grab the chocolate box and make some hot chocolate.

"You replied to a comment that was 2 minutes after that one." Liv says. "What happened Lea?"

I sigh and sit down on the couch. "I was at the book signing and this cute girl came and she complimented me, her name was Davina and when I tried leaving the guy carries on insisting for my name and he called me princess and I punched him." I ramble.

"Have you tried digging deeper into him?" Liv asks.

"No and I have no intention in doing that." I say with a sigh, I grab my phone and there's a couple more comments, one that particularly makes my blood boil.

"I can give you whatever the guy gave the girl in the book princess ;)" D-H

"He seems like a rude asshole who hasn't read the book, don't let him get in your head." Liv says calmly, I nod and we carry on chatting through the night, Drew had come over at some point with Connor and they ended up staying over.