Moments In Time

Chapter 3

Kacey walked into her house that night, yawning and dropping her keys on the table by her door.

It had been an eventful evening, and she was quite happy with how it ended. Zayn had asked for her new number before leaving, promising to call her assistant to set up a lunch. It meant he was ready to be friends with her again, something she was more than ready for herself. She felt like she was lost without him in her life, and now she felt like things were finally coming together.

The group disbanding wasn't the only thing that had happened in Kacey's life recently. She'd also been through a breakup, one that hurt her more than she had cared to admit. She had loved the guy, the first one she had feelings for since Zayn. So when she caught him in her bed with her housekeeper, she was heartbroken. Not heartbroken enough to want him any longer, though. She packed his things and changed her number and locks. The guy had disappeared not long after, moving back East in disgrace.

She'd also bought herself a wonderful house in Bel Air. It was in the same neighborhood as Harry and Zayn, overlooking mountains that held fantastic views. Her house wasn't as big as theirs, but it was hers and she loved it. It was a four bedroom villa, white stucco with a red clay roof. It had a pool and a guest house, along with a tennis court. Kacey was proud of it.

As she flopped on her couch, Kacey grabbed her phone and decided to check Twitter. Since she was online, she decided to send a little shout out to Zayn as well.

"kcowens: it was so cool to present @zaynmalik with Single of the Year tonight. He's always making me proud"

As expected, her tweet got notifications immediately. What she wasn't expecting, however, was for Zayn to reply quickly.

"zaynmalik: @kcowens thanks babygirl honored to accept it from you. Means the world xx"

Kacey smiled and favorited it before logging out. She wasn't in the mood to see the comments from the fans speculating hers and Zayn's relationship, especially with the term of endearment that all the guys used when it came to her. The hardcore shipping was what really bugged her. She'd had enough of that with the ones who shipped Harry and Louis. She didn't need it from her own fans.

Her phone rang just as she was about to set it down, and she laughed when she saw Liam's name pop up.

"Hey, Lee," she answered, her eyes closed as she expected the worst.

"Zacey will rise!" Liam fake yelled into the phone. "They are real!"

"Shut up," Kacey grumbled, leaning back on her couch. "What's up? How's the family?"

"Everyone's great," Liam said sweetly. "Mum wants you to fly out here soon. I think she wants us to end up together."

"She still not over you and Sophia breaking up?" Kacey asked. "It's been three years."

It was silent on the phone for a minute.

"So you and Zayn?" Liam asked, changing the subject. Kacey felt bad for bringing up his ex but decided to move on with the conversation. "You two looked fantastic tonight, by the way. Paps caught you talking before the show."

"Of course they did," Kacey said with a roll of her eyes. "Too bad they didn't catch us after. I agreed to lunch with him this Thursday."

Liam laughed out loud.

"That'll be good for you," he said. "Seriously, I'm laughing because I'm relieved you're actually getting out of your house more. Plus I'm glad you're talking to Zayn more. You two not talking to each other is just unnatural, like seeing a dog walk on its hind legs. So, are you nervous?"