Prodigy

Not at Seventeen

"OK! You HAVE to contact us as soon as you get there and tell us what it's like!" Jess said two weeks later, stood in Heathrow Airport with Zane. He and Coach were checked in already and it was now just goodbyes.

Eddie and Tia had said goodbye the night before. Zane had said goodbye to his family that morning and Jess had decided to come see him off.

"I will, I promise," Zane said, hugging her.

"Man, I'm going to miss you so much," Jess said with a dramatic sob.

"Jess, I'm gone for a month," Zane said, frowning at her, "Four weeks. I'm not moving there, yet."

"You promise to bring me something back?"

"Yes, I promise to bring you something back."

"Then what the hell are you still doing here? Get on that plane and go buy me presents!" Jess said, booting him away from her, making him snort with laughter. "Where's Locke, by the way? I'd have thought he'd see you off," Jess then said, looking around.

Zane felt his stomach knot at the name and he cleared his throat. "Don't know," he said, fussing with his carry-on. "Haven't spoken to him recently."

"You haven't?"

"Nah, I think he's busy with concert stuff or something." Zane shrugged. "It doesn't matter, like I said, it's just a month."

"Fair enough, I guess. Well, contact him as well to say all's good."

"Yeah, I will," Zane said.

"Zane!"

He and Jess looked around as Coach turned away from his wife and waved to him, gesturing to the gates that would lead into the interior of the airport. Zane nodded, then turned to Jess and hugged her.

"See you in the month," he said.

Jess nodded with a smile, kissing his cheek and waving as Zane walked away.

They were almost out of sight when Zane heard Jess shriek his name through the hall, making him look back as she waved wildly at him with one hand, the other hand clasped firmly on Locke's arm.

Zane stared at him in shock.

He'd actually turned up.

He looked at Coach, who nodded for him to go ahead and Zane went back to them.

"I knew he'd show up. Hell, Locke, you almost missed him!" Jess said when he reached them, shaking Locke's arm.

Locke smiled at her. "I know, I was cutting it fine. I had other things to do but figured I'd better see him off."

"Jeez," Jess said, shaking her head, "You can do other things later. You won't be seeing him for a month."

Still shaking her head, she marched off to wait for Locke, chatting to Coach's wife and Zane looked down at Locke, who looked at the floor.

"You didn't have to see me off," he said and Locke looked up.

"I won't be here when you get back."

Zane frowned. "What?"

"When you come back from The States, I won't be here."

"... You won't?" Zane said slowly, cautiously.

"No. I'm going on tour." Locke looked away, towards the departure boards. "It's a world tour; I'll be gone for a year, at least."

"A whole year?" Zane said, shocked and Locke shrugged.