Before You Leave

8 Years Ago

_________

Lacey and Liam were just 2 average 12 year olds, walking around the middle school campus. They were both lost and looking for their History class. The first day was always a pain. They were going to pass by each other, but you'd have to thank fate for not letting them.

Or the school bully that shoved Liam into Lacey.

"Watch it dork!" Zach yelled at him.

"I- I'm sor- sorry."

"Look what he have here. Fresh meat," Zachary grinned. By now Lacey was up and furious.

"Leave him alone already."

"Or what?"

"This." Lacey bravely kicked Zach in the balls, before she took Liam's hand and ran. They ran together out of breath, form both running and laughing.

"Thank you for sticking up for me, no one has ever done that for me before," Liam smiled warmly at the girl before him with amber eyes and dirty blonde hair.

"No problem. So which class are you going to?"

"History with Ms. Lopez."

"Me too!" She smiled.

Liam laughed nervously, "Do you want to find her class together?"

"I'd be happy to."

Soon they found that they shared almost every class together.

Coincidence?

I think not.

Either way, a beautiful friendship was bound to form. And they were always there for each other.

Whenever it came to bullys, Lacey was there to help.

Whenever the most popular girls made fun of Lacey and her music, Liam was instantly by her side, brightening her day. They didn't need to ask each other to know they were best friends.

In high school, they came across the toughest obstacle yet; Lacey's mum and dad had both died in a car accident. She was heartbroken. She and her parents shared a bond so strong, it seemed they were the perfect family.

She cried for days, and days turned into weeks. And eventually weeks turned into months. Liam finally got her to pick her self up and their friendship was so strong, it was un breakable.

When Lacey got her first boyfriend, Liam found it hard to cope with his growing feelings for her. But even though he seemed to grow out of it; he would always be that shy boy deep inside.

One day, Lacey found her boyfriend cheating on her with another girl; one her best friends. But Liam to the rescue.

"Lacey?" He knocked on her door nervously, his palms sweating. Lacey's aunt and uncle let him in.

"Go away, Charlie." Liam slowly pushed open the door, to see Lacey sobbing into her blankets.

"What happened?"

"Charlie, he cheated on me."

Liam soon had rage boiling inside of him. No one would hurt his best friend and get away with it. He quietly pulled Lacey's fragile body into his arms.

"It's ok, Lace. You'll find someone you will treat you the way you deserve to be treated."

"Yeah, like that'll happen."

"There will always be a girl who's prettier than you, but you'll just have to find the right guy who overlooks that."

Lacey smiled weakly and hugged Liam. But deep down, Liam just wished Lacey could see how much he cared for her and loved her. All he could do for now is enjoy her company.

Soon Liam was going to go to the X-Factor.

"I can't believe you'll be gone for who knows how long."

Liam just smiled at her, "I'll be back before you know it. And you should audition!"

Lacey nodded her head violently. "No. No. No. No. No. No. I'll never be confident enough to sing in front of someone besides you."

"C'mon! You'll be great!"

"No, Liam. I'd be too nervous and I'm too insecure. So no way. I'm sorry Liam."

Soon enough Liam was back and Lacey was more than happy to see him again. She comforted him and helped him become better.

Lacey knew she would never be confident enough to follow her dreams, so she couldn't stop Liam from living his. Lacey pushed him to become the best.

And he was ready to go back to the X-Factor once more. Of course this was hard on Lacey, her only friend leaving her side. But she couldn't hold him back. Although Lacey could never admit it to herself, she loved Liam too much to do that to him. And she knew he had way more than a chance of winning. Because she believed in him. And Lacey knew her best friend wouldn't come home.

So she made what she thought was the biggest mistake of her life. She and Liam were waiting and the bus stop, so he could get a ride to the airport.

"Promise you'll keep in touch?" Lacey asked hoping for the best.

"Of course." They looked and saw the bus approaching.

"Liam, I know you probably won't come back so I'm just going to tell you. From the day I met you all the way to now, I began falling for you... And now. Liam. I'm in love with you," she said shyly looking at her feet.

Liam of course loved her as well, but he couldn't find the words that were stuck in his throat. He just couldn't say it.

The bus arrived. "Come on!" The driver yelled.

Liam quickly turned to Lacey. "I'll see you around?"

Lacey nodded quietly and pecked Liam on the cheek. "Go get 'em, Liam."

That was all she could say. After all her heart had just been broken in 2.

Soon she was curled up on the couch, watching him audition as Liam sang Cry Me A River. Nailed it!

She voted for him every time.

When Liam was in a band, she couldn't help feeling jealous. Lacey's best friend was being taken away from her.

One Direction.

As they advanced farther and farther, Lacey lost her hope of ever getting her best friend back. So she packed her bags and moved to LA where she planned on pursuing her dreams.