You have to let him go.

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A/N
I'm feeling generous so you'll get an upload tonight and then tomorrow morning 🙈😋

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Brooke's POV

Holy poop my best friend looks insanely different. Her hair is no longer the natural brown, she's decided to dye it a dark red colour which looked incredible. I swear she could rock any look.

"I'm so excited." Stephanie squealed down FaceTime.
"Me too." I grinned. I had just told her that Drew and I could make the wedding but he has to leave a couple of days after where as I'm staying for a little while.
"So, who's invited to this wedding of yours then?" I asked with a slight smirk.
"Loads of people." She replied.
"Like who?" I asked.
"You and Drew, your mum and Caleb, my parents, Jakes parents, some of my family, some of Jakes family, friends and your old pal Lee." Stephanie smiled, reading out a piece of paper in her hand.
"My old pal?" I asked with a laugh.
"Ok then, your old lover." She smirked and I rolled my eyes playfully.
"Are you excited?" She questioned.
"Of course I'm excited. I'm seeing my best friend marry my cousin. Who wouldn't be?" I exclaimed.
"No, I mean are you excited to see Lee?" She asked and I sighed, leaning back against the wall of my window seat.
"I don't really know. Kind of but kind of not." I responded truthfully.
"Why not?" She quizzed.
"Because he's my ex boyfriend and I know I still have a connection with him that just won't ever leave. I'm engaged to Drew and I love him lots but I don't think it will ever be like the love Lee and I shared." I blurted out. Great. Now my thoughts are slipping out of my mouth without me even be able to control them. I guess it's better to talk about this than leave it all to bottle up, right?
"I understand. For the first couple of weeks you left for America, he didn't speak to anyone. His videos were slacking in content and he just wasn't himself. You leaving drove him off the edge, even if he wouldn't admit it, we knew deep down he was hurting." She said and my heart shattered. I haven't had a heart break since I've been here and talking about Lee just brought it all back again.
"I made him like that." I said, gulping back the lump in my throat. Dammit Brooke, pull yourself together. It's been five damn years.
"You didn't make him like anything. You made the right decision. Ever heard of that saying 'if you love someone, let them go'? That's what you did B." Stephanie said.
"Yes but I don't believe it that. I believe that if you love something, your natural instinct it's to hold on to it, cherish it and never let it go. By telling yourself to let it go, you may do so and then lose the one thing that made you happy. The one thing that you loved more than anything is gone. Maybe temporarily or perhaps permanently. Why would you want to risk that? If I could go back and talk to 17 year old me, I'd tell her to stay, forget about the career and just stay with the people who make you happy but I can't and here I am today in America with a fiancé who's always working." I sighed.
"Brooke, can I ask you something?" Stephanie asked and I nodded slowly.
"Are you happy?" She asked and those three words got me thinking. Am I happy? 
"Yes, of course I am." I said.
"Brooke, tell me honestly." She said and I huffed.
"Fine, yesterday we were eating dinner and Drew brought up something about our wedding to Daisy and it just didn't feel right. I don't know if I'm ready to marry him Steph." I said.
"If this is about Lee B, you have to let him go. It's in the past. Five long years have passed and you haven't thought of him until now. Why?" She asked.
"Because of this wedding. I'm going to have to see him again and it's hurting me. I even listened to an old voicemail I had from him the other night and I just cried. I'm not right. No one cries about their ex boyfriend of 17 five years later." I replied.
"Some people do Brooke, I guess you just loved him more than you realised and I think you still do however, he's moved on, you've moved on and it's time to get over him. You're going to marry Drew and the wedding is going to be bloody brilliant. When is it?" She asked, trying to change the subject but I frowned when I went over her words in my head again.
"Lee's moved on?" I asked and she nodded slowly, unsure whether she should tell me or not.
"Yeah, uh, he has a girlfriend. Her name is Rose." She said and I gulped before deciding to make a joke out of it. He's moved on now so I definitely have to.
"Yeah, Ree sounds better that Bree." I laughed as did she at the ship name I just came up for us. Why didn't I think of that years ago?

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"What are you doing?" Daisy asked, sitting beside me on the sofa and watching me play on the laptop.
"I'm trying to book our plane tickets." I smiled.
"Plane tickets? Are you leaving me here?" She asked and I shook my head, laughing.
"Mummy and daddy are coming to pick you up tomorrow remember?" I asked. Do five year olds still call their parents mummy and daddy? God, i don't know. I'd be an awful mother. Note to self, don't have kids anytime soon.
"Oh yeah. I don't want to go home though, I like it here." She replied, folding her arms over her chest and stropping.
"You can come back again. There's no doubt your parents will dump you with us again soon." I said, going a little quieter towards the end.
"What?" She asked and my eyes widened.
"Nothing." I said quickly.
"You said something about mummy and daddy." She said.
"Oh did I? I think I said that mummy and daddy love you." I smiled. Good save Brooke.
"Well I love mummy and daddy too." She giggled before running off, probably to find Drew.

I shook my head with a small smile and turned my head back to the laptop where I continued to book the tickets. Plane tickets for the 3rd of august. That gives us time to get there and sort ourselves out for the 5th and then drew has got to book his tickets home again.
I clicked enter hesitantly before letting out a sigh of a relief. That's one thing sorted before this vacation.

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