the best friend ; czk

epilogue¡

we deadass kept forgetting we finished this so the publish date has been pushed back twice LMAO.
but enjoy😙

two years. that's how long it had been.

how long laela had been in london. it's also the time it took for her to finally forgive zion.

she wasn't one to hold a grudge, which really got her thinking why she was so mad. she realized it was because she was so in love with zion that she was tired of the games he was playing.

laela was tired of seeing him run back to the girl he loved.

but she had finally gotten closure.

zion, on the other hand, quickly tried to distract himself from the girl, yet she always lingered in the back of his mind.

wondering why she left, how long she had planned it, and if she would ever forgive him.

that's why when management told them they were going back to london, he struggled to not get his hopes up.

his hopes of bumping into her. his hopes of talking to her again. his hopes of being able to confess his true feelings about her.

they had been obvious, really. both zion and laela were just clueless.

zion boarded the plane with a smile, despite it being two in the morning.

"caleb, why are you so smiley? it's two am." nick asked him with a tired and confused look on his face.

"i don't know man, i guess i'm just excited to be back in london."

; time skip to getting off the plane ;

zion jumped up from his seat, almost hitting the luggage compartments, as the flight attendant announced that first class could start leaving the plane.

he picked up his large backpack and headed off the plane, the rest of the boys close behind.

after getting their bags and getting into the car they'd be using for the whole trip, zion logged into his finsta and watched laela's recent instagram stories.

the dreadhead mentally sighed in relief seeing that she was still in london. he knew she was going on a trip to greece soon, but he didn't know exactly when.

zion put his phone down, closing his eyes for a bit to rest before the craziness that was the overwhelming amount of press they'd be doing.

laela clicked the 'next episode' button on netflix as she continued watching grey's anatomy. she popped a few more skittles in her mouth as she also skipped the intro, shifting in her bed.

her eyes shifted to her desk where an empty cup of starbucks was left. laela sighed, pushing everything aside as she decided she'd go on a quick run to starbucks to fulfill her need for coffee.

after slipping on her air force ones, laela threw her hair up into a bun before heading out of her apartment door. she got into the elevator thankfully alone, and she scrolled through instagram as she made her way down 4 floors.

laela walked into the starbucks down the street, smiling at the very close friend she had made that was working behind the counter.

"the usual, lae?" ahron asked.

"yes, sir." laela laughed, pulling out the money she needed and handing it to him.

he smiled at her before taking the order of the next person in line.

"iced caramel macchiato for zion?"

laela's head shot up from her phone and she mentally gasped as she watched his tall figure reach for a straw and stick it into his drink.

"iced caramel macchiato, light ice for laela?"

it was zion's turn to quickly look up from his phone, causing them to make eye contact for the first time. he was already close to the exit, but something told him to sit down at a table and call her over.

laela quickly thanked the barista before turning around and heading for the door, when zion said her name quietly.

"laela, can we please talk?" he practically pleaded.

the girl thought for a second, sighing before sitting down in the chair across from him.

"long time no see." zion stated awkwardly, twisting one of his dreads between his fingers.

"yeah." laela breathed out, playing with the ring ahron had gotten her for christmas.

"how've you been?" zion asked.

"pretty good. i'm doing a lot of traveling soon. you?" she answered, looking into his eyes for the first time during the whole conversation.

zion nodded in response, as if he didn't already know.

"i've been good. the boys have been good. we're doing a lot of press because we're about to drop the second album and go on a world tour."

laela noticed his eyes light up as he brought up the boys. she always admired his brotherly love for them.

"how long are you guys in london?" laela wondered out loud.

"a few days. afterward, we're going to dublin." zion nervously tapped his foot.

"cool. i gotta head back to my apartment, i still have your number so i'll text you and we can catch up, i guess." laela smiled, standing up.

"wait, really?" zion stood up quickly.

"yeah. i'll talk to you soon, kuwonu. it'll work out." she whispered the last sentence. laela grinned as she made her way towards the door.

zion sat back down, stunned.

it'll work out, he thought.

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word count: 851 words
published: june 9, 2018
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thank you all for sticking around for the epilogue. we know it probably wasn't exactly what you guys wanted, but you guys can finish the story in your heads. we love you so much, thank you for everything.

t & k 🧡