Anywhere With You • {J.C.}

||Epilogue||

Harlow stood outside of the record store, remembering the last time she had been in. It was to buy a Strokes cassette; to listen to the cryptic messages Julian was trying to tell her. As it turned out, Harlow hadn't been paranoid, Julian had in fact been trying to reach out to her.

No one knew, but every project Julian had a hand in, Harlow listened. Not for subliminal messages, but to feel connected to him in a way she no longer did anymore. She missed him—she missed everything about him. It had been seven years since she and Julian had made their deal.

It didn't matter though; Julian had moved on—Harlow, not long after. She and Tyler rekindled their old romance, things falling into place rather easily. She was surprised Tyler had been so forgiving, but he explained why—they were young and careless. Tyler had put too much pressure on Harlow to be with him, even though he had known from the beginning that she was in love with another. It took time—lots of time to figure out that Harlow was simply too young to be held accountable for the actions she made.

An album had released the previous year, and Harlow tried her best to steer clear of it. That album was Julian's first solo project—Phrazes For The Young.

She entered the store, her stomach twisting as what felt like butterflies swarmed all around in her gut, causing a smile to spread across her lips. She had planned to buy his new album, but ultimately became distracted. The view of all the records and posters in the back causing her to reluctantly make a trip down memory lane.

Since stepping foot into the record store, Harlow's thoughts of Julian had stopped, completely getting side tracked by what she had planned to do. She had a couple of hours to spare before Tyler came home, so Harlow kept busy by looking through the autobiographies of artists and musicians.

"I think there's some picture books up at the register."

Harlow froze—her eyes widened but never wavered off the page as she recognized the voice beside her. She'd like to think it was a small world, but it was a small city. Her cheeks had already begun to ache from smiling so hard, finally looking toward the insulting voice.

He stood tall and slender in faded black skinny jeans and a white belt. She couldn't seem to look past his mop of black hair and sunglasses, but she knew he was wearing a studded leather jacket.

"Do I look illiterate to you?" Harlow was chewing her lip out of nervousness, placing the book back on the shelf.

"You just seem a little out of your element." He flashed a familiar smile, tucking a record away under his arm.

"You think?" Harlow turned, placing her hand over the small bump between her hips. "It really is gonna be nothing but picture books before too long."

Julian's smile fell, the sight of her rather large belly prompting him to take off his sunglasses and hang them from the neck of his shirt. "Whoa." He nearly scoffed, placing his hand over his mouth then rubbing his lips to appear somewhat composed. "Wh-when are you due?" He stuttered.

"May. I'm nervous... it's only three months away."

Julian couldn't seem to pry his eyes away—how he had managed to miss that very defined bump was totally beyond him. "You look good pregnant. I always knew you would." He nudged her playfully with his elbow, tucking his free hand in his pocket. "Boy or girl?"

"Girl." Harlow beamed, placing her hand over her navel. "I heard you got married. Congratulations."

"Yeah, it's... it's pretty great. I learned from my mistake the first time, I had to lock her down. Didn't want another one getting away."