~COMPLETED~
Ellody Brown, a high-school girl who happens to be Zach Herron's best friend since childhood, hasn't told Zach how she feels about him. But what happens when feelings for someone else come in between them? Ellody struggles with anxiety...
PREVIOUSLY: "Honestly. You are so ridiculous," she fumed, but she wasn't really angry. She couldn't be angry with Zach. He was way too cute.
"Aww, I know you love me," he bribed, wrapping his arms around her.
"Stop, I'm trying to be mad," Ellody said, delicately pulling his arms off her as the song changed to 24K Magic.
"Ooh, Bruno Mars. You like Bruno Mars, right?" he asked. Ellody snatched the ID card from him and handed it to the woman, who was frowning at the group. She glanced back at Christina, who was on her phone in the line.
"Stop," Ellody said, walking back in line with Christina. Zach stuck his tongue out at her as she pulled out her own phone, wondering if she should just use her own Airpods, when a desk opened up for Christina and both girls were on the move.
Walking through security was probably more fun than it should've been. Technically, Ellody wasn't supposed to walk through here with them, but there was no way she was saying goodbye all the way back there at the counter. No way.
Zach tried to trip Ellody halfway through the body scanner, and security made Jonah walk through the scanner twice because it beeped at his belt. Corbyn and Christina held hands and talked a lot, which was adorable, but it made Ellody super jealous. Keep it in. There's no point in worrying outwardly over something you can't change.
"What song is next?" Ellody asked Zach, who checked his phone. The group had taken their seats to wait for the plane, which was going to take another half hour due to a delay. Jonah had gone to the bathroom, and Christina was buying herself Mentos for the journey home. Ellody was pretty sure Corbyn went with her, but she didn't know where Daniel and Jack were.
"Younger," he replied, making her smile. Ellody leaned back in her seat, kicking her feet into his lap and pulling out her phone. Ruel had the most amazing voice, and it sent chills down her spine. Ellody checked her Instagram, and found that a bunch of fans had tagged her in a post about Zach, which made her roll her eyes and smile.
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jachary_for_life look at this cutie! @ellody_brownnn must love her man :)
liked by @corbinashipper2017 and 4,082 others
ellody_brownnnsorry guys but we're not dating
Ellody's comment seemed to inspire a lot of fans, who started replying to her.
corbinashipper2017 but we can still ship it lol
justine_h_ what about @kaycookk
5sosmemes @kaycookk is so irrelevant #zellody is where its at
"You've got a weird look on your face, Ell," Zach commented loudly, making the girl grimace.
"Don't talk so loud, Zachy," she remarked, siding down further in her seat and pushing her feet further into his lap, wondering what the weird look meant to him. Christina and Corbyn walked out of the nearest shop, pinkie fingers hooked, Corbyn singing something that made his girlfriend look embarrassed but happy.
"You two look more and more like a couple every day," Christina commented as the couple stopped in front of Ellody and Zach. Ellody's mind wandered momentarily to the comments on Instagram, to #zellody, to the people that said Kay was irrelevant. Oh. Kay. OK, Ellody, you can't even think about dating Zach. He's your best friend, and taken. Hands off.
"Do we?" Zach replied eagerly, holding out his phone for Christina to take a photo. Ellody looked away dramatically, playing with her hair and crossing her ankles in his lap. She couldn't see what Zach was doing, but knew he was probably being stupid, like her.
Christina handed the phone back, and Zach showed Ellody immediately. To her surprise, Zach was staring adoringly at her, and it looked like they were 100% together. If she had been shown this photo of another pair, she would've thought they were in a long-term relationship.
"Wow Zach, really? You know, I just told the world we're not together, but they all still ship us. That photo isn't going to help," Ellody explained, rolling her eyes and trying not to smile. Something about that photo made her grin like an idiot, and she wasn't sure if that was a good thing or not. She decided against pointing this out too. He leaned back into his seat and rolled his shoulders back, sighing loudly. Ellody smiled as the song changed to Say You Won't Let Go by James Arthur, and Zach smiled softly at her. The chorus hit, and Ellody was nearly moved to tears. Saying goodbye was going to be hard, too hard.
Just say you won't let go, Zach mouthed at her. Ellody watched his expression change as he looked away from her and at Jack, who had just returned from wherever he'd been.
"Hey guys, priority boarding just opened. Let's get this show on the road," Jack said loudly, pulling Zach up from under his arms like he was a baby.
"OK, I'll meet you guys over," Zach replied, pretending to kiss his friend on the cheek. Ellody giggled as her best friend walked over to her, casually waiting for the rest of the guys to walk past. Christina sent Ellody a wink as she said goodbye to Corbyn.
"Miss you already," Ellody whispered. The song played the chorus again, and her heart ached.
"It's gonna be fine, I'm telling you. We'll call as soon as we can, OK?" he promised, and she knew he meant it.
"OK," she said as he threw out his hands, nearly hitting someone walking past. He grimaced and pulled her in for a hug, and she slid her arms around his neck to hug him back.
"I got you," he whispered into her hair.
"I got you too," she added, and a tear slid down Ellody's cheek. She couldn't help it. Zach heard her sniff and pulled back a little to raise his eyebrows at her tears. Ellody blinked them out of her eyes, and they trickled down her cheeks.
"What are they for?" he whispered, pressing his nose against hers. James Arthur's voice floated through her brain and she wanted to cry even more.
"You," she said quietly, not wanting the others to know she was upset. Zach licked the side of her face, where her tears were, making Ellody squeal and force her head back. "You're so gross," she laughed. Zach laughed, pretending to think about the taste, before screwing up his adorable nose.
"Salty," he added, pulling her back into his chest. Ellody let herself forget that they were best friends, let herself forget that this could never, would never happen. It was only happening because she was crying in public, and Ellody never cried in public. Zach knew that. "Oh, and these are your Airpods, not mine. I stole them from your bag in the line earlier," he added, pulling his out of his ear and handing it to her with a smirk. She wanted to tell him off, but she couldn't, because she wanted to speak and laugh and cry at the same time. Instead, she kept her mouth shut, knowing she'd do all three if she opened it. "Come say bye to everyone else."
