Break Down Your Walls

[Epilogue]

I grip onto my carry-on bag as I head towards security. My family stands behind me, looking at me with a look of pride, yet sorrow as I prepare to leave the country. The Hollands grip onto each other, Charlie is standing in front of Haz who has his hands on her shoulders, and my other friends follow closely. Tom holds onto my hand so tightly that I'm worried it might fall off.

"I'm not dying guys. I'll be back in a few months." I try to comfort them, but really I am trying to comfort myself.

"We know, honey. We'll just miss you." Nikki says, stepping away from Dom and wrapping her arms around me.

"Promise to call." Dom joins in, embracing me after Nikki lets go.

"Of course." I respond, squeezing him tighter before releasing him. Next is Sam who promises to visit and bring Tom along with him. Then, it's Paddy and my heart sinks.

"I'm gonna miss you." He says as he is squished from my grip on him.

"I'll miss you more, Pads." I respond, trying to hold in my tears. Paddy is the closest thing to a little brother that I have. "I'll spoil you rotten once I come home." I promise him, messing up his auburn hair. He simply laughs along, letting me treat him like a baby even though he's a teenager.

I move on to Elizabeth, Noelle, and Abby, embracing them all at the same time. "Make sure Tom doesn't get into trouble while I'm gone. I don't know how he'll function without me doing all his paperwork." I say with a laugh, trying again not to cry in front of everyone.

"Don't worry, we will." They join in, but once I pull away from them, their eyes are glassy. I choose not to point it out, thinking it would be better to let them have their moment than try to force them to hide their emotions like I am doing.

Then, it's Charlie and Harrison. Charlie is one of the hardest people to have to let go. I hold onto her for at least a minute, our chests rising and falling in unison, but speaking no words. Once we finally pry ourselves off of each other, her blue eyes hold onto mine. "Don't you dare forget to call." She threatens.

"I promise." I respond, tears starting to fill my eyes, but not quite falling. "I love you." I say, bringing my hand out so we can do our handshake one last time for a while.

"I love you, too." She replies, sticking  her own hand out and meeting mine as we do our quick little shake. Then I embrace Haz, squeezing my arms around his waist tightly.

"Don't forget about us little ones when you're out there in Hollywood." He chuckles his light hearted laugh and my heart melts as I can't help but think that for about five months I won't hear that laugh without it being through a screen.

"I love you, Haz. Thanks for everything."

"Love you, too, Y/n." He breathes into my hair, bringing me closer to him before releasing me.

My gaze meets Tom who is standing off away from everyone else, holding onto my bag for me which I hadn't even realized I handed off. My stomach flips at the sight of him and imagining five months without his arms around me at night and his whispers into my ear, his kisses that cause warm shivers to crawl down my spine.

I think back to when he gave me my first ever acting lesson and he lost himself in the script, breaking down right in front of me. "Please don't leave." He had said with tears streaming down his cheeks. I promised him that I wouldn't, but here I am leaving.

"I know that look. You didn't break your promise. You're coming back." He gives me a side smile. How did he know exactly what I was thinking?

"I know, but-"

"No. No 'buts'. Y/n, this is everything you have dreamed of. Don't allow me to stand in your way." I close the distance between us, not caring who else was in the noisy airport or the fact that there are people walking around us to be able to get through security.

"You're everything I've dreamed of." I say, placing my palm on his cheek.

"And I'll still be here. I'm not going anywhere." He smiles again, placing his own hand over mine which is still cupping his cheek. He turns over my palm and tilts his head to kiss it.

"I love you." I choke out, tears finally spilling over. He is quick to wipe them away, pressing his lips against mine in a way that screamed goodbye.

"And I love you." He says after pulling away from me and picking up my carry-on which he had put down on the ground. "You don't want to be late for your flight." He hands the bag over to me and my other hand covers my mouth as I try to hold in my emotions.

I turn around and look at the family I'm leaving behind. My biological parents are still not in the know of my leaving. I told them about the job I had gotten, but not how soon I would be leaving or where I was going. They didn't ask for details and I wasn't eager to give them.

"I love you guys." I say, watching them all wave to me and listening to them sharing their good luck calls and love.

Tom is the last one I see. He nods his head once before looking down at his hand. His index finger and his thumb are rubbing his ring finger and instinctively, I do the same, nodding my head to tell him I understood. He was remaking his promise without having to speak a single syllable.

Without looking back, I turn my head and walk through to security. I show my boarding pass and driver's license before I am shown where I would take off my shoes and place all of my belongings into a tray. I keep my head up, going through all protocols in the busy airport.

Once I am finally released to go to my gate, everything seems that much more real. Since being with Tom and knowing everyone else, I haven't had to leave them for this long. My heart already feels a pull back to where Tom last stood and my feet feel like bricks as I try to keep them moving forward.

I had to walk for about ten minutes before I found the right gate I am supposed to be in. That's when I plug in my headphones and begin to scroll through my phone, hoping to distract myself for the next forty minutes until the plane starts to board.

I lose track of time. I feel a tap on my shoulder and I quickly look at my phone to see that it had been thirty minutes since I had reached my gate. Then, I look up to see who tapped my shoulder.

His eyes. Those brown chocolate eyes stare into mine and melt me right into my seat. My jaw drops open and tears immediately fall. My hand reaches up to cover my gaping mouth and to hide my little gasps. "What are you-" I can't even finish my sentence.

Tom kneels down in front of me, pulling my face up to his and kissing me with a smile. He's letting me know this is real. I am awakened by his lips moving in sync with mine. As we pull away, I pull him into my arms.

"What are you doing here?" I quickly ask him, my voice barely louder than a whisper.

"Thought it would be a good idea to look to expand UK Casts into America." He winks. "Also, I wanted to make sure my girlfriend wouldn't get lost."

"I can't believe you're coming with me!" I wrap him up into my embrace again, my fingers combing through his brown curls.

Then, he says something that makes my body go numb with joy. Never have I ever felt so loved. Never will I feel so loved as I do now. It is the perfect beginning to our story of forever.

"Wherever you are, I am, too."

The End