aLOVEthing

six | emptiness

Klay sat quietly as he watched Draymond leave him & Stephen alone to make a visit to the bathroom. He then diverted his attention to his bestfriend, who tapped his fingers against the wooden table as he scrolled through his phone. The disappointment and sadness quickly glossed over Steph's eyes as the emptiness filled him and consumed him.

"Look, I know I can't really say much about you & Heart. & You probably don't want me to but--"

"It's good, man. Don't worry about it." Stephen nodded his head, implying him for go one.

"Well. I don't think you should really bug about this dude. I mean, he's young. & That girl loves you."

"Yeah, well. I don't know anymore, Klay."

"Nah, don't say that. But I'm going to be real. Have you ever thought that maybe, she just needs Jordan's presence cause she misses Jomari?" Steph looked at him quietly. "I don't know, but you know she's been a wreck since he's been gone. She misses him, and maybe she's just looking for that kind of friendship again. Someone to physically be there for her while you're not in LA and Jomari isn't around anymore."

~

Heart looked down at her feet as she walked down Santa Monica's pier while Jordan took pictures of the beach just below them. For some reason, she felt empty. She found herself missing Stephen more than ever, and she knew there was no other but herself to blame for increasing the distance between them. She's been so caught up being here that she's neglected the man who continuously pushed her and showed her unconditional love & support.

Without him, she wouldn't be here.

Looking out at the ocean, her heart begins to ache even more remembering Jomari's face. A small smile crept up at the corner of her mouth remembering his smile and his laugh.

"You alright there?" Jordan lowered the camera from his eyes as he examined the quiet girl next to him.

"Mm, yeah I'm fine. Just a little homesick."

"Yeah, I know it's hard."

"I just really miss Stephen." Jordan looked down at his feet before looking back at the ocean.

"Well, I'm sure he misses you too & that he's doing what he can to keep you happy. No need to doubt anything."

"I guess, but I havent--"

"Hey, you want some ice cream?" Heart arched her eyebrow at the way Jordan changed the subject so quickly. But she followed anyways.

"Yeah I-I guess so." She stuttered as she tucked a strand of hair behind her ear while trying to keep up with Jordan's pace. He willingly bought them ice cream before she could even catch up and take a look at the flavors they had. Getting to his side, she was immediately greeted with her own cone of two scoops - Cookies & Cream & Rocky Road.

Just the flavors she was aiming for.

"Here, this should cheer you up." Jordan smiled as he began to lick away at his ice cream before it could have a chance to melt.

"Thank you." She smiled. The two quietly ate away as they walked deeper into the pier and made their way to the end. Heart rested her arms against the metal that separated her from the ocean water below.

"What else is on your mind besides Stephen?" She sighed. There was nothing more that she wanted than to be with Steph at this moment. Or, if it wasn't Steph - Jomari. But that couldn't be & it sucked. She didn't like the feeling one bit.

"I had a bestfriend named Jomari back home. We were super close. Pretty much inseparable." She chuckled. "I miss him, too."

"Well why can't you go see him, if you don't mind me asking?" She kept her gaze at the ocean and took in the salt water smell that filled her nose. She closed her eyes briefly, only to open them once more to release the tears that were being held behind her lids.

"He passed away saving my life." Jordan kept his gaze on her as he examined her wiping her tears away. Although she didn't say much, he could already tell how much Jome meant to her and what kind of impact he made on her life.

"I'm sorry, Heart." He said, almost at a whisper.

"It's alright."

"Come on." He held out his hand. "I gotta take you to a spot before the sun completely sets." She looked at him, curious about where he would take her. But she agreed and took his hand.

The walk took quite awhile, but he led her back towards an alley near the Third Street Promenade. The alley was full of vibrant and lively graffiti art, that Heart too, was consumed in it all. She ran her hands against the dried spray paint on the walls as she looked up to examine more of the art in front of her.

"Turn around. Let me take some pictures."

"Of me?"

"Yeah, come on Miss Model. You got your event coming up. Why are you acting so shy?"

"I'm just not used to it being such a spur of the moment kind of thing."

"You're a natural in front of the camera. Relax." He chuckled as he began to aim his camera at her. She shyly tucked an imaginary strand of hair behind her ear before looking back up at the lens. She started to feel a bit more comfortable, so she loosened up and started to let Jordan do his work. "See. I told you you're a natural."

He continued to take more pictures of her before the sun began to set quite quickly. Jordan walked over to her as he looked through the recent captured photos and lowered his camera at an angle where they could both look at them.

"Wow, impressive Jordan. You got some skill with that camera, don't you?"

"Only if I really see some good, valuable art." He smiled at her, making her blush a bit.

"Art, huh? They're great pictures though."

"Beauty, ain't she?" He flashed a candid picture of her laughing earlier in the day.

"You're very sweet." He shrugged.

"I just hope I succeeded in making you feel better."

"You did, you did."

"Good. & For the record, I think you're more than ready for your first runway event. So don't even stress about it, ma." He winked. "I'll be there."

"Will you really?"

"Yeah, why not?" She smiled, unable to say anything. "Gotta show some love to my favorite model." He playfully nudged her.

"Oh, favorite? I feel special already."

"Yeah." He smiled once more as he swung his arm over her shoulders. "You'll be great & I'll be honored to have witnessed it."

As they continued to walk down the promenade, she felt better than she felt before. But deep down, she still thought about Stephen and how they've been lately. She was so excited to tell him about her first runway event and to see him. To finally feel him, touch him, kiss him.

"Baby, I won't be able to make it to your event. I'm so sorry. I'm just so caught up with these meetings that I can't seem to get away from it. I'll make it up to you though."

The words continuously played in her head. This was the main reason why she missed him so much. And this is why she blamed herself for their distance. It hurt. But she couldn't do much except to let go & let God handle it the way it's supposed to be handled.

All she knew was that whatever was meant to be in her life, wouldn't pass her by.

~

hi guys! sorry if it's been taking me awhile to update. but i wont leave you guys hanging! thanks for all the love you've been showing the books, it gives me so much motivation and it makes me so happy! i love you guys!

PS: sorry for the filler chapter, things will heat up! how do you think the event is gonna go down? what's gonna happen to steph and heart? stay tuned. 😈

& the third book to alyssa & steph's journey will be arriving too. 😊