The last one!
So, I have a little surprise for you all. Read the little note at the end, after you've read the chapter.
Don't go skipping to the end to see.
Hope you like it :)
***
Serena
"We're going to the zoo!" Bea yelled out, as soon I unlocked the door to Liam's place and walked in.
It felt like she'd been waiting by the door, ready to yell out those words as soon as I would arrive. But again, that wouldn't really surprise me much if it were true.
"Yes we are, baby!" I said back in equal enthusiasm, causing Bea to jump up in excitement.
After closing the door behind me and walking into the living room, I placed my things on the floor and knelt down in front of Bea.
She stepped forward and held my face in her little hands.
"I'm so excited! I told Clover and Leo, and they wanted to come too, but Daddy said they're too little and might get lost, but if we take pictures, I can show them and they'll be happy," she rambled on breathlessly.
I just smiled at her and placed my hands against her chubby little cheeks. "That's true, sweetheart. We'll take a load of pictures, so they'll feel like they came with us."
Bea jumped up. "Yay!"
"Now, do you want to finish getting ready?" I asked her, noticing she was still wearing her pyjama bottoms.
Bea frowned and looked down. When she noticed what she was wearing, she gave me a sheepish grin.
"Be right back," she said, and ran out the room.
I shook my head, a smile never leaving my face because of Bea's cute little antics.
Peeking into the kitchen, I saw Liam in there already, stirring a spoon in one of the two mugs in front of him.
Walking closer, I placed my hand on his shoulder, nuzzling up to his arm, causing him to stop stirring.
"Hey, you," I mumbled, the scent of both coffee and Liam driving me crazy.
Liam wrapped one arm around my waist and with the other, he held my cheek, tilting my head upwards, towards him.
He placed his lips on top of mine, causing me to smile into the kiss. My hand gripped his shoulder, whilst the other found its place on his waist.
Liam was pulling me closer towards him, kissing me as if he'd be deprived of them since forever, despite only seeing me yesterday.
Both of us didn't pull away until we were running out of air, and once we did, I was left in a daze.
"Hey," Liam said, his voice huskier than it probably was before.
I cleared my throat and stepped back, fixing my hair a little bit, that had become ruffled after Liam's fingers found their way into it.
Although, it wasn't like I had left his hair neatly.
"So, what did you do to Bea?" I asked, picking up my mug, and taking a little sip.
He frowned at me. "What'd you mean?"
"Liam, she's talking a mile a minute. I don't even think she breathed whilst she was talking," I told him. Then I raised a brow at him. "How much sugar did she have?" I asked.
Liam shook his head. "She's didn't-," he began to say, until he paused, his eyes widening slightly. "...Oh, wait. I may have bought the wrong cereal," he said.
He walked around me, to the cabinets, taking out one of the boxes. Immediately, he shook his head and put it down.
"If she runs at the zoo, you're the one that's going to chase her," I told him, knowing there was a real good chance of that happening.
Liam turned around to look at me amused, whilst I just smiled, sipping my coffee and wondering how this day at the zoo was going to go.
***
We were halfway into our day at the zoo and somehow Bea's energy did not falter at all. She was still buzzing after seeing all the animals.
Bea was on an extreme level of excitement after coming out of the reptile exhibit. She was talking to the snakes like they were her friends, and I was having a major Harry Potter moment, wondering if the snakes could actually understand Bea, or if the glass window barrier would suddenly disappear.
I kept Bea from getting too close to the glass and although she didn't completely understand why, Liam did and laughed. Prick.
We were currently at the Lion sanctuary, watching the majestic animals go on about their day, not really caring about all the eyes on them.
"Serena, look-," Bea tugged on my hand and then pointed at the Lions, "Nelly's yawning," she told me.
I turned my head to see the Lion, Bea was talking about.
It was the one she'd named Nelly, the last time we came to the zoo together.
He looked like the alpha, the king. Even as he yawned, it looked like he was letting out a silent roar.
Liam loved Lions, this was all he wanted to see. The only reason he was missing this right now was to get Bea a drink.
"Excuse me."
I turned my head to see a man smiling at me, holding the hand of an adorable little boy, who seemed to be shying away.
"Yes?" I smiled back.
The man's eyes then wavered to my side. "Where can I get one of those balloons? My son really wants one," he asked.
He was gesturing to the two balloons that were in Bea's other hand. One of them was a Lion, and the other, an Elephant. It was representative of both Liam and I. Bea wanted a turtle one, but they ran out of those.
"Oh, it's by the stand-," I told him, pointing in the direction of it, "-over there."
The man turned his head, glancing in the direction that I was pointing in, and then looked back at me.
"Thank you," he smiled.
Before I could reply, Bea chimed in, "Get the Giraffe! He's really tall and walks with you," she said, grinning at the little shy boy.
He managed to move a little forward, so that he wasn't completely clinging onto his Dad's jean-clad leg. The boy was just looking at Bea, with a bashful smile.
"Okay," he agreed immediately at Bea's words, and then I saw him tug at his Dad's hand gently. "Dad, can we get the Giraffe?" He asked.
The man looked down at his son and smiled with a nod. "Sure," he said, and then looked back towards me.
"I'm Jack and this Hudson," he introduced both himself and his son.
I smiled at them both. "I'm Serena, and this is-,"
"I'm Bea," she introduced herself, and I shook my head gently, an amused expression on my face.
She really wasn't one to let someone else give her introduction and it was more humorous to me, seeing the difference in personality between my buzzing Bea, and the seemingly shy Hudson.
Jack seemed to also find Bea's antics funny. "Your daughter is really cute," he told me.
It was always a warming feeling when someone would call Bea, my daughter. I definitely thought of her as mine, and although she didn't yet call me Mum, I knew the feeling was mutual.
"Just like my Daddy," Bea grinned, and I nearly rolled my eyes.
Her ego was undoubtedly gone on Liam, and if he were right now, he'd probably look all kinds of smug hearing her words.
Although, Jack seemed to be taken aback a little by Bea's words.
"Oh, you're married? Pardon me, I didn't see a ring," he said in confusion, glancing down to look at my left hand, which was currently holding onto Bea.
After he said that, it only just dawned on me that maybe Jack was kind of, maybe, sort of, trying to flirt with me, or possibly show some interest.
I just gave him a polite smile. "I'm not married, but-," before I could tell him I was taken, another voice seemed to interrupt our conversation from behind me.
"She's with me," Liam's voice spoke, with an odd kind of sternness and possessive to it, one that I hadn't ever heard before.
When I looked at Jack, he was still smiling, but nodding gently, as if he was understanding something.
"Ah, I see," he began to say, "-forgive me, I'm not usually this forward," he apologised politely and I just looked at him confused.
This was him being forward? I didn't even realise anything until a moment ago.
Feeling slightly awkward, know that I could feel Liam's hand on my waist, holding it securely, I gave Jack a nervous smile.
"Um, that's alright." I said, hesitantly, not entirely sure on what I was even meant to say.
When I glanced down, I saw Hudson just staring at Bea, wide-eyed, whilst my little girl was oblivious to the stare and focused on the Lions.
"How old is Hudson?" I asked Jack.
At the mention of his name Hudson looked at me, and Bea turned her head towards him.
Jack sweetly ruffled Hudson's hair. "He's just turned six, not too long ago," he told me.
"That's sweet." I smiled and then looked towards him.
"Happy belated birthday, Hudson," I said, and could see a blush develop on his cheeks.
Bowing his head slightly, he mumbled, "Thank you."
"Happy lated birthday, Hudson," Bea then said, mistaking the word belated when she spoke, but nonetheless gave him a grin.
Her voice seem to take away a little bit of his shyness, and Hudson looked at her with a little grin. "Thank you, Bea."
Throughout this conversation, I could feel Liam's grip on my tighten ever so slightly, and I did even have to turn my head to know that he was most likely glaring at Jack. I could feel the tension just oozing from him.
Jack smiled at me once more, before it faltered a little and he cleared his throat. "Right, well, thank you for the help, Serena and Bea," he said and the two of us nodded.
"Come on, Hudson, let's get you that balloon," he tugged gently on his son's hand.
"Bye Jack. Bye Hudson," I waved at them.
"Bye Hudson!" Bea shouted, loudly, despite him not even being that far yet.
Hudson turned back at the sound of Bea's voice and grinned, waving enthusiastically.
"Bye, Bea!" He yelled back, definitely not in the shy manner he was portraying before.
When I gently squeezed Bea's hand and then looked at her, she looked up at me with a grin, before looking back to the Lions.
She doesn't even now how lovable she is.
"That's so cute," I cooed.
Liam stepped around me, so that he was now in front of me, blocking my view.
"Who is?" He gritted out.
I gave him a confused look. "Hudson and Bea." I said and then, tilted my head, with my brows still furrowed together.
"Wait-...who are you talking about?" I asked him.
He turned away from me. "No one," he said, and bent down to give Bea the drink in his hand, causing her to let go of my hand. Instead, I kept my hand on her shoulder.
"So you weren't thinking I was talking about Jack?" I questioned him, when he was standing once again.
"Who?" He feigned cooly, but I saw right past his act.
I narrowed my eyes at him. "Don't act like you don't know," I told him.
Liam let out a breath. "Fine," he said, "I don't like him."
"Why? He was kind," I said.
Liam turned to look at me like I just insulted him. "He was flirting with you."
Raising a brow at him, I smirked. "And?"
He didn't reply.
I snorted at his obvious jealousy. "It's not like I was going to do anything about it, Liam," I told him, finding this a little amusing.
Before Liam could reply to me, Bea moved forward and tugged on Liam's jeans.
"Daddy, up," she said, raising her little arms, that contained balloons in one and her drink in the other.
"Sure, baby," he smiled at her, and lifted her up, holding her to his side.
Bea smiled at me, and I playfully poked my tongue out at her, to which she giggled.
When I looked at Liam, he was still scowling.
"Let it go, Liam," I sighed, not wanting to ruin this day because of something silly like this.
"Like Elsa!" Bea chimed in, hearing her favourite words.
It was like she was conditioned to say that whenever she heard the phrase 'let it go'. It was quite funny.
I smiled at her. "Exactly, Bumblebee," I said and then looked at Liam, who huffed but smiled nonetheless.
***
Our seemingly long day at the zoo still hadn't ended, since Bea decided she wanted to go back to the turtles, to say bye before we left.
Apparently she had more to tell them, and I was starting to become borderline worried about her bond with the turtles and talking to them.
Liam went with Bea, whilst I stayed behind, waiting in the zoo cafe.
My feet were aching at this point, and I knew I couldn't manage another long trip to see the turtles and back.
Just as I sipped on my water, I felt my phone buzzing in my side back
As soon as I took it out, and took a look at the screen, the caller ID instantly put a wide smile on my face.
I didn't waste any time in swiping to answer.
"Will!" I practically shouted in excitement, ignoring the annoyed look I got from the lady opposite me.
I could hear him chuckle on the other side of the line.
"Serena!" He shouted back in equal enthusiasm. "How are you?" He asked.
I grinned, despite him not being able to see it. Although with Will, I felt like he could still sense my facial expressions.
"I'm good. You? How's Lola?" I asked, remembering how he recently told me they had gotten a place together and she was a lot healthier than before.
It was still a scare whenever Lola would get ill and Will would always worry, even if she insisted she was fine. He was sweet like that. Along with the occasional voice notes he'd send me, just saying random things, he'd also send me notes of him rambling on in worry. It was quite endearing, but then again, anything Will does is.
Now, I could feel him smile through the phone.
"I'm great, and she is too. How are things going with Liam and Bea?" He asked.
"They're pretty amazing. I'm really happy," I confessed.
The relationship Will and I had was quite a unique one, and not to mention weird. We were exes, but not bitter ones.
We were friends before anything, and just because one relationship ended, it didn't mean that we were going to complete severe ties with each other.
It took a moment, but we had gotten to this point of being comfortable. I could talk to him about Liam and Bea, and he could talk to me about being with Lola.
It was strange, but this was us.
"I'm happy for you, sweetheart," Will said, sounding genuine. "I was actually calling to see if you'd be free this weekend, for lunch or dinner?" He then asked.
I smiled, feeling excited at just the mention of seeing him. "Yeah I'm free. Let's make it dinner," I replied.
"Perfect," he cheered from the other end, causing me to laugh. "It's been a while since I've seen you and I want a full recap on everything," Will added on.
"That goes for you too," I said. "A little birdy told me there was going to be a new addition to the Baker family?" I questioned him, despite fully knowing the answer.
"By little birdy, are you talking about my Mum?" Will asked dryly.
"Yup," I answered with a chuckle.
I could hear Will groan from the other end, knowing he was probably running his hand over his face.
"Oh, for the love of-," he stopped himself from continuing, "...that woman doesn't know how to keep a secret," he told me.
"Don't be mean," I then playfully scolded him, but not being able to keep the amusement out of my voice. "She loves me and I just called to wish her a happy birthday."
Will's Mum was quite shocked, to say the least, when the engagement ended. Over the years I had gotten to know her well, and she really did like me for Will.
She'd known Lola for years and loved her, she was still sad for me, but then came to understand that we just weren't meant to be.
I promised her to keep in touch and I don't break my promises.
"You know you're pretty great, right?" Will said.
"I know," I answered, despite knowing the question was rhetorical, causing Will to laugh.
When his laughter died down, he cleared his throat. "Okay so, this weekend, dinner?"
"Perfect," I replied. "You pick the restaurant," I told him, knowing his choice was better than mine would be.
"Deal," Will answered. "Can't wait to see you," he told me, and I couldn't help but smile.
"Me too," I told him.
We carried on to talk for a little more, before having to end the call.
Liam and Bea were approaching me at the same time. The smile, that was already on my face after talking to Will, getting wider seeing them.
Bea skipped the last few steps, after Liam let her hand go after seeing me, and I opened up my arms towards her.
She quickly came to me, moving to sit across my lap, and placing her head against my shoulder, arms wrapped around my neck loosely.
"You okay, baby?" I asked her, pushing the few stray hairs away from her face with one hand, whilst the other held her securely.
"Sleepy," she mumbled against my shoulder and I smiled, before kissing her temple, letting her rest on me.
Liam sat across from me, smiling watching Bea and I.
"Hey, you," he said.
I smiled at him. "Hey, you."
Liam then tilted his head a little, as if studying me for a second. "You look happy," he noted.
I nodded, agreeing with him. "I just spoke to Will on the phone. I have dinner plans on the weekend with him," I informed Liam.
I had to keep my voice a little low, not wanting to wake up Bea, knowing she had already fallen asleep on me.
Liam began to nod, looking away "Oh-," he said, and then his head snapped back towards him, "...wait, what?"
"Dinner with Will," I repeated my words, well the key part.
His brows furrowed together. "Dinner with your ex-fiancé?" He then asked.
I sighed. "Well, if you want to put it like that..." my voice trailed off.
Liam leaned forward, resting his forearms on the table between us and looked at me dead straight.
"No, Rena. You can't go," he told me, as if leaving no room for argument on this matter.
I raised a brow at him. "I'm sorry, did you tell me I can't go?" I asked him, not believing he was actually doing this.
His expression faltered for a second, "I-," Liam began to say, before clearing his throat, "...yes."
I scoffed lightly. "You're funny," I said, dryly.
"Serena, I'm serious," Liam replied, a little more sternly this time.
"So am I," I glared at him.
Liam gave me a disbelieving look. "Did it not even occur to you, that I may have a problem with this dinner plan of yours?" He asked.
"No," I replied, not even hesitating.
"It's your ex-fiancé, Rena," Liam pointed out. "Of course I'd have a problem."
Just as I opened my mouth to reply, I felt Bea move a little in my lap, mumbling something incoherently, before her soft snores began.
I took a deep breath, and then looked back to Liam. "I'm not doing this with you, not here," I told him.
He looked at me and then down at Bea, before nodding.
"Fine," he gritted out. "We'll talk about this later," he added, something I knew already.
***
After putting Bea to bed, I headed into the living room, seeing Liam already sitting in there.
He was sitting on the floor, resting his back against the bottom of the sofa. One leg was outstretched, whilst was pulled up to his chest, as he rested his arm on that knee.
"Hey, you," I said, as I sat down onto the floor near him, but not too close.
"Hey," he replied blankly, staring at the floor, not even looking at me.
I frowned, not liking this already. "Talk about it now?" I asked.
There was a moment of silence, where neither of us said anything.
I carried on to look at Liam, waiting for him to begin, or just for any other kind of reaction other than the lost expression I was seeing now.
"I'm scared of you seeing him," I heard Liam say softly, still staring down and keeping his head low.
He looked like he'd confessed some shameful secret of his.
"Why are you scared?" I asked in confusion, not understanding his words.
Liam sighed and then finally looked up at me with a sad expression that made my heart sting.
"Rena, this guy-...as much as it pains me to say it, Will is a pretty amazing guy. I've only spoken to him a few times, and I know that. You spent years with him, you have to know it too. You loved him and were engaged to him. I'm just-...I was so horrible to you," he said, and I was lost for words.
Before I could reply, Liam carried on to talk, not giving me the chance. "I'm scared that you'll realise you deserve better and leave. I'm scared you'll stop loving me. I'm scared you'll break me. I'm scared of not being with you. I'm-," he rambled on, until I moved forward to kneel in front of him and pulled on his t-shirt, and kissed him.
Liam's shock was evident as I kissed him, since he froze, not moving at all.
When I pulled away, he gave me a soft smile in return.
"I'm scared I'll never get to do that again," he confessed.
Still staying close to him, I placed both my hands on the side of his face, so he would keep his eyes on me.
"Liam, I love you. But I get it. Will is pretty amazing, I won't lie, but then he isn't you either. I'm happy with you. I'll admit it, the life I had with Will was beautiful, and I wouldn't change any of it, but there's a reason we aren't together anymore," I told him.
Liam shook his head gently., but didn't say anything.
I smiled at him. "There are a lot of 'what ifs' that I used to think about, but it doesn't get you anywhere," I said, knowing all the 'what ifs' I used to think about in my teenage years.
"Look, Will and I shared more than just an engagement, we were friends first. Really good friends. We promised each other we weren't just going to leave each other's lives, because we were no longer together."
After a brief pause, Liam finally nodded. "I understand."
Placing my forehead against his, I smiled. "I love you," I told him, feeling like he needed that reassurance from me.
When I felt him nod gently, I felt like we're back to our good place.
"So now can you stop pouting?" I asked him, keeping a playful tone in my voice.
"I'm not pouting," he replied.
I leaned back, moving my hands away from his face and rested them on my legs. "Then what do you call that look on your face right now?" I asked him.
Liam smirked wickedly. "It's called, 'why aren't you over here kissing me right now'?"
The corners of my mouth tugged upwards ever so slightly, before I began to lean forward.
Instead of kissing him, as Liam thought I would, I leaned in towards his ear.
"You've got to catch me first," I whispered and then leapt to my feet, running away.
I kept my hand over my mouth, making sure to not laugh out loud, since I didn't want to wake up Bea from her sleep.
Just as I was about to reach our room, Liam's hand snaked around my waist and before I could register what was happening, I was lifted off the ground and hauled over Liam's shoulder.
I made sure to keep my hand over my mouth, trying my hardest to keep the laughter in.
Liam then took us into the room, closing the door behind us and then placed me on the bed.
When I saw the mischievous look in his eyes, it was safe to say that now I was scared.
***
So this was the last of the official chapters!
Hope you liked it.
As for the Epilogue, I have a little surprise...
So if it's not clear how much I love this book and loved writing about Serena and Liam's journey, I've written an epilogue of 11,500 words!
I wasn't ready to let go and by 11,000, I think I was getting ready ish.
This was all too much to include on one chapter. I mean I did try to , but my phone crashed when I tried to preview the chapter.
So instead, I've split it up into 4 separate chapters!!
Each one will be updated on a separate day (this is me prolonging the end of it)
So from Monday to Thursday, there will be an update on each day for the epilogue.
I hope that this pleases you all, and I can't wait for you guys to read it, cause honestly I'm so happy with it and I'm so excited! x
Hope you're happy too!