| ***The Next Day: Grand Hyatt Hotel*** Lauren arrived that morning for what was sure to be one of the hardest moments of her life. She would have to say goodbye to Devin. He was going to leave in a little while, but she had to see him leave instead of saying goodbye the night before. She rode with Joann, for she wanted to say goodbye as well. “You OK girl?” asked Joann on the subway ride to the hotel. “No, and I probably won’t be for a while.” “Hey, you know I’ll be there for you every step of the way,” Joann said as she held her hand. “I know, and I’m glad you are there for me,” said Lauren. “Listen I want to thank you.” “For what?” asked Joann. “For giving me the opportunity to meet Devin and the guys.” “Hey, I was just the matchmaker here, you did the rest.” “No, it’s more than that. I want to thank you for being there for me through that whole Johnny mess. You stuck by me when other friends shut me out because they didn’t want to deal with my problems. That shows true friendship. And true friendships are hard to come by. So thank you.” Joann had tears in her eyes. “You’re welcome.” They arrived at the hotel and went up to Devin’s room. Devin answered the door. “Hi,” he said. He looked as sad as Lauren did. “Hi,” she replied. He let the girls inside. Lauren saw Devin’s bags packed by the door. “The guys are going to be here in a few minutes, and then we have to go.” “I know,” Lauren said. She swallowed the lump in her throat as best as she could. There was a knock at the door, and Joann let the guys in. “Sorry, everyone, but its time to go. The car is waiting at the entrance,” said Rich. “OK,” Devin sighed. He grabbed his bags and gave then to the bellboy with his cart waiting in the hallway. They all went to the elevator, where Lauren was holding Devin for dear life. The door opened and they went to the lobby where Lou was waiting outside with the limousine. “Hey guys,” Lou replied. “I just called the airport and our flight’s on time.” “Great,” said Brad. “I’ll wait in the car so you can have some privacy,” said Lou. The chauffeur opened the door and Lou went inside and closed the door. “Well, I guess this it,” said Joann. “I just want to thank you for all of the good times I had over the past couple of weeks. You have my number so use it.” “We will, we promise,” said Brad. She gave Brad and Rich a hug. Joann was quick with good-byes; she didn’t like the emotion of them. She went to Devin. “Listen you,” said Joann. “I want to let you know that I am so happy for you and Lauren; you bring out the best in her. You take care of yourself, you hear?” Devin laughed. “I will, and thank you for bringing her into my life.” Lauren laughed also. Joann waved her hand. “I aim to please. Bye Devin.” She gave him a big hug and then stood back. Lauren turned to Brad and Rich. “I want to wish you guys the best of luck with the promoting and everything. You’re the best. I couldn’t wish for better friends.” “Neither could we,” said Rich. “Now you take care of Devin,” said Lauren with tears in her eyes. “I don’t want to get bad reports.” “And feel you’re wrath? We wouldn’t even think about it,” said Brad. He hugged Lauren. Lauren hugged Rich in turn. “Bye guys.” “Bye,” both of them said. They got into the limousine. Lauren turned to Devin. “I guess this is it,” she said, tears flowing. “I know,” said Devin. “But we’ll have a piece of each of each other’s heart close by.” He took out the medallion out of his shirt from around his neck. “I know,” said Lauren. She did the same thing. They put them together. “To second chances.” “To second chances,” Devin whispered, his eyes welling up with tears. He quickly embraced her, his shoulders shaking with his sobs. Lauren was on the verge of hysterics. He pulled away, took Lauren’s face in her hands and kissed her hard. She could taste the saltiness of his tears. “Good bye, Lauren,” he whispered. “Good bye, Harold,” she whispered. Devin took a deep breath and went into the limousine. He rolled down the window as the driver got into the car. “I’ll call you when I get to Orlando.” She could only nod. He held her hand as the limo began to pull away. Lauren ran with the limo as she saw Devin’s head sticking out of the car. He disappeared into the traffic. Lauren turned to face Joann and fell into her arms sobbing. Joann smoothed Lauren’s hair away from her face. “I think we need a cup of coffee.” “How about a stiff drink,” Lauren joked. Joann smiled. “Come on,” she said. They walked to the nearest coffee shop. As they walked away from the hotel, Lauren was sad, but happy. She knew that this time, she had found the one. She then lifted her head up with a confidence she had never felt before, and she knew why. “I took the chance,” Lauren whispered to herself. “I took the chance.” The End Epilogue Contents |