Pursuit of Happiness | Taz Skylar [1]

003. kid at heart

After pulling into the parking lot, Zoe sat there for a good couple of minutes, considering her life choices. What was she about to subject herself to? While a long time had passed since their breakup, sure, Zoe wouldn't have blamed Taz if he hated her. After all, she had taken everything they'd built together over the course of a year and ripped it apart in front of him.

She could still turn back. It would be so easy. She could restart the car and drive home, play up the small amount of sleep that she'd managed to get the night before and tell Bree that she'd come down sick and they would have to reschedule.

But she couldn't. Not after everything that Bree and Jay had done for her over the years; the countless times that Jay had driven to pick her up in the middle of the night when a date went bad and left her stranded, or the endless occasions when Bree had sat with Zoe and held her while she cried.

And besides, Zoe couldn't deny that there was a part of her that was at least a little bit curious. It had been five years since the last time she'd seen Taz Skylar in the flesh. She was guilty of a handful of Instagram stalks over the years, so she knew that he still dyed his hair that bright blond colour that he'd been fond of when she knew him and that he'd acquired more tattoos, but that was the extent of her knowledge. Was his smile still as infectious as it had been? Was he still generous with his hugs?

Only one way to find out.

There was a small group gathered at the edge of the parking lot when Zoe emerged from her car, drink bottle clutched in one hand and a bum bag clipped around her waist. As Zoe drew closer, her eyes snapped over to the head of dyed blond hair over the top of Bree's head, and her heart jumped into her throat.

Judging by the uncharacteristically serious expression on Taz's face when Zoe joined the group, sidling in between Bree and a woman Zoe didn't know, he had already seen her. She half-expected his expression to be filled with thinly veiled vitriol, but it wasn't. He just looked how she felt; unsure and nervous, as if crawling out of his own skin would have been preferable to this.

"Hey, Zoe," Taz greeted quietly. His tone was strained, but his voice sounded the same, his words still accompanied by that smooth blend of British and Canarian accents.

"Hi," was the only answer that Zoe managed to muster, before her eyes darted away to Bree, silently begging for some kind of reprieve. Bree's expression was sympathetic and she took mercy on Zoe, interjecting with introductions. Grateful for the distraction, Zoe listened intently as Bree introduced her to Faye and Eddie, the only two members of the group that she didn't know.

After that, they started up the trail and whether or not it was deliberate, they ended up splitting into two groups – the men further up while the women hung back, talking quietly amongst themselves. Despite her earlier anxiety, Zoe found her nerves calming as she walked, shoulders knocking with Bree's. She didn't talk much, but she was content to simply listen as Bree and Faye chatted amongst themselves.