chapter nine | tour aftermath

IT'S BEEN MONTHS since the set of friends had confessed their feelings toward each other. The US leg of the tour was almost over too. It's been a very surreal experience for Mila so far, not only has she gotten a taste of the career that she so desperately wanted, but she found love along the way, let alone someone that she had idolized for so long.

Since that day, the two had finished writing the song they would record together, hung out more, and Mila's following had grown a bunch. Between touring with Gracie and the rumor of this song, they helped a lot.

Now, Mila was sitting in a recording studio while Gracie started recording her newest album The Secret of Us. Almost all the songs were done, she just had to record everything and then the album was set to be released. As of now, the tracklist has been posted on all of Gracie's social media, it was a big deal for everyone, including Mila.

She was excited to be featured on a huge album like this.

The more time that Mila spent with Gracie, the more she noticed things changing between them and she wasn't mad about it. For a long time, she hated the idea of relationships, even with all the fictional and celebrity crushes she may have. She never realized how damaged she was until someone asked her out for the first time after she had broken up with her ex, Tessa.

However, the day that Gracie kissed her, she didn't have the same feelings that she had with relationships. That is why she ran away when she did, it scared her.

The fear of being in a relationship again was gone. The thought of being in a relationship wasn't the worst thing in the world anymore, she felt that she was ready. Since their talk, Gracie had tried to show her that it was okay to date again and that she would never have to go through what her ex put her through again. One day while they were stargazing together, Mila decided to open up about what Tessa did to make her like this.

Since that day, Gracie has done little things to help her and prove that she wasn't like that. What helped the most was that she was willing to wait for her to be ready. Now, she thinks that she is.

Gracie stepped out of the recording booth, a smile on her face from the work she had done. She was truly proud of herself and it showed. "Have I mentioned how much I love my job?" Gracie happily asked, taking a seat next to her friend and wrapping an arm around her. "It's just so cool and fun, and you've gotten a taste of it from writing that song with me and recording it." Gracie acknowledged, looking over at her with a smile.

"You might have mentioned it a time or two," Mila replied with a chuckle seeing the happy yet proud look on her face. She'd never seen someone look so proud before until now.

"It's a huge moment, this an album both of us should be so proud of, we practically worked on the whole thing together."

It wasn't the whole thing, but maybe a song or two. She enjoyed working on it, it was one of the most fun things she's ever done. "It was amazing, I'm just glad I get to see you all happy while you record the thing," Mila admitted.

Gracie smiled once again and pulled out her phone to see the many social media notifications she was getting. "You know, people are shipping us." She pointed out, showing her the edit that played on her phone. "I think it's cute, honestly." She added, continuing to scroll.

Mila didn't say anything, but she did agree. She'd seen a few of the edits before Gracie could and liked a bunch of them. Some of them she had even shown to her. The more she thought about it, it made her happy to know that people liked the idea of them being together. She took it as a sign that she was ready to date again.

All she had to do now was tell Gracie.

Since the US leg of the tour had ended, Gracie had been taking breaks to record the album and when there was time, she would be spending time with Mila. At one point, Gracie had run into Mila and her family while they were out doing things together. That was the first time that Gracie had met Mila's family in the whole time they'd been friends.

When Mila would call her family while on tour, Grace wouldn't join her even after being told that her family asked about her.

In all honestly, she was surprised that they even asked about her to begin with.

The two friends sat in the living room of Mila's home, not a single word had been spoken in the last hour, and all they'd done was show each other TikTok videos and random stuff they found on Instagram. That's what their days had looked like recently without tour stuff to do. "It's too quiet, do you want to listen to music or maybe have a conversation?" Mila asked curiously, soon earning a look from Gracie, indicating that she wasn't listening until now.

"What was that?" Gracie asked once she realized that Mila tried talking to her. After that response, Mila wasn't even going to try anymore.

"Never mind, don't even worry about it. I've already made a decision." She dramatically replied, playfully rolling her eyes. Gracie replied by punching her arm, soon making the two laugh. That was her sign that she desperately wanted to know what she was trying to ask her. "I was asking if you wanted to listen to some music so we had background noise or have a conversation." She repeated.

Gracie thought about it for a moment, soon showing she had a thought. "Why not both? We get the pleasure of music and a potential two-person dance party and we can talk about whatever you want." Gracie explained. It was a good idea, she could have thought of that, yet she didn't. "Go on, put on some music," Gracie instructed with a grin.

Mila picked up the TV remote and selected Spotify out of all the downloaded apps she had. She scrolled through her various playlists until she landed on one called "She Was Sunshine, I Was Midnight Rain." It was a playlist she tended to revisit quite often.

Once she hit the shuffle button one of Gracie's songs started playing. Once she noticed, she quickly changed the song, now the sense of embarrassment taking over.

"Was that Camden?" Gracie asked curiously, her tone coming out slightly teasing.

"No, the screen clearly says Sailor Song by Gigi Perez." She replied, defending herself.

Gracie chuckled as she stood up and held a hand out to her. Mila looked from her hand to her face with a confused expression. "Do you want to dance?" She curiously asked, further explaining her actions.

Without any further words, Mila smiled and grabbed her hand. Gracie pulled her up from the couch with a laugh, and the two danced around the living room to any song that played.

The two were slow-dancing to Adrianne Lenker's song "Anything." They had laughed at each other's jokes and commented on stories they'd told each other.

There was a silence between them. A comfortable silence where they could just exist in each other's presence. A silence where the outside world didn't matter. It was a time when they could be happy without the judgment of others, the way life should be lived.

Gracie stared into her eyes, a small yet soft smile on her face. She watched as her mood shifted from bored to content, the grin on her face was a sign that she was enjoying the moment. "I didn't know you were a dancer." Gracie acknowledged as she spun her around, soon pulling her close once again. Mila laughed as she spun, soon being pulled close once again. "When were you going to mention that? I could have used you for music videos a long time ago."

"For starters, you didn't know me a long time ago. Second of all, I don't dance." She replied with a laugh. Now was the perfect time to tell her the news. After taking a deep breath, she was ready to tell her. "Remember a few months ago when we confessed our feelings for each other, but I said I wasn't ready for a relationship yet?" She asked curiously.

Gracie nodded before she responded. "Yeah, why do you ask?" She wondered. She thought about it for a moment, and then she instantly got happier at the realization. "Are you sure? You know I'm more than willing to wait-" She was cut off by Mila as she pulled her into their third kiss which Gracie didn't hesitate to return.

Once Mila pulled away to respond, she flashed her a grin and held onto her hands. She looked into her eyes to prove her level are seriousness. "I'm sure. I want this—I want us." She replied, her tone coming out serious as she looked her in the eyes.

"So, we're an us now? I like the sound of that."

That comment made Mila start to giggle before playfully hitting her arm. "You're such a dork, I hope you know that." She teased, letting out another giggle.

Gracie smiled at the sight of her laughing, not able to believe that this was even happening. To her, Mila was the most bewitching woman in the world and way out of her league. She was surprised to discover that she was single when they first met, but now, both girls were off the market, finally able to be happy together without a care in the world.

"Maybe so, but I'm your dork."

They may have had bad experiences in the past, but they felt that it would be different now. They were better together and they knew it.

Since they've been friends, Mila has already noticed a positive change in her life. She was happier now. Gracie had noticed the same thing with herself. One would say they were destined to be here right now, getting the things they've always dreamed of.

They were excited to see where things would end up, together.

—————————

AUTHORS NOTE!

AHHH MY BABIES ARE

FINALLY TOGETHER!!!

excuse me while i go cry

about this. i hope you all

enjoyed and i hope there's

no mistakes!