chapter thirty-two | i miss you, i'm sorry

A TIRED GROAN escaped her lips as she woke up to find her phone beside her on the bed from last night. After rubbing her eyes to get them adjusted to the sunlight, she looked to see her call with Gracie still going. She couldn't help but wonder if she had stayed on call with her all night, even if she didn't have to.

It had been a long while since she had fallen asleep like this with her on the phone. Even after everything, Gracie was still there to help her however she could. She wished she could turn back time, exist with her, and be back in her arms like she used to be in the mornings when it was too cold to get out of bed.

Sitting up, she heard a soft yawn from Gracie's end. She was waking up. "You didn't have to be here all night, you know." Mila tiredly spoke, gently rubbing the remaining sleep out of her eyes.

Gracie let out a huff, a chuckle soon following. "I know, but I wanted to." She admitted. The words that she had said to her many times before. Any time that this would happen, it was the same song and dance, word for word. "Plus, I didn't want you to wake up alone." She added, a grin audible in her voice. Mila could picture it now.

"You're too good to me." She murmured, letting out a breathy laugh.

"There's no such thing." Gracie was quick to reply, a natural reflex by now. "If it makes you feel better, I would do it again."

Mila laid back on the bed, a soft smile on her face. She wanted nothing more than to look at the spot next to her and look at the sleepy smile on her face, but she wouldn't be there, even if she wanted her to be.

There was a beat of silence, and the two just enjoyed each other's company, even if it was through a phone call. It didn't matter to them; it was company, nonetheless. "I miss this," Mila finally said, breaking the silence.

She heard an exhale from Gracie, followed by silence. There were a few moments of silence; she wasn't sure if she would ever respond, but then she heard it. "I know. I miss it too." She softly replied, her tone quieter than before. Although she wouldn't admit it yet, she had thought about hopping on the next plane just to see her, pull her into the tightest hug, and never let go.

She wanted to make everything okay again. At least now, it seemed more likely to work than it did a week ago.

"Honestly, Gracie, I just miss you. I wish I could see you."

Gracie hummed in agreement, a hint of tiredness coming with it. "Me too, Mila." She paused for a moment, thinking of her next words carefully. She wasn't sure how this was going to lay over, but it was worth a shot. "Maybe...we don't have to wish anymore." She suggested, her tone quieter than before.

She wondered what Gracie meant by that, what she was suggesting. She hoped she meant seeing her, but she wasn't sure anymore. This had never been a conversation they had to have before, and they had never been in this position; this was new territory for both of them.

"What are you saying, Gracie?" she asked, her tone sounding more curious and hopeful by the second.

"I don't want to pretend that I don't miss you anymore when I do, so, so bad, and you do too. We could break the distance and be together."

Mila felt her heart skip a beat at the suggestion, something she had long hoped to hear but never thought would come. This was the chance for everything to get back to normal, the chance they both longed for. They both needed this, they couldn't pass it up for the world. "Would it be crazy if I asked you to meet me at our next stop?" She finally asked, a tone of anticipation laced in her voice.

"It wouldn't be crazy at all."

"Then do it. I have to see you."

She heard the smile on her face as she spoke, making her smile in return. "Tell me where, and I'll be there." She replied, letting out the breath she didn't know she was holding.

"Philadelphia. Worst comes to worst, I'll see you in a couple of months." Mila was trying to be the voice of reason, something she did often. Gracie loved it about her, but it made her frustrated at the same time.

"Philly...I can make that work. I could be there tomorrow if I leave right now."

"I'll see you tomorrow then."

Soft music played throughout the room as she started packing her bags. With her new manager, she could get to a plane as quickly as possible, a bonus she couldn't get with Jordan. It came in handy. The luckiest part was that Audrey wasn't home to talk her out of it; she could leave a note and go.

This was the easiest thing to do.

The more she thought about it, the more nervous she became. It had been a while since she had last talked to Mila, let alone seen her in person. She wasn't sure how it would play out, which scared her. The last thing she wanted was for everything to go wrong. She knew this was something they both wanted, but she couldn't help but overthink everything.

She paused for a moment, taking a seat on the edge of the bed as she let out a breath. "It's okay, Gracie." She quietly spoke to herself, taking deep breaths to keep her emotions in check. "She asked you to be there; everything is fine." She reminded herself. With one last breath, she stood up from the bed, zipping up her suitcase.

As if on cue, she heard the door opening and her best friend's voice. "Gracie, I'm home!" Audrey announced from the front door, an audible smile on her face.

Gracie's movements stopped as she heard Audrey's footsteps approaching the bedroom. She wasn't expecting to face Audrey right now. She hoped to call her once she landed to beg for forgiveness instead of asking for permission.

Without a warning, her bedroom door opened, and she looked over to see Audrey with a questioning look on her face. "What are you up to?" She asked her curiously, motioning toward the packed suitcase.

"I'm...taking a little trip to Philly," Gracie said carefully, watching for Audrey's reaction.

Audrey furrowed her brows, carefully thinking about her next words. "Since when were you going to Philly?" She asked her curiously.

She laughed nervously as she scratched the back of her neck. "Since this morning," She admitted. Before she continued, she cleared her throat and considered how to approach the reason. Although she knew that she had to be straightforward with her. "Mila asked me to meet her there, so I am."

Audrey let out an almost disappointed breath, pinching the bridge of her nose, unsure if she heard her right. Deep down, she knew she did. "And you just...said yes? No protest or anything?" She questioned, crossing her arms as she studied Gracie's face. "Do you not see the problem here? I love Mila and everything, but doesn't this just seem weird to you?"

"I know what you're saying, and I understand it, but I have to do this." She responded, grabbing her jacket and slipping on her shoes. "I have to see this through. This might be the only chance to get her back, and I have to take this chance."

Audrey took a deep breath, dragging her hand down her face. "Gracie," She started, tone sounding more disappointed by the second. She already knew that there was no point in arguing with her. Nothing was going to change her mind on this. She let out a sigh of defeat and ran a hand through her hair. "If she hurts you again, I will fight her."

A bright smile tugged at the corners of Gracie's lips as she pulled her into a tight hug. She couldn't believe that this was truly happening. After what felt like an eternity, she was going to get the love of her life back.

"I have one request to ask of you," Gracie spoke up, pulling back enough to look at her.

"And what might that be?"

"Drive me to the airport?"

Audrey thought about her answer for a moment before she gave her a nod. Without any hesitation, Gracie completely pulled away from the hug and grabbed her things.

The two friends rushed to the car and raced toward the airport.

It had been a day since she last heard from Gracie. She wasn't sure if she was showing up or not; the thought of her not showing up broke her heart, especially after everything they said to each other. Then again, if she didn't, she would have understood.

It was her fault, after all.

The roaring sound of the crowd pulled her out of her thoughts. This was her favorite time of the show, the end when she covered any song she wanted.

She gripped the mic a little tighter as she removed it from its stand. She began to walk along the stage, a grin on her face. "This is my favorite part of the show. The last song where I get to expose another song in my playlist to you." She teased, earning cheers and laughter from the crowd. Once the noise died down, she picked up her speech once again. "This one is a personal favorite of mine, and it only felt right to have someone sing it with me.

She paused again, now eliciting sounds of confusion and excitement from the crowd. With that, her guitarists left the stage to be replaced for the song. "Girls, gays, and they, please welcome boy genius! " she announced, watching as Phoebe, Julien, and Lucy ran out onto the stage, a guitar strap around Julien's shoulder.

The boys waved at the crowd as they approached Mila, smiling. They all hugged her, whispering words to her before taking their places. That's when Julien played the song's opening chords, and the band followed her lead. "Black hole opened in the kitchen." Mila started them off, smiling.

After finishing the song, Mila and the boys hugged once more and ran off the stage. "Thank you guys so much for joining me for today's show," Mila spoke as they walked back to their dressing rooms.

"Of course, it was amazing to be up there." Phoebe grinned and slung an arm around Mila's shoulders. "I must say, we need to see this playlist now."

Lucy and Julien nodded in agreement, making Mila chuckle. "I'll send you guys the link." She joked, chuckling once again. "I warn you, it's very crazy."

"Well, now we have to see it," Lucy spoke up with a teasing tone, playfully nudging her with her elbow. "I'll be expecting everything from classical to the heaviest of metal you have. Pure chaos."

"There's definitely chaos." She admitted, letting out a laugh. The longer they walked, the more her thoughts drifted away from the show they had just finished to Gracie. She wasn't in the crowd, wasn't there before she went on, and she wasn't anywhere.

With the radio silence, she was sure that she wasn't coming after all. She felt that she had gotten her hopes up too high just to be disappointed in the end.

That's normally how things went with her. Disappointment wasn't a foreign concept for her.

Before she got any further into her spiral, Phoebe squeezed her shoulder, pulling her out of her thoughts. "You doing okay? You seem a little distracted." She pointed out, earning the attention of the rest of the boys.

Without thinking, she nodded in response. She cleared her throat before she spoke, thinking of the correct words to say. "Yeah, it's just the adrenaline rush coming down." She said, forcing a small smile. "You know what it's like.

"Post-show crash is real."

Just as she was about to speak again, she looked ahead of them to see her. She stood there with a suitcase next to her, a smile on her face once she spotted her. The sight was something she had not expected to see, but she was glad to see her.

When their eyes met, it felt like the world around them had completely melted around them. It was just them, in the same place, at the same time. Once she realized the moment was happening for real, she ran toward her without a moment of hesitation.

Gracie barely had time to react before she was nearly knocked off her feet by Mila crashing into her, wrapping her arms around her waist. After steadying herself, she hugged her back just as tightly.

Mila buried her face in Gracie's shoulder, the smell of her perfume filling her senses, a reminder that this was real. She was here. "I can't believe that you're here," Mila spoke, her voice thick with emotion.

"I told you that I would be," Gracie murmured, tightening her hold on her. "I just needed to get to you. I didn't want to promise something and not be able to fulfill it."

"Well, you're here now."

The two fell silent for a moment, just basking in the comfort of being in each other's arms. Just like all those times before, time seemed to stop. They felt like they were the only people in the room.

From behind them, Phoebe cleared her throat, causing them to look in her direction. "Not to ruin this very movie-worthy reunion, but do you two want a moment alone?" She asked curiously.

Julien snickered, and Lucy just smirked, but neither of them acted like they had anywhere to be anytime soon.

Mila let out a chuckle as she turned back to Gracie. "Maybe we should—"

"Talk." Gracie finished for her, giving her a slight nod.

"Cool, we'll leave you two alone then," Phoebe spoke up again, wrapping an arm around Julien and Lucy. "We'll be checking back in for that playlist later." She teased before the group walked off.

Mila rolled her eyes with a grin, taking Gracie's hand. She then led them back to her dressing room to have that talk they so desperately needed.

After what felt like an eternity, everything was getting back to normal.

—————————

AUTHORS NOTE !

AHHHH MY BABIES 🥲!

finally getting the love and

happiness they needed, i'm

so sad to end their story

though. they need more time.

hoping there's no mistakes!