Fireworks 3 and 4

Chapter Forty-Three

    Assumptions about the lack of writing her own songs aside, Cardi was a workhorse. Her work ethic was enviable. She could go on for hours and hours, knew when a line didn't sound quite right. She was a lot sharper in the studio than Mia had expected her to be, and she was also a joy to be around. After a solid two hours of working, she could lighten up the mood and break up the monotony with silliness and jokes. She FaceTimed with Offset and her baby girl during breaks, then was able to get right back into work mode.

    After a full four days of working together, Mia returned home to her condo. Jingling the keys in her hand as she stepped off the elevator, she briefly daydreamed about how it would feel to collapse on her pillowtop mattress. I don't want to see or talk to anyone for at least a full week, she thought, walking down the hall.

    The scent of flowers struck her in the face. Someone went a little crazy with the Febreze, she thought, waving a hand in front of her face as she drew nearer to her condo. Nearly gagging on the scent, she unlocked the door and stepped inside – and gasped softly as she entered her very own secret garden.

    A delicate array of flowers, including orchids and lotus flowers, filled nearly every inch of space in the place. There was barely room to walk, there were so many flowers. It literally felt like she was walking in one of those bush mazes that only the ritziest of mansions and castles had hiding in their backyards. With her breath caught in her throat, she reached out and touched the petals of a few flowers. Had a card been included with delivery? If so, how would she even find it?

    That question was soon answered for her when she reached the kitchen counter. A card was propped up against a flower vase holding a single pink rose.

I miss you.

-AG

    She traced his handwritten letters with an index finger. "I miss you too," she whispered.

    "It warms my heart to hear that," a deep voice said.

    She whirled around to catch Drake emerging from the hallway. I forgot that he had a set of keys to this place, seeing as he's the one who paid for it. Not knowing what to say, she watched as he approached her.

    "I know that it's going to take more than flowers," he said, his eyes managing to look happy and sad at the same time. "Whatever it takes, I'm willing to do it."

    "We've tried so many times," she said, her voice shaking.

    "Yeah, but the third time's the charm," he joked, taking a step closer to her. "Isn't it?"

    She rolled her eyes and wiped at the tears springing to her eyes.

    He raised a hand to flick away a rogue tear and said, "I feel like...if we try one more time, we'll get it right."

    And I feel like if we try again, it'll all go to shit again somehow, she thought miserably, taking a deep, shuddering breath.

    "There were lessons that we had to learn, myself included. I had this blueprint mapped out for my life, this...thing, this person I never wanted to become. I fought so hard not to become this person and I became this person anyway." He ran a hand over the top of his fresh fade. "Then I blamed everyone else for the mistakes that I chose to make. I didn't own up to it. I brushed it off. Friends and family have helped me to see that. Fans even helped me to see that. I chose to sleep with Sophie and then I wanted to blame her for trapping her, when really, I allowed myself to be trapped. You're the one for me, always have been. Even if we were fighting, even if we were going through rough times, I should've respected that. I should've known better, done better."