The Grey- Noah Sebastian

thirty one

*Sutton's POV*

I was getting transferred to the Richmond location since my mall was closing down. I didn't mind this change, especially since I have Danielle, Dillon, and Lexi coming with me, but I grieved the loss of my life in Norfolk.

I made sure to spend these holidays right, upholding my traditions with my friends. I did go to Christmas at the Ruffilo's since Noah was absolutely not going to be there. He was allegedly too tied up in preparing for tour, but I don't believe that.

Me, Callie, O, and Vaden kept our New Years tradition, now adding Danielle and Dillon into the mix, but it felt like there was a finality to it, and I didn't know why. It's not that far of a drive.

We moved in mid-January, and of course it was in the middle of the deathaversary of... multiple things. I was luckily too busy to allow myself to think about it. Danielle and I decided to rent a house so that Jemma could have more room to be a dog, plus the rent wasn't that much more than an apartment, especially considering pet deposits. It was about 15 minutes from her parent's, and Nic was an incredible help.

It was February before I actually started decorating, since I was too overwhelmed with adjusting to my new staff and location. I was just so grateful that Dillon and Lexi moved here, since this was a new store. Hiring on an entire associate staff has been completely overwhelming. Danielle just works at a doctor's office checking people in; nothing crazy, but it pays her well.

Moving here still gives me anxiety, knowing that it's Noah's hometown. I'm pretty positive that Nic and Danielle wouldn't put me in a situation where I would just run into him, unless it's going to support Nic at a show and I have time to mentally prepare.

They were starting tour currently, and Nic and Danielle talked me into going to the Richmond show. It was on March 5, but there is a virus that is currently spreading in other countries, leaving me terrified of it. I don't know what someone would even do to avoid something like that, or if it would be worth taking precautions? What if it isn't even deadly?

"Please don't hate me for what I'm going to suggest," Danielle started. "This virus is starting to hit the states and I honestly don't want to be in the crowd for this show, is it okay if we stood side stage?" She posed, making my blood run cold.

Pros: less people, we won't be shoved, no crowd surfers, don't have to fight the crowd for a good spot, can get in early.

Cons: Noah, Noah, and Noah.

"I don't know..." I began.

"I know, but honestly, if he's like the last time we went to see them, he may not even try to talk to you," she bounced back.

"I'm not even worried about that, I think it's everything that's unsaid that's more painful, and this wouldn't be the place to re-ignite those conversations."

"So you're willing to have a conversation with him?" She was trying to not be too excited, but I could see it in her eyes that she was.

"I—" I cut myself off and gave myself a moment to calculate what I want to say. "I owe him an apology, I know that, but I don't know if he wants that."

She sat up straighter. "Do you want the truth?"

"I want... 50% of the truth," I said, timidly bringing back the percentage rule, thinking about how he never wanted less than 100%.

"While an apology can be nice, I think that neither of you are as over this as you think you are, so I think that you should expect a door to be reopened if you do it," she said honestly.

"What do you mean?"

"You only asked me for 50%, and that's 50%," she said with a sad smile.

****