The Punk's Princess

Twenty-Six

Daya bit her lip, not ever wanting to let go of Bosco. But she couldn't just force her to stay. She'd never force her to do anything. So she nodded, blinking back her own tears. "I'll ask Maddy to book you a plane ticket back home..." She said, trying to hide the sadness in her voice.

But Bosco heard it. She sniffled, nuzzling her head against her neck. "I don't wanna break up..." She whispered, tangling her hand in the collar of Daya's shirt since she couldn't hold onto the ring anymore.

"We're not breaking up, baby. But I'm not gonna force you to stay here when you want to go back home." Daya kissed her forehead, laying her down in her bunk again and pulling the blanket over her. "I'll get you there as soon as I can..."

Bosco whispered a thank you, holding onto anything in hopes of finding something that brought her as much comfort as the ring did. But nothing compared. Daya watched her for a moment before closing the curtain to give her some privacy. She walked to the back of the bus, her arms wrapped tightly around herself.

"Daya..." Crystal followed her with Lux behind her. "It's alright. Gigi and Camden leave and come back all the time. It'll be fine, you'll see."

"This is different, Crys..." Daya whispered sadly as she curled up in the corner of one of the couches, avoiding their eyes as she tried not to cry. "This is so different. I wasn't there to protect her and she ended up hurt and scared. And if it was really some crazy fan who hurt her, then she'll probably never want to be seen around me again."

"That's not true." Lux sighed, sitting beside her. "We'll find who did it and we'll get things taken care of and we can up our security at other events. It'll be okay."

"It won't be okay." Daya's voice shook as she texted Maddy to come to the bus. She sniffled quietly. "I was supposed to keep her safe and I didn't..."

"You can't be in two places at once, Daya." Crystal placed her hands on her friend's shoulders to try to keep her calm. "Don't blame yourself for this."

Daya bit her lip again, wrapping her arms around herself once more. She went quiet, focusing on not letting any tears fall.

"...It's okay to cry." Lux said, able to clearly see the glossiness in her bandmate's eyes. "You can let it out."

"I can't." Daya stopped her whimper before it could escape her lips. "If I cry, she'll see or hear me and it'll make her feel bad and I don't want it to seem like I'm guilt tripping her into staying. If she wants to go home, I'll get her home..."

Lux and Crystal exchanged a hopeless look. But it only got harder for Daya to hold her tears back when Maddy stepped onto the bus and she had to explain what she needed.

She watched as her assistant sat beside her and started looking for plane tickets, a single tear running down her cheek. Maddy glanced at her as she scrolled. "...Are you sure about this?" She asked quietly. "You look really upset."

Daya wrapped her arms tighter around herself in an effort to self soothe. It didn't work. "I just want her to be safe..." Daya said, even though this whole thing hurt. "If home is where she'll be safe, she needs to be there..."

Maddy found a ticket for the next morning for Bosco to fly out to the nearest airport to her small town. When she bought the ticket, that's when Daya's tears really started coming down. She looked away, covering her mouth with her hand.

She couldn't put into words how much Bosco meant to her. At first it was just a connection she felt to that shy artist she met in the coffee shop, but now she was her everything. She lit a fire inside of Daya that had been burnt out for so long. She gave her something that she had never truly felt before. And that was genuine love. It was there in every look, every touch, and every kiss. Daya had craved to give and receive that love for so long. She was terrified of losing it.