Decades

Arrival Time

Recently, a website created a buzz about Stevie's fashion sense throughout Fleetwood Mac's reign and beyond. It even surprised her to see the pictures all compiled. She was simply trying to pull together a look while unknowingly becoming a fashion icon. As much as she wanted to play with that onstage, she didn't want to seem like she was trying too hard today. 

As she dressed, realizing a lot of years had passed since they'd been intimate or even friendly, she wanted to be attractive to him but didn't want to come across as a woman passed her prime trying to play the seductress. Besides, she wasn't coming here to seduce him she told herself. 

She hated how aging diminished her self-confidence and made her want to cover up even more. But, after putting on a flowy dress and her standard-issue black tights, she decided she actually looked pretty good. Her hair fell past her shoulders in loose waves, and she wore a pair of aviator sunglasses that she could wear indoors. They were prescription glasses, so she could claim she'd left her actual glasses at home and had to wear them if she felt too exposed. He could look into her eyes and know exactly what she was thinking and her sunglasses were armor against that if necessary. Their connection hadn't waivered in the past, she had no reason to think it would have changed now.

She nervously gets out of the car and arranges the giant bag over her shoulder and rolls her suitcase towards the door. She thanked her assistant for driving her there and let her know she'd call when she was ready to be picked up. The plan is to stay here for the duration of the studio work, but she isn't sure that's something she has the capacity to do for an indiscriminate amount of time. So, they agreed that a driver will remain on standby.

As she walked to the front door, she debated about walking on in. She was, after all, supposed to be at home here. Deep down, though, she felt like a guest, Lindsey's guest. She smoothed her hair and fidgeted with her clothes, taking some deep breaths to calm herself before going inside. This was worse than stage fright.

She reached for the doorknob but couldn't bring herself to turn it and enter unannounced. Putting her hands over her face, she turned around and faced the driveway, considering running down it now and seeing if she could catch the car. But in the end, she put on a brave face and rang the bell.

Lindsey had watched on his phone the security camera footage. He'd seen her shift from foot to foot, reach for the handle, and then retract her hand quickly like it was hot. He could see how uncomfortable she was and felt a twist in his heart for his former lover. Part of him never wanted her to feel anything but at ease with him. The other part enjoyed knowing it was affecting her, that he was affecting her. He was relieved to know it wasn't one-sided this time.

There was a lot of work to be done to regain the warmth and trust they'd lost. He felt just as anxious as she did.  He took a deep breath before trying to look casual while opening the door and embracing the only woman he'd ever dreamed of holding for more years than he could count.

He thought back to other greetings, they usually went undocumented, so he didn't know how they usually looked, only how they felt to him. When editing the footage from the Destiny Rules documentary, he remembered having to shorten an on-camera embrace. Stevie had arrived tired and was leaving, after spending a little time with the band, to get some rest. The camera caught the footage as she gave John a brief goodbye hug and Mick an even more brief one. The embrace she shared with Lindsey lasted three times as long before they mercifully ended the shot. Letting go of each other was always difficult for the two of them. That's why nearly half a century had passed, and they were still weren't ready to let go. 

Their relationship had always been under a ridiculous amount of public scrutiny, and this scrutiny extended to the band, their management teams, his wife, her friends, and family. But, this time, it was just the two of them, no cameras, no curious glances, or exhausted sighs at seeing the former bandmates too cozy or screaming at each other too loudly. They didn't have anyone to guard their true feelings from except each other. With those buffers removed, would the walls go up or come down?