"We haven't determined the cause yet, but we know it came from the bathroom."
I stand next to Wilbur outside of his apartment, speaking with one of the firefighters on the scene.
"It wiped out the whole left half of the apartment, so that whole bathroom, your kitchen, and den is completely helpless. It got a bit into your bedroom, its bathroom, and what seemed to be a recording spot. Those rooms got fairly lucky, but there was still plenty of stuff destroyed."
I honestly expected it to be a small fire that just hurt his kitchen a bit; something fixable. As we step into the black apartment, it's obviously beyond saving. I follow Will into his bedroom, my heart dropping as I see his wall of treasured guitars that he never uses is completely black.
"There was one guitar that seemed to have fallen off its hooks, but the other two are gone."
We turn and see the firefighter holding Wilbur's first ever guitar, given to him by his mom. One of the ones destroyed was given to him by his passed grandparents, but I'm not sure where the other one came from.
Will takes the guitar and holds it close, his face scrunching up as I can see him fighting back tears. Even though I'm pissed at him, I still help him look through his stuff, putting it all in a few boxes. What survived was all of his recording equipment and the instruments in there, which was insanely lucky. Plus, plenty of his clothing, journals, books, and a few framed pictures. As he sorts through his books, the firefighter pulls me aside.
"Does he have anywhere to stay?"
I nod, folding my arms across my chest. "Yeah, uh, he'll stay with me. I live right next door."
"Alright. Do you guys need help moving your boxes?"
"No, we've got it."
"Alright," He repeats. "I'm extremely sorry about what happened here. Hopefully we can find out what caused it soon, and depending on what it is, he can at least get money for the damages."
I nod again and look over at Will, tears streaming down his face. "Okay. Thank you,"
"Have a good afternoon, miss."
I say goodbye to the firefighter before stepping over to Wilbur and bending down behind him, wrapping my arms around his shoulders. I place a gentle kiss on his neck as I sigh. "I'm gonna start bringing your stuff to my place, okay?"
He doesn't reply as he stares at an old yearbook. I stand back up and move his few boxes to my apartment, setting them in my bedroom. I go back to Will's apartment and place my hand on his shoulder.
"Come on, Will." I tell him. "It's probably not healthy to sit in here without a mask."
"Okay," He whispers, finally getting up. Once we're in my place and the door is shut, I sit him down on the couch and stroke his hand with my thumb.
"I'm so sorry, baby." I sigh. "Just stay with me as long as you need."
He leans against me, his breathing slowing down. "I'm sorry, too. For earlier,"
I know I shouldn't, but I decide to just let the whole thing go. It's just not worth it. "It's okay. That's in the past."
Will looks at me for a few seconds before speaking again. "Play me the song you wrote."
"What?"
"The one you mentioned at breakfast. It'll make me feel better, even if just for a minute."
I give him a sad smile before going to my room and grabbing my guitar. I sit back down next to him and check to make sure it's in tune. "Keep in mind that it's, like, just a silly song. And it's not finished."
He nods and I take a deep breath, hoping he doesn't find the song weird, or take it the wrong way.
"I love my hometown as much as Motown, I love SoCal
And you know I love Springsteen, faded blue jeans, Tennessee whiskey
But something happened, I heard him laughing
I saw the dimples first and then I heard the accent
They say home is where the heart is
But that's not where mine lives
You know I love a London boy
I enjoy walking Camden Market in the afternoon
He likes my American smile
Like a child when our eyes meet, darling, I fancy you
Took me back to Highgate, met all of his best mates
So I guess all the rumors are true
You know I love a London boy
Boy, I fancy you
And now I love high tea, stories from uni, and the West End
You can find me in the pub, we are watching rugby with his school friends
Show me a gray sky, a rainy cab ride
Babe, don't threaten me with a good time
They say home is where the heart is
But God, I love the English."
Wilbur's finally smiling again and gives me a puzzled look. "You love me?"
And he took it the wrong way. "I mean, no. It would just sound off to sing 'I'm dating a London boy who I really like and will eventually really love, just not quite yet since we just started dating'."
Thankfully, he just laughs and leans forward, kissing me. "Were those all the spots I showed you when we were in London?"
I nod and reach forward, pushing his hair back out of his eyes. "Mhmm. Did you like it?"
"I'd say I really liked it and will eventually really love it. Just not yet, since I just heard it."
I giggle and roll my eyes. "Don't be mean to me. I'm
housing you now. You haven't written me a song yet."
"Says who?"
"I haven't heard anything yet!"
Will smirks and gives me another kiss. "Oh, just wait. The band gets to hear some demos before you do."
"Oh, whatever." I mindlessly pick at my guitar's strings. "Have you guys decided on a name yet?"
"Yeah," He nods, tapping his fingers against my leg. "Calling it Lovejoy."
a/n: i meant to publish the chapter before this earlier today but for some reason it didn't load 😭 so sorry for the chapters just a few minutes apart lol
