L'AMOUR DE MA VIE - Billie Eilish

Chapter 2

Em's POV

Shopping with Kyra was always a very tiring experience. Almost 3 hours and dozens of stores later, we were finally done.

I managed to get most of the stuff missing from my apartment. Plants, a rug and some wall decor. It wasn't much, but it was definitely enough to make my apartment cozy. I'd probably add some stuff along the way, but for now, I felt satisfied with my purchases.

I embarked in Kyra's car after putting my stuff in her trunk. After visiting her folks, she agreed that she would drive me home and we'd have a sleepover to continue catching up.

"I swear to God, my parents are soooo excited to see you," Kyra bounced up and down in her seat.

I giggled, laughing at her silliness and plugged my phone into the aux cord. I pressed shuffle on the "Today's Top Hits" playlist on Spotify and leaned my head against the window. The cool window felt nice against my forehead, prompting me to close my eyes.

I was definitely excited to see Ky's parents. They had been so welcoming when I first met them a couple of years ago. Susan and Mark kind of became my second parents when I felt homesick. I missed my mom's homemade meals and my dad's jokes. My sister and I haven't always been close, but I still missed her overdramatic tendencies and our petty fights. I was a very reserved teenager, but I loved my family nonetheless. I always felt safe and comfortable around them. When my dad got sick, my sister and I became really close. We leaned on each other when times got rough. It was hard for her to be away at college when dad got sick, but I'd encouraged her to keep going, knowing that it's what my dad wanted. He had been clear that he didn't want everyone to just drop everything to take care of him. He'd been a very selfless person who didn't want to burden anyone. Although it was exhausting at times, I was glad that I managed to spend those last few months with him.

I snapped out of my thoughts when I heard the next song on the Spotify playlist.

"I wish you the best for the rest of your life
Felt sorry for you when I looked in your eyes
But I need to confess, I told you a lie
I said you
You were the love of my life
The love of my life."

Ky quickly changed the song and the voice of Tate McRae now blared into the car speaker.

I'd obviously heard Billie's newest album. As soon as it dropped a couple of weeks ago, it was the only thing that played on the radio. How couldn't I listen? Being one of the biggest artists of our generation, I was bound to hear her new material. I felt bittersweet. Some part of me felt very fucking proud. Despite everything, I was still rooting for her success. Billie and Finn were truly talented and I felt glad that the world could experience their talent. On the other hand, I'd listened to the lyrics of her new songs. She always had been a lyrical genius, but the stories told within some of her new material had hit really close to home. It felt like she was talking about me, but the rational part of me had felt stupid to even think that. I'd been the one who left, not her. The chorus of this specific song clearly implied that she lied about being in love with someone. I'd initially never doubted her love for me, but I couldn't help but think that maybe she'd been faking all that time we were together. Of course, I had no direct confirmation that she'd written that song about me. Knowing that there's a slight possibility of it being true felt like a punch to the gut. I'd decided that I would avoid her new album at all costs. A task that turned out to be extremely difficult since her latest album was literally charting like crazy.

"Hey, you ok? You're pretty quiet over there. What's going on in that head of yours?" Ky gently asked me.

"I'm fine Ky, it's just," I sighed, "It's like I can't escape her sometimes. As much as I'm determined to move on and to be happy, I see and hear her everywhere and it sets me back. It's like she's this ghost that's been haunting me, reminding me of how shitty I am."

Kyra pulled up to the front of her house and took her keys out of the ignition. She turned her body towards me and took my hand in hers.

"Em, you are not a shitty person. You did what you had to do. You basically did not have a choice. I get that you feel guilty, but you have to cut yourself some slack. Dating someone in the public eye is hard," she smiled sadly at me before brushing the stray tear that managed to slip through. "I know you didn't tell Billie the real reason why you were breaking up with her, but I know that she would understand. She'd forgive you, even. You felt miserable for months after you left, and I know for a fact that she was also devastated. It's been almost 2 years, and you're still feeling like a bad person. Don't you think it would be time to finally tell her the truth?" She looked at me expectantly.

I shook my head and wiped away the remaining tears that strolled down my cheeks.

"I can't and you know that," I choked out.

I pulled the car mirror down to fix myself before seeing her parents.

She sighed defeatedly, knowing how stubborn I was.

"Ok, well, let's go in then. My dad's cooking some steaks on the barbecue. He knows it's your favorite," she changed the subject and smiled at me.

I felt my mouth practically salivate at the thought of food. The eggs I'd eaten were long gone by now and I was starving.

We quickly got out of the car and started skipping towards the front door. Ky stopped in the driveway, noticing a car that certainly did not belong to her parents.

"My sister's here."

I looked at her with wide eyes, before remembering that she had told her sister that I would be back in LA.

"It's fine Ky, I trust Claudia. I'm actually pretty excited to see her again. I missed her," I told her truthfully.

We got to the front door and made our way into the house. I could smell the food cooking from the backyard and my stomach grumbled.

We made our way to the kitchen to greet her mom, only to be met by a few people casually talking around the kitchen isle.

They all looked towards us, noticing our arrival, but the only thing I noticed was the pair of blue eyes staring at me. I felt my throat close up and my heart start to beat loudly against my chest.

I barely had time to notice Finn also staring at me before she spoke.

"Long time, no see."

Fuck me.

                                       .

So here's chapter 2! Hope you guys enjoyed it and please feel free to give me your thoughts on this story so far. 🫶🏻

I'd like to mention once again that the story is set in early 2024 and Billie's album release was in January 2024 instead of May 2024 for the sake of the plot. I have some ideas for the story that includes some Coachella content, so stay tuned👀