Gone Forever (Adam Gontier #2)

Chapter 3

Adam's POV

Downing the last of a boring glass of water, I twist my legs beneath me as I scribble on the scraps of paper that have held me together like glue over the past few years. I read over the lines, deciding whether or not to rewrite a couple as Neil suddenly reappears, shouting in the silence of the bus.

"Guys, guess who I found?"

I look up, my pencil pausing on the paper as he grins at me, his long-fingered hand gripping around the doorframe for a second as the other guys head towards him before he leaves. Within seconds, I'm alone on the bus. I breathe out, going back to the paper and writing the lines that were in my head as quickly as I can, but I pause again as soon as I hear a high-pitched scream from outside. Could it be...? No, it couldn't. I stand up, leaving everything on the desk as I head towards the door. After unhooking my foot from a chair that's lying out in the middle of the bus that had nearly tripped me over, I look down at the steps as I move down them.

"DADDY!"

I look up and freeze as a tiny child runs over to me, staring up at me in awe from her tiny height. I blink, an ocean of emotions running over me as I try to process what had just happened. Did she call me her dad? What the fuck? Looking further forward, I suddenly realise who this kid is. She's mine.

Lara is stood a few feet away in the parking lot, buried in a hug from Barry. She pulls away from him and smiles at me, lifting her left hand in greeting. I feel a smile begin to spread across my face, my chest finally letting go of the unbearable pressure that's been weighing on me for years. Soon enough, my cheeks hurt from the smile that I've missed for so long, and I bend down to pick up the kid, seeing the hysterical grin on her tiny, round face as she links her arms around my neck.

"Hey," I say, pulling her close to me and biting my lip. This kid right here is my daughter.

Lara steps towards me, a smile beginning to spread across her face. "Hey, Adam," she says, and I grin even wider, nearly splitting my lip. For a split second, I drop my head into Rhia's shoulder before looking back up at Lara. I've waited three years - three fucking years - for this moment. All those silent evenings thinking to myself, imagining what I could say to her, and now I've got the chance and I'm completely tongue-tied. I will myself to speak; to think clearly enough to form words in my useless fucking mouth. Just as I can finally open my mouth to speak, she does something I'd never expected, something she'd never before been spontaneous enough to do.

She kisses me.

Strengthening my grip on Rhia, I close my eyes and lean further forward, digging my feet into the sides of the doorway to make sure I don't fall over. Lara puts her hand on the side of my face, pulling my hair slightly and deepening the kiss for a few seconds before pulling away, ignoring Rhia's questions and giggling. She stares me in the eyes and smiles wider. I grin and feel the emptiness that I've been struggling with completely disappear. "Hey, LC."

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"So," I say, crossing one leg over the other, groaning as my jeans leg catches on the side of the table and tears slightly. I lean down and pull it back into place.

"So what?" Lara says, grinning at me as she kicks off her shoes, glancing behind her to where Neil is playing with Rhia, letting her sit behind his practise pad and drum. Lara smiles at Neil, both of them exchanging a glance that says 'she's a natural'.

"So," I repeat awkwardly. "How have things been for you over the past few years?" She rolls her eyes at me as my hair falls in my eyes and I sputter as it catches my eyelashes, scratching harshly and temporarily cutting off my eyesight. Blinking like a newborn mole-rat, I bite my lip in a struggle to keep a straight face while she laughs borderline-hysterically at me.

"It's been...how can I put this? Difficult. Oh, God, has it been difficult. But through all those tough times - through Rhia's scuffing of knees, broken bones, everything - I had one thing to hold on to."

"What was it?" I ask, my chest tightening in suspicion. What if she's moved on?

"You."

A/N

Hey...I'm really sorry for such a short chapter this week but I've got terrible writer's block so this is as much as I can come up with. I promise there'll be more (and better) next week. Sorry for another cliffhanger, but I hope you're all okay with this much. Let me know in the comments how pissed you are about such a short chapter but otherwise see you next week!