finding me while loving you

part 39

Grace's POV

I was sitting outside on the back balcony with my mom and dad enjoying the very early Michigan summer morning. It was only about 6:30am, the sun was starting to rise, it was warm with the tiniest bit of chill in the air. Demi was still fast asleep upstairs, we had a late night sitting around the bonfire with my family last night.

"I miss this being a regular thing so much." My dad told me. "I miss our early mornings and conversations. I miss you kids being home all the time."

"It's definitely a different world without all of you kids under one roof." My mom added in. "Sometimes it feels so empty here now that Carson is always on the go and you and Pen living out of state. It's kind of a sickening feeling knowing we'll never get that back."

I immediately stood up and sat between my mom and dad on the outdoor couch, snuggling into both of them. I teared up, what they were saying hitting me right in the heart.

"It's crazy how fast it all happened. It's like yesterday Pen and I were fist fighting over a Limited Too shirt. It doesn't even feel real sometimes how fast time goes by and how different life is."

"That's the point, kiddo." My dad kissed my forehead. "It's supposed to never stay the same. That's the exciting part, I suppose."

We sat for a few minutes in silence, really sulking up just being with each other.

"So..." my mom started. "Demi? She's really the one, huh?"

I smiled, thinking of my brown eyed girlfriend asleep upstairs in my childhood bed.

"How do you know when someone's the one?" I asked my parents.

My parents looked at each other, a little glimmer in their eye.

"You... you just know. Your body feels it and it's like nothing in this world makes a lick of sense except them. You never get tired of doing the same old stupid shit with them. Their presence feels like home. Like - every time you see them it's like you're a toddler again, tucked warm into your parents bed, met with the safest, warmest, homiest feeling. You just know you're home." My mom said, rubbing the back of my dad's head.

I didn't say anything for a minute, smiling at my mom's reply and at their genuine love for each other.

"That's Demi." I whispered. "Nothing has ever made this much sense in my life. I don't know what I want to do or where I want to go but I know I need her by my side to do it all."

"We know." My parents giggled. "She's your person. We can see it and we can feel it."

"Do you think we'll survive her going on tour?" I blurted out. "I mean - I don't know. Demi's worried about us being away from each other and I feel like she has doubts of our relationship surviving and she's afraid and I don't know, it all made me feel really shitty."

"All I can tell you is that it'll work if you want it too." My dad said. "I'm not saying it won't be bumpy or it won't be hard, but it'll work if you want it too."

"What did she say about it?" My mom questioned.

"She broke down the other morning before we left to come here. She just started bawling saying she's so afraid to be away from me for so long and we've had so many troubles in the past and she doesn't want the tour to break us up. Which she had a valid point because we have had a lot of fights, big fights in the past - mostly from me starting them. I completely get why she's worried, I feel worried about not seeing her too, but I don't think to the same extent as her. Saying it out loud, it actually really hurt my feelings how little faith she seems to have in us."