Dan's POV
I rolled over a bit in my bed and stretched, gazing out the window at New York. My head wasn't hurting now and my stomach seemed more empty than upset. Yawning, I climbed out of bed in an attempt to find Haylee. She was asleep on the couch in the living room. "Haylee," I murmured. "Wake up, love." She opened her eyes suddenly and bolted upright, calming down only when she saw me. She wrapped her arms around my neck and hugged me tightly.
"I had a nightmare." She whimpered. "But it's okay, you're safe and it was only a dream." She let go of me and I sat down on the couch next to her. "How are you? Are you okay?"
"Yeah, I actually am a bit hungry." I commented. "Probably best if I take it slow, though." Haylee nodded and yawned.
"I'll heat you up some soup. Why don't you take a shower? It'll help wake you up and relax you." She suggested. Nodding, I went back into the bedroom and dug through my suitcase, retrieving a pair of boxers, my favorite jeans and a sweater. It was a bit rainy today, so I figured if we went out it would be best to wear long sleeves. I stepped into the bathroom and turned on the shower, undressing quickly. I shuddered as the hot water ran over me, but I adjusted to it after a minute or two and it began to feel good. I leaned my head against the wall and let the water run down my back, soothing me. It eased the stiffness from my muscles, allowing me to relax. Finally deciding I'd been in here long enough, I shut off the water and stepped out, drying and dressing quickly. I dried my hair with a towel before finishing it up with the hair dryer. It was once again in it's curly state, however today it didn't look so bad. I left it for now, figuring I could straighten it later.
Haylee had just finished heating the soup when I walked back into the living room area. "Good shower?"
"Yeah, I feel great!" I smiled. Haylee handed me a bowl before grabbing poptarts for herself. I ate slowly, testing my stomach. Phil came in and sat down on the couch, grabbing a packet of poptarts and some milk.
"Phil, you shouldn't try food like that yet! Just soup, easy stuff." Of course, I knew that no one came between Phil and his breakfast, especially sweet breakfast foods like this. Haylee attempted to grab them only to receive Phil's infamous glare and growl. She backed off instantly and I laughed.
"Phil is very...possessive of his food." I explained. Haylee just gave me a look and went back to her own food. Chassidy joined us a minute or so later, grabbing poptarts as well. As soon as breakfast was finished, Phil and Chassidy headed off to get dressed, leaving Haylee and I to talk. “So, what’s the plan for today?” I asked, pulling my knees up and wrapping my arms around them. Haylee smiled as she turned to face me, mimicking my position.
“I don’t know. Do you and Phil have anything you two need to do today?” She asked, taking a sip of her drink.
“Hmm, I think that’s it. We did our interviews on Tuesday… there’s a –OH! The Radio City Tour is today. Phil and I are doing that at 4, I think so we have until then.” I reminded her.
Haylee bit her lip and I knew that she was suspicious. “Dan, what’s been going on? This entire trip, you’ve been acting weird… Is something going on? Do – do you not want me around anymore?” My mouth fell open in shock.
“Hays! No! That’s not it at all, love!” I cried. “Listen… I need to tell you something and I don’t know how you’re going to take it. Your mum called me just before we left for New York… she told me that she’d made the divorce from your father final and that your dad is here… in New York… he’s looking for you. He wants to try and make things right.” Haylee looked as though she was going to be sick. “Love?” I asked. She looked up at me, tears in her eyes. I pulled her in for a hug, letting her cry against my chest.
“I – I can’t Dan! I can’t face him again! You know I can’t.” She sobbed. “No…”
“It’s alright, Haylee. You don’t have to see him, okay? It’ll be okay, I promise. I won’t let anything happen to you.” I reassured her, wrapping my arms around her protectively. She shook against me, choking back sobs. I pulled her closer so that she was sitting in front of me and I rocked gently, trying to calm her. I began to hum her favorite song and soon she’d calmed down. “Are you alright now, darling?”
She sat up and wiped her eyes, a small smile on her face. “Yeah, thanks Dan. I’m alright.” I grabbed her hand and kissed it, making her blush. “Now, let’s see if Phil and Chassidy are ready and let’s get going, hm?”
I nodded in agreement and we split up, going to the separate rooms to get our friends. Meeting in the hallway, we headed to SoHo, deciding to spend some time just exploring New York.
Chassidy’s POV
Phil and I had split off from Haylee and Dan, wanting some time to ourselves. Phil grabbed my hand and I felt that old familiar tingle of electricity at his touch. I smiled, knowing that finally, I was able to be with Phil and not worry about being held back by my insecurities. “Look!” Phil gasped, pointing to a tall building that was lit up. The look on his face was priceless. He was so excited and amazed by everything he saw. I couldn’t stop staring at him, wondering how I’d ended up with someone so as incredible as he was. Phil turned to look at me. “What is it?” He asked.
“Nothing,” I grinned. “I was just wondering how I’d gotten someone as amazing as you.”
“You know what?” He began. “I was wondering the same thing about you.” He bent down to kiss me, my heart soaring. His scent made my head spin and it felt perfect. He broke the kiss, pressing his forehead to mine. “I love you.”
“I love you too, Phil. I always will.” I replied, taking his hand as we walked again. We headed into a cupcake shop called ‘Sweet Revenge’. “Oh, I’ve heard of this place!” I cried.
“Really?” Phil asked, amused by my excitement.
“Yeah! You pick a cupcake and then they tell you which beer or wine goes with it! They also have non-alcoholic beers and wines for those who don’t or can’t drink.” I explained. Phil looked excited and we ordered cupcakes. He called Haylee and Dan to have them meet us here. They arrived a few minutes later and ordered their food, joining us.
After eating and spending a bit more time walking around, Dan and Phil headed off for their radio city tour. Haylee and I spent a bit of time filming a video ourselves before meeting up with the boys again. Later that day, we took a helicopter ride, in which Phil got a little freaked out due to the height. Once we got back to the hotel, Dan whisked Haylee away to a fancy dinner, as Phil and I wanted some time by ourselves again. I curled up on Phil’s bed with ‘The Fault in Our Stars’ in my hands. I’d just gotten to one of the emotional parts and the tears were rolling down my cheeks. Phil wandered in, a tray of food in his hands. He’d gotten room service for us for dinner. “Chass? What’s wrong, love?” He asked, setting the tray down. He stopped when he saw the book. “Oh! You’ve gotten to an emotional chapter, eh?” I nodded, remembering that he’d read the book a couple of months ago.
I laughed at his silliness and set the book down as he set the plates on the table. “Dinner is served.” He smiled, using a fake French accent. I burst out laughing again and he pulled my chair out for me. We took the lids off of the plates and the smell made my mouth water.
“This looks amazing!” I gasped. Phil grinned.
“I knew Italian was your favorite, so I figured this would be pretty good!” He explained. I nodded and we ate, talking and enjoying ourselves. After dinner, Phil turned on some music and we danced around a bit. The song changed to a more romantic one, catching us by surprise. He pulled me close and kissed me. The kiss got more intense and we fell onto the bed in each other’s arms. I broke the kiss and he understood the boundaries. It was a silent vow to wait until we were married, but we both understood it and agreed to it. He held me close and I caught myself staring at him again. No words were spoken, but the look we exchanged said it all. Right then and there, I knew that I was making the right choice in following my heart and not letting my insecurities get in the way. Phil was perfect and I wanted to be with him forever.
