I Could Fly A Thousand Oceans.

"You promised me you wouldn't cry." 

Neither was speaking, but Michael wasn't immune to the wet patch forming on his chest.  He knew Jamie playing with his fingers was her own way of coping, but he removed one hand from her grasp to comb through her hair.  He was finding it hard to cope too.  "C'mon Jay."

"I'm sorry."  It was barely a sniffle. 

All Michael could bring himself to do was press a kiss to his girlfriend's temple and rest his head on top of hers.

Luke, who was at the final stage of his quest to make Calum surrender his last doughnut using his feet, watched the two from the other side of the gate lounge.  It was hard for him to see his best mate and friend in so much pain, sadness, whatever you want to call the feeling of waiting for your heart to be torn from your chest by the power of an aeroplane, and he took it upon himself to do something.  In the end it was he who gave up first in his and Calum's mini battle, and Calum looked on in shock as Luke stood up - Luke never lost a mini battle.  When Calum realised what Luke was doing, he joined.  Luke sat next to Jamie, wrapped his arms around her waist and hugged her close.  Calum did the same with Michael, and when Ashton returned from the toilet to see the four laying on top of each other, he went over and joined.  Nobody spoke, but the silence was enough. 

Michael didn't want to leave Jamie. Jamie didn’t want Michael to leave.  And Ashton, Luke and Calum didn’t want to see the two so hurt. 

When Ashton, Calum and Luke were saying goodbye to family - parents, siblings, friends -, Michael was hugging Jamie like his life depended on it (he had said his farewells to his family before the final call, persuading his parents to let him have this last ten minutes with his girlfriend).  Both had at this point forgotten their pact with each other to not cry, and were letting the tears fall freely into the other's neck. 

"I still can't believe you're going." 

"I know," Michael squeezed Jamie's hips slightly, resting his forehead against hers, "but we've known today was going to come since July, and I'll be back in not even three months.  It will fly by." 

Jamie leaned forward slightly, pressing her lips against Michael's before burying her face into his neck for the last time until February.  "I love you."

Michael held Jamie in front of him by her shoulders, thumb coming up to wipe a stray tear from her cheek.  "I love you too.  What have I told you since we got this chance?  It always will be you,"

"Wherever you are."  Jamie finished for him. 

They kissed lazily for the next few minutes, savouring the time they had left, until Michael was told he really needed to go.  He kissed his girlfriend one more time and walked to the boarding attendant.  The last words Jamie saw from Michael before he boarded the plane she would never forget.  "Wherever I am."

+

Michael and Jamie stayed true to their word.  For the next 2 months, they spoke to each other every day without fail (apart from that once mid-December when Michael didn't get back from writing until 2am and was so out of it he fell asleep in the middle of the kitchen floor, but he definitely made up for it the next day with a 3 hour Skype call just before Jamie went to sleep).  I t wasn't until the beginning of February (or there abouts) when Jamie realised things were going to start going downhill.

"Michael Gordon Clifford, there better be a good reason I'm up at 3am for you, and being horny isn't one."

Michael was so giddy that he didn't even notice Jamie use his full name, never mind scold her for it.  Jamie knew Michael was excited when she woke to the blaring of her phone.