Will I See You Again?

I wish I could

With several days off and not too far from home, Lindsey and Stevie decided to head back to Los Angeles. They constantly had eyes on them and it wasn't something either of them found particularly enjoyable, wanting to spend time together, away from everyone else. 

At first, Stevie said she would like to go to her house, pack some new clothes, check if everything was alright and then she would return to Lindsey. So, after the plane landed at the airport, the two of them got into separate cars, agreeing to meet later in the evening.

When the car stopped in front of the house, Stevie noticed Joe's car out of the garage right away. She swallowed the lump that had started forming in her throat, then got out, once paying the driver. She didn't expect to see Joe. When she was home, he wouldn't come back for months and now, here he was. Probably very angry, too. 

Finding the front door unlocked, Stevie pushed it open and went inside, listening for Joe. He clearly wasn't downstairs, so she went to check the bedroom, where she saw him sound asleep, sprawled on the bed. At least she didn't have to face him at this exact moment. 

Joe woke up hours later, hearing water running in the bathroom. Lazily getting out of bed, he went in there, seeing Stevie in the shower. Haven't been with her in quite some time, he quickly stripped off his clothes and joined her, startling her. 

"Jesus! You scared the hell out of me." Stevie breathed heavily, a hand on her chest.

"Hello to you, too." He said dryly, his arms wrapping themselves around her from behind. "Where have you been?" Pressing light kiss on her neck. "I came home in the morning, hoping to find you still in bed."

"Uh... when did you come back exactly?" Her heartbeat picked up pace.

"Around eleven."

"Oh, I had a nail appointment, the only slot today, so I had to wake up earlier." She lied, praying he'd buy it. "And when I returned, I found you sleeping. I didn't want to wake you, you must have been tired."

"I was, not anymore though." Joe pointed out, gripping her tighter, pushing her up against the wall. "I've missed you." He licked his lips, his hands exploring her body, as she couldn't help but enjoy the feeling, closing her eyes. "Missed me?"

"Uh-uh." She nodded, cocking her head back, moaning, when he squeezed her breasts.

"Enjoying this, aren't you?" He whispered, nipping on her earlobe. "Let's see just how much you've really missed me..." One of his hands traveled south and in between her legs, as he started circling a finger against her.

"Oh, Lindsey..." Her eyes shot open at the realization of what just came out of her mouth, while Joe withdrew his hands, staring at her.

"WHAT THE FUCK?"

"Oh my God, Joe! I'm so sorry! I..."

"What? WHAT? Who is he?!" Stepping out of the shower, Joe kicked the bathroom door open, as Stevie grabbed for a towel, wrapping it around herself, following after him. "You've been cheating on me! How long?!"

"Joe, I'm sorry! I didn't mean for you to find out this way." She shook her head, seeing how mad he was. "Yes, I've been unfaithful to you, that's true. But have you been loyal to me?"

"So, that makes it okay, huh?" Running a hand through his hair, Joe then reached for his jeans, putting them on. "For your information, I haven't been with anyone besides you for a while now. As we talked, I was trying to fix our relationship, but now you're the one fucking it up!"

"There's nothing for us to fix anymore, let's be honest..." Stevie sat down beside Joe, once she knew this wasn't the violent kind of anger on his part, she'd become really good at reading it after a while. "We should have ended it before you left, we're living a lie."

"I see, he's messing with your head real good." Laughing harshly. "What is he telling you? Is he promising you a fairy tale? A happy ending?"

"It doesn't matter. The one thing he has shown me is that our relationship has been over for a long time, Joe. I just... I don't feel much for you anymore. He helped me see that. And I think it's for the best. We can say goodbye and move on with our lives."

"You think it's that easy?" Joe raised an eyebrow. "You think I'm just going to let you go?"

"What choice do you have?" Stevie asked back, her eyes remaining on his - a challenge of sorts. "I don't love you anymore."

"Let me guess, you're in love with him now? Or did he say he's fallen for you?"

"Joe, that's besides the point. I'm saying that you and I are over, really over this time. Out of all these years, how much time we've actually spent together? You either record or tour and I'm here, waiting for you to decide that you've missed me. I'm tired of that."

Sitting quietly, after a long moment, Joe tried, at least he did... "Give me another chance?"

"No. No more chances. I've made a decision already, I'm only sorry that we didn't break up before you left."

Sighing heavily, he looked away. "Are you in love with him?"

"I'm not sure what my feelings are yet, but what I do know is that I'm a lot happier."

"There's no reason for me to put up a fight, is there?"

"What for?" Stevie asked, shrugging her shoulders, amazed at how well Joe was taking this. Deep in his heart, he had to be feeling the same way as she was.

"Take your time with moving out, I'm heading back on the road tomorrow. No rush." He said, standing up, ready to be away from her. 

"Joe?"

"Yeah?"

"Don't hate me, please."

"I wish I could." Letting out a deep breath he left her with that...