a day in the life of Adele

Chapter 29

Two weeks have gone by since Laura's mother passed away. The funeral took place a couple of days after she died, and it was incredibly emotional.

It broke my heart to watch her family say a final goodbye to such a big part of their family. I knew nobody would ever fill the gap they now had in their hearts.

I haven't seen Laura since that day.

She texts me once a day, telling me she's awake. That's all I hear from her anymore. I think she has become a bit of a recluse as she grieves. But I don't blame her, I know she needs time and space.

Although, part of me is worried that she won't be able to make it to the wedding. It was a likely possibility, but I couldn't begin to imagine what the day would be like without her, so I pushed the thought to the back of my mind.

Other than that, things were going pretty well. It was exactly one month until the wedding, and I was beginning to get nervous.

Simon, on the other hand, was nothing but excited.

"Aren't you the slightest bit nervous?" I asked as we were getting ready for bed.

"Not really, what's there to be nervous about?" He calmly responded.

"What if something goes wrong or the photographer cancels or there's a lot of snow? Everybody will be watching us, what if I do something stupid?"

"Adele, relax. How many arena shows did you do this year? How many times were you the center of attention to a room full of 18,000 people you didn't know? You're going to be fine in front of 100 people you've known your entire life."

I sat down on the bed, nodding and taking a deep breath. "I guess you're right."

"Aren't I always?" He teases.

I laugh. "Not when it comes to cooking."

He looks at me with a hurt face and sarcastically says, "Ouch, that hurt."

I laugh again as he makes his way to his side of the bed. He wraps his arms around me and pulls me against him protectively.

"I can't believe we get to spend the rest of our lives with each other." I say, our faces close together.

"It's quite exciting, isn't it?" He replies, running his fingers through my hair.

"What did I do to deserve you?" I ask him, feeling relaxed and safe.

"I wonder what I did to deserve you all the time. I'm immensely thankful for you, baby. I have a lot of flaws, some I don't know how you put with."

I nod in agreement. "Me neither."

We laugh together and he plants a kiss on my lips. I don't want it to stop, so when he pulls away I kiss him again. We kiss for a good two minutes before I decide it's time to go to sleep.

"That was a surprise." He says when I finally pull away.

"I just wanted to kiss you longer. You know you're good at it, right?"

"Oh, I know." He says with pride.

I laugh and roll over, feeling his arm around me just he did every night. It's familiar and it makes me feel protected. It puts me to sleep instantly.

That is, until my phone rings.

I stare at the contact name.

Laura.

I haven't ever been so quick to answer her.

"Laura? Are you alright?"

"Can you-" She stops, sounding like she is crying. "Can you meet me somewhere? I need to talk."

"Yes, of course, anywhere you want." I respond, already getting out of bed.

"Why don't you meet me on the corner of Oxford and Third?"

That was our meeting spot when we were teenagers. We haven't gone there by ourselves in years.

"Of course, I'll be there in ten minutes."

"Ok." She says, then abruptly hangs up.

I look over to Simon, seeing his anxious expression.

"Laura wants to meet me on Oxford. I shouldn't be too long. I think she just needs someone to talk to in person."

He nods, understanding. "Ok, baby. Be safe. I love you."

"I love you too." I say, and I'm out the door.

+

The street is relatively empty. Everything is closed for the night.

As I am walking towards the bench I'm meeting Laura at, I see a silhouette in the night sitting there already.

When I get closer, I see that it's her.

I sit down next to her, immediately noticing how bad she looks.

Her hair looks like she hasn't combed it in days, her eyes are red and puffy, and her face is uneven and splotchy.

"Adele, I don't know what to do." She suddenly says, staring at the pavement.

I don't respond, I just let her speak freely.

"I haven't left my house, I haven't answered my calls, I haven't showered. Everything is a mess." She swallows. Her voice is different, it sounds tired.

I continue to just listen.

"I'm searching for myself. I've accepted that she died, but I can't find the piece of me that died with her."

Hearing her say that breaks my heart. I don't know what to say.

She continues, remaining strong. She hasn't cried yet.

"I need your help. Your wedding is in a month, and I'm not sure if I can make it."

I freeze. That was the one thing I didn't want to hear her say.