𝐁𝐋𝐀𝐂𝐊𝐌𝐀𝐈𝐋𝐄𝐃 • 𝐉𝐄𝐍𝐙𝐈𝐄

7.10

mackenzie whipped her head around to her friends, an awestruck look on her face. her hand was still covering her mouth in shock, and her heartbeat was skyrocketing by the second. none of her friends looked surprised– mandla looked amused with a half smile playing on his lips, brynn was biting her lip, maisys eyes were curiously taking in mackenzies reaction, and lauren was downright grinning.

"is this happening?" she whispered as the beginning notes of the song started to play.

lauren nodded at her, smiling. "it is."

mackenzie didn't know what to do with herself, and her mind was reeling, body fizzing with electricity. shutting up, she moved as close to the stage as she could and hugged her arms around herself. she stood there listening, as johnny played the piano and then begin to sing.

"i'm jealous of the rain,
that falls upon your skin
it's closer than my hands have been,
i'm jealous of the rain
i'm jealous of the wind,
that ripples through your clothes
it's closer than your shadow,
oh, i'm jealous of the wind."

it only took the first verse, and mackenzie was already upset. tears threatened to burst over her eyelids but she swallowed them back. she looked back at her friends, and they were smiling at her like proud parents. she put a hand over her heart and smiled, turning back to johnny and his incredible performance.

"cause i wished you,
the best of,
all this world could give
and i told you,
when you left me,
there's nothing to forgive
but i always thought you'd come back,
tell me,
all you found was,
heartbreak and misery
it's hard for me to say,
i'm jealous of the way,
you're happy without me."

the song hit mackenzie right where it hurt, capturing every feeling she had felt over the last few months they had been apart. how many times had she fretted about johnny meeting someone else? how many times had she worried that even when she was ready to date him again, he would have already moved on? endless times.

she drew her hands to her sides and they began shaking. she was enraptured, enthralled, absolutely stunned at how johnny had managed to make the song so much of his own yet so similar to the original.

"i'm jealous of the nights,
that i don't spend with you
i'm wondering who you lay next to,
oh, i'm jealous of the nights
i'm jealous of the love,
love that was in here,
gone for someone else to share,
oh, i'm jealous of the love."

mackenzie walked backwards to her friends, and there were no other words for it– she collapsed back into their arms and started sobbing quietly. mandla caught her, and lauren pulled her close. brynn clasped one hand and maisy took the other. they all looked down at her, worried. mackenzie smiled through her tears.

"i'm happy crying!" she said by way of explanation, and they all laughed. wiping at her eyes, mackenzie kept on watching, feeling so proud of herself, johnny, her friends and how far they'd all come together.

"'cause i wished you,
the best of,
all this world could give
and i told you,
when you left me,
there's nothing to forgive
but i always thought you'd come back,
tell me,
all you found was,
heartbreak and misery
it's hard for me to say,
i'm jealous of the way,
you're happy without me.

"as i sink,
in the sand,
watch you slip,
through my hands
oh, as i die here another day, yeah
'cause all i do is cry behind this smile,
i wished you,
the best of,
all this world could give
and i told you,
when you left me,
there's nothing to forgive
but i always thought you'd come back,
tell me,
all you found was,
heartbreak and misery
it's hard for me to say,
i'm jealous of the way,
you're happy without me.

"i-i-it's hard for me to say, i'm jealous of the way
you're happy without me."

at the closing note, mackenzie walked away from her friends and got closer to the stage once again. she knew she was what maddie would call a "beautiful mess" but that didn't stop her in the slightest. she waited until the cacophony of the applause died out and after an eager nod from maddie in the audience she stepped out onto the stage.

the audience gasped collectively.

johnny, in the middle of the stage under the lights, froze mid bow. he looked around until he saw what it was making the audience gasp, and their eyes connected; a beautiful, hazel green versus a deep chocolate brown.

tears dripped down mackenzies cheeks, but paradoxically, she was smiling widely.

she saw johnny's sharp intake of breath as she walked slowly towards him. the corner of his lip curled up into his trademark grin, and he opened his arms out ready for her, looking like he'd just won the lottery.

mackenzie ran the last few steps towards him, jumping so her legs hooked around his waist and her arms wrapped around her neck. he caught her, hands respectfully holding her waist, as it was a move they had practiced many a time before.

her heart was beating like a fragile birds; fast and very close to the surface. as his warm body held onto the embrace, she cried, chest and shoulders heaving up and down.

"i love you." he was whispering into her ear, over and over and over and over.

still sobbing, mackenzie slid down his front until her feet hit the floor. as her arms were still wrapped around his neck, she gently tugged him down so he was her height. his warm breath fanned over her face, and his eyes sought out her own.

it felt like the audience had melted away, to mackenzie, even though they most certainly had not. in the distant recesses of her mind, she was aware of the shouts, screams, wolf-whistles and chants, but that would all come flooding back to her later. right now, all she could focus on was how badly she wanted johnny's lips on her own.

"i love you too." mackenzie mumbled, before smiling and letting her eyes flutter shut. mere milliseconds later, he was kissing her. she chased the kiss, unable to stop her smile, and moved so she was cupping his face with her hands.

he reached up to brush away her tears, pulling away from their kiss gently and resting their foreheads together.

"hey. don't ever let go of me again," he mumbled, looking so vulnerable it made her heart hurt, "because i love you way too much to lose you."

AUTHORS NOTE

andddd finally... the chapter you've all been waiting for!! i hope u guys thought this was cute, i tried 🤷🏼‍♀️ :)