Make It A Sweet, Sweet Goodbye

Chapter 21 : There's Nothing Left To Lose

Alex kept his face buried in my neck for around half an hour after our conversation, and I sat there, running my fingers through his hair, tracing patterns on his back, and telling him that it was okay. The whole time, I could feel Alex’s tears falling onto my neck and shoulder. I’d never seen him this emotional; ever. 

After half an hour, Alex pulled back and looked at me. My tears had dried, but his were still running. I took my hand from his hair and wiped his face off gently. “Leila, I’m so sorry, I…” He trailed off, and I could see tears pooling in his eyes again. 

I took his face in my hands, cupping his cheeks gently. “Alex, you don’t need to keep apologizing to me. I already forgave you. It’s in the past, it’s all forgotten.” I told him quietly but sternly, rubbing my thumb over his cheekbone. 

Alex took a deep breath, and after a few seconds of thinking, he nodded. “Okay. I’m not going to be able to forget what I did to you, but we can start fresh.” He said, and I nodded, agreeing. “Good. Thank you. Does this mean that the old Alex is back?” I asked. 

Alex smiled for the first time since I’ve been back, and a weight felt like it had been lifted off my shoulders. “Yes, the old Alex is back.” He declared, and I smiled hugging him one more time. “Good.” I whispered, pulling back. “Now you need to get on good terms with the guys next. They miss you too.” I noted.  

He nodded. “Yea, I do. How about we get the 5 of us together tonight and hang. You, me, Jack, Rian, and Zack.” He said, and I agreed. “That sounds like a good idea. What do you want to do?” I asked him, and he smiled. 

“How about we camp out in the venue tonight. We can get all of our blankets and stuff and sleep on the stage.” He offered, and I smiled. “That sounds like fun. Audrey will probably kill me for leaving her on the bus by herself.” I said, and Alex smirked. “Vinny will take care of her.” Alex told me, and I looked at him, a quizzical look on my face. 

“What are you talking about?” I asked him, confused. Alex smiled. “All Vinny talked about this week was about how much he missed Audrey, and how he was going to ask Audrey on an official date when you guys got back. So if she says yes, Vin will take care of her. I guess that’s why he hasn’t been complaining about his merch job now.” Alex explained, and I smiled. “Audrey and Vin would be adorable. I hope she says yes. I’m up for tonight though, 100%. But first, you’ve got more talking to do.” I say, standing. 

He took another deep breath and nodded, standing up too. “You’re right. Let’s go find them.” He said. 

We walked out of the green room and to the stage, where we found Jack, Rian, and Zack, all standing around talking. Alex and I walked over to them, and Zack was the first one to see us, followed my Jack and Rian. 

“Hey guys.” Rian said, kind of quietly. “How are you?” He asked. I looked over at Alex, and Alex looked back at me. I gave him a small smile, and turned back to Rian. “We’re good.” I replied, and Alex nodded, agreeing. “But even though we’re good doesn’t mean that /we/ necessarily are.” Alex added, pointing between him and the guys. “So do you mind if I talk to you guys for a few minutes” He asked them. 

They all shrugged. “I don’t see why not.” Zack told him, and Alex nodded. 

“Well, while you guys are talking, I’m going to go get some…stuff.” I said, looking over at Alex, seeing if he would catch on with what I meant. He did, because he nodded and winked. I sighed and walked out of the venue, smiling to myself. Alex and I had /finally/ worked things out. After 5 long months, we finally worked things out. 

I made my way to the bus, opening the door to find Flyzik, Vinny, Grieco, and Audrey sitting there. Who knows where everybody else went, all I know is that Audrey and Vinny were looking very comfortable.