This Is Love, This Is Life

Rosie Part Two (Bongiovi/Sambora)

Author's Notes:

Talk about going down to the wire with this one!

No time to chat as I need to get this posted before E crashes out over the keyboard! I may come back and add to the notes.

Love you all

J and E💕💕💕

One Week Later

Rosie's Funeral

Jon POV

It had been a long, fraught week and Jon was glad it was almost over. He had been worried about his boyfriend all week and because it was so out of the ordinary, it had exhausted him.

Since Rosie had no family, Richie had volunteered to help with the funeral arrangements. He had also been asked to spread the word on the street that anyone, specifically the street kids past and present, that knew Rosie, would be welcome to attend both the funeral and the wake. Richie reasoned that Rosie would have wanted it that way; they were her chosen family.

He had also argued that Al had to be included, if only so that he knew that his stable of workers weren't trying to get out of work for no valid reason, which Jon had reluctantly agreed made sense. Jon had seen Al's work expectations first hand and he knew the man was ruthless.

Among all of the funeral planning, Richie had also been spending long hours at the bar. He was due to present Al with his latest figures soon and the combination of it all was taking its toll on him. The nights, or more like the early hours of the morning, after Richie had come home from the bar, had him crashing out quickly, only to end up tossing and turning in his sleep.

Jon had tried to soothe him on those restless nights, holding him close and murmuring softly to him until he settled back into a slightly deeper sleep.

Some nights he would wake, leaving Jon in bed, to sit in the dark living room, softly playing his guitar. Lying in bed listening to him, Jon guessed that he was in the process of writing something as the same, initially unfamiliar, the melody was played over and over again.

Jon had hoped that taking on most of the load at home, whilst still working full-time at Rashbaum's Music, would go towards reducing Richie's stress but it was his lover's inner turmoil that he couldn't help with. He had to work through that one himself and Jon was hoping that being able to properly say goodbye to Rosie would help ease his boyfriend's mind.

The day of the funeral had been a bright and shiny one, carrying the scent of the city on the breeze. The diner, the front windows of which were now adorned with flowers and candles, would be closed for the day allowing all the staff to be able to attend. It would also give them somewhere after the service, to celebrate Rosie's life.

Originally, Jon hadn't thought it was going to be a big affair but by the time all the staff, the street kids that Rosie had fed, the Rashbaums, Richie, his parents and himself were in attendance, the diner was going to be packed.

He was pacing their small apartment, waiting for Richie to emerge from getting dressed. He was antsy and anxious, not for himself even though this would be the first funeral he had attended, but more for Richie's state of mind after today.

"Quit pacing, Jonny," Richie called out from the bedroom. "I'm almost done so we're not going to be late, if that's what's got you all worked up."

"It's not only that," Jon replied, stopping in his tracks and blinking at the partially closed bedroom door. "How did you know?" he asked, flopping to the couch unceremoniously, reaching for his guitar. He started picking at the strings, unconsciously playing the melody that Richie had been working on.