[Bad As Ever || Book 2]

17°

» "could've sworn that you told me. Well, I'm tellin' you, I'm tellin' you, now I ain't through, I ain't through. I, now I ain't through, I ain't through, I ain't done with you..."

Miami, FL;

Bryson woke up at about four o'clock in the morning. His wiped the drool from the side of his mouth and stretched. He felt stiff from the uncomfortable position he had been in for hours.

He noticed the keys and the note beside his laptop and raised an eyebrow. He pushed the card and key aside and grabbed the note.

Bryson, I love you more than anything and you mean the world to me but it's no secret that we aren't happy and this is making both of us sick. I've given it a lot of thought and I'm going to go back to Kentucky. I want you to stay here and work on your music, do what you love. I promise it's not the end. When you feel like it's been long enough, I'll be waiting for you.

Paris

"Nah," Bryson said chuckling out in disbelief, "She didn't leave. She didn't le— ha, she left...Fuck!"

He wasn't sure what to do. She didn't know which room she stayed in and he figured she was already gone. It was four in the morning so no one was downstairs.

He tried to call her but it went straight to voicemail.

"Baby, I'm so sorry. Pick up the phone please, we can talk about it and then you come back." He hung up and called back.

Before the sun rose, he had called her a total of thirty times and left her over twenty voicemails.

He ranted about how much he loved her smile and happy she made him. He cried about how much he missed Brylee and how he ruined their life.

Achy, exhausted, and heartbroken, he finally stopped calling and collapsed on his bed.

Louisville, KY;

Paris called an uber to take her to the airport and bought a ticket to Louisville. She waited all night for her flight, which left at eight am.

She saw all of Bryson's calls before she got into the plane but didn't have time to call back.

Once she was in Louisville, she called John. She didn't even have a plan, honestly. She hadn't contacted him to tell him that she was coming nor had she quit her job.

All she knew was she was drowning in her situation and needed an immediate change.

"Is everything alright?" John asked putting her bag into his trunk. She just sighed and shrugged.

"I don't know anymore." She admitted. He nodded and got into the driver's seat as she got into the passenger side.

"Well, the house I moved into is only meant for one person so you might be cramped in there." John said glancing over at her.

"Can't be any worse that where I've been for last two months." She said, looking out of the window.

When they got to his small house, all Paris wanted to do was sleep. She didn't even bother taking her coat off before crashing on the couch to take a much needed nap.

When she awakened, Bryson was calling. She took a deep breath and answered the call. He was very surprised that after a million calls, she picked up. He wasn't even sure what he wanted to say anymore.

"Um, baby.... I love you."

"I love you too, Bryson. Don't think that me leaving means that I don't love you because I do." She clarified.

"Why don't you just come back and we can make everything right?" He said, his voice, contradicting his mass of voicemails.

"No, and I don't want you to come up here either. Space is good for us right now. You stay in Miami and focus on your music and I stay up here and just regroup, find myself." She told him.

"We work better as a team." He protested. She sighed deeply in the mix of the phone.

"Why don't you sing something to me, Bryson."

"What, why?" He asked, confused at her sudden change of subject.

"Because I want hear you sing. Not one of your songs, another song." She instructed.

"Paris, what does this have to do with anything?"

"Nothing, I'm just tired of talking about negative things, make me smile." Paris begged, shifting on the couch.

He sighed deeply, "Fine, Paris. What do you want me to sing?"

"I don't know, is there a song you think of when you think of us?"

"Looking at you day after day, I know I... Just Gotta Make It. Just to see that smile upon your face, I know I... Just Gotta Make It. Everything I do, I do for you and we... Just Gotta Make It. To the top of the world, me and my girl we... Just Gotta Make It, Just Gotta Make It..."

Paris smiled to herself and put her phone to her heart. I out it back to my ear once he began to talk.

"That's what I think of when I think of us. 'Cause I really want to give you everything, baby."

"You're enough for me the way you are. I just want all of your dreams to come true, and I know you're close. I can feel it." She told him confidently.

"I sure hope so." He breathed, "I miss you already, you know that right? The last couple of days have been hell with in another room, now what am I going to do?" He asked.

"You're going to be amazing like you always are, whether I'm around or not and when things get better, I'm right here waiting on you."

"I love you so much, Paris." He said.

"I love you too. I'll talk to you later, alright? After I get settled in."

They finished their conversation and Paris got up to get her things. She wasn't sure what would happen in her future but she hoped for the best.