All the Ways

xxvi

Paige woke up the next morning, her eyes puffy and tired, "Johnny?"

"Hmm?" He hummed from next to her.

"I just wanted to make sure you were still here."

He pulled her closer, "I am. I always will be."

Paige woke up and she was still sad. That's how she knew that the feeling looming within her wasn't just a one-time thing.

Johnny and Sean had practice that morning, and it broke Johnny's heart that he had to leave Paige when she needed him the most. He got out of bed and she groaned.

"I have practice. I'm sorry. I'll be back ASAP. You can stay here while we're gone. " He ran into the shower. A few minutes later, Johnny and Sean were leaving to go to practice.

As the two walked to Sean's car, Sean sighed, "Paige?"

"Her and Amber got in a fight. She came here crying last night."

Sean just nodded, "Alright."

/////

Paige was in the same position when the boys came home from practice--still curled up in bed, still sniffling, still sad. He hopped back into bed and held her in silence. Johnny flipped through channels as Paige laid next to him, sleeping.

/////

Vivienne sat across from Amber at the table, silent. Amber's eyes were still puffy from last night, and it was apparent she was still upset over the situation.

Amber set her spoon down, which clinked against the ceramic bowl, "I think she's at Johnny's."

Vivienne continued to text on her phone, but she was still paying attention to Amber, "Are you going?"

"What if she hates me and she never wants to move back in with us? An argument over a stupid boy drove us apart." Her lip quivered and she began to cry again.

Vivienne set her phone down, "Hey. Listen to me. She doesn't hate you. She yelled at you because she cares about you, and we both know it. The trio can't be split up. We're... The trio of trios. I'm sure she's in the same predicament right now."

Amber nodded, "You're right. I'm gonna go."

Vivienne smiled at her as Amber walked out the door, "Good luck! I expect to see Paige home tonight!"

Amber drove to Johnny's apartment, tears still welling in her eyes. She was afraid of how Paige would react to her, and everything seemed like it was going so fast. When she parked her car, Amber had no recollection of driving to the building. She took the elevator up and walked down the hall. No turning back now. She knocked on the door, biting her lip in anticipation.

Sean answered the door. Amber literally forgot that Sean still lived there. She looked up at him, eyes red and puffy. She was too sad to articulate a full sentence, so all she could say was "Paige?"

Sean motioned for her to come inside, "She's in Johnny's."

Seeing Amber in her current state broke Sean's heart. All he wanted to do was engulf her in a hug and tell her things would be fine, but things weren't fine, and he hated it. He wanted so badly to just help her, but he knew he was unable to.

Amber walked down the familiar hallway, but instead of turning left into Sean's room, she turned right into Johnny's. She cracked the door open and stood in the doorway. Johnny stared at her with his huge brown eyes. He put his finger to his lips, signaling that Paige was still asleep.

Paige tossed and turned, waking up. Her whole body was still buried underneath the blanket, so she was unable to see her. "Still there?"

"Still here." That had been going on for five hours. Paige would wake up and make sure Johnny was still there, and he would have to reassure her that he hadn't left her alone. Paige was scared of Johnny leaving, even if it was only temporary.

Amber raised her voice a little bit, "Paigey?"

Paige took the blanket off of half her body and sat up. All she did was give Amber a confused look. Both of them had puffy eyes and looked exhausted.

"I'm sorry. I love you. I should've listened. Please come home. It felt weird this morning knowing that you weren't there. I'm sorry. I'm so sorry. You're my best friend and I need you. I just cut Connor off. I don't want him to ruin our friendship."

Paige threw the rest of the blanket off of her and sprinted to Amber to give her a hug. Paige practically tackled Amber. They laughed and Paige hugged her even tighter, "God. I love you. I'm sorry for yelling at you. I love you. I love you. I love you."

Sean eavesdropped from his room across the hall, his ears practically perking up when he heard Amber saying that she dropped Connor. His chance was back. He could get his girl back.

The two girls smiled as they laid on the floor of Johnny's room. Paige stood up and got herself together. She kissed Johnny goodbye and gave him lots of thank you's for getting through the day with her. She also hugged Sean goodbye, apologizing for showing up randomly, as if that was something Paige should apologize about. Sean and Amber just waved to each other, and the more he saw her, the more he missed her.

Paige and Amber made their way home, and had a nice dinner with Vivienne. Vivienne always kept them sane. If anything, she was always the glue holding them together. She had such a way of solving things between people--it was no wonder why the trio worked so well.