Fallen Angels (UNEDITED)

XLVIII

You misunderstood
So kiss this one last time
And I'm gone for good
~The Struts, Kiss This

"How's life on the road treating you?" I smile at the familiar Boston accent as I'm wrapped in a tight hug.

I drop the bag down beside me and embrace the familiar smell, "it was fun."

A simple answer; how do I explain to my ex-boyfriend those short weeks on the road were the best time of my life?

Even with everything that happened towards the end of the trip with Scarlett.

"I'm happy to hear that, now let's get this house unpacked and sold." Will laughs, taking my bags from me and leading me out of the airport. It feels normal having his hand linked in mine as we swerve through the crowds of people.

It's like I'm returning from a business meeting like I did so many times before, and he's here picking me up like he did so many times before.

It's a surreal feeling.

"Kia has been living on my couch if she isn't at the boy's house, what is his name?" Will questions as we reach the familiar white BMW.

"Mason?" I lift my suitcase into the trunk of the car before climbing in the front.

The white leather seats are spotless like the rest of the car.

Will's baby.

The summer was spent with random drives and daily car washes.

"He's the one trying to become a pro snowboarder?" I nod my head as Will laughs, "that kid sure showed our asses up."

"At least I could stay on my feet." I flick my braid over my shoulder as I give Will a dazzling smile.

"That's because you didn't break your ankle when you were 22."

"I also knew how to land, I still don't understand how you managed to break your ankle by skydiving." I laugh at Will, watching his face contour into pain thinking about my 18th birthday.

"Please let's not talk about that, I can feel my ankle throbbing."

"So Kia has been living with you?" I know my cousin hates living at home and will often sleep at Mason's or my place rather than dealing with her dad. I just never thought she would go there once I left.

"Yeah, I keep telling her she can take your car, but she insists walking is fine."

"Is she there now?" I want to see my baby cousin so much, it feels like forever since I last saw her.

"No. I think Mason's twin was coming home from some tournament so they were going to pick her up from the airport last night."

"I need to visit her parents while I'm here." I quickly type it in my reminders as I know I will forget otherwise.

"What about your parents?"

"No." I try to end the conversation there, but I can't help but feel angry at Will for even thinking I would visit them. "I don't need to listen to how I've ruined my life and the family name. How I wreck everything they worked so hard for. Listen to them bash Marcus because he's bi and wants to study art and English? No thank you, I'll wait for the Christmas card."

Why would I wreck my happiness by going to visit them?

I know what my mother will do, she'll try to take everything I've worked on and shred it to pieces like my self-confidence.

"I didn't mean to upset you, but you know how I feel about family." Will sighs as we continue the drive through streets that used to drive me insane, streets that I wish I would've taken earlier to get away from a life that wasn't my own.

But here I am returning to a life that I ran from.

"What I have with my parents isn't family."

Now, what I have with Fallen Angels, feels like family.

The car ride is silent after that, why am I surprised?

Did I really think anything had changed? Will still trying to tell me how to live and act, me feeling trapped within the city limits.

"How are you and Erik?" I turn my head to look at Will.

"What do you mean? Nothing is going on."

I'm brought back to the night in the hotel after the release of their two music videos and how that night felt like it was a dream. Erik had taken his time not like how I thought he would. I'm reminded of the ways his hands moved over my body.

The way I woke up to be alone, no sight or Erik or the night we shared.

Just cold sheets pressed against my bare skin.

I haven't had any contact with him since then nor I have seen him.

I texted him that morning, but after the sixth text with no reply, I gave up.

I settled with it being a mistake that should have never happened, much like my feelings for him.

"What's wrong?" Will's voice is full of concern when he asks me the question that's been repeated so many times before.

"Erik was a mistake." I look out the window, watching the house that kept me a prisoner approach us.

My car is no longer parked in the driveway, but rather the money sitting in my account, much like this house will no longer have a grip on me once the new family moves in.

I can't wait for the next few days to pass by.

Once the final papers are signed I will only have the reason to visit my cousin, but once she graduates I will truly be free from Boston.

Will parks the car in the driveway and we both climb out feeling like the day we moved in; the garage full of boxes, a "for sale" sign in the front yard, and the desire to start a new chapter.

"Will, whatever you don't want, sell it. I don't want anything from here. I'll be going through my things if you need me." I don't wait for his reply as I climb the steps to the second floor, feeling the smooth bannister under my hand; the same bannister that I clung to so many times for strength.

My heels click against the hardwood as I walk towards the master bedroom, passing by empty rooms that once held memories.

The room doesn't feel different like I thought it would  when I walked in.

The closet is full of clothes I will no longer wear, price tags cling to the fabrics still reminding me of a materialistic life.

My ripped jeans and crew neck feel out of place in the glitz and glam of a life I once participated in.

I take the boxes piled in the corner and write on them; for sale and keep.

"Let's get started," I mumble as I turn I hit a random playlist and start sorting through hundred of clothing articles.

"Hey, I was going to order Chinese." I look up at Will in the doorway as I finish taping a box, "I never realized how many clothes you really had."

I look at the room to see half the shelves are empty and at least two dozen boxes marked for sale while five boxes are labelled keep.

"Don't remind me, I'm so tired." I mumble as I fall back from my seated position on the floor, "how's downstairs?"

"Kitchen is done. All that is left is our bedroom."

Our.

"Want to give it one last go?" I question knowing very well this will be the last time I will probably see Will.

"What do you mean?" Will's eyebrows furrow at me as I get off the ground.

"Let's fuck just one last time for heaven's sake. After this, I'm gone for good."

Edited by GirlReader133