Chapter Seventy

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Songs for this chapter:
• Good Times - All Time Low

Chapter Seventy:

"I'm going out for lunch with Leo and Bryce before Bryce's flight. That's okay with you guys, right?" I ask my parents, anxiously rocking back on my heels.

I check my phone for the time once again, and it confirms that the two of them will be here any minute now.

"Of course, Lexi. Please don't cry to the point that you dehydrate yourself, dear," my dad teases me, and I narrow my eyes at him.

The doorbell rings, followed by a curt knock. It prevents me from saying anything stupid to my dad that I'll end up regretting, and I give my parents both a wave before heading out the living room and towards the foyer.

The moment I push open the front door, I throw myself into Bryce's arms, burying my face against his chest.

Tears begin to fall down down my cheeks already, and Bryce closes the door behind me so that my parents don't hear the whole messy exchange.

"I can't believe you're leaving in a few hours," I whimper, to which Bryce wraps his strong arms around my waist, holding me tight.

"I'm sorry. I really am. I wish I didn't have to go," Bryce says quietly, and when I pull away to stare at him, I see that he's trying incredibly hard not to cry himself.

He fails al little bit, as he suddenly has a single tear rolling down his cheek.

I reach up to wipe it away with the pad of my thumb, and Bryce gives me a weak smile before taking my hand and guiding me down the front steps.

It turns out that him and Leo chose to take a large Audi SVU that I've yet to see either of them drive before, presumably so that they can store all of Bryce's luggage in the trunk.

Surprisingly, Bryce opts to join me in the backseat rather than sitting up front with his dad, and so I choose to sit in the middle seat so that we're closer together.

After buckling my seatbelt, I rest my cheek against Bryce's shoulder. He kisses me gently on the top of my head and I press my face even closer to his chest, inhaling his warm and welcoming scent of cinnamon and vanilla for the last time in awhile.

"Hey, Lexi. How are you?" Leo asks me as he pulls away from the curb and out onto the street.

I let out a small, involuntary sigh at the question. "I guess I'm fine, but I just haven't doing great these past few days. I'm really going to miss your son," I answer him, to which I see him nod as he makes a turn out of my neighbourhood.

"Me too, Lexi. Me too," he then says to me, and I see Bryce shut his eyes as if he's holding on to every last piece of his sanity right now to stop from spiralling into an emotional breakdown.

All three of us seem to be a total mess, as none of us are able to bring ourselves to saying anything else until we reach the restaurant. It's a small, upscale place that I've seen before but never had been too, assuming that it's probably really expensive.

I momentarily wonder if the simple white dress that I'm wearing is fancy enough, but I know that it's a ridiculous thought, and so I push it away.

Leo parks the car in a spot near the door, and when he unlocks the doors, Bryce swiftly climbs out of the vehicle. He offers me his hand, and I take it, allowing him to pull me out of the car before he slams the door closed behind us.

We hold hands the whole time as we follow Leo to the front door of the restaurant, stepping inside to find the place fairly crowded.

A hostess greets us by the door, and Leo tells her the simple words, "Reservation for Bradshaw," before she grabs three menus, leading us towards a table along one of the windowed walls.

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