I Wanna Sing You a Sunrise

Chapter 25: Be Patient

A/N: This is a pretty long chapter, the longest so far I think, so get a nice hot drink and settle in:) Enjoy and have a good weekend!

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June 2019

Stefani tossed a suitcase onto the bed, headed into her walk-in wardrobe to select some pieces for another few days' stretch in Las Vegas. It was a boiling hot mid-morning, only a few days into June, Malibu bathed in sunlight from cloudless skies; she took a sip of water, pulling one of her favourite shirts off a hanger. Natali was downstairs, spread out on the couch, enjoying air-conditioning; she could hear the faint sounds of the television drifting up the stairs.

Her phone beeped on the shelf and she reached for it, smiling as she saw a text from Bradley; fairly soon her smile was replaced with a deep frown as she read the very short message.

Get ready -B

"Huh?" she muttered to herself, scratching her head. "Ready for what?"

She tried to call him, but the line was busy; shaking her head, she focused on the clothes again, selecting a couple more shirts. Suddenly a loud scream pierced the air and Stefani jumped in fright, dropping both the shirts and her water bottle; it was uncorked, of course, water splashing all over her legs and the wooden floor.

"Shit." She retrieved a towel from the bathroom and dried herself, rushing down the stairs. "What the hell, Nat? You almost gave me a goddamn heart attack."

Natali was standing in the middle of the living room, staring at the television and the blonde rolled her eyes, crossing her arms.

"What is it? Come on, I need to pack."

Her sister glanced at her, wide-eyed, then pointed towards the television and Stefani frowned, finally turning her eyes to it, her gaze falling onto the headline slapped to the bottom of the screen.

Bradley Cooper and Irina Shayk call it quits after four years amid persistent rumours of the actor's secret affair with Lady Gaga.

"Holy..." she gulped, her knees suddenly feeling a little weak; then the meaning of Bradley's cryptic message dawned on her. "Oh my God."

"Did you know they were going to announce it today?" Natali touched her arm, still focused on the screen; the phone tucked into the pocket of Stefani's denim shorts started to ring and she sighed with relief at the familiar ringtone.

"Well, not specifically; we did all meet up last week and agreed it would happen soon, but..." She tugged the phone out. "B? I just saw the headlines; is everything okay?"

"Yeah." He groaned, sounding a little stressed. "Stef, I'm so sorry. Irina decided literally an hour ago that she was done with all this; she's heading to Europe for a few weeks on photo shoots and she wanted to get everything over and done with before that. It's been crazy over here; I had no time to warn you."

"You did warn me." She swallowed, wanting nothing more than to go and wrap herself around him. "How did you... did you give a statement or...?"

"No, she asked a friend of hers to tip off the press." He sighed. "They're probably going to hit you full on; what time are you heading to Vegas?"

"In a couple of hours." Her phone beeped with another incoming call and a moment later Natali answered hers, pointing at the phone and mouthing 'Bobby'. Stefani nodded, took a deep breath.

"B, I will be okay. I'm a big girl; I will take care of myself. You just focus on yourself and Lea, all right? I'll call you later; I love you."

"Okay. Love you too." He ended the call and she reached her hand out for Natali's phone.