“Yep. I drew it and he inked it.” Cruz looked over at me and winked.
“Incredible work. The color is insane,” Skully said, handing Cruz a piece of paper with the drawing of the music note.
“Yeah, I’m happy with it. All right, I’m being an asshole. You’ve got this. Sorry.”
“I get it, brother.” Skully winked at me.
Cruz bent down and took my free hand. Skully got to work and once the design was ready to go, he tested out the area on my wrist and asked if it hurt.
“Not at all. I’m good,” I said with a laugh, looking over at my boyfriend who squeezed my hand and studied my every movement.
We talked as he inked the tiny music note on my left wrist, and Cruz started to relax. “That’s sick, baby. I love it.”
“I do too.” I like that I’d have something to remind me of him forever now.
“Okay, let me just clean you up. You’re a champ, Jade. This one’s a different story.” Skully jabbed his thumb at Cruz and we all laughed.
“I’m sorry for being a dick. Just can’t handle seeing her hurt.”
“Nah, man. I’m the same way with my lady. She makes you human,” he said.
“She does.” He kissed my wrist over the bandage and fought me when I paid for the tattoo.
“Let her win this one. She just tatted herself for you,” Skully said.
Cruz put his hands up. “Okay, okay, I got it.”
We jumped on the bus to head back to the hotel. Cruz never let go of my hand. Everything was about to change, and we were both feeling it.
Like a dark cloud that loomed above—we were preparing for the storm.
Chapter Two
Cruz
We had a few days off. Fucking finally. It worked out well with Jade getting ready to head back to school. I wanted to spend some time with her before we started this long-distance nightmare. It wasn’t that I didn’t think I could stay faithful to her. That wasn’t an issue. I didn’t feel right when I wasn’t with her. I liked taking care of her, and I knew I’d be all over the fucking country these next few months, so that wouldn’t be an easy task. But I was fucking proud of her for making the decision to return to school. Hell, I knew it was the right thing for her to do. And when it came to Jade, I wanted that for her. Even though it fucking sucked for me. It would be like surviving without sunshine. Or oxygen. She was my fuel. My reason to be better. And I had to let her go for now. The thought made me fucking sick. The realization that the first thing I saw every morning wouldn’t be her face, that her smile wouldn’t be the last thing I saw before I fell asleep each night—It scared the shit out of me.
We’d planned a trip to Disneyland since we were out west, and Jade and I had always wanted to go. We’d seen so much these last few months, and this was something I knew she wanted to do. We’d planned to go with Adam, Tory, and Lennon, but seeing as Tory was no longer around, Adam didn’t want to go. So now it was me, Jade, and my third-wheeling, cock blocking brother. He had zero problem with it. Jade loved Lennon and truth be told, I loved how close they were. I wasn’t big on rides, so I kicked back and watched the two most important people in my life behaving like they were five years old again.
The park was packed. We’d hired a guide to escort us around, per Luke’s insistence. I hated lines and I hated crowds, so he thought it was a wise thing to do. I sat on a bench watching a kid have a meltdown two feet in front of me while his mom patiently reasoned with him. He didn’t want to go on Dumbo, and I kind of felt bad for the kid. I didn’t want to ride the fucking elephant either. His mom bent down in front of him and calmly told him they weren’t leaving until he went on the ride. The little hellion took a minute to think it over and then asked if he could have a chocolate-covered banana if he did what she wanted. Fucking brilliant. His mom agreed, and he wiped the snot from his nose with the back of his hand. He was a dirty little shit, but he looked over at me and smiled and I couldn’t help but smile back. I saluted him for his brilliant negotiation skills.
Another family walked by with two kids on some sort of leash licking their oversized lollipops. Jesus, it was eight in the morning and these kids were all sugared up. I understood it. What else could they do? It’s not like they could light up a cig or slam a beer to deal with the chaos around them. This place was a fucking madhouse. Frantic parents, excited kids, and Disney characters smiling every which way you turned. Smiles and sunshine for miles. Everyone was dressed for the warm weather, donning shorts and tank tops. The smell of vanilla and waffle cones invaded my senses, as my girlfriend and brother jogged toward me.
“Come on, baby. You’re going on Dumbo with me once,” Jade said.
Dumbo was her favorite movie, so go fucking figure, we had to come to this ride first. She and Lennon went on the ride together, while I watched and took a few pictures as they went by. Jade had Minnie Mouse ears on her head, a red Disney t-shirt, and jean cut-off shorts, and somehow managed to look sexy as hell.
“Come on, dickhead. Go on the ride with your girl,” Lennon said as he placed his stupid Mickey ears on my head.
“I prefer to watch.” I returned the ridiculous ears to my brother’s head.
“Please, please, please.” Jade put her hands together like she was praying. I was a sucker for her, and she knew it. She preyed on my weakness, and damn if she didn’t win every time.
“Fine. Let’s go ride the elephants,” I said.
She bounced up and down before taking my hand and leading me to the ride.
“Are you having fun?” she asked, wrapping her arms around me, and hugging my middle.
I kissed her, hard and fast. “Yep. I love seeing you so excited.”
“I’m so glad we’re doing this together.”
“Me too.”
Our guide waved us forward and we stood off to the side, waiting our turn.
“I can’t believe I have to go back to school in two days. I’m not ready,” she said.
“You’re ready, and you’re going to kill it.”
“So, we haven’t really talked about what will happen? I mean, obviously we’ll visit one another, and FaceTime every day—but how do you feel about everything? You know, is it going to be hard for you to be faithful while we’re apart?”
I laughed. “There’s no one I want but you. It won’t be a problem for me. How about you?”
Her head tipped back, and she smiled. “Yeah, I don’t think you need to worry about me. I held out for you for nineteen years.”
“That’s right, baby. You remember that when all those nerdy dudes try to tell you differently,” I said.
“And what about all those hot chicks who throw their panties at you on stage?”
The guy waved us through, and Jade led me to one of the ridiculous elephants. We passed two very small kids before finding the one she liked.
“Nasty panties don’t do it for me.”
I climbed in and she slipped in in front of me, settling between my legs and leaning back, she looked up at me. “So then, what does it for you?”
“More Jade.”
She laughed as the ride took off. I saw my brother below filming us and I flipped him off. Jade’s smile spread across her face, and for a brief minute I just took it all in. She’d changed my life so much. Who’d have thought I’d be at Disneyland laughing on a Dumbo ride with the love of my life. But here I was. Lennon was healthy, Exiled was on tour, and Jade was my girl. I couldn’t ask for more. My dad was off my case, at least for now. We’d exceeded his expectations thus far, so he’d backed off. Mom had even come to a concert and spent some time with Jade.
“Put your hands up,” Jade shouted, her body shaking with laughter.
I rolled my eyes and held my arms up. As if it were fucking challenging. The tiny human wearing a diaper in front of us had her little hands in the air. As usual, Jade saw the light in everythin
g. And we were making memories, both big and small ones. Together.
When we got off the ride, she jumped up on my back and slapped my ass. I laughed. Couldn’t help it.
“You liked it, didn’t you, asshole?” Lennon said when we approached him.
“It was fine.”
“You loved it.” Jade leaned forward and kissed my cheek.
“I love you,” I said.
“Okay, let’s hit Pirates of the Caribbean next.” Lennon led us toward the ride.
“We have to stop at the gift shop up here before we go on that ride,” Jade said to our guide, still riding piggyback.
“For what?” Lennon asked.
“Duh, swords,” my girlfriend said.
“Swords?” I looked around the store and Jade slid down my back until her feet touched the ground.
“How else would we fight pirates?” she said, dragging me down the aisle with the plastic weapons.
“You’re fucking kidding me, right?” I asked when we got to the counter.
“Do I look like I’m kidding?”
“Unfortunately, you don’t.”
We’d avoided all attention so far this morning, and I was fucking thankful to have a day to exist outside of Exiled. We got on the small boat and Jade and Lennon both crouched down on each side of the row we were seated in. I sat on the bench in between them acting unamused, but I was completely enthralled with the scene before me. They were both ridiculously childlike. It was endearing and my fucking heart squeezed, which pissed me off. There was a musty, chlorine-like smell in the air, and the dimly lit space was brightened by hanging lanterns as our boat moved forward. The people around us laughed as they watched Jade and Lennon act as if they were in full battle with the pirates. My girl crept over to me and looked up, with those big jade eyes.
“Cover me. Lennon needs back up,” she whisper-shouted, and the lady behind me laughed so loud it echoed off the dark walls.
“I got you,” I said, shaking my head.
The rest of the day flew by. We went on every ride that Jade and Lennon had on their list, including the log ride which we got soaked on. We ate junk food and only got recognized a handful of times. I couldn’t complain. The fans were the reason our tour had been successful, so I’d always be grateful for their support. Lennon ate that shit up and loved signing autographs and posing for pictures. I kept an arm wrapped around Jade as we made our way out of the park, and she and my brother talked a mile a minute about their favorite rides. I knew if I could freeze time, I’d have it stop right now. In this moment.
We dropped down on the Northwestern blanket at our favorite spot at Oak Street beach. I didn’t want to say goodbye to her. But we’d be fine. There was no other option. I’d flown back to Chicago with her and would fly out early in the morning to get to our show in Seattle. I was pushing it arriving two hours before we went on stage, but I wanted to take her back to school and get her settled. I knew she was struggling with her decision and I needed to know she’d be okay.
“Do you remember the first time I brought you here?” she asked.
“Of course. Your sexy ass belted out Shining Star. It’s forever embedded in my brain.”
“Oh yeah, that was real, sexy,” she said with a laugh.
“You have no idea.”
“I can’t believe you have to go back tomorrow.” She moved closer to me, and I pulled her on my lap. My chest rested against her back and I wrapped my arms around her.
“It’ll be fine. Stop worrying.”
“You’re not worried?” she asked.
Hell, I was terrified, but I wouldn’t tell her that. “Nope.”
My fears weren’t about one of us being unfaithful. Jade and I were solid. My fears were more about her dreams taking her away from me. That we wouldn’t be moving in the same direction and life would get in the way. A person could never come between us, because Jade was it for me. And I was it for her. There was no question. We just fit. Always had. But life had a way of fucking things up, and its track record with me wasn’t great. But I’d do everything in my power to make sure we got through this.
“How do you know?”
“Because I know we’re meant to be together. I have something for you,” I said, slipping her off my lap so I could reach in my pocket.
“You do?” She faced me, brushing the hair back from her pretty face.
“Yeah. It can mean whatever you want it to,” I said, handing her the box with the petite platinum band covered in tiny diamonds.
She gasped. “What do you want it to mean?”
“I knew you would be mine the day we met. You are my home. I can be myself when I’m with you. Only with you. So, this ring can symbolize whatever you want it to. For me, it’s forever—in whatever capacity you’ll have me. You’re my family. My future. My everything.”
Her mouth turned up in the corners and her gaze filled with tears. “You’re my family, my future, my everything, too.”
“Love you, More Jade.”
Tears sprung from her pretty green gaze and ran down her face. “I love you.”
I pulled her back on my lap and hugged her close to me. Damn, this girl had found a way in and now I didn’t know how to exist without her. She slipped the ring onto her ring finger on her left hand. Exactly where I wanted it.
“You like it?” I asked.
“I love it. So, it’s sort of a swanky promise ring?”
“Sure, if that’s what you want it to be. What’s a promise ring?”
“It’s a promise to stay together,” she said, nuzzling her nose against mine.
“Hell, yeah, it’s a promise ring then.”
“What if I had said I wanted it to be an engagement ring?” Her head fell back in laughter.
“Then I’d say take me to the courthouse.”
She turned in my arms and studied me. “You’d marry me today, Winslow?”
“I’d marry you right now. Right here. Whenever you’re ready. But I’ll get you a better ring when you give me the green light,” I said.
“I’d marry you right now if I weren’t nineteen, and you weren’t traveling the world on tour with a rock band, and I wasn’t a pre-med in college.” She laughed, running her fingers through my hair. “But I know I’m going to marry you someday.”
“Good. I’m counting on it.”
She buried her face in my neck and I felt her wet tears against my skin. Her body trembled and I held her as she cried. We were entering a new chapter, and it wasn’t one I was looking forward to.
Chapter Three
Jade
“Jade, wait up,” Brayden called out from behind me.
He was in four of my five classes this semester. I intentionally sat in the middle of the room when I spotted him up front on the first day of class. I knew Cruz didn’t like him, and I didn’t want to send any mixed signals to Brayden. We’d gone to dinner a few times last year before Cruz and I had started dating, but we’d never been anything more than friends.
“Hey, what’s up?”
“Not much. Brennan’s class is killing me. The first three weeks have been crazy, right?” He wore a black tee and faded jeans. His dark hair was wavy and a little longer in the front and cropped in the back. Brayden was a nice guy, and he knew that Cruz and I were very much together. But I always got the feeling he wanted more, and it made me hesitant to hang out with him for fear of sending the wrong message.
“Yeah, the workload has been insane.” I shifted my backpack on my shoulder as we walked through campus. The weather was still gorgeous, and I would enjoy every last second of it before the temperature dropped.
“I heard you got the research position with Professor Callahan. That’s impressive.”
“Yes, she’s amazing. I was thrilled she was looking for an assistant,” I said. Elaine Callahan was a brilliant eme
rgency medicine doctor, and she’d chosen me to work with her on a paper she hoped to publish in the future.
“So many people applied for it, you should be proud she chose you,” he said, a genuine smile spread across his face.
“Yeah, I was thrilled when I got the call. How about you? Are you working with anyone this semester?”
“Yep, I’m working at the lab with Professor Watson. It’s a good gig for me. He works around my schedule.”
“That’s amazing. I’ve heard he’s great to work with,” I said.
“He’s a cool dude. But, he’s also a perfectionist, so I need to be on my game. A letter of recommendation from him would be helpful when I apply to med school.”
“Definitely,” I said, pausing when we walked into our anatomy classroom.
“So, what’s the deal this year? You can’t sit by me anymore because you have a boyfriend? We can’t be friends?”
Well, that was direct.
And super awkward.
“No. Of course we can,” I said as I took my seat and he sat in the chair beside me.
“Good. I know Cruz can be pretty possessive over you.”
One sure-fire way to get on my bad side was to talk crap about my boyfriend. I didn’t like it.
“He’s not any more possessive over me than I am of him. It happens when you’re in love,” I said, meeting his blue gaze. I didn’t want there to be any confusion about where Brayden and I stood or how solid Cruz and I were.
He held his hands up and laughed. “Okay, okay, I’m sorry. Wrong word choice.”
I nodded and pulled out my pens and notebook. My phone vibrated and I saw the text from Cruz.
Cruz ~ Missing you bad today, baby.
My heart squeezed. I missed him terribly. After spending every day together over the summer, the separation was painful. I was flying to Florida this weekend to see him. I couldn’t wait. It would be complicated to do it often with my new research position, because Professor Callahan expected me to work weekends occasionally. But I’d gotten this weekend off, and I couldn’t wait to see him. Our goal was to never go more than a month apart.
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