Rainbow:
Hi Tommy, wanna meet up?
erased

Rainbow:
Hello, can we talk?
erased

Rainbow:
Hey, I know it's been a while but I'm in town
and I was wondering if we could meet up?
Like to talk and stuff.

Tom:
Oh my god it's been forever
erased

Tom:
WHAT IS GOING ON OH MY FJOAG
HELLO IT'S BEEN FOREVER
I've mISSEd YOu
erased

Tom:
Hi Rainbow, I'd like to do that if you want.

Rainbow:
Holy shit he replied.
erased

Rainbow:
Shit
erased

Rainbow:
Good! Does tomorrow work for you?
Maybe at 2 near the boardwalk where I used to live?

Tom:
Sounds good!
And I hope it doesn't sound weird, but
it's good to hear from you Rainbow.

Rainbow:
Right back at ya, Tommy

Tom:
Oh my god oh my god oh my god oh my god oh my God oh Mt go nfodosuekwkaja
erased

Rainbow:
Fuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfuckfucjfyckfycjfuckfuckfuckfuckffucjfy jfyjfuckfuckfucjfukffu kfufckfuckfuckfuckfu jfuckcukfcukfhgilajernk;
erased

× × ×

TOM DIDN'T KNOW WHAT TO expect as he parked his car near the boardwalk. If anything, he was feeling a lot of mixed emotions after getting that text message from Rainbow. He was scared yet excited, happy yet sad, worried yet careless, almost every emotion was settling in his stomach and he didn't know what to do about it. It's been a year since they've last spoken after what had happened, but he didn't expect for her to send him a text like that. She seemed calm through text, but Tom was silently dreading their meetup.

Ever since Rainbow found out the truth, Tom has been beating himself up about it. He hated that he lied to her and didn't come clean about everything from the start. And he knew that she had trust issues, yet he went against his better conscious and kept the fact that they had a one night stand, and the only reason he ever talked to her was to check if she was pregnant or not. It was a shit thing to do, Tom knew that already, but he was trying to mend things.

His friendship with Harrison was slowly coming back when he apologized to Becca - after earning a slap across the face from her - and told both of them that they didn't need to forgive him quickly but try to understand. And with Rainbow's friends - Jamie, Mickey, Ella and Melina - it was a completely different story.

Melina and Ella weren't having it with Tom, saying that what he did was terrible. Mickey on the other hand didn't know what to say. He understood why Tom did what he did, but that didn't mean that it was the best thing he had to do. Then there was Jamie, oh that was something Tom couldn't forget.

Jamie Danvers didn't hate Tom Holland as much as he expected him to. If anything, Jamie just explained everything about Rainbow and although he didn't approve of what Tom did to his best friend, he said that he was put into a tricky situation where if he didn't hate Tom he'd be a traitor towards his friends, but if he didn't understand Tom he'd be a going against his own morals. Jamie believed that no matter what someone did, they are worth redemption so when he heard Tom's side of the story he wanted to do something.

An unlikely friendship sparked between Jamie and Tom when Harrison was still on the fence about the whole ordeal. They hung out a lot and had endless conversations about the most random things to why toes and fingers are weird to how was oxygen made. Tom was glad that Jamie was willing to be friends with him after everything and was grateful for someone like Jamie to be willing to befriend him, knowing that he'd be shunned by his peers.

But anyway, Tom has had enough time throughout the past year to revel over his mistakes. He wants to be a better person, and he wants to settle things between Rainbow. He's been trying to think of a what to say for the past ten minutes that he almost forgot about their meeting. His anxiety coursed through his veins as he stepped out of his car and walked down the boulevard, keeping his head down and adjusting the snapback that was on his head before pushing his sunglasses up.

As he got to the boardwalk, he could see a familiar mop of dark brown curls leaning against the railing. Tom's breathing hitched as he froze in his spot, his hands curling into a fist and pressed his lips into a thin line. He tried to think of the one of many different scenarios that could happen if he walked up to her, hoping that they would be one of the good ones his mind thought of. He's waited a year for this, to see her and there was no way in hell he was going to waste his time on it. As Tom strided over, he was wondering if she would be the same, and if she was still mad at him, but let's be honest it's fine if she is.

"Uh, h-hi," Tom's words fumbled as he finally reached her, his heart beating like a thousand drums against his chest.

Rainbow jumped at the voice, finding it both familiar yet abnormal. She hasn't heard his voice in forever and when she turned around, she didn't know what to expect. He looked well, better if that was okay to say. It looked as if he didn't age a day since she left, and he was an inch taller, more muscular by his build in his shoulders. And she'd be lying if Tom didn't look adorable right now. His posture and body language was tense, as was hers, but the small smile on his lips made the woman smile softly and muster up a shy, "Hello,"

Tom expected his heart to jump out of his chest when he saw her turn around, but surprisingly it remained the same fast tempo it's been maintaining for the past hour and a half. Her hair was shorter, just above her jaw, and her eyes looked happier. He could sense this familiarity with Rainbow, but at the same time he felt that she was different. He could feel this happy and light like the month of July radiating off of her, which was different from this mysterious and cold feeling similar to winter that he had around her.

But for now, the one thing that Tom and Rainbow could agree on at this very moment was that things has changed over the past year and that they were most likely for the better.

"How are--"

"How's life--"

Both of their mouths flew open at the same time with similar questions, resulting in their questions overlapping one anothers and a light chuckle being shared between them.

Tom shook his head and gestured for Rainbow to speak, "Sorry, you first."

She sent him another soft smile before laughing lightly. "How are you?"

"I'm good, kinda tired. You?" he shrugged as his eyes darted at hers, wondering what is going on with her.

"The same actually, feeling quite happy if I'm going to be honest." she said, her eyes sparkling when she said 'happy' which told Tom that she was genuinely happy with her life at the moment. Rainbow looked at him with a tight grin before looking off into the ocean and then looked back at Tom before clearing her throat. "Uh, do you mind if we walk?"

"Not at all." he replied and followed her as they walked down the boardwalk, aimlessly following the few tourists that were ahead of them.

A comfortable silence fell over them as they walked, neither one of them knowing how to keep the conversation flowing. Albeit, it was awkward but it was that kind of awkwardness that they were familiar with when they would hang out.

"Did... Did you get my letter?" Rainbow asked after a while, the question burning into her tongue as she looked at him from the corner of her eyes.

"Yeah," Tom nodded, pursing his lips together as he thought back to Melina giving him the letter after she yelled at him. "I got it."

Rainbow nodded, continuing to walk for a few more steps before stopping and stared at the waves. Tom stopped as well, watching her with confusion and curiosity as he wondered why she stopped."I'm sorry for leaving." she blurted out.

"I should be the one that's sorry." Tom said, feeling his heart heavy at her words. She shouldn't be sorry, it was his fault. Afterall, he was the one that caused all this mess. "You didn't do anything wrong, Rainbow. It was all my fault and I'm sorry for that." he stopped for a moment, trying to figure out how to word his thoughts without having them come out incoherently.

"I'm the one that kept a secret when I shouldn't have. I should've been honest with you from the very start, but I didn't. I was a coward that broke your heart and thought that I was protecting you for it. It's fucked up what I did, I know that now. It was idiotic, asshole-ish, and fucking disgusting what I did. But there is no way in hell you should be sorry for something I caused, Rainbow. I'm deeply sorry for all the pain and trouble I've caused you. I-I'm so sorry." Tom's voice broke at the end of his apology and felt his lip tremble. He knew his eyes were watering at this point, and he tried to remain a calm exterior.

Rainbow on the other hand was at a loss for words. Her lips were pressed into a thin line as she bit her inner cheek. She saw Tom's eyes water and the shame written on his face as he spoke, clearly displeased and ashamed of himself for doing such a thing. But what really broke her heart was the voice crack at the end of his apology. She didn't know what to say, but she did know what to do. Rainbow wrapped her arms around his neck and pulled him into a hug.

She knew his words were sincere and that alone made her grip on him tighten as she dug her face into his shoulder, feeling his body relax against hers. Then she felt Tom's arms snake around her body and pulled her closer, his face digging into her thick curly hair as he inhaled deeply with his tears falling into her hair.

They stayed like that for a while, comfortable in the familiarity that they have with one another. Rainbow was rubbing Tom's arm, trying to get him to calm down and allowed him to have a moment to himself. It was hard for both of them, to be so close to the other yet feeling so far away.

After a few more minutes, Rainbow was still in Tom's arms as and leaned against him, her lips parting as she began to speak."The reason I'm sorry for leaving is because it was a coward move to leave." This took Tom by surprise, and he was about to reassure her that it was okay but felt that she had more to say and kept quiet. "I should've faced it. Leaving to go to my sister last year... was a bittersweet moment. It was impulsive and a way for me to run away from my problems, and I've done it plenty of times before. But at the same time, I'm glad I left."

Tom was rubbing his face as she spoke before pausing. He didn't know how to take that she was glad she left. Was she glad that he did what he did? 'Cause it wasn't one of his highest points in life. "I'm glad because I got the help I should've got a long time ago." Rainbow removed her head from Tom's chest and moved back for a moment, his arms still loosely around her frame as she looked up at him for a second and then at the ocean.

She found that the ocean calmed her, and she was glad that it did. If they weren't near the boardwalk, she would've been a crying mess. But Rainbow continued to talk, her eyes still on the calm waves as she spoke, "I was able to see a therapist for the first time in years. We talk still and she's helped me a lot. I'm able to deal with all my shit for once, and--" she paused, trying to figure out if what she was about to say would come off as rude but decided to go with it anyway. "And it wouldn't have happened without you. Like... that sounds seriously fucked up, I know, but I became a strong believer of the whole "things happen for a reason" and it's brought everything into a new light."

Now it was Tom's turn to be at a loss for words. He was completely and utterly in awe at this new and improved version of Rainbow Bellemore. She's grown into someone whose both wise and headstrong and carries a lighter air with her. There isn't a lingering of sadness that follows her anymore, but instead a light that shines down on her.

"I-I..." Tom started, his words getting lost in his own mouth before looking down at her and sighing. "I'm glad you got the help you needed, Rainbow. I really am." he sent her a soft smile as she looked up at him.

"Thank you, Tommy." Rainbow said softly with a small smile before slowly backing away to only walk over to the railing of the boardwalk. Tom slowly followed after her and leaned his arms against the cool metal railing as they stared out at the ocean.

"I just, I'm--" she started as she stared at the water before turning her head towards Tom, who was already looking at her. "I'm taking my therapists advice and taking things slow, that means trying to forgive you."

"That's okay," he nodded softly, licking his lower lip and smiled reassuringly. "Take as much time as you need, no need to rush anything."

Another comfortable silence fell over the two as they watched the waves crash into the peaceful water, both of them finding the water calm and gave them a sense of serenity.

Ten minutes later and a conversation broke out between the two, one about what was going on in their lives at the moment and began to talk about that. Tom learned that Rainbow was currently in a relationship with a wonderful French girl named Amara, and from the many pictures on her phone and with the look on her face when she spoke about her, Tom could tell that Rainbow really liked her girlfriend and he was genuinely happy for her.

Rainbow learned that Tom and Jamie became friends, despite Jamie already telling her this while she was in France. But nevertheless she was interested in what he had to share about their adventures, seeing a familiar glint in Tom's eyes as he spoke about Jamie with such fondness and with a stupid grin on his lips. She didn't say anything about it though, finding that the timing wasn't right and that she wanted Tom to figure it all out himself. Plus it wasn't her place to say anything.

As their conversation began to die down and neither one of them knew how to continue it, they looked at the water for an answer. The sound of the waves crashing into the water filled the air as well as the smell of salt and a small breezed that carried it. In this moment, Tom Holland knew that he was able to mend things between Rainbow Bellemore. And for Rainbow Bellemore, she knew that Tom Holland was on his first step to growth.

Fin.

Tom Holland, Jamie Danvers and Rainbow Bellemore will return in "Bad For Us"

☆☆☆

wow this story is officially over, fuck. words cannot describe how happy i am with the ending, and i know most of you wanted them to end up together but i opted for this. i enjoyed this ending way better because it's so realistic to real life. sorry to say but this is the happiest of endings that could've happened for tombow.

thank you for taking the time to read this story, i'm so thankful for it. i cannot believe so many people actually read this, it's astonishing and words cannot describe how happy i am to see that people enjoy this story.

and hey, if you didn't get the last bit, rainbow got the vibe that tom likes jamie when tom doesn't even realize it himself.

also, good news! i'm writing a second book called "bad for us" that will have a new oc but the same tom as this story. like it will take place a month or so past this story where tom realizes he likes jamie, but jamie is in a relationship with the dude rainbow met on the plane, renzo. and tom's confused as heck cause this is the first time he likes a guy and is like "we'll fuck, gotta figure this out" and meets my male oc, reese delgado.

yes, reese was already the main character in one of my unpublished stories, but i've decided to revamp it here. hopefully i can write this second book story smoothly because i got plans. and no, rainbow won't be heavily featured in that book, but she'll show up here and there.

once again, thank you for reading this story and i hope you guys enjoy