you give me a reason, something to believe in - Dua Lipa, Homesick
-
the chatter and buzz around them silenced their pain and misery. he was leaving. not for too long a time, only for a couple months, but he was leaving.

"i don't want you to go," she mumbles, holding him tightly. "shawn, i know it sounds so selfish, but i don't want you to leave, not now. not when i need you more than ever."

"you can call me, and i'll always answer, aria," he whispers, cupping her cheeks, and looking into her eyes, which are glossed over by tears. "aria, i know it's hard for you right now, but you gotta know that i can't stay."

"i know," she says softly. "i'm not gonna hold you back from anything, i just need you to hold me and tell me that everything's gonna be okay."
-
three days earlier.
-
aria was helping her mother prepare for the dinner she was hosting tonight. she was busy peeling the potatoes, before her mum let out a shriek at the fridge. shawn runs into the room, immediately looking at arias mother, and then aria.

"it's nothing, i bet we don't have any butter," aria chuckles, putting down the potato and walking to her mum.

"wrong actually, we don't have any asparagus. i told you to get some at the store," she sighs at her daughter.

"it wasn't on the list," aria says innocently. "i'm sure shawn can go and grab-"

"nonsense, i'll go. can you just finish up peeling the potatoes, and then peel and chop the carrots? i'll be back in twenty minutes," her mother says, kissing aria's cheek, before rushing out of the house. shawn and aria chuckle to themselves, before going back to what they were told to do.

"so, i got maples tickets for tomorrow," shawn says, casually dropping it into their conversation. "front row, you have to come with me."

"who said i wasn't going to?" she grins. "how much do i owe you for them?"

"nothing, i got them for free," he says, peeling the carrots. "and even if i didn't, i wouldn't have let you pay for a thing." aria playfully shoves her boyfriend, glaring at him, as he continues to chuckle. "i'll pick you up at 3, yeah? we can go grab some coffee before."

"sounds like a plan," she says, leaning up, and kissing his cheeks softly. "i'm gonna go and quickly get changed, are you okay alone?"

"yes, go put something even more pretty on," he beams at her, before planting a loving kiss onto her lips. she pulls away with a small chuckle, shaking her head at shawn.

"i can't believe you think that your t-shirt, and a pair of shorts are pretty, but okay, i'll take it," she says, wiping her hands on a towel, and running upstairs, heading straight into her room, where she picks up her phone, her eyes trailing to the window, to see what's happening outside the front of her house.

she drops her phone in shock, letting out a high pitched scream.

her mums car, if you could even call it a car anymore, was thrown to the other side of the road, glass and shrapnel all over the tarmac, another car flipped over, its tires still spinning. the loud, annoying screech of the car alarms go off simultaneously, as shawn runs upstairs, seeing aria crouched down on her knees, in utter shock and fear crossing over her face. she was terrified.
-
present.
-
"it will be okay. your mum will get through this, and you'll be with her again," shawn says softly. "i hate to leave you at a time like this, but i promise you, you'll be okay. everyone will be okay." he kisses her lips lightly, as a line tear rushes down her cheek. "i will call you as soon as i land, i promise, aria."

"call me everyday," she whispers. "i love you so much, shawn."

"i love you so much more," he mumbles back, holding onto her hands, and bringing them up to his lips to kiss them lightly. "please get some sleep, and eat well, that's all i'm asking," he reaches into his pocket, taking out the key to his condo, and folding it into aria's hand. "if you feel lonely, go there. i need someone to take care of the place anyway."

"can i stay there tonight?" she asks gently, clutching the key in her hand. "i can't go home, not today."

"of course, baby," he says to her, ever so softly, as her eyes fill with tears. "no, don't cry darling, i don't want to see any tears. not when i'm leaving."

"b-but you're leaving," she whispers, a tear rushing down her cheek. "you won't be here over christmas."

"how about you come to meet me, then? i can talk to andrew to get you a flight, and you can come with us while you're off school, and-" shawn cuts himself off, seeing aria still crying and weeping, but this time in utter adoration for shawn. she loved him too much to even explain. "aria."

"i'm not crying out of sadness," she whispers quietly, wiping her eyes with the back of her hands. "i'm crying because i love you."

"and i love you," he murmurs back. "i'll see you so soon, okay? i love you."

"you better kill every single performance, or you're gonna have me to talk to," he lets out a small chuckle at his girlfriend, leaning down, and kissing her lovingly. "call me when you land."

"mhm," he nods. "don't scratch my car."

"i won't," she giggles. "wait, shawn," she lets go of him, slipping her hand around her neck, and taking off her locket, which shawn gave her a couple months ago. "wear this."

"but hun, it's yours-"

"i know, but you now have a piece of me wherever you go," she says, securing it around his neck. "now go, you're gonna be late for your flight."

"i love you," he says, kissing her again.

"i love you."

it's only then when aria realises how big a part of her life is based on shawn. without him, she's scared that she'd feel empty, like a piece of her was missing, like that side of her life was closed forever.

so she stopped thinking about it, and let shawn walk away from her, leaving her emotions to get the best of her.
-
shawn stepped on the private plane that was to take him to thailand. he saw andrew, geoff, and some of his band already seated in the plane, chatting and laughing happily. as shawn walks further in, its like he casts a certain unexplainable darkness, one that certainly gets the better of the people, making them quieten down, observing shawn, who sits gloomily opposite his manager.

"you okay, bud?" geoff asks, as shawn sighs, fiddling with the locket around his neck.

"no," he whispers. "somethings gonna happen, i can feel it."

"what are you talking about?" andrew asks him, concerned about his actions.

"andrew," shawn begins, swallowing the lump in his throat, feeling the nerves consume him. this was it, he was going to tell his management about aria. "i'm in love."

"that's amazing! why are you so concerned?" andrew asks, letting out a small chuckle. "you're not married or anything, right?"

"no," shawn answers. "but she's a minor, she's 17. she'll be 18 in may, but she's a minor, and i've left her alone, and i feel as though somethings gonna happen to her. her mums in hospital, we saw her get into a car crash right outside her house, and she saw her mum get revived so many times, and her mums in a coma, and she doesn't even know if her mums gonna make it, and i shouldn't have left her and-"

"woah, slow down, don't panic," andrew says suddenly, as the group look at shawn. "someone get him some water, or something, anything."

"andrew, i need her here with me. i need to make sure she's okay. please, can we just invite her?" shawn begs. "i'm one of the most important people in her life, i need her here. she can't be alone."

"okay, i'll sort something out, don't worry," he says calming shawn down immediately. "is there any chance she can get her school work converted so she can stay with us?"

"i'll ask, but andrew, please, you have to sort this out. she can't be alone, not when her mums in hospital, and her dads not at home. her brothers in uni, she's all alone," he blurts out. "i shouldn't have left her."

meanwhile, aria wanders into shawns condo, turning the lights on, and finding a cd resting on the kitchen island. she furrows her eyebrows, before walking forward, and picking it up, seeing a note stuck to the plastic casing.

track 5, tenerife sea, cover

she smiles softly to herself, taking the cd out of the case, and putting in into the cd player next to it, pressing the play button, and letting the sweet sound of a guitar fill her ears, before shawns voice catapults the condo, making her heart swell with joy.

she knew he was going to be with her.

she just didn't realise how close.