⊱ ────── {⋆⌘⋆} ────── ⊰

"SORRY i'm late!" stevie said as she walked into the dining room of the north hollywood house, where lisa and bella were having dinner. "i got caught up helping aunt chris with a magazine spread."

"honey, you're just in time. the food's still fresh." lisa smiled as she greeted her granddaughter. "come on in, i'll get you a plate."

stevie placed her purse down and sat next to her mother as lisa placed a plate in front of her. "so, you nervous? aunt jen told me you have a meeting." she said as she sipped on her glass of iced tea.

"kinda, but i'll manage." bella smiled. "actually scratch that, i'm terrified."

"you'll be fine." lisa said, pouring herself more tea. "you always are, don't overthink it too much."

"since when do you get this nervous, ma?" stevie said, taking a bite from her chicken. "you've always had everything under control. you're always calm and collected, i could never do that."

"it's a gift." bella chuckled. "i get it from your grandma."

"no you don't. you get it from you father." lisa laughed. "he was always the calm yet stressed one."

"anyway, enough work talk, before i start panicking even more." bella said as she turned to stevie. "so what's new with you, hon?"

"not much, only work and my unofficial job as co-sensei." stevie laughed. "i spoke to seb last night, which makes this the second time in two months that he's called."

"seb's the guy from the party right?" bella said. "what's going on with you two?"

"i thought his name was alex?" lisa said.

"no, ma. that's her ex, from high school." bella said. "anyway, you were telling us about seb."

"he's in new york, working." stevie said. "he's booked for a couple photo shoots up there. i'm probably just overthinking it, i know."

"you're missing him." bella said. "it's totally normal."

"your mom's right." lisa smiled. "so, how'd you meet him?"

"i was at a halloween party. we kinda danced then we went to the beach and talked a little bit." stevie said. "we hung around for a little bit until he finally asked me to be his girlfriend. he sent a bouquet of roses to work."

"oh, honey. he's a keeper." lisa smiled.

bella smiled as she listened to her daughter. family dinners have always been her favorite. something about sitting around and just hearing about everyone's day made her nostalgic.

while stevie spoke about her work day and her relationship, she remembered those dinners where she and stevie sat around the small dining room of the miami apartment, eating a bowl of kraft mac n' cheese. stevie would always talk about her day at school while bella just sat next to her, listening.

"i remember on my first day of work, i was beyond nervous, but your grandfather sent me roses as a 'good luck', then after that, he would always send roses to work." lisa smiled as she remembered the sweet little gestures matthew would do.

"yeah, i remember daddy sent me roses once for my birthday." bella smiled. "then a few minutes later, i got some roses from johnny."

"oh honey, how they both loved to spoil you." lisa chuckled.

"ma–"

"it's no secret that grandpa and dad went all out for you." stevie laughed as she sipped on her iced tea. "anyway, roses or no roses, i know you're gonna crush it tomorrow."

"it really means a lot coming from you, baby." bella smiled. "thank you."

⸻

the day bella had dreaded had finally arrived. upon hearing her alarm ring, she groaned and shut it off. she sat up and rubbed her eyes, taking a deep breaths attempting to calm herself. the first thing on her agenda was a meeting, and a couple fittings after that. bella had a long day ahead of her and she had to be ready.

she turned on the radio, in attempts to calm herself by listening to music. upon walking into the shower, she felt a bit of relief as the warm water hit her skin.

this isn't the first time that bella has felt nervous for a meeting. she had tons of meetings when she first started designing, as she was just starting out. her main concern was what if people didn't like her designs and what if she had to redesign. now, her biggest concern is that she was behind on her work, which had never happened being that she was a workaholic.

she rummaged her closet for an outfit and ended up pulling out a black suit with a white corset top, something simple. she kept an eye on the clock as she got dressed and fixed her hair. she killed some
time by doing her hair and fixing herself a cup of chamomile tea. while bella sat on her sofa, drinking her tea, she heard a loud knock on the door.

bella swiftly stood up, placing her mug on the coffee table. she didn't expect anyone this early, which is why she was surprised to find johnny standing outside her door.

"hey." bella smiled. "you're out and about so early, come in."

"i thought i'd drop by and wish you luck." johnny smiled. "stevie told me. you're gonna kick ass, don't sweat it."

bella chuckled as she grabbed her mug of tea, taking a sip. "i feel terrified." she sighed. "i feel like i might puke."

"no, you'll be fine, just calm down." johnny said, softly placing his hands on her shoulders. "may i?"

"yeah." bella smiled as he softly massaged her shoulders. "i just want this to be good and i know i'm behind, so that might come and bite my ass, sooner or later."

"i've never heard isabella monroe overthink about anything so much." johnny chuckled.

"there's a lot of things you don't know about me." bella said, while pulling out a cigarette from her pocket, which johnny then snatched from her. "um, excuse you."

"what the hell, bella?" johnny said, snatching the box of cigarettes away from bella. "are you trying to kill yourself?"

"says the person who would sometimes walk around stoned." bella said, attempting to take the box of cigarettes away from him.

"since when have you been smoking?" johnny said.

"for a while now." bella sighed. "i always have a smoke before a meeting. can i have my box back?"

"you're gonna fuck up your lungs, so, hell no." johnny said. "you're gonna be fine, you don't need a stupid cigarette."

"alright fine." bella sighed as she sipped on her tea. "thanks for coming by, it really means a lot."

"don't worry about it." johnny smiled. "i'll let you finish getting ready."

"i'll call you afterwards to let you know how it went." bella smiled as she walked him out. "thank you."

"go kick some ass."

"you know i always do."

⸻

stevie spent the rest of the afternoon sitting at home, since she had really nothing else to do. she sat in her bedroom, watching sixteen candles and eating chinese takeout. her eyes were glued to the television as her phone began to ring.

she placed her carton of chinese food aside and reached for her phone, smiling as she saw the incoming facetime call from seb.

"hey stranger. long time, no see." stevie smiled.

"i've missed you too." sebastian smiled. "what're you up to?"

"not much, just sitting at home." stevie said. "so how's new york? how's everything going?"

"it's been busy to say the least." seb said. "i've been running around from shoot to shoot. it's hectic but hey, i like the rush. i've also reconnected with some friends so that's been cool too."

"that's great." stevie smiled. "i've been running around from the office to the dojo. it's been a bit different since the win. someone from the past came back and i just get a different vibe, y'know?"

"is it a good vibe?" seb said.

"not really." stevie sighed. "to make a long story short: i don't trust this guy. he was my dad and uncle's old sensei and this guy's crazy."

"wow, this just keeps getting interesting." seb chuckled.

"when are you coming back?" stevie said.

"what? you miss me?" sebastian smirked.

"shut up, you know i do." stevie laughed as she grabbed her food.

"i'll be back in less than a week." sebastian said. "i've missed you too."

"i can't wait to see you again." stevie smiled.

"hang on, i'm getting a call from work." sebastian sighed. "i'll call you later?"

"um, yeah." stevie said as her smile disappeared. "i'll see you later. i love you."

"love you too." seb said as he hung up.

stevie tossed her phone aside and continued eating her noodles. she turned the volume up on the tv as she sank into her bed, letting out a deep sigh of frustration.

⸻

"so? how'd you do?" johnny said, opening up a coors banquet bottle.

"i killed it!" bella smiled as she took a slice of pizza from the box. "i forgot how good it felt to walk into a conference room, full of men, and tell them all to go to hell."

"there's the bella i remember." johnny chuckled. "so now what?"

"fittings and getting ready for fashion week." bella said, taking a swig of her beer. "i'm not gonna rush into catching up. i have the help so i'm gonna take it easy."

"so, did you need the fucking cigarette to calm you down?" johnny said. "you crushed it on your own."

"yeah, yeah, whatever." bella said, taking a bite from her slice of pizza. "i think it's really cool."

"what?" johnny said.

"we're both doing things we love." bella softly smiled. "do you remember those conversations we used to have up on the roof in new york? not many people took me serious when i said i wanted to go into design."

"i always thought you could do it." johnny said, taking a swig of his beer. "you were fuckin' smart and everyone knew you'd get far, especially me. i remember seeing you draw your little designs anytime you were bored. i also remember this one time, we were sitting around the apartment, back in new york, watching something and you were just spitting out all these designer names that i couldn't even pronounce."

"those were the days." bella said. "i miss the simple days of sitting around the apartment together and just vegging out in front of the tv. i didn't get to do that very often, i was always working. i didn't get many days where i could just sit with stevie in front of the tv, like we used to."

"now the kid's all grown up." johnny sighed.

"it all happened in the blink of an eye." bella said.

the pair sat in silence as they finished the pizza and their beers. the only sound heard at the moment was the soft sound of the radio playing.

"i don't think i've said this enough but, thanks for the support." bella smiled. "it really did mean a lot, it put me more at ease."

"i got you, always." johnny smiled as he and bella were now inches apart.

they gazed into each other's eyes before slowly connecting their lips. as they stood in the dining room, the kisses turned passionate with bella wrapping her arms around his neck and johnny pulling bella closer to him. as their hands roamed their bodies, they pulled away for a brief moment.

"you know where this is going, right?" bella sighed, leaning her forehead against his.

"yeah." johnny said. "you sure about this?"

bella nodded as she looked into his blue eyes. "yeah." she said as they crashed their lips together once more.

the pair led each other into bella's bedroom as she shut the door. bella slipped her hands under johnny's shirt as he then took it off. he unbuttoned her pants as she did the same.

as they removed each other's clothing, they couldn't help but notice that their bodies had changed. they haven't done this in more than 20 years, which made them a little nervous, but they guided each other through it. bella laid back on the bed as johnny hovered over her, placing kisses all over her body. although they had changed, the feeling of pleasure was the same, if not, better.

"fuck, i forgot what this felt like." bella groaned as she ran her hands through his hair. as he kissed her waistline, johnny then went up to kiss her lips. his hands roamed her bare body as their bodies intertwined.

"you okay? if i do something wrong, just tell me–"

"shut up, lawrence." bella laughed as she crashed her lips onto his, while he slowly slid himself into her. the brunette softly moaned as he maintained a steady rhythm.

johnny placed his lip on her neck as he buried his head on her shoulder, letting out muffled groans while bella ran her hands through his hair and down his back. "shit, isabella." he groaned as he felt bella's nails rake down his back. "fuck, you're so beautiful."

as the pair came undone together, they laid side by side, attempting to catch their breath in silence. "we haven't done that in a while." johnny chuckled as he messed with the bracelets on her wrist.

"it's been a long while." bella smiled as she softly pecked his lips. "thanks for the fun night."

johnny smiled as he pressed his lips against bella's, then placed a kiss on her temple. "night babe." he smiled.

"sweet dreams, hon."

⸻

"i'm going!" stevie said as she sat up from the sofa and walked over to the door. she groaned as the knocking continued. "ash, it's hella late, what do you want?"

opening the door, she smiled as she saw her boyfriend standing outside her apartment with a bouquet of roses. "i'm not ash and is it too late?" seb smiled.

"i missed you so much!" stevie smiled as her boyfriend pulled her in for a hug. "when'd you get here? i thought you said tomorrow."

"i wanted to come surprise you." sebastian smiled. "i hope it's not too late though."

"nope, it's perfect timing." stevie smiled as she kissed her boyfriend. "i'm so happy your back."

"i'm happy to be back." sebastian smiled as he held stevie close to him. "fuck, i missed you."

"i missed you more." stevie smiled. "you doing anything right now?"

"nope, what'd you have in mind?" seb smiled.

"just stay here for a little while longer." stevie smiled. "i haven't seen you in forever and now that you're here, i want you to stay."

"alright." seb smiled as he kissed stevie once more. "you're so beautiful. i missed seeing you."

"you missed me that much?" stevie laughed as they sat on the sofa.

"hell yeah."

⸻

the sun began to shine through the window of isabella's bedroom as she slowly opened her eyes. she took a deep breath before turning to the side, where she found some roses. the brunette smiled as she looked at the note that read:
morning beautiful.
last night was fun. hope you slept well, i know i did.
J.L.

she smiled as she sat up and placed the flowers on the bedside table. the clock read 11:30, which meant bella had slept in, the good thing was that she didn't have anything scheduled today. bella clipped her hair up and walked over to grab her robe, wrapping it around her nude body.

as she walked over to the bathroom, she heard noises coming from the kitchen. bella walked out of the bedroom and walked over to the kitchen, where she found johnny, putting on a pot of coffee.

"hi." bella smiled as she wrapped her arms around the blonde.

"hey." johnny smiled as he turned around to kiss bella.

"how'd you sleep?" bella smiled as she softly ran her hands through his chest.

"like a baby." johnny said, pulling bella closer to his body and placing his lips on hers once more. "you were kinda cold last night."

"i did feel a bit warmer with you there." bella smiled as she poured herself a mug of coffee. "the roses on the pillow were beautiful, by the way."

"i remembered how much you liked roses." johnny smiled. "so what now?"

"we'll figure that out later." bella said as she placed her coffee mug on the table and wrapped her arms around the blonde. "let's just have breakfast for now. i'm starving."

"alright. i'm always hungry after sex, so i could eat." johnny smiled.

"yeah, of course you are."