1 month, 18 days, 14 hours, and 11 minutes later

Christian's POV
My body laid in bed awake. It was yet another sleepless night that had found me.

Alex hadn't called yet.

Alex hadn't called yet and it was a few weeks past when she was supposed to be back. I couldn't help but freak out. Jared had said he had no updates for me when I stopped by the shoppe last week. I knew he thought I probably looked like shit, and I did. My eyes had bags underneath them. My hair had grown out far past something socially acceptable. I just didn't have the motivation to do much of anything anymore.

The gala event went well. I was meant to perform but my brother had made it home just in time to do so himself. My parents didn't protest.

I heard a motorcycle come down the street. Yet another thing that reminded me of Alex.

My parents picked up on my distance almost instantly. They knew I cared a great deal about Alex, and for once in my entire existence, they let me take a break from dancing. It was only for a few weeks, but I had never seen my parents show that type of mercy.
Not with me.
Not with my brother.
Not when it came to dancing.

I felt my phone vibrate from inside my pocket and I brought it to my ear. "Hello?" I asked, slightly confused.
It was now almost 3 o'clock in the morning.

"I heard you didn't dance at the Gala. That better not have been because of me, you twat."

My body jolted up in bed. I think my heart had stopped pumping blood entirely.

"Alex?" I whispered into the line.

"In the flesh. Come outside." She called into the line, before hanging up.

When I tell you I almost ran out into the street with nothing but fucking tweety bird boxers on... it was the last minute stop by the laundry room that stopped me from making a complete fool out of myself.

There, at the bottom of my long driveway, was a parked motorcycle. Alex was standing besides me with her helmet held at her waist. She was in a tight leather jacket, with some leather black clothes, leather leggings, and leather boots. She looked like she had lost more weight, which concerned me, but she looked good.

Really fucking good.
I was basically drooling at this point with her one braid pulled to her right side.

She grinned up at me as I ran down the driveway and pulled her in for an immediate kiss. When her lips touched mine, I almost sighed in pleasure. This was what I missed. Her lips on mine as she kissed me back with such fierceness.

I finally pulled away for air, but her eyes were still closed in a trance. I then pulled her into my arms. Her scent has the same. It was familiar. It was hers. She hugged me back tighter.

"Why the fuck didn't you call me." I whispered against her hair.

"Element of surprise, duh." She replied. As I pulled away, her expression changed when she saw mine. "I had to do a few weeks of therapy. I didn't want you to see me on crutches, or with a cane. Definitely not a motherfucking walker. I wanted you to see me like this. I wanted my first time seeing you to be a ride on my bike... so what do you say?" She asked me, handing me her helmet.

"Tino said you wouldn't be able to ride, though." I stated. She gave me a shrug.

"Tino also said I couldn't date until the age of 29. I mean if you want to start adhering by Tino's words now..." she started, backing away.

I slipped that helmet on so fast.

"I'm taking it slow, though." she admitted, climbing onto the bike. I climbed on right behind her. Instead of replying, my hands found their way around her small frame as the bike roared to life, and she pulled out onto the street.

Alex's POV
My heart hadn't stopped hammering against my chest.

Not when I heard his voice over the phone.

Not when I saw him sprint down his driveway as soon as he saw me.

Not when he pulled me in for a heart stopping kiss or a bone crushing hug.

And definitely not as I felt his arms securely wrap themselves around me as we rode to the ballet academy. I still felt pain in my leg, yes. I felt pain on every turn. I felt pain at every stop. I felt pain just from walking.

But it was the good kind of pain.

The "I'm still alive" type of pain. The pain I didn't mind feeling now. The pain I was happy to feel if it meant spending a night alone with Christian.

I pulled the motorcycle into the parking spot and we both got out. It was completely vacant at this lot now, but it still brought on memories. I couldn't believe I wouldn't be coming back every day to punch in for community service hours.

But maybe I would be coming back here to sign up for classes, I thought to myself. Soon. Even miracles took a little time.

Christian slipped his keys in and lead me inside to the studio room he usually used. It didn't look like it had been occupied for a while.

"When was the last time you came here?" I demanded. He looked over at me sheepishly.

"Not since the accident." He replied. I punched him in the arm, before slowly crouching to lay down in the middle of the dance floor. Sudden movements still hurt my legs. I had to take things very slow.

"That hurt." He whined, laying down besides me.

"You deserved it." I shot back.

We laid there for what felt like ages, just listening to the music he was playing on the speakers.
He was the first to speak after some time. "You know, I missed the fuck out of you." He whispered, holding my hand against his chest before he pulled my upper body onto him.

"I missed the fuck out you." I replied.

The surgeries had sucked. The therapy had sucked. Being in fucking Washington had sucked. Tino beside me was the only thing that kept me going. He would tell me stories about my father and mother. He'd share things with me, that I hadn't dreamt of talking with him about before. This accident had changed everything.

The first thing I did when I got back, was retrieve my fathers car. Tino had fixed it.

He had fixed it after the accident.

My eyes burned at the thought of this being the last place my parents were. The car was even more beautiful than it had been when dad and I had finished it.

I spent that day sitting in the drivers seat, just crying.

And here I was, with Christian, as tears threatened to fall. I never cried. Never. But finally closing that chapter in my life with my parents had done something to me. I no longer felt the need to cast aside my suppressed feelings.

"Hey, Alex?" Christian called to me. His hands were slowly combing through the strands of my hair. It had started to put me to sleep.

"Yes, Christian?" I mumbled, curling into his chest.

"Please don't almost die on me again." He whispered.

"I wouldn't dream of it, sugar." I whispered back.

He just pulled me further into him, letting us drift off to sleep.

And I knew he was he one, because he made my heart smile.

"The greatest risk any of us will take, is to be seen as we are."
-Cinderella

Fin

••
First off: thank you to everyone who followed this story. You. Are. All. Amazing.
Second: yes this ending took me ten billion years to figure out and yes I'm still not fully content but oh well.
Third: There will be a Epilogue at some point before I kick the bucket... I think
Fourth: seriously. Thank you. Like wtf, y'all stayed with my inconsistent ass during this book and the writers block that grabbed hold of my soul for basically half a year with this one.
Fifth: I released a boyxboy book if you guys wanna check that out.
And Sixth: thank you. Again. For the ten billionth time. Okay I'm done. XOXO