Warnings: Angst

Word Count: 1885

Author's Note: I hope you enjoy this chapter! :)

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You were starting to wear thin.

This was the fourth meeting Tyler had this week - supposedly the last one, although you weren't entirely trusting of that statement - which meant that it was also the fourth day that you had spent without him on your "break". Sure, you knew that there were a lot of things that he had to work out before tour started in a week, but this was starting to get ridiculous. Your patience was quickly dwindling.

It was nearing the time that Tyler was supposed to get home - on time, for once - although it didn't really matter. After every meeting this week, he had ended up spending an additional three or four hours on his laptop, doing more work. You usually spent this time watching TV in close proximity to him, but that was often the extent of your interaction. It gave you that same familiar feeling of Tyler still being away on tour, even when you were on the same couch.

You weren't so sure that you would be able to keep it inside much longer.

The front door opened, pulling you back out of your daydream. Tyler was stepping through, carrying a couple folders in his arms. He smiled at you once he realized you were sitting on the couch.

"Hi, lovely."

"Hi."

He finished taking off his shoes and then walked into the living room to give you a kiss, still carrying the folders under his arm. Once he had finished his hello, he continued on into the kitchen.

"How were things here?" he asked. You heard him drop the folders onto the table with a thud.

"They were ok. I talked to Marenna on the phone for awhile, but other than that things were boring as usual. How were your meetings?"

"I'm sorry to hear that. The meetings were good, but they were long and I'm exhausted. The good news, though, is that we're finally getting things done. As long as things go well early next week, we'll be good to go on time."

The faucet started running, so you held off on your comment since you knew Tyler wouldn't be able to hear you anyway. You idly tapped your hands on your knees.

"Y/N?"

"Yeah?"

"Did you hear me?"

"Yeah, I was just waiting for you to finish running the sink."

"Ok."

Tyler's footsteps were loud as he came back from the kitchen and joined you on the couch. You smiled at him as he got comfortable.

"I'm glad things are going better, I know that's been stressing you out lately."

If only the things that had been stressing you out would suddenly get better.

"Yeah, it's like a huge weight off my shoulders. There are a couple things that I'll have to work on tonight and this weekend to make sure we don't fall behind, but it shouldn't be a big deal."

"Of course."

Tyler made a face at you, but didn't ask any questions. He just took another long sip of water.

"At the meeting today, we watched a rendering of what the beginning of the show is going to look like," Tyler said. He was barely keeping the smile off his face. "It's so cool, I can't wait for you to see it at rehearsals next week. It's just like... yeah. You just have to see it."

"I'm sure it's amazing, Ty. I can't wait."

"Oh! And we were talking about having Josh do a drumline at some of the shows. He's going to come up with some stuff this weekend, but I think that will be super cool. I like when he has a chance to shine like that."

"Yeah, I'm sure the fans will love it."

Tyler tapped his finger against the side of his glass a couple times. His lips were pressed together, meaning that he was probably thinking about something. You decided not to press it, your mind was too busy focusing on other things.

"Are you ok, Y/N? You're acting off."

"Can we talk about something?" you asked. The words were out of your mouth before you even had a chance to reconsider.

Tyler's eyebrows furrowed, but he finished the long drink of water he was taking before setting his cup down on the coffee table.

"What do you need to talk about?"

You started to chew on your bottom lip. This was your last chance to back out and just drop the topic altogether, although deep down you knew that was something you couldn't do. Bottling up your emotions wasn't going to do anyone any favors.

"This last week, I've just felt like... I don't know how to say this, but I guess I've just felt like you don't really... care... about me."

Tyler's face immediately fell. You reached out to grab his hand, but he pulled away. A wave of anxiety washed over you, but you took a deep breath and pushed it down.

"You really think I don't care about you?"

"I mean, no, I know you do. Of course I know that. It's just, ever since Sunday, it feels like all we ever talk about is the band. You've spent almost every night this week working on tour prep and, yes, you're here, but this is supposed to be our break, Tyler. Lately, it's just felt like you're on tour again."

He sighed and brushed a hand through his hair. You were still chewing on your bottom lip enough that it was starting to throb, but you couldn't get yourself to stop.

"I'm sorry you feel that way, Y/N, but I'm doing the best that I can. Our tour is literally falling apart in front of my eyes and the company that we chose to put it on is doing next to nothing to help us, so it's all falling back onto our team. That means I've been taking on double the amount of work that I usually have to in order to make sure everything is actually getting completed on time. Then when you add in trying to make up for lost time with you and family and friends on top of that, it just becomes a lot to handle."

"I know it is, and I'm trying my best to be patient, but lately it feels like you don't even want to make that effort. I miss how things used to be, when we would play Mario Kart together or go on spontaneous trips to the beach."

"What, when we were 21?"

"Yes."

"We're not 21 anymore, Y/N. The band is bigger now. My family is growing. There are other people out there who need me and are relying on me. I can't just throw that all away for a day to pretend like we're kids again, as much as I might want to. It's not an option anymore. And frankly, I think it's selfish of you to expect something like that from me."

"I don't think I'm asking you for that much!" You had been able to keep your voice steady up until this point, but now the emotions were really starting to seep in. Tyler was trying to hide his emotions, you could tell by the way he was keeping his mouth in a straight line, but they were just barely starting to show on his face. Fights between you two were uncommon. "You know I love you, Tyler, and I want to support you as much as I can, but cuddling up at night and watching a movie where you end up falling asleep halfway through doesn't feel like quality time!"

"Who did I spend last week with, huh? And all weekend? Because if I remember correctly, aside from one family dinner and a meeting, it was you. Not the friends that I hadn't seen in over a month, not my siblings, but you. I don't know what else I can do to please you, because right now I'm giving you as much as I can. And if you're not happy with that, then..." His voice broke a little, but he quickly gained his composure again. "...then I don't know what to tell you."

The conversation came to a stop. Both of you sat silently, avoiding one another's eyes. You sat with bated breath, waiting for the next words that you were sure were coming. This was the end. You would have to pack your things and find somewhere else to stay. The one person you loved was leaving because you were too selfish to understand where he was coming from.

But the words never came.

"What do you think we should do?"

Tyler's voice was quiet. It didn't sound quite like him. You knew without looking that he was crying, you had known him long enough to recognize the tone of voice he was using.

"I'm sorry I brought this up." It wasn't an answer to his question, but you needed it to be said.

Tyler cleared his throat. "It's fine."

"Ok."

A tear slipped down your cheek, falling from your chin to the dark material of your jeans. You wiped at your face, getting rid of the trace it had left behind.

"I'll just go."

You got up and made it to the bottom of the stairs before Tyler had a chance to say anything.

"Where are you going?"

"Upstairs," you sniffled.

"So is our conversation over?"

"Tyler, listen, I don't think either of us are going to budge about this right now and I feel awful and I just need to clear my head for awhile. I want to figure this out, I do, but after the discussion we had I don't think either of us are in a place to do that."

Tyler paused, then slowly began to nod. "You're right. Just promise you'll stay here tonight?"

"I'll stay. I promise."

"I love you."

"I love you too."

You waited a moment longer, just in case Tyler was going to say something else, before heading up the stairs. When he stayed quiet, you quickly made your way to the bedroom, shut the door, and then curled up in the blankets. Now that Tyler was out of sight, you let the tears fall freely down your cheeks as you thought over every word that had been exchanged between you two.

He was right, as much as you hated to admit it.You were supposed to be his support system, yet here you were complaining about him not spending enough time with you because he was caught up with work. It was stupid and selfish and, worst of all, it had hurt Tyler. That thought alone made your stomach twist and brought a fresh wave of tears to your eyes. He had enough going on already, and you had just added a new layer to it.

Your brain was too muddled with thoughts to even try and think of some sort of solution, so you pushed your face deeper into the pillow and let the tears flow for as long as they needed to. Things would start to make sense eventually, but first you needed to let all the emotion escape. It would just take some time.

Until then, you tried not to think about the fact that you might have lost Tyler for good.