February 14th
12:45 am

JC lay back, staring up at the floral print ceiling to their fort. His head swam and his gaze blurred along the edges, dulling his sense just slightly. But not enough for him to ignore the dull ache in his back, and tailbone from the hard carpeted flooring. His fingers were threaded together, hands clasped on his stomach, slowly lifting and falling as he breathed in and out of his nose.

Empty dessert plates were scattered around the fort they had somehow managed to create with the bed, TV, dinner cart, chairs, ironing table and bedside table. JC had to thank the hotel for accommodating him with more linen then he would ever need in his short stay.

He groaned as his stomach cramped, trying to digest all the food he had eaten in rapid succession. A slight pounding behind his eyes indicated a hangover that was to come. He rolled his head to the side, looking over at Maxine who was lying on her side, curled up in a ball, arms wrapped around her stomach, knees pulled up to her chest. Her face contorted with pain, eyes squeezed shut.

“That’s the last time I eat without chewing,” she groaned. “I’m an expensive date, I’m sorry I ordered so much food.”

“Maybe I should screen my dates,” JC thought out loud. He felt a sharp blow to his shoulder and spotted the small glare on Maxine’s face. “You either have those who talk too much, don’t talk enough, some talk too much about themselves. Why is it so hard to have conversations with you girls on dates?”

“Uh, because we don’t want to look like idiots?” Maxine replied, her glare melting away. She slowly unfolded herself, wincing just slightly before she propped her head up with her hand. “Some guys like smart girls, don’t talk, don’t look stupid.” Her nose then wrinkled. “Why do guys talk about themselves all the time while on dates?”

“To talk themselves up,” JC replied. “Want to look like the perfect guy.”

“And we want to look like the perfect girl, so stop harping on us about taking a long time to get ready for dates,” Maxine replied with a smirk. JC let out a single “ha!”

“You do take forever,” he said, forcing himself to sit up to face her. Maxine’s eyebrows shot up before JC started talking in his best falsetto. “Give me a minute and I’ll be ready.” He then glanced at his bare wrist and tapped it, pretending to check his non-existent watch. “And then it’ll take you ten more minutes, at least.”

“Well, I mean, if you don’t want us ladies to look good enough for you to show off,” Maxine said in a ho-hum type of voice. She lifted a finger in the air. “Here’s a tip.” She leaned forward slightly and started talking in a whisper. “We don’t really do it for you.”

JC let out a short, startled laugh. He was never one to really complain about women and their grooming procedures. Guys had their own ways to freshen up and prepare for events with the worries of wearing too much cologne, or not enough cologne, if their breath smelt good or if it smelt bad, and all throughout the date worrying about pit stains, sweaty palms, and being the one having to initiate any sort of romantic moment.

“Then who do you do it for?” he asked.

“Other girls,” Maxine replied. She lifted her hand and raked her fingers through her hair. After spending hours drying, her hair had settled into a slight wavy texture that made her look more…different, more soft then she looked from the get go. “I mean, yeah, we show off for guys, but it’s also to show other girls how good we can look.”

“Interesting.” Ha! Interesting was a huge understatement. If only he could always get this insight on girls on a daily basis. He’d finally get all his questions answered: Why did they travel in packs? What was so funny that had them laughing all the time?

“What? You guys don’t do that?” Maxine asked.

“Hell, no,” JC replied with a laugh. “We’re too busy…”

“Ogling,” Maxine finished for him.

“I like to call it laid back watching,” JC said, his eye narrowing just slightly as he took on a defensive tone. Maxine snorted before she broke into a small fit of giggles. He grumbled under his breath, rolling his eyes. He hated talking about his feelings. He was a man, damn it. He ran a hand over his face, the pads of his fingers pushing down the sides of his mouth as he threatened to smile.

“ ‘Laid back watching’ ?” Maxine repeated. “You’re such a guy.”

“You’re such a girl,” he shot back with a half grin. Maxine’s eyebrow shot up. “You were the one who freaked out at my mention of staying in a hotel earlier.”

“Ok, I’ll admit that,” Maxine said after a moment of silence and JC nodded his head. “But, guys do some crazy things like that just to get girls.” She nodded her head. “Uh-huh. Yeah. And it’s not just you, but, like all guys. You’re a gentleman.”

“Thank you,” JC said, putting a hand to his chest. “I was brought up that way.”

“I want to meet your mom,” Maxine said and JC froze. Her eyes widened as she realized what it was that she had just said. “I-I mean. Well, I do want to her meet her because, well, you’re really nice. It’s nice to find a well raised man talking about his mom in a positive light. That’s all.”

“Mmhmm,” JC said, nodding his head.

“Would you look at the time,” Maxine said, holding her wrist out to look at her watch, “it’s past midnight.” She blinked and did a double take. “It’s past midnight. It’s Valentine’s Day.”

He watched her demeanor change. Her eyes flickered towards him before dropping her gaze down to her lap. She clasped her hands together, twisting her fingers together. Her shoulders slumped, back curving and she took on the shape she had pulled herself in when she previously sat on the bed, scrolling through TV channels, trying to find something that wasn’t romantic driven.

“I…guess it’d be bad to wish you a Happy Valentine’s Day?” he asked, his eyebrows knitting together just slightly as he watched her. Gone were the traces of humor and amusement. Now she looked…different. Solemn.

“I hate Valentine’s Day,” she said, her nose wrinkling slightly as she looked up at him. “I never do anything like this. Normally, I stay at home all alone on Valentine’s Day.”

“You don’t make a habit out of this?” JC asked with a grin. Maxine laughed before reaching for one of the pillows behind her, throwing it at him. JC caught it against his chest before hugging it to himself. “Bad past experiences?”

“Not the greatest I’ll admit,” Maxine replied with a wry smile. “So, I try not to…try.” A thoughtful look crossed her face. “You know how people always say to wait for the special someone to come to you?”

“I’ve heard that, yes.” JC gave a single nod of his head.

“Sitting duck over here,” Maxine said, waving her hand in the air. She blew her bangs out of her face. “It’s not that I don’t want a relationship, it’s that I don’t want something so…serious,” Maxine explained, letting out a sigh through her nose. JC blinked. “Ok, that sounds bad. What I’m trying to say is, whenever Valentine’s Day comes around, you feel like you have to have a boyfriend, or you have to have a date, or get your significant other something good.”

JC could agree with that. There were a couple of times where he felt like he was bending over backwards just to try and make the night special and something to remember for his significant other at the time. That’s not to say it wasn’t worth it, but it was a lot of hard work for one day. “I just want, just for once, to have fun with someone. To just hang out, have a good time, and enjoy each other’s company without all that stressful bullshit. Valentine’s Day can be for friends, too.”

“Noted, awesome,” JC rattled off. “And I’m kind of shocked. I thought girls liked the romance and the flowers and everything that went with the day.”

“Oh, we do, trust me,” Maxine said with a short laugh. “Who would want to give up a day of being pampered?”

“So, what about this Valentine’s Day?” JC asked. “You said you wanted a day where you could just hang out with a friend, so…” He lifted his hands indicating the area around him. “Is this anything like you dreamed?”

Maxine’s eyebrows collided. “Are we friends?” she asked. “I just met you tonight.”

“True,” JC agreed. “Tonight didn’t start out great, I’ll admit, but this is the most relaxed Valentines Day I’ve had and it just started. I can only hope it won’t get too stressful. I mean, you’re not going to have an ex-boyfriend come crashing through here looking for some sexcapade or something, is he?”

Maxine let out a single, “Ha!” shaking her head. “There’d have to be an ex-boyfriend somewhere for that to happen.” She put a hand in the air. “Not that there would be any sexcapades of some sort.”

“No, of course not,” JC agreed with a nod of his head.”But, to answer your question…we’re stuck in a hotel together after I accidentally pushed you into a puddle of beer, making you look like you pissed your pants. Oh, and let’s not forget the movie-classic drive by tidal wave. If you can’t be that many embarrassing situations at one time and not come out as friends, there’s something wrong.”

“Well, you’d have to be honest with someone to be their friend,” Maxine pointed out, pursing her lips just slightly. She was silent for a moment. “I know who you are.”

JC froze, feeling his heart start to ram against his ribcage. He swallowed thickly, trying to rid his mouth of all the saliva that suddenly flooded the cavern. His tongue stuck to the roof of his mouth, making it hard for him to breathe. You’re an idiot for thinking you could get away with this for so long, he thought to himself, running a hand over his face.

“Why didn’t you tell me who you were, JC?” she asked quietly. JC shrugged his shoulders. “I saw your driver’s license, that’s why I didn’t send the picture to Laura. Didn’t want her freaking out or anything like that. I mean, you looked familiar to me, but…”

“Thanks,” JC replied quietly. But, he was confused. She knew who he was the whole time but never said anything about it. On the one hand, he was grateful for it, but at the same time, it was just weird. He was so used to having screaming girls, crying girls, girls who could barely string together a coherent sentence just because he smiled at them. “So you’re not a fan?”

“It’s not that,” Maxine instantly replied.  “I mean, I am, but…I never thought I’d ever meet someone like you. I mean…I don’t know if I wanted to believe it was you.”

“I don’t follow,” JC replied.

“I mean , I don’t know, I think I felt better telling myself it was just someone that looked like you so I wouldn’t be so embarrassed,” Maxine said, a small grin coming to her face. She bowed her head in embarrassment, peering up at him through her hair.

“Let me let you in on a little secret,” JC said, crossing his arms over his chest, leaning forward slightly to give her a smile. “Even guys like us get embarrassed, too. I wiped out down a flight of slick stairs the other day. Right in front of a whole bunch of fans with cameras.”

Maxine let out a laugh, a hand flying up to cover her mouth. “That’s terrible.”

“Yeah, well, I think I bruised my ass more than I bruised my ego,” JC said with a shrug of his shoulders. He peered over at her. “You’re not like other girls.”

“Because I’m not falling all over myself?” she asked and JC nodded. Maxine shrugged her shoulders. “I haven’t known you as JC from NSYNC. You’re just…Joshua.”

JC smiled. That was enough.

2:15 am

Maxine smacked at the pillow underneath her head as she rolled over for the umpteenth time, trying to get to sleep. She didn’t think she’d be able to do that knowing JC was that close to her. He had insisted on sleeping in the bathtub be she had insisted even more that sharing the bed would be fine.

They were both adults, she said.

It’ll be fine, she said.

Ha.

She could only listen to his deep, even breathing for so long without A: being jealous that she couldn’t get to sleep and B: just knowing that someone else was sharing a bed with her. Not only was it just a foreign concept to her, but he was taking up her sleeping area. Admittedly, it was pretty much the whole bed, but she wasn’t talking semantics.

“…So for this Valentine’s Day I must’ve done something right.”

“What?” Maxine asked, startled. She stopped moving before rolling back over to face JC. His warm breath repeatedly blew over her arm, sending shivers down her spine and raising bumps on her arms. She slid her arm underneath her pillow, trying to rid the…wonderful feeling.

“I mean…they…those other guys who’ve made you hate Valentine’s Day,” JC replied, his voice barely above a whisper, punctuating the darkness. “I must be doing something right if you’re thinking this is the best Valentine’s Day you’re having.”

“Did I say that?” Maxine asked, her eyes widening. Not that he could see it. Who was she kidding? Spending the night—in the most innocent way possible—with a member of one of the hottest boy bands out at the time? Uh, yeah, this knocked every last Valentine’s Day out of the park!

“Not exactly,” JC admitted. His deep chuckle rumbled towards her. “But, I’m right, aren’t I?”

“Sadly, yes,” Maxine replied. She felt her face burn at the implication. “I mean…I didn’t mean—“

“I get it, don’t worry,” JC said, his words drowned out with his yawn. “Having trouble sleeping?”

“Yeah.” Maxine blinked at the softness of her voice. “You?”

“I always do,” JC explained. “My mind’s always on something. A new project, a new song, what event I have to go to the morning, trying to figure out what city I’m going to…” Maxine felt his hand brush her side as he lifted his hand to rub at her eyes. As her eyes adjusted to the dark, she could make out his form underneath the sheets. “I don’t think it’s ever been able to turn off.”

“Well…let’s put it to good use then.” Maxine threw back the covers and clicked on the bedside lamp. Turning back to face JC, she watched as he pushed himself up onto his arms, squinting against the sudden harsh light. A glint of light bounced of the necklace that rested on his bare chest. He shifted into a seated position, the soft sheets sliding off his torso, pooling into his lap—contouring each ridge of his abs.

“What are you talking about?” JC asked, his shoulders slumping with a sigh, looking over at her.

“You doted on me for Valentine’s Day and now it’s my turn to do it for you,” Maxine explained, pointing towards the clock. JC looked over at the glowing red numbers and his lips parted back into a grin. “So let’s go.”

“Where are we going? Exactly?” JC started fighting his way through the massive bundle of sheets, comforter, towels, and pillows from their makeshift fort that they had thrown on the bed when they were too tired to stay up. He set his feet to the floor and stood, massaging his lower back before pulling up on the band of his sweatpants.

“ ‘And yet, having you have the cooks in the hotel turn on just about every electronic around here to make you food is a good idea’ , ring a bell?” Maxine asked, lowering her voice to try and match his tone. JC turned to face her, crossing his arms over his chest, silently nodding his head. “Good. Then follow me.”

Maxine didn’t wait for him to respond before she unlocked the hotel door, pumped the handle, and pulled it open. She was halfway down the hall before JC fell into step beside her, his torso covered in a t-shirt, sliding his wallet into his pants pocket. “What are we doing?” he pressed.

“Well, I can only imagine how many orders the cooks here have to prepare not only for breakfast, lunch, and dinner, but whenever someone like me wants room service,” Maxine said as she adjusted the sleeves to her borrowed shirt…again. “Especially on a day like today, they’re probably working at all hours and still has to prepare for the morning. So, I thought I’d put my talents to use and make something for them. Chocolate pizza and chocolate-strawberry champagne flutes a dish that is definitely best served cold.”

“Chocolate…pizza?” JC repeated as they reached the elevators. He reached out his thumb and jabbed it into the elevator. “That’s a thing?”

“It tastes better than you think,” Maxine said, waving her hand in the air. “I’m sure there are weirder things you’ve eaten on the road.” JC’s lips curled upwards as Maxine took a cheerful step into the elevator before grabbing his arm with both of her hands, pulling him inside after her, noting the twitch of his muscles beneath her finger tips. “Bottom floor, Jeeves.”

“Yeah, yeah,” JC said with a sigh before he pressed his index finger into the circular 1 before pressing the door close button. He slid his hands into his pants pockets and glanced down at her hands. Maxine quickly pulled her hands back as if they were on fire—they sure did feel that way.

“Sorry!” she squeaked out, her throat suddenly tightening. “Sorry.”

“It’s ok.” JC gave her a half smile before proceeding to watch the red buttons slowly count down until it hit the bottom floor. The doors slid open and Maxine walked out into the brightly lit lobby taking a sharp right and leading the way through the dining room towards the back.

“Home, sweet, home,” Maxine said as she took in a deep breath of air, flipping on the lights. “Go wash your hands.”

“Yes, ma’am,” JC said, waggling his eyebrows in her direction before stalking over towards the large, deep sink. Maxine slapped a hand over her mouth, stopping the giggle-bubble that rose in her chest, threatening to burst. “So this is what you do? Cook?”

“Yep,” Maxine replied, making her way over to the refrigerator. She punched the air with her fists when she pulled the door open and came face to face with mounds of pizza dough. Looks like the dough has risen enough. She grabbed a large chunk wrapped in plastic wrap. “Flambelle's Grill and Bar. Been working there for a couple of years now.”

“Nice,” JC said over the loud sound of water hitting the bottom of the sink. “I make a pretty good piece of toast.”Maxine let out a laugh as she allowed the refrigerator door to swing shut. “Don’t laugh. I’m serious. Butter, cinnamon sugar. It’s good.”

“I’ll take your word for it but it’s not high cuisine,” Maxine said as she pulled her lips downwards into a mocking apologetic look. “Sorry.” JC shrugged his shoulders as she set down the pizza dough with a thump. She then closed her eyes, putting her fingers to her temples as she started to think. “Ok, we’re going to need melted butter, some Nutella, and chocolate chips.”

“And where does the chocolate come into all of this?” JC joked as he started to move around the kitchen looking for what she had just listed off. Maxine opened her eyes and stuck her tongue out at him.

“Since the pizza dough is already made so we don’t have to worry about that,” Maxine continued as if he didn’t ay anything as she unwrapped the plastic from the cold dough. She looked around and spotted a knife block. She grabbed the handle of the biggest one and swiftly brought it down into the dough, cutting it in half. “We just need some flourrrrrr.”

She held out the word as she looked around before finding a container with a slanted F on it. She popped off the top of the container and shook out a mound onto the counter in front of her before setting one off to her side. After quickly washing her hands she joined JC at the island in the middle of the room. Drying her hands off on a towel she lifted her hands and twisted her hair up into a ponytail.

“What?” she asked when she noticed JC watching her, slowly blinking.

“Nothing,” he replied with a shrug of his shoulders. He cleared his throat, scratching the side of his jaw. “I just don’t know how girls do that.”

“We have to have some  mystery to rope you boys in, now don’t we?” Maxine asked, her eyebrows shooting up. JC shifted his head towards the ceiling, his lips twitching upwards into a smile.

“So do what do we do first?” JC asked.

“We roll out the dough,” Maxine replied, lifting a chunk of dough, setting it down into the pile of flour in front of her. JC jumped back, but a thin layer of white stuck to his shirt. “Sorry.”

“No sweat,” he replied before starting to brush his hand along his shirt before reaching for the dough. He made a face as he pushed his fingertips into the refrigerated dough. “Kind of hard to do.”

“It’ll warm up and be easier to mold, trust me,” Maxine said, dismissing his complaint as she crossed over to the oven to turn it on, preheating it to 450 degrees. “The flour will help. You just sprinkle some more on top to help you out.”

“I do.” Maxine blinked at the sudden comment and lifted her head to look at him, the words sinking in. He barely knew her and yet he could easily allow those words to come out of his mouth. Strangely enough, she felt the same way.  “So how do you do this?”

“Well,” Maxine said, starting to lift up onto the balls of her feet, pushing her weight down onto the dough, “one it gets warmed up enough, you spread it out—we’re looking to get it to be about...nine inches in diameter—and then you start to toss it in the air.” She quickly worked through her dough before she found it ready to be tossed.

She balanced the dough on her finger tips before she started tossing it up into the air, twisting her wrists as she did so. She watched as the dough spun in the air before falling back down towards her. “Ta daaa!” She grinned as she caught the dough and started twirling it again, watching it as it expanded while in the air.

“Yeah, I don’t know if I can do that,” JC said, his voice cracking as he watched her.

“You don’t even want to try?” she asked, briefly glancing upwards to catch the dough a second time. JC shook his head back and forth. “Come on, it’s not so bad.”

“Ok, ok, ok,” JC said with a sigh, walking around the counter to stand next to her. “What do I do?” JC held out his hands and Maxine wordlessly put the dough in it, keeping it balanced on her hands as well. “Uhhhh.”

“Relax,” Maxine replied, saying it not only for him but for herself. She could feel heat from his fingers as they gently grazed hers. “Ok, you’re going to have one hand in a fist, and one hand palm out.” She felt JC’s fingers slowly curl into a fist underneath the dough. “You’re going to use the back of your fist to catch the dough, ok? But the palm hand is what you’re going to use to toss the dough; it doesn’t have to be high, but you want to toss it up. Ok?”

“Ok,” JC replied with a nod. “I think I can do that.” He cleared his throat before setting his feet shoulder-length apart. Maxine removed her hands from under the dough and JC tossed it up into the where it did a some sort of a side spin before falling back down onto his face.

Maxine gasped, her hand coming up to cover his mouth. She pressed her hand tightly against her lips as JC reached up and pulled the dough off of his face, a puff of flour shooting into the air as the dough was pulled from his hair. A snicker escaped. Then a snort. And then a laugh.

“I’m sorry,” she managed to squeak out before bursting into loud laughter. JC rolled his eyes, muttering under his breath as he pulled strips of dough from his face. “You just…oh, my gosh…you look so…so funny.”

“Yeah, yeah,” JC muttered.

“Maybe it would be a better idea not to have you do this,” Maxine said as her laughter died down.

“You make it look easy,” JC complimented, balling the dough between his fists.

“If it makes you feel any better, I was in your place not too long ago,” Maxine said as she reached up a hand to brush the flour out of his hair. JC laughed through his nose, setting the dough down before shifting his gaze back on her, seeming to freeze as her fingers slid down the side of his face. She used the heel of her palm to brush the flour from his cheek bone.

Her lips parted as she locked her eyes onto his blue ones. JC swallowed and Maxine felt the movement underneath her fingers. His eyes closed for a brief moment as her fingernails grazed the hairs at the base of his neck. Farther down her fingers slid, following the curve of his jaw, her thumb just brushing the outside corner of his lips.

“Thanks,” JC said, his voice barely above a whisper, slowly blinking.

“No problem,” Maxine replied just as quietly. She then sucked in a deep breath of air, pulling her hand back from his face, dropping her arm down to her side with a loud, punctuating slap. “So, uh, I guess it’s better if…strawberries. In the refrigerator. We also need champagne and champagne flutes and chocolate. Which we already have.” She cleared her throat, quickly stepping past him. “Right, then.”

She couldn’t shake the feeling that he was watching her every move.

..

“See, that wasn’t so bad, was it?” Maxine asked, smiling across the table at JC before lifting the last of her chocolate pizza slice to her mouth. She popped it into her mouth and chewed, wiping her hands on her chocolate stain covered napkin. The candles sitting in the middle of their table seemed to illuminate the dark area around them more, adding to the brightness JC’s smile cast into the room.

After taking up the task of finishing making the pizza, snagging a few slice for themselves, JC had partially sliced strawberries and painted chocolate onto them with a basting brush before setting them into the refrigerator to cool. Once those were hardened enough he carefully slid them around the rims of glasses, poured in the champagne and everything went into the refrigerator with a note.

Now they were enjoying the fruits of their labor (no pun intended) in the dining area. It was JC’s idea to bring out the candles, reminding her that it was Valentine’s Day and that he had neglected to create that atmosphere earlier on in the night. Not that she was complaining.

“It was fun I’ll admit,” JC said, slowly nodding before his tongue darted out to lick at the glob of chocolate at the corner of his mouth. “I’ve never done anything like that before.”

“It’s nice to get out of your comfort zone for once in a while, right?” Maxine asked.

“I don’t know, is it?” JC asked, lifting his eyebrows. Maxine gave him a confused look and JC angled his chin downwards just slightly, staring pointedly at her.

Oh.

Right.

Maxine bowed her head, feeling herself blush. “This is fun,” she said quietly, looking back up at him.

“Good. I want to keep ahead of those other guys that made your Valentine’s so terrible.” Maxine rolled her eyes as JC chuckled. His smiled faded just slight as he  reached out a finger and slid the pad down her nose. “You have some…flour.”

“Oh.”

A small giggle slipped out past her lips. She felt her eyes widen and she quickly reached for napkin and shook it out to its largest size. Hiding behind it, she wiped at her nose and mouth. How embarrassing. And how stupid of her to be embarrassed to even look at him right now! It was just flour! She’s gotten it all over herself before.

And it was all over him not too long ago. She sighed. She could feel the smooth, yet rough skin just around his mouth all over again. His blue eyes searing into hers as he had thanked her.

“So, I’ve seen you in your world,” JC said, prompting her to look over at her, “now I want you to see me in mine. A glimpse of it, really.” He gave her a questioning look and Maxine founder herself nodding her head. “Come on.” He held his hand out towards her as he pushed his chair back from his seat. Maxine hesitated for a moment before sliding her smaller hand into his; his fingers curling to wrap over hers, taking her hand in a protective group.

Maxine quickly blew out the candles before stepping out from behind the table.“Where are we going?” Maxine asked, allowing him to guide her through the maze of tables and chairs.

“Not far,” JC replied. And then she saw it; a piano, sitting in the corner of the dining area. He showed her over to one of the tables sitting right by it and pulled out a chair for her. Maxine gave him a warm smile as she lowered herself into the cushioned chair. JC sat down on the piano bench, the object creaking as she did so. “It may sound stupid but…this is where I feel the most at home.”

He slid his hand over the top of the sleek black piano before lifting the key cover. Maxine watched as he placed his feet on the pedals before gently placing his fingertips over the keys. “It’s not stupid,” she reassured him. “I get it.”

JC quickly played a run on the piano, moving hand over hand, his fingers twitching on the keys before they moved onto the next one, a string of notes curling together to form a beautiful melody. JC rocked back and forth as he played, closing his eyes, pressing and removing his feet from the pedals as he did so.

And then he stopped. He sat frozen for a long moment, holding out the last note before he removed his foot from a pedal, dropping his hands into his lap. “This is the song I learned for my audition for the Mickey Mouse Club,” he said quietly. “I go back to it and listen to it, or sing it, or play it whenever I just need  to relax and get my head around things, so I don’t forget where I came from, that kind of thing.”

He then let out a breath of air, placed his fingers back on the keys and started playing a familiar opening tune. He then opened his mouth and started to sing. “Ocean's apart day after day, and I slowly go insane. I hear your voice on the line, but it doesn't stop the pain.” His eyebrows knitted together, eyes squeezing shut as he sang.

His voice started out quiet, slowly growing in strength as he got to the chorus and Maxine then recognized the song. “If I see you next to never. How can we say forever. Wherever you go, whatever you do, I will be right here waiting for you. Whatever it takes, or how my heart breaks, I will be right here waiting for you.”

And while the song wasn’t directed towards her—or maybe that was what she was telling herself—but she believed him.