Willing to Try

Here's the long expected follow up

Willing to Try Chapter 1

The end

Hi everyone,
I was just wondering since most chapters get a few comments and chapter 30 only got one, you all understood that was the end, right?
Just the end of this part though.

Chapter 30

“Richie!” He heard someone behind him. Looking over his shoulder he saw it was Tina. She had yelled at him a few weeks ago for sitting here instead of in group therapy. “What are you doing out here? You’re leaving in thirty minutes.” She said, continuing her way.

“Thought I’d look at this,” he gestured to the pond with the trees around it, “it’s nice here.” “It’s supposed to be, kind of like a peace or meditation garden.” Tina said, finally standing next to the bench.

“Yeah, Sarah and I had some very good talks here.” Richie said. “She’ll be here soon.” Tina answered him. “Yeah.” Richie agreed for the first time.

He thought of everything they had done, how could Sarah not show up? She was going to be here in less than half an hour. He could feel butterflies starting to flutter in his tummy. He hadn’t felt them since they slept together, he was glad they were back.

“Are you all ready and packed?” Tina asked. “Yeah, just need to get them bags and I’ll be ready to go.” He answered, getting excited that he was finally leaving. “That’s great Richie, I’m gonna miss you, you were a very nice resident.” “Thanks, you were a very nice, eumh, desk person?” He wasn’t entirely sure what her job at that desk was. “Close enough, come on, it’s time to go.” Tina said, starting to walk back.

Richie got up from the bench, walking back over the grass. After a few steps he turned around, taking a mental picture of the garden, the trees where they had picnicked and said how much they liked each other, the beautiful pond with just a few water lilies. Finally, their bench, it stood a few feet from the pond, the black metal and dark wood stood out in the green grass. It fitted both of them perfectly even though the back, that was made out of metal flowers and leaves welded together, was occasionally uncomfortable.

It was time to leave; he turned around again and continued his way.

Upstairs he got his travel bag and his guitar case. As he closed his bedroom door he was glad he was going home. Back to reality.

At the top of the stairs he allowed himself one more time the feeling of the king of the mountain as he looked over the rooms. Tonight he could do that at home.

He could see some people had gather by the door to say goodbye but out of the glass doors he didn’t see anyone, he was probably too far away to be able to see.

He continued his way downstairs; maybe he could look out a window and see. He hadn’t felt this nervous to see somebody in years. She’ll be here, he told himself.

Downstairs he tried to look outside again but didn’t see anything more than the walkway that led to the tree surrounded parking lot. He didn’t like that; it reminded him of his dream. It was only a dream.

“Looking for someone?” He heard Megane’s voice next to him. “Not at all.” Richie answered sarcastically, like she didn’t know who he was looking for.

“I think I saw a car.” She said, thinking it could possibly be Jon or Sarah. “What kind of car?” Richie knew what kind of car Jon would rent or hire someone to drive. “A black SUV.” Megane said.

Richie was relieved, he knew Jon would rent that kind of car, at least Jon was there; his dream was not coming true.

At the desk Tina gave him his phone back. It felt good to have it back. The first few days without it, it was weird not to constantly have it in his jeans’ right front pocket, but he got used to it.

Now he would at least have his planning. If he had that before he would have known he had rehearsals next week.

“Good luck Richie.” Tina said to him as they walked to the door. “Thanks.” He simply said. He was ready to leave now. Everything that he had learned would help him through. He knew he’d be fine now, even better with Sarah in a few minutes.

“It was very nice to meet you.” Megane said while Richie was saying goodbye to everyone and made it to her. “It was nice meeting you too.” He had started to like her a little the last few days. Megane hadn’t done or said anything inappropriate and he was quite pleased with that.

“I’ll see you soon.” Megane said with a smile that sort of freaked him out. He didn’t need a stalker. “What? How?” He asked confused and surprised. “Dunno,” she shrugged, “have a feeling, probably a concert or something, so no worries.” Megane explained to him.

He wondered again if she was psychic or just plain weird. “No groupie stuff.” Richie said strictly. “I promise.” She said quickly. Richie raised his eyebrows a bit in question. “Cross my heart.” Megane added, crossing a finger over her chest where her heart would be. Richie’s expression didn’t change. “Hope to die and all that other stuff that comes.”

Then Richie smiled. “Great, I wouldn’t mind seeing you again, just no groupie stuff.” He explained, he didn’t mean all bad. “Would a hug be totally inappropriate?” Megane asked. “No, I think we can do that.” They shared a quick hug before Richie said goodbye to her and the rest of the group.

He turned to the door, his guitar hung over his shoulder, his bag in his right hand. With his left hand he pulled the door open.

The walkway that led to the parking lot wasn’t very long, he had only walked it once but in the other direction.

Just like in his dream, the walkway was empty. He took one look back at the doors behind him, and then looked down at the pavement. As he raised his head again, his eyes followed the asphalt from his feet to the other side where he saw other feet walking towards him.

He followed the shoes he saw, looking up at them before he walked closer. There were the three people he wanted to see most right now but they waited at the parking lot.

Richie saw his best friend talking to the lady that was standing on his right. His eyes focused on her when she smiled at what she just was being told. God, he had missed that beautiful smile, he realized now even more than he already had.

He looked to the other pretty girl on Jon’s other side. How could she be here? He has discussed a plan with Heather to pick her up from school. Why hadn’t she said she’d be here too? This was much better than surprising her at school.

Ava was the first to approach him, walking away from the adults that had accompanied her, with her arms wide open. “I missed you so much daddy.” Her arms closed around him.

His bag fell from his hand and his guitar slid off his shoulder, resting at his elbow from the force of the hug. “I think I missed you more.” He said as he hugged her back. “That’s just impossible.” She looked up at him, not letting go yet. “Oh is it?” He asked, adding a kiss to the top of her head. Ava smiled, “I’m missing school to see you so I must have missed you very much.” She explained and put her head back down to hug him again.

Richie chuckled, he knew his daughter. “Of course,” he said, “you’d never miss school for something that’s not important. You love school too much for that.” He said. “Exactly.” Ava answered very serious and innocent.

“Shopping with mum is also very important.” Richie teased. “She told you we went shopping yesterday?” Ava asked surprised, letting go of the hug, her eyes wide open. She knew how important her dad thought school was. “No.” He smiled back at her. “Oh.” She realized she had just told him herself.

He loved that she was still young and innocent enough that he could trick her even though he knew Heather sometimes took her to the mall when she actually had school.

“Hey, I thought you couldn’t wait to hug me again.”

Richie hitched his guitar higher, back up his shoulder and picked up his bag. He was glad Jon had given them a few minutes. “Coming honey bun.” He answered, walking towards him.

He dropped his bag again; laying his guitar carefully on top of it, making sure it wouldn’t fall off. Then he wrapped his arms around Jon. “I missed you so much angel.”

Jon hugged him back but said, “Only my mum can call me that.”

Richie let him go. “Sexy then?” He asked. “No,” Jon shook his head, “only Dottie can do that.” “What do I get to call you then?” Richie asked. “Sir or boss.” Jon shrugged, giving a simple answer. “Yeah?”

Jon nodded his answer. “What about ass munch or ass hole?” Richie suggested. He was glad he could joke around with Jon again.

He heard Sarah chuckling next to him and finally turned to her. “I see you already met Jon.” He said. “Yeah, I was standing there,” she pointed at the other side of the parking lot “and he came over and asked if I was your girlfriend.” She explained how they met only a few minutes ago.

Richie took her hands and lifted them in between them, pulling her closer to him. “I guess that is the question of the day. Are you my girlfriend?” He looked into her eyes, searching for an answer before she could say it.

A smile appeared on Sarah’s face. “Of course, after everything the last few weeks, of course I’m your girlfriend.” She smiled up at him.

Richie pulled her closer, bringing her hands to his chest and gave her a short, soft kiss.

“I like that.” He said with a big smile. Then he looked down at their hands on his chest, noticing he wasn’t feeling skin. “What did you do?” He asked worried, as he lifted her right wrist that was wrapped in a white elastic bandage.

“Nothing,” she shrugged, “I sprain my wrists and ankles all the time, weak joints.” She said. “You’ll see.” She gestured to the future in which she was sure she’d do it again. “You’re sure it’s fine?” He asked not entirely convinced yet.

Sarah let his hands go and wrapped her hands around his neck. “Very sure.” She said before she kissed him more deeply than he had done, trying to proof that it was fine and that she was ready for this relationship.

“Love birds, we got young eyes over here.” Jon complained, covering Ava’s eyes with a hand while she was trying to get away from him.

Richie flipped him off without breaking the kiss.

“Come on Ava, we’ll let them walk home.” Jon took Ava with him towards the car.

“I missed you so much; you were all I could think about, which isn’t so good while looking for a job.” Sarah said when they finally broke apart. “I missed you too, everything reminded me of you.” He hugged her close; he didn’t want to let her go any more.

“I’m sorry about Jon though, he’s an idiot.” Richie apologized. “It’s alright; he’s your best friend.” Sarah knew how two boys could act and knew boys didn’t grow up. “As long as you don’t think he’s cute anymore.” Richie jokingly referred to a few weeks ago when Sarah had said the actor in Pay It Forward was cute. “Not after seeing you.”

When they stood facing each other again, Richie held Sarah’s chin and softly stroked his thumb over his jaw. “I missed seeing all this prettiness.” Sarah chuckled, she wasn’t so sure about that yet, and she definitely wasn’t used to someone saying she was pretty. “I’m serious.” Richie said honestly, and then pulled her chin closer to kiss those pretty red lips he had been hoping to kiss again.

“I’m sorry; I’m not used to being called pretty.” Sarah blushed when he let go. “No worries, you’ll get used to it hon.”

“Ass munch, we’re leaving, get in or walk.” Jon pulled up next to them the car. Richie knew he was only joking around.

“See what I mean,” Richie said to Sarah, “just no respect for anyone.” He shook his head even though he appreciated it that he had left them alone a few minutes, but they had to go now. Sarah chuckled, she liked the banter between them, and it showed how close they really were.

“Are you coming too sweetheart?” Jon asked Sarah nicely. “Only I get to call her that sexy.” Richie told him as he opened the back seat door for Sarah and carefully gave her a hand to get in.

Richie picked up his bag and dropped them in the trunk as he rounded the car. He got in the car behind the seat his daughter was in and moved closer to pull Sarah next to him.

He held her hand as Jon pressed down the accelerator and navigated the car out of the parking lot and on to the road.

Richie sighed; this was perfect, he got reunited with his daughter. His best friend would stay a few days too and the best of all, he had the girl he wanted right next to him and he wasn’t letting go any time soon.

“I’m glad you came.” Richie said to her. “You know this doesn’t immediately fixes all my problems right?” Sarah asked quickly, making sure he still understood what it all meant. He nodded. “I know; we’ll work it out.” He assured her. “I’m willing to try.” Sarah said before she reached up for another kiss.

Richie chuckled at the irony that she used a song lyric again. Sarah looked up at him. "Another song?" Richie simply nodded with a big smile.

Chapter 29

During breakfast Richie wondered if his dream really had meaning. If it had meaning, would it become true too? Hopefully, if Sarah did come it would be less weird than in his dream.

He imagined how she would stand there, they’d hug and kiss and Sarah would say she’s ready for it. Then they’d go home and be happy forever.

He almost laughed at himself. His dream may have been weird but his imagination sounded like a fairytale. He knew it wouldn’t be that easy, there’d be a lot of things they had to work on.

For starters, he was leaving for New York in only four days, how would Sarah handle that? He knew he should have told her sooner but he had forgotten it. Maybe he could convince Jon to only rehearse one or two days, then he could go back home and have a whole week before leaving for two months. He wished he could just take Sarah with him but how would that work? Next week Wednesday they’d leave to Croatia.

He didn’t know what but he’d figure something out.

Of course Megane had followed him to the kitchen since they had been talking in the living room. She didn’t seem so bad but didn’t want to talk about himself anymore, which gave him an idea.

He interrupted whatever she was talking about. “So Megane, what brought you to the center?” He hadn’t asked any other residents that question but maybe he could change the subject and find out more about her.

“Nothing really bad.” She said, reluctant to tell him more.

He didn’t care, she always got him to talk, and he’d get her to talk. “What’s not so bad then?” If it wasn’t so bad, then what was she doing here anyway?

“Well,” Megane sighed, it was the first time Richie saw her not cheerful, “I just needed a break. So it’s really nothing.” She explained but he wasn’t going to let her go that easily, he was going to find out. He hadn’t pushed Sarah to talk but Megane pushed him so he was going to push back.

“What do you need a break from?” She was only 21, her life was only starting, he couldn’t imagine why she needed a break. “You’ll think it’s stupid.” Megane said instead of answering his question. “I won’t think you’re stupid.” He answered and meant it.

He didn’t see how she’d need a break but she was here so she probably thought it was bad enough. He knew not to judge people before they could explain.

“Well, I never finished high school and I worked very hard to get into college and it’s been so much and so difficult, I just needed to get away from everything.” Megane explained with a deep sigh.

It was the end of May, wouldn’t she be missing classes right now? Richie understood she needed a break but she couldn’t miss classes, he knew from experience that that was a bad idea that only led to more skipping classes. “Aren’t you missing classes right now?” He almost actually cared. “No, I have a two week break, then two more months and I’ll graduate.”

Now he was a little confused, she said she had a job where she met a lot of people and claimed that was how she could read people so easily. “I thought you had a job?” Richie had his last bite of toast and got up to get another cup of coffee.

Megane moved uneasily in her chair. “Not really, I’ve been doing an internship the entire time. They already offered me a job in August.” “That’s good.” Richie said. “What is it that you do?” He still wondered.

“I’m studying obstetrics and gynecology.” “Oh,” he was a little surprised with that, it wasn’t what he expected although he didn’t know what to expect, “you get to know people from that?” He asked confused. “Yes, sort of and good intuition.” She explained.



Breakfast was over by 9 and Richie had two more hours before he was leaving, he had no idea what to do until then other than watching tv but he really didn’t care for tv right now.

He was leaving the place where he met beautiful Sarah. Right here in the living room had she first talked to him. The next times he had seen her she was in the kitchen, where they continued to eat together for the rest of Sarah’s residency.

Most importantly, he thought of their bench. With that he walked outside, following the path until it ended in grass and he could feel the soft soil under his feet as he walked over to the bench and sat down, he looked down over at the pond.

They had shared so many feelings, thought, emotions and kisses here. Ah the kisses, he thought, her soft lips that he longed to kiss again, hopefully in a few hours.

He remembered the joke he had made about the bench, how he had wished he could take it home. Sarah had said he probably could as a rock star.

Richie thought of the first time Sarah really opened up to him. How she had told him about the things in her life, how difficult everything had been for her and she wanted to try, slowly and carefully.

She just had to be there to pick him up later. That first time that they really talked, was also the first time they kissed. She had reached up so slowly and had kissed him ever so softly for a few seconds. After her confessions, he had barely dared to kiss her back.

The second time he felt much more comfortable kissing her.

This bench really held a lot of memories. Their relationship had grown closer every time they spent time by it. He almost felt sad that it would be the last time he was sitting on it, even though he was sitting by himself now. If only he could really take it with him. Then they could continue growing closer to each other every time they would sit on it. It was their bench.

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Chapter 28

"Sarah, do you hear that buzzing sound too?" He thought it might just be his ears but the sound was getting louder by the minute. He got confused when Sarah didn't answer, she hadn't said anything the entire time.

He reached over her shoulder and hit his alarm clock, making the buzzing stop.

Rubbing his eyes, he realized it was a dream. That was weird, he thought. At least he had gotten some sleep and felt a little rested.

When he finally looked at the clock for the time it was only 5am, he got three hours of sleep. 5am, he thought? He would never set his alarm for 5am.

Tonight he’d sleep in his own heavenly bed, it would probably be almost as good as sleeping with Sarah.

Richie stayed in bed a while longer, trying to fall asleep again but at 6am he gave up.

In the bathroom he grabbed a clean towel and put it by the shower before turning the water on and stepping in. One of the advantages of sleeping naked, he thought, he didn’t have to undress to shower or dress after one to go to bed.

He got the water to the right temperature and stepped under the shower head, letting rain down on him, he tried to wash away last night’s dream but not last night’s worries.

He didn’t know what to think of it, it was strange and it all seemed so real. He continued washing his hair and body, staying away from the area around his groin, which wanted attention every time he thought of Sarah.

By the time the room was hot and steamy, his mind was completely empty.

No sooner than when he was dressing his room did his worries return. Only now, he was even more worried. He thought was because in a few hours he’d know and that made him nervous, what would happen?

He made his way downstairs to the living room to watch tv. It was early and this time he really was alone in the room. It was only just getting light outside, with that and the empty room; it gave him a peaceful feeling.

The quiet was nice, much nicer than watching tv with people chatting at the tables. His room had been the only place where it had been completely quiet, until now. The center was always busy, people everywhere and the only place for some peace and quiet was his room. It felt nice to watch tv alone, without anybody else.

Sometimes he needed some time to himself, like everybody else did.

The first person to join him in the living room was Megane, a few minutes after 7am. “Good morning Richie.” She said cheerful as she sat down next to him on the couch. “Morning.” He said, he could say goodbye to his peace and quiet now. Soon he’d be back home and have all the time he wanted, until Sunday.

“Not excited?” Megane asked surprised at his down to earth answer. “Big day today.” She said. Richie nodded, it was a big day, finally he would find out what Sarah’s decision was. His dream crept back into his mind. “Yes very big, exciting.” But he didn’t sound like it, the memory of his dream changed his mood in an instant.

Did it have meaning? He never thought dreams had meaning, they weren’t reality but this was a current event and it seemed so real, so life like, that he hadn’t even noticed it was a dream until his alarm buzzed way too early. Come to think of it, he never set and alarm. Weird, he thought again.

“Richard, I’m talking to you.” Megane said a bit louder to get his attention. “What?” He asked confused, coming back to reality. “What were you thinking about?” She asked him nicely. “I had a weird dream last night.” He explained, still unsure if it had meaning or not.

“Really? What was it about?” Megane asked excited to know. “It was weird I was leavingbut when I got outside neither Jon or Sarah were there.” He started, unable to continue. “Jon is picking you up?” She asked a little more excited. “Hey, you’re a Richie girl.” He playfully scolded her. “Yeah you’re right. What happened then?” Megane asked, her mind back to his dream.

“I found Sarah hiding behind a tree. She came over, we hugged and then my alarm went off but I never set an alarm. I just heard buzzing and woke up.” He explained it all in a nutshell. “That’s weird alright, but it’s obvious what it means.”

“What does it mean then?” He challenged her. “Come on, that’s obvious.” Megane said. “Enlighten me then.” Richie said, if she thought it was obvious what it’s meaning was, he wanted to know. “Okay,” Megane started, “you were alone, which I think might mean that you’re scared to be alone.”

Scared to be a lone? He didn’t know about that.

“It could also mean you’re scared Sarah won’t show up.”

That made more sense to him. He was scared for that, the last few days it was the only thing he thought about the last few days while usually he didn’t worry about things, he would just see what happens. “It must mean that then.” He agreed. “What about the rest?” Maybe Megane was right about dreams having meaning.

“Sarah hiding,” she thought out loud, “that would mean she’s scared, but she was there, so she was willing to try even though she’s scared.” “That’s a good thing.” Richie said, if his dream had meaning, he hoped it would become true.

“A very good thing, you said she thought she wasn’t ready for it, she’s willing to try.” Megane said. “What about the buzzing then?” Richie asked still confused about it. “I don’t know, maybe you just needed to wake up, maybe it set itself, electronics do weird things. Dreams are weird too.” Megane said honestly not really knowing, with a shrug.

“Maybe. Maybe she’ll be there some time my alarm really goes off.” Richie joked. “That could be.” Megane said, surprised Richie thought of it, not realizing he was only joking.

Richie sighed, if only it were true.

“You’ll be happy to see Sarah again, you both will.” She was still sure of it. Richie didn’t understand how Megane was so sure about what would happen between Sarah and him. She hardly knew them, unless she really did believe his dream.

“If she’s there.” Richie pointed out, sounding a little sad but he didn’t want to get his hoped up and be crushed when she wasn’t there. “You’ll see.” Megane said. “She’ll be there. There’s obvious chemistry between you two, I see you together for a very long time.”

“Are you psychic?” Richie asked, still confused by her thoughts. “No, I just know people.” She explained again. “Besides, some people are very easy to read.”

“I’m easy to read?” He asked surprised, he didn’t like that idea, was it easy for other people to read him too? That wasn’t a good thing, especially if he was in public; could people read him then too?

“How many more times Richie? I just notice those things; other people don’t pay enough attention to notice anything.” Megane said when she saw the worried expression on his face appear. “You’re kind of mysterious.” Richie pointed out. “Thank you.” A big smile appeared on Megan’s face, taking it as a compliment.

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Chapter 27

Richie spent the last night of his stay awake in his room. The party had finished around 10pm and he had gone straight to his room.

After midnight he had enough of staring into the darkness at his ceiling and got up.

He packed his bag, which he had left for the morning but he had nothing better to do now, so did it now instead. He got all his clothes together, finding them on his chair and on the floor in the bathroom. Neatly he folded them up and put them in his travel bag.

It didn’t take him long; he was a pro at packing and hadn’t brought much anyway.

When his bag was ready and stood by the door, it was an hour later. He hoped he was more tired now and able to sleep.

When he was in bed again, he kept on tossing and turning. He realized the last time he had slept perfectly peacefully was with Sarah. Now that his mind had drifted off to Sarah he knew he’d never sleep.

Would she be there when he walked out? Would he once again be able to put his arms around her and hug her? Those soft full, red lips, would he kiss those again? The beautiful sight that she was, every little part of her looked so perfect, would he see that prettiness again?



A few hours later, it only felt like a minute since he lied down in his bed again after packing but now he was standing by the door, ready to leave.

He said his goodbyes quickly and walked outside, ready to see Jon and hopefully Sarah too.



He pushed the door open, nobody, his heart sunk. He didn’t want to feel crushed when Sarah wasn’t there, but he was alone outside. He had hoped so much she’d be there but the walkway to the doors was empty, nobody but him. He could feel how his heart broke into a million tiny pieces.

Jon wasn’t there either, he realized. Jon had promised to be there, how was he getting home now?

A minute ago he was so excited, but that got replaced with sadness and loneliness now. How could Jon forget him and where was Sarah?

He moved to walk to the parking lot that was surrounded by trees, maybe they were waiting there. There was no use in standing in front of the doors; he had to get home somehow.

One of the trees behind the parking lot caught his eye as he walked towards it, did something move there?

Must have been leaves or a branch, he shrugged, what else would it be, just the wind.

As he got closer to the tree, he saw there were no branches that low where he had seen something move a minute ago. Confused he stood still and looked at the tree. He tried to focus his eyes; did he see someone standing there?

Why would anyone hide behind a tree? Unless paparazzi had found out where he was staying, but how could they? Nobody knew where he was except for Jon and Heather, even Ava didn’t know. And Carl, Fred, Jerry and Sarah, had one of them tipped the paparazzi? How could friends do that?

No, they wouldn’t do that. Carl didn’t even know him. Jerry might have had an idea but he never mentioned it so he might not know either. Fred and Sarah wouldn’t do something like that, he could trust them.

“Who’s there?” He finally shouted at the trees. He felt silly, shouting at trees in an empty space where clearly nobody else was but him.

He saw someone step out from behind the tree; he could see it much clearer now. It seemed like he only focused on that tree and nothing else around him. He took a few steps closer. He couldn’t see who it was yet so he didn’t want to get too close in case it was one of those paparazzi photographers.

“Sarah?” He thought it was her that he saw. Her dark blond hair became clear, her face, her beautiful eyes and gorgeous lips. There she was.

What was she doing hiding from him?

She didn’t move any further and stood by the tree, so Richie walked over to her, walking closer to all the prettiness he saw, he realized even more how much he had missed her the last few days.

When they finally stood facing each other, Richie embraced her in a big bear hug. “I missed you so much.” He hugged her tightly; he didn’t plan on letting her go for a few minutes.

Finally he just stood there, stroking her hair, wondering how it got to be so soft, he realized it was the first time he stroked her hair. He stood so close he could smell it.

She was there. She was really there.

He felt so relieved, his heart that had broken in millions of pieces was fixed the moment he hugged her.

He was so worried she wouldn’t be there and there she was. He’d probably die a year sooner because of all the stress he had the last few days, but he was sure all the happiness he’d have from now on and for years to come would extend his life by years. So the stress was worth it in the end.

Now he had Sarah, his life would be perfect, together with her. He couldn’t wait to get home now. But how was he getting home?


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Chapter 26

Wednesday morning, finally it was his last day at the center. He couldn’t deny that he had been counting down the days. Today was finally his last day, he felt happy, proud and excited.

Tonight he got his own party but there wasn’t really anyone he wanted to celebrate with. He liked Tina and Megane too but they weren’t friends like Sarah had been.

Sarah, he thought, what would she be doing right now? Circling jobs in a newspaper or pushing that to the side to spend time with her family first?

He knew what he would be doing first. Then again, he didn’t have to look for a job. Actually he looked forward to rehearsals next week, he wanted, he needed to play. It had been two and a half months since he last played in front of a crowd. He felt much like when he was on a break of the tour. He liked his break but now he was ready for work again.



At each therapy session today he got congratulations. He was proud, he even felt like he had learned a lot more than last time at rehab. He was ready for his next challenge.



After dinner and chatting to Megane he went to see Tina, it was Wednesday after all. “Let me guess, phone call?” Tina asked as she spotted him walking towards her desk. “Of course.” Richie said happily. “Thought so.” Tina smiled back before getting his phone.

“You have to make sure they pick you up. It would be a shame if you had to stay longer.” Tina joked as she gave him his phone. Richie chuckled. “Nothing personal but I really want to leave.” “Then go make sure they pick you up.” Tina urged him.

Richie turned around and sat down in one of the chairs that he always sat in while making his phone calls home.

He wondered if he should phone Sarah too, she had given him her phone number, he had the piece of paper up in his room. He really wanted to hear her but maybe he shouldn’t, if he’d phone he’d try to make her come tomorrow and he didn’t want to pressure her. It was entirely her decision, as bad as he felt about not knowing, he had to leave it to her. Only then he’d really know that she wanted to, that it was her decision.

He started to dial a number he hadn’t dialed during any of his calls.

“Hey.” Came a short answer. “Heather, you alright?” He asked concerned, usually she answered the phone a lot more cheerful. “Yeah, I’m alright, busy day, busy evening. Your daughter is very excited to see you.” She explained.

Richie chuckled, that certainly explained a busy evening. When Ava got excited, she would talk non-stop. “That’s exactly why I’m calling, tomorrow, when I get home…” He started explaining the idea he had, first Heather sounded confused but after he explained it all, she seemed to understand what he meant.

Heather couldn’t be there tomorrow and Ava had to be at school, so Richie’s idea seemed like a great suggestion and Heather agreed to it.

They hung up and Richie dialed the next number on his mental list he had made.

“Jonny!” He almost shouted when the phone was answered on the other end. “Don’t gotta make me deaf too Richie.” He answered Richie’s excitement. “Sorry, I just miss you so much.” Richie said. “I can’t wait to hug you again.” He continued to joke.

“Richie,” Jon said sternly, “I’m a married man.” Richie almost chuckled when he sounded so serious. “She doesn’t need to know.” He urged. “I’m sorry, I’m not into guys. Women got these things called boobs and oh my God, those are amazing.” Jon explained, almost as excited as a gay man that just found new pink shoes, trying not to laugh while he talked.

Richie sighed. “I’ll have to try my luck with this woman Sarah then.” He concluded, he was too good for Jon anyway. “Oh Sarah?” Jon asked interested. “Yeah, I told you about her, if all goes good you meet her tomorrow. You are coming tomorrow?” Jon was his ride home, he had to be there.

“Of course, I’m flying at night, pick you up at eleven, go to your place and we’ll fly back to New York on Sunday.” Jon explained, still cheerful about their earlier horseplay while Richie groaned. He looked forward to rehearsals but he had forgotten it was in New York, he would only have a few days to spend with Ava instead of the almost two weeks he thought he had.

“I forgot.” Richie confessed. “You can’t miss it.’ Jon said, Richie hadn’t played in a while. Even though he was probably one of the best guitar players in the world, he couldn’t get away with that excuse from Jon. He needed to practice. “I know, I’ll just have to figure something out.” He didn’t want to tell Ava they only had a few days, he didn’t want to disappoint her. What about Sarah? If she showed up, he’d be leaving again in a few days. Was he going to have a long distance relationship with Sarah that fast?

Richie sighed. How could he forget, rehearsals were always in New York, he was the only one that lived on the other side of the country and sometimes it was a real disadvantage. With that, they started talking more about business.

After a few minutes Richie had to hang up to phone Ava. They said goodbye and Richie dialed the next number.

“Daddy, why didn’t you talk to me when you talked to mom?” Was the answer he got, she sounded disappointed. “Cause I had to talk to Jon first so I would have more time to talk to you. What’s up?” He asked leaning back in his chair, ready for her long report of the last week.

Tomorrow he’d have the whole evening to listen to her. While listening to her talk about what happened in English class he wondered how she could keep talking like that without ever losing her train of thought or her voice, she could continue for hours. But he liked listening to her; it was another thing that made him happy.

“I can’t wait to see you tomorrow. Oh we should go out!” Ava said excited. Richie chuckled; being in public was one of the things he didn’t want to do right now. If paparazzi spotted him, the questions would never stop and he didn’t want to tell them about his time at rehab, which was definitely something private.

“I thought we could stay in, order some food and watch a movie or something?” He suggested. “Yeah that’s cool too, as long as you actually watch the movie.” Ava said just as excited. It didn’t seem to bother her what they did, which was good cause Richie was looking forward to spend time with his daughter.

He had a lot to make up for since last time and he only had a few days to do it. They talked for the remainder of the half hour that was left.

Saying goodbye to her was just as difficult as the times before even though he was seeing her tomorrow.

After handing his phone back to Tina, Richie returned to the living room where everyone had gathered already. He was happy with the congratulations he got but he wished his friends could be there. Not only the friends he had made here but his other friends too, they should be here. He had shared the last twenty-six years of his life with the rest of the band, they should be there to support him and celebrate with him. It was seriously time to leave and get back to his normal life.

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