~4 YEARS LATER!~


I drove towards the House of Blues in silence, gently drumming my fingers on the steering wheel to the beat of the music that played softly through the radio. A big smile was plastered on my face. I was so excited. No, excited was an understatement; I was ecstatic. Just thinking about him made my heart race, my cheeks flush, my stomach do somersaults.
I hadn't seen Vic in...a little over 2 months, now. They had been on tour for 4 months, the last 2 taking place oversees. I had missed him so much. Having him away made me realize how much I missed the little things: his smile, his scent, the way his hair falls over his eyes, the faces he makes in his sleep. I missed him more and more everyday, but I was used to it by now.


Things had changed so much in the 4 years since we got married, but I wouldn't change a single thing. If you would've told me 4 years ago that Pierce the Veil's newest album would've dropped at number 1 on the Billboard Charts I probably wouldn't have believed you, no matter how much I wanted to. I never could've imagined that their biggest tour to date, and their very first full-fledged world tour, would've entirely sold out within a matter of minutes of tickets going on sale. Yet it did. Pierce the Veil was bigger than ever, and I couldn't be more proud of my husband.


Tonight they were playing a hometown show here in San Diego to an entirely sold out crowd. It was the final show of the tour, and their final show for a while. Despite my objections, Vic had decided to take some time off for the first time in over 10 years; Tony, Jaime, and Mike had supported Vic's wishes, and they too were looking forward to some down time. Of course I was thrilled that I would get to have him home for more than a few months at a time, but I didn't want him to put his dream aside for me, I had always told him that. He ensured me that he wasn't, that the break wasn't only for me, but for him also, but I couldn't help but feel a little guilty.


I pulled up to the venue, the security guard allowing me in the back way where the buses were parked. I put the brand new car in park, a recent birthday gift from Vic, and checked my appearance once again in the small mirror on the visor. My hair, which I had long since dyed blonde again, fell in perfect waves over my shoulder. The nose ring had disappeared a few years earlier, and it still surprised me how much I looked like my old self despite the age difference.


I stepped out of the car and opened the back door slowly, careful to not wake the sleeping 3 year old slouched in her carseat. I pulled her into my arms, propping her up on my hip as her arms encircled my neck, her face buried into my shoulder as she slept peacefully. With only one free hand I managed to grab the diaper bag from the floor, tossing it over my other shoulder, before leaning far enough into the SUV to detach the baby carrier from the base, lifting it out of the car gently and resting the handle in the crook of my arm. I kicked the car door shut and walked slowly into the venue, juggling the 2 kids with ease. Parenting on my own these last few months has made me figure out to make situations like this work. I was a pro at this by now.


The security guard, noticing my lack of available hands, opened the door for me, and I walked in out of the heat, thanking him with a smile. I followed the posted signs in the direction of the green rooms, following a maze of halls towards my destination. "Mommy," Lilly croaked out, her little voice soft and coated in sleep, as she stirred on my hip. "Mommy where are we?"


"We're here to see daddy, baby," I told her, her big brown eyes immediately lighting up, her lips turning into a smile. She started chattering in my ear excitedly; it was as if she hadn't been asleep at all. She was always so full of energy, so full of life. We reached the dressing room labeled 'Pierce the Veil' and I knocked, squatting down and setting Lilly on her Toms-covered feet. The door opened and without hesitation she spotted Vic.


"Daddy!" she hollered as she took off in a dead sprint towards him. I watched as his face lit up; he squatted down so he was level with her and scooped her in his arms tightly, spinning her around in circles.


"Oh, I missed you so much, princess," he hollered excitedly.


"I missed you too, daddy. Guess what? Uncle Austin and I went to the park the other day and..." I watched with a smile as she talked his ear off, telling him story after story not even stopping to breathe. He just watched her the entire time as he held her on his hip, laughing and smiling along with her as he listened intently to every word that left her lips. Seeing the two of them together again made my heart skip a beat. She was the spitting image of Vic: her skin a deep bronze color like his, her eyes big and chocolate brown, her long brown hair wavy. I laughed a little as she told him about a new toy that she saw that she wanted him to buy for her. He promised her he would and I smiled knowing he was telling the truth; she had him wrapped around her little finger from the moment she came into this world. She had both of us wrapped around her finger, but she was definitely daddy's little girl.


"Why don't you go play with uncle Jaime for a little bit so I can go say hi to your brother and mommy," Vic said, turning to smile at me. He set Lilly down and she lunged at Jaime who was seated on one of the couches. He picked her up and tossed her on her back gently, tickling her and making her squeals of laughter fill the room. I walked towards Vic, meeting him halfway, and grasped the back of his head, pulling his lips to mine. "Hi, baby," he whispered against my lips.


"I missed you so much," I responded, giving him another small peck. He put his hand to my face and stroked gently, his eyes burning into mine.


"I missed you too, more than you'll ever know." He kissed my forehead, then my cheek, then my nose, causing me to laugh. "Is he asleep?" He questioned, motioning to the 5 month old little boy in the carrier resting on my arm.


I nodded. "Yeah, he's been out for a while because he was up all night long fussing," I said with a small chuckle. Vic looked at me, his eyes sad.


"I'm sorry I haven't been there, but after tonight I'm going to be. I'm gonna make up for it," he said, his face etched with guilt.


"Stop. You would've been there if you could; this is your job, Vic. We've had this discussion how many times? I knew what I was getting in to when I agreed to marry you, okay? So quit apologizing." He smiled at me and gave me a quick kiss. Jaime picked Lilly up, hoisting her onto his shoulders, and walked towards the door.


"We'll be back!" Jaime rang out in a sing-song voice.


"Jaime, be careful please! And Lilly, listen to your uncle Jaime!" I hollered after them.


"I will mommy!" She replied through laughter as Jaime took off running out the door and down the hallway. He was so good with her, they all were. They all loved her like she was their own, and she loved them just as much. Vic gave me a small smile, raising his eyebrows at my worried-mother tone. I laughed a little and took a seat on the couch, sitting the carrier down on the floor in front of me so I could see my son's face. I crossed one leg over the other and hooked the toe of my shoe under the carrier, gently rocking it back and forth. Vic sat next to me, tossing his arm over my shoulders and pulling me close to him.


We sat in the green room alone for a while, talking quietly with each other. I told him stories about things he had missed, laughing together and enjoying each other's company that we had both missed so much. "Are you happy?" Vic suddenly asked out of nowhere, breaking the comfortable silence that had formed around us.


I pulled my head from his chest and looked up at him. "Of course I am. Why would you ask that, babe?" He sighed and took my hand in his.


"I don't know, I just - I mean is this how you pictured your life to be?"


"No," I replied softly. "It's better than I imagined. Vic, I am so grateful to have the life that I do. I would be lying if I said being away from you wasn't hard, that raising two kids on my own most of the time was easy; it's not. But I love you so much, and I wouldn't have it any other way." Vic gave me a small smile and I leaned up to kiss him; just as our lips brushed a blood curddling scream echoed through the room and I smirked. "And so it begins," I muttered with a laugh. I leaned forward and began to undo the harness in the carseat. "Oh, is little Noah fussy? Yes he is!" I said in a baby voice as I lifted him out of the carrier and rested him on my chest. "Oh, I know. It's alright," I cooed as I rocked back and forth gently, trying to quiet his screams. "Hey, babe, will you hand me that bottle that's in the warmer," I asked, pointing towards the diaper bag. Vic dug around in it and pulled the bottle out.


"Here, babe, I'll do it," he said with a smile. Vic tested the temperature of the formula on his wrist before reaching out and taking the baby from me, craddling him in his arms. He put the bottle to his mouth, Noah taking it willingly. "Jeez, he's going to town," Vic said, looking away from our son for only a brief moment to flash me a smile. "That's my boy," he cooed as they gazed into each other's eyes. Noah reached up and grabbed onto Vic's finger with his tiny hand. I took the opportunity to pull my camera out of the bag and snap a picture of my boys.


Vic finished feeding Noah and burped him before playing with him, making the little boy laugh excitedly. Eventually Mike, Tony, Jaime, and Lilly came rushing back into the room.


"Bro, it's time," Mike said as he put Lilly down on her feet. Vic let out a sigh, handing the baby back to me as he got up off the couch. He pulled Lilly into another hug and turned to look at me.


"I'll see you after the show, babe," he said and I nodded with a smile. The guys headed towards the stage, and moments later the door opened once again, revealing Mama and Papa Fuentes.


"There are my grandbabies!" Mama Fuentes exclaimed. Papa scooped Lilly up and Mama walked towards me. "Oh, and there's the cutest little boy in the entire world," she squealed at the sight of Noah. I held him out to her willingly and she took him into her arms. She bounced up and down on her feet, and it wasn't long before he was asleep again. "Go," Mama said to me and I furrowed my brow. "Go watch the show, we'll stay here with them."


"No, I can't-" she cut me off.


"I insist. We'll be fine here! I know you want to be there and I know Victor wants you there." I stood from the couch and smiled widely. I grabbed my camera and kissed Noah's forehead softly before walking over to where Lilly had enticed Papa to play dolls with her on the floor. I squatted down.


"Lilly, I'm gonna go watch daddy, okay? You stay here with your abuela and abuelo," I said and she looked up at me.


"We'll be here playing dolls, mama. Go watch Pierce the Veil!" She stumbled over her words a little, but I knew what she was trying to say. I gave her a quick kiss and ducked out the door, making my way to the stage. I saw Casey, the drum tech, and he gave me a quick hug before pointing me towards the side of the stage. I stood leaning against a wall as I watched them start to play. Halfway through the first song Vic finally noticed me standing there, and he gave me a huge grin. I snapped pictures as they played their way through their set; I couldn't wait to develop these and hang them in my gallery downtown.They would surely attract several potential buyers at the showing in a couple of weeks.


The set came to an end, and Vic quieted the crowd. "So as you all know by now this is our final show for a while. We are going to be taking some time off to spend with our families. I wanted to take a minute to thank each and every one of you for your continued support over the years. We would not be here today if it wasn't for you guys. I am beyond blessed to have the life that I have today. I have the greatest fans in the entire world, 3 brothers who have stuck by me through everything, a wife who is hands down the greatest person I've ever known, and 2 beautiful kids. I am the luckiest man in the world, and I appreciate everything you guys have ever done for us." The crowd errupted with cheers at Vic's words, and I was beaming from ear to ear. "Now for our last song I'm going to sing a new one for you if that's okay?" The audience cheered even louder. "I wrote this song for my wife, Lyla. I wrote it a while ago, at a time in my life when I had really screwed up; I let her get away, and I regreted it every day since. I wrote this song in hopes that we would be together again and I would get to sing it for her. We found our way back to each other, and I am thankful for her every single day. I feel like now is a great time to play this song for her. This one's called 'Kissing In Cars'."


The tears began to fall from my eyes before the song even started. I smiled through them as Vic's voice filled the air around me. How I had ever gotten so lucky I have no idea.


My life was absolutely perfect. I had everything that I could ever want.


I remember the fragile, broken girl I was just 5 years ago. I felt like life had no purpose, no meaning. I was waiting for it to end, unable to make myself really live.


And then Vic showed up....and he helped me fix myself.


Everything that had ever happened in my life, it didn't matter anymore. I didn't regret any of it, not even the things I did when I was at my lowest. I was thankful for it all, every horrible experience I had gone through. However bad it was back then....it led me here, to where I am today. I wouldn't take back any of it.


I have a husband, who I love with everything in me, a husband who loves me and treats me well, a husband who saved me. I have a family who is supportive of every decision we make. And most importantly I have 2 children who fill my heart with so much joy it doesn't even seem possible.


Just 5 years ago I was broken in a million pieces. But I picked them up again, every single piece no matter how small or how damaged, and I put them back together, one by one. It wasn't easy, it took time, perseverence, and hard work. But I did it. I made myself whole again.


Because there really is faith in love.

Notes

That's it guys! The end!!! I hope you loved the ending. I know I did. Thank you all for the continued support. I read every single one of your wonderful comments and they only fuel my inspiration.

So, some news. I started a sequel for this story shortly after it was published for the first time. I had about eight chapters or so before I discontinued it after I received some hateful comments about it. But I thought I'd ask you guys what you feel about me posting it on here and then continuing it?? Depending on the feedback I get I'll possibly post the sequel titled "Because Without You, Nothing Ever Mattered." Let me know what you think <3