Fool Me Once...

Part 15

"Lindsey..." Stevie was surprised to see him at her doorstep. He hadn't called her before coming, he just showed up after being MIA for the past two weeks. "Come in." She opened the door wider for him. 

"Sorry to show up announced." Lindsey said.

"It's okay." She smiled at him, happy to see him. "Can I get you anything?"

"I'm good." Lindsey shook his head. "I wanted to talk." 

"Sure." She led the way to the living room, showing Lindsey to take a seat. "Nobody else is here. Mia's out with her friends, Ryan..." She shrugged. "He's been busy lately." 

"Good, I hoped we'd be alone." Lindsey turned more towards Stevie, studying her for a moment. She seemed different somehow. "First of all, I'm sorry about kissing you. I shouldn't hav-"

"Don't worry about it. I mean... It takes two. Let's just keep it between us." She added. Ryan didn't know, he didn't need to. "There's something a lot more important, Linds." 

"Yeah..." He sighed, sitting hunched over. "I'm okay, Stevie. Really."

"Mick's an idiot. I can't believe he did that to you." She said. "You didn't deserve that from him."

"I was really angry at first, but the more I thought about it, I came to realize that maybe it's for the best." He didn't sound sure, but Stevie didn't question it. 

"How is it for the best? We had our reunion just a few short years back, Linds. We announced the new album and then you have to leave?" Stevie was getting emotional. She was still mad at Mick and she felt horrible for Lindsey. 

Reaching for her hand, Lindsey gave a weak smile. "Nothing lasts forever. I was happy to be a part of something huge and something so wonderful, but I always reminded myself it could end some day. It did. There's nothing I can do about it, is there?"

"I feel bad. I feel like this is my fault." Stevie admitted, hanging her head low. She brought her hand up to quickly brush away a tear. "Mick is jealous. From the bullshit he spilled, I gathered that he was simply jealous." 

"He's still convinced about us." Lindsey nodded, adding to what Stevie just said. "Even though I'm sad about how things ended, I also feel like it's a second chance I got, you know, to be the husband Kristen wants me to be, that she deserves."

Stevie grew silent for a minute. "So, you're not thinking about divorce anymore?" She hoped, she didn't sound upset, although in a way she was.

"No." Lindsey confirmed. "Kristen's parents took the kids for a few days and we went away to just be together, to spend time together."

"Oh..." Stevie pulled her hand away from his. "I'm happy for you."

"Things aren't great, that's for sure. But I think we both want to change that. Kristen was more open about the things that have been bothering her, we talked about the reasons why we may have drifted apart. She apologized for blaming me, she said it was unfair to make me the only guilty one in our marriage." With every word that came out of Lindsey's mouth, Stevie wanted to ask him to stop more and more. "She admitted that she hasn't been very supportive of me and that she understand's I need the creative outlet, that she can't expect to have me all for herself, that I'm allowed to make and perform music."

"That's very true." Stevie nodded. She wasn't looking at him. Lindsey could read her as well as she could read him. He'd know she was upset and he'd ask, but she didn't want to answer. Mostly, because she wasn't even sure herself what she was going through exactly where her feelings for Lindsey were concerned. "Promise me, you won't forget me."

Lindsey frowned, unsure what would make her say that. "Steph, never." He shook his head. "It doesn't matter that we're no longer in the same band, but you're still my friend, I still love you and I'm not going to just stop wanting to be around you."

She smiled a little, her lower lip quivering. "Good." It came out as a whisper.

"Stevie, is everything okay with you?" Lindsey was concerned. He brought a hand up to her face, gently turning her head so she would look at him. "Why are you crying?"

"I don't know." She chuckled tearfully.

"Come here." He opened his arms and she was more than happy to be embraced by him. 

"I guess, I'm just really sad about you leaving."

"Oh, Steph..." Lindsey held her close, stroking her hair. "It's going to be okay. Everything's going to be okay." He repeated himself, pressing a kiss to her hair. 

She pulled back just a little, looking up at him. She searched for reassurance in his eyes she loved so much. She wanted to believe him when he said that everything was going to be okay, even if he was talking about his dismissal from Fleetwood Mac and she had something entirely different on her mind.