Five Years of Fame [COMPLETE]

29. Her Golden Hour

Winter, Year 1, Month 1

The last night of Olivia's Christmas break in Boston fell on New Year's Eve. New Year's Eve that year fell on a Friday but Hank decided to postpone that week's music night just one night so they could ring in the new year with a bang.

Dani, Olivia and everyone she had ever grown up with it seemed, rang in the new year altogether among the glow of Hank's Christmas decorations. It took a room-wide chant to get Olivia back up on stage to sing them Auld Lyne Syne as they counted down.

Olivia and Dani left the real employees to clean up as they had an early wake-up call set for the next day. Olivia felt a tug in her stomach when she said goodbye and felt weird leaving the cafe with streamers still hanging from the ceiling and a pile of dishes by the sink.

Her triumphant return home for the holidays had ended with a bang but Olivia was still getting used to having to leave it all behind as soon as her time was up.

Molly woke up early with them the next morning and had coffee brewing for them as Olivia and Dani scrambled to pack their last remaining things. Dani had a few weeks off before school started again and would be joining Olivia on the road as the band headed for Europe.

Molly was barely awake when she waved the girls off, their bags piled in the back of the town car that had been waiting for them at the curb. Dani was already nodding after as their driver headed south towards the airport but Olivia's eyes refused to shut, hungry for the familiar scenery flying by, soaking it all in one more time, aware that it would be a while before she was back again.

This time, Olivia wasn't homesick as soon as she started to leave. It was her first time leaving her hometown, headed for somewhere else, somewhere bigger and brighter, not immediately missing her family and friends, her community the minute she headed out. She was sure it would come on later but at that moment, she was rearing to go.

Olivia had been given the enormous blessing of two uninterrupted weeks of time off back home, the longest time she had spent at home since she had first moved away. The first half of her tour had ended it's American leg with a round of holiday festivals all up the East Coast, ending in Boston to a sold-out show.

It had been two weeks of sleeping late, wandering around, stopping by the cafe, and the record store where she used to work as a teenager to say hello to her old friends. But. by the middle of the second week, Olivia could feel herself start to itch under the strain of monotony. She was ready to get moving again.

The party the night before started to catch up with her by the time they made it to their gate and were ushered to their seats. Dani immediately curled up and passed out and Olivia joined her by the time the plane was taxied to the runway.

The first sun of the year was rising slowly over the eastern horizon, lighting up the sky in a hazy yellow, dispelling the darkness and sending a glow over the earth. But neither Olivia nor Dani noticed as they were both fast asleep.

The new house was huge. Jon had had to water down the details of the agreement to Olivia. Bottom line, if she liked the house, it was hers. And it would have been impossible not to find it absolutely stunning. The little bungalow across town seemed a shack to the mansion Dani and Olivia found themselves dropping their bags down in.

Their cries and exclamations echoed off the high ceiling, bouncing off the warm white walls and the wooden accents. It was already furnished and perfectly decorated. Old Hollywood meets the South West would have been the easiest way to describe it's laid back atmosphere. It felt impossibly big for just one person and Olivia was grateful for Dani's presence to help fill the space.