For Better or Worse (bxb) - On Hiatus

Chapter 11

"Is there anything else you need from home to take with you?" he asked.

That was another reason why I was certain I would hate the rehabilitation centre; Kimo couldn't come with me. None of the rehabilitation centres were close to our apartment or Kimo's workplace, so the commute to and from work would be too tiring and difficult. As much as I wanted him to stay at the centre with me, it just wasn't practical.

"Whatever you packed is fine." I ran my hand through his luscious curls. "I'm sorry I didn't help you choose a rehab or-"

"It's okay. I really don't mind, and I know you've been consumed with your thoughts." He smiled and kissed my hand which had come to a rest just under his cheek.

I didn't deserve him. It had only been a few days ago when I'd promised him I would fight for us, but all I'd done was fight the demons within, and even that fight I was losing. While he worked at the restaurant, took care of me and focused on his acting career, I couldn't even manage to keep myself from falling apart.

A gentle touch on my hand drew my attention, and I looked towards Kimo as he removed my hand from his face and intertwined our fingers. "I'm happy to take care of you. I don't want you to worry about anything." He released a tiny huff and pouted. "I'm a big boy, I can handle everything."

A small crack appeared in my caves of despair and the smallest of light shone through. It wasn't much, but it was enough to make me smile, enough to make me want to try a bit harder. "I know, but you shouldn't have to do everything alone. Want to tell me about the rehab centre?"

Kimo grinned and nodded, reaching into his bag and pulling out his polka-dot book and a pamphlet before telling me all about the sessions the centre offered. We also talked about finances and applied for another grant together. The more Kimo's shared, the lighter his mood became, and that ended up lifting my spirits.

When we were finished chatting, I realised that I had been the centre of our discussion for over an hour, and I hadn't even asked about him. "You haven't mentioned acting in a long time. How did the audition go? Is Margot still booking you new auditions?"

Kimo released a nervous laugh and refused to meet my gaze. "But we still haven't talked about your-"

"Curly Fry, what aren't you telling me?" I cupped his face and raised his chin causing him to very slowly lift his gaze to meet mine.

He took a deep breath and blurted out, "I got an email about a callback audition the day before you came out of the coma, but I never replied, and I cancelled all my auditions."

My eyes widened and my face broke into a huge grin. "You got a callback, that's great! I'm so happy for you! How could you keep such exciting news from me!" My face quickly fell as my eyebrows furrowed. "What do you mean you cancelled all your auditions!"

"I wanted to focus on your recovery, so I cancelled them."

My heart clenched as I fully understood how much he was giving up to stay by my side. "As touched as I am by that, you have to keep going to your auditions, and find out if you can still go to the callback audition. For the next month, I'll be at the rehab centre, so you won't need to worry about me at all. Then by the time I come home, I should be better equipped to deal with things on my own."

I wasn't sure about me being better equipped, but I was certain that I wanted Kimo to pursue his dreams. There was no point in both of us being miserable, and figuring out how to deal with all the changes heading my way was more of a me problem. No matter what was going on in my head, I would always cheer him on and support him.

Kimo peered into my eyes. "Do you really think I should? You're more important than any of that."

I smiled and smoothed his furrowed brows. "Yes, I really think you should."

A smile spread across Kimo's face, and he released a tiny squeal before jumping up from his seat and crashing his lips into mine. My hand tangled in his soft curls as his hands drifted upwards to caress my ears. I welcomed the familiar feel of soft, warm lips against mine and the delicate dance that they were luring me into. We melted against each other, both needing to feel the other close.

When we finally pulled away, Kimo's face was shining brighter than a full moon. "I'll continue with my acting, but I promise I'll always make time for you."

His excitement seemed to have rejuvenated me, and I smiled and pecked his lips. He giggled and leaned against my chest as my arms enclosed around him.

In that moment, I realised that in order for me to be happy, I needed my personal sun to be happy and shine as brightly as possible. It was the only way his light could reach the deep despair in my soul.

A/N

Thank you for reading! ❤

What did you think of the chapter? Do you think Connor should have encouraged Kimo to continue acting?

Announcement: Unfortunately, I don't have as much time to write as I did before, so I might no longer be able to update this book every week, but I will try. I am in the process of switching jobs and I'm also trying to figure out some details for the programme I'll be starting to study in January, so lately I've been a lot busier than I expected. I haven't had time to write any chapters in a little over three weeks, and this is the last of my reserve chapters, so it's very likely that there won't be a chapter next week. I'm really really sorry, and even though the updates might be slower, I would never abandon this book. I love it too much! I'll always update on Saturdays, just maybe not every Saturday. 

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