i want to write you a song, brandon arreaga

fifty-one

JUNE 23rd, 2020
REAL LIFE.

before they knew it, two days had flown by and friday had arrived, one day before adele's cousin's wedding. but first, brandon was to meet adele's father and brother for the first time.

brandon felt like he was going to faint. his hands were shaky and sweaty, and his confidence was slowly being sucked out of him. "let's get this over with."

adele, who wouldn't admit that she was just as shaky, managed to let out a casual laugh. "now it's your turn to be nervous."

"i'm not nervous." he scoffs, placing his glasses on the bridge of his nose and stretching his arms slightly. "i'm excited, in fact."

"you're excited?" she smirks, glancing at him before facing the mirror, attempting to place the gold necklace around her neck.

brandon beats her to it, sneaking up behind her and clasping the two ends, looking at her through the mirror as he'd done so. "take deep breaths."

her eyebrows furrow slightly, "i-i'm fine."

"i know you're not." he murmurs, placing a small kiss on her shoulder before grabbing her hand and pulling her up from the chair. "we're in this together."

a smile spreads on her lips as she takes his face in her hands, kissing him. he smiles into the kiss, his hand slowly gliding down her back.

a few hard knocks on adele's front door interrupt their moment, and she pulls away instantly to investigate the noise.

as she leaves his side, brandon turns to fix himself in the mirror once more, staring at the imprint of adele's red lipstick on the corner of his mouth. he reaches up to rub it off, unable to help the smile permanently placed on his lips.

robin and ray taylor sat across adele and brandon in the dimly lit restaurant, ray on his phone while robin stared briefly at the menu in attempt to escape his boredom. meanwhile, adele and brandon nervously held on to each other's hands beneath the table.

"how are things in the studio, adele?" robin asks, and her eyes slightly glow when he does.

"they're great." she tells him confidently, sitting up straight. but as she done so, brandon felt her palm shake even more. "i've got a new manager. he's okay, but i'll adjust. on this rate, i think i'll release another album—"

"why do you have a new manager?" he asks, interrupting his daughter's beam.

adele's eyes slightly droop, and she frowns. "my old one quit."

"you pushed him that far?" ray snorts, shaking his head. "i guess i'm not surprised."

brandon knew about two seconds into meeting ray, that he was one of the biggest assholes he'll even encounter. and the only reason he'd choose to hold back on any comments was out of respect for adele. otherwise, he'd be all over him.

"i did." adele admits, and brandon frowns. no you didn't, his eyes tell her. she read them, but chose not to respond.

"your last album was terribly promoted." her father informs. "it's like you barely tried."

"really?" she asks softly, her frown remaining. "i really tried."

"she was having a hard time." brandon decides to say, unable to sit there and let his girlfriend get pushed around. "she tried really hard, both on the album and promoting it."

though, his words caused their attentions to turn to him. "how long have you two been dating?" robin asks.

"long enough." he replies calmly, before glancing down at the menu. "do you guys know what you wanna order?"

his question stopped robin from his smart comment, and instead the man looks at the menu once more. "i think we all do. let's order."

as the four finished their meal and their torturous dinner came to an end, brandon felt some sort of relief.

"i'm gonna go to the washroom." adele murmurs to brandon, giving his shoulder a small pat before heading to the back.

ray and robin stare back at him, and he refrains from letting out a sigh. "i like you." robin informs, and brandon raises his eyebrows with surprise.

"you do?"

"i think he's just surprised she even has a boyfriend." ray informs. "she's had many—"

"taking after her mother, of course." robin scoffs, brandon looking between the two of them.

"adele's a lot to handle." ray continues. "she can barely keep herself together, we're impressed that you dealt with her for this long."

"always having breakdowns, making people feel bad." robin explains, shaking his head. "sometimes, i don't even know how i dealt with her."

brandon opens his mouth to respond, multiple insults preparing themselves right on his tongue. but they all halted as the angel in his eyes approached them once again, "uh, yeah, never mind. the line is really long."

brandon had been quick to stand, sliding an arm around her waist. the pain growing in his chest caused him to be more affectionate, and adele noticed, but decided not to question it. "well, i think we should get going, then."

ray and robin stand, spreading their fake smiles. "see you two later."

"yeah." brandon nods, bitterness laced in his voice as he looked at the two of them.

as the two pairs separate ways, brandon had silenced himself. and that silence continued til they got back to adele's home.

"so, what did you think of them?" adele asks, sneaking up behind brandon as he changes his shirt.

"uh," he clears his throat, shrugging. "they seem..nice."

"yeah? surprisingly, ray wasn't as pushy as he normally is.." she pauses, smiling at him slightly. "but yeah. that's my brother for you."

brandon simply nods, offering her a small smile. she watches as he throws on a random shirt, preparing to change his pants. "wait, what are you doing?"

he furrows his eyebrows at her, "uh..changing."

"the nights not over." she frowns, and he raises his eyebrows with surprise.

"what do you have planned, miss taylor?"

"the london eye." she admits, grabbing onto his hands. "at midnight."

"it's not even open at midnight." he informs, but she grins back at him without hesitation.

"had to pull a few strings, but it's fine. just..take your grandpa clothes off and put on like, a floral button up."

he refrains from laughing as she begins to walk away, "a button up?"

"yeah." she nods. "you be dressing like a masked robber these days."

"real nice." he nods, staring at his clothes. his smile widens just a bit more when he sees the button up sticking out behind the rest of his other clothes.