Five Years of Fame [COMPLETE]

50. How It All Ends

Spring, Year 5, Month 4

Reeve had a lot of time to think while on tour. Sure, there were the game nights in her hotel room when they were playing more than one night in a city. And of course, the sporadic jam sessions that sprung up whenever three or more musicians were in a room together. But still. She found she had hours to waste, watching foreign landscapes race past her tour bus window. And she spent them thinking.

It was all coming to an end, she knew that. Her whole team knew that. All of her fans knew that, so it wasn't a question of 'If'. She had made this decision a long time ago. She had been giving the same speech in every city along the tour. She was committed.

It wasn't even a question of 'when'. She had a countdown in her head that clicked one number lower every time she walked off stage after a performance. It was due to hit zero when she played Boston one last time.

The 'why' was less definite, more of a feeling, a sense that this was the right thing to do. Her time was up and it was time to go home. Even this last cycle, she had done it her way, she had done it right, and yet...

She missed her family, she missed Noah, she missed her house. This wasn't a life she could live long term and so she wasn't going to.

A thought pulled at her every time she thought about that final night, on that familiar stage, in front of her hometown. Somehow it felt wrong to end it there. To simply end things when the tour did. It didn't feel fair. And she was too aware that she would be ending on a night someone else had put together, on a night that the power-that-be was still involved in, would still see a profit from.

That thought alone turned her stomach. If she was going to go out, it had to be on her terms, on her dime. It had to be on her own.

So the question became first 'where' and then 'how' with hints of 'who' thrown in.

The 'who' was obvious. Her friends. Her family. People who had helped her get to this place in her life, the people who had walked her through both the good times and the bad. A list was already rolling through her mind and a line-up was taking shape.

She would make sure to invite her dad, Jen, and the kids. He might not show, Reeve could never be too certain. But maybe he would. He had shown up at the show in Albany. Even if he didn't, Reeve would have the rest of her family there to support her.

And Noah. He was the answer to the question of 'what's next'.

There was of course her record label, which was already taking on a life of its own. Reeve's involvement in music wasn't ending, more like evolving. And she would have her best friend there with her every step of the way.

But still, it was Noah. She was doing this for herself, so she could have a life with him.

He didn't know she had found the engagement ring when looking through his bag for a book of hers he had borrowed. She had slipped back right where she had found it and never said a peep about it to anyone. It wasn't a surprise. His question was inevitable. And she knew exactly how she would answer.

So the only question that remained was 'where'. In Boston. Somewhere in the city. But where could they fit the crowd? Already Reeve had a gut feeling this was going to be her biggest show ever. They were going to need all the space they could get.

A thought pinged into her mind, a faint memory from almost two years ago, something to do with her and Anton. She couldn't remember the circumstances but it didn't matter. She had an idea.

Reeve got up from her spot on the couch that lined the bus window and went to find Kelly. She was coming out of the bathroom just as Reeve was calling her name, looking a little green.

Kelly waved Reeve's concern away with the excuse of 'car sickness'. Reeve had never toured with Kelly before this album cycle but she didn't remember Kelly getting this much car sickness on the acoustic tour. And it seemed to be getting worse.

Reeve helped Kelly to the couch and sat by her while Kelly focused on making the nausea pass. When she sat up straight, she focused on Reeve and was all business.

Reeve told Kelly her idea. Kelly's response was to make a phone call. She had to keep her voice low as it was still early morning on the bus but it was almost closing time in Boston.

Kelly worked hard, harder than Reeve had ever seen her, and Reeve had seen her plan Reeve's final album release, two tours, and her own wedding all at the same time.

By the end of the week, the venue was booked.

By the end of the day, the performing acts were signed on. It helped that two of them were traveling with Reeve and the other was always only a phone call away.

It was coming together, and fast. And it was sure to be her biggest event ever.

But Reeve didn't mind. It was time to go big because she was going home.

A/N:

This is the last thing I wrote for this book. It's short. It's sweet. It's simple. And it's exactly what I needed to finish this book.