"Yeah mom, I know. I'm getting sleep, I swear."
Exhausted from the week, Olivia trudged up the staircase to her apartment a few blocks from the UCLA campus. Her mother was hounding her with questions, and wouldn't let her hang up.
"Your schedule is overloaded right now. I just want to make sure you're making time to eat and sleep. That's important, too. Do you want me to bring by some dinner for you tonight?" Laura asked.
It was already 8:30pm, and Olivia wasn't trying to see anyone tonight. "No mom, I'm good. I already ordered some pizza, it'll be here any minute," she lied.
"Ok sweetie, maybe try to get a vegetable in every now and then."
"Ok mom, I'm going to hang up now." Olivia was irritated with her parent's concern over her, but deep down she knew they were right to be worried. It was her last semester at UCLA, and she was barely managing to balance her full class load, daily dance rehearsal, and the part-time internship. She hardly had time to breath these days.
"Alright honey, I love you. Go to bed early tonight." Olivia sighed as her mom hung up the phone, and she was finally alone in her apartment.
Loneliness creeped in as she realized that the only person she wanted to be with right now was 2,400 miles and three time zones away. She picked up her phone and opened up FaceTime. Please answer Spencer, please. Holding her breath, she clicked on the the last missed call from "my baby 💙" and prayed.
It was almost 11:45pm EST, and she knew he'd probably be exhausted from a long day of spring training. Olivia stared at her phone willing the text to change to "Connecting...". Several moments later, and the screen returned to the FaceTime call log. C'mon, Spencer, I need you. It had been five days since they last talked on the phone.
Defeated, Olivia tried her best to hold back the tears threatening to fall. Just a little bit longer, she reminded herself. Olivia leaned back against the wall and slid down until she was sitting on the floor with her knees folded up into her chest. She couldn't hold it in any longer. A sob racked through her body.
This week marked eight months since Spencer left for North Carolina last July. At the end of his junior season at UCLA, Spencer declared for the NFL draft and got chosen by the Carolina Panthers. It was one of the happiest days of her life, watching the man she loved fulfill his life-long dream. She remembered that day so clearly, holding his hand tight as she sat next to him in Grace's living room. Sensing that he was nervous, she whispered reassurance in his ear until his name was finally called in the second round. That night everyone screamed, laughed, and cried as they celebrated Spencer James. Grace made her famous mac 'n cheese, and the couple stayed over late into the night until they headed back to Olivia's apartment to celebrate alone.
If only that Olivia knew how hard the distance would become. Phone tag had become a pattern in their relationship. Crying several times a week was now a ritual for Olivia. Jealousy would creep in every now in then, and then the guilt would follow.
Spencer had her by his side all throughout his collegiate career. She was there at every game. Pep talks, massages, homemade meals. The whole package. Now she was alone chasing her dream with an empty apartment and a full log of missed FaceTime calls.
Even though it felt like it, she knew he wasn't the one to blame. He had done the same for her while he was still here. Every dance recital, he was there hollering her name as she took her final bow. That goofy smile that he saved just for her always catching her eye in the crowd. On late nights, when she was stressed trying to meet her assignment deadlines, he stayed up with her so that she wouldn't be alone. He never missed a beat.
Her body began to calm down as her tears dried out. Time to get up and find some food. Opening the freezer, she found a frozen pizza and threw it in the oven. Figuring she had enough time, she hopped in the shower while her pizza cooked.
Walking back into the kitchen, she took her pizza out of the oven and sat down on the couch. She flipped over her phone, and her heart sank at the notification - Missed FaceTime Call - 7 minutes ago. Fuck. She hadn't heard it over the noise of the shower.
She quickly called back and held her breath for the second time that night.
"Hi, baby."
The tears came right back, and Olivia let out a loud sob seeing Spencer on her screen. For a whole minute, she cried as Spencer went on.
"I'm so sorry. I tried calling every chance I got. They're killing us with these training sessions. Liv, are you ok?"
Spencer's throat tightened up watching Olivia cry holding a slice of pizza in her hand.
"Liv," Spencer whispered, "talk to me."
"I -, I -, I miss you," Olivia choked out, "every day. It hurts... so bad."
Spencer scrunched his face as he felt tears well up. He wanted to be strong for Liv, but truth is, he felt the pain just as deeply as she did. Every time they talked, she sounded optimistic and cheery, but he knew she was trying to be brave. Tonight, the act broke.
"I know, Liv. I know," he comforted her, "only 51 more days until I'm back home for your graduation."
Olivia nodded.
"I'm so proud of you. Hey, I listened to your podcast this week. You killed it on this one. Like always," Spencer encouraged her.
A soft smile crept onto her face knowing that Spencer found the time to listen to her latest episode.
"There she is," Spencer smiled admiring his girlfriend through the phone.
"Gosh, look at me. A hot mess," Olivia chuckled dropping her pizza on the plate.
"My hot mess."
"I wish you were here tonight," Olivia whispered wrapping herself in a blanket and grabbing the stuffed bear that Spencer won for her at a carnival the week before he left to North Carolina, "so does Mr. Cuddles."
"Put Mr. Cuddles on the phone," Spencer joked. Obliging Olivia centered the bear on the phone screen.
"Sup, homie. How's it going? Now listen, my girl is feeling sad right now. Not gonna lie, so am I. It's tough being without her. I miss her smile in the morning. I miss her dancing around the apartment when she thinks no one is looking. Damn, I even miss her hogging the shower and using up all the hot water. But I can't be there with her right now, so imma need you to hold it down for me, ok?," Spencer said softly, "I left a little piece of my heart with you, so when she's feeling down, you stay close to her. Alright Mr. Cuddles, good talk."
Olivia couldn't stop the tears from coming again.
"I love you."
"I love you, too."
For the next two hours, they talked. Spencer told Liv about the locker room pranks his teammates play on the rookies, and Olivia updated him on her dance rehearsals for the upcoming recital at the end of March. Spencer yawned every so often, but kept insisting that he was wide awake.
As Olivia started to get sleepy, she got ready for bed bringing Spencer along with her through her nightly routine. He stared at her in silence as she did her skincare and wrapped up her hair.
Getting into bed with Mr. Cuddles, Olivia broke the silence, "It's 3am, Spence. Go to sleep, I don't want you to be exhausted tomorrow."
"No, I'm good right here," he mumbled with eyes half closed.
They lay there staring at each other until Olivia started to doze off.
Sensing that she was asleep, Spencer whispered, "I miss you so much. More than you can even imagine."
Finally, he gave up the fight and let sleep take over him. The image of Olivia clutching Mr. Cuddles to her chest being the last thing he saw before his eyes shut.
_____________________
The Next Morning
Olivia opened her eyes to see Mr. Cuddles staring at her from the side of the bed. She grasped for her phone and found it dead. Remembering the night, she smiled thinking of Spencer staying up way past his usual bedtime to be with her.
After her phone charged for a few minutes, it turned back on, and she saw she had a text.
my baby 💙: I love you. I'll be in weekend training all day. Tonight again, 9pm your time?
Her heart felt a little less heavy knowing that he'd be with her again tonight.
_____________________
Two Weeks Later
The crowd cheered as Olivia bowed with her teammates at her final dance performance of her college career. This show had been a special one since she not only got to perform, but also choreograph several of the dances.
"That's my sister," she heard Jordan's voice coming from the right side of the crowd. Standing to the side of the stage as her dance coach took the stage, she scanned the audience trying to locate her family.
Laura was the first one she spotted, and her heart swelled knowing that they all made it to her last show. Her eyes trailed down the row to her dad, then Jordan, then.... Spencer. She gasped and her eyes welled up. Damnit Liv, hold it together. She saw him chuckle at her reaction.
Olivia's eyes did not leave Spencer through the rest of her coach's speech. The second the curtain came down, she ran to her dressing room and changed into her sweats. Not caring to put on her nicer post-performance outfit she had packed.
"You good girl?" her best friend Tiana asked laughing at Olivia's urgency.
"Yea, just got someone to see," Olivia grinned rushing out of the room while still slipping on her sneakers.
On the other side of the backstage door, she ran to him jumping up and crashing into his body. His arms caught her and wrapped tightly around her waist as her legs hooked around his. Not giving him a chance to say a word, she grabbed his face and kissed him repeatedly until she was satisfied.
"Hi," she giggled.
"Hi," he grinned.
_____________________
A/N: This one tugged at my heartstrings. Hope you enjoyed the sweet ending!