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april 25, 2020
adele caught the earliest flight she could.
she risked everything possible as she sat in her first class seat, the time reading 3:34 am. after abel's advice, he helped adele get her things together and even offered to drive her to the airport.
the amount of paparazzi had been relatively low given the time of night, but that only gave the few there more opportunities to snap several pictures. and with every camera flash, adele's heart raced faster and faster. she knew her manager would be sending texts the moment he'd awoken the next morning. and with that thought, she powered her phone off.
eleven and a half hours later, adele landed in los angeles at around seven in the morning. her eyes had felt strained, considering she'd gotten little to no sleep. but she couldn't sleep now, and she knew it.
"adele!" melanie's voice hisses through the phone, "are you serious?"
"i'm okay, mel." she murmurs in response, using one hand to push her hair out of the way of her sight. "i would've told you, but it was late—"
"i don't care!" she cuts off, and adele gives her half of her attention, staring up at the map of the airport to find baggage claim. "i'm your assistant, remember? i should be by your side at all times. now, you're in a different continent. not to mention, you have no security. do you know how reckless this is? you're not—"
"melanie," adele calmly interrupts, and surprisingly the girl had shut up. "don't worry, i'm completely fine."
but the girl hadn't budged. after insisting adele get some security, she had managed to send a few guards from her connections.
"miss taylor, would you like me to check in for you?" one of the guards asked.
adele glances up from her phone, nodding politely at the woman, "yes, please."
abel insisted on booking a hotel after dropping her off at the airport, that being the four seasons in beverly hills. and although it was quite a ways from brandon's house, adele was grateful for his help regardless.
she stood before the mirror, her hands moving down with the slow motion of the hairbrush. she pauses the brush, and adele had finally felt the risk of the situation settle in her stomach. she straightens her posture, meeting her own eyes in the mirror. what am i supposed to say to him?
"miss," she turns her head to face another one of the security guards, who'd politely knocked first and kept his distance. "the car is ready for you."
she nods with a small smile, "thanks, i'll be right down."
adele hadn't known how she was able to wait until noon to go see him. but she knew he enjoyed his sleep, and would only make it possibly worse to go there sooner.
as the car drove through the heavy commute of los angeles, adele couldn't help but remember the last time she'd been there, with expectations to see brandon. however, he'd gotten on a plane the same day to see his ex girlfriend.
she shakes her head of the thoughts, realizing that it'll only make her feel worse than she already does.
"we'll be waiting around the corner, ma'am." the man says as she slips out of the car, and she nods in response, still slightly aggravated with her assistant for giving her these guards in the first place.
déjà vu began to hit the girl, paired with the nerves raging through her body. she'd felt like she was in some sort of dream as she approached the front door.
slowly, she lifts her hand, balling it into a fist and gently knocking on the door. after almost a minute, she contemplates knocking harder. but before she could lift her hand once more, the door swings open.
his eyes widen slightly at the sight of adele, scratching the back of his neck. "damn, this happened like, a few months ago."
but unlike last time where he hadn't been very familiar with the girl, he smiled. "why are you smiling?"
"because i am so glad you're here." he expresses, stepping back. "shit, come on in. edwin's gonna do a happy dance when he sees you."
she steps further into the home, about to turn and ask about brandon's whereabouts before austin sprints down the stairs. "love is real!" he exclaims, wrapping his arms around adele. "i knew you would come."
she couldn't help but smile as she hugged him back, "you guys are wild. isn't it too early to be on crack?"
"someone say crack?" zion asks, stepping into the hallway where the three stood. he sighs at adele, "oh, it's just you."
she scoffs at him, and he smiles at her as he goes in for a hug she'd easily dodged.
"get away from me, bitch. don't think i didn't see your post about brandon."
he huffs, "that was to lighten the mood!"
"hey, brandon's at the grocery store—" nick had began to say.
"because it's his turn." zion clarifies, though adele hadn't bought it.
"he should be back any minute now." austin informs, "i'm thinking..grand surprise."
"hide under his bed."
"god, no, zion."
"i'm throwing out ideas!"
adele watched as edwin stepped into the house, his eyes on his phone. "yo, you guys suck. i really had to take my fit pics with a self timer today— holy shit."
before adele could say anything, edwin engulfs her in a big hug. "oh my god, i missed you so much." edwin expresses, squeezing his friend tightly.
adele pokes her lip out, "aw, really?"
"simmer down, ed. we're trying to come up with ideas on how to surprise brandon." austin lectures.
"guys." adele sighs. "..i don't know if he wants to see me."
"what? of course he does." edwin frowns. and the rest of the boys agree, except for nick.
"i know you're worried about what he said to that girl." nick says. "he'd gotten drunk, and that annoying magazine journalist snuck in and got information from him. he didn't mean it, though. he felt like shit afterwards."
"where's that insider bitch?" adele mutters, and the boys shake their head.
"she's not worth it." edwin informs. "but anyways, brandon will be so excited to see you! trust us."
though despite their efforts to get the girl to surprise him, she finally convinced them to let her see him alone. she was nervous enough, and all she could think about was how everything could go wrong and four other people would be there to watch it.
she kept it simple; sit at the center of his queen sized bed and wait. her hands shook in her lap, gripping the stem of the single rose she managed to pick up from the hotel lobby as a peace offering.
"i'm home!" she heard brandon's voice boom through the house. "the least you guys could do is help get the grocery."
downstairs, all of the boys exchanged glances before standing from the living room and helping their friend gather the grocery bags.
"go upstairs." zion blurts out of nowhere, and edwin smacks his chest. "ow."
brandon furrows his eyebrows at the two, "what's wrong with you?"
"a lot of things." austin answers for him, "but ignore him, he's still hungover from last night."
brandon rolls his eyes at the two, taking his time to put the items away before making his way upstairs.
adele gripped the sheets beneath her tightly, attempting to calm her nerves. her breath hitches as she makes the last second decision to stand up. her eyes had already been watering, but she knew it was too late to dry the tears.
brandon opens the door, stopping in his tracks when he sees the girl in front of him. he felt his chest tighten, suddenly unable to breathe.
adele takes a deep breath through her stream of tears, her voice cracking before she could even speak. "hi."