Heaven, was a place on earth.
A place on earth with a girl named Grace Andrew Larsen.
I thought the day I lost her, and ones that followed were the days I've cried the most in my entire life.
Endless pain, endless heartbreak.
But this day, the day I never ever thought would truly become a reality even though I prayed for it, this is now the day I've cried the most in my life.
Hearing Vinny, hearing her say I love you.
Fuck.
I will never have the words for that moment. The moment I realized that the girl I've been broken over for almost a year, remembers me, remembers she loved me and I loved her.
It was the impossible and it happened. I didn't even know how it happened or if she was okay, or what happened to her, god I didn't even know how she was feeling.
All I knew is I heard the words Vinny, and I love you and I remember.
Thats all it took for me to crumble.
This was easily the best day of my entire existence, besides the day I met this amazing girl for the very first time.
We laid in the hospital bed, Grace was facing the window as she laid down and I spooned her, completely caressing her with my body and arms. I ran my fingers across her bare arms as we were there together.
I never wanted to leave this moment.
Ever.
"This still feels like a dream." I say into her ear as I tuck a strand of hair behind it.
"I've been driving myself to insanity for eight months without you, I never thought I'd see that beautiful face again." I continue. "Let alone kiss it."
I hear her give a light laugh after I speak.
"Now what are you laughing at huh?" I tease her.
"It's just so crazy we're together right now, like none of this even happened, we're just together and we're okay." She turns her head back to face me behind her. "Now we know we can make it through anything, nothing can break us apart now."
"I'm just glad you're okay in this moment, I wish I could've been there when it happened... when it all came back and overwhelmed you, pained you." I say in sorrow.
"I'm the best I've ever been right now. I have you." She says warmly and happily.
I couldn't imagine the feeling of eight months worth of events flooding your mind within ten minutes. It was probably unbearable.
And I wasn't even there to hold her through it.
She was strong for making it through okay, clearly she was alright since apparently she sprinted here not long after.
I was scared she was blocking it out rather than embracing it. It wasn't a secret this was a lot.
Then my smile began to fade and reality set in.
Really, set in.
I made a promise.
I promised that night that when she woke up and knew not the name Vincent Cole and so many other things, I would stay out of her life and give her a fresh start.
A second chance so that she doesn't get involved in anything that can hurt her like it did again.
She was better, safer, without me.
Her grandpa knew it too.
What was I supposed to do now?
I couldn't just let her go after getting her back after all this, I told myself I'd never let go if she got her memory back... but now I still feel guilt when I think about us being together again.
She could get hurt again.
They say if you love something, let it go, and if it comes back it was meant to be.
I let her go, the hardest thing I ever had to do but I did it.
And here she is, right back in my arms.
That's gotta be a sign right?
I didn't know how to feel, I knew I was the happiest guy alive with her back... but I couldn't be selfish and put her at risk again.
"I think you're forgetting about one issue." I say not so happily as I sit up from our cuddle session. She gives me a questioning look for sitting up, then proceeds to sit up with me, leaning her head back on the pillow next to me.
"And what's that?" She tilts her head and asks.
Did she have to be so fucking adorable?
"That I'm no fucking good for you, I could never say no to those big blue eyes and it would put you in danger. Also, I don't know how we can possibly be a happy couple when your grandpa is going to track me down and kill me himself." I shake my head as I explain to her.
"You know what we were like Grace, we were trouble. I got you in to trouble and you had no business being there, I'm not worth that. It's the whole reason this happened, the whole reason you got hurt. Who the fuck would I be to let that shit happen to you again, for both of us to suffer again?
He wanted me to stay away from you, and that night you were in that hospital bed and the doctors told him and I about your memory. Right then and there we made a pact, I promised him I'd disappear and give you a second chance at a better life, a better love. That's exactly what I did. Until you showed up at Brighton.
I wondered why the fuck you'd be sent to that kind of school, but then I remembered. Your fresh start, you wouldn't be starting fresh if he told you your memory got lost from falling off a balcony and smoking your head, when you were on the run with your old boyfriend. There needed to be an explanation, but one that wouldn't connect to me. Which was crashing a stolen car." I finish.
She deserved to know what I agreed to and why.
I wanted nothing but honesty with her, like it's always been.
I watch in her expression as she processes everything I just said, trying to analyze the meaning of it.
"I knew it wasn't a car! I just couldn't remember. Everyone kept saying a car, so I had to assume it. It almost drove me crazy never being sure of anything in my life at all. And honestly I'd rather be in whatever you think is so messed up, than the alternative which is forgetting about you and being without you as if I never loved you." She opens up to me and my heart hurts for the pain she felt.
"I love my grandpa, you know that. But I'm my own person Vinny, I'm eighteen and he can't dictate or control my life. I don't care if he doesn't want me with you because I want me with you. This is about us, not him. He can make his choice but he can't make mine." I watch a tear fall from her eye and drip down her rosy cheeks.
I grab her hand in my own and comfort her.
"You know I'm in this with you for the rest of my life, I wish we didn't lose all this time but all that matters is I have you back now and we have each other. If he's not willing to accept that I'm in love with you, then he's at a loss because it won't change anything but my respect for him." She finishes with more tears within her eyes, god she was always so emotional.
I loved it.
"Don't cry Gracie, we're going to be just fine okay? You are completely right, I can't say that I don't feel guilty as shit but I got you baby. I'm here and I'm listening to you." I say as I wipe the tears from under her eyes with the pad of my thumb.
I watch her lips form into a cheeky smile with those dimples I could never get enough of, all her cute little antics were torture this year since I couldn't really have her— I lost control a couple times, but I tried my best.
But now I can grab her and kiss her whenever I want, I can get a taste of her lips and her tongue whenever I'm craving it.
And I craved it for eight months.
To even just feel her skin, fuck I'll never get enough.
She was my peace, and I finally found her again.
— —
I open my eyes, looking to see that through the window the skies were dark and the moon was full.
Me and Grace ended up falling asleep after talking for hours, we just talked about everything that's happened since I walked out of the hospital room until now.
It was crazy to talk about with her, and somehow going through this all and breaking it down together, it's seemed to have brought us even closer than we were before it all went down.
Unfortunately we got to the topic of how we got in the hospital, I wanted to beat down Lidia whether she was a girl or not; she hurt my women. But maybe without Lidia being her bitchy self, I wouldn't have gotten my girl back.
Then the question I feared came along.
Why are you in here Vincent?
How do you tell the person you love that sort of thing? It's hard to hear and you can't just easily spit that out.
No, I didn't attempt suicide.
Nor was I thinking about a possibility of dying. I just didn't want to feel anything anymore.
No feelings.
I guess I wasn't thinking and I took one pill too many, I walked to the bathroom and it took me a long ass time to get there from my bed; which was eight feet from the bathroom door.
When I got in there my vision started going hazy, my fingers started tingling and going numb, then it just went black. And I think that's when I became unresponsive.
Next thing I know, I wake up in a hospital bed with a bunch of shit stuck in me like some lab experiment, and there's Niko sitting on a chair next to the bed.
If Niko hadn't of found me in the bathroom, I would be dead today.
The doctors told Niko he called just in time for them to be able to get me here quick enough to keep me alive.
He legitimately saved my life.
Grace had a really hard time hearing it, she sobbed for a long time. I couldn't blame her, I wouldn't want to hear the same but reversed.
She was glad I was honest with her, and emphasized how glad she was I was alive and okay.
I turn to the side of me and smile as she lays there, sound asleep with her hands tucked under her head like always.
It was blissful just watching her sleep and listening to each beautiful breath she took, she was an angel.
I'm snapped out of my honeymoon daze when I hear the sound of the hospital room door being opened. I hear it close quietly and Niko reveals himself from behind the corner.
I bring my finger up to my lips and shush him, pointing to Grace afterwards. He nods and tiptoes his way closer to the bed, walking over to my side of it.
He sits in the guest chair against the wall on my side of the bed, he looks between me and Grace and a big smile appears on his face. I scoff and shake my head at his reaction.
"This is like a fairytale." He whispers to me, he was clearly happy this all worked out in the end.
And of course that's what he chose to say.
"Normally I'd punch you and call you weird for that one, but I actually agree with you." I lightly chuckle as I look down to Grace with a soft smile.
It really was like a fairytale. Except Grace wasn't the peasant girl who met a prince at the ball.
I was the asshole who met a princess in the gym of our school.
Somehow the asshole scored the princess.
And he just scored her again.
Okay but like, dats cute🥺
From now on let's just say updates will be random because I keep saying I'll way until a specific day but then today happens where I post like 4 times sooooooo🤪🤪🤪
What did you guys think of this chapter? GRINCENT IS IN ACTION YALL.
Let me know your thoughts in the comments and be sure to vote if you liked this one.
There will be TWO more official chapters to this book, before I begin the short number of bonus chapters.
I can't believe we're about to hit the end🥺🥺
-Tia