My computer crashed for like... a month, so yeah, sorry for the long delay, once again. Review and forgive me, please!
Chapter 16 - Heartfelt Goodbyes
Unfortunately, today was the day that Phil and Keely had been dreading ever since she got to Pickford; Janury 17th, the day she had to leave her hometown, her friends, and Phil; to get ready to go on tour.
Via, Tia, Phil, and Owen were at the airport, ready to say goodbye. Via and Tia had tears in their eyes, and nothing could stop them from falling. Phil, who was probably the most crushed one out of them all, struggled to fight back the tears that were on their way.
"Bye, girls... I love you!" Keely said as she hugged each one passionately.
"We love you too, Keely," Via said, her British-accented voice cracking with every tear that rolled down her cheek.
"Be careful, and enjoy the tour," Tia said.
"I will, thanks," Keely said, starting to cry. "Crap, I didn't wanna cry!" she exclaimed.
"I wouldn't worry about it," Owen said. "Everyone else is."
Tia, Via, and Keely all gave Owen an "eat shit" stare.
"Not the right time, Owen," Tia said, another tear sliding down her cheek slowly.
"Yeah, I guess not..." He said. "Oo, snack machine! Come on, Phil!" he exclaimed, pulling Phil by the arm. He stopped him.
"No, Owen... I kinda need to say goodbye to Keely. That's what we're here for."
"Well, okay... I'll go get the gummy subs all by myself, then. See ya, Keely!" he said, giving her a hug and a light kiss on the cheek. Then he sprinted to the snack machine, got his snack, and went outside to the car.
"Well... I'll say that was one heartfelt goodbye," Phil said sarcastically.
"Tell me about it..." Keely said, rolling her eyes and then looking at Via and Tia again. "Do you girls mind if, uh... if me and Phil get a minute... alone?" she whispered to them softly. They looked at each other, understood perfectly, and went outside to join Owen after one more group hug.
After they were gone, Keely took Phil to a quiet, deserted hallway.
"Where are we going, Keel?" he asked her.
"You'll see," she said. She hoped that she wasn't making too much of a drastic move; but she didn't think she was. She hoped Phil would like what he was about to experience.
She took him into a family bathroom, closed the door, and locked it. Phil looked kind of scared, yet kind of calm; Keely could tell, by his eyes, that he trusted her.
"Are you freaked out, Phil?" she said.
"Not... really... I trust you," he said, walking slowly up to her, grabbing her hands, and lacing his fingers with hers.
"Do you know why I brought you here, Phil?"
"I think I have a pretty good idea..." he said, a look of mischief in his eye.
Keely smiled at him with a different sort of smile; a smile he had never seen her make before. But he liked it. A lot.
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Twenty minutes later, there was a knock, followed by a voice, at the door. "Keely? Phil? Are you in there?" It was Tia.
"J-j-just a minute!" she yelled nervously. Then she quickly grabbed her clothes, put them on, and shoved Phil's into his arms, motioning for him to put them on hurriedly.
"Hide in that stall. I'll go out there with Tia, act like you're not there, then I'll text you with my phone and tell you to meet us somewhere close by, okay?" she whispered very softly.
Phil nodded and ran into the stall, put his clothes on, and waited.
Tia, whom was still outside the door waiting, said, "Keely... are you dying in there?"
"No, I-I-I'm fine, I'll be out in a second!"
"Hurry up, you have a plane to catch!" she said.
Keely rolled her eyes in frustration as she struggled with her purse and lip gloss. Finally, she unlocked the door and opened it quickly, hurriedly jumping out into the hallway and closing the door behind her.
"Whoa, what's the rush, Keel? Are you like... hiding something in there...?" she asked, peeking in the door.
"NO! ...I-I-I mean, no! Not at all! Now come on, I need to find Phil, I don't know where he went!"
"I thought he was with you..." Tia said, sounding a little lost.
"He... he, was... but, uh... he had to leave to, uh... go to the... bathroom! Yeah, the bathroom. I'll text him now and see where he is."
Tia sighed and rolled her eyes. "Keely, I worry about you sometimes."
Phil received Keely's text message. "Meet me outside by parking lot," he read aloud. Phil nodded his head to himself, tucked his phone in his pocket, and ran out the door, down the hallway the opposite way, and to the parking lot. Luckily, he got there before Tia and Keely.
He sat down on the sidewalk, quite out of breath, waiting for them to come around the bend. Luckily, when they arrived, they didn't notice how out of breath he was; therefore, nothing was said.
"There you are. Come on, I have to go put my luggage on the plane..." Keely said sadly.
Tia sighed and a slow tear ran down her face. "I have to go to the bathroom... call me like ten minutes before you take off," she said, running around the bend, crying her eyes out, and leaving the two alone together once again.
"Keely... I can't believe you're leaving... we were having so much fun together... why does it have to end now?" he asked her, looking into her eyes as he grabbed her hands once again.
"I wish it didn't have to... but this isn't the total end... you and I both know that. It just seems like it is because we'll miss each other so much."
"Yeah, I guess you're right... I mean, if I loved you, I would want you to leave. Do what's best for you."
Keely looked up to the sky. One more glance and she would surely not be able to leave him. Her lips pursed tightly, a few tears ran down her cheek.
Phil looked at her and pulled her face down to meet his softly. Her green eyes looked almost like glass as the tears reflected them. Phil gave her the smile that she always loved as he gently took his hand and wiped the salty tears from her face.
"Phil... I can't do it."
"Can't do what, Keel?" he asked her, his voice starting to crack.
"Leave you again. I can't do it. I need to be with you... you're like my other half now. If I lose that other half, I'll feel... empty."
"Keely... you'll never lose me. I can promise you that. I can still be your other half, and you can still be mine... it shouldn't matter how far apart we are. And it's not going to. But you have to go back. You and I both know that."
Keely nodded her head slowly. As much as she hated to admit it; he was right.
"You're right, Phil," she said, trying to put a smile on her tear-stained face. "It won't matter."
"If you were in Heaven and I was still on land it wouldn't matter, Keely. We'll always be together, no matter how much we need to catch up with each other and no matter how long it takes for me to see you again... as long as I do, I'll be happy. And I hope the same goes for you."
Keely nodded her head, and she started to cry once again. Phil pulled her close and let her weep into him, his red Hollister shirt catching all of her tears.
Then, Tia and Via came around the corner, tissues in hand. "Keel, Tia and Via are coming."
"I don't care!" she said, still crying. As they approached, they noticed that Keely was practically torn to pieces, so Phil motioned for them to sit down on the sidewalk, a little ways away from where they were standing. They nodded their heads understandingly.
After Keely finally stopped, Phil walked with her to go drop off her luggage and then to the plane. She started walking towards it, purse in hand, until Phil felt in his pockets and remembered her gift. "Keely!" he called after her. "Keely, wait! I forgot to give you something!" he yelled, running to her. She turned around.
"Give me something? Give me what, Phil?" she asked him.
"Close your eyes first," he said. She smiled her bubbly smile. "Now hold out your hands..." She did as she was told.
Phil opened the jewelry box and set it in her hands. "Okay, open them now!" he said.
Keely opened it and she almost started bawling again. The aqua-colored heart necklace stared out at her, the sparkles from it reflecting in her seafoam eyes. "Oh, Phil... Phil, it's... it's beautiful! You shouldn't have!"
"Oh, but I did... whatcha gonna do, huh?"
Keely laughed. "It's so pretty! I love it!"
"Here," he said, taking the necklace out of the box. "Lift up your hair." Keely gratefully did as she was told and he clicked the necklace together. Keely stroked it softly.
"And I didn't get you anything!" she exclaimed, more tears forming in her eyes.
"Keel, don't worry about it... don't feel guilty, really. You know how I am. I mean what I say."
Keely nodded her head. "You're right... I know you well enough to know that you're telling the truth."
"Thank you," he said playfully. She laughed again. Phil kissed her, and they both enjoyed the moment until it was time for Keely to board the plane at last.
When their lips parted, Keely said, "Well, Phil... I guess this is it, huh?"
"Y-Yeah... I-I-I guess so..." he said, swallowing the lump in his throat. Then, a slow tear ran down his cheek. Keely took her finger and wiped it away.
"We'll always be together, right?" she asked once more, her face turning red and tears coming down.
"You can bet on it, Keel."
She nodded, smiled, and they shared one last kiss before she had no choice but to get on the plane and head back to where she belonged.
Right before they took off, Keely looked out the window at Phil. He stared back. As the engine started, Keely mouthed the words "I love you." Phil smiled at her and mouthed "I love you too" right before the plane left. He watched it drift out of sight with tears in his eyes, before slowly turning around and walking to his car to head home.
End of Chapter 16
There's an epilogue coming... chill!