A/N: Here's the next chapter! I hope you enjoy! For those who have been asking... yes, this story is going to be ending soon, but there will be a third part of this saga, so never fear!

Thanks for all the reviews... its really helping me stay motivated to continue writing!

Much love xx

Chapter 47

"You do realise we have a plane to catch this afternoon, right?" Anakin jested from his position, sprawled out Padme's bed, his long legs crossed at the ankles as he scrolled through his phone idly.

With a click of her tongue, Padme flipped her head around to frown at him. "I haven't had a lot of notice, Anakin! We're going to be gone for a week!" She'd been standing in front of her wardrobe for what felt like hours, trying to pack for their trip to the Maldives. Padme was a logical, organised person, and normally she had her outfits and toiletries packed days in advance before a trip away. It calmed her anxiety that normally took hold of her, she found it therapeutic. However, she'd only found out about their upcoming trip the day before, which was not nearly enough time to pack a suitcase in her opinion, and she was stressed.

A rumbling laugh burst out of Anakin at the obviously irritated expression on her face and he shook his head. "Why are you panicking? You don't even need to pack much," he shrugged nonchalantly. Padme envied his laid-back nature when it came to matters such as this. He could be so riled up and passionate about things – namely her, but when it came to organisation or planning, Anakin was very much a devil may care type. "Just relax, Angel."

Padme rolled her eyes. "Just because you wear the same pair of jeans for weeks on end, doesn't mean I want to do the same," she informed him smartly.

A knowing glint sparkled in Anakin's blue eyes and his lips curved up into one of those smirks that made her weak at the knees. "I wasn't planning for us to be wearing clothes at all," he said darkly, his voice low and dangerous. It made Padme bite her lip, and she swallowed the lump that was in her throat.

"Anakin…" she scolded him, mildly, because she was suddenly overwhelmed with images of his gloriously naked form and she couldn't think very clearly. "Stop it."

Grinning slyly, because he knew he'd gotten her, Anakin raked a hand through his hair and stood up from the bed, stalking towards her like a jungle cat towards its prey. When he reached her, he brushed his fingers down the side of her face, catching a stray curl that had fallen loose from the messy bun atop her head, fingers playing with his idly. Padme's breath hitched in her throat. "Stop what?" he mused, cocking his head to the side, feigning innocence. Oh, he knew exactly what he was doing to her.

"That," she barely managed to say as he bent lower and wafted hot air across the shell of her ear.

"Am I distracting you?"

Padme swallowed again and it took all her strength to not yank his face to her mouth and kiss him. Instead, she composed herself and stepped back, fixing him with a firm stare. "Yes. As you said, we've got a plane to catch this afternoon. Go and annoy Dorme and let me pack in peace."

"As you wish, Angel." He grinned at her as she shoved him out of her bedroom and into the living area, closing the door behind her. Once he was gone, Padme rested her head back against the closed door and took several deep breaths. Her clit was throbbing from his words and stare alone, and it had taken all her control not to push Anakin onto her bed and have her wicked way with him. A part of her was proud of herself – a weaker woman would have succumbed to his advances in a heartbeat. Anakin was, if nothing else, completely irresistible.

She shook her head, and stood back up, biting her lip in concentration. Alright, P, you can do this, she pepped herself up. Sitting down on her bed, she pulled out her phone and checked the weather for the Maldives. It was a very different climate to Boston – it was meant to be very hot and humid. Having grown up in Minnesota and then lived in Boston for most of her life, Padme didn't have much of a summer wardrobe. All she really owned were a few summer dresses, a pair of high-waisted denim shorts she hadn't worn in a very long time and several breathable tanks. She only had one swimsuit - a bandeau one-piece in white an open back and high sides, so she folded that neatly away with a large, oversized, linen button up to wear over the top. For shoes, she packed a pair of sneakers, in case they went for a walk, and a pair of brown strappy sandals. Thinking back to Anakin's comment about not wearing clothes, Padme made sure to pack every piece of lingerie she owned. It was supposed to be a romantic getaway, and she was sure Anakin would appreciate it.

Once she was satisfied with her clothing choices, she dressed herself in her comfiest plane attire: a pair of high-waisted black cycle shorts that came to mid-way up her thigh, and a grey Nike t-shirt. She slipped a pair of slides onto her feet and then went to pack her toiletries. After several minutes, ensuring that she had packed all her essential skin care items, she dragged her finished suitcase out into the living area, where Anakin was laying on the sofa, watching reruns of FRIENDS with Dorme.

They both looked up at her as she entered, and Dorme leapt to her feet and crushed Padme in a hug. "Have fun, you lucky duck!" she cried excitedly. "I'm so jealous, you have no idea!"

Padme laughed. "We will!" she said certainly, glancing over at Anakin. He stood up, stretched and then picked up his bag and threw it over his shoulder.

"I'm gonna miss you," said Dorme quietly.

Padme just shook her head and smirked. "Oh please, D! You won't miss me at all! I'm sure Tyler will be keeping you company while I'm away." She raised her eyebrows knowingly, making Dorme laugh.

"Are you sure you don't need to me drive you to the airport?" Dorme asked.

Padme shook her head, "No thanks, dad wants to drop me off. To say a… last goodbye, I think."

At this, Dorme tilted her head to the side in confusion. "Last goodbye? What do you mean?"

Swallowing slowly, Padme shifted her gaze to the floor. She'd been regretting this part. The part where she told her best friend that she would be moving out once her and Anakin returned from their trip. They hadn't discussed it yet – partly because Padme was still organising a new place, but, more specifically, because she couldn't bear to see the look on Dorme's face when she broke the news to her. The two of them had been living together for years, and while Padme had told Dorme it was going to happen, she hadn't mentioned how soon it would be.

Padme glanced across at Anakin, who was looking between the pair of them, his brow furrowed as he watched them. They exchanged silent words, but he seemed to know that she needed to be alone at that moment. With a nod, he stood up and loped back into Padme's room, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly, and shut the door behind them.

"What?" Dorme asked again, her voice sharp with irritation.

With a heavy sigh, Padme raised her eyes back to meet her friend's face. "Well…" she began slowly and tried to piece together what she needed to say. "Now that I've graduated, I decided… um – I'm moving to Chicago… to be with Anakin. I've been looking for places to rent there."

Dorme crossed her arms over her chest, eyes narrowing. "Okay…" she said. "When?"

"When I… when we get back from the Maldives." Padme played with the end of her hair sheepishly.

It was dealthy silent – Padme could almost hear a pin drop, as Dorme processed the new information. Padme waited patiently, rubbing her thumbs together as her heart pounded in her chest.

"Oh." It was so soft, Padme almost didn't' hear it. Dorme's face was hard and cold, eyes narrowed, lips thin – an expression somewhere between anger and betrayal etched across her pretty face.

"Dorme, I – " Padme stuttered, then stopped. What am I supposed to say? Her mouth opened and closed stupidly, before she closed her eyes and shook her head.

"A week…?" Her voice was sharp, accusatory. "You're moving to Chicago in a week and you're telling me the day you leave to go away?"

Hearing it said out loud, Padme knew that it was a pretty terrible thing to do. Her fear to hurt her best friend's feelings had made the situation even worse. And now she looked awful.

"Dorme I know… I know what it looks like…"

"Do you know how fucking shit that is?" she snapped, throwing her hands up in the air and glowering at Padme with an expression of pure disdain on her face. "I'm supposed to be your best friend! I've done so much for you - so fucking much! And you can't even be bothered to tell me your moving to Chicago!"

There had only been a handful of times that Padme had seen her best friend cry. It was Dorme, she exemplified strength and fierceness. There were countless times where she'd referred to herself as a boss ass bitch. Yet, here she was, furious tears streaming from her brown eyes. Because of Padme. Because Padme had been so caught up in her own bubble – her Anakin bubble, that she had forgotten to tell Dorme that she was moving. In spite of her herself – because she knew she deserved no pity, Padme began to cry.

"I'm sorry! D – I really am!" Padme pleaded, stepping closer to her friend. Dorme put her hands up in half-hearted defence, taking a step backwards, her face heartbroken. "Anakin and I only discussed it a couple of days ago and well… I've graduated and he's still studying and this year has been… it's been awful! The long distance is killing us. I can't do it anymore – I just can't!"

Dorme shook her head in disbelief and laughed, a cold almost sinister laugh. "For fucks sake, I don't care that you're moving!"

Padme halted, confused. "You don't?"

"No! Of course not! I knew it was only a matter of time. I've seen how miserable you are without Anakin." She sighed and rubbed her brow. "It's been heartbreaking, watching you pine after him.

"So…. You're not mad that I'm moving?

Dorme frowned. "No. I'm mad because you're telling me this now. Now! Just before you leave to go away with Anakin and I won't even get to see you before you move!"

Padme nodded sadly. "I'm sorry. I just didn't know how to tell you – I didn't want to… hurt you, you know!"

"We've lived together for years, Padme!" Dorme sounded exasperated. "We've been best friends even longer. I deserve more… more than a quick 'goodbye' I thought…" she hesitated, taking a deep breath and cast her gaze to the floor. It was different – the anger had disappeared and it was replaced by a soft sadness. "I thought I meant more to you than that."

Blinking back tears, Padme stepped closer to her friend and reached for her hand. "You do. Dorme you… you're the best friend I could ask for. I love you so much and I – I don't want to leave you. That's why I couldn't tell you… because I," she gulped as tears slowly trickled down her cheeks. Their eyes met, reflecting the same grief that they both felt. "I don't want to leave you."

Dorme's fingers clasped Padme's tightly, a silent signal that she was forgiven, before she shook her head. "I don't want you to leave, either."

Suddenly, they were wrapped in a tight embrace, both of them sobbing into each other's shoulders as they clung desperately to each other. Padme didn't want to let go – those arms had held her during some of the most difficult times in her life… when she was having a panic attack during finals, when she was crying over being apart from Anakin. Dorme was her rock, a solid constant that had always been there for her, and Padme wasn't ready to part with that yet.

She wasn't sure how long they were like that, but soon Anakin's bemused voice interrupted their moment. "Have you two made up yet? We've got a plane to catch."

They both pulled back, wiping tears from their eyes and sniffing, and then they started laughing. It was ridiculous, the way they had fought, so fiercely, and then been reduced to a teary mess in seconds.

"I'm not going to leave straight away," Padme assured Dorme with a smile. "I'll be back for a couple of days. Besides… I still have to find a place to live!"

Her admission seemed to brighten Dorme's mood, for her eyes grew wide and her face lit up. "Well… I guess I'm gonna have to throw you one hell of a going away party then, huh?" The thought made her bounce on her toes.

Padme grinned. Dorme loved to plan events, and she was damn good at it too. "I wouldn't expect any less of you."

It was then that her phone buzzed with a message from her father, saying that he was waiting downstairs to take them to the airport. Padme squeezed Dorme's hand affectionately, before taking hold of her suitcase and following Anakin out the front door.

"Have fun you love birds," Dorme said as they left the apartment.

Anakin put his arm around her as they walked down the stairs. "Do you feel better know you've told her?"

Nodding, Padme smiled up at him happily. "Yeah."

It was time for the next chapter in her life. She was leaving Boston behind… for good.