It had been two weeks since Tori returned, and it still didn't feel like home.

Tori looked around her somewhat dingy-looking house. Same old kitchen, living room, bedroom. Same old everything. Nothing else. It was almost bare.

She knew this wasn't where she belonged.

She wanted to be happy that she finally returned home, but she this wasn't her home anymore. That had changed when she was in Inkopolis.

Just thinking about the city made tears appear in her eyes. She missed it terribly. She missed everything about living there. She missed the pancakes, the music, the guest room bigger than her house.

But most of all, she missed Jake.

It made her heart ache. Tori missed everything about him; the way he'd comfort her whenever she needed it, his ridiculous dancing, even just not having him around made her tear up.

And the way she rejected him when they returned. God, it was killing her. She was so stupid. She didn't even listen to what he was trying to say, she didn't tell him how she felt… And for what? Looking back on it, she realized that she didn't even want to come back. She wanted to stay with him, and she came back anyway… That was the worst part, that she still came back. She thought she had a good reason, but it was now that she realized it wasn't. There hadn't been anything stopping her from staying with him.

And there wasn't anything stopping her now. She was gonna go back there.

She checked the time. 6:42 pm.

This was it. In twelve hours, she'd be back with Jake.

{asterisks}

It had been two weeks since Tori left, and nothing felt quite right.

Jake sat on the couch and buried his head in his hands while he went through the events of that day for what felt like the millionth time, sobbing all the while.

"Tori, I l-"

"Don't say it!" Tori said firmly. Jake recoiled slightly.

"I'm sorry," she said. "But please, don't say it. It'll just make things harder. I… I have to go now. I'll miss you. I'm so sorry…"

"No," Jake said. "No, you can't go! Please don't go! Tori, I-"

"I'm sorry," Tori interrupted, her voice barely a whisper. "I really am. But you know I can't stay." She lightly pressed her lips to his cheek, and slowly backed away.

"Good-bye," she said, before Super Jumping into the distance…

He touched his cheek where her lips had been. He shouldn't have listened to her. He should've told her how he felt. He should've told her how he felt, and now he'd never get the chance again…

Since Tori had returned home, Jake hadn't left his apartment. As it was, he barely left his bed. He knew that his friends were worried about him. They had noticed what was wrong, and stopped by every couple of days to bring him food. He appreciated their gesture, but Jake wasn't sure if he'd ever recover from this. Tori took up all of his thoughts, and he rarely attempted to stop thinking about her.

Jake let out a long sigh, and flopped back down in his bed.

{asterisks}

Tori looked at the clock. It read 5:54 am. That would be enough time to get there.

She took one last look around the house. She knew that a part of her would miss it, but this was far more important.

She walked out of the door and Super Jumped toward the grate leading to Inkopolis. Without hesitation, she swam through it, taking the now-familiar journey to the city. She popped out at the other end. Tori cautiously surveyed her surroundings before remembering that the area would be completely deserted.

She had only taken it twice, but she remembered. Tori walked down the path through the alley that took her to Jake's apartment. She was forced to remind herself that there was nobody awake at this hour, and she didn't need to worry about being found.

Finally, she reached the door to Jake's apartment. Tori knocked on it without hesitation.

It took a moment, but the door slowly swung open. Jake was standing in the doorway. His face quickly changed from annoyance to disbelief.

"Tori?" he asked, his voice barely above a whisper. "Is that you?"

"Yeah," she replied. "It's me."

He quickly ushered her inside and shut the door behind her. "What are you doing here?"

"I came to apologize," she said. "I shouldn't have left. That was the biggest mistake I've made in my life, and I wanted to say that I'm sorry."

"I-I don't know what to say," Jake replied shakily. "I can't believe you're here right now… I'm not dreaming, am I? I've been spending a lot of time in bed, and I-"

"It's not a dream," Tori said, lightly touching his arm. "I'm here. I'm back."

"Tori, I-I wanted to say something really special if I saw you again, but I don't think it matters now. So I think I'm just gonna…"

Jake's voice trailed off as he pressed his lips to hers. Tori's eyes widened for a moment before closing, and it felt magical. They stayed like that for a moment, before pulling away from one another. They couldn't keep the smiles from their faces.

"So, are you gonna stay here?" Jake asked hesitantly.

Tori's smile grew wider. "Yeah, I'm staying here."

Jake lifted her into a hug. "You have no idea how happy I am to hear that!"

Tori happily returned the hug. When they separated, she blushed and said "If you want, you can say it now."

Jake nodded, and reached one hand out to lightly touch her cheek. "Tori, I…" He took a deep breath. "I love you."

"I love you, too," Tori replied.

They shared a smile, and their lips met again. When they separated, they both began to giggle, and didn't stop for a good few minutes.

After they calmed down, Tori said "You know, Grace taught me another dance."

Jake arched an eyebrow. "Did she, now?"

"Yeah," Tori replied with a grin. "She taught me how to slow dance."

Jake grabbed his phone, plugged them into his speakers, and began to play the Squid Sisters. He held his hand out to her. "Then may I have this dance, Tori?"

Tori smiled and nodded, and took Jake's hand.

They listened to a few songs together, slow dancing all the while. When they were finished, the two shared another kiss, and spent the remainder of the day talking and laughing together, making up for lost time.

[A/N] Surprise! Another chapter! I know the last few have been shorter than the others, but I'm pretty sure they get the point across.

But yes, Colour Blends is over now. But the story's not done yet. What does that mean, you ask?

Well, fans of these two will probably be happy to know that I am planning a sequel! It doesn't have a title yet, but I've got the basic plot down (and it's just as plagiarizing as this one). As for what that is… well, you'll find out when I publish it.

I hope you've enjoyed Colour Blends! I'll see you guys soon.