Before the Sun Sets

@ Jinx...
Leo smiled as he looked across at Olivia. She was the most beautiful woman in the world to him. Even when she was relaxing eating junk food she was gorgeous. Leo looked down at his chow mein and began to munch away, and grabbed some wantons as well. He let out a groan of pleasure as he ate, he was starved. “This is so good.” He mumbled between mouthfuls. Leo nodded and tapped his chin. “We should try when we go through Oklahoma. There’s some windy backroads I can set us up to take that get confusing especially if it’s dark, kill the lights and if he’s following us he won’t be able to see. But if he’s not there’s no way he could catch up and find us.” He told her and shrugged. Leo’s blood boiled thinking of Graham. But he tried to seem calm. Leo glanced up and raised an eyebrow. “I’m fine.” He said and shrugged as he continued to eat. “How are you, Liv?” He asked. Leo put his chopsticks down and reached out to touch her arm with a gentle smile. “Wanna go lay down and cuddle when we’re done eating?”

@ BadStreetBoys
Olivia grinned and nodded. "Yeah this is just what I wanted." she said and smiled. He was so playful it made her love him even more. It was so easy to forget that she had any issues with him around. She smiled as he talked about loosing her ex in Oklahoma. She shrugged. "As long as we stay safe." she said not thinking killing the lights was a good idea. She watched him as he said he was fine. She wanted to dig more and find out what he was really feeling but he turned it around on her and she blushed looking down sticking another bite in her mouth. She looked up at his hand on her arm. "It's just a rough season. It's got to get better right?" she said quietly after she swallowed her bite. Olivia instinctively wanted to say yes. She wanted to cuddle him and slip into a love drunk stopper but she had things she should do and she wasn't sure ignoring everything was what she should do. She nodded anyways. "Yes." she spoke softly. She wanted that. She wanted him, everything else would have to wait. She needed, she deserved a moment with the love of her life.

@ Jinx...
Leo smiled and nodded. He certainly hoped it would be getting better soon. “It will.” He murmured and squeezed her hand reassuringly. Leo finished his food and reached into the bag to grab some fortune cookies, he slid one over to her before he cracked open the cookies snd read the words inside. “You cannot love life until you live the life you love.” He said and raised an eyebrow. “I dunno maybe in dumb but these always confuse me.” He said with a light chuckle, putting the paper on the table and munching down on the cookie. “Alright I’m gonna go brush my teeth and put on some pajamas, I’ll meet you in the bedroom.” Leo told Olivia. He stood up and kissed her head before moving into the bathroom. Leo ran the sink and scooped water in his hands, washing his face. He felt like his body was hot, as if he had a fever. He figured it was just his anxiety and stress from everything going on in both of their lives. Everything was great his best seller was becoming a movie and he would become more well know and make money. But on the other hand he was suffering from alcoholism, his girlfriend had just as many issues, and her ex was just stressing him out more. Leo finished up in the bathroom and headed to the bedroom where he stopped down and changed into his flannel PJ pants. The man crawled into bed snd closed his eyes as he waited for Olivia to join.

@ BadStreetBoys
Olivia nodded. She finished her food and grinned as he pushed over a fortune cookie. "It means live life the way you want to and it will make you happy." She chuckled before opening her own cookie and reading it. "Be on the lookout for coming events; They cast their shadows beforehand." She chuckled. "That sounds forbidding." she smirked and popped the cookie in her mouth. She closed her eyes softly as he kissed her head. She finished her cookie and cleaned up before heading into the bathroom. She freshened up and brushed her own teeth not wanting to be the one with Chinese breath. She came out looking at Leo already laying down. She smiled softly just watching him a moment. Olivia crawled into the bed and curled up into his side. She closed her eyes and let out a hum. She breathed him in listening to his breath and his heart pounding in his chest. "Leo..." she whispered his name. "I can't believe we're here. I never thought I would see you again, let alone that you would forgive me."

@ Jinx...
Leo stirred slightly when Olivia came into the room but kept his eyes closed as he waited for her to join him in bed. He felt Olivia lay with him and his arm instinctively wrapped around her snd held her closer to him. He felt at ease as Olivia curled into him. It felt right. He returned the hun and a smile spread on his face, his eyes still sleepily closed. “Yes?” He murmured. Leo’s cheeks flushed a light pink at her words. “I’ve always known you were the one, Liv.” He whispered and turned his head to kiss her temple. “I was very shocked to see you, I never thought I’d see you again, and if we did it would only be in awkward passing. I wasn’t sure I wanted to forgive you. But I always knew you were the one.” He told her candidly. Leo had never forgotten the fire haired girl and the burning desire he felt for her. He had never felt it for any of the girls eh slept with, went on casual dates with, or his one sort of long term girlfriend. He didn’t feel that connection or the click like he did with her. Leo yawned and snuggled into Liv, tiredness beginning to take over him as he drifted off to sleep.

@ BadStreetBoys
Olivia blushed softly. She was glad he knew, that he had always known. She had loved him. It had been fact to her, the past and future hadn't meant anything in comparison to that. All she had wanted was him, the real him. And now she had him. She looked up at him in the dim room. She kissed his cheek. She stroked his hair as he snuggled her and fell asleep. She lay there a long time wishing she could fall asleep but her mind was wired. She felt wide awake. She sighed softly and slipped out of the bed. She grabbed her laptop and headed to the cockpit. She finished with the route plan modification. She would have Leo help her put it in tomorrow. When she went to work on her photos she got absorbed in it easily. She would take a break and stare up at the stars as they drove in the night. She loved the stars, she could watch them forever. Her thoughts where all over the place as she went over everything.

@ Jinx...
Leo snuggled into Olivia as he slept. His body was still exhausted from the detoxing and the stress from everything going on between them. Even when Olivia stirred and got up he was out cold, though he pulled the blanket tight around him and rolled over for warmth. Leo slept through the night, the next morning he woke up feeling Much better than he had the last few days. He carefully got up and out of bed, deciding to shower before they had to work for the day. He had already planned a spa day for Olivia so that he could go to another AA meeting. Leo hoped today would be the day he finally opened up and told his story. In the shower he scrubbed himself under the hot water, scrubbing his body and hair and shaving what he could. Leo got out of the shower and dried off, pulling on a pair of boxers. He would finish getting dressed when they had to go out. Leo went into the kitchen and decided to make frozen waffles for her and Olivia.

@ BadStreetBoys
Olivia crawled back into bed later that night. When she woke she saw Leo leaving the room the steam of the bathroom seeping out. Her eyes followed him smiling sleepily looking at his amazing body. She hummed softly and stretched out. She rolled over and closed her eyes to rest for a while longer. She didn't wake again until Leo prompted her for breakfast. She blinked slowly looking up at him and smiled at him. "Morning." She mumbled. Olivia pushed herself up. She had taken her pants off. Leo was hot when he slept. So she was only left in her panties and shirt. Her shirt was all disheveled showing the bruise left on her wrist from Graham.

@ Jinx...
Leo placed the now warm frozen waffles onto two plates, then put them on the table. He put butter and a bottle of maple syrup On the table as well. Leo work Olivia up and smiled. She still looked stunning, even with bed head. “Morning gorgeous.” He murmured as he looked over her. Leo frowned slightly at her wrist. “What happened.” He asked and pointed down at her hand, his eyebrows furrowed together. He thought he knew the answer, but he needed to hear it from her before he did anything. “Come on, let’s eat.” He murmured and offered his hand. They had a long Day ahead of them and he wanted Olivia to eat something. Leo went out to the table and sat down, putting butter and syrup on his pancakes. The meeting today was at noon rather than the evening so he had to get Liv really into her spa day so he could get away. The man knew this sneaking around wasn’t good, but he didn’t feel strong enough to combat this alongside Olivia yet. He wanted to be able to face things alone first, that way he knew he would be able to.

@ BadStreetBoys
Olivia smiled and leaned up pressing a kiss to his lips. When he pointed out her wrist she frowned and pulled her sleeve down in a hurry like a kid that was trying to hide something. "You know how." Olivia sighed. He offered breakfast, she looked up at him and took his hand. "Yum." she said sitting next to him. She leaned into him as she took her turn putting syrup on the waffles. She took a bite and hummed laying her head on his shoulder. "You really are the best boyfriend." she said and blushed looking up at him. Her eyes sparkled as she looked at him. They where quite a pair in half clothing side by side. She kissed his syrupy lips and giggled. She took another bite then took a swig of milk. "Oh hey I finished our route changes. You want to look them over and enter them in later? I added a few spots just for fun. We work to hard." she chuckled pushing his shoulder with hers teasingly.

@ Jinx...
Leo nodded and sighed slightly as she confirmed how she got the bruise. He really did want to kill Graham but he was pretty sure that would be a no from Olivia. He wanted to be able to protect her, he hated that this asshole seemed to have some sort of one up on him. It boiled his blood. “I need to do something about him.” He mumbled to himself. Leo rolled his eyes playfully at her comment as they ate, sliding one arm around her and using his free hand to eat. “I’m just showing you basic human decency, Liv, I don’t think that deserves an award.” He said and grinned as he kissed her back. Leo took a sip of his water, attention focusing back on Olivia as she mentioned the route changes. He nodded. “Sounds good we can do that when we get back from everything today.” He told her. “Speaking of I have a surprise for you.” Leo told her with a goofy grin. “So we’re almost there so I figure do a little work in the morning and for around noon I booked you a day at the spa. Massage and all that stuff. You deserve to relax and I thought you’d like that.” He explained and told her with a smile.

@ BadStreetBoys
Olivia shook her head. "You're a good boyfriend. Don't talk yourself out of that." she kissed his cheek. She looked up at him as he said he had a surprise. "Really?" she asked him wondering if that was the reason he had been sneaking off so much. She loved that grin he gave her. She tilted her head as he spoke. She giggled as he talked about a spa day. "Leo that sounds amazing." she said. She smiled softly and kissed him again. She hummed. "Thank you." she said and turned back to her food trying not to let him see her thinking. This was something she knew for why men they gave surprises. Men would give them for two reasons and sometimes they did them at the same time. One because they loved their partner and truly believed what they said. Two because they wanted their partner out of the way or to stop asking questions and snooping around. She believed Leo had both intensions. She knew that she would be skipping part of the day to go and see exactly what Leo was up to. She feared what she would find out, she feared it would be worse than what she believed it to be. Olivia didn't want to believe any of it, or that Leo could do anything to hurt her but she had been hurt enough by others and even by him to know better than to believe the best until it was proven. She din't want to turn a blind eye anymore. She would go in with Leo she was sure spend a few minutes changing his plans for her and sneak out to follow him. It was time to get to the bottom of this whether she liked it or not.

@ Jinx...
Leo blushed slightly. He was glad she thought he was a good boyfriend, even if he didn’t believe so himself. “Of course.” He said and grinned. “I’d never lie about having a surprise for you. You deserve to be spoiled.” Leo wanted to show Olivia the world. Teach her about how she deserved to be treated. Leo knew he had his flaws but he also knew he would be better to her than that abusive asshole Graham. “Of course.” He murmured and kissed her forehead. He was glad she seemed to buy into the surprise. Soon after the RV came to a slow and he knew they arrived. “I guess we should get going.” He said and chuckled as he slid out from the booth behind Olivia and went to grab some of his clothes. The man quickly changed into some business casual clothing, slacks, a polo, sneakers. He didn’t want to be over dressed for work and the AA meeting but he also wanted to not look like a complete bum. Once Leo was dressed he grabbed his backpack and threw his notebook, some pens, and a few other things into it and hoisted the bag onto his back. He made his way into the common area. “You ready?” He called out as he checked his phone for the time.

@ BadStreetBoys
Olivia loved Leo no matter what she always would. When they stopped she slipped out of the seat with Leo and went to their room. She went to the bathroom getting ready then came out and pulled out her cloths. Once she was dressed she went out and got her things together. She smiled at Leo as he came out. "Hey you." she said. She liked him in slacks they hugged his hips just right. "Yeah I'm ready." she said pulling her pack over her shoulder. They walked out of the RV and she pulled out her camera getting to work right away. "You know you don't have to come with me every time if you need to work in the RV." she said knowing he had been feeling like he had to baby sit her cause of her ex. She knew it was hard for him to see her deal with him but it was her problem not his. She bit her lip wondering what she was going to do about him anyways. He was getting worse.

@ Jinx...
Leo grinned and held onto Olivia’s hand as they walked out of the RV, releasing once she was ready to get to work. He shrugged and nodded. “I can work while we drive, and plus I like getting out and watching you. There is nothing more beautiful to me than when you’re in your element. It’s so much fun to watch.” He told her with a grin. It was true. When Olivia was in her happy place nothing was better to Leo. He adored it. Leo took one of his notebooks out as she continued to photograph. He walked slowly along with her, staying behind a bit so he wouldn’t bump into Olivia or be in the way. He was mostly writing little ideas or notes to himself, he couldn’t truly focus on his next book in this kind of environment. After a little bit Leo put his notebook away and pulled out his phone. Leo got in contact with Tony, his editor, his publisher, and a few other people working on the movie. He wanted to keep people updated with the different projects he was working on. Knowing how important communication was in this world. “Hey almost finished? Your spa time is in about twenty minutes.” He called out as he looked up from his phone and made his way closer to Olivia.

@ BadStreetBoys
Olivia grinned as he told her why he came a long. "You're so sweet." she said and kissed his cheek before she pulled him closer. "Take a picture with me." she said and snapped a picture of them smiling then one where she kissed his cheek. She grinned as she looked at them. "Yep those are keepers." she giggled before moving to focus on her real work. She was just about done when Leo called for her. She turned looking up from her camera and nodded. "Yeah just one more." she said and shot the picture. She came over to Leo and slipped into his arms. "Alright let's get going." she said. Her stomach jumped and twisted because she didn't like all the secretes. She didn't like that she had to plan to sneak out of her spa day and follow her boyfriend to see what he was keeping from her. She hated that she couldn't just ask him because of her own issues. She had to know though so she would find out herself. They walked to the little spa and walked in. It smelled so nice in there she was bummed that she wouldn't be spending the entire session there. She would book another one later on in another spa to make up for it. Maybe next time she could get Leo to come if they could work everything out. She stood next to him as he checked her in for the appointment he made for her.

@ Jinx...
Leo groaned as Olivia pulled him in for pictures. He hated being in front of a camera, but he would do it for her, he’d do anything for her. After she took the pictures he rolled his eyes playfully and placed a gentle kiss on her lips. “You and your pictures.” He teased, unable to hide the smile that seemed permanent when the couple was together. Leo was happy to get Olivia a sort of half day of work. He had his arm around her shoulders as they walked to the spa. He checked her in and paid before he turned to Olivia and smiled. Leo pressed a kiss to her forehead. “I’ll come picks you up when it’s done. Relax and enjoy yourself. You work too hard.” He teased snd gave Olivia’s hand a squeeze. Leo waved as he headed out the door. He instantly felt his nerves skyrocket. He was worried about opening up today. But he knew he had to do it now or he probably never would. Leo checked his phone for the address once more before he headed to the church where the meeting was to be held.

@ BadStreetBoys
Olivia waited until Leo left then changed some of the things for the appointment. So she would be back and get somethings done before he came back to get her but that she could go meet with him. She took the left over money and put it in her bag. she would put it in his things later. She headed out of the spa and walked down the street. She saw him a ways off and sighed softly pulling up her hood and following him. She walked down the street finding that he went into a little run down building. She bit her wondering why he would be going into a community building. She waited a little bit then slipped in. She moved tot he bathroom and listened through the door. Once things seemed quieted down she moved out and found a chair off in the distance. She listened to the group and realized what was going on. He was at an AA meeting. She felt her heart ache. How could she think the worst of him? He was trying so hard to do the right thing and just like him he wanted to do it by himself. She felt the tears stinging her eyes and she rubbed at them. She watched and listened to the group. She could tell by the way he was sitting this wasn't his first meeting.

@ Jinx...
Leo made his way into the church snd found a seat in the middle. He was still psyching himself up in his own mind to speak. He wanted to be in the middle so people wouldn’t remember it. They remembered the beginning and the end not the middle. Leo listened to others, and was rubbing his hands together nervously as he heard the sponsor speak to him. He gave a weak smile and looked around the group for a second. It felt like a rock was in his throat, Leo swallowed hard. “Hey everyone.” He said quietly, clearing his throat again before he spoke. “Hi my name Leo and.” He paused and looked to his feet. “And I’m an alcoholic.” He choked out for a moment. Leo composed himself, ready to speak again as the crowd chorused the typical “hi Leo” that they did for everyone. Leo looked up at the group. His eyes red. “I started drinking when I was younger. My dad was an alcoholic. I don’t have a single memory of him sober. And behind the bottle my father hid. And the bottle turned him into a very angry man. The man who was my father was long gone after he drank and he turned into a demon and my life was a living hell, for years. But I didn’t touch the bottle until I was sixteen. When he died. I found him dead with a half empty bottle of tequila in his hands. And that left just me and my little brother on our own. I didn’t want the state to take him away so I worked on raising him myself and keeping everyone out of our business. I drank to give myself the confidence when I needed it. But my issues with alcohol didn’t start until after high school. I turned 18 and I took my brother and moved to New York City so I could make it big. It was hard. We were homeless sometimes, starving. But I promised Ricky it would all be worth it. And again I drank for confidence when I needed to break into a crowd for networking or talking to women or to fit in. Eventually once I was in those crowds I had to drink more to feel like I could fit in.And the problem started when I realized at a party one night I was using it to drown my feelings for people in my past I had long lost. And I realized I couldn’t feel a god damn thing, so I emptied the bottle of beer and hurt myself with it to feel something other than the numbness or the emptiness or the crippling depression. But I didn’t want to fight those feelings anymore I wanted them gone. So I started drinking every day to hide the feelings, then drank at night to avoid thinking about them. All the while working to keep a roof over my head and my brothers head. Making sure he was clothed and fed so that he wouldn’t be taken away, and working on becoming a published author. The bottle was my lifeline. I couldn’t have made it through those meetings with publishers and editors and all these big wigs without it. But the bottle also kept me from having anything else. I couldn’t connect with my brother as much anymore, I didn’t have any friends, I didn’t have any girlfriends. But the pain from everythinf was still there so I drank to drown that. And I guess I started drowning myself.” Leo paused and choked out a sob as he held back tears. He had never laid his life out like this. “I’ve been sober for a week now and it feels so weird.” He said and looked down for a moment. He didn’t think he could say another word.

@ BadStreetBoys
As Olivia sat there she felt the tears streaming down her face as he confessed to a group of strangers his darkest secrets and insecurities. She was so proud of him and wished with all her might that she could be sitting right next to him so when the tears fell and his throat closed up she could support him but he had wanted to do this by himself. She swallowed and stood slipping out of the room. She pressed up against the side of the building. She let herself calm down before she headed back to the spa. She went into her appointment and they took care of her dolling her up and relaxing her. So when her appointment was over she felt like she was on cloud nine and was beaming like a fool. She didn't think she would tell Leo right now that she knew but one day she would tell him. She hoped he picked up a chip though because he deserved it. He had taken the first big step and she was so proud of him. She came out of the spa and sat going through her pictures as she waited for Leo to come get her so they could get dinner and head out.