Without You.

It had been so long since Lea had seen Jonathan, and she felt disconnected. He had always been there, right there, whenever she needed him. She had gotten so used to him always being there that she hadn’t realized just how much she would miss him until he was gone. He was halfway around the world now, touring with his new cast while she was here, in New York. While she loved the Big Apple, it just didn’t feel like home without him.

She could call him, if he hadn’t left his phone charger here in the States. She would email him, if he had access to a computer every now and then, and if he hadn’t forgotten the password to his account. Normally Lea would have viewed his forgetfulness with an amused annoyance, but now it was just frustrating. Jonathan had been gone for almost a year now, and while she was happy for him, she missed him.

“Lea, come on, we’re all going out for dinner.” Dianna shouted up the stairs, walking out of her room. She waited for Lea’s response, and sighed, walking up the stairs to where Lea’s room was. She knocked on the door, and after getting no response, opened it. Lea was just lying on her bed, staring up at the ceiling.

“Come on, Lea. Get up.”

Lea glanced over, waving her hand dismissively.

“I don’t feel like it.”

Dianna rolled her eyes, walking over to her roommate and forcing her to sit up.

“You can’t be mopey just because the love of your life isn’t here with you. He’s coming back in a few weeks, right? You should start acting happy or else he’ll feel bad about leaving you. Will you please just get up and come out with us? Chris and Cory and Kevin just flew back into town and they really want to see you. Please, Lea?” She begged, pouting and pulling a puppy dog face. Lea looked at her for a second, finally sighing in defeat.

“Fine. But there’s no guarantee I will be having any fun.” Lea grumbled. If she had been feeling any better, she might have rolled her eyes at the ‘love of your life’ quip, but she was too upset to care at the moment. Dianna grinned, hugging her best friend tightly.

“I promise you, you won’t regret this.” If Lea had been feeling better, she might have caught the glint in Dianna’s eyes that said she knew something was going to happen, but Lea was too busy puttering to her closet to find something to wear.

Twenty minutes later, Lea was dressed in a simple white dress, her hair done up in a pretty twist thanks to Dianna. Though Lea put up a fuss, Dianna just said that Lea would thank her later and did her hair without any other arguments.

Dianna looped her arm into her friend’s and walked out the door, towards her car. She unlocked it and let Lea into the passenger’s seat, climbing into the driver’s seat and promptly locking the doors. She started the car and pulled out of their driveway, headed towards the restaurant Chris had chosen.

Lea rested her head against the window, staring out at the blurry cars and people as they drove. She felt bad about being such a bore lately and for being a complete downer, but she had never felt so sad before this. She really missed him.

They arrived at the restaurant after ten minutes of silent driving. Lea knew Dianna was letting her wallow, and she was grateful for it. She would be out of this funk soon. She hoped.

Lea got out of the car silently, and Dianna walked around the car to her, putting an arm around her shoulders. She smiled warmly, and Lea smiled back appreciatively.

“Thanks.” She murmured, and Dianna’s smile grew warmer.

“Of course. Trust me; soon you’ll be feeling a lot better.” She said, squeezing her shoulders as they walked into the restaurant. Lea smiled wanly; she had a feeling she would still be feeling a bit blue no matter what her friends did.

They walked into the back, towards the table where they usually sat whenever they came to this restaurant. Lea took her spot between Jenna and Dianna, Mark sitting next to Dianna and Kevin next to Jenna, Chris, Cory and Amber sitting across from them. There was an empty spot near the end, but Lea didn’t pay much attention to it. When she sat down, Jenna rubbed her back comfortingly, and Cory gave her a wide, warm smile.

The conversation drifted to Cory, Chris and Kevin’s travel to California, and while Lea gave her opinion now and then, she was distant from the conversation and everyone was starting to notice. They began exchanging knowing looks, and finally Chris stood up from the table, announcing far too loud that he had to go to the bathroom. Everyone began sharing looks like they were part of a conspiracy, and it got to the point where even Lea noticed.

“What’s going on?” She whispered to Jenna, who merely smiled like the Cheshire cat and giggled quietly. Lea frowned slightly, turning to Dianna. She got a similar reaction; just a knowing smile that read just trust me. Lea sighed, glancing around the table and figuring that she wouldn’t be figuring out what was happening through any of her friends. She put her chin in her hand, resting her elbow on the table, waiting quite impatiently for whatever surprise her friends had planned. She started thinking of her response. Something along the lines of I really appreciate this, you shouldn’t have got me this item.

When Chris finally returned, he was wearing the brightest grin and giggling like crazy.

“Lea? We know how upset you’ve been lately, and we wanted to get you something that we thought might make you a little happier.” Chris said, holding his hands behind his back like the surprise was there. Lea put on a slight smile; her friends were too sweet to her. She wondered what it was, perhaps a play or a soundtrack she didn’t own.

“You can come out now.” Chris said over his shoulder, to someone who had been hiding in the shadows. They stepped forward, and Lea’s face lit up, smiling widely and feeling immense joy and relief and completion when she saw him.

“Jonathan?” She said breathlessly in disbelief. He grinned widely, holding his arms open.

“Don’t I get a hello hug?” She leapt up, dashing over to him and throwing her arms around him, feeling whole when she was able to hold him tight.

“What are you doing home? You’re not supposed to be back for another few weeks.” She asked, looking up at him. He chuckled.

“Our lead got sick, and so we had to cancel the rest of the tour. I flew into town today and ran into Chris in the airport. They thought it would be fun to surprise you.” He said, smiling softly down at her. She looked over at her shoulder where her friends were grinning at her, happy to see that she was finally acting like Lea again.

She turned back to Jonathan, hugging him close once more.

“I didn’t know how weird it would be without you.” She admitted quietly. He chuckled again, kissing the top of her head.

“Neither did I. But I’m back now.” He said softly, his eyes full of adoration for the tiny brunette in his arms.

“Come on lovebirds, we’ve got dinner to eat.” Mark called out, grinning teasingly. Lea laughed, turning around and sticking her tongue out at him. She felt more like herself now that her other half was here, home, with her. She turned back, looking up at Jonathan and beaming at him. She took his hand and led him back to the table.

Jonathan smiled down at her, following her willingly. He sat next to her and throughout dinner continued to squeeze her hand, just to reassure himself that he was really back home with her again.

I’ll never go without you again. He thought, glancing down at the girl he loved and smiling to himself.