Have Faith in Me

“Bella! Why?” I whined as I stared at the mess of cereal that Bella had met. The dog sat by the table, her tail wagging back and forth excitedly. I sighed.

“I’ll clean it up, Rach,” Sheryl laughed as she came into the kitchen with Ichabod, Zacky’s dog, at her heels.

“Damn dog is too hyper sometimes, I swear.” I adjusted Matt’s hoodie around me, taking in a deep breath. Besides the daily phone calls I received just like he promised, Matt’s spot in the bed and his hoodies were the only other connections I had to him. I tried to wear his hoodies as little as possible so they kept his scent, which I loved like no other.

“Only because she misses her daddy.” I made a face. “Oh, sorry,” she added when she saw my expression.

“So how are you and Zacky?” I asked, changing the subject. A wide smile automatically spread across Sheryl’s face.

“Beyond great,” she sighed.

“Well guess what.”

“What?”

“HE’S TRYING TO GET IN YOUR PANTS.” I laughed as Sheryl threw me a vicious glare. “I’m just kidding, Sher. He’s a sweet guy. He’d never do that to you.” She shook her head.

“You have an odd sense of humor, you know that?” I grinned.

“I’m well aware of that because you’ve told me so many times.” Have Faith In Me started to play. I jumped for my phone.

“Whoa there, girl!” Sheryl exclaimed with a small laugh as I flipped open my phone. I threw her glare, bringing the phone to my ear in time to hear Matt’s chuckle.

“Jump on something or anything like that to make Sheryl yell?” he asked.

“No,” I answered breathlessly.

“Liar! She jumped for her phone when she heard it ring!” Sheryl yelled. I threw her another glare. She flashed me a cheesy grin before walking out of the kitchen.

“Well someone’s excited to talk to me,” Matt teased, bringing my attention back to him.

“You haven’t called the last couple of days so I’m bound to be excited,” I retorted.

“Yeah, sorry about that. My body decided to catch up on sleep so I’ve pretty much been knocking out every night and been too tired to comprehend anything during the day and only waking up enough for shows.”

“At least you put your health before me.”

“You don’t even know how much I try to stay awake to be able to call you, Rach.” I rolled my eyes and shook my head. “Don’t you shake your head and roll your eyes at me.” I raised my eyebrows in surprise.

“Got a camera in the house or something to spy on me?”

“Oh yeah. I watch you sleep every night.”

“I didn’t know that I was dating Edward Cullen,” I joked. Matt gasped dramatically.

“How dare you insult my manliness?!” he said. I laughed at his reaction.

“It was a joke, Matthew. You are ten times the man that Edward Cullen.”

“Fuck yeah, I am.” I rolled my eyes.

“What time’s the show tonight?” A moment of silence; I assumed Matt was checking the time.

“In a couple of hours.” Another lapse of silence, this time longer. “Just two more weeks, Rachel,” he whispered. I let out a heavy sigh, sitting down at the table.

“I miss you, Matt,” I admitted quietly.

“I miss you too. We’ll be together again soon.” I closed my eyes, drinking in his words and his voice. “I love you.”

“I love you too.” I sat up, letting out another sigh. “I’m gonna go. I have to go walk the dogs and do some other stuff. Good luck tonight.” I hung up without another word.

***

“Rachel! Get up! The guys get home today!” Sheryl yelled from the bottom of the stairs. I heard a series of tinkling crashes. “Shit.”

“Did you knock the ornaments off the railing?!” I screamed as I came out of the room. I looked over and sure enough, bits of colored glass littered the floor. In our spare time, Sheryl and I had decorated Matt and I’s house as well as her and Zacky’s for Christmas.

“Who cares?”

“I care! I don’t want the dogs licking it up or one of us stepping on it and stabbing our foot.” Sheryl grumbled under her breath as she stalked off to get the broom. I took it from her and started to sweep up the small glass shards. As I swept the pieces into the dustpan, a loud honk resounded from outside.

“They’re here!” we shouted together. We dropped what we were holding and ran outside, Ichabod, Pinkly, and Bella behind us. As Sheryl and I came outside, the guys were clambering out of the bus.

“Welcome home!” I greeted, hugging Brian. He laughed, hugging me back. I hurriedly hugged Zacky and Johnny. “Where’s Matt?” I asked when I noticed he was missing.

“I’m right here,” the familiar husky voice laughed. I let out a small scream as I threw myself onto him. I pressed an eager kiss onto his lips, wrapping my arms tightly around his neck. He smiled into the kiss, his arms snaking around my waist.

“I’m so glad you’re home. I missed you so much,” I breathed when we finally pulled apart. Matt smiled warmly, his dimples appearing and his hazel eyes loving.

“I’m glad to be home,” he murmured before kissing me again. Someone cleared their throat loudly and obnoxiously. We ignored them, absorbed into our own little world.

“Get a room!” Johnny finally yelled. I tossed him a glare.

“Fine then. Fuck all of you. I’m gonna spend some time with my woman,” Matt said in a matter of fact tone. He scooped me up into his arms and carried me into the house.

“See you guys later!” I called over his shoulder, giggling a little as the door swung shut behind us.