Wasted Nights

The lights in the arena had suddenly gone out, leaving the venue in darkness as the cheers from the crowd roared. Remi could feel a slight shift in the crowd as people started anxiously moving themselves forward so they could be closer to the stage. Remi decided to stay in place, able to faintly see the outlines of bodies moving around on the stage in front of her. Lights began to flicker on stage in time with the guitars and drums, making Remi smile as she saw Toru, Ryota, and Tomoya take the stage. The crowd would continue screaming for the group, occasionally yelling out specific phrases directed at each of the members of the group that made Remi laugh a bit. She enjoyed the atmosphere of concert crowds as the beginning of the shows. All the anticipation of waiting for the show to start was finally released as soon as the lights went out and the opening chords of the first song started.

The crowd bellowed loudly as Taka ran out onto the stage, standing right at the edge with his arms raised overhead. Remi could feel her smile growing wider as she watched how animated he was interacting with the crowd as the band started to play “Push Back” from their latest album. The band had seemed to change their outfits since Remi left them, noticing Toru’s red tank top and Ryota’s baggy shorts covered in random patches. She focused her attention on Taka, however, noticing he was now wearing black skinny jeans with large holes in the knees and the same white sleeveless shirt he had changed into after their chance meeting that morning. She was enjoying seeing him bouncing around on stage with the rest of the band, noticing his change in demeanor as he commanded the stage.

Remi joined the crowd in singing along to the opening chorus, nodding along to the upbeat song. She was really impressed with how they sounded live compared to the albums she had on her phone. She didn’t really know how to describe the difference but she really felt their energy when they were on that stage, jumping around and working the crowd. Taka’s voice, which already sounded so great on the albums she had, gave her goosebumps because it sounded so great. Remi hadn’t expected them to sound so near the recorded versions of their songs while playing live but she was enjoying it immensely.

Halfway through the first song, Remi locked eyes with Toru, realizing that she had been spotted by one of the members of the band. Toru offered her a smile before throwing himself back into the breakdown of their song. Remi was happy that someone had found her in a sea of faces in the crowd, though she wished she was able to meet Taka’s eyes just so that he knew that she was enjoying the start of the show. She knew it was silly to think that he would be focused on her when he had a crowd full of people to worry about but there was a part of her that thought he meant what he said when he texted her about looking for her in the crowd. Remi was starting to realize just how much she liked Taka, which was a little concerning. The idea of feeling so much for someone who was virtually a stranger was a little jarring, especially considering how radically her world had changed in such a short time span.

Remi could easily see herself falling for the charming front man she hardly knew and that thought scared her a bit.

Before she knew it, the lights had gone out with the end of the first song, causing the crowd to erupt in a series of cheers, claps, and hollers for more from the band. Remi couldn’t help but smile, clapping with the audience as she waited for the next song to start. The lights flashed on with the familiar start of the next song, making Remi gasp at the song choice. As Taka started singing the opening lines to “We Are” at the front of the stage, Remi could feel her eyes immediately well with tears, her emotions getting the better of her. She was suddenly reminded of the first time she heard this song, remembering all the overwhelming emotions that flooded through her with the encouraging words and the familiar melodies. She automatically started to sing along to the song, not caring that she was openly crying in the middle of the concert. Hearing one of her favorite songs live was such a dream for her that she couldn’t seem to keep her emotions at bay.

Taka had launched into the chorus of the song, nodding along to the beat as he sang for the crowd. His eyes scanned the crowd before him, fervently searching for the familiar brown eyes he had been consumed by most of the day. He hadn’t been able to spot Remi in the crowd during their first song, disappointed in the fact that Toru seemed to know where she was before him. He had been so focused on performing for the vivacious crowd and adjusting to being on the stage that he wasn’t able to get a good look at the individuals in the audience. Now that they were performing one of her favorite songs, Taka was desperate to find her in the crowd. He needed to see her reaction to their performance and most importantly, he just wanted to see her for his own peace of mind.

Surveying the crowd from atop the riser at the front of the stage, Taka finally spotted her on Toru’s side of the stage, close enough to be in the front of the crowd but still far enough back to blur in with the rest of the fans. He was slightly taken aback by the fact that her cheeks were glistening with tears but found himself unable to stop the smile on his face from spreading once he saw that she was passionately singing along to his words. Taka focused his gaze on her, finally meeting her eyes as he held out an outstretched hand toward her as a signal that he was only directing his attention to her. Taka noticed that she was returning his smile, desperately wiping the fallen tears from her face with the back of her hand as her body gently swayed in time to the music. Now that Taka had finally found her in the crowd, he knew that he would be fighting himself all night to keep his attention from solely being on her for the duration of the show.

Remi nodded along to the music, her eyes remaining on Taka’s figure on stage. She had gotten so swept up in the start of the song that it took her longer to realize that Taka had finally spotted her in the crowd of adoring fans. She felt slightly embarrassed that she allowed herself to get so emotional over the song, furiously wiping away her tears for the second time in front of him today. She held his gaze, unable to keep the goofy smile off her face now that he finally spotted her in the crowd. When he finally turned his attention back to the rest of the crowd, Remi felt slightly disappointed that he was no longer just looking at her. She knew that he had a job to do but there was a part of her that wished they could go back to the moments before the start of the concert where they were so wrapped up in their private moments that it felt as if they were the only two people in the room. She wanted to savor those memories together since they were on borrowed time.

Once the band finished the song, Remi sighed heavily in the satisfaction of hearing one of her favorite songs live for the first time. She cheered along with the rest of the crowd; her gaze firmly fixed to Taka as he walked towards Tomoya’s drum kit. She watched as the two briefly talked, Taka gesturing over his shoulder toward her side of the crowd which caused Tomoya to stand from his spot behind his kit. She had a feeling the drummer was looking for her so she held her hand up and started waving in his direction to catch his attention, causing a few people around her to look at her funny due to her actions. Remi couldn’t help but laugh when he finally noticed her, his face breaking out into the goofiest of smiles and erratically waving both his hands in her direction before disappearing behind his drum kit once again. Her eyes shifted to Taka once again, who watched the whole interaction with a smile. She felt herself blushing at his focus on her, shifting her eyes down to her feet to hide her pink cheeks from view.

“Clocks Strike” was the next song the band started to play, making Remi light up in excitement to hear some of their older music live. Remi sang along to the Japanese lyrics, nodding along rhythmically to Tomoya’s drumming. Compared to other shows she had been to in the past, Remi had the feeling that this concert was going to take the top spot for the best concert she’d been to. Between the fact that the band sounded amazing live and the crowd was pretty respectful, she knew the main reason this concert was becoming her favorite was because she actually knew the band. The fact that she had spent the day getting to know all the guys and their staff was the reason why Remi was having so much fun now. She knew what this show meant to them, what performing in front of their fans meant and she held a newfound appreciation for the men as performers.

Halfway through the performance, Remi took some time to survey the crowd around her. The band had started singing “Take What You Want,” which was a song that Remi really liked from their Ambitions album. As she started looking at the different fans in the audience, she started looking for the teenagers she had met during the band’s Meet and Greet before the start of the show. It didn’t take her long before she spotted Spencer’s lanky figure in the crowd; the three of them standing right at the barrier on the side of the stage where Ryota had been for most of the night. She smiled once she spotted the teenagers, hoping she would get a chance to say goodbye to them before they left for the evening. She had enjoyed the time she spent speaking with them, even if Nicki had been a nervous wreck for most of their brief encounter. She was at least happy that there were familiar faces in the crowd.

Curiosity got the better of her as she thought of the familiar faces in the crowd and Remi allowed her eyes to scan the crowd further back, wondering if she would actually find Marcus in the crowd or not. Since the start of the show, she hadn’t thought of him once as most of her focus had been on the band’s performance and Taka but she knew that he was in the room somewhere and she wanted to gauge his general vicinity. She didn’t have any plans to speak to him even if she found him, her emotions from the morning still too raw, but she was curious to see how he was handling things. Knowing that he was bringing along the coworker he expressed attraction to, Remi felt the need to see this girl for herself so she could see just why she didn’t seem to measure up in his eyes. It was petty and stupid, she knew, but considering it was a contributing factor to the end of her serious relationship with the guy, she needed to know for herself just why she was so replaceable with someone else.

Remi found him almost instantly, standing in the middle of the crowd but further back from where she was positioned. Remi’s breath hitched when she finally found him, all the overwhelming emotions from the morning that she had spent the day suppressing suddenly rushing back and constricting her chest. Marcus was absorbed with the performance onstage, singing along to the melancholy song and nodding along to the rhythm of the instrumental. She felt a bittersweet smile on her face as she watched him. Despite the pain that she felt looking at him enjoying the show without a care in the world, there was a small part of her that had longed to see him since they parted ways earlier in the morning. Remi had unconsciously clutched her hand to her chest at the sudden pain of seeing him again, taking a few deep breaths to calm herself down so that she wouldn’t burst into tears for the second time today.

Marcus leaned to his right, forcing Remi’s eyes to shift to the person he was currently speaking with in the crowd. A petite blonde woman was leaning closer to him, her face turned down a bit as if she was struggling to hear him speaking over the loud music. Remi inferred from their interaction that the woman next to Marcus was Chloe, the co-worker he was interested in. She knew that Marcus was going to be bringing someone else to this show, as he was the one that gave her ticket away, but she didn’t think it would be this difficult to see that he was with someone else so soon after their break up. She knew that she wasn’t really in a position to think like that, considering her own confusing feelings for the man on stage singing his heart out to the crowd, but actually being confronted with her ex-boyfriend with someone else just caused the pain in her chest to swell. What made matters worse was that after the events of the morning, Marcus seemed to be just fine whilst Remi had been battling a siege of unwanted memories and feelings for the better part of the day.

As Marcus turned his attention back to the band on stage, Remi couldn’t help but let her gaze remain on his companion, watching as she pulled her phone out from her bag. The screen illuminated her face, allowing Remi to get a better look at her in the dark room. She had a blonde bob cut with bangs that fell over her light eyes. She was rather adorable in that girl-next-door kind of way. Though this woman was in attendance at a rock concert, her eyes remained fixed on her screen, typing away with rapid succession. The bored expression on Marcus’s companion’s face was clear to Remi due to the glow from her phone screen, making Remi slightly annoyed that her ticket had been given to someone who wasn’t even interested in being at this show. Even when Marcus would lean closer to her ear to say something, the brunette woman looked fairly uninterested in whatever comments he would make, flashing a false smile that fell all too quickly from her lips. Remi could only guess that Marcus’s date for the evening was not interested in one of his biggest interests.

Remi turned away from the couple before she was noticed, focusing her attention back to the men performing on the stage. Taking deep, shaky breaths, Remi found herself tearing up again at the freshly opened wound of her failed relationship. She knew that dwelling on someone that had ended things was not the way she wanted to spend her evening but after finding him and knowing he wasn’t far from her, Remi couldn’t help that those emotions she had been pushing off for most of the day had bubbled to the surface once again. Just seeing his face in the sea of people made it worse because she knew where he was and could see that he seemed just fine after breaking her heart all those hours ago. She hated that he didn’t seem affected by the end of their year long relationship the way she had been, making her question whether he really did care for her the way he had previously claimed. The familiar sting of rejection was eating away at her, causing Remi to take deep breaths to control her negative thoughts.

As Taka sang the melancholy song, he noticed Remi’s attention shift from the band on stage to someone behind her. He couldn’t exactly pinpoint who it was in the crowd that she was looking at but once she turned back around, he knew that it had to do with her ex-boyfriend from the look of anguish on her beautiful face. Taka faltered a bit when he noticed the way she grasped her hand to her chest, knowing that she was having a difficult time keeping herself from allowing the tears that had collected in the corner of her eyes to fall. At that moment, he wanted nothing more than to leap from the stage and fight his way through the throngs of people to hold her but he knew that his offer of comfort had to wait. He couldn’t stop the show just to make sure that she was alright. Instead, he remained on the stage, singing the final chorus of the song with his focus on Remi, hoping to catch her eye so he could provide some limited reassurance from his spot on the center of the stage.

As Remi tried her best to compose herself, she focused her attention back to Taka, meeting his eyes as he sang the final lines of the song. Knowing that he must be worried about her due to her current expression of sadness that she knew was evident on her face, Remi offered him a reassuring smile, dropping the hand that had been gripping the front of her borrowed t-shirt. He returned the smile, making the butterflies in Remi’s stomach flap wildly at such attention. She couldn’t explain why she was so quick to flip from the sadness that seeing Marcus had caused her to the giddy excitement Taka made her feel when she realized that he was singling her out in the crowd. Of the two emotions, she was more concerned with her response to the handsome front man as their connection with one another came on in a matter of just one day together. Despite the limited conversation and time together, Remi felt as if she had known Taka for years. It was the first time that she met someone who seemed to understand exactly what she needed without a word.

Pushing the negative thoughts that plagued her mind after seeing Marcus away, Remi focused on the rest of the performance. The band continued to play newer material, which Remi happily sang along with, nodding her head to the familiar rhythms of Tomoya’s drumming. She was thoroughly impressed with their high energy throughout the show. During certain songs, Toru, Taka, and Ryota would move together in a choreographed headbang, making Remi smile at the three of them. She was well aware of the fact that all the boys knew where she was in the crowd, each of them gaining her attention throughout the performance with their cheesy grins or with Ryota using his bass to point directly at her in the crowd. She wondered briefly if anyone in the crowd realized that she was the one that was being singled out by the band but realized that due to the fact that she was in the middle of a sea of people, they most likely thought the attention wasn’t focused on a specific person but rather that side of the room.

By the time Taka started singing the opening lines to “The Beginning,” Remi retrieved her phone from her back pocket and started recording a bit of their performance. Between having this song and “Kanzen Kankaku Dreamer” that the band privately performed for her, Remi knew she would have special memories to look back on when she was finally forced to return to her own reality. She kicked herself earlier for not having gotten a moment of “We Are” but she was far too emotional during that song to think clearly about getting her phone out to capture the moment. Once the band finished the first chorus, she pocketed her phone again, passionately singing along to the music like the rest of the audience. She noticed the movement in the front of the barrier as Julen appeared, taking pictures of the rowdy crowd. Julen turned his camera’s attention to Remi’s side of the stage, making Remi shake her head when he flashed her a cheesy grin of recognition and pointed a finger in her direction. She knew that she was definitely in a few of the crowd shots now, wondering how she looked giving the music her all. She wondered if Julen would let her peruse the shots so she could see what she looked like in a crowd.

Taka couldn’t help but let his gaze continue to fall on Remi in the crowd, feeling a sense of pride when he saw how much she was enjoying another of her favorite songs. Just seeing that she was bouncing around and enthusiastically singing along to the music made Taka want to put more into his performance. Given that there were only a few songs left, Taka decided that he was going to go all out for them. He wanted to make the last part of the show memorable to Remi, especially now that she was having fun in the crowd. Taka’s main source of anxiety all night was worrying that Remi wouldn’t enjoy their show for whatever reason, making him try that much harder to make sure the show was entertaining. Despite the fact that this was a show for the whole venue, Taka was really only putting on a concert for the girl that had captivated his thoughts for most of his day.

Even with the room filled with people, Taka could only see her in the crowd and he wasn’t going to fight it now that the show was nearly at its end.

The show came to an end with “Mighty Long Fall” which made Remi even more excited since she wasn’t expecting such an energetic song to close out the evening. As the venue went into the darkness, Remi knew that the band would be back in a few moments for an encore, making her wonder which song they would perform. She quickly pulled her phone from her back pocket once again, illuminating the screen to check the time. It was nearing 10:45 PM, which meant there was still enough time for at least one more song before they could call it a night. Remi could feel the electricity in the air as the crowd started chanting for the encore, building her anticipation for their return to the stage. Remi was just as anxious as the rest of the crowd, her eyes transfixed to the side of the stage where the band had walked off and waiting for them to return.

The lights flashed on stage as the opening chords to “Wasted Nights” played overhead, making the crowd erupt in cheers for the start of the encore. Remi had her arms thrown up in the air with the rest of the crowd, cheering them on with all her might at the indication of one more song. The band slowly emerged from off stage, each of them taking turns to stand at the front of the stage and wave to the crowd. Toru sent Remi a small salute, which made her laugh at the special gesture her way from the usually stoic guitarist while Ryota waved at her with both hands, sending her a goofy smile. Taka was the last one on stage, stepping to the edge where the amps were placed and instantly locking eyes with Remi in the crowd. She could feel her heart hammering away in her chest as they held one another’s stare, making her all too aware that her feelings for him had developed fast. Now that the show was drawing to an end, Remi knew that she would have to say goodbye to her new friends. The thought of separating from Taka was almost unbearable to her but she had always known that their time was limited.

“Los Angeles! Thank you for coming out tonight!” Taka said into the mic, earning more cheers from the animated audience. “This is our last show in the States and it has been one of the best! This is our last song. Sing if you know it,” he said, earning more cheers from the captivated audience.

As Taka started singing the first chorus of the song, Remi couldn’t help but think about how bittersweet the moment was for her. Listening to Taka sing about taking chances made Remi wonder about the chance she took earlier in the day when meeting him. If she hadn’t taken him up on his offer to stay, she would be dwelling on the failure of her relationship and the heartbreak Marcus had caused. Instead of focusing on her negative feelings, Remi was gratefully distracted by a group of men who, despite being complete strangers in the midst of a jam-packed schedule, took her in as part of their tight-knit family even for just a day. Remi wasn’t nearly as upset as she thought she would be but she knew that the main reason for that was currently signing his heart out on stage before her. Now that their evening together was coming to a close, Remi couldn’t help but feel her heart sink a bit, wondering how she would manage without Taka’s reassuring presence.

Being so wrapped up in her thoughts, Remi only registered that the concert was really over when she heard the roar of cheers and clapping from the crowd. She laughed a bit as the guys started throwing their picks and drumsticks into the crowd while Taka pulled out his phone from his front pocket. She joined in with clapping and cheering, unable to fight the smile on her face as she watched Taka take video of himself at an extremely close angle so that he was getting the crowd behind him. Once he had the video, he secured the phone into his pocket once again and searched for Remi in the crowd once again, his eyes meeting hers almost instantly.

As the pair held one another’s gaze, it was as if everyone else in the venue had fallen away from them. Taka knew that he needed to get off the stage so that the venue could be cleared but he wanted to make sure that Remi was still there and that she wasn't leaving with the rest of the crowd. Despite the fact that their show was over, Taka couldn’t accept that this was the end of their time together. He wasn’t going to just let her slip away without at least getting some kind of goodbye from her. Remi seemed to understand the sentiment behind Taka’s intense stare, offering him a smile of reassurance that she wasn’t just going to leave without a word. She wasn’t going to just let their time together come to an abrupt end now that the show was over. As Taka neared the edge of the stage, Remi offered him a wave, acknowledging that he could leave the stage safely with the knowledge that she would see him again.

The house lights came on, illuminating the dark venue as Taka finally walked off stage to join the rest of the band. The throngs of people started to make their way toward the exit, all of them excitedly buzzing about the show they had just seen and making plans for the rest of their evening in the downtown Los Angeles night scene. Remi let her eyes wander around the venue, trying to keep an eye out for the teenagers she had met at the Meet and Greet session. She wanted to at least see them off before she would venture backstage to join the guys for their final farewells. She wanted to see whether the band had lived up to their expectations, especially since the girls were such big fans. Remi started walking across the crowd trying to exit, heading to the spot where she had seen them earlier.

She was lucky that she was able to spot Spencer due to his height difference to the rest of the crowd. She hurried closer to the group, noticing they were waiting near the barrier for the first wave of people crowding the exit to thin out a bit. Nicki was the first to notice Remi approach the group, immediately bounding up to her with excitement. Remi was a little surprised but laughed, remembering what it was like to be her age and so excited for a night out.

"Wasn't that show the best?!" Nicki asked excitedly, catching her brother and friend off guard at the sudden question.

Remi smiled at the enthusiasm, nodding in response, "It was pretty awesome. You had a great time, I take it?

"Oh, it was everything I expected and more! They sounded even better live than they do on the albums," she gushed, eyes sparkling with delight. "And I got some amazing videos of them! We were in such a great spot!"

"Yeah, I noticed you guys earlier and wanted to check in with you before you left for the night. I'm glad you had a good time," Remi told them.

"Did you watch from the side of the stage or were you in the crowd?" Erin asked, adjusting the grip on her phone in hand.

"I watched from the crowd. I wanted to see it like a typical fan so I was over on Toru's side of the stage," she explained.

"We couldn't get a spot on that side of the stage near the barrier so we were on this side," Spencer explained.

Remi nodded in understanding, "Sometimes sacrifices have to be made for a good spot."

"And I got so many good shots of him on my phone so it worked out!" Nicki gushed, scrolling through her snapshots on her phone.

"Because we all know that was the most important thing to you," Spencer said sarcastically, rolling his eyes.

“Well, I’m glad you guys had a good time tonight and I’m glad I was able to see you again before you left for the night. You three were on my mind at the beginning of the show,” she said.

Without warning, Nicki threw her arms around Remi, catching the older woman off guard by the sudden actions. Remi found herself laughing a little at Nicki’s enthusiasm, returning the hug as Erin and Spencer shot her apologetic glances from behind their excited friend. Nicki pulled away from Remi after a moment, blushing in obvious embarrassment from her actions. She cautiously tucked some loose hair behind her right ear and bit her lower lip, causing Remi to smile warmly at the poor teen.

“Thank you for earlier by the way,” Nicki said softly, briefly glancing up at Remi before averting her gaze to her shoes. “Those pictures you took came out really well.”

“Well, the pleasure was all mine,” Remi replied, patting the girl’s upper arm reassuringly.

“We better get going now,” Erin said, pointing towards the exit where the crowd had thinned out. “We need to get back home soon.”

“You guys stay safe out there and it was great meeting you all,” Remi smiled.

“You too,” Spencer said, nodding a bit.

“Bye Remi,” Erin smiled, waving.

“Bye guys,” Remi replied, returning the wave.

Remi stood in place as she watched the teenagers head toward the exit as they quietly talked amongst themselves. She couldn’t help but smile as she watched them heading out of the venue, grabbing the strap of her crossbody bag and thinking about heading back to where the guys were waiting backstage. She figured that since the venue was emptying out now, she could safely head back to see the guys one last time now that they’ve had some time to unwind from their performance. She pulled her phone from her back pocket to check the time and saw that it was now after 11:00 PM, meaning her limited time with Taka was nearly spent. She would have to return to the reality she had been avoiding for most of the day.

“Remi?”

Remi froze at the familiar voice calling her name, squeezing her eyes shut and breathing in deeply as she tried to quell the familiar sting of her heartbreak washing over her. She quietly exhaled, slowly turning around so she was face to face with the last person she wanted to see at that moment. She did her best to keep a neutral expression on her face, not wanting to show just how emotional she felt at that moment now that they were face-to-face. She wasn’t going to give him the satisfaction of seeing just how hurt she felt seeing him so soon after their break up, especially since she knew he wasn’t completely alone.

Marcus Allen was standing right behind Remi, having spotted her purple-streaked hair as it made its way to the group of teenagers near the barricade of the stage. At first, he thought he was seeing things since he had given her ticket to the sold out show away to his co-worker but as he crept closer to the group in question, his suspicions were confirmed when they called her by her name and he heard her unmistakable laugh. He only needed to hear her infectious laughter to know it was her, making him wonder why she was in the venue at all. Marcus noticed that she was changed into a One OK Rock shirt now, wondering where she would have gotten it since it was one of their older shirts from the last album. He was surprised to see her in the venue now since he had assumed that she returned home to San Diego that morning. He had no idea why she was standing in the nearly empty venue now instead of being home in San Diego.

“Hi Marcus,” Remi managed to say, her voice small and wavering as she tried to keep herself calm.

Standing so close to him now, Remi couldn’t deny the mixed feelings of overwhelming sadness and anger she felt for the man she had loved. Remi thought she would escape the night without having this awkward encounter with her ex but unfortunately for her, fate found a way to make their meeting happen. Looking down at her boots, Remi swallowed hard, trying to maintain her composure. All her worrying earlier in the day was warranted in this moment now that she was in the middle of the situation she had hoped to avoid. All she wanted now was the reassuring presence of the front man who had kept her grounded most of the day. Instead of being with him though, she was now stuck with the man that had tossed her away so easily.

“I thought you were back in San Diego. I texted you earlier to check up on you but never heard back from you. What’re you doing here?” he asked quickly, slowly closing the gap between them so they were standing right in front of one another.

“I was here to see the show,” she replied simply as she gestured towards the empty stage, feeling her annoyance grow at his question.

“How’d you get a ticket when it’s been sold out for weeks?” he asked curiously.

“I managed to find a way,” she shrugged, keeping her answers vague on purpose. She didn’t want him to know that she was there with the band, sighing a small breath of relief when she realized that her pass was still hidden underneath her borrowed shirt. Noticing that he was the only one standing before her, she looked around for signs of his companion she previously spotted in the crowd with him. With a furrowed brow of confusion, she said, “Where’s your date? I thought you had given my ticket away to someone else?”

Marcus nervously scratched the back of his neck, avoiding eye contact with his ex-girlfriend before answering, “It’s not a date.”

“Well it sure sounded like one earlier today,” Remi replied, unable to mask the harsh edge of her voice. “If I remember right, you said you could see something happening with her though you promised nothing happened while we were still together.”

“She’s just a co-worker, not a date. She’s over there,” he sighed, pointing in the direction of the restrooms where the brunette woman stood, typing away on her phone screen. “I thought she would have fun but she’s not really into this type of music.”

Remi followed his finger to where the woman stood, studying her petite figure now that she was able to see her under the house lights. Remi couldn’t help but feel slightly self-conscious as she noticed how pretty Marcus’s companion actually was. Remi began to question Marcus’s tastes since this woman in his company was the complete opposite of her. Remi was more of a tomboy, usually wearing jeans and a t-shirt whereas his companion looked like a china doll with flawless skin and every detail meticulously in place. She looked away from the woman, unable to fight off the jealousy bubbling away in her stomach from seeing how easily he seemed to move on. She also felt even more annoyed that her ticket went to someone who didn’t even like this music.

“Are you planning to stay here in the city?” Marcus asked suddenly, catching Remi off guard with the question.

“I was planning to go home eventually,” Remi replied slowly with furrowed brows, unsure about his sudden question about her plans.

“But the trains have stopped running for the night. You just missed the last one at 10:50,” he told her.

Remi inwardly cursed, realizing that he was right.

The last train to San Diego left at 10:50, which was when the encore was happening. Now that it was just after eleven, Remi was stranded in Los Angeles without a place to stay unless she decided to take a very expensive taxi ride or Uber home. She wasn’t even sure she would be able to find someone that would be willing to make the two-hour trip to San Diego at this time of night. Rather than deal with the headache of trying to find a way to get home and deal with the extra expense, Remi would have to find a way to spend the night in Los Angeles until the trains started running in the morning once again.

“I guess I did miss the last train,” she sighed, biting her lower lip.

“Do you want to come stay at my place? I know that it’s a little awkward considering everything between us is weird at the moment but I would feel better knowing you were safe tonight,” Marcus offered.

Remi’s eyes narrowed at the suggestion, glancing towards the bathroom where his date stood, “What about your friend there?”

“I was going to drop her off so it’s fine,” he said dismissively, before continuing to explain, “I just don’t want to leave you on your own tonight if you don’t have a place to go Rem,” he told her quietly, rubbing her upper arm with reassurance. “I would worry about you. I know it’s not fair of me to say this but I still do care about you and want you to be safe.”

Remi squirmed a bit under his familiar touch, conflicted by the jumbled feelings that he evoked whilst weighing her options with much trepidation. While she didn’t really want to spend more time with Marcus after everything that had gone on between them, there was a small part of her that wanted to say yes to him in the hopes of rekindling what they had only hours ago. Aside from the fact that she didn’t have a lot of options at the moment, there was a small part of her that was still processing her complicated feelings for him. She wondered if returning to his place with him would make things even more murky between them since there was no telling what his real intentions were behind the offer. He knew that she was in a very vulnerable place right now and part of her wanted to just give into the moment to see where it would take them. On the other hand, she couldn’t quell the anger she felt at how casual he was acting with her. It was his general nonchalant attitude and attempts to reassure her that made her want to just run away from him completely. She was at a loss, unsure what path to take since both paths led her towards feelings she wished she could dismiss as easily as the man before her.

“Remi-chan!” Taka’s familiar voice called, snapping Remi out of her daze and shifting her attention to the man that had been her lifeline for the day.

Taka had grown impatient waiting for Remi backstage so he decided to venture back out into the venue now that the fans had mostly cleared out just to see what was keeping her. He had reached the side of the stage when he paused, noticing just how uncomfortable Remi looked as she was talking with a tall, blond man near the front of the stage. Based on her expression and the way she could barely keep eye contact with him, Taka guessed that this was the ex-boyfriend she had worried about seeing all day. Taka hated seeing Remi look so uncomfortable, wanting to immediately rush to her side so she had some support but held himself back, knowing that he needed to assess the situation more before blindly acting. Given the intensity between the former couple, neither had noticed just how close Taka managed to get to them, listening as her ex-boyfriend offered to let Remi stay the night at his place since she missed the last train home.

Knowing that Remi didn’t have a lot of options, he could see that she was seriously considering his offer, which didn’t sit well with Taka whatsoever. The idea of their time together finally coming to an end made Taka feel lost. He has already lost time with her due to performing on stage so he wanted to seize whatever time he could before he returned to Japan. Though he knew that he should just return to the hotel to get some rest for his mid-morning flight home, Taka also wanted to keep Remi company since she was unable to return home right away. He wanted to spend more time with her, even if he had to sacrifice sleep to do so. He had longed to be next to her since she walked out the door with Julen and now that she was confronted with an awkward situation with her boyfriend, he wanted to make sure she was doing ok.

Remi immediately felt the smile slip onto her lips at the sight of a slightly disheveled Taka approaching. Though he had just performed on stage for the past hour and a half, Taka didn’t really look as exhausted as Remi thought he would be; his dampened honey colored hair in slight disarray as he ran a hand through it. As she held his gaze, she wanted nothing more than to open her arms and offer a welcomed embrace she so desperately craved. She longed to feel him close to her again, feeling the familiar tingle in her hand as she remembered how his hand felt in hers. Her heart was fluttering as he approached, making her momentarily forget about the tense situation he had interrupted with his appearance.

Taka, on the other hand, was very aware of what he was doing at that moment. Glancing to the other man who had hurt his new friend, he couldn’t help but evaluate his appearance upon approach. He knew that there was no reason to compare himself to this man but he wondered, now that she was confronted with her unsure and complicated emotions, whether Remi would actually give into his suggestion of leaving with this man. Taka didn’t want that at all. For some reason, he could feel a sense of competitiveness surging within him, making him want to size up his opponent. There was no way Taka would let the man that had previously hurt her weasel his way back into her life, especially since he was not alone.

Remi was caught completely off guard by Taka wrapping his arm around her shoulders and pulling her into a side hug but she quickly reciprocated the actions by wrapping her left arm across his lower back. She knew that she was blushing, unable to help herself from looking away from his gorgeous profile. Though he was slightly sweaty from the show, Remi didn’t seem to mind remaining in his embrace. Taka was looking down at her with a warm smile on his face, the both of them enjoying their moment together without regard for the others that were nearby.

“You guys were fantastic tonight,” Remi said quietly, her fingers lightly gripping the back of his new white t-shirt.

“I’m glad you liked it,” he replied, his voice thick as he enjoyed the warmth her body generated against his.

“Of course, I liked it! I told you that you were gonna kick ass up there,” Remi giggled, knowing full well that she couldn’t stop from expressing the giddiness she felt being at his side once again.

“Just for you,” Taka said with a small wink that made her nearly come undone by the gesture.

A loud, awkward clearing of the throat broke the couple’s gaze, reminding them both that they were not alone. Taka couldn’t help by glance in the direction of the blond man with slight annoyance, upset his minimal time remaining with Remi was being interrupted by someone who had hurt his new friend. Remi’s eyes also looked to Marcus with slight embarrassment having forgotten that they were just in the middle of a conversation she had dreaded all day long. Marcus had watched in shock as the lead singer from his favorite band not only greeted his ex-girlfriend by name but held her attention with their small talk. He was full of questions about what was happening before him as Taka dropped his arm from her shoulders, allowing Remi to pull away just a bit now that they were conscious of another person’s presence.

“Oh, sorry,” Remi said sheepishly, already missing the warmth of Taka holding her. “Taka, this is Marcus; Marcus, Taka,” she introduced the two awkwardly, gesturing between the two men.

“Wow, it’s really nice to meet you! I’m such a huge fan of your music. You guys were awesome on stage tonight,” Marcus said rapidly, a bit star-struck as he held his hand out to Taka to shake.

“Thank you,” Taka replied with a slight nod, politely returning Marcus’s handshake.

Marcus looked at Remi with a scrutinizing gaze that made her shrink a bit, asking, “How do you know the band?”

“Oh, we met earlier today,” Remi answered vaguely, feeling uncomfortable with the way Marcus was looking at her.

She could tell by the way that Marcus was staring at her that he had so many questions about her newest acquaintance, especially since her new friend was the lead singer of her ex-boyfriend’s favorite band. Remi didn’t really want to explain how she came to meet Taka because it would just cause her to reveal how broken she had been after Marcus broke up with her. She didn’t want to admit that to him because her pride wouldn’t let her. Besides, she didn’t think he had the right to ask her about her connection to Taka since he already had someone else on the back burner. Marcus wasn’t being fair about the situation in her eyes. What gave him the right to think that she couldn’t move on just as quickly as he did from their ended relationship?

“It feels like we’ve known each other a lot longer, ne?” Taka joked with a smile, breaking Remi from her thoughts as he grabbed her hand to offer some comfort.

“Yeah, it does,” she replied breathlessly, her eyes focused on their hands clasped together.

“Mori-kun! Remi-chan!” another voice called from the distance.

Taka looked up and saw Toru waving at the two of them as he slowly approached the group. Marcus’s eyes went wide when he saw Toru, surprised to find more band members who knew his ex-girlfriend. Toru stopped near Taka and Remi, glancing in Marcus’s direction with an unreadable, stoic expression before looking back to Remi with a small smile. Remi returned the smile, enjoying the fact that Toru seemed a lot more comfortable around her than before. She noticed that he was a little reluctant around her, wondering if she had offended him somehow but then realized, he was the kind of person that liked to read people before engaging with them. Since soundcheck, she noticed the shift in his demeanor and was happy that he seemed to accept her as part of their group.

“Who’s that?” Toru asked Taka in a low voice, unsure of the mystery man’s language proficiency.

Taka could see by Marcus’s confused expression that the man couldn’t understand them in Japanese, allowing him to answer with his normal speaking voice, “Her ex-boyfriend.”

“Ah,” Toru nodded in understanding. He looked at Remi, noticing that she was blushing and holding onto Taka’s hand, making him smirk at the pair. When Remi met his gaze, he laughed a bit, offering her a small wave, “How was your first One OK Rock show?”

“Oh, it was amazing! I can’t believe how good you sound live! I felt like I was listening to the albums. It was just so good,” Remi gushed, unable to hide her smile.

“I’m glad you liked it,” Toru said, his eyes shifting to the blond man that was staring at the group in awe.

“Oh, Toru, this is Marcus; Marcus, Toru,” Remi said awkwardly, noticing the tension as everyone’s attention shifted to her.

While Toru stoically shook Marcus’s hand, Taka took a moment to offer Remi reassurance. Discreetly, he brushed his thumb against the back of her hand clasping his in small circles. Remi looked down at their joined hands, feeling the tingling sensation running up her arm and into the rest of her body at Taka’s small gesture. Unconsciously, she gripped his hand a little tighter, meeting his warm gaze with a shy smile. At that moment, she forgot once again that there were other people in the room other than them. Being physically close to Taka and communicating so clearly through glances and small touches, Remi wondered how she could feel more connected to the man at her side that she had only met that morning than to the one she had been with for over a year who was standing in front of her.

“So,” Toru began, breaking the silence as Taka and Remi looked at him in surprise, causing his smirk to reappear, “Hiro wanted me to tell you guys that we’re going to the hotel soon.”

“Ok, we will be back there in a minute,” Taka responded with a nod.

“Ok,” he nodded, pointing towards the stage, “I’ll tell them.”

Without another word, Toru made his way towards the backstage area from whence he emerged. With a small sigh, Remi knew her time with Taka was coming to an end. She couldn’t help but feel a sinking feeling in her chest. Not only did she have to deal with the fact that she was going to have to separate herself from her new friend but she had to worry about finding a way to spend the evening in Los Angeles until the early hours of the morning. She was tempted to give into Marcus’s suggestion and return back to his apartment with him but she knew it wasn’t the best idea since her heart was such a mess. She had no idea what his intentions were in offering to let her stay and she didn’t want to find out. She just wanted to put their failed relationship behind her.

“So, Rem,” Marcus said, clearing his throat a bit as he broke the silence, “did you want to come stay with me tonight?”

“Oh, uh…” Remi trailed off uncomfortably, trying to gather her unorganized thoughts into a cohesive sentence.

“I just want to make sure you have somewhere safe to stay tonight. I don’t want to worry about you,” Marcus told her, his hand reaching out to pat her shoulder.

“She has a place to stay tonight,” Taka interjected with hard eyes focused on Marcus.

Taka’s statement had caught everyone off guard, especially Marcus, who was now retracting his hand away from Remi. Taka could feel jealousy surging through him when Marcus tried to reach for Remi once again, hating the idea of the two of them going off together. He knew it was irrational but he didn’t think Marcus deserved another chance to win Remi back. After everything she went through today, the last thing she needed was more confusion from a man whose intentions were indiscernible. He knew it was quite forward of him to say such a thing but Taka wanted to keep her to himself just for a little bit longer. He couldn’t just let her leave.

“I do?” she asked skeptically, looking for more clarification.

“If you want,” he shrugged in reply, suddenly feeling a bit shy at his sudden outburst. Taka felt self-conscious for suggesting that Remi accompany him to the hotel with the band, especially since she had just been confronted with confusing feelings once again. “We’re going back to the hotel and then meeting with Julen at the bar in the lobby. You could come with us if you want.”

“I think I would like that,” she nodded, giving his hand a slight squeeze for reassurance. “I am Julen’s designated drinking buddy after all. I’m sure he would be upset if I wasn’t there for him in his time of need.”

Taka laughed a bit, nodding, “Can’t disappoint him.”

With a small surge of confidence, Remi looked at Marcus who was just staring at the pair with confusion and concern. She held back more laughter, knowing it would be rude to laugh at the baffled expression on Marcus’s face. Now that she had the reassurance she needed from Taka, she didn’t feel obligated to take Marcus up on his offer to allow her to stay with him in his apartment. She was ready to put the much needed distance between them so she could move on. She didn’t want to feel the pain he had caused her anymore. She just wanted to heal, which meant that she needed to decline his offer.

“I’m gonna go with Taka,” she told Marcus with firm resolution in her voice. “Thanks for your offer though.”

“Are you sure it’s a good idea to go off with a stranger?” Marcus asked, his scrutinizing eyes assessing the lead singer standing before him. “I know that we’re in a complicated place but I would feel better knowing you’re safe tonight.”

“You broke up with me Marcus. You’re the one that walked out on our relationship so you don’t get to worry about me anymore. You need to worry about your date who’s been standing over there this whole time, waiting for you,” Remi said, gesturing towards the brunette woman who was impatiently fidgeting with the strap of her cross-body bag near the exit of the venue.

“Just think rationally here,” Marcus said, trying to reach for her once again.

Remi abruptly pulled away from him and shuffled closer to Taka, trying to assert her unwillingness to waiver in her decision. She shut her eyes momentarily, taking deep breaths to try and calm herself down. When she opened her eyes again, she looked at Marcus with exasperation. She didn’t want to keep this endless cycle with him any longer. She had gotten over the hardest part of her day, seeing him again so soon after her heart had been broken, and she managed to survive. She didn’t want to dwell on their ended relationship any longer because it was finally clear to her just how over it really was. Though she still had feelings for him, Remi knew that she deserved more than the pain he had caused her. She needed to separate herself from him once and for all.

“Get home safely Marcus,” she forced herself to say, trying to put an end to any further arguments from him. She looked up at Taka with a pained expression, feeling comforted by the fact that he was just watching her with a warm expression on his adorable face. “We should go before Hiro sends a search party for you,” she joked.

Taka laughed, nodding in affirmation, “Yeah. Hiro doesn’t like to fall behind schedule.”

Remi pulled her pass out from underneath her shirt with her free hand, knowing that it would need to be visible if the both of them were going back into restricted areas of the venue. Marcus’s eyes widened when he saw the matching All-Access passes Taka and Remi wore as the questions in his mind grew at the thought of what Remi had done to deserve the pass. He couldn’t help but feel uncomfortable with how close she was to Taka now, jealousy surging through him as the lead singer reached over and assisted with freeing her lanyard so that it was hanging comfortably from her neck. He knew at that moment that he had really messed things up between them and there was nothing more he could do to convince her to return to his side.

By the way Remi and Taka interacted in the few moments he was able to observe them, Marcus knew that he was no competition for Takahiro Moriuchi.

Remi briefly glanced at Marcus once again, noticing the look of defeat on his face as she said, “Goodbye Marcus.”

Looking down at his Converse clad feet, Marcus replied, “Goodnight Remi.”

Without a word, Taka led Remi back towards the backstage area and away from her lingering ex. Remi focused on the ground beneath her feet as they walked away, unable to focus very well on her jumbled feelings. She knew that she should feel some relief from finally getting the closure she seemed to need but the small part of her that still loved Marcus despite it all was being destroyed all over again. Even with the negative feelings swirling around inside of her, Remi couldn't help but smile when she realized that she was still holding onto Taka’s hand as they made their way to the familiar corridor leading the room they had been in before the start of the show. The fact that Taka had intervened on her behalf with Marcus was surprising to her since he seemed to try to intimidate Marcus a bit during their awkward conversation. She remembered that he had told Marcus that she had a place to stay tonight, making her bite her lower lip as she wondered what he had meant by that.

“Are you sure it’s ok for me to come with you guys to the hotel?” she asked him quietly, pulling him out of his thoughts.

Taka let out a small laugh, nodding to her question, “Of course it’s OK.”

“Shouldn’t you guys rest since you have flights to catch tomorrow?”

“Our flight isn’t until the middle of the morning. Besides, since it’s the last night of tour here in the States, we were all going to go out for a drink anyway,” Taka explained with a reassuring tone. “I know the timing is fast but I want to spend more time with you if that’s OK.”

Remi’s heart skipped at Taka’s admission, forcing her to try to suppress the giddiness she felt spreading through her body. No matter how many times he said it, Remi wouldn’t get used to the fact that Taka wanted to spend his time with her. She couldn’t comprehend why he was so interested in her when he should be more concerned with getting rest. The fact that he spent so much of his time during his busy schedule to make sure Remi was well cared for made her just melt inside. She never really appreciated a person more than she did now. Taka was her constant source of comfort throughout her hectic day and she knew that when they would finally be forced to part from one another, she would have a hard time saying goodbye.

The pair wordlessly made their way back to the waiting room where the band and crew were finishing with the packing of their things. Ryota and Tomoya paused in their packing when the couple returned to the room, hand-in-hand. Hiro was in the corner of his room with his clipboard, making things off his checklist while Toru and Julen stood near the couches they had occupied earlier in the evening, discussing the pictures from the show. Everyone in the room seemed to take note of the fact that their lead singer was comfortably clasping their new friend’s hand as they walked into the room. It didn’t seem to faze them much anymore, considering how close they had already been earlier in the day.

“Remi-chan!” Tomoya cheered.

Tomoya rushed over with his hands thrown up in the air, making Remi pause in concern with the drummer’s rapid approach. He stopped right in front of her, holding his hand up with a large smile on his face. Nervously, Remi raised her free hand and high fived the drummer, causing him to cheer once again. She laughed at his antics as Ryota also approached, smiling widely at the pair.

“You guys were amazing tonight,” she told them with a grin, thinking back to their on=stage antics.

“I found you in the crowd!” Tomoya laughed.

“Only because I pointed her out to you,” Taka replied.

“Like you’re one to talk Mori-kun,” Toru scoffed. “I was the first one that spotted her. It took you a song and a half before you found her.”

Taka frowned at this statement, feeling somewhat bitter that he wasn’t the first person to spot her in the audience during their performance. He hated that it took him so long to spot her in the crowd for some reason. He knew it was an irrational thought to have, considering the size of the crowd for tonight’s show, but Taka immediately searched for her the minute he stepped out on stage. Hers was the only opinion in the crowd that mattered to him and he wanted to that reassurance that they were performing ok. He also needed that spark of energy that her focus gave to him.

“You all found me eventually so it’s OK,” Remi replied, lightly tracing her fingers over his wrist with her free hand.

“I got so many pictures of you in the crowd,” Julen smiled as he approached with his camera.

“I noticed that you were rather focused in my direction tonight,” she laughed. “I need final approval of anything of me.”

“No chance! I’m keeping all the pictures!” Julen replied. “So many of these are pure gold.”

Hiro broke up the conversation, speaking in rapid fire Japanese to the rest of the guys. Remi just stood silently beside Taka, nervously fidgeting as she tried to distract herself from her predicament. She knew that the manager was just trying to direct the guys back to the hotel for the evening so they could all get some rest, which made Remi feel almost as if she were intruding on their time more than she already had. She knew that Taka had invited her to go back with them for a nightcap but she felt as if she shouldn’t take up more of their time. She knew that she was in a tough spot since she was practically stranded in Los Angeles until the morning but she also didn’t want to cause any more trouble for the guys when they had been so accommodating all day for her.

"We’re going back to the hotel now. Hiro said it's time to leave the venue," Taka told Remi quietly, breaking her out of her train of thought and causing her to jump slightly.

"Oh, ok," she nodded though her tone sounded unsure.

"You coming with us for drinks?" Ryota asked.

"If that's ok," Remi replied with a sheepish smile.

"Of course!" Tomoya smiled widely. "It will be fun."

Taka seemed to sense Remi’s discomfort at the moment, knowing that she was worrying about tagging along with them to the hotel. The way she kept readjusting her grip on their clasped hands signaled to him that she was fighting nervous energy. Taka gave her hand a small squeeze, forcing her dark brown eyes to his own. Taka’s pulse quickened as they continued to stare at one another with silent understanding. Taka was in a dangerous moment looking at her, having to hold himself back from reaching up with his free hand to trace the outline of her face. His eyes kept flickering down to her mouth, focused on the way she moistened and bit her lower lip as he wondered what it would feel like to kiss her at that moment. He was struggling with keeping his urges at bay, especially since they seemed to be comfortable enough with one another to hold hands. Rather than take things slowly, Taka wanted to be as close to her as she would allow.

“Ready?” he asked her quietly.

She nodded in response, offering him a shy smile, “Yeah, I’m ready.”

Wordlessly, the pair walked behind the rest of the band to the alleyway behind the venue where their bus had previously been parked. Remi noticed a large white van idling near the door, noting that with the amount of people that were planning to get into the van, there wouldn’t be enough room for everyone to have a seat. Remi wondered if thei was the universe’s way of telling her that she had spent enough time with everyone today. Remi watched with some concern as Tomoya was the last to climb into the van, leaving only one seat next to him available for two people.

“Looks like someone’s gonna have to take a lap seat,” Julen called from the back row of the van, his tone teasing as he sent a playful wink in Remi’s direction.

Remi wasn’t sure how comfortable she felt sitting in someone’s lap on the car ride over. Even though part of her was dying to be held by Taka once again, she didn’t think her nerves would be able to handle all the teasing that was bound to occur with the rest of the guys. She was limited in options, however, since she was sure that Taka was the only person in the van that would let her sit on his lap. Her hand slipped from Taka’s as she nervously adjusted the strap on her bag. She could see everyone’s curious gaze focused on her, wondering who was going to make the first move.

“Come sit Remi-chan,” Tomoya smiled cheerfully, patting the only free seat beside him. “Taka can sit with me.”

Taka glared at the beaming drummer, slightly annoyed that Tomoya had interfered before he had the opportunity to speak. He was just about to offer to share a seat with Remi since he didn’t want her close to anyone else but him. Rationally, he knew that Tomoya’s offer was the better option, since he needed to control his need to be physically close with Remi, but Taka didn’t want to be rational. He wanted to be the one that held Remi, even if it was just for the drive to the hotel. He needed the sustained comfort that she seemed to provide by just being within his general proximity.

Tomoya patted his leg, teasingly beckoning the lead singer to take his place in the car. Reluctantly, Taka climbed into the van first, taking a seat in the drummer’s lap with a slight pout on his face. Light laughter could be heard from the rest of the van occupants as Remi climbed in after Taka, taking the free seat and shutting the van door behind her. She couldn’t help but smile at the contrasting expressions between the bandmates. Tomoya was brightly smiling as he held Taka in his lap while Taka had his tattooed arms folded across his chest, frowning in annoyance. She felt a little bad that she was the reason Taka was forced into slight discomfort but at the same time, she didn’t want to leave the guys yet. As the van started to pull away from the venue, Remi found herself content in the company of the band as they teased Taka in Japanese. Meeting his lovely brown eyes, she noticed that his expression softened as the world around them seemed to fall away once again.

As the van started to drive away from the venue, Remi found herself wondering how differently her night would have gone had she not run into Taka. She couldn’t imagine a scenario where she didn’t know One OK Rock, making her smile at the thought of having new friends in her life. Furthermore, she didn’t want to imagine her life without Taka now that she finally met someone who understood her so well. Given their limited time together, Remi wanted to do all she could to fight the inevitable separation that awaited them.