Fixing the Broken

Sky tapped her fingers on the countertop of the bus' kitchenette as she waited for her phone to ring. She'd been working endless hours trying to get a proper portfolio together for the people at Spin. Her new found passion for photography had ended up with her on her knees, begging Flyzik to call up an old friend at the magazine to give her a shot. He'd given in after alittle lot of grovelling and she'd been given two weeks to do her best. She blew a whirl of hot air to brush the bangs out of her eyes and admired what was sitting right in front of her. This was her best, and she was praying that her best was good enough. For her sanity's sake.

Familiar footsteps shook her from her stressful imaginary place and a sweet kiss on the cheek was all it took to make her smile. Alex slipped his arms around her waist, his chin propped up on her shoulder. The simple act was one for the history books, and it made Sky feel secure that she could feel like the women on the silver screen, even if she didn't deserve him.

"What are you doing?" His eyes filtered through the various photos spread about the marble. A few callused fingers rested on the manila envelope, the magazine's address inscribed on the front of it in beautiful, loopy cursive. He sighed, an airy, teasing tone audible. "Still working yourself up over your portfolio?"

Her stomach clenched and she nodded. "I'm petrified. I don't wanna get turned down." She spun in his arms. "I've never wanted something so much in my life, Alex."

He rubbed her back comfortingly. "I know, babe, I know. But don't get all excited. If they don't love these, they're crazy."

"You have to say that," she whined into his chest. "You're my boyfriend."

He chuckled. "At least I'm saying the right things."

She looked up at him. "Yeah, I'll give you that."

A grin spread across Alex's lips at the sudden boost in Sky's spirits. Her little retort had just brightened her mood, and it made him happy to see that she wasn't too down on herself. In a moment, his eyes dove down to one of the photographs. It was hidden beneath a few shots of The Maine's John O'Callaghan and Forever the Sickest Kids' Kyle Burns. He reached over and slid the shot from under the messy stack, his eyes locked onto it. Sky watched him the whole time, her cheeks reddening.

"You're gonna submit this?"

Sky's eyes fell to the floor in mild embarrassment. "I was. Until you brought it up."

He cracked a smile. "No, do it. I just wanted to know." He handed it to her. "After all, it's not actually your own personal photo." He crossed his arms, his chest swollen with pride. "I remember taking it. Chicago, Illinois, Spring of '08."

She grinned, looking at the picture. "Yeah. I remember, too."

Her eyes scanned the blown-up image, its pixels enlarged to an incredulous perfection. It was a black and white photo of both Alex and herself. Her head was tilted to the side, towards Alex, whose lips were pressed to her cheek, his forehead crinkled and his eyes shut, as if he'd put all of his effort into the display of affection. Sky's grin was larger than life, and the grey tint of her cheeks left the mind to wonder if she'd been blushing at that moment. A background of beautiful city buildings and busy streets gave a wonderful contrast to the soft and gentle couple. Sky smiled, recalling the fond memory.

"I want more times like this."

"We've had tons."

"Yeah," she began hesitantly. "But this is so up there. This was just... it was perfect."

He kissed her cheek, and surely, just like the picture, she grinned and turned her head towards his. Alex opened his eyes and looked down at his girlfriend, then kissed her gently on her mouth. "You made it perfect. God knows me kissing the air wouldn't have made a great picture."

She chuckled. "No, it wouldn't have."

"Sky?"

She looked up from the photographs she was organizing and met his gaze. "Yeah?"

"I've been thinking..."

Her eyes became focused on her chore once again, and she used her ears to follow along with his words. "Mhm."

"And..."

"Yes, Alexander."

He took a deep breath, a gentle clang disrupting her thoughts. Sky dropped the manila envelope, her pale fingers reaching out for the small, shiny object that had caused the disturbance. Her green eyes studied it, while her dark brown hair, which she had stopped dyeing a couple of years ago, brushed against her cheeks.

"What's this?"

"It's the coin."

She gave him an inquisitive look before realizing what he meant. "The coin. The coin from the beach."

He nodded. "I want you to have it."

Sky blinked.

What in God's name was he giving her his coin for? It had no special meaning to her, only to him. It was his most treasured possession, and she'd respected that, but she had no need or want to have it.

She stared at it melancholically, wondering what he was thinking about, what he had been thinking about the moment he had flung his hand out of his pocket to drop the semi-tarnished metal in front of her.

"I can't take this, Alex. It means too much to you."

He sighed. "Sky, I've let that meaningless coin get in the way of all I've ever really wanted in life because I thought it meant so much to me. But I know it doesn't. Deep down, I know. And it's taken me all of four years to figure that out. It's taken me four years of being with the woman I love to show me that there's nothing as important to me as her."

Sky frowned, lost in a web of tangled emotions. "But it's your good luck charm. I understand that it's important to you and that you feel better having it with you. I've never minded, Alex. I just can't take it from you like that. If anything, it's helped strengthen our relationship, not damage it. It gave you an outlet, something to help you get your mind off of things, and just think. It has that kind of power, and I'm not going to make you give that up."

Desperately, Alex took her hands in his and led her to the seating area. Her small hands perfectly hidden in his, fingers intertwined, he spoke gently.

"Sky, I learned the hard way that you can't rely on anything to be a good luck charm in your relationship except for the person who's in it with you. They're always with you, they're always looking out for you, and they bring the most joy to your life."

Sky bit her lip. She felt like she was at a fork in the road. She felt as if she was about to say the wrong thing, and would rather say nothing at all. One word could ruin everything, but she couldn't show him up with silence. Instead, she sat there, and chose her words wisely.

"Then what makes you so sure that they're lucky?"

"Because," he said simply, brushing her hair behind her ear, his fingertips resting on her face gently, "it means that they're still in it for you and nothing else."

"I was always in it for you," she whispered. "Not for anything else."

"I know," he cooed. The sensitivity of his words and his voice was scaring Sky. She was afraid something heartbreaking was about to happen. She wanted to run away. The gentility he was showing wasn't something she was used to; it was nerve-racking.

"I want to start a new chapter in my life," he continued.

Sky's heart fell to the pit of her stomach, but she couldn't find the strength in her to get up and walk away. She'd become so accustomed to taking people's abuse that she just couldn't walk away from it. Her stubborn attitude wouldn't let her either. She refused to show anyone her weakness; she couldn't let them know they'd broken her. But Alex, he was a different story. He could break her so easily, and he had no idea. He could take away every bit of sarcasm and strength in her body, and leave her a helpless, emotional wreck. And she was pretty damned close to crossing that line.

"And I want it to be with you."

Immediately, her heart stopped racing. Time began to move unusually slowly and all Sky could think about was sitting upright.

"Skylar Evans, I don't promise to never argue with you. I won't always say the right thing and I accept the fact I'll have to come crawling back to you, but you're worth it. I'm not the smartest guy this side of the universe, but I know I love you, and nothing will ever change that. Will you marry me?"

Lips parted, Sky was speechless. All her inhibitions about Alex had been so wrong, and the worst part was that she nearly let them cost her her happiness. Her moment of second guessing could've cost her a lifetime of bliss and wonderful marital imperfection because of a stupid thought. But she didn't need to think twice about what to say this time.

"Yeah, brah."

Alex chuckled, and then leaned in, crashing his lips into hers. She laughed, tipping back as his body pressed against hers and one hand found its way to the small of his back. The other was busy fishing the perfect velvet box out of his pocket. Everything played out like a fairytale ending: Alex was smooth, Sky said 'yes', he slid the ring on her finger, and all was well. Perfection was at a record high on the ATL tour bus.

"There's just one thing left to do now."

Alex chuckled. "Tell the guys?"

She shook her head with a smile. "Nope." She looked over at the trash can and flicked the coin into it, grinning as the metal clinked against the plastic. "Start fresh." She buried her head in his shoulder. "To new beginnings."

"To new beginnings," he whispered.

Sky chuckled as she pressed her hands against his chest, her mind filled with thoughts, dreams and ideas. Life was perfect, and she was pretty sure that it couldn't get better than this. She knew she owed Bailey everything for dragging her to Warped all those summers ago and getting her this job, but now, there was Alex she had to thank. Not just for accepting her and loving her, but for taking the time to understand her.

Quite simply, he had fixed her.