Then, when I looked up at the sign flashing on the building, my heart stopped beating.
LIVE TONIGHT OLIVER SMITH’S RETURN TO THE STAGE.
Oliver’s return to the stage? Oliver was performing tonight? How hadn’t I known this? How hadn’t I been aware of him getting to the point of where he’d perform again? Would he be able to perform? Or would he relapse and spiral again, like he had all those months ago when I first met him at Seven? Was he okay? Was he nervous? Why were we here?
“Kelly,” I started, but she linked her arm with mine and cut me off.
“Come on. We’d better get backstage before the show starts,” she said, giving her other free hand to Reese to hold.
“Backstage?”
“Yes. For the meet and greet.”
“Meet and greet?”
“Geez, Emery, are you going to echo everything I say? Less yappin’, more trackin’,” she said, yanking me along. With ease, Kelly flashed a few passes to a few security people, and before I knew it, we were backstage at the arena, standing beside Oliver’s dressing room.
My stomach was in knots, and I felt as if I were going to pass out any second. Kelly still hadn’t explained herself, and honestly, now that we were standing in front of Oliver’s door, I didn’t even need an explanation.
I just needed him.
Kelly knocked on the door, and before anyone answered, Reese took the doorknob in her hand, turned it, and pushed it opened. “Mr. Mith? Are you in here?” she called out.
The moment the door was fully opened, we saw Oliver standing there, fussing with his microphone pack in his back pocket. He dropped his hands quickly, and his eyes lit up the moment he saw Reese. She turned into the brightest light when she saw him too. “Mr. Mith!” she hollered, dashing in his direction, and he was there to catch her in his embrace with arms wide open.
“Kid!” he exclaimed, spinning her around.
She snuggled closer to him and held on tight. “I missed you, Mr. Mith.”
“I missed you, too, kid.”
“Mama missed you too. She’d been crying a lot since you left.” She moved her mouth toward his ear and whispered—but a loud whisper because my daughter didn’t know how to lower her voice. “But she pretended she had allergies.”
Oliver moved his stare from my daughter over to me.
It happened.
I looked at him.
He looked at me.
And still, he controlled my heartbeats.
His sweet yet somehow sinful lips turned up into a smirk that made my thighs tremble.
“Hi there,” he said as my heartbeats drummed away in an erratic pattern.
“Hi there,” I replied.
He placed Reese down on the ground, and before I knew it, his arms were around me. Within seconds, I was melting into him, because I didn’t know how to do anything but. He felt so warm against me, he felt like the missing piece to my small family puzzle, and I knew he fit perfectly as Reese wrapped her arms around our legs.
We were the perfect trio, and all I wanted to do was love the two of them for the rest of time.
“I missed you so fucking much it hurt,” he said, holding me close.
“That’s a quarter in the swear jar!” Reese remarked, making us both laugh. “Hey, Mr. Mith. Is it true that you’re performing tonight?”
“It is. At least, I hope so. I’m going to be honest: I’m really nervous. I haven’t performed in a long time without my brother, and I’m not sure how it’s going to go.”
“Well, can’t he just watch you from heaven?” she said. Her question seemed so matter of fact, and it made everyone in the room tear up. “So don’t worry, he’s still here. Come here.” She pulled on his pants and made him come to eye level with her. She then placed her hands against his shoulders and gave him a stern look. “Mr. Mith, you can do anything because you’re my best friend, and that means you can do anything.”
My little girl was giving him a pep talk, and my heart just about exploded from hearing it.
My love for her was like a wild garden. It blossomed more every single day.
Oliver’s eyes glassed over, and he bent down and kissed her on the forehead. “Thanks, Reese.”
“Welcome.”
Kelly cleared her throat. “Okay, well, how about I get Reese some snacks and we make our way to our seats so Emery and Oliver have a second to talk before the show.”
The two headed out of the room, leaving me standing there, still stunned and confused about what was happening exactly. But also, happy. I couldn’t deny the happiness that was running through my veins.
The moment the door closed behind Kelly and Reese, Oliver’s lips were pressed against mine, and I fell into my safe place. His tongue swept against mine, and I bit his bottom lip lightly as he moaned into me. “I’m so glad you’re here,” he said. “I was nervous Kelly wasn’t going to be able to get you here.”
I pulled away a little, still baffled. “You’re really performing tonight?”
“Yes. I think it’s time. I’ve been working on a lot of new stuff these past few weeks, and I feel like it’s time to get back out there.”
“I’m proud of you, I just . . . are you sure you’re ready?”
“No. Not at all. But I’m learning in life that you don’t have to be ready for every situation. You just have to be brave enough to try. So, I’m going to try tonight, and I think it will be better if I’m able to look out into the audience and see you sitting there looking back at me.”
“I believe in you,” I told him, kissing him again.
We kept kissing until it was time for him to go put on a show.
So I made my way to the audience, to make sure I was there for him when he needed a boost of love to go his way. I didn’t know what any of this meant for us, because the situation with my parents and Reese was still a mess. I knew I couldn’t be with Oliver yet, but I also knew that I was going to go into that arena and be his biggest fan.
The lights were already dimmed when I made it to my seat. Reese was standing on her chair as she and Kelly talked about their favorite songs from Alex & Oliver. When the light show began onstage, I could sense that the whole audience was feeling butterflies. There seemed to be a nervous energy about Oliver’s arrival. Many wondered aloud if he was going to be a no-show again. Many were skeptical that he was going to actually perform. But even with their doubts, they’d still shown up. Because their love for Oliver was still there, even with the letdowns.
He made his way to the stand and stood there for a moment as the crowd went wild. Every time he opened his mouth to speak, the crowd cheered louder, shouting their love for him. I saw the moment it hit him too. When his eyes glassed over and the emotions flooded in.
Oliver cleared his throat as he adjusted the microphone in front of him. “To be honest, I wasn’t sure if anyone was going to show up tonight after my last failed attempt of a show. Then, with how the last few months have gone with me in the tabloids, I considered staying hidden. But there was something bigger than my fear that made me want to come out of hiding. Something worth fighting for,” he said as his eyes looked toward me.
Butterflies.
A million butterflies.
“We always believed in you, Oliver!” someone screamed.