Chapter 18: Goodbye Lauralee woke up to the sound of her alarm, buzzing at 9am.  Her eyes became clear as she rubbed them and became a little startled when she heard Alex give a little grumble.  She smiled, then kissed his eyelids. “Morning sleepyhead.” “Mmm,” he wrinkled his nose and gave a slight smile.  “That was a wakeup call I wouldn’t mind everyday.” “I got to get in the shower,”  she started to get up, when Alex grabbed her arm.  “Just a few more minutes?”  He gave her a puppy dog look. “Oh, you big baby,”  she climbed back into bed where she molded herself to his chest.  He rested his hand on her head and stroked her hair.  Her body moved with his breathing.  She lifted her hair and started to speak when Alex put his hand to her mouth.  “Shh.” They just gazed at each other, for the words were all said the night before.  After a few minutes, Lauralee grudgingly got up. After they had gotten ready, they went downstairs and saw Howie, Veronica, Kevin and Howie at the kitchen table.  They stayed the night before too. “Morning,” Lauralee said. “Morning,” Laura held up her cup of coffee.  “That’s all there is left.” “I wasn’t hungry anyway,” Alex poured a cup for himself and Lauralee. “Y’all have fun?”  Lauralee accepted Alex’s cup and took a sip. Kevin looked at Laura.  “We… had a time.”  Laura smiled into her cup. “So did we.” Veronica took Howie’s hand and gave Lauralee a look that said details later.  “How about you?” “We had several good moments,” Alex put his arm around Lauralee’s waist. Howie sighed and checked his watch.  “Hate to break it to y’all, but…” “Yeah,” Lauralee looked at the floor. They washed the dishes, grabbed their carry-on bags, and took one last look around. “Goodbye, BSP,” Laura giggled. “Yeah, don’t blab on us now,” Kevin laughed.  They all left, with Lauralee leaving last and left the key on the hall table.  “Goodbye,” she whispered as she closed the door behind her. ~*~ The ride to the airport was silent in Kevin’s 4Runner.  They arrived at the airport and went to the check-in counter to get their tickets. “You’ve been upgraded to first class,” the woman checked her computer. “Says who?” Asked Laura. They all turned to the guys.  “You didn’t!” Veronica had he hand on her hip. “We made sure you left in style,” winked Howie. They went to the VIP lounge, where surprisingly they saw Marcus standing there. “Marcus!”  Lauralee ran and gave him a hug. “You didn’t think I could let one of my favorite girls go without saying goodbye,”  he let go of her. “No way!”  Lauralee laughed. “It’s all yours,” Marcus opened the door for them and they walked in to see Brian and Nick. “Surprise again!” Brian held his arms in the air. “We though we would proposition you once more,” Nick grabbed Lauralee again. “Carter, you are impossible!”  Lauralee wiggled away from his grasp and hugged Brian.  They hugged Laura and Veronica. “We can’t stay long.  We just wanted to say goodbye,”  Brian held out his arms towards the girls and Nick.  “Come on, group hug!”  The girls toppled Brian and Nick.  “Thanks for making our friends happy,” he whispered to them.     They left the lounge.  The couples each took a corner of the room.  Laura and Kevin were kissing, Howie and Veronica were whispering to each other, and Alex and Laura were holding each other, their faces inches from each other’s. “I don’t think I can do this,” Lauralee blubbered. “Good, I’ll go home with you and sleep in your closet,” Alex laughed to break the tension. “And bring me breakfast in bed everyday?” “With a rose on the tray,” Alex wiped the tears from her face.  He kissed her forehead as Lauralee buried her face in his shirt and breathed in his scent so she wouldn’t forget it.  There was a knock on the door.  “Guys, their flight has been called in.”  Marcus opened the door.  “OK, man,” Alex picked up Lauralee’s bag and went to the door as the others followed.  Marcus motioned for 2 other bodyguards who were out of sight to keep guard. They went to the entrance of the gate.  Lauralee, Veronica and Laura started crying at the same time. “It’ll be OK,” Kevin quickly embraced Laura. Alex grabbed Lauralee and gave her a intense kiss, forgetting about the people around him.  She could taste the saltiness of his tears.  When he finally pulled away, he held her face in his hands.  “Goodbye,” he said in a broken whisper. “Goodbye Alex,” she got her bags and finally let go of him.  She hugged Kevin and Howie goodbye, and the girls walked backwards until they got to the gate.  They went into the walkway, holding each other and crying.  They sat in their seats, each wiping away the ocean of tears that had flown. “Lee Lee?”  Laura sniffled. “Yeah?” “We had a time right?” She looked at the both of them.  “Yeah, we had the best time of our lives.”  Laura and Veronica looked at Lauralee.  The memories filled their minds as an uncontrollable laughter filled the plane. Chapter 19 Contents Chapter 17