I hated leaving her. It was the first time in my life where the last thing I wanted to do was play a show. After everything we had gone through today, I didn't want her to have to be alone.

When I pulled back up to the venue, Sam was outside smoking. I knew he'd have questions now.

"Hey, where'd you guys go? Where's Jess?" He asked.

"She's.. sick." I said simply, leaning up against the doors next to him. "She's staying at the hospital overnight." I saw his eyes get wide as he took another drag, eventually nodding.

"I, um.. I heard, Jake." He said quietly. My heart started beating faster.

"H-heard what?" I asked, my cheeks burning.

"About Jess." I sighed.

"Well.. don't worry. There's nothing to know." I said quietly, looking away.

"Oh..well.. that's good.. right?" He asked. I shrugged, not sure how I felt about everything yet. I know in the long run it was good. So much was happening right now. This was for the best. For both of us. But after talking about it with her, I couldn't help but start to get excited about the idea. I had never even thought about having kids.

Not until her.

"I guess." I finally said.

"Is.. is she okay?" He asked. I nodded, looking back at him.

"Yeah, she's fine. They said she was just.. run down. She'll be good by tomorrow, but.. I'm gonna head back after the show tonight." Sam nodded, taking another drag.

"Should we all come?" He asked. I shook my head.

"No.. it's okay. I'd.. rather it just be us." I said, shooting him a look. He nodded, knowing what I meant.

"Does.. Josh know?" He asked quietly. I shook my head.

"No." I said plainly. He nodded again, looking away.

"He's.. kinda been freaking out all day."

"Well, it's not his problem." I snapped.

"No, but.. you know."

I did know. But he told me he was going to back off, once and for all, so this wasn't his concern anymore. If anything happened, it was between me and Jess. He had no reason to be freaking out.

And then.. the rest of the night was a blur.

I hadn't realized how much I had gotten used to Jess always being around. I could barely even remembering performing. It all came down to muscle memory, cause my mind was back at the hospital. I always felt guilty when my heart wasn't in it, because I knew how excited the fans were to be there; I hated not being able to give them what they wanted when they came out.

But tonight made me realize I never wanted to go another night without her again.

I hadn't even been nervous the entire tour, just knowing she was around somewhere, watching. And I knew I always had her to look forward to once I got off stage.

"You were amazing." She'd always say, just like it was the first time. I felt a smile escape my lips and then screams erupted from the front row. I couldn't help but laugh. If only they knew.

Once I zoned back in, I realized we were on the final song of the set. I did my best to at least try to enjoy myself tonight. But it was no use. I forced a smile, taking a bow and quickly ran off into the wings backstage.

"Wow, you were great!" Sam called out. I smiled, nodding.

"Thanks." I managed, as we made our way into the dressing rooms. I'd have to take his word for it.

"You heading out now? Don't have time to meet anyone outside?" I nodded, tossing off my jacket, pulling a clean shirt over my head.

"I told her I'd come back as soon as we were done. I don't want her waiting up." I said, pushing the hair out of my face, tying it up in a bun. Josh looked over at me confused.

"W-what are you talking about? Where's Jess?" He asked.

"Don't worry about it." I snapped, gathering the rest of my things into my backpack.

"Jake, you can't not tell him." Sam chimed in. He looked over at Josh. "Jess is in the hospital."

"What?" Josh yelled. "What's wrong? What happened? Did you guys find out? Is she okay?"

"Yes. We found out. And yes. She's fine. They're just keeping her overnight."

"If she's fine then why are they keeping her overnight? W-what happened?" I bit down on my lip, feeling my face get hot.

"She's not pregnant." I finally said. "But.. she's run down from tour. So they're keeping her overnight."

"I should come." He said.

"No." I snapped, glaring over at him. "You said that was it, you were backing off."

"I know but.. I was the one who was there with her, I just think-"

"No." I said again. He sighed, looking over at me.

"I am backing off. But.. that doesn't mean I don't care about her. This is a big deal, Jake. She was terrified." My cheeks burned again.

"You're not going." I said again, tossing my bag over my shoulder, and storming out of the dressing room.

I quickly made my way out to the van, doing my best not to let any of the fans outside see me. Thankfully I was able to get out fast enough where they hadn't made it outside yet. Grabbing my phone, it felt strange having to dial Jess' number. She finally picked up on the third ring.

"Well, hello." She said sweetly.

"And what took you so long? Is your other boyfriend taking care of you?" I joked.

"Oh, stop." She laughed. "When are you coming back?"

"I'm on my way now. How are you feeling?"

"I'm fine, Jake."

"Do you miss me?"

"Of course." She said sarcastically, but I could hear the smile in her voice. I felt my cheeks burn.

"Alright, alright.." I laughed. "I'll be right there."

"Okay, see you soon."

"I love you." I said softly.

"And I love you, now just get here." She giggled. I couldn't help but smile, hanging up.

I turned into the shopping center just before the hospital, running into one of the convenient store, grabbing two candy bars, a small bag of popcorn and a bottle of SunnyD. On my way out, I saw the bright neon sign of a jewelry store next door. I bit down on my lip as I felt my heart beating faster, and eventually forced myself to go inside.

When I got back to the hospital, I made my way up to the front desk.

"Hi, I'm looking for-"

"Are you Jake?" She asked. My cheeks burned.

"Yeah.. how did you-"

"She's been talking about you." She giggled to herself. "Follow me."

I followed her closely as she lead me to Jess' room.

"He's here!" Jess called out, flashing me a toothy grin. I couldn't help but smile.

"What's up with her?" I said, leaning over.

"It happens, she'll be a little.. enthusiastic for a bit. But it'll eventually wear out."

"I hope not." I said softly, going over and sitting down on her bed.

"I'll leave you two alone."

"How was the show?" Jess asked, reaching out, pulling me in closer. My cheeks burned.

"It was fine. How are you feeling?" I asked, gently moving the hair out of her face.

"I'm great now." She sighed, staring back at me with dazed eyes. My heart started beating faster as she looked over at the shopping bag. "What's that?"

"Oh, I just got you some stuff I thought you'd like. They're just snacks." Her smile grew.

"Thank you." she said cheerily, pulling me into a kiss. I reached up, gently holding her face, kissing her back.

"You're so cute." I sighed, staring back at her. Her cheeks burned as she reached up, gently running her hands up my chest, stopping at my coat pocket.

"W-what's this?" She asked. My stomach dropped.

"Oh, um.." I started. My heart was pounding. She stared back at me, a gentle smile across her lips.

"I.. I got you something." I said softly, feeling my face get hot.

"You did?" She asked, sitting up. I nodded, reaching into my pocket, pulling out a small box. Her face dropped, her eyes getting wide.

"Jake.." She sighed, staring down at it. I shook my head, smiling up at her.

"Before you freak out.." I started. "This is not an engagement ring." She nodded, a small smile escaping from her lips.

"Okay." She said quietly, biting down on her lip. "Then what kind of ring is it?"

I opened the box, showing off a thin golden band with small diamond. She stared down at it, wide-eyed.

"Are you sure? Cause.. that looks an awful lot like an engagement ring." She laughed. I shook my head, smiling back at her.

"Trust me, when this is an engagement ring, it's going to be much bigger than this." I said. Her smile grew, her face turning red.

"Okay.." She whispered, keeping her eyes locked on me.

"Alright, now are you gonna let me say what I wanna say? I kinda practiced this on the drive here." I laughed. She nodded, flashing me a smile.

"Go ahead." She said softly, leaning in close.

"Now, I know some people think these are lame, but.. these last twenty-four hours have been terrifying. And today.. even just having to be without you for a night.. I realized just how much I never want to spend a night without you again. I just need you to know that, baby or not.. I'm in this. You've made me excited about a future I never thought I could ever be excited about. And one day, if.. that's ever what you want.. I'll replace it with an engagement ring. But for now.. it's a promise that.. I'm all yours. Forever."

She stared back up at me, her eyes wide, filling with tears.

"Jake.." She sighed. I held my gaze on her, feeling my heart beating out of my chest.

"I.. I don't really know what to say to one of these.." She laughed. "But yes."

She reached out, pulling me in to a passionate kiss. I sighed, tangling my fingers in her hair, kissing her back. Taking the ring out of the box, I slid it on her finger. She looked down at it, her smile growing.

"I love it." She said, staring back up at me.

"Now if it was an engagement ring-" I started.

"Don't push your luck." She laughed, pulling me back into a passionate kiss.