i'm awoken with a jolt when i feel the plane landing. the turbulence is extremely hectic, so i hold on to my armrests for dear life.

hey, but at least i finally landed.

i'm finally in brighton.

as I slowly make my way off the plane, my eyes dart around to find wilbur. he's supposed to meet me here and drive me to the airbnb. after about a minute (and a quick text to my mom to inform her that i'm not dead), i spot a head of messy curly brown hair. he makes eye contact with me a second after i look at him, then smiles and waves me over. i run over to wilbur and he embraces me in a warm hug.

"my fellow twenty one pilots fan?" wilbur asks gently, still hugging me.

"that's me," i respond. a few moments later, we break out of the hug and he leads me to his large black van.

"you really have a whole dad van," i say with a laugh. wilbur nods.

"gotta pack all of you in the same vehicle somehow," he says. i climb into the front seat while he drives. he turns on the aux and starts playing twenty one pilots. the first song to come on is hometown, one of our favorites.

"who's already at the house?" i ask.

"everyone. all the americans flew out yesterday, and everyone else got here earlier today." i nod.

be the one, be the one

to take my soul and make it undone

i look out the window at the passing trees. brighton really is beautiful.

be the one, be the one

to take me home and show me the sun

"tommy hasn't stopped talking about you. he can't wait for you to get here," wilbur says, laughing.

"really?" i turn my head towards wilbur.

"yup," he says, popping the "p."

i know, i know

you can bring the fire, i can bring the bones

"it took so long to convince my parents to let me come," i stifle a laugh.

"how'd you convince them?"

"uh... well i sorta just said 'i'm an adult and i'm going. i'm a good kid and this is going to be my reward.'" wilbur laughs and fist bumps me.

"atta girl."

i know, i know

you'll make the fire, my bones will make it grow

we start to sing along to the song.

where we're from

there's no sun

our hometown's in the dark

ₓ˚. ୭ ˚○◦˚.˚◦○˚ ୧ .˚ₓ˚. ୭ ˚○◦˚.˚◦○˚ ୧ .˚ₓ˚. ୭ ˚○◦˚.˚◦○˚ ୧ .˚ₓ

after about twenty minutes, we make it to the airbnb. the ride over was very comfortable and relaxing, but the second i see the house my stomach gets butterflies.

why am i nervous to see my best friends?

"will?" i ask quietly.

"hm?" he asks, looking up while grabbing my stuff from the trunk.

"i'm kinda, uh..." i let out a nervous laugh.

"anxious?" i nod, surprised he knew. "don't be. everyone is so excited to see you, not just tommy. everyone has been asking me nonstop when you were going to get here. they love you, they'll be very glad to see you."

i smile. of course wilbur knew exactly what to say.

"i can take my bags if you want," i say, holding my arm out.

"don't be ridiculous," wilbur says, rolling his eyes. "go see your friends." i purse my lips together and nod reluctantly. i walk up to the house and knock on the door. i wait a few seconds, anxiously awaiting, until nick answers the door.

"valerie!" he shouts, picking me up and spinning me around. "where the hell have you been loca?" i laugh at the twilight reference.

"hi!" i shout as soon as he puts he down, engulfing him in a hug.

"everyone's inside. kinda scattered around, though. might take a while to find everyone," nick informs me, hand on my back, softly leading me inside. almost immediately, i spot clay and george sitting on the couch.

"who was at the door?" clay asks without turning around.

"see for yourself," i say. they both quickly whip their heads around at the sound of my voice.

"val!" george jumps up and runs to give me an awkward hug, followed by a hug from clay shortly after.

"hey, dream team," i say with a smile.

"how was your flight?" george asks.

"as good as a 14 hour flight can be." i rub my eyes and he lets out a quiet laugh.

"niki's in the kitchen," clay tells me, pointing me in the direction of the kitchen. "she's been anxiously awaiting your arrival, probably excited for another girl to join the house." i nod and walk over to the kitchen. i see niki reading the instructions on a box of cookie mix. i grin and walk up behind her.

"boo," i say. she jumps slightly and turns around. her face looks angry at first, but as soon as she sees me, her face lights up and she cups my face.

"oh my god!" she shouts. "it's you!"

"it's me!" i confirm, laughing.

"i was about to start making cookies for you. i didn't realize you were getting here now."

"i'd love to help you, i love baking."

"that'd be very much appreciated, i don't think these boys can do anything in the kitchen without setting it on fire." niki sighs and rolls her eyes. i giggle.

"i'll come help as soon as i'm done saying hi to everyone," i say.

"perfect." she ruffles my hair as i turn to leave the kitchen. i walk around the house, trying to find everyone.

i walk into a room and see alex and karl sitting together, playing something on their phones. as soon as i enter, they look up, throw their phones down, and run up to embrace me. i'm wrapped in a group hug and start smiling immediately.

"mi amiga!" alex shouts. i laugh.

"hola, alex," i say. "and hello to you too, karl."

"hi," karl says giggling. "it's so great to see you."

"you too."

alex breaks away from the hug, but karl stays clinging onto my arm. i wrap both my arms around him and laugh.

"have you said hi to everyone yet?" alex asks. i shake my head.

"haven't seen tommy or toby yet," i say.

"oh PLEASE go see tommy," karl says, looking at me. "he hasn't shut up about you since he got here. 'where's valerie' this and 'where's valerie' that."

"do you know where he is?"

"definitely in his room. toby's probably up there too."

i nod and struggle to break free from karl's grasp. i laugh and tell him i'll give him another hug later, which convinces him to let go. i smile as i walk away, the feeling of everyones' hugs still lingering on my skin. i make my way up the stairs, attempting to find toby and tommy. i sigh and give up and walk to the bathroom, bumping into someone on the way over.

"toby?" i ask. we both grin and jump into a hug. we burst into giggling fits.

"val!" he shouts loudly. "i'm so happy you're finally here! i was worried you wouldn't be able to make it today!"

"wouldn't miss this for the world." we let go and he sighs.

"have you seen tommy?" he asks. "i've been looking for him and i have no idea where he is."

"he's the only person i haven't greeted yet. i was hoping you'd know." toby shakes his head.

"i'm gonna go downstairs, hopefully you find him sooner or later." i nod as i watch toby go down the stairs. i make my way over to a room that can be none other than tommy's and toby's. there are random things scattered across the room, along with a spare red and white shirt laid across a bed.

as i listen more closely, i can hear soft music playing. specifically, golden by harry styles. i grin as i walk over to the bed with the shirt and sit down, listening to the lyrics.

i can feel it take a hold

i can feel you take control

i pull out my phone, about to text tommy and ask where he is, when i hear a door close.

of who i am and all i've ever known

i look up at the doorway and my jaw drops.

as does tommy's.

loving you's the antidote

"you're actually..." tommy doesn't finish his sentence as we both walk over to each other and wrap our arms around each other.

golden

we melt into the hug and i bury my face into his neck. i adjust my arms around his neck and he tightens his grip around my waist. we both fall to the floor, lost in each other's embrace. it feels so surreal, to be here with tommy, hugging him, soaking in his presence. so comfortable, so at home.

you're so golden

"hi," i let out in a hoarse whisper.

"hi," tommy musters out just as quietly. "i can't believe you're here."

"i can't believe i'm here. with you."

i don't want to be alone

"this is..." tommy trails off and he pulls me closer to him.

"i know," i reply.

i'm out of my head

and i know that you're scared

cause hearts get broken

we look up from the hug into each other's eyes. finally i get to see those crystal blue eyes in person. they're somehow even more gorgeous in real life than they are on a screen.

you're so golden.