Chapter 11
Graduation rolled around just three months after Alex and Madi moved into Carrie’s house. Alex was valedictorian, and Reggie was so proud of him. Julie was the salutatorian, and Reggie was equally proud of his sister. Their music took off as soon as the first album was released, Nick and Dylan sent them selfies as they camped overnight, first in line of a whole crowd of people for the first day of sales. It made Reggie laugh, because he had offered them their own copies a month before the release date. Carrie and Flynn stayed with Madi when they toured, setting up video calls each time Alex went to a new state or country for their music. After the second tour, at the release party of their third album, Reggie asked Alex to marry him, and neither were surprised when Alex cried as he said yes. Instead of one of them waiting by the altar, they both entered at the same time from the sides of the church. Ray gave Reggie away, and Trevor gave Alex away. Luke was Reggie’s best man, as their best friend and the reason Reggie realized he loved Alex, and for the same reason Alex asked Nick to be his best man. Madi was the flower girl, though she argued she was too old because she was sixteen now, but she did it anyway because she loved her brothers. Carlos was the ring bearer, though he had argued against it as well, but more because he ended up having a crush on Madi, much to Julie and Alex’s amusement and delight. The band all lived together, even after Luke and Julie’s wedding. And when Madi was old enough to be alone when Trevor was on tour as well, Carrie and Flynn moved in with them. Nick and Dylan were offered, but they declined, happy in their studio apartment together. There were shows where Dirty Candi or Nick’s band opened for them, until they started to make it on their own. Ten years after their high school graduation, The Phantoms were asked to perform at their reunion, and they did. The school auditorium where they had become The Phantoms was always part of who they were, and they never forgot that. The day after the reunion, Alex’s mom reached out. She wasn’t ready to apologize though, so Alex told her that when she could accept Reggie, then he would welcome her back into his life. It took another year, but eventually she got there, even going as far to refer to Reggie as her other son when they met her new husband, having divorced Alex’s dad four years after she gave up her children. And Alex was happy. He had Reggie, the same goofy boy that couldn’t sit still but always managed it when he held Alex through an anxiety attack, the same boy that played with his fingers while he read a book before they fell asleep together every night, the same boy that used to talk for him in class so that he didn’t have to. And Reggie was happy, too. He had Alex, the same anxious boy that had helped him through every rough patch of his life, the same boy that he loved to listen to ramble when he was nervous, the same boy that was all soft colors and sarcasm, the same boy would methodically tap rhythms into his thigh when he wasn’t paying attention. They were together, and that’s all they needed. Because even though they didn’t look like they should work together, they were always better that way.