accompanied | billie eilish

thirty-one

aria

we all enter the hotel lobby, feeling numb.

"well. what now," tyler sighs, throwing himself onto one of the sofas.

"there's no more tour dates left until after the christmas break," shay says. "we all head back home, spend christmas however and we come back to this tour fresh, and we remake ourselves. we're the second vision now."

i shrug. "okay. come on, let's go pack. first flight home," i yawn, suddenly yearning for my flat back in london again.

we all head upstairs to the hotel rooms, and pack our stuff, which doesn't take very long. then we make our way back to the lobby.

"well, uh, i'll see you in a few weeks," i say a little sadly to bil and finn. finn wraps his arms around me and i hum softly, hugging him back for a few moments.

"uh, how about bil comes back to stay with us in london for a few days?" says tyler quickly as me and finn break apart.

i look over at bil, who seems just as surprised as i am. "uh, sure. i figured you'd want to see your parents, though," i say uncertainly.

she shrugs. "i won't stay long."

and the next thing i know, we're all on a flight back to london.

~~~

billie

i step into tyler and aria's apartment, stretching.

"hi bud," aria coos as a dog skitters towards them excitedly. "bil, meet pablo. he's my baby."

"what breed is he?" i ask in confusion, looking down at his face and limbs which are almost disproportionately long to the rest of his body.

"borzoi," she replies, kissing his forehead before standing back up straight and setting her backpack down on the floor. "sienna's been looking after him while we were gone."

"how's the rat?" asks tyler teasingly as he enters the apartment carrying the rest of everyone's luggage.

"how many times, he's not a rat," aria half-complains.

"he sure looks like one," ty giggles, earning a playful slap.

"uh bil, follow me and i'll show you where you'll be sleeping," ari says, picking up one of my backpacks and slinging it over her shoulder as she walks down the hall without a second glance.

as soon as she's gone, tyler hurries over to me.

"while you're staying here is the perfect time to make a move on her," he hisses.

"fucking hell dude how?" i hiss back.

he thinks for a moment. "you could-"

"where are you? come on bil you idiot," aria calls. i roll my eyes and pick up my suitcase before making my way down the hall.

once i've dumped my bags and unpacked a little bit, i make my way back into the large main room of the apartment; a kitchen, living room and dining room all in one, set on different levels to distinguish the difference between their purposes, with the hallway leading from the living room to the bedrooms and bathrooms.

the record player, which is hooked up to speakers around the room, is spinning a vinyl record that sends bass-heavy music throughout the room. aria and tyler are stood on the sofas, jumping up and down and head banging violently while pablo jumps up at their legs excitedly.

"paramore?" i ask, rolling my eyes as the two of them begin to move even more violently as the current song's vocals start.

"the one and only," aria yells, her fluffy hair ruffled. she looks up at me through a curtain of hair, her cheeks flushed. "come dance with us!"

when i hesitate, she jumps down from the sofa and grabs my hand, dragging me back up to where tyler is still stood. without hesitation she returns to her dancing and i find myself drawn in too.

after a while tyler flips onto the ground, exhausted. immediately pablo rushes over to lick his face and he yells.
"go away, rat," he groans.

"he's not a rat," aria reprimands him, grabbing a cushion and throwing it at him. tyler makes an indignant noise and picks it up, throwing it back. this quickly escalates, and soon the two of them are hiding behind items of furniture, armed with piles of pillows.

"guys, stop," i say quickly as a pillow sails right past me, narrowly missing the shelf with grammy and brit awards perched delicately on it. "are you two really mature enough to live alone together?"

"probably not," aria admits, placing down her pillow ammo slightly reluctantly and approaching tyler with wariness. "truce?"

"truce," he agrees with a grin as he shakes her hand. "i'm gonna make brownies."

"let me lick the bowl when you're done," she calls, heading over to the record player as tyler makes his way to the kitchen. i stare at the two of them in incredulous awe, marvelling at the ridiculous dynamic between them. it's simultaneously childish and mature, and yet it seems to work perfectly.

"what you playing, dj," i say, approaching aria from behind as she places a new vinyl onto the player.

"one of my favourites," she tells me and a much more quiet, lilting melody begins to crackle through the speakers throughout the room. the music is gentle and rich and makes my soul feel full.

"what song is this?" i ask after a moment, as the pretty vocals begin.

"recess, by melanie martinez," aria replies. she closes her eyes in bliss for a moment before standing up and making grabby hands towards me. "come dance."

"again?" i ask with a wrinkled nose, but she stays looking all hopeful and i can't help myself. i stand up and begin to sway, but she shakes her head and wraps her arms around me, beginning to lead me in a ballroom dance.

"the gay dream," she giggles. "slow dancing to vinyl."

my stomach does a thing when she says that.

eventually her head comes to rest on my shoulder, and she hums softly to the music in my ear as we move together.

when the song ends, we break apart and she smiles at me,

but there's something in her eyes that i can't quite read.