the thunder rumbling outside and the brilliant flashes of lightning have kept memphis awake for the better part of the evening. he’s taken to sitting up with his reading glasses on, book in hand, reading by the light from the window - it’s hard on his eyes, but it’s keeping him busy. at least, until he notices that grace is in fact awake and not well, and then the book is cast aside and he reaches across the pillow between them to gently touch her shoulder. “hey - hey, honey, you okay?” his expression quickly morphs into one of immense concern (his sister calls it his dad face, much to his chagrin) as he shifts a little closer to her. “what’s wrong?”

he’s just about ready to close up for the night when he hears the door chime. “i’m sorry, we’re just about to close, can you come back in the morning?” memphis calls, his back to the door. when no response comes, he turns, and his face immediately softens. “katie,” to say he’s surprised to see her is an understatement - it’s been an awfully long time since she’s stepped foot in this garage. “is everything okay?” he asks softly, wiping his hands on his jeans to clean the grease off of them before approaching her. still, he keeps his distance, but his eyes never leave her. 

“you okay, honey? you look like you’re about to jump out of your skin.” memphis offers a playful smile as he settles into the seat across from her, sliding her latte across the table before folding his hands around his own cup of coffee. he watches her for a moment before his playful smile fades off and he reaches one hand across the tabletop to settle on her forearm, “grace? what’s going on? you’re freaking me out a little, honey,” suddenly, he’s not sure he wants his coffee anymore - his stomach turns and there’s a slowly growing hollow feeling in his chest as he prepares himself for the worst. is she deciding she’s had enough? or is it something worse? memphis swallows and keeps his gaze unwavering on her face despite how much he wants to look away, “talk to me.”

honestly, if memphis were to make a list of who he’s expecting to see at this coffee house, allie wouldn’t crack the top ten. he doesn’t find her in the crowd until he’s coming off stage after his set, much to his chagrin - that means she’s definitely heard him sing the quiet lament he’s written about still loving her. memphis sources her out with a mug of her favourite tea in hand, offering a smile, “peace offering?” not that they need one, he thinks, but if she’s heard his latest song ... maybe there’s some things that will need smoothing over. or might need to be completely ignored, if she’d rather that. he’s good at pretending, especially when it comes to how he feels about her. “i, uh - i didn’t know you were coming. you should’ve texted or something, i could’ve driven you here,” hand rubs idly at the back of his neck, gaze flitting back towards the stage before settling on her. bite the bullet, memphis. “i guess you heard my set?”

so rarely does memphis ever have lapses like this, where the world gets to be too much, and even rarer do they ever have an audience. but every man has his breaking point - his just happened to hit unexpectedly today, after so many years of cautious peace. he feels the familiar creeping dread setting upon him, coupled by the tightening of his chest that just makes him panic further. the spiral winds tighter and tighter until he’s suffocating inside of it and he reaches for grace, all but wrapping himself around her in his effort to find something, anything, to anchor him. wordlessly, he rests his head on her shoulder and squeezes his eyes shut as his arms clench tight around her midsection. his breath comes in short, ragged gasps. “grace-”

“whoa, hey - slow down, josef,” he’s in his art therapy class tonight, but he’s stepped out into the hall to answer josef’s call. there’s nothing memphis won’t drop to look out for the kid. “take a breath. you’re in trouble?” already, memphis is on high alert. this can’t be good. he returns to the room and mouths an apology to his instructor as he grabs his jacket and keys. “that’s okay, joe, that’s what i’m here for. where’re you at? i’ll come get you.” 

“hey, hey, hey - are you okay? can you say something?” this isn’t good at all. memphis doesn’t know much about first aid, but what he does know is not to move anyone who’s been in an accident. instead, he crouches next to the open door of the vehicle and braces himself on the doorframe. his nerves are alight - he’s panicked, but doing well to maintain a calm facade. right now, the person behind the wheel needs someone who knows what they’re doing. he’s lucky he drove past when he did. his pickup is parked on the shoulder of the road a few feet away. “my name’s memphis, i called 911 already. you’re gonna be okay. can you hear me?”