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Rock and Roll Ruined My Life

Awkwardness

Rock and Roll Ruined My Life - Chapter 37- Awkwardness

I woke up next Wednesday to find a note on the kitchen counter:

- Hey Jules, it’s Feb. 1st and rehearsal/practice start today. We are in the RV Center at a meeting and will be leaving at 12:00 to go over to the arena. Text us if you want to come along – Frank

I quickly chose an outfit that consisted of black sweatpants, a grey v-neck, a dark green hoodie, and converse, ran back to the bathroom to brush my teeth and hair, and then grabbed a granola bar before locking the door and walking briskly to the RV Center. When I got there it was 11:47. I sighed and plopped down on one of the chairs in the snack area. I ate my granola bar and texted everyone where I was. After that I just stared into the distance. I was so caught up that I didn’t hear someone open the door and walk up behind me.

“Hello,” they said, snaking their arms around my waist. I jumped but once I saw the hands I relaxed and turned my face to let Jack kiss my cheek. I stood up and saw that Alex, Rian, Zack, Gerard, Lindsey, the Rev, Frank, Johnny, Matt, and everyone from Paramore were also in the room. I felt my face flush in embarrassment.

“Hi, everyone,” I offered a small wave.
“Hey,” they all replied then went about their business.

“What was that about?” I asked Jack.
“I really don’t know. I think we’re, like, the only other couple on tour together besides Gerard and Lindsey.”
“Oh. Okay.”

“Hey, Julie!” Alex greeted me.
“Hi, Alex,” I felt my face flush as I remembered all of his teasing from the previous week.
“I see you kept the face sucking to a minimum today, very proud of you-” Alex was cut off by a smack from Jack. His arm visibly turned pink then dark red.
“Fuck off, Alex,” Jack said.
“What? I’m just joking, geez!” Alex replied, rubbing his arm.
“Well obviously she doesn’t like it!”

Zack and Rian walked over, seeing that the conversation was turning into an argument.
“Guys, what’s going on?” Rian butted into the conversation.
“Nothing. I’m sorry, Julie,” Alex said, holding out his arms for a hug.
“Thank you,” I replied, reaching out my own arms to return the gesture.
“I’m gunna go buy a water bottle before we leave,” I said, turning to leave the group.

When I came back with my bottle of water I saw that they had all seemed to forget about what just happened. I offered a small smile to them before cracking open my bottle. I took a sip and then held it out to see if anyone else wanted some, just to be polite. Jack took it and then Rian, Zack, and Alex took a sip. I put the cap back on; not really wanting to drink it after they had all drank from it. I’m not a germaphobe, I just didn’t want to.

After a minute or so of talking, Gerard, Mikey, and Lindsey walked over.

“Hey guys,” I smiled, giving each of them a hug.
“Hey Jules.”
“Hey Jules!”
“Hey Julie!”

“So, what’s up?” I asked.
“Nothing much. We just wanted to know if you’re gunna ride over to the arena with us or them,” Mikey replied.
“Um, I’ll go with you guys,” I nodded. I heard Jack take a deep breath behind me.
“Alright, we’re gunna start walking over to our car now. You might have to squeeze in with Frank,” Gerard chuckled at the thought of all of us piling into one car.
“I don’t mind. I’ll see you guys over there, okay?”
“Okay.”
“Bye!” I leaned over to give Jack a quick hug before turning and walking out with Gerard and Mikey. I didn’t really want to ride with MCR to the arena, but I didn’t want anyone to start thinking that Jack and I were all over each other all the time, because we weren’t. That was the only reason I went with them. It turned out we had just enough seats for all of us and soon we were off onto the highway.

Lindsey’s P.O.V

Once the guys had left with Julie I turned to get a water bottle. It was then that I heard All Time Low start arguing. I pretended to be undecided on what I wanted to buy as I listened in on their conversation.

“What did I tell you?” Jack said, running a hand through his hair.
“What? I apologized!” Alex retorted.
“What happened?” Rian and Zack asked in unison.
“Ugh okay. Julie and I were kissing-”
“That’s an understatement-” Alex interrupted Jack.
“-in the back of the car the other day and Alex wouldn’t stop teasing us. I don’t mind, but Julie got, like, really upset and he wouldn’t drop it until today.”
“Whoa, whoa, whoa. What do you mean an understatement?” Rian asked, catching the words we all wanted an explanation to.
“They were really going at it!” Alex said, a grin evident in his voice. “All over each other, hand on the waist, tongue, you know how it can get,” he finished.

I quickly punched in the code for an iced tea.

“That was the first time that ever happened!” Jack said.
“Damn, Jack! Aren’t you, like, her first real boyfriend?” Rian asked, a grin evident in his voice as well.
“Yeah! That’s why I don’t want you guys to ruin it! It’s not like I pressured her into doing it! I think that was, like, our fourth time kissing and he went and ruined it! Not gunna lie… she’s not bad for a first-timer,” Jack said, a smile in his voice. I heard one of the guys thump him on the back as they chuckled to themselves about the whole thing.

I grabbed my ice tea, got my change, and left. I pulled out my phone and pulled up a blank text:

- I have to talk to you later

And sent it to Gerard.

To be honest, I didn’t know what to think. I mean, Jack didn’t seem like the kind of guy to pressure her into making out, but he also didn’t seem like the kind of guy to hold back when the moment was right either. As I walked back to the rest of my band, I also took into consideration the fact that Juliet and Jack were not the average teenage couple. They had something about them that was different, like they just got each other. They looked at each other with that special sparkle in their eyes and they just got along so well…

“Linds, you okay?” Kitty asked, as I re-joined our circle.
“Yeah, just thinking about stuff.”
“You sure? You look… confused and a tad bit scared,” she held up her fingers in a pinch.
“Yeah. I didn’t get too much sleep last night,” I said, which was half true. Bandit was up for a long time last night. Not even Bailey could get her to sleep.
“Oh, okay. But still, I’m here if you have to talk,” she patted my arm before turning to talk to Steve.

“We should get going,” Jimmy said, gathering all of us up and ushering us outside. I sat in the passenger seat and stared out into the distance, not bothering to talk to Jimmy. I’m sure he didn’t mind because he just started humming to himself as he drove.

As the trees passed by, I wondered if I should talk to Julie about… you know… sex. It seemed like such an awkward thing to do! I mean, I’m not really her mom but if her and Jack get left alone, she probably wouldn’t be able to snap out of it before things got out of hand. Or could she? She was a tough girl, and after everything that’s happened to her, I think she could stand up and say no to him. I really didn’t want to talk to her about it, but I guess I’ll have to ask Gerard. That’s gunna be awkward too. Extremely awkward… Maybe it would be easier to have one of the guys do it. Maybe Frank or someone could bring it up and make it seem, like, a normal conversation. But would that be too awkward for her? Oh my God being a parent is so hard! I’ll just talk to Gerard, Frank, and Mikey later. If they couldn’t do it then I’d have to do it myself or possibly ask someone else if I couldn’t do it. Maybe the Rev or Matt? We’ve all been together in the same house for a while now and maybe she’d listen to them…

Either way, I don’t want everyone to know about Juliet and Jack’s every make-out session. I’ll have to talk to All Time Low too. Just for her sake. She’s not used to all of this boyfriend stuff, and it’s not fair to her to be around him all the time and have no privacy. So, how would I do this? How would I get everyone in one spot at once and talk to them? I guess we’d have to meet while Julie is out. We’d have to send her out to do something. She hasn’t been to driver’s ED yet. Maybe we could sign her up and while she’s at her lessons I could call everyone over? It sounded good to me. I guess that’s what I’d do. I had to talk to Gerard about it soon, though.

Juliet’s P.O.V

We got to the arena first before any of the other bands, so I got a chance to talk to Brad and his crew about tour business.

“I think it’s so cool that you guys get to work with musicians all the time,” I smiled.
“Oh yeah, it’s pretty awesome. I just wish I were the one on stage and not the one telling everyone when to go on stage sometimes. You play any instruments?”
“I play a little bit of the bass and drums, but guitar is my main instrument.”
“Whoa! That’s awesome! Maybe you’ll be up here soon?” he smiled encouragingly.
“Ha ha, thanks. First I have to get a band going,” I laughed.
“Yeah, that might be a good place to start.” More crewmembers started walking in.
“Well, if you guys need an extra person to help with stuff, I’ll be sitting around down here!” I said, plopping myself down in a chair in what would be the mosh pit area of a concert.
“I’ll keep it in mind! I gotta go right now though, these guys can be so crazy sometimes. What did you say your name was again? Sorry I’m terrible with names.”
“It’s okay! And Juliet.”
“Okay, Juliet! See you around!” With that he was off to get everyone in order.

Soon, MSI, All-American Rejects, All Time Low, and Paramore arrived. However, Brad shepherded them all back stage to talk to them about stage stuff. I sat back and pulled out my phone. I decided to text Kat. We went on talking about random topics. Everything from clothes to pulled pork sandwiches, to my kiss with Jack and Alex’s teasing. Eventually, the main bands were allowed to walk around the mosh pit area where I was sitting. Immediately I walked over to Frank, Ray, Mikey, and Bob to talk to them.

“Hey guys!” I greeted them.
“Hey, Julie!”
“Hey Jules!” They replied.
“So what are you guys doing now?”
“Well they’re gunna get the opening acts set up first and then they are going to work on the main acts.”
“Oh, okay I got you,” I nodded. As we were talking I noticed Gerard and Lindsey in a deep conversation off to the left. What happened? Did something happen at home? Was it me? Was it another band? Were they arguing? No they couldn’t be arguing, they looked too confused for that. I shrugged it off and focused back my conversation. As we talked, Bob became more animated and some of the guys from Avenged joined us. Eventually, it was time for them to go on stage and all of the opening acts came out.

“Hey, Julie!” Everyone greeted me.
“Hey, guys!” I smiled as everyone, including the All-American Rejects and Paramore came to stand around me. It was like I was the centerpiece holding everyone else’s conversation groups together. I was introduced to AAR and they turned out not to be so creepy after all, from what I understood they were drinking half the time. I also got to talk to Hayley and her twin band mates Josh and Zac, who were very nice as well!

The whole time I was talking I stood a painful step away from Jack, not wanting to get close enough for him to grab my hand or put an arm around my shoulder. I was still embarrassed even though I didn’t know if everyone else knew about Jack and I’s make-out session. It wasn’t a big group and words could travel fast, better to keep it safe then sorry. I still talked to Jack like I normally would and I still acknowledged his presence, but I just kept the contact to a minimum.

As I was talking though, I noticed Alex give Jack a look and Jack nonchalantly shifted his weight so that he was closer to me. In response, I nonchalantly shifted my weight to my other foot and pulled out my water bottle to take a sip. I saw Alex bite his lip and Zack shrug his shoulders. So the guys noticed. I put my water bottle on my seat and pulled out my phone to exchange numbers with everyone. As I passed my phone to Hayley, I turned to Jack and offered a smile. He pouted and reached out for my hand. I hesitated before reaching out to him. He smiled and stepped a little closer so that our arms weren’t so far apart. However, our handholding was cut short when Hayley passed me her phone and Jack got passed someone else’s phone.

Before we knew it, our first day of tour practice was over, and we all got to go back to our buses. I chose to ride with MCR again.

*

Knock, knock, knock

“I’ll get it!” I called as I stood up from the kitchen table and looked out the side window to see Lindsey standing there. I smiled and opened the door.
“Hi!” I grinned as I stepped aside for her to walk in.
“Hey!” She leaned over to give me a kiss on the cheek. Gerard appeared from his bunk and kissed her lightly on the lips, a simple greeting.

“Oh, Julie! Don’t go anywhere, we have something to tell you,” Lindsey called after me as I turned to walk to my bunk. I turned back around and sat back down in my chair. Finally I would know what they had been talking about earlier.

“Well, we’ve noticed that you are going to be 17 this year, and that you need to get your driver’s license so… We signed you up for driver’s ED!” Lindsey said, clapping her hands together. I stood up and gave them both huge hugs.

“Thank you guys so much! I’m so excited!” I grinned.
“No problem, Jules,” Gerard smiled.
“When do I start?”
“Tomorrow.”
“Tomorrow?!”
“Tomorrow!”
“Oh my God! I can’t wait! What time are my classes? Where are they? Who’s driving me there?” I gushed.
“They’ll be in the late afternoon and one of us can drive you. There’s a small driving school in one of the plazas by the arena, we called them and they said that they will be able to work with you everyday, since you don’t have school or anything,” Gerard explained.
“This is so awesome! Thank you guys so much!”
“It’s nothing, really,” Lindsey waved her hand.
“Not to you, but to me it’s important,” I smiled, “I’m gunna go text Kat!” I gave them both hugs before walking back to my bunk and texting her, Jack, and Billie.

That night I fell asleep eager for tomorrow’s adventures.

*

“Jules, you ready to go?” Gerard called to me.
“Yeah, I’m coming!” I called back, pulling on a pair of Nikes and a warm hoodie.

“Have fun! Don’t run over the instructor!” Frank called after us as we walked out the door.

We got to the place and we met my instructor, Ms. Robbins, who seemed really nice. I gave Gerard one last hug before he left to go back to the bus. Today’s lesson would consist of a lecture about the general structure of the car. When we walked into the classroom I was happy to see I wasn’t the only one. There were a few local kids who also seemed nice for the most part.

I made sure to take lots of notes and wrote down any tips she told us. This driving business didn’t seem hard after all.

Lindsey’s P.O.V.

I walked briskly down the main road where Gerard was waiting for me in the car. Together we drove to the van section of the park. It was fairly easy to find them, since there were only few occupied vans. We climbed out and shook hands with Matt, their manager.

“Mind if we talk to your guys?” Gerard asked, sounding all business. I tried not to laugh as Matt nodded, and called the guys out. When they saw us standing there they froze for a minute.

“Guys, please. We don’t bite,” I laughed. They all chuckled and came to stand around us.
“Now, guys. Don’t get us wrong; we love you all just as much as Juliet does, but we have to ask you guys something. There is no easy way to say this but,”
“We heard that Jack and Jules had a… personal moment…” Gerard finished my sentence awkwardly. He looked so disturbed by his own words I couldn’t help but laugh. Jack ran a hand through his hair nervously and Alex looked down at the ground, trying not to laugh as well.
“It’s not like we don’t approve of you guys or anything, we just want you guys to keep it to yourselves and not talk to other people about it. It’s easy for people to hear things,” I continued, giving Alex, Rian, and Jack looks, “unintentionally or intentionally, and I don’t think Julie wants people to know her business. Yeah, you guys will talk amongst yourselves, and that’s cool. Just don’t say it loud enough for the whole world to hear it- for her sake if not ours.”
“Okay,” they nodded. It was then I brushed my bangs back and let out a relieved laugh.

“You guys have no idea how awkward this is for us…” I trailed off.
“It’s okay. It wasn’t that bad,” Alex laughed, kicking a pebble across the road. We began to walk back to the car and the other guys took it as a chance to go back to the van.

“Wait,” I heard Jack yell. He jogged over to the car and leaned over Gerard’s window. He rolled it down so he could speak.
“Sorry about all of this… does everyone else know about it?”
“No, just us. But the only reason I heard was because you guys were shouting it out to the world,” I laughed.
“Crap… I’m trying,” Jack replied, a small grin on his face.
“Yeah, we know, hun’. Stuff happens sometimes,” I smiled back with a shrug of my shoulders.
“Yeah. Well, see you guys tomorrow!” he called over his shoulder as he began walking back to the van.
“See ya!” I waved back. Gerard brought a hand up to his face and drove off, seeming mortified about the whole thing.

“Calm down!” I laughed, patting his shoulder. “What are you going to do when we get back to the bus?” I asked him.
“Have a beer?”
“Gee please, don’t start with the drinking again. It only makes stuff worse.”
“Okay. I won’t. But please don’t make me do all of the talking.”
“I won’t, I won’t. Hurry up we only have a half an hour,” I said, sitting back in my seat.

*

“Hey Jimmy, hey Matt, hey Frank, hey Mikey,” I gave them all hugs as they walked into the kitchen area of the bus.
“Hey, what’s up?” the Rev replied, taking a seat at the table. Gerard walked over to the fridge.
“Want something to drink?”
“Yeah, anything’s fine with me.”
“I’ll have a beer.”
“I’ll have some water.”
“Ice tea?”
“I’ll have some too.”

Gerard took everything out of the fridge and put it on the table with some cups and a few chips for everyone to take what they want.

“So, how you guys handling all this tour shit so far?” the Rev grinned, as he took a bite of some of his chips.
“Good! It’s not too stressful yet, ya’ know?” I nodded.
“Yeah. It’s nice to just be able to hang out, like right now,” Frank added.
“I think Julie’s handling everything pretty well too,” Mikey jumped into the conversation.
“Oh boy. Julie…” I trailed off, taking a sip of my ice tea.
“What did she do now?” Matt asked, a grin on his face.
“Her and Jack, I don’t know what to say to them,” I began.
“About what? They don’t look like they’re fighting,” Mikey said.
“Exactly. They’re getting along just fine, if you catch my drift,” I chuckled. The Rev, Matt, Frank, and Mikey almost spit out their drinks.
“The fuck? There’s no way,” he laughed.
“I know but apparently they were close the other day… Maybe the guys were just exaggerating to make it seem worse then it was but I just don’t want her to get into a situation like that,” I said, taking another bite of my chips.
“I think Julie’s fine. She’s not a push over,” Matt said, waving his hand.
“Yeah I think so too, but I just don’t know how to, like, tell her to be careful about it because you know how teenage guys are. I just don’t want her to feel like…”
“Overwhelmed?” Mikey tried to finish my sentence.
“Yeah in a way I guess… Gerard’s mortified over here,” I laughed, nudging him with my elbow.
“I’ve never had to deal with something like this before!” He tried to defend himself.
“Yeah, because you were a loner,” Mikey snorted. Everyone burst out laughing at this. Gerard laughed and flipped us the finger.

“I love you,” I said, leaning my head on his shoulder for a second.
“Thank you,” Gerard smiled.
“But in all seriousness, I don’t know what to do,” I shrugged.
“There’s no way of, like, going about it without making it seem awkward or weird,” Gerard added.
“We’re such fails. We write songs and shit about this stuff but we can’t tell our own friend’s kid about any of it,” Matt snorted.
“Guess you could, like, kind of just drop it into a conversation…” Frank trailed off taking a sip of his beer.
“Yeah, you could…” I agreed.
“I guess we could try to do that. But let’s not all suddenly begin talking about sex. That would be wayyy to obvious,” I face palmed.
“Definitely. Besides, with this crew we have going here, It would be easy to work it into a joke or something,” the Rev nodded.
“Alright, you go for it. Just as long as she gets the memo somehow…”

“Anyways, wanna turn on the game?” Matt said, pointing to the TV.
“Alright,” Gerard said, standing it up and fixing the TV so that we could all see.
“I’ll go pick up Julie, okay?” I said as I grabbed Gerard’s keys from his jacket.
“Okay,” he replied sitting back down, eyes fixed on the screen.

“Guys,” I rolled my eyes before walking out.

Juliet’s P.O.V

“Thank you, Ms. Robbins!” I said when I saw Lindsey pull up outside.
“No problem! See you tomorrow!”
“Bye!”

“Hey,” I greeted Lindsey as I strapped into the passenger seat.
“Hello there!” she replied. “So, how was class?”
“Good! Most of the stuff is common sense anyways.”
“That’s good. Just letting you know that the Rev and Matt are home watching the game.”
“Oh. In that case, can you drop me off at Jack’s?” I asked.
“Sure! You two sure make a sweet couple,” she gushed. I felt my face flush. If she had heard about our make-out session I would be mortified.
“Thanks,” I smiled.
“Just be on your guard, okay? You’re the only girl there and all…” she trailed off.
“I always have my guard up,” I reassured her as we pulled into the park.
“I bet you do, but just a little reminder, okay?”
“Okay. See ya later!” I waved as I shut the door.
“See ya!”

Before I could even turn around I felt someone tackle me in a hug. I turned my head to see Alex and Rian.

“Um, guys. What’re you doing?”
“Hugging you,” Alex said.
“Why?”
“Because we’re sorry.”
“Aw, thanks guys. As long as you apologize, it’s okay,” I smiled.
“Move out of my way!” Jack said, prying Rian and Alex off my torso. Once I was free I opened my arms and Jack gave me the biggest hug and kissed me on the lips. I pulled back before he could do anything more. It turns out the guys were just practicing a few of their songs again. I sat down next to Matt to listen and we clapped after every song. Over all, they sounded amazing! Finally, they stopped and broke out the chips and soda. We all sat in a circle next to the vans, Jack and I holding hands while sitting next to each other.

“I missed you,” I whispered to him as Alex started telling some story about a joke they played on one of their crew guys.
“You didn’t let me hold your hand or anything all day,” Jack pouted.
“Because, I don’t want people thinking we’re all over each other all the time,” I sighed.
“We’re not!”
“I know. But after…you know…”
“Us kissing?” He finished my sentence for me.
“Yes, after that,” I grinned, “I just feel like we should be more aware of our surroundings.”
“It’s all Alex’s fault,” he frowned.
“I’m not gunna lie, it is,” I chuckled.
“He’s such a dick sometimes.”
“I know, but he’s our friend. Stuff like this happens,” I shrugged as Alex finished his story with a grin and everyone else laughed.
“As long as he apologizes and doesn’t do it again, it’s okay,” I finished. He looked down and smiled at me.

“Why are you so amazing?” He asked.
“It comes naturally,” I winked tiredly. I stifled a yawn and leaned in closer to Jack.
“Sleepy already?”
“Driver’s ED drains the energy out of me,” I smiled.
“How was it?”
“Good. My teacher is nice, so are the kids.”
“That’s good... Guys, it’s getting too dark I can’t see,” Jack said, suddenly speaking to everyone.
“Thank you, captain obvious,” Rian replied.
“I’m too lazy to get up,” Alex said, laying back on the grass.
“We should get a little fire going next time,” I suggested.
“Yeah, totally!” Zack agreed,
“I’ll see if I can get some wood tomorrow,” Matt said from somewhere in the distance.

Slowly, we all watched the stars come out. The moon was nowhere in sight. Jack pulled me closer as a crisp wind swirled around our group. We ended up lying down on the grass like Alex had.

“Do you think they’d let you sleep here?” he asked, turning his head to face mine.
“Probably not,” I replied, staring up at the sky. To be honest, I wasn’t sure if I would want to sleep over. Even though I loved Jack and I’ve fallen asleep with him next to me before, it was at a different point in our relationship. I still had to get used to where we are now. He sighed and turned to face the stars.

“They’re pretty, aren’t they?” I asked to no one in particular.
“Yeah,” everyone replied in unison. I burst out laughing at their voices; they sounded so out of it. After a few minutes we heard someone begin to snore lightly.

“I think Matt fell asleep,” Jack grinned.
“I should get going,” I said, sitting up.
“Nooooo,” Jack whined, pulling me back to the ground.
“Yesssss,” I yawned.
“Tomorrow we should hang out,” he said randomly.
“Okay, but when? I have driver’s ED and before that you’re at practice.”
“Maybe after we finish with our half we could leave?”
“Then how is everyone else going to get home?” He sighed in exasperation.
“Let them figure it out themselves. I just wanna hang out with you.” I paused to think about the situation.
“I guess we could go for a little bit…”
“Yes! So where are we going to go?”
“We could go get lunch and come back…”
“Okay sounds like a plan.”
“While we’re out we should see if there’s a bowling alley we could rent out one night as a tour group.”
“That’s a good idea!” Jack nodded.
“Alright, I’m gunna go get some sleep,” I stood up and stretched.
“Want me to walk you back?” he asked.
“Yes,” I smiled, lacing my hand through his.

Slowly, we walked back to MCR’s bus. When we finally arrived it was 11:30. Before I opened the door I turned and gave Jack one last kiss on the cheek. With that I opened the door with my key and shut the door behind me.

“Hey Jules!” everyone greeted me, eyes still glued to the TV.
“Hey, guys,” I yawned.
“Tired already?”
“Yeah. I’m gunna hit the hay. See you tomorrow.”
“Night!” the Rev called out.
“Sleep tight!” Frank added.
“Don’t let the bed bugs bite!” all of them finished in unison.

I rolled my eyes and laughed as I changed into my pajamas. I fell asleep as soon as my head hit the pillow.

*

I woke up at 10 to get ready for my “date” with Jack. I decided on wearing a pair of black skinny jeans, a plaid button down shirt- which I did not bother to button- with a tank-top underneath, converses, and a grey pull over hoodie. I decided on braiding my hair to the side as well. After I ate a bowl of Lucky Charms I went to the bathroom to brush my teeth and wash my face. I sprayed on a bit of perfume and then began the slow walk to the RV Center, where everyone always left together. I got there around 10:23 and sat down in the snack room facing the doorway. Around 11 Hayley and the guys from Paramore walked in and sat down at my table.

“Hey guys!” I smiled.
“Hey!” They all replied, giving me quick hugs before sitting down.
“So, how is it being on tour like this?” I asked them.
“It’s pretty damn awesome,” Hunter smiled.
“I wish I had a band I could go on tour with!” I smiled wistfully.
“You should totally start one! But do you know how to sing or something?” Hayley asked.
“I do a little bit of everything,” I replied sheepishly.
“Nice!” Josh nodded approvingly.
“I play guitar for the most part, though.”
“So you sing too?” Hayley asked.
“I try, but I’m not as good as you or Alex.”
“Aw I’m sure you’re not bad! You look like you could sing good,” Hayley patted my arm.
“Sing something!” Jeremy said. I felt a blush creep to my face.
“Oh, I couldn’t. It’s early and everything,” I said, trying to avoid the situation.
“Your voice sounds fine to me,” he said. I felt my palms begin to sweat. I always choked up in front of people. I would make a fool of myself.
“Don’t be embarrassed,” Zac said encouragingly.
“Okay, okay,” I gave in and chose one of All-American Reject’s songs. I took a deep breath and sat forward on my chair and focused on the wall behind Josh and Zac.

“Let me know that I’ve done wrong, when I’ve known this all along. I go around a time or two, just to waste my time with you. Tell me all that you’ve run away! Find out games you don’t wanna play. You are, the only one that needs to know! I’ll keep you my dirty little secret. Don’t tell anyone or you’ll be just another regret, my dirty little secret. Who has to know?” I finished the chorus and sat back in my chair. They didn’t hesitate to comment right away.

“That wasn’t bad at all!”
“Wait until we tell Tyson!”
“Why did you doubt yourself?”
“Good job!”
“You sounded good!”

“Please don’t tell Tyson,” I said.
“Don’t tell me what?” Tyson asked, suddenly walking in the room.
“She just sang Dirty Little Secret like a boss!” Hunter ratted me out.
“Really?” he raised his eyebrows. “Could you sing it again?” he asked. For the first time I noticed how good-looking he was and felt my face blush at the thought of a bunch of nice looking human beings staring at me.
“S-sure,” I stuttered before fixing my eyes on the wall and singing the first verse and chorus over again.

When I finished, he nodded approvingly and gave me a short applause of only two claps.
“Pretty good!”
“Oh stop shitting her, that was amazing!” Alex said, fully opening the door so that the rest of ATL could enter the room. I felt my face flush again and felt two hands rest on my shoulders. I looked up and saw Alex standing over me.
“This girl is amazing!”
“That’s my line!” Jack said, ramming into Alex to get to me. I smiled and let him give me a backwards hug after their wrestling match was over.

The drummer and guitarist for Rejects walked in five minutes later and immediately Paramore and All Time Low started telling them about my singing. They smiled and gave me high-fives. I silently thanked them for not asking me to sing it again.

“Okay, where’s Julie?” Frank asked as soon as he walked in. I raised my hand and he walked over, a grin on his face.
“Since when do you decide to put on a show in front of people?” He asked, referring to my shyness.
“I didn’t have a choice,” I stuck my tongue out at Paramore.
“Ahh I see. Everyone is like freaking out, though.”
“But I’m not even that good!” I smiled, bringing a hand to my face.
“Yeah you are!” Rian, Hayley, Hunter, Josh, Jack, and Alex said in unison.
“Whatever you say,” I replied.

“Okay guys, sorry to break up this talent scout meeting but we need to get going!” Brad said, ushering everyone outside.
“You’re taking two cars today, right?” I asked Jack.
“Yeah I asked Matt to drive by himself today.”
“Okay. See you at 3!” I gave him one last hug before running off with MCR, who continued to talk about me slowly getting over my stage fright.

When we got to the arena, I was actually put to work by Brad. He had me help map a layout of all the merch guys and food stands with his two assistants, Josh and Andy.

“I think it would be good to have the food closer to the people,” I said as I pointed to an open area off to the back of the crowd.
“I guess we could try it there,” Andy shrugged.
“Why not?” Josh agreed.
“I really have, like, no experience in interior design or anything,” I laughed as they marked down my suggestion.
“Yeah, but we always do the same layout so it’s good to mix in some random ideas,” Josh smiled at me.
“Oh okay. So I think you should have the main band’s merch inside and to the back of the arena because that way everyone has to walk inside and hear the opening acts and smell the food.”
“Sounds like a good theory,” Andy nodded.
“Are you guys going to go along with everything I say?” I laughed.
“Possibly,” they grinned.
“Oh good Jesus. Okay so you can’t forget about the security people who have to be around each booth and on the sides,” I continued.

We were almost about to finalize our plans, when Jack jogged over to us.

“Hey, Julie,” he smiled.
“Hey, Jack!” I turned and gav him a hug. Jack put him arm around me and cleared his throat.
“Mind if I steal this genius from you guys?” he asked. I felt my face turn red and burst out giggling.
“Nope!”
“Not at all man! Catch you later!” they waved us goodbye. I waved and together we walked out to ATL’s van.

“Let’s get outta here!” Jack said as he backed out of his spot.
“Off we go!” I smiled as he put the car in drive.

I was not surprised when Jack didn’t pull into the nearest shopping plaza, where all of the food places were. We usually drove to the next town to hang out. However, I was surprised when Jack pulled over to a random spot past the RV Center in the woods and pulled out two crudely wrapped sandwiches and two bottles of water.

“Aw, Jack!” I said, leaning over to give him a hug.
“Wait, I’m not finished.” He unstrapped and climbed over the seats to fold them down and pulled out a little blanket for us to sit on. My heart practically melted at his adorableness.

“This is so cute!” I smiled, climbing over the passenger seat to sit next to him.
He put his arm around my shoulder as we ate in silence. What can I say? Sometimes, a sandwich is all you need to bond with someone. After we finished eating we talked for a bit about my helping out with the layout of the arena. As we were talking I pulled off my hoodie and Jack did the same. I was just about to ask him if we should be getting back when he pulled his arm off of my shoulder. I turned to ask him why he pulled his arm away, but was met by his lips instead. I smiled and leaned into the kiss.

As we continued, I found myself moving so that once again, I was on top of Jack. This time, however, I was full on straddling him. I felt him bring his arms down to my waist and smile as he deepened the kiss again. I could feel the warmth of his hands through my tank top and realized he had totally brushed past my plaid button down shirt. This was where Alex had stopped us last time. Thankfully, he wasn’t here to watch Jack trace circles on my hips with his thumbs, and run his tongue over my bottom lip. We continued on like this for another five minutes until we both pulled away, breathless and grinning like fools.

“That was amazing,” I gushed, brushing my bangs back to the side. He didn’t do anything but smile and sit there, taking in deep breaths. I brought my legs around so that I was sitting on his lap, my legs passing under his arms and hitting the side door of the van we were leaning against. I felt the circulation start to come back to my thighs as we sat there; straddling a guy in skinny jeans was not easy. I reached for my hoodie and pulled out my phone, it was 4:08 and I had a few text messages.

I went to my mailbox and saw I had one from Kat and two more from Gerard and Lindsey. I opened Kat’s first. It read:

- Heyy, how u durn?
I hit reply and typed: - I’m going good. I’m hanging out with Jack right now ☺ You?

Then I opened the next two:

- Hey Jules, got your text about leaving with Jack. Text one of us when you’re coming back? – Gerard.
- Hi Julie, Gerard told me you left with Jack. Text me when you can – Lindsey

I hit reply again and texted:

- Hey Jack and I are getting ready to come back soon.

“Who is it?” He asked, his breathing sounding more normal now.
“Gerard, Lindsey, and Kat.”
“Oh. What happened?”
“Gerard and Lindsey just wanted to know when we were coming back and Kat just asked me what’s up. I told Gerard and Lindsey that we were gunna leave soon. My classes start at 6:00 or 6:30, I can’t remember which.”
“We’ll leave to get home by 4:30?” he asked.
“Sounds good to me,” I smiled before planting another kiss on his lips and sliding off his lap. We packed up, washed our faces with our left over water, fixed out hair, and opened the windows as we drove to cool off before we got back. When we got to the van section, there was a stack of firewood sitting next to an empty fire pit.

“Well, look who decided to come back!” Alex greeted us as we stepped out of the car.
“Hey, Alex!” I smiled, giving him a hug.
“Hey, Zack!” I said, walking over to give him a hug too. Behind me I heard Alex and most likely Rian and Matt giving Jack man hugs and thumping him on the back.
“Hey, Rian! Hey, Matt,” I smiled, finishing off my round of hugs with them.

“Want to help us start a fire?” Rian asked as he and Zack began tossing logs into the fire pit. I heard the smack of skin come from behind me and knew Alex must be ripping on us again. I felt my ears turn red.
“Actually, I should probably walk back to the bus to make sure Gerard and Lindsey know I’m alive,” I laughed.
“We got you,” they nodded.

“Is it okay if I come back at 7:30?” I asked Matt.
“Yeah sure! See you then,” he smiled.
“Bye, guys!” I waved as I began walking down the road.
“Wait up!” Alex and Jack ran to catch up with me.
“Going to escort me home?” I asked.
“Yes!”
“Of course!” They replied. I rolled my eyes and texted Gerard and Lindsey that I was walking to the bus with Jack and Alex. I stayed silent for the most part as Jack and Alex talked and fought with each other over stupid stuff as we walked. I was thankful neither of them dropped dirty jokes as we approached the bus. I gave them both hugs before unlocking the door and stepping inside the warm RV.

“Hey, Jules,” Gerard and Ray greeted me.
“Hey!” I smiled.
“What’s up?”
“Oh nothing. Just getting ready for driver’s ED.”
“Isn’t it at 6?”
“Yeah,” I laughed. They both shook their heads and went back to their conversation.

I walked down to my bunk and took out my notes from yesterday. I stared at the first page for 10 minutes until I realized I couldn’t focus. I was thinking about Jack and Paramore gushing over my singing, and Jack. I laughed at myself and stood up.

‘Where is it?’ I asked myself as I opened random closets on the back of the bus. Finally, I found what I was looking for. I opened the case slowly and pulled out my dad’s guitar. It’d been a while since I played so I decided practicing my blues and major scales.

Even though my legs hurt from standing, I knew that sitting down and playing wouldn’t do me any good if I wanted to start a band. I leaned against the wall and practiced playing the scales different ways over and over again. Slowly, it was coming back to me. I smiled as I played the major scale without looking at my hands. Before I knew it, it was time for me to go to driver’s ED.

I walked into the kitchen area to see that no one else was home except for Bob. I paused awkwardly in the doorway.

“They all went to the Rev’s bus,” he said, looking up from his phone.
“Oh. Okay. Well, um, I have to go to driver’s ED but um; I’ll just call Jack he could probably take me.”
“I can drive you over there.”
“Oh, you don’t have to. It’s okay.”
“I have Gee’s keys,” he held them up so that I could see. I realized then that there was no way of getting out of this one.
“Okay,” I nodded. He stood up and walked out the door, holding it open so that it wouldn’t hit me.
“Thanks,” I offered a small smile. He didn’t return it, just walked to the car and started the ignition.

I walked briskly over to the passenger side and strapped in. I sat perfectly still, feeling awkward. For the past few months, Bob hadn’t been home at all and he almost never interacted with anyone. Sure, he had his moments of good humor, but they were few and far between. On top of that, he had been quick to snap at the guys lately.

“So, how’re you doing?” he asked as he pulled out of the RV Center.
“I’m good… How about you?” The question was out of my mouth before I realized what I had asked. Maybe he was going through some relationship problems or something. I didn’t want to make him get angry or anything.
“Ah, I could be better. Things’ve been rough.”
“Oh, that sucks,” I sympathized.
“Sorry to bother you about this, but, since when did you start going out with Jack?”
“Oh, like a few weeks ago,” I felt my face blush.
“Oh alright. He seems like a good guy.”
“Ha ha, thanks.”
“Gerard and Lindsey have been shitting bricks for the past few days about you two,” he chuckled.
“Why?”
“They think you two are going to, like, have a kid or something,” he laughed as he quickly glanced at my mortified face.
“What?!” I could not believe that they thought that.
“Yeah, exactly. I know I haven’t really been around, but I highly doubt you would let that happen. Jack’s another story, though. I don’t know him, but I don’t think he would want to ruin things like that either.”
“Yeah. I didn’t know they were that worried about me,” I trailed off. I was actually offended at the thought of them thinking that I was going to let Jack get me pregnant. I mean sure, we would make out but I’m only sixteen! What the actual fuck?!
“They’ve been worrying about it ever since Lindsey over heard Alex and Jack arguing in the snack place.”
“Well, thanks for telling me. They could’ve just told me like you did. I mean yeah it would have been embarrassing, but, like, geez.”
“No problem. So, when does this class thingy end?”
“Seven.”
“Alright, I guess I’ll just wait then.”
“Why did they go over to Avenged’s bus anyways?” I asked.
“The Rev and Zack came over and literally dragged everyone back to their bus. I guess they just wanted to party. I was sleeping so I just woke up and everyone was gone. Gerard left his keys and everything. He must be getting drunk…”
“I hate it when this happens,” I confessed as we pulled into the parking lot.
“Yeah, I don’t like it either. But hey, that’s life on tour. See ya’,” he said as I got out of the car.
“See ya’,” I replied, shutting the door.

The whole class I could barely pay attention. I was still annoyed at Gerard and Lindsey. If Bob had heard them then that meant the rest of MCR knew. I felt my ears turn red at the thought of them all knowing. I really had no privacy. I felt like my heart was ripped out and hung above the stage in the arena for everyone to see.

“Juliet, can you answer that question?” Ms. Robbins called on me.
“No,” I blushed even more.
“Pay attention please,” she said.
“Sorry,” I muttered, focusing on the lesson.

Class seemed to drag on forever, but finally she finished the lecture telling us that we would be getting broken up into groups tomorrow and would be getting separate instructors that would take us out onto the road. From here on we would alternate between classroom lessons and hands on driving lessons. I thanked Ms. Robbins before walking outside to a busy parking lot. I guess no one could carpool with their friends today.

Suddenly I heard the familiar honk of the horn and saw Bob waiting on the other side of the parking lot. I walked briskly down the plaza and hopped into the passenger seat.

“How’d it go?”
“Good,” I smiled.
“They’re still with Matt and everyone,” he said, as if reading my mind.
“Oh, okay… Do you think you could drop me off at All Time Low’s place?”
“Yeah, sure,” he nodded.
“Thanks.”

I pulled out my phone, typed:

- Heyy ATL has a fire pit going. If you can bring some chairs I’ll bring some chips and drinks! – Juliet

And sent it to Hayley, Josh, Zac, Jeremy, and Hunter.

“Sorry, Bob. Can you actually bring me home? I just wanna stop and get some snacks before I head over.” He sighed in annoyance and I turned to apologize but he then broke out in a smile,
“Yeah, it’s fine,” he chuckled. Mentally, I sighed in relief. The last thing I wanted to do was get Bob upset. Out of the blue, I suddenly realized why Bob might be so upset all the time, because he doesn’t hang out with anyone. And the reason people don’t want to hang around him is because he’s always upset! I felt the urge to make it up to him so I asked,
“Do you want to come along? They’re supposed to have a fire going.”
“Nah, I don’t wanna ruin it for you guys.”
“It’s okay, really. We don’t even, like, do anything we just sit there.”
“Nah, thanks though… I might walk over to Avenged’s bus later.”
“Oh, alright. I have my key so it’s all good.”

We pulled up next to our bus and when we got inside I saw six text messages. I sat down at the kitchen table to read them all.

- Hey Juliet! Thanks for the invite ☺ I just have to check with our manager – Hayley
- hey hayley said she was going to ask if we can go- josh
- We’re checking if we can go – Zac
- we r gunna ask if we can go one sec – jeremy
- Hey I think we will be able to go- Hunter
- hey is driver’s ed over? we got the fire going and everything- jack

I hit reply and texted Jack:

- Hey it’s over ☺ I’m going to bring some snacks and Paramore wants to come over too so they are bringing chairs. Hope that’s okay lol
-umm it shuld be. can’t wait to hang out with everyone! -jack

I locked my phone and grabbed three bags of chips and two bottles of soda. Hey, it was all I could carry without dropping everything.

“Bye, Bob! Thanks again!” I called out before clumsily shutting the door behind me.
“Bye!” I heard his muffled reply.

Slowly and carefully I began the walk to their van. When I was half way there, I heard someone call my name. I stopped and squinted in the darkness. I heard footsteps and braced myself for a tackle, thinking maybe it was Jack or Alex. Instead, Tyson and his drummer, who’s name I had forgotten, appeared in front of me.

“Hey, guys,” I felt my ears turn red at the awkwardness.
“Hey,” they greeted me.
“Where’re you off to?” Tyson asked.
“Oh, just heading over to Jack’s. You guys?”
“Just bored. Need some help?” the drummer asked eyeing the unbalanced bags of chips.
“Nah, I think I got it,” I smiled, shifting my weight.
“Alright. See you around,” Tyson said, stepping to the side and continuing straight.
“Bye!” I nodded.

No sooner had I said goodbye to them, I heard my name being called again. But this time I knew who’s voice it was.

“Hey, Hayley!” I called back.
“Let me help you with those!” she said, jogging forward to take the chips from me.
“Thanks,” I smiled.
“No problem. I had the guys carry the chairs,” she explained. Sure enough, there came the rest of Paramore, plus their manager, laden with folding chairs. They weren’t metal, but made out of material. Kind of like beach chairs but not quite. They looked comfy though, so I wasn’t gunna complain.

“Hey guys!” I raised a hand with soda in it as a greeting.
“Hey!”
“Hey Julie!” they replied.
“Do you guys know where to go?” I asked.
“We were just about to call you,” Hayley laughed. I grinned and took the lead.
“This way,” I said.

Finally, we all arrived at the campsite five minutes later. Jack and the guys ran forward to help Paramore with the chairs. I also noticed that they had at least three acoustic guitars leaning against the side of one of their vans.

“Hey,” Jack smiled taking a bottle of soda from me and planting a kiss on my lips.
“Hey.” I smiled back.

“Hey, Julie!” Rian came up to me and gave me a hug, taking the other bottle of soda so my hands were free.
“Hey, Ri!”

“Hey,” Zack said, giving me a solid hug. You could literally feel his muscles when he hugged you! I didn’t want to be the one to get him angry.
“Hey!”

“Hey, Matt!” I walked over to their manager, giving him a hug. Though we hadn’t really talked much, I still felt like I had been around long enough to give him a hug.
“Hey,” he smiled, seeming surprised at the hug.

When I turned around the guys had moved along to giving Paramore hugs and finally, we all sat down.

“Hey you forgot about me!” I heard a voice address me from behind. I turned around and saw Alex standing there with a pout on his face.
“Aw I’m sorry!” I stood up and gave him a big hug.
“Damn Julie, I can’t feel my arms,” he chuckled when I let go.
“Well, you can’t say I didn’t give you a hug,” I shrugged.
“Sit next to me!” Jack said, tugging on my arm.
“No sit next to me!” Alex grinned as he pulled on my other arm.
“Don’t start with me!” Jack threatened; the humor was evident in his voice.
“Alright, alright,” Alex said, letting my hand go.
“Thank you,” I smiled as I pulled my hand out of both of their grips and took the seat in-between Jack and Hayley.

From there we all sat around the fire, talking and joking, until Alex reached behind him and pulled a guitar onto his lap. Zack took his guitar out and Jack followed suit. All they had to do was look at each other to know what song to play. We all waited for them to start.

Jack began with the intro and Zack played the bass part on his guitar. Finally, Alex joined in with the rhythm part and we all knew what song they were playing. Rian drummed out the beat with his hands. We all began to sing in a big group:

“Everything has fallen to pieces, earth is dying help me Jesus. We need guidance we’ve been mislead, young and hostile but not stupid!”

After we finished, the guitar got passed to the guys from Paramore and then it got passed to me, Zack, and Jack. I felt my face flush in embarrassment as Zack and Jack looked at me to pick a song.

“It’s been a while since I’ve played,” I confessed to them as I pulled the guitar strap over my head.
“Don’t worry, we’ll play loud,” Jack said, keeping the conversation low enough for only the three of us to hear. I turned to Zack and he nodded to confirm that he would.
“Another Blink song?” I suggested.
“Nahh. Hmm let’s see. Any suggestions, requests?” Jack asked the whole circle.

“Sk8er Boi by Avril Lavigne,” Hayley said before anyone else could speak up.
“Aw crap. I never learned that song,” Jack said. I turned to face him to see if he was joking but when I met his gaze it was filled with legitimate disappointment. I couldn’t help but laugh. Everyone else joined in and I gave him a side hug to try and make up for it.

I had learned this song a long time ago, but forgot how it went. I began strumming random chords until I landed on a “D”. That sounded right.

“I think I got the first chord!” I squealed. I tried an “A” afterwards and it seemed to fit. I had to check to make sure. I softly sang the first line to myself. I sang it louder so Jack and Zack could hear it and help me with the next chord.

I tried all of the simple chords until Zack strummed a “Bm”. I tried it and it seemed to work as well!

“I would have never thought of a B minor,” I told Zack, who shrugged.
“Well if it’s on B minor then does it go to B?” Jack strummed the chord but it didn’t sound quite right.
“Try the sharp?” I asked, playing the sequence and adding my last suggestion. It worked. Suddenly, it all came back to me.

“Guys, I remember how it goes!” I exclaimed.
“Yay Julie!” Hayley and Alex clapped.
“You two sing?” I asked them.
“Why don’t you sing?”
“I have to tell them what chords to play,” I stuck my tongue out at them.
“Ugh fine,” Alex gave in. Hayley gave in soon after.

“Okay the intro is D,A,B minor, B flat, and A,” I told them. They nodded for me to continue.
“The verse is almost the same. So just listen, okay?” They nodded and I counted us off.
I made sure to call out the chords for them even though I had already told them. I hated it when I forgot stuff because it made me seem like an idiot.

“F, C, B flat1” I called over our strums as we got to the chorus. When we got to the bridge I began to blank out. In the last second I remembered.

“D minor, F, C, B flat! A, B minor, B flat, D. repeat. B sharp!” We finished the song and everyone clapped.

“Geez, that was hard,” I laughed, passing the guitar I had played over to Alex before they could ask me to play another one.

“It was pretty good!” Alex smiled at me.
“Thanks,” I returned the grin. I felt my hands still shaking from the adrenaline rush of being put on the spot. I decided to put my hands in the pocket of my hoodie to cover up my shakiness.

“Okay. This time Julie is going to sing with us,” Alex said as he put the guitar strap around his neck. I felt my heart begin to beat faster again.

“Coffeshop Soundtrack?” Zack suggested.
“Read my mind, bro,” Alex grinned. They both looked at Jack to start the song. He nodded and began playing immediately.

I looked at Hayley and gave her a do-you-know-all-of-the-words look and she held up her hand and tilted it from side to side to say she only knew a little bit. I nodded for her to sing what she knew, which was probably the chorus. I had forgotten that Zack could sing too. I looked at him and he nodded to show he would sing with me.

“Should I write myself out of the history books, and mark a place in time for every chance you took? Don’t get me wrong I know you’ve got your life in place, I’ve yet to take the hint someday. I’m sure I’ll get the picture, and stop waiting up! When it all comes down to a sunrise on the Eat side, will you be there to carry home the remains of my wasted youth? This wasted time on you has left me shaking in waiting, shaking in waiting for something more!” Everyone gave me encouraging smiles as Alex, Zack, and I tackled the verses.

When we got to the bridge I stole a glance at Jack, who smiled and mouthed the words along with us:

“Make all of my decisions for me
I've never taken the fall for deceit
We'll keep a secret if you keep me guessing
The taste of your lips says we shouldn't have met like this

I can keep a secret if you can keep me guessing
The flavor of your lips is enough to keep me pressing
For more than just a moment of truth between the lies told
To pull ourselves away from the lives we leave back
The flavor of your lips is enough to keep me here, keep me here!”

After that everyone put their guitars away and we all just sat around and talked.

“So, how’s homeschooling going for you?” Hayley asked me.
“Good I guess. To be honest I haven’t done, like, any of my homework,” I felt my ears turn red.
“Ah, just as long as you get it done by the time they have to mail your progress in, it doesn’t matter when you do it.”
“Yeah I guess so… But anyways, I’ve been thinking about it,” I felt Jack turn to listen to our conversation and I sat back to let him hear me better, “but I think I’m gunna try to start a band.”
“Really?” Hayley asked.
“Seriously?” Jack looked at me in disbelief.
“Yeah,” I smiled.
“That’s awesome!” Hayley smiled.
“Thanks,” I looked at Jack for his response. He hesitated before he finally said,
“Yeah, awesome.” I frowned and was about to ask him what was wrong before Hayley called everyone’s attention over to me.

“Guys! Julie just told us that she’s gunna try to start a band!” She squealed and everyone smiled and wished me good luck. By tomorrow almost everyone would know, except for my lovely guardians who were probably getting drunk at Avenged’s bus.
“Do you want us to suggest people?” Josh asked.
“Yeah we could probably call up some of our friends,” Jeremy added.
“Oh, that’s nice of you! But I think I want to find the people myself. Thank you so much though,” I replied, putting a hand over my heart to show that I truly appreciated their offer.

After that buzz died down, Paramore’s manager, Mark, stood up and announced that it was “past their bed time”. I saw Hayley roll her eyes before she turned to give me a hug goodnight. We all stood up and said good night. Then it was just the guys and me like always. I decided to hold off on confronting Jack about his hesitation about congratulating me on my decision. I took his hand in mine and we stayed that way.

Slowly, Zack drifted off to bed, then Rian, and at one o’clock Alex finally fell asleep in his chair. The fire was almost completely out. Matt stood up,

“G’night guys.”
“ ‘Night Matt,” I waved as I yawned. Finally it was just us.

“Jack,” my voice cracked with tiredness.
“Mhm?” he asked, staring into the dying embers of the fire.
“Why are you upset?” He turned to face me,
“That obvious?” I nodded slowly, waiting for him to speak again.
“It’s not that I’m not happy for you- it’s just that. I-I know how bands work and people get really close and I just don’t want you to fall for some other guy.”
“Jack. You know I wouldn’t just leave you for some other guy…” He stayed quiet.
“Jack. Do you really not trust me?”
“No, it’s not that…”
“I promise I won’t leave you for another guy while I’m looking for a band,” I squoze his hand.
“Thanks,” he smiled. I leaned over and pressed my mouth to his. He kissed me back and we stayed that way for only a few more seconds. I pulled away, tiredly and smiled. My smile was cut short, however, by a yawn. I pulled out my phone; it was 1:37.

“I should probably go back,” I said, my voice sounded an octave lower than it normally did. It was sleep taking over.
“Are they even home?”
“I don’t think so.”
“Stay, then.”
“I don’t know…”
“You know I’m not going to do anything,” he said, turning to face me.
“I know… I just don’t want to get in trouble later.”
“You voice,” he laughed.
“You voice!” I joked back. We both of our voices were lower now.
“C’mon, please stay. Do you even have your key?”

I felt around in my pocket and felt my hand come into comtact with the lanyard and metal.
“Mhm,” I nodded.
“Ugh. Please don’t go. It’s such a long walk to the bus.”
“Then why don’t you stay over?” I replied.
“Well, I guess I could.”
“I think they’d feel better knowing I at least made it home.”
“Alright. Let’s go.”

We both stood up and slowly began the walk back to the bus. Somewhere in the distance, we heard loud rock music blasting. Obviously the party wasn’t over. I shivered and snuggled closer to Jack as we walked; it felt twice as cold without the fire in front of us.

When we got to the bus, it was empty. I turned on the lights and walked straight to the back where my bunk was. I was still in skinny jeans and I had to change. I couldn’t fall asleep in them.

“I’ll be right back,” I said as I closed the bathroom door.
“M’kay.”

When I opened the door, I didn’t see Jack- standing. What I did see was Jack laying down in my bunk, pressed against the wall leaving an open spot for me. I smiled and scooched in next to him. I turned so that we were spooning and I felt his arm tiredly snake around my waist. And for the first time in a long time, I fell asleep with a smile on my face.

Comments

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MyChemFREAK MyChemFREAK
2/7/15

Please keep writing it cant end here I've spent two days reading this, PLEASE I need to know what happedns.

McRbAnDfReAk McRbAnDfReAk
10/21/14

NOOO! This can't be the end! Please keep writing, you're amazing at it!!!

AShotToRemember AShotToRemember
4/27/14

At some point I do believe fall out boy should make an appearance