trying to find.

Zahara put her hair up in a messy bun as she frowned. All Time Low were playing in Baltimore and Jack, yet again, insisted that she couldn't come because it would raise too many questions. She knew that this was a secret so that no one in the media knew about her, which she was happy for, but it was only angering now. The only people who even knew that Jack was dating her was both of their families, she didn't even know if his band knew. Her mother was continuously telling her that some things just weren't worth it, which was clue enough that she probably didn't need him. She tapped onto Jack's name, calling him as she looked at herself in the mirror. She was dressed in a tank top and tights, looking more like she was ready for bed than anything else. It had been two years and she had yet to really see him preform, which only caused her blood to burn slightly. "Hey, Jack," she said, slightly thankful that he actually answered. "I was just wondering if you remembered that tomorrow my mom asked us to come over for dinner. You are free, right?" She felt slightly disappointed just talking to him, knowing that she wasn't going to be able to see him. It was all an entire mess, trying to convince herself that he was keeping her a secret for her own good. "You got that show tonight, right?" She asked, walking around her house, looking down at the ground as she tried to focus on a specific spot instead of the nagging feeling in the back of her mind that this wasn't right.

---

Alex was really just fucking around. Rian and him had made a beat on who could prank the crew and band first, which was something that would be more Jack and his forte. It had been a fun race - covering Zack in whipped cream to prank calling Danny to thinking that his dog had managed to run away from the dog sitter's place. It was all fun and good, until there was only one last victim he had left to prank - which was Rian himself. It wasn't exactly a rule that they had to get each other, but it was something that he wasn't to do to seal his win so that Rian didn't bitch and say that he didn't get every single person. He ended up finding the perfect moment and too much ketchup as he filled the other's entire bunk with ketchup and was laughing manically the entire time. He won the challenge of pranking everyone, which he easily ran around the entire building saying it proudly. Rian wasn't happy about the ketchup in his bed, but Alex couldn't be prouder of the fact that he ruined his best friend's sheets. "I won, I totally won," he cheered as he walked into the dressing room the other three members were in. Rian only scoffed, rolling his eyes as he continued to mess with his phone. "Won what?" Zack asked, looking as if he was asking more to amuse Alex than actually caring. "I am glad you asked," he said, walking over to sit next to him, "I won the prank war against our dear friend Rian." Zack groaned as if to he was sorry to ask, which only made Alex grin wider.

It was for the best. That was what Nora had been telling herself the last six months. The fact of the matter was Alex deserved better. He deserved someone who could put up with his crazy schedule and life style. He deserved someone who could handle being in the spotlight simply by association. He deserved someone who could put up with hate from fans. He deserved someone who didn't run and hide the moment she realized that things were really starting to get serious between them. She couldn't be that someone, and that was why she'd left.

There were times when she had her doubts. Times when she thought that leaving while Alex was out with the guys was a bit harsh. Maybe she should have stuck around to talk to him instead of leaving a note by the front door, but she usually found herself pushing those thoughts away. If she'd waited it out, Alex would have convinced her to stay. He would have talked her out of leaving, because he was her weakness. She loved him so much. She knew that she probably hurt him, and that hurt her, but it was for the best. That had become her mantra of sorts as of late.

"Isn't this better than sitting at home, binge-watching How I Met Your Mother on Netflix?" Her friend asked over the sound of the music blaring through the speakers. Nora shrugged her shoulders, she preferred the couch and Netflix. "Yeah, I guess...I'm going to go get another drink, did you want anything?"

---

Jack could tell that Zahara was beginning to get fed up with keeping their relationship a secret. He just felt like it was for the best. He didn't want fans or the media finding out about their relationship because, well, sometimes people could be harsh. What worried him most though was what would happen if anything was ever said about his girlfriend. He feared that, if things got bad, which, going off of what had happened in the past with the other guys and their girlfriends, he knew that it would, and seeing what had happened with Nora and Alex specifically, he worried that she would leave him.

The lanky guitarist wasn't fucking around backstage as much as he normally would that night. He was actually kind of taking it easy for once. He knew that Zahara wanted to be at the show tonight, and he wanted her there too, but he hadn't wanted to risk it. Speak of the devil he thought to himself when he saw her name flash across the screen. "Hey babe." He answered, walking out of the dressing room and out into the hallway so that he'd be able to hear her better. "Your mom's tomorrow for dinner? Yeah, of course I remember." He didn't, but she didn't need to know that. "Yeah, we're going to probably go out there soon actually, so I can't stay on the line for long."

Zahara felt herself angry just by the fact that he had to leave, which was obvious by the fact that he was playing in a very popular band. "Okay, I'll just let you go, bye Jack," she said as she hung up right after his reply. She didn't have the patient to do this for much longer. She went to her Twitter, only to find a tweet posted by Rian, saying how happy they were to be back in their hometown. She scoffed, only realizing that her own boyfriend doesn't even follow her just because. She wanted to text him, ask him if the rest of the band even knew about her, if he even wanted her parents to be aware of them. She shook her head in disappointment as she sat down on her sofa. She ended up just watching Netflix, though she did seem to mostly glare at it because she was still wondering exactly why she is still with Jack. She curled up onto the couch as she wanted to just sleep. They didn't live together, Jack and her, she didn't even know if he kept the things she made for him. They weren't much, simple little doodles she made since she wasn't much of an artist. She felt her lip jut out slightly as she felt her emotions boiling over, tears threatening to leave her eyes. txt me when u get off stage, she texted to Jack, curling into a blanket to force herself to watch the movie she was playing.

---

Alex was still relishing over his victory in pranking, still gloating as he was making his way toward the stage. By now the kids were all in the concert hall, cheering and screaming for them. The lights dulled down, the music that was idly playing shut off, signalling the start of the show. Everyone's screams of joy and cheering only showed how much the band's hard work had finally paid off. He was cued to go on stage, which made him happily grab his guitar and run onto the stage. "How's it going Baltimore?" He said loudly into the microphone, the explosion of the fans making his grin go wide as he looked happily at the crowd. The lights were far too bright to see to far ahead of him, but he tried to make it known that he was acknowledging everyone. They started playing their music, happily strumming along as he sang into the microphone with as much enthusiasm as he found himself having. He even went to wrap an arm around Jack a few times that night, letting him sing his backing vocals when needed with a cheeky grin. He didn't think anything could ever go wrong that night.

Nora made a beeline over to the bar once her friend had asked her to get her another drink. She didn't want to give her any room to start up the conversation that she knew would follow due to her lack of enthusiasm for being there. As much as she appreciated the fact that her friends had planned this whole thing in the hopes of cheering her up, she really didn't want to be here, and she was pretty sure that any copious amount of alcohol wasn't going to change that. Just because her friend had gotten her there, didn't mean she was happy about it. Hell, she didn't even know who was playing. Her friend hadn't given her any actual details, which was slightly suspicious now that she thought about it, but it was whatever. She was here, which meant she could use it as an excuse not to go out there rest of the week other than for work. She could sit and sulk in her apartment for as long as she so pleased and there was nothing that any of them could do about it.

Her attention was drawn back up to the stage when the lights dimmed. No...it couldn't be...her friends wouldn't drag her to his show. They wouldn't do that to her. But then, there he was, and she was pretty sure she was going to be sick. She'd tried not to think about how she'd feel when she saw him again for the first time, she'd known it would hurt, but not this much. She knew that she'd fucked things up, but now it was hitting her even harder than it had before. She needed to get out of there. Now.

---

Jack frowned at her words. She was pissed, he could tell, but before he could even reply and try to make things even a little bit better, she hung up. "Fuck..." He sighed, running a hand over his face. That wasn't exactly how he'd been hoping the conversation would go. He really didn't know what he'd done wrong. He'd noticed that his girlfriend had been acting differently lately, but he hadn't wanted to say anything and like piss her off or anything like that, but clearly that plan wasn't working out so well, seeing as he'd ended up pissing her off anyway. He kind of wanted to call her and to try and make things right, but he didn't have enough time. He was on in a few minutes, and he really didn't want to start up a conversation that he couldn't finish, he'd deal with it later. For now, it was time to get out there and try to still have a fucking blast like always. And that was exactly what he did.

Alex strummed his guitar idly as he went back up to the microphone, smiling sheepishly. "This song was written for the one that got away, really," he said, laughing sadly as he started strumming the beginning chords to Remembering Sunday. He got easily into the swing of singing the familiar song, closing his eyes as he thought about exactly who this song was for. He wondered what Nora was doing that day, if she knew he was in town and if she ever missed him. He couldn't even think about whether she moved on, the pain still too fresh even when it happened far too long ago. He knew he had to move on, but playing this song and having this song surround him was quite hard to just forget about it. He supposed that was why he wrote the song, though, to remind himself that it was important to indulge in the past but not to remain stuck in it. He was still learning that part, but it was something that he was okay with remembering. During the song, he closed his eyes and pictured her, singing with raw emotion before it ended, suddenly everything having to be disrupted with the song ending.

[ i have no idea what to write for zahara's part, soooo. whoopsie. ]