Sister, I'm Not Much a Poet but a Criminal

When I woke up the next morning, everything seemed normal. I couldn't help but wonder if the night before had simply been a dream. The look on Frank's face when he entered the room informed me otherwise. It had been real.

"What are we going to do today?" a grin spread across his face.

"Not tell my sister about us," I responded.

He nodded. "She would slaughter me."

"She would slaughter both of us. First you for kissing me, then me for liking it."

"Don't forget that we were smoking," he added.

"So basically we'll be chopped up into little pieces and served to the guys in tacos."

He laughed, and the sound made me happy. I giggled a little at my own stupid joke.

"I think we need to go out today."

"Yeah, and where would we go?" I took a sip of my coffee.

He shrugged. "We'll be in San Diego, so let's go somewhere fun. Like Sea World!" a look of pure joy spread across his face, and he looked like a child on Christmas morning.

"That would be cool. I've never been there before."

"It's decided then."

"How soon you forget. How do we get out of here together without Ariella finding out?"

"You leave that to me. I've got a plan," he tapped his temple thoughtfully.

"You've always got a plan. I don't think I ever have to worry when you're around."

"True. I, on the other hand, have to worry about a protective sister killing me at every turn when I'm with you."

I cuddled up close to him and smiled. "But it's worth it, isn't it?"

"Of course."

It wasn't long before the others got up, and Frank began talking quietly to the other guys. I stared out the window, still furious at Ariella for the things she'd said about me.

"Ray," Frank spoke a little louder than was necessary. "The rest of us are going to go out for the day. You and your girlfriend haven't had much time alone so far, so we've decided to give you the day together."

I smirked. The boy always had a plan.

"Wouldn't it just be easier for us to leave?" Ariella sat cross-legged on a chair.

"But that would be less fun for the rest of us," I interjected. "Besides, here you'll have more privacy."

Once they agreed, the rest of us got ready. We left quickly, and in no time we were paying our admission to Sea World. As soon as we entered, Frank took me aside from the others.

"We're going to do our own thing today," he winked. Mikey smiled and waved as he, Gerard, and Bob headed off in another direction.

It wasn't often that I got to spend time alone with Frank during the day, and it was exciting. I kept feeling like my sister was going to come marching up to separate us, but it never happened. Frank and I watched various shows, but I couldn't tell you what happened in any of them. The various expressions that crossed his face when the animals performed tricks were too entrancing to look away.

We went on a couple of rides, and on one we got soaked. As we walked around awhile later, sharing an ice cream cone, we finally met up with the guys again.

"Ready to go?" Bob asked.

I nodded. "Yeah, if we stay any longer my sister will have a shit fit. Believe me, nobody wants to see that."

We left the park, and I felt exhausted. When we got back to the bus, Ariella and Ray were sleeping in Ray's bunk. I flopped down on the couch. My eyes were heavy and I knew I wasn't going to stay awake for long.

Frank lay down beside me. "Tired, Molly?"

"It's a good day for a nap."

I cuddled into him and he slid his arms around me, rubbing his hands up and down my back. It didn't take long for me to fall asleep, but I woke up all too fast. A part of me was paranoid that Ariella would get up and find us together, so I was up earlier than I had to be.

As that night's concert approached, everyone else woke up and got ready. I watched Frank do his makeup, and he even did mine for me. It turned out amazing, but now I had to show it off. I decided that at the concert I would go into the mosh pit.

I found myself wedged in the middle of the crowd a little later, but it was exciting. I eventually made my way to the front, near the stage. That was where it got really rough. I was being pushed in on all sides and basically got the crap kicked out of me.

I felt a hand on my arm, and looked to see where it came from. It was a pause between songs, and I found myself being drug onto the stage by Frank.

"Stay safe," he muttered before beginning to play the next song.

I moved off of the stage, but stayed at the curtain so I could continue to watch. As the concert ended, Frank pulled me over to him and kissed me. I could hear various jealous shouts from girls in the crowd, and I couldn't quite believe how fortunate I was to be in this situation.

I was also very glad that Ariella was backstage and couldn't see what was going on.