Promise Me Forever

When Zacky and I got home last night, he made some strawberry banana smoothies. I saw on the counter with his puppy Ichabod, in my lap. He didn’t seem to mind that the dog was on the counter either. That I was happy about.

We watched movies until it was around midnight and then he showed me up to the room that I could stay in.

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I woke up before Zacky did so I made my way down to the kitchen and started to look for something that I could make us for breakfast. It was the least that I could do since he was letting me stay with him. I found some pancake batter mix in the pantry and some blueberries in the fridge.

Blueberry pancakes it is, I thought.

“Something smells good” Zacky said walking into the kitchen as I finished making the pancakes. He was all ready for the day, dressed in a Guns n Roses shirt on and a simple pair of jeans.

I put the last of them onto the plate and put it on the table.

“Thank you. It’s the least I could do,” I thanked him getting the syrup and butter from the fridge.

After sitting down at the table, I prepared my food in silence, and it was just as quite as we ate. I put my dishes in the dishwasher before returning upstairs to take a shower and get ready for the day.

The towels were in a closet in between Zacky’s bedroom and the one I was staying in. I got two towels and a wash cloth then walked into the bathroom and started the shower, undressing white it got warm.

Zacky’s POV

I put the rest of the dishes that were in the sink in the dishwasher, and started it up while Jade was in the shower.

I sat down in the living room, on the couch in front of the TV, but I didn’t turn it on.

Today was Jade’s first day here and I was trying to think of something that we could do. I didn’t want to take her into town. Her boyfriend might be there, or maybe one of his friends would recognize her. I didn’t want to be the blame for them dragging her back to a place that she clearly wasn’t treated right.

I picked up my phone from the table where I’d left it last night when we went to bed and decided to text the guys and ask where I should take her.

What’s a good thing that I should do with Jade today?

I pressed the send button then closed my phone waiting for a response.

“Why are you sitting there with the TV off?” Jade asked coming down the stairs combing her fingers through her hair. She had the same clothes on as she did yesterday and I had a mental note to try and get her some clothes later. I glanced at my phone, checking to see if someone had texted me back yet. The screen was still blank.

“Uh, I was just thinking. The quiet helps,” I explained hoping that she wouldn’t ask what I was thinking about. And to my surprise she didn’t. A nod of understanding was all that I got.

I flipped open my phone, turning the volume down so that it was on vibrate and sat it back down next to me. I snatched the remote up off of the table and hit the red power button at the top.

“Here, you pick something,” I said tossing Jade the remote when I felt the phone vibrate on the couch next to me.

Take her to that new bowling alley on Part Street. Or go skating at the YMCA Brian replied.

I stared at the screen and rolled my eyes. Bowling would be the best choice cause Brian knew damn well that I couldn’t skate to save my life. I hadn’t gone since I was a sophomore in high school, which was about ten years ago.

“Do you like bowling? There is a new place over on Park Street and Brian suggested that we check it out. It’s better than sitting around here all day,” I asked explaining the reason behind my random question.

“Sounds like fun. When’re we going?” she questioned changing her attention from the music video on Fuse, to my offer.

“Whenever you like.”

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“What size are you?” I asked as Jade and I walked into the bowling alley. She looked at me with a very shocked look on her face, misunderstanding my question. “Shoes.”

Her mouth made an O and she just walked up to the counter, not answering. She told the worker her shoe size and he gave her some brown and red shoes. I got the same style ones, just in men’s and a couple sizes larger. I gave him enough money for two games after we decided that we could pay for more later if we wanted to.

“Oh, I call the red ball!” she squealed excitedly grabbing it and testing out the weight. I grabbed a dark blue one and it would work well enough for me.

She sat down and set our names into the scoreboard. Hers first.

Three games and an Imo’s pizza later. We were back in the car heading to Blockbuster to rent some movies for our movie night.

Jade had one two of the three games we played, one of them she just barely beat me. And after arguing over the one point score difference, we decided to call it a close tie.

“Any movies that you want to see?” I asked trying to find a parking spot. Evidently renting movies was pretty popular today.

“Yeah, how about Saw V? I’ve seen the first four, how about you?”

“So have I. But, I didn’t know that the fifth one was out on DVD yet. Oh well, anything else?” I shut the car off once I had it in park and got out of the car, heading for the building.

“Have you seen Max Payne?” she asked walking into the store and heading over to the new releases section.

I quickly grabbed the only remaining Saw V and went to looking for Max Payne, like Jade requested. I remember hearing Matt and Johnny talk about how good of a movie it was. But I’d never got around to seeing it. A pair of small hands were placed around my waist as I walked down the aisle. I turned around and came face to face with Jade. She had a movie placed under her chin and was grinning.

“Looking for this?” she asked, then handed me the movie to put with the other. “I think that’s good. I’ll get too bored if I watch to many movies at one time. But, what should we do until it get night time?”

I tried to think if I had any popcorn or soda in the house. I don’t ever remembering buying any. There was plenty of beer in the fridge but I didn’t want to drink around Jade. Lord knows what I’d say. So, we needed to go shopping for food, one of my least favorite things to do.

“We need to buy some snacks. I don’t have anything good at home,” I answered placing the movies on the counter then pulling out my wallet from my back pocket. The total came to five something, so I have the woman a then and waited for my change. She gave me the left over money with a thank you, and come again.

“Can I drive?” Jade asked stopping in front of the car waiting for my response, she quickly added, “Josh never lets me go anywhere by myself. I haven’t driven in forever, and I miss it.”

“Sure, go ahead, but don’t wreck. Do you have your license on you?” I checked to make sure. Because with our luck we’d getting pulled over and she wouldn’t have it, that would just land her in a heap of trouble.

Her hands felt in her pockets and her expression turned to upset. “Shit, my wallet is at his house. That’s got all of my stuff in it!”

I gave her a look that read sorry and we went back to the seats we’d originally had.

“Does Josh work?” I asked thinking of a plan that could get her some things from the house.

She nodded obviously, still upset that she didn’t get to drive. “Do you know when and what time he’ll be gone. I’d take you by there and you could get everything you needed.”

“That wouldn’t work. He locks everything up and I don’t know where or if he has a spare key,” she responded almost immediately.

“You don’t have clothes with you do you?” I asked, remembering my little note. “Or do you need some. There is a mini mall around her. I could let you run into a store and buy some new things that will last you for the week,” I offered searching for the turning lane that led to the grocery store.

“If you don’t mind. But, I don’t have any money.”

“It’s fine. I don’t mind paying for them. You still don’t’ know what my job career is do you?” I smirked letting the small part of rock star come out. I’d been trying to hide it the best I could. I had to be the only one in the band that didn’t take being famous for granted. “Ever head of a band called Avenged Sevenfold?”

“Yes, I think that one of Josh’s friends listens to them, why? Are you like a roadie or something?” she laughed and I rolled my eyes.

“Actually, if you ever paid attention to the members in the band, you’d know this. I’m the rhythm guitarist.” I answered just thinking of me being a roadie and not part of the band, it was pretty hard to imagine.

“Really, so you’re like famous?” she asked amused at the information that I’d just given her. I just nodded and smirked.

I circled the parking lot and found a spot towards the front. We walked in and quickly got a bag of chips and a couple a twelve pack of Dr. Pepper. When I asked about popcorn she just wrinkled her nose and shook her head. I took that as a no, she didn’t want any. And that was just fine with me.

I paid for everything with my credit card and I put the bag in the back seat then I drove around trying to find a good clothing store. I got a fifty and a twenty out of my wallet and handed it to her.

“Zacky, I can’t take this,” she protested trying to shove the money back in my hands. I just gave it back to her once she got it back in my hands. This was about the amount we all spent of clothes when we bough new ones. And Jade needed more than just clothes.

“Hot Topic or Pac Sun?” I asked seeing both of the stores. We all shopped at both of these.

“Hot Topic,” she answered crossing her arms over her chest, still not wanting to take the money from me.

I parked and she got out of the car angrily. But, about forty-five minutes later, she came back carrying three bags, looking like she was in a much better mood. She handed me my change, which was only about five dollars at most, and I started driving home for our movie night.

“Okay, when we get home, you can go put your stuff away, do whatever you want. I’ll get everything set up, so don’t take too long. What movie do you want to watch first?”

“Saw. Then I can get that stuff out of my head before I got to sleep,” she answered.

We reached the house and she hurried quickly into the house, happy to have some new things. I put the food on the kitchen table, and walked into the living room, turning the TV back on, putting it on the right channel so that we could watch the movies. I put Saw in and let the previews run as I ran upstairs to put some more comfortable clothes on.

By the time I got back downstairs, Jade was down there in some deep purple pajamas, Ichabod’s head was laying on her leg and she was petting his back lightly. The main menu screen was set and all we needed to do now was push play.

The movie was good. Jade always put her head against my arm looking away from the TV when someone was about to die, and they did die in brutal ways. While the last two people were sawing their arms in half her could hear her breathing deeply trying not to freak out at the scene playing.

Before we put the second movie in, I went and grabbed some pillows and blankets from the hallway closet. It was about ten o’clock and I could tell that she was starting to get tired.

“Mind if I lay down?” she asked grabbing a pillow ready to throw it down and get comfortable before the movie started.

“As long as you’re feet don’t end up in my lap,” I replied sitting back down after the movie was it.

“Don’t worry.” she said throwing the pillow down so that it was in my lap. She laid down placing her head on the pillow that was in my lap and turned so that she was on her side facing the TV.

And we must have fallen asleep because the next morning I awoke to the menu screen of Max Payne replaying over and over. I looked at the big clock on the wall, it read only five in the morning, so I just got situated again and fell back asleep.