Never The Same

“What is it that you want?” Jessica mumbled, picking at her nails, trying to make it seem like she didn’t really care. But that couldn’t be farther than the truth, in reality, her heart was pounding in her chest and her palms were sticky with sweat.

Max moved closer to her, pushing her into the wooden railing that circled the porch Jess and Max were both standing on. “You know why I’m with Stacey?” Max asked, his arms settling on either side of her, trapping her. Jessica looked at the glass door, thanking Ayden and Craig, for putting up curtains and having shut them after they left, she did not want to get into any problems with Stacey today.

“N-no,” Jessie tried to keep her breathing stable, while Max’s scent wafted into her nostrils, making it extremely hard.

Max stared her hard in the eyes, breathing through his nose, each puff of oxygen washing over her face. “I’m with her because of you.”

“M-me?” to save her life, Jessica, could not get her stuttering or breathing, for that matter, under control.

“Yes, you, I felt like, no matter how many hints I dropped, you would not get a fucking clue,” Max hissed, in a not exactly rude fashion, but more in a ‘duh’ tone.

After that statement, Jess seemed to get her strength back, pushing at Max’s chest, until her was pressed against the glass door. “Well, maybe you should have picked up my hint, but you wouldn’t get a fucking clue,” Jess mocked his tone and his earlier position. Both parties, staring the other in the eye with confusion, deeper than lust feelings, and slight rage.

“Maybe you should have made your hints more visible!” Max shot back.

“Maybe you should look deeper!” Jess sneered in Max’s face.

“Maybe you should have just come out and told me!” Max, finally hitting his breaking point, shouted.

“Maybe you should have!” Jessica shouted right back.

Max growled, turning the tables, so Jessica was the one pressed against the class door. “Maybe I should have,” Max’s growl, and shouting were forgotten as was Jessica’s, when Max’s soft voice floated out of his mouth and into Jessica’s ears.

Jessie’s knitted together eyebrows, loosened, and her face softened. “And I might should have come out an-”

“Shut up,” Max looked at her. “I wanna do something.”

Jess understood what he was talking about, as no more games were being played between the two, Jessie stood on her toes because she was shorter than Max, and let her lips meet his, for the first time in the eight months that they had known each other.

Just light brushing of pink and plump lips touching, no lustful tongue or grabbing of body parts or hair, just light touching made fireworks go off as eyes slipped shut. Quiet sighs fell from both partners lips as they pulled apart, faces close, and eyes open.

“I’ve wanted to do that since you bumped into me eight months ago,” Max whispered, moving his arms to her slim waist.

Jessica moved her hands behind her, meeting Max’s slightly larger ones, clasping them together with hers. “Well, I’ve wanted to do that since the morning after…because I don’t remember much of that night…” Jessica blushed, her mind fogged over as she tried to remember that night.

“You’re cute when you blush, ducky,” Max smiled, causing Jessica to grin because he had used her old nickname.

“Max, what are going to do with Stacey? I know what I’m going to do with Zacky, fucking lazy ass,” a cross look drifted over Jessica’s face as she thought of her apartment.

“I’m going to break up with her, ducky, I’d give up the world to have you,” Max smiled, catching Jessica’s lips in his real fast.

· · ·

The week traveled fast, she had a girl’s day, she helped pack for Craig, even though he wasn’t really doing anything, he didn’t sing for them live, unless it was needed, he went along on the short tour with Escape the Fate, instead of spending it with Zacky because they had broken up, Jess spent the day with Ayden and Sophie at the agency. She said goodbye to her friends on Friday, and her boyfriend, yes boyfriend, they’d be back in ten days. Sophie was invited to the girl’s day on Saturday, and now here we are, on Sunday.

“I’m serious, Gwen, if this band doesn’t show up in ten, I’m ditching the job, I’ve been here for three fucking hours,” Jess growled to her boss, playing her neon beanie.

“Don’t cuss at me!” Gwen mumbled. “They’ll be there soon, trust me.”

Jess didn’t respond, she just hung up her phone, and sat at the booth waiting for the band to show up, within the next ten minutes, four boys showed up at the table. “Uhm, by any change, are you Jessica from the Hollywood Tragedy photo agency?”

“That is me, and you are blessthefall?” Jessica asked, looking each boy up and down.

“Yeah, but there is a slight problem…” the one with vibrant red hair trailed off.

“And that is…?” Jess asked, glaring at the boys, her patience was on the edge.

“Our lead singer quit this morning,” Jessica’s ears perked up at that.

“Lead singer, eh?” the boys nodded. “I will be right back, I need to make two phone calls, just sit tight, and order something.”

Jess scurried to the bathroom, pulling out her phone, quickly dialing Gwen’s number explaining what had happened to the band, and then called Craig.

“Hello?” a sleepy voice answered.

“Craig?” Jess was quick to respond.

“Yeah, this is he, and this is Ayden?”

“Mhmm, listen, you have heard of a band called blessthefall, right?”

“Yeah…” Craig trailed off, not exactly sure where she was going with this.

“Well, how much do you really like them?”

“They’re good music.”

“Would you ever considered singing with them…or for them?” Jess asked, mentally crossing her fingers.

“In a heartbeat.”

“I’m gonna need to talk to them, but guess what?” Jess smiled.

“What?” he asked, right back.

“Their lead singer quit today.”

“No shit? That’s horrible,” Craig sent his sympathy out, and both bid a farewell, before Jessica came out of the bathroom and sat down with the boys again.

“Okay, boys, so we can carry out the photo session without the lead, but it’s all on you if you want to. And, I may have a person who can fill in the lack of singer,” Jessica smiled at them.

“We’ll do the shoot, no doubt, but what do you mean?”

“I have a friend, Craig, he’s an amazing singer, and apparently a huge fan of your band, he’s out touring with Escape the Fate at the moment, but he’ll be back soon, like a week or something,” Jess stated. “He used to sing in school, he has a very wide vocal range, I think if you guys listened to him, you’d fall in love,” Jess nodded to herself.

“We will seriously think about it, music is our lives, so if he had to quit because of this, we’d be heartbroken,” ginger boy spoke again, the other three nodding with him as if agreeing.

“I’ll let you know when they get back, and I’ll see you Tuesday,” Jess smiled, leaving the restaurant.