Pressed Beneath This Spell

It had been a month since Corie had seen Alex. And it seemed as if every moment revolved around him. One minute she would find herself hoping with everything in her that he would keep his promise of seeing her. Of finding her. Of figuring out which coffee shop she would be at. The next minute she would be shaking her head. She was hoping that he wouldn't. That he had forgotten already. That fate truly didn't exist. The following minute she would tell herself that of course he'd already forgotten. Whatever he found intriguing was just a moment in time. After all, it did take him two hours to get to the pub. It was probably all just a bet. She wasn't that special. She knew that in her mind. This didn't bring her any comfort, however. She would always sigh depressingly. She couldn't talk herself out of wanting him to find her. She was saddened by her thoughts of his not remembering her.

All of this on her mind for the past month led her to Google. She wanted to know where he was and what the fans were saying at the shows. So here she was. On Buzznet. All Time Low pictures surrounded the screen and screen names were everything from AlexGaskarthsGirl to AlexsJaseyRae. Clever names made out of his songs.

"You know, you can say 'I told you so.' at any time."

Corie whipped her head around to see Jaynie leaning against her door frame.

"I was just see-"

"ing pictures of Alex? Cuz you looooove him!" Corie scoffed and turned back to the screen.

"No. Just seeing...what the playlist was for their shows."

"The show we're going to isn't for another like five months. I'm sure the playlist will change."

"So? It might be kind of the same..."

"So you're not looking up pictures of Alex? Not seeing what he's been up to? If he has a girlfri-"

"No, Jaynie. I'm not. Why would I?"

Corie heard Jaynie shift positions to directly behind her. Then felt her hands on her shoulders.

"How long have we been friends?"

"Three years."

"How long have we been best friends?"

"Three years. Point?"

"Point being that I know you. And I know that you constantly think about him. You probably go back and forth in your mind why you even do. And then you shake all of that away. But can't ever entirely. Which led you here. You never go on Buzznet. So...doesn't do much good lying to me."

"Okay...so I think about him every once'n awhile. That's it. I did before I met him too, ya know."

Jaynie began to walk out her room as she heard someone knocking on their door.

"Tsk tsk tsk...I'll be here when you wanna talk."

Corie turned to see her go out of the room but as Jaynie got to the door, she turned around as well and peeked around the frame.

"And you soooooo were Googling him."

Corie threw a shoe that was lying next to her chair, at the door frame. She then heard the giggling voices of Norah and Rae and rolled her eyes with a smile. She exited the browser after looking at Alex's face one more time. Then she shook her head at her own ridiculousness.

"Is Corie home?" Corie heard Norah ask.

"Corie is home and she's right here." Corie stood at the end of the hall looking into their living room.

"Great! How have you been?" Both girls went to hug her.

"Good, good. How was the trip guys?"

Everyone took seats around the living room.

"Hold on. I'll go put in a cd."

Jaynie left the room and returned just as quickly.

"How's this Corie? Some All Time Low?"

Corie responded with a glare, confusing both Norah and Rae.

"Why the glare? Not a fan anymore?" Rae asked.

"I am still a fan, of course, but Jaynie is just being a brat."

"Okay..."

Corie turned her attention back to the sisters.

"So. Story time."

"It was fun! So, amazing. Until Rae here got dad pissed and we missed out on some activities. We had to stay in our state rooms."

"It wasn't my fault!"

"It's always your fault!"

Rae stuck her tongue out at Norah. It usually was always Rae getting into trouble. Always had been.

"Woa." Everyone turned their heads towards Jaynie. She sat with a frozen expression of confusion before she slowly looked up at Corie curiously.

"I can't believe I haven't asked you this yet..." Corie squinted her eyes cautiously at her dear friend. No question coming from Jaynie could be anything good. Just as the past thirty or so days of questions had been everything but.

"What."

"Why did Alex ask me what my favorite coffee shop was?"

"Why ask now?"

"Who's Alex?"

"I ask now cuz of this song." Corie focused her attention to the stereo. Coffee Shop Soundtrack

"Who's Alex?!" Jaynie turned to the confused twins.

"Gaskarth. Now answer the question Corie."

"How should I know?"

"Because...you shushed me." Jaynie now carried an expression full of accusation. She knew Corie would try to sneak her way out of this. But there was no way out.

"Someone please tell me what's going on." The twins were more than frustrated now.

"Well, you know how I told you about Alex and Jack going to the pub after the show?"

"Yea. We still hate you both for that, by the way."

"It was your curfew's fault!"

"Whatever, continue."

"Well, before we left, Alex asked me what my favorite coffee shop was."

"Yea..."

"Before I could answer, Corie here, shushed me."

Now all attention was on Corie. She knew she'd have to tell them. It was inevitably going to happen anyway.

"Fine! Fine." She shifted positions as the three onlookers stared.

"I...well he..."

"Spit it out!"

"Shut up! I'm trying. Wanna hear it or not."

"Fine. Go."

"K...he was sayin how he wanted to get to know me and I didn't really know what to think. So...I told him that if it was meant to happen...that'd he find me at our favorite coffee shop after our next show."

"But tha-"

"He won't though, okay. So...it's all good."

"Let me get this straight..." Jaynie asked.

"You told him. Alex Gaskarth, who wanted to get to know you, that you would let him if he found you at your favorite coffee shop?"

"That is...what I said..."

"Alex..."

"Gaskarth." It was annoying how the twins could not only finish each other's sentences...but also be thinking the same thing.

"Yes. Alex Gaskarth. Why do you keep saying his name like that?"

"Because it's ALEX GASKARTH."

"So?"

"So?!"

All three couldn't believe what they were hearing.

"He's just some singer who could get almost any chick...and I turned him down. He didn't like that. Big damn deal."

"That is sooo not how it is and you know it."

"Why did it take him two hours to get to the bar?"

"He probably had to sign things and meet fans. He did get there though. Before we even got there too!"

"So you really think Alex Gaskarth is gonna walk right through those doors in a few months?"

"It's a strong possibility."

"He's gonna remember me after almost six months? After all his shows? He's gonna think about me everyday and then magically pick the very coffee shop that we'll be in?"

"Uh huh."

"You're living in a fan-fic."

"We all are!"

"Except it's more like fan-non-fic." Norah smirked at Corie.

"This is not some story that is gonna end with me hopping on Alex's bus while he whisks me away to all his shows while millions of girls glare at my presence at the side of the stage. You guys need to snap to reality. Chick flicks...fan-fics...are not reality."

"Party-pooper."

"You're making me sad."

"Norah, I'm sorry for making you sad but sometimes...reality is sad. And I refuse to live in this fairytale land you three are living in. I get what you're doing, I really do...but there's no way that Alex Gaskarth is thinking about me. There's no way he's gonna find me even if by some minimal chance, he was."

Corie looked over at the sullen face of her best friend.

"You and I are gonna go to that show. We're gonna rock our little hearts out and then we're gonna go get the best coffee at the best damn coffee shop in the world. Then, we're gonna go back to your Aunt's and rock our little hearts out some more. That's it."

Jaynie looked at her thoughtfully for a moment. And for a moment, Corie thought she had gotten through to them.

"Sounds like you're trying to convince yourself of that...not us."

Corie's nostrils flared and her mouth was tight. Then she just threw her hands up with a scream and stormed out of the room. Norah and Rae sat giggling while Jaynie smiled in victory. She knew it would be a long five months, but they were going to be fun. She turned to the twins.

"Okay...we have five months to knock the reality out of that girl."