Before It's Over

"Ave. Avery, wake up."

My eyes opened at the sound of Ross' voice. My best friend hovered over me with a mischievous smile on his lips. I shot him a questioning look as I sat up in the seat of the van.

"What time is it?" I asked, unsure of how long I slept and too lazy to search for my phone.

"Don't know," Ross answered, climbing back out of the van backwards. "But Kyle just texted you saying that he's on his way to get you."

Ross' smile grew as he pulled my cell phone from behind his back. He laughed as I went into a sudden panic. I shot up from my seat and hurried out of the van, grabbing my phone out of Ross' hand on way. I only tripped once as I hurried around to the trailer so I could change out of my performance clothes and freshen myself a bit. I stumbled back out of the trailer just as Kyle appeared around the corner of Cobra's bus.

"Hey," he greeted with a signature smile.

"Hi," I said as Kyle embraced me quickly. "So where are we going?"

"Now, what kind of cliché first date would this be if I didn't keep the location a secret?"

Kyle's smile grew and resembled Ross' mischievous expression from this morning. I shrugged and giggled. Kyle grasped my hand and we started our way to the exit of bus parking. We chatted on the way and I spent the entire time trying to figure out what Kyle had in mind. Kyle was very good at changing the subject and always found a way to divert my attention from my curiosity.

If Kyle hadn't informed me that we had arrived, I would have walked right past the place. The small café was hidden by the monstrous buildings that surrounded it. It wasn't a place where I would picture Kyle hanging out. It was a little hole in the wall sort of café. The walls outside were a faded red and the door was glass with a worn handle. Through the windows I could see about seven tables with mismatched chairs situated around them.

Kyle opened the door for me and I smiled a thank you as I stepped inside. The café was air-conditioned, a relief from the summer heat. At the other end of the room was a small stage with a stool, a microphone and an array of instruments. No one occupied the stage, so there was a radio playing softly from the speakers in the ceiling. The café was rather empty of customers. The only people inside were two girls sipping cappuccinos from mismatched mugs and as waitress standing behind the counter in the back.

"I always come here when we stop in Jersey," Kyle said as he led me to a table close to the stage.

"I wouldn't picture you hanging out here," I said, looking around the café. "Coffee shops don't seem like your style."

"Well, they're not. Besides, this isn't a coffee shop, though they do have excellent coffee. Caleb brought me here on one of our first tours. The food's amazing and there are some good performers once in a while."

Our conversation was paused as the waitress came to hand us our menus and ask if we wanted anything to drink. Kyle answered with out hesitation and I gave the girl my choice as well. She smiled genuinely and left our table. Kyle and I started talking again and it soon turned into the night at the barbecue all over again. We touched on every subject we could, only stopping to order our lunch.

"So," Kyle said dropping his fork down on his plate with finality. "I may have had an ulterior motive in bringing you here."

I placed my fork down on my plate as well, and leaned back in my chair. I watched Kyle's expression slip into a smirk, and was intrigued.

"So what's this ulterior motive then? Are you going to kidnap me and hold me for ransom?"

Kyle laughed and shook his head. "Nah. Your brother doesn't seem to be well endowed in the financial aspect. Plus, I wouldn't give up time with you for the world."

I dropped my head so Kyle wouldn't see me blush. When I was sure my cheeks were back to their normal, pale color, I looked back up at Kyle.

"So…" I said.

"Oh, right!" Kyle almost shouted. "You are gonna play a song."

"What?" I asked, watching Kyle rise from his chair and walk over to me.

"Adam told me you've been working on some," he continued, pulling me up out of my chair. "I wanna hear it."

Kyle led me over to the small stage by my hand. He sat me on the stool, and then disappeared behind me to grab the provided acoustic guitar. When he handed it to me, I looked at him pleadingly.

"Kyle, I really don't-"

"Don't worry. Just play to me. There's hardly anyone else here anyway."

It wasn't that I had stage fright. I had been performing for hundreds on Warped and even did more personal acoustic sets with Ryan. What was really bothering me, was playing by myself in front of Kyle. I had never performed alone before, let alone in front of guy that meant something to me. I was vulnerable up on that stage with just an acoustic guitar sitting in my lap. I was sucked back into the day on the bus, when Kyle had kissed me for the first time. I was vulnerable then, but this time was different.

I was afraid of not being enough. I had nothing to fall back on in this performance. Ross wasn't going to make a joke, and Adam wasn't there to smile at me in the middle of the song.

"Well, um," I let out a sigh and Kyle smiled.

I pushed my fear to the back of my mind as my heart warmed at Kyle's grin. I situated the guitar in my lap so my fingers hovered over the neck and tapped the mic twice. The café echoed with two resounding thumps. Kyle pulled up a chair from one of the tables and sat himself right in front of me.

"This is actually for a side project I'm working on," I explained to Kyle before strumming once to get a feel for the acoustic.

Kyle smiled and I started the song.

What can I compare you to, a favorite pair of shoes?
Maybe my bright red boots, if they had wings
Funny how we animate colorful objects saved
Funny how its hard to take a love with no sting

But come on take it, come on take it, take it from me
But come on take it, come on take it, take it from me
We've got a good life

What can I compare you to, a window the sun shines through?
Maybe the silver moon, a smile rising

At the mention of a smile, Kyle's grew wider. I watched his face for the rest of the song, judging his reaction. He only smiled. At the end of the song, Kyle stood and clapped enthusiastically. The two girls and an older man who had entered the shop were clapping as well. I smiled, embarrassed, and placed the acoustic back in its stand. I practically ran off the stage and Kyle laughed as he caught my waist as I hopped down.

"That was great, Ave," Kyle complimented as we walked back to our table.

"Thanks," I replied, sitting back down. "It's just stuff I work on by myself, 'cause I know the band would never use the lyrics."

Kyle pushed my chair in again and took his own seat once more. He wore a curious expression as looked at me. My cheeks turned pink and I dropped my eyes to the table top.

"What?" I asked when I looked back up from the table.

"Who's the song about?" Kyle questioned, a smug look on his face. "Sounded like you really like this guy."

My heart panged with regret for playing the song. I had given the Kyle the wrong idea. At the sour change in my expression, Kyle's smirk dropped into a frown.

"It's not something I talk about anymore," I said plainly. "So, I heard there's a bonfire tonight."

My attempt to change the subject worked. Kyle smiled and insisted he escort me there, but I could see the interest in his eyes. My past relationships always had a way of ending badly. It wasn't something I wanted to discuss with Kyle. No need to re-open those scars.

;;

"Hey, lovebirds! Stop making out in the back lounge! We're heading out."

"Shut up, Austin!" Kyle shouted, standing up from his spot next to me. "We're not making out!"

I giggled as Kyle added a quiet 'much' to the end of his sentence. The truth was Kyle and I had been playing video games on the xbox since Kyle finished his set. It was the first full set I'd seen him play.

Kyle grabbed my hand and pulled me up from the floor of the lounge. We walked through the bus hand in hand and met the guys at the door. The walk to the bonfire site was loud and distracting. Spending a good portion of the afternoon on the bus with Kyle had proven to me that wherever the FTSK went, chaos followed.

When we reached the bonfire, I was glad the band dispersed. I told Kyle to mingle while I went to find my band mates. He pouted, but kissed my temple and jogged in the direction of Derek from Mayday Parade. I smiled and started my hunt for my boys. It didn't take long.

"AVERY!"

I was suddenly being smothered by my best friend. Ross soon released his hold and smiled at me energetically.

"How was your date, best friend? Fill me in! I want to know everything. Was he a gentleman? Did you kiss? What did you do after? Where'd he take you? Was it a nice place? Was it expensive? Did he pay? What happened, woman!"

Ross said all of this very fast, and when he finished, he stood in front of me huffing and puffing to catch his breath. I laughed, grabbed his forearm and lead him to a pair of chairs where we could sit, and I could fill in my best friend.