Serenading Sirens

I wasn't back to normal, or even the normal I had been for the past five months. But the talk -and don't dare forget the kiss- with Jack seemed to have gotten me in somewhat of a better mood. This should have been a bad sign, warning lights with bells. It felt good though. I didn't think about the fact that I had changed because of a boy that wasn't my boyfriend. Also, I didn't even think about the fact that I was cheating on him. If I would have, I would have been right back to my bed twenty-four seven.

At least I was aware of things now. Everything important that was going on around me wasn't completely irrelevant anymore. At one of the shows I had missed during my isolation, something huge had apparently happened. The guys hadn't told me about it, but Kara squeezed out some details for me. Someone from a label had shown up to watch them, ready to take them from their current one. She didn't even know who it was, so it caused both of us to stress out. The boys didn't want anyone to get their hopes up, though they were clearly doing just that.

So instead of being or acting clueless, I could share in the same excitement. It was better that I had to keep it just under my skin. I wasn't sure who I would have wanted to share it with, Jack or Alex. It was a difficult decision. I definitely didn't need it on top of the one I was suppressing about which one I wanted more in the first place. So I was back to being grateful that I didn't have to be vocal about this.

The time spent with everyone wasn't as tough as I would have assumed. They hadn't forgotten my month of awkward conversation and acting. Or even the episode they had created in Alex's basement. But they appeared to be pleased with me speaking again instead of pretending they didn't exist. We were back to spending every night together for whatever we decided to do. The only thing they didn't know was that I spent a lot of these times making pro/con lists in my head. What a great thing none of them were superhuman.

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Lunch used to be something I dreaded. Before I had to deal with Alex, Rian, and Jack, I sat alone. Most days I just spent in the library, reading or studying and not bothering with food. It was even worse when I first got company, but that quickly changed for me. And now -now I just didn't know what to think about it. Jack didn't even show up most of the time, probably assuming my old position in the library. We surely only kept up with it because it was routine.

Rian sat down next to Jack, as per usual when the latter joined us. He automatically was off on a rant about his art class that he had been forced in to. The rest of us normally didn't pay attention, just nodded and made noises when he paused. Somehow, Rian never noticed this.

Alex pulled out his cell phone, making it even more obvious.

"There's a teacher right there," I scolded him, more worried that he'd get in trouble than Rian getting angry. I grabbed his hand and tried to push it under the table. "Come on. I rather you spend the afternoon with me than Mrs. Rockwell."

He pulled his hand from mine, but made no attempt to hide his phone. Instead, he pulled it closer to his face to get a better look at something. His jaw dropped and what could only be described as a breathless squeal came from his throat. "We're getting signed to Hopeless!" he yelled after a moment of all of us staring at him.

I thought for sure that he had caught the attention of everyone else, especially the teacher ten feet away. So I couldn't stop the gasp that I let out when he threw the phone to Jack and Rian. I looked around frantically to realize that the four of us were the only ones paying attention. With a sigh of relief, I finally got to bask in what had just been said. "That's amazing!" I exclaimed, throwing my arms around Alex.

Rian and Jack were freaking out across the table, repeatedly passing the phone back and forth.

"All right, here's what we're gonna do," Alex stated with his arms still wrapped tightly around me. He dropped his voice to continue. "We're skipping the rest of the day, and Clarke, call off work. Rian, call Zack."

The bell rang then, signaling the end of lunch. Alex pulled me up with him, still in the stealth mode he had taken on.

"We'll meet you at Clarke's?" Rian suggested. I didn't even argue.

We all walked out together and I let go of Alex to congratulate the other two. Rian threw his arms around me for a quick hug before setting off down the hall after Alex. Jack stood there with me, rubbing one arm nervously. The wide grin on his face had my heart in palpations I had never encountered.

"This is great," I smiled up at him, batting my eyelashes like an idiot.

He nodded before opening his arms. "Great enough for a hug?" he asked.

I snorted, surprised he would even ask. My own arms snaked around his torso and I rested my head against his chest. "Of course it's hug worthy," I replied.

He ruffled my hair playfully and kissed the top of my head. Then far too quickly for me, he let go. "Better not let Alex wait too long," he said.

Frowning, I nodded in agreement. "I'll see you in a bit," I told him without looking him in the eye. He mumbled something as I walked away, too distracted to make it any louder.

I ran to my locker, grabbing my jacket before heading to the front of the school. Of course I had never skipped school in the middle of the day like this, not even in the time I'd been friends with the guys. But I discovered it wasn't so difficult to just slip out the door unseen by staff or cameras. Alex was waiting in his oh-so-familiar Audi right outside, music blaring and a wide smile on his lips. I slide into the passenger seat, leaning over to kiss his cheek.

"Could you have been any more obvious?" I questioned as we pulled out.

He turned his smile on me now. "I'll still graduate even if they catch me skipping. And now I have this to look forward to. God, you have no idea how excited I am. Joyous is more the word." He rambled on a few more minutes. I squeezed his fingers, interlocked with my own, to let him know I was still listening.

He turned to me again after he was finished, causing me to tear my eyes from the window. "I know tomorrow's Valentine's Day, and I wanted to make it great for you. But they're sending someone out to seal the deal. So let's do what we would have done tomorrow today. And then we'll party with everyone else later," he planned as the words came to him. His tone was suggestive like he had more than just a nice dinner in mind.

"Well, you better drive a little faster if you want to beat the others," I offered. Honestly, he was hard to deny. And even if he weren't, after that scene with Jack, I was willing.

"My house first," he insisted, and then quickly changed direction for the two of us.

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Rian's car was in front of my house when Alex and I finally arrived. They were already inside, having used the spare key I'd informed them about. Jack was sitting on the kitchen counter as Rian searched the fridge. Neither of them acted as if the two of us left the school an hour ago and it was strange that we were just now showing up at my own house.

I plopped down in a chair, pulling the fruit bowl toward me. It took me about ten seconds to look up at Jack, glaring. "That's the last orange," I said, watching him bite through a slice.

He winked, a large smirk on his face. He let the rest of the fruit, still covered in its flesh, set in his lap. "Come get it," he mouthed.

Heat rushed to my cheeks in a blush and I looked away. Still so jokingly suggestive, but still making me swoon.

It was only a couple of minutes later that Zack was walking through the door, Matt in tow. It was like the complete happiness of the five of them was unstoppable. I wished I could have bottled it to use whenever I pleased.

I didn't pay much attention to what was going on. My fingers rolled an apple around the table. Alex told them of the plans for the night, and surely early morning. So the six of us spent some time talking and watching TV, as usual. The only difference was the emotion that outlined all of this. They obviously couldn't quit thinking about what was going on with them, and I didn't blame them one bit.

Eventually, I had to tear myself away from them. Partly because it was just too much to be a part of that. They were still all mine as I had claimed them however long ago. But I hadn't really been a part of them for this to be my bright excitement as well. Plus, I had to get ready for whatever Alex had put together for us.

I didn't realize his presence until I walked from my bathroom wrapped in a towel. The steam from the shower obscured my vision, so I had to wave a hand in front of my face to be sure of who it was. Surely, I thought it would have been Alex to help me pick out an outfit. But there Jack sat on my bed, hands wringing together just above his lap. My first thought was to run back in the bathroom to throw clothes back on. He looked up though, noticing my entrance.

"This is really hard," he stated barely above a whisper.

"What is?" I inquired, my voice thick from the steam and the situation.

Jack cleared his throat, not wanting to have my problem. "Watching you be happy with him. I've never been jealous. This whole time, I was fine. But not now that we have... something." He seemed to have a hard time with his words, stumbling over them.

I shook my head, not knowing what he was trying to lead into. "Jack-"

"You have to choose. That's shallow and selfish of me, but I don't think I can take much more of this," he talked over top of me, my sympathetic words lost before they were found.

My brow wrinkled in anger, overpowering what other emotions I actually felt. "That's what's hard, Jack," I shot at him. "I can't just drop one of you like last year's clothes. You evidently don't get it. It's like we're living in '99 and I have to pick between a Prada backpack and Sketchers," I told him. With a huff, I threw myself behind him on the bed.

"So which am I?" he asked hesitantly, turning his head just enough to see me out of the corner of his eye.

"I was more of a Chanel and Adidas kind of child," I joked. Words didn't pass between us for a while. But I couldn't let it settled at that at the moment. Before I could get anything out, he stood.

"You should get ready. Alex probably has something fantastic planned for you guys." He walked to the door and opened it. He was halfway out when he turned back. "Wear that sundress," he demanded, pointing toward my closet. "Yeah, it's like twenty degrees out. But you can pull it off." And with that, he was gone.

I couldn't take much time to think this over. He was right. I had to get ready. By the time I was done, Alex was knocking lightly on my door. I took one last look in the mirror before going to answer him. It was easy to tell that Jack was right twice in one night. I had pulled on the pink sundress that ended in pink and white ruffles in a tie-dyed effect that was hanging on the closet door, more ready for the first warm day than this night. I dug through my dresser to find white leggings and threw on the white cardigan Hadley sent me for my birthday.

"You look amazing," Alex said, blinking a few times.

I leaned up to connect our lips. "Thanks," I replied, and took his hand to lead him downstairs. I called to the others that they were welcome to stay until we met up again later. I pushed Alex out the door, trying to avoid the one glance I could feel on me. Just as I slammed the door behind me, my eyes met Jack's. I let Alex lead me to my car as I shut my eyes tight to forget about the other boy.

"You should just let me drive," Alex insisted as he walked around the car.

I waited until he had shut his door to answer. "You're getting signed to a bigger label tomorrow," I told him, turning the key. "I am your escort, Mr. Gaskarth."

He chuckled, but didn't argue anymore as we set off. I let my hand slip into his and entangled our fingers, showing much more sentiment than I had in the past month. He showed his pleasure to this openly.

"I'm glad we can just move on. Pretend like nothing happened," Alex admitted after moments of silence.

I took my eyes off the road for just a few seconds to look at him. "What do you mean?" I questioned, turning back to face forward again. Clearly, he was talking about my behavior these past weeks to some extent. But there was an undertone to his voice to let me know he had something else on his mind even more. He shook his head to try to get me to forget about it. I was even more persistent. "No, tell me," I demanded, still a little amused.

"Just everything that's been happening. All the stuff with you and Jack." And my amusement was gone. "I hope that this can be a new part of our relationship."

Alex wasn't supposed to know about any of that. It was something I was hiding, and I didn't even care that it was wrong. He had found out and now he was posing the idea that we just act like I hadn't been acting differently because of it. It was safe to say that for the first time since we began dating I was genuinely pissed off at him. "You want me to forget?" I seethed, not bothering to try to deny anything.

Alex didn't take his eyes off me now. "So you admit that there's been something going on?" He was just as angry as I was, and I didn't care one bit. "So everything's been a lie. That's just great, Clarke."

"Don't you ever accuse me of lying to you!" I yelled, not even trying to pay attention to where I was driving anymore. "Not one thing I have ever said to you has been a lie. And nothing I say now will be. Yes, there has been something between Jack and I. I know it's cheating, Alex, and you'll never have any idea how hurt I've gotten because of this. Or how sorry I am. But I love him just as much as I love you," I tried to explain rather loudly and violently, even slapping the steering wheel once or twice. All but the last sentence. That came out as a whisper and hung in the air between us.

Out of the corner of my eye, I watched Alex biting his lip. He ruffled the hair on the back of his head and let his hand rest there. "So who are you choosing?" he inquired after what felt like hours.

"I'm not choosing anyone!" I exclaimed, furious again. "God, you two are so ridiculous."

At this point, my head was turned toward him completely. So the last thing I saw were his chocolate brown eyes widening as he stared back at me. The side of his face lit up brightly as he opened his mouth to scream at me. Whatever words left his mouth were drowned out by the crash that surrounded us.