Nothing Goes As Orchestrated

Cassie and Alex had spent the remainder of the previous day hanging out with the guys in The Matches. They showed them interesting places to go in Oakland and took them to dinner. Then, at midnight, they all went to see The Rocky Horror Picture Show. In the morning, they had a late breakfast together and went back to the hotel room and watched movies until it came time for Cassie to meet with Justin.

They spent a little over an hour talking about what Justin had been doing since he'd left the band. And now, in the late afternoon, Cassie was standing outside her hotel room, listening to the strum of the guitar coming from inside, along with muffled singing. The song sounded vaguely familiar but she couldn't figure out what it was so she slipped her key card in and opened the door a little. Everything became much more clear and she listened to him sing.

"If I couldn't get away with anything, then how in the hell did I get here? Say something, say anything. You were never the one to have something to say. Say something. Say something. Say anything." He stopped singing for a moment, and when he started again was when the song clicked in Cassie's head. "I've seen the best and worst of you, but we're sticking through because without all of the ups and downs we've been through, you know that it's true that I could really get sick and tired of you."

She stepped inside the room and quietly shut the door so he didn't stop on account of her being there. She didn't know if he would, but she didn't want him to. One thing she'd always really liked was when he would sit and play an acoustic guitar and sing.

"Oh, something tells me I'm never gonna live this one down. But I'm down and out. 'Cause if the tension's light as a feather then I'd be bored stiff. We gotta mix things up a bit to keep up my interest," he continued, "Sad enough to say that alone I could barely light a match but together we could burn this place down. Sorry about the mess, but when we team up, team up, we always seem to bring this place to the ground. And this is where you come in. I know that I could count on you to walk me through. And I'm making sure that everyone who's anyone can be the someone that they've always wanted to."

He began to sing the chorus again and Cassie joined in quietly as she moved toward the bed he was sitting on. As soon as he heard her, he turned and a small smile played across his face as he continued playing and singing. She sat on the other bed and watched him contently. He managed to catch her gaze and hold it and went from just singing the song, to singing to her.

"Sad enough to say that alone I could barely light a match but together we could burn this place down. Sad enough to say that alone I could barely light a match but together we could burn this place down. Sorry about the mess but when we team up, team up, we always seem to bring this place to the ground."

As he continued to play, Cassie kept her gaze fixed on his and thought about everything they'd been through. Everything that he'd done, everything that she'd done, the mistakes they'd both made, the things that were always left unsaid. Her heart started to pound in her ears and she bit down on her lip as he began to sing the final chorus.

"I've seen the best and worst of you, but we're sticking through because without all of the ups and downs we've been through, you know that it's true that I could really get sick and tired of you."

When he finished, she dropped her gaze to the floor. She could feel his eyes on her still and after awhile she looked back up, her lip still caught between her teeth.

"Stop it," he said, "What's wrong?"

"Nothing," she said with a quiet sigh, "I just, um," she sighed again and changed the subject, "I didn't know you knew Four Year Strong."

He said nothing and just stared at her, wondering if she was thinking all the same things he was. But instead of saying anything, he just motioned to the clothes that were laid out on the bed behind her.

"You should probably go change," he said.

Cassie's face twisted in confusion, "Why?" she asked.

"Because I'm taking you on a date and if we don't leave soon, we'll be late and the whole night will be ruined."

She raised an eyebrow, "I don't go out with guys who have girlfriends," she said.

Alex sighed quietly, "Can you please make an exception this one time? I really want to take you out tonight," he said, "Please."

For a minute, she just stared at him. His expression was quite possibly the most adorable one she'd ever seen and at that moment found it hard to deny him, even though she knew she should. But she nodded and took the clothes he'd picked out and went to the bathroom to change.

She tried asking where he was taking her a few times on the way to San Francisco, but he kept saying it was a surprise. As they walked down the piers in the city, Cassie thought she had it all figured out until they kept walking past Pier 39. Alex could feel the curiosity radiating off her and he couldn't help but chuckle when he turned to took at her.

"What?" she asked.

"Nothing," he said, reaching over and taking her hand in his, "You're just so damn cute when you want to know something."

When they finally reached their destination, Cassie's eyes grew wide with excitement, "You're taking me on the sunset cruise?" she asked and he nodded, "This is something I always want to do when I come up here, but no one else ever does. Maybe not the sunset cruise specifically, but one of the bay cruises."

Alex smiled, "Remind me later to thank Shawn for the suggestion then," he said.

Cassie smiled as well and fought the urge she suddenly had to kiss the boy holding her hand. Instead, she dropped Alex's hand and turned to him, wrapping her arms around him in a warm hug. Alex immediately returned the embrace, enjoying the feeling of her being in his arms, even if only for a few moments.

The cruise was enjoyable for both. Being the Red and White Fleet, everything was done in reds in whites. There was a nice buffet that Alex and Cassie visited first things, since neither had eaten since the morning. Cassie also got a Captain Morgan and Coke from the bar, while Alex stuck with just water. The two stood on the main deck, taking in the beautiful scenery and carrying on comfortable conversation.

As the evening went on, the urge Cassie felt to kiss Alex only grew stronger. The more she pushed it away, the harder it seemed to come back every time he would look at her a certain way, or his nose would scrunch or even the way he said certain words. And just as they started to pass under the Golden Gate Bridge, he turned to her to say something but before he could, she pressed her lips to his.

Neither tried to make it more than it was; a sweet, simple kiss. No roaming hands, nothing. And when they parted, they carried on as they had been before. It was almost as if it had never happened, but both knew it did and they'd wanted it. And it had been enough to satisfy both for the time being.

Something had clicked between them and on the way back to their hotel in Oakland, Cassie and Alex held hands, almost as if each was afraid the other would run away if they didn't hold on.

"I had a really nice time tonight," Cassie said when they were back in their room, "Thank you."

"Thank you for letting me take you," Alex replied.

With a smile gracing her face, Cassie took her pajamas from her bag and went into the bathroom to change. When she came back, Alex had already changed as well and was laying in his bed. He stared at Cassie, but tried not to be too obvious about it. Her minimal makeup had been removed and her glasses adorned her face. Nothing was more breathtaking to him than her natural beauty.

She slid underneath the covers on her bed and slipped her glasses off, placing them on the table next to her and reaching up to turn off the light on her side of the room.

"Good night, Alex," she said as he reached up and did the same.

"Good night, Cassandra."

But her racing thoughts kept her from sleep. She laid in the dark and listened to Alex breathing across the room. She could tell when he'd fallen asleep. She did her best not to move around much because she didn't want to disturb him. After almost two hours of trying to clear her mind, she finally decided to give in to what it was screaming at her to do. She rolled over so she was facing Alex's bed.

"Alex," she said, but he didn't so much as twitch. "Alex," she said again, a little louder.

"Mmm?" he mumbled back to her.

She got out of her bed and walked over to his and laid next to him on her side, "Wake up," she said softly, brushing his hair away from his eyes, "I need to tell you something."

"Can it wait until morning?" he mumbled sleepily.

Cassie shook her head, even though he wasn't looking at her, "No, Alex, it's important. I need you awake now," she said.

He groaned quietly, stretching and then rubbing his eyes before opening them and blinking a few times. Cassie waited rather anxiously for the sleepiness to finally leave his eyes. After a few minutes he turned his head and looked at her.

"What's up?" he said.

Her stomach jumped and her nerves started to get the better of her. But in spite of that, she took a deep breath and looked directly into his eyes, "Alex, I love you," she said, her voice wavering slightly.

Alex stared at her, taking a minute to fully grasp the significance of her words. A smile slowly spread across his face and he reached out, brushing his fingers against her cheek.

"And I love you, Cassandra," he said.

Her body relaxed noticeably and she leaned forward, pressing her lips to his. His arms wrapped around her, pulling her on top of him and holding her close. She shifted and found a comfortable position and she let her hands slide up his bare chest. But that wasn't enough. She wanted more contact. Breaking their kiss, she sat up, straddling his hips and pulled her shirt over her head before leaning down again.

Her newly exposed skin tingled as his ran his hands across it. Her mouth found his neck and he let out a quiet moan, one of his hands leaving her body and reaching for his wallet. His stomach jumped as he felt around inside of it and didn't find what he was looking for.

"Fuck, Cassandra," he muttered as she bit down on his flesh, "I don't have any condoms."

Her mouth left his skin and she pushed herself up, her hair creating a curtain around them. She stared down at him and sighed softly.

"Do you want to make a baby?" he asked quietly.

A small smile began to creep across her face until she remembered the last time they'd been in this position, "Do you?" she asked. He nodded, but the look in his eyes said otherwise. She sighed quietly and slid off him, resting her head against his chest, "Just hold me," she said.