Praying for a Riot

Jared shoved his hands deep in his pockets and slammed the glove box in his car shut, his hair creeping over his face and his hood shoved closely over it.
He pushed his sunglasses further up his nose and glanced up.

Kay was still there, sitting on the cold dirty bench outside Lauren’s office building with her eyes closed.
He didn’t know what she was doing; neither did he know why she was there.

“Come on; open your eyes…go see Shannon.” He muttered, as if that was going to do it. He had followed her around all day, waiting for the satisfaction of catching her and Shannon in the act.
But it never happened.

Today she was restless; her short black hair had a beret shoved over it, her small ears sticking out. She wore extremely tight pinstripes, and a long black jacket wrapped around her small frame.
Jared loved it, just watching her move, watching her breathe.
God, he missed her.

He had followed her discreetly from Ian and Mandy’s house, to the shopping center, where someone called her, he had assumed it was Ian telling her something she needed to get, because she got that annoyed tone in her voice he remembered from his teenage years, trying to explain something to your parents was never easy.

Suddenly, there was rapid knocking on the window beside Jared, startling him. He hadn’t realized he had closed his eyes in thought.

Her big round blue eyes stared back at him behind thick black eyeliner.

She knocked again, he noticed the annoyed look on her face, and didn’t take it as a good sign.

“Open your door, you fucking idiot.” She scowled, banging the window again.

Jared leaned over the seat beside him and opened the door for her, watching closely as she stomped around the front of the car and beside him.
Right, beside him.

His breath seemed to disappear as she glared at him, slamming the door behind her.

“Kay…”

She crossed her arms, raising her eyebrows at him. “Why are you here Jared?”

Jared stared at her, his eyes widened in fear at the small woman beside him. He honestly wanted to kiss her, hold her, and love her.

“I…I…”

“Let me rephrase that,” She growled “Why are you following me?”

Jared bit his lip, staring into the eyes of the girl he knew his brother was touching, touching with his rough, bare, hands.

“You’re fucking Shannon.” He stated blatantly, suddenly realizing what he said.

Kay glared at him, if not, harder. “Nice work, genius.”

“Why?”

Kay threw her head back and laughed, making Jared’s hair stand on end.
“Why not Jared? I haven’t got anything left, you left, Rhys left, Mandy and Ian won’t hear about it, Laur’s a fucking shrink,” she shakes her head “I don’t want to talk to a shrink…Shannon listens.”

Jared bit his lip, preparing for what he was about to blurt out.

“Why not me?”

It was like the world went silent; her eyes peered at him as if he had just asked her for her life savings or something…it wasn’t like that…he just wanted her.

Kay shook her head. “Jared, why should I go back to you?”

He breathed in, leaning over and taking her hand. She didn’t pull away, but cringed.

“Truthfully, you shouldn’t. But Kay,” he lowered his voice, staring down at their hands. “Kay I love you.”

Then she moved her hand, and leant her head against the seat of the car, closing her eyes, a frustrated expression creeping its way up her face.

“No, you don’t.”

“I do.”

Suddenly she opened her left eye, peering curiously at him. “Jared Leto…”

Jared shakes his head, his throat tightening. “I know it’s stupid, and I know you’ll never ever take me back after what I did, but Kay, I can’t help but feel like crying every time I hear you leave Shannon’s room, and that Horror guy…”

Kay suddenly looked angry. “His name is Rhys. You idiot.”

Jared’s heart suddenly broke into a million tiny pieces. She loved…him.
The skinny, shy, angry looking man from England.

He stared at her longer, watching as she tensed at the mention of his name, at the even mention of anything.
She had stumbled desperately and hopelessly in love with the wanker from England.

“Why did he leave?”

Kay bit her lip, staring, saddened, into Jared’s face. “His home is there…he couldn’t…”

Then Jared understood.
She was keeping him around; she was keeping Shannon, Jared, everyone, to hold herself together. She had lost the first person she loved since their marriage, and she was crumbling inside of herself.

“You have to go get him.”

Kay raised her eyebrows at her ex husband.

“Excuse me?”

“Go…get…him…back.”

-

Jams grabbed the tissue box, flinging a tissue at his nose and sneezing.
Lauren looked up from her dinner and raised her eyebrows.

“You okay, babe?”

Jams nodded stupidly, ignoring his girlfriends frown.

“You look pale.”

Lauren got up and pressed her cold fingers to Jams’ forehead, he smiled at the pleasantness of the cool, suddenly realizing how hot he was.

“Jams, you’re burning up!”

Jams shook his head “I’m fine, it’s seriously just the heating.”

Laur giggled. “Jams, we have no heating.”

She moved from him and shuffled over to a small box labeled ‘LAUR’SPREGNANCY TESTS BATHROOM SHIT.’ Jams smirked to himself.

He watched as she got out a small bottle of medicine, pouring it into a glass and handing it to him.
“Drink this, it’ll help.”

Jams reluctantly threw the medicine down his burning throat, gasping at the awful taste.

“Come on, bed.”

Jams groaned. “Your not serious…I’m not that sick.”

Laur laughed. “You look, awful.”

Suddenly the thought struck him.

He was supposed to propose tonight.

“No, no…Laur, babe…I’m fine…let’s just go sit dow-”

Suddenly Lauren was pulling Jamie into the bedroom, and thrusting him down onto the bed, looking furious.

“Jamie Oliver you will lie there, and you will get better, am I clear?”

Jamie trembled as she shoved the blankets over him, threatening him with a stare.

“I…yes…”

Then Laur disappeared. Jams wanted to ask where she was going, but he suddenly felt incredibly tired.
His eyelids felt heavy, but he was determined to stay awake…if not to make sure Laur was there.

After a few minutes, Laur crept back into the room and shut the door, sitting on the bed and smiling down at her boyfriend.
Snuggling up to him as he blinked tiredly at her, she sighed.

“Silly, silly Jams…”

Jams buries his face in the pillow, feeling more sleepy by the second.

“It was Ian…” he mumbles.

Laur laughs and presses her lips to his hair. “You are silly.”

Jamie felt sleep run over him, and it was made worse by Laur’s calm breathing, then, he mumbled, in the midst of his sleep.

“Lauren…?”

Laur smiled, pressing her face into the pillow, stroking Jamie’s hair.

“Wanna get hitched?”