If It Keeps You Around Then I'm Down

I'm never scared, why am I so frightened now? I didn't speak the entire car ride to the airport. Finals were a breeze, graduation was pristine and tradition, the after-party was not, a drunken blur. I watched Baltimore pass by a muted conversation between my entire entourage. My parents, Alex's mother, All Time Low and my little brothers. My heart fluttered, I was used to leaving, but before it was getting dragged by my parents place to place, this was me- leaving, me walking away.

I bit back the tears that were threatening to expose me. Jack and Alex looked at each other. I knew they were concocting something, I sat up and looked up at them nodding their heads looking ahead. I looked for what they were looking at but just saw road, my dad put on the turn signal and they both yelled out,

"JELLO!" and shoved me into the window, everyone in the car erupted in laughter. The tension that kept me so very still had dissipated me into a vibration of laughter. I let the tears fall out, they were mixed with happiness and sadness, excitement and disappointment. I felt insane.

We pulled up to the loading/unloading dock and we unloaded two large suitcases and a backpack, which I slid on. I turned to see Alex and Jack hugging each other and pretending to cry. I slapped them and my dad called out my name. My mother was solemnly taking pictures of everything.

"Come here baby, I can't park here so this I'll circle around, but I'm gonna miss you so much," he said pulling me into his embrace. I smiled and hugged him tightly, "Make me proud Ava, I love you," He said kissing the top my head. I whispered that I loved him back and he smiled. He dropped his arms and got into the car.

"Shit, you're gonna miss your flight," my mother said checking her watch and taking another picture quickly. We checked in the bags and I said goodbye to my brothers and Alex's mom. My mother tucked my hair behind my ear and kissed my forehead.

"I love you, I can't believe you're all grown up," She said tears lining her eyes as she perched her fingers under my chin. I laughed as she made one more request to date Alex and I shook my head walking back to the band walking with me in the security line. Luckily it was a really long line, Alex was joking about getting strippers at every tour stop.

"Lovely!" I laughed, Jack stayed solemn and off in his own mind. The line ended and I got very loving hugs from each of them. Alex didn't let go and I squirmed to get out of it. Soon, he was on the floor holding on to my leg calling out wildly.

"No! Don't go! Or Take me with you!" Earning some disapproving looks from everyone else in the line. I helped him up off the ground and he kissed the tip of my nose bring it back to a serious goodbye. "I'm gonna miss you Brody, call me when you land. I love you," he said in an intimate whisper. I was literally blinking back tears.

"I'm gonna miss you," I said, as a tear slipped from my eye. Now I was overwhelmed in silence and it was just really awkward. I turned to Jack who hugged me and asked for them for a moment alone, which of course meant that everyone else in the line was eavesdropping.

"Ava, I really care about you," He began, but I could tell from his tone that there was nothing good coming from this speech.

"But," I said waiting for him to come out with what he was going to say.

"But, I don't think I can do a long distance relationship," He said, I heard a couple of people in the line behind us gasp. I couldn't fight this, I knew in his heart he had already decided this. A burly security guard cleared his throat and waved for a boarding pass and a I.D., tears were free flowing and I thought of so many things to say 'don't do this', 'I think I love you', or 'I can stay then'.

"Nice timing Jackass," was all that came out. I turned around and gave him my boarding pass and he nodded letting me go. I saw Alex on his tip-toes looking over the line and smiling brightly until he saw my face. Jack turned around and got a couple of looks from women in line.

"Ava!" Alex called out trying to get my attention. I faked a smile and waved with just my fingers and put my backpack on the conveyer belt and took off my converse, my bare legs had goosebumps. I had on some khaki shorts and white tank top and a cardigan, prepared for Phoenix. "No wait, Ava!" He yelled, this time I didn't look back. I couldn't, I collected my things and an old woman who was behind me in the security line passed me a packet of tissue. I let out a sobby laugh.

"Thank you," I said taking one and then handing the pack back to her.

"Oh no, dear you can keep it," she said sweetly, as she slid back on her slippers and walked elbow with her husband away. I hated being pitied, but I looked at the tissues with cats fighting with each other and laughed a little, tears still flowing, I'm sure people were avoiding me and I blew my nose. I turned off my cell phone after denying a call from Alex.

I walked calm and collected to terminal and got sat in the window seat, I felt a bulge in my pocket and reached into see it. It was a note Jack had written me in class, more of a doodle, complete with highlighter on his stripes. I let out a little laugh. It was me and him holding hands next to a steamy car. I grabbed for my fighting cats tissues and bawled the entire flight, takeoff, landing and taxing. I felt really bad for the guy sitting next to me who looked back and forth conflicted on whether or not he should talk to me.

I grabbed my suitcases from the baggage claim and cried some more from them being to heavy for me to carry. A nice young man came up and grabbed one of them for me.

"Need some help?" He asked, he had sympathy in his eyes and also completely platonic intentions, because no one wants to fuck a crazy girl.

"Thank you so much," I sighed, something was going right today.

"Anytime, where are you heading to?" He asked looking around, to mimic what I was doing. I was looking for a tall brunette with skinny legs, there were lots of those. Good job Katie, I thought maybe he might have a sign or something.

"I'm supposed to meet a guy here, my friends boyfriend, I've never met him, but he's tall has brown hair and skinny legs," I said still scanning. I met the stranger's hazel eyes and he chuckled, "her description, not mine," I laughed.

"Is his name Kennedy?" The strangers asked. He was tall and skinny with long mousy brown hair and a green v-neck and skinny jeans. He had on the brightest hoodie I'd ever seen.

"How did you know that?" I asked looking up him skeptically. Katie had to get her eyes checked if this was him.

"Kenny!" The stranger called out and a tall brunette turned around and sighed with relieve, "I found her!" He nodded down to me and I grabbed another tissue and wiped under my eyes trying to seem somewhat nice. I saw the stranger look at my tissues and laugh.

"Don't make fun, they actually make you feel better when you're crying your eyes out," I said sarcastically and he grinned, he had a really pretty smile.

"No, I have the same pack at home," He said with the same amount of sarcasm.

"Ava?" The tall lanky boy asked, he had dirty hair that was relatively long, he hadn't shaved in a while and was wearing the same skinny jeans as the stranger. He had on a glamour kills hoodie on which I was a little confused, since it was Arizona and summertime.

"Kennedy?" I asked in the same voice. He sighed and looked so relieved, since he was here even though the flight was late I assumed he was running out.

"Thank God! Katie would've killed me if I lost her best friend," He said taking my bag and walking me to a bag. I laughed as John made a whip noise with the gesture with his free hand.

"The sad thing is that he's not kidding," I nodded with a happy smile, my nose was still dripping from my sloppy emotions and I blew my nose once more before getting into a silver 4Runner.

"I know, that's why I'm a lone wolf," The stranger said cockily smearing a crooked smile across his slightly broken out skin. I let out a small laugh.

"That and because Rachel Myers spread a rumor that you have herpes, so no girl wants to touch you," Kennedy shot him down and this time I couldn't hold in the laughter.

"I'm Ava Brody," I shook his hand stretching out the seat belt. He laughed and grabbed my hand and his slight blush dissolved.

"John O'Callaghan," he said and I shook it, I turned to Kennedy and he rolled his eyes gave me his hand.

"Kennedy Brock," I knew he was one of those guys who wanted to act composed in public, which was weird when he's dating Katie, who aside from being really clumsy and loud is also shameless. I laughed and took back my hand and returned to the back seat.

"You have a nice laugh," John said and I thanked him blushing slightly, there was moment of silence before John asked what they were both thinking, "so why were crying like twelve year old meeting her celebrity crush?" I let out a laugh and looked around awkwardly.

"Long story," I said looking up at John who had turned around and was looking at me. He smiled and nodded.

"I've got time," For sure reason, I had this feeling that we would be friends anyways since they were always hanging out with Katie, and more importantly for some reason. I trusted him, I took a breath and began my story and we drove to Katie's house.