Seize the Day

“Hey, Lacey-Lu,” said Brian, slyly. He slid closer to her in the booth, purposely nudging her with his elbow. “Nice necklace you got there.”

Lacey looked down at the silver pendant hanging to the middle of her chest. She touched it, and realized that he wasn’t talking about the necklace- but rather what it was hanging next to. She rolled her eyes, and moved closer to Johnny.

The group sat at a large table at Red Lobster, waiting for their food to arrive. Matt and Jimmy were flicking straw wrappers at each other from across the table, and one smacked Cady’s arm as Matt launched it too hard with his knife. Zacky looked over at her, and she smiled at him. He shot Matt a look.

“Sorry, Cade,” laughed Matt.

“Oh, you’re gonna pay for that,” replied Cady, pointing at him.

“Look out! She’s a madwoman!” shouted Jimmy. He threw his hands up in surrender.

Cady turned three shades of red as she felt all eyes in the restaurant turn to their table. Lacey looked around cautiously and sighed.

“Lacey, he’s not here,” whispered Cady as she leaned in close.

Lacey cringed a bit. “I know,” she said.

“Who’s not here?” asked Johnny.

“Don’t worry about it,” said Lacey. She waved her hand like she was waving away a fly. “Where are you guys staying?”

“We don’t really have place,” said Matt. “We probably were just going to stay on the bus and make sure more of our shit doesn’t get stolen.”

“You guys are welcome to stay in our dorm, if you want,” Lacey said. “You know, if it gets lonely,” she added, quickly realizing how weird it sounded to invite five older guys to stay where they sleep. She blushed a little.

“Thanks, milady,” said Brian. “I just might take you up on that offer, if you catch my drift.” He winked, making her laugh.

“Hey, B, why don’t you stop hitting on all the girls you meet?” said Johnny, visibly ticked off.

“I’m just joking, man,” Brian laughed. “Fuck, lay off!”

“He’s right,” Zacky agreed. “You hit on everyone. Remember that time you got drunk after the Christmas show and started hitting on my dog? That was not cool.”

“Hehe,” Brian chuckled. “I vaguely remember it.”

“I’m surprised,” said Jimmy, stroking his chin. “You seemed extremely drunk. How could you remember such an incident when you were more plastered than the walls of my Gramm’s house?”

“I have a complex mind, Jimbo,” Brian answered. He tapped his temple and said, “I may seem to have lost my mind, but on the inside I’m performing mathematical equations philosophers can only dream of.”

“Somehow I highly doubt that the man who uses sex wax on his guitar can perform anything more mathematically complex than two plus two,” Matt said.

A waiter approached the table as the group burst into laughter. He looked angry at them for being so loud, so he set their plates down and walked away. Lacey picked up her fork and began twirling a piece of shrimp around in her pasta. It smelled wonderful, but her appetite was lost. Cady looked at her, knowing what was wrong, but she didn’t say anything.

“Hey, everyone!” Jimmy said loud enough for the whole restaurant to hear. “Syn’s got crabs!”

Matt, attempting to drink, snorted and spewed his water everywhere. He and the rest of the guys burst into fits of uncontrollable laughter. Cady slammed her head down on the table. How could guys so famous be so immature?

Brian picked up his crab legs and laughed. “Dude, my crabs are dripping!” he laughed.

Cady pounded her head on the table a few times, and Lacey rolled her eyes. It was going to be a long night.
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Zacky was sitting on the end of Cady’s bed when Lacey woke up. He was playing a short rhythm on Cady’s guitar. It wasn’t like the extravagant Avenged Sevenfold solos or riffs. It was simple, yet it was smooth and comforting, like a lullaby. His eyes were closed. He was playing without looking. He was letting his fingers do the thinking, and it sounded amazing.

Lacey sat up, and her bed creaked. Zacky’s playing stopped. He looked up at Lacey.

“Cady went to class,” he said. “I was just”-

“It sounded beautiful,” said Lacey. Her voice was raspy as it always was when she woke up. “Keep playing.”

“Oh, um, okay,” replied Zacky, readjusting the guitar. He resumed playing, but it wasn’t the same. He knew someone was listening now. He was trying to perform instead of create.

Lacey pulled back the covers. She was in her black, skin-tight tank top with the little pink hearts on it and her boy short pajama bottoms that matched. She sat down on the floor by Zacky’s feet, her knees drawn up to her chest. She closed her eyes and just listened to what he was playing. It was still a lovely song. She felt drawn in, and she took a deep breath.
There was a knock on the door. Both Zacky and Lacey looked up.

“Who is it?” Lacey called out.

“The Spanish Inquisition!” replied a voice attempting to imitate a Spaniard.

“Goddamnit, Syn, get your ass in here,” sighed Zacky.

“What up bitches?” said Brian, pushing through the door. He was followed by Johnny and Jimmy. “Oh, did we interrupt something?” He eyed Lacey’s attire and grinned.

“Nothing at all,” replied Lacey quickly. “Hey, Johnny.”

She stood up and walked over to Johnny. She hugged him, and he hugged her back. She liked the way his hands fit around her waist. She liked the smell of his skin. She liked the shine in his eyes when he saw her and the smile that crossed his lips when she spoke. She liked everything about him.

“Whoa! PDA! Get a room, Christ!” shouted Jimmy, shielding his eyes and hiding behind Brian.

“We’re in a room, Jimmy,” Lacey giggled. “You just need to get out of it.”

“Oh-ho! Burnage!” laughed Brian.

Zacky stood up and put the guitar down. “Anyone up for lunch?” he asked.

“Cady’s class gets over with in ten minutes,” said Lacey. “We could meet her outside the building and go somewhere. Where’s Matt?”

“He’s dealing with campus security,” said Jimmy, walking into the room and picking up a multicolored scarf.

“That’s right over by Cade’s class. We could meet them both over there.” Lacey went and sat on her bed. “I’ll need to get dressed.”

Brian shrugged. “Okay, what are you waiting for?” he asked. “Go ahead.”

Lacey stared at him.

Zacky began exiting the room, grabbing Brian and Jimmy’s shirt collars and dragging them with him. Johnny smiled at Lacey and said, “We’ll be waiting out here, baby girl.”

“Be out in a sec.” Lacey shut the door and sighed. To herself, she said quietly, “My God, Lace, what have you gotten yourself into?”
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Cady was standing next to Matt when Lacey and the guys approached her. The two were laughing at a joke, making Zacky say, “What’s so funny?”

“Matt was telling me about his dog,” snorted Cady.

“Bella’s pretty weird,” agreed Brian.

Zacky noticed a strand of Cady’s hair hanging oddly by her shoulder. He reached over to move it, but he accidentally groped her boob.

“Oh my fucking god!” he exclaimed. “I’m so, so sorry! I didn’t mean to, I swear”-

“Zacky, it’s fine,” laughed Cady. “It’s not a big deal.”

“Yeah,” said Lacey. “Her ex-boyfriend used to do it all the time and she loved it!”

The guys all laughed, but Cady’s face turned bright red.

“Well, at least my ex-boyfriend wasn’t a controlling jerkoff and a complete douchebag!” she yelled. She gasped, covering her mouth. She immediately regretted say it.

Lacey felt her face getting hot and tears began to flow from her eyes. Everyone was staring at her. She turned and ran back toward the dorms.

“Lacey!” screamed Cady. “Lacey!”

Cady looked around at all the guys, and she ran after her friend.