You Rock Like Escape The Fate

We sat in the living room, me sitting on one couch with Max and Craig, and Hayley sitting on the other with Bryan and Ronnie. Leila was giving us a ballet performance, smiling excitedly. At the end, we all clapped for her, giving her a standing ovation. I bent down and gave her a hug. Ronnie ran to the kitchen for more coffee. Like that boy needed any more caffeine…

“Great job, sweetie!” I cooed. She laughed her adorable laugh.

“Thank you!!” she said. Hayley let out a deep breath and stood up, announcing that she was ready for her shower now that it was 3pm, no longer 2pm, and therefore officially safe to do so. I gave her a questioning look aand she sighed.

“The nightmare,” she clarified for me.

“Ah,” I said. “Well, don’t use the one in our room. Use the boys’ bathroom, it’s the first door on the right when you hit the top of the stairs,”

“What!? Why do I have to use the boys’ bathroom!? It’s gonna smell… like… man,” she whined.

“Our shower refuses, for some weird reason, to run hot water. Do you want to take a freezing cold shower like I did?” I explained. She shook her head no with wide eyes. “Okay, good. Besides, the shower in that bathroom is like, cut off from the toilet and sink portion of it, it’s like a sound proof, and therefore smell-proof, door! It’s actually sorta cool,” I told her.

“So, wait, does that mean I can sing in the shower as loud as I want, and no one will hear me!?” she squealed.

“Yep,”

“Yay!” she cheered, running straight up the stairs anxiously. We all laughed and Ronnie hyperly power-walked into the room and sat down, excitedly pouring the hot beverage into his mouth. That boy was way too much like Hayley in the energy department.

“So… uhm… is Daisy coming back soon? Oh and her friend… uhh…”

“Shannon?” I finished for the stuttering Max.

“Yeah, her! They comin’ back anytime soon?” Max asked with a nervous grin.

“I’m not sure…” I teased.

“Can you call and ask?” he persisted. “I mean, you took our cell phones, the least you can do I make some use of them!”

“Uhh, hello smarty pants, if I use any of your phones, Joe will get all mad about you talking to someone on your friking little vacation. That’s why I’ve been using the phone my uncle gave me,” I lied. In reality, I had to use that phone, because the police force is very intelligent, and if they somehow caught on our track, the first line they’d trace is our cellphones. Especially the boys’. I hated lying, I mean really I had become like best friends with Max, I really like Craig, and my friendship with Ronnie has improved, I didn’t wanna lose all that because of these stupid lies. I had to get info on Jason, and I had to get it now.

“Well, can you call her on it? Plleaasseee??” he pleaded. I chuckled and ruffled up his hair. Bryan looked very skeptical of my cellphone story.

“Okay, okay. Here,” I said, pulling out the phone and dialing Daisy’s number.

“Hello?”

“Hey Daisy, GUESS WHO!?” I yelled. I quickly put the phone to Max’s ear and he smiled when she yelled back, “WHO!?”

“MAXWELL GREEN!” he screamed back at her, causing us all (even Ronnie) to laugh. I took it back and put it on speaker to hear her reply. I could hear a shrill scream and Daisy groaned.

“You really shouldn’t have said it that loud…” she huffed as the screaming mimi’s voice came to the phone.

“MAX GREEN, OH MY GOD! WAIT, IS BRYAN THERE!?” the girl screamed. Ronnie looked very, very uncomfortable.

“I have to urinate,” he stated, before practically tripping over his own feet and running up the stairs to the bathroom. The boys’ bathroom.

“Yeah, Bryan is here, can you please not scream?” Max asked into the phone. I rolled my eyes, he was way too nice to his fans.

“Ohmygod!!! Daisy, why didn’t you tell me you knew ESCAPE THE FLIPPING FATE!? Oh hold up, is the ‘Max’ you’ve been talking about, THE Max Green!? Oh my god…” We heard her ask Daisy.

“Sorry for s-screaming, uhmm…. B-Bryan c-can I see y-you some time? I think you’re really h-hot,” Mystery Fangirl said. For some reason, this made me quitejealous mad, I mean come on, this is the first time you’re talking to the guy and you throw yourself at him, and over the phone!? I don’t think so.

“Uhm, no, he’s going to be busy. He has a girlfriend anyways, so just back off,” I said, a little too harshly. Max and Craig stared at me, jaws hung open, and Bryan just looked mad.

“Tell Daisy she can call us back when you’re not there to harass the guys, they’re on a vacation from squealy fangirls right now,” I finished, snapping the phone shut. Max had this particular half smile on his face, kind of like that I-know-something-you-don’t smile. I didn’t like it, not one bit. I ignored it as best I could.

“What the heck was that for!? I do NOT have a girlfriend, and she was being perfectly nice!” Bryan yelled at me.

“Dude, nice? That chick was insane!” Craig exclaimed, taking my side.

“Yeah, seriously, Bryan. I did you a favor!” I retorted.

“If anyone’s insane, it’s her,” he hissed, pointing at me. “and I told you not to call me that,” the boy spat. Geez, what the crap did I do to this kid to make him hate me that much? I wished Hayley was down here to back me up. Out of nowhere, we heard two very loud, deafening screams coming from upstairs.

Speakin’ of the devil…

We all ran for the stairs, scrambling up like crazy. I caught a glimpse of Hayley running into walls, wearing nothing but a bath towel and soaking wet, a hand over her eyes protectively. I was in the lead, Bryan behind me and then Max and Craig. Leila had been in the kitchen, drawing with her color crayons, so I assumed she was still down there ignoring us. Hayley was pretty much just screaming bloody murder about something she saw, dripping water from her hair all over the stairs.

Now, for those of you that aren’t aware, water + wood floor = slippery. Next thing I know, I’m slipping backwards on the stairs, arms flailing and time going in slow motion. Just as I thought my life would soon be flashing before my eyes, a strong arm caught me, keeping me from crashing to my doom at the bottom of the stairs. Everyone was frozen, including the soaking wet Hayley and a very discombobulated looking Ronnie, staring at me. I looked down at the hand that was tightly gripping my waist. A tattoo of a heart with wings on the right hand… Bryan.

“Whoa, thanks,” I muttered.

“Whatever,” he replied, pushing me away roughly and going up the stairs to ask Ronnie what just happened. I sighed and shook my head, going up to grab Hayley by the arm, shoving her into the room.And secretly trying to shake off the feeling it gave me to have Bryan’s arm around my waist

“What the heck just happened back there?” I asked. She looked absolutely traumatized. I turned around so she could put on her clothes.

“Well, you see… I went to… Ronnie was… I saw it,” she said in horror. I gasped.

“Oh god, you poor thing!”

“Well… I mean it wasn’t that bad,”

“HAYLEY!!!”

“What!? I’m sorry, I couldn’t help it! What’s worse is… He saw me in just the towel… ugh I felt so exposed…”

“Aww it’s okay, I’m sure he enjoyed it,” I said with an evil laugh. She slapped my arm and told me I could turn back around. Of course she was dressed in sky blue skinny jeans and a purple top.

“Favorite color outfit? Wow, someone’s out to impress,” I teased. Her eyes went wide.

“JESS THAT IS SO NOT FUNNY! I don’t like him like that, okay!?”

“Mhm, suurreee you don’t,” I said, winking. My phone went off and I answered quickly.

“Hola?”

“Hey, Lee, sorry about her. She’s Shannon’s roomie, and she had way too many RockStars to drink over the week, so she was hyper,” Daisy explained.

“It’s kay, Daiz. I overreacted anyways… sorry,”

“No worries, Jessi Girl,”

“Max misses you, ya know,”

“Oh yeah right, Leisl, like I’d believe that,” she scoffed.

“Daiz, you are gorgeous, of COURSE Max can’t get you off his mind! He sure talks about you a lot,” I told her. I could tell she was holding in a squeal. Hayley was listening to my side of the conversation with a smile.

“Look, Daiz, I need a favor,”

“Yeah?”

“Look up this guy; Jason Tambers. Get any and all dirt on him; criminal record, ex-girlfriends, what he eats for breakfast, anything. Get me everything you can find on him and come tell me next time I see you. Deal?”

“Absolutely, bestie. It’s no prob. I can tell this Jason guy is on his way to gettin’ a serious butt-whoopin’ from Miss Leisl Jessi James, Detective Girl!” Daisy exclaimed, laughing. She knew me too well. In the tenth grade, I tracked down the school’s gang of backpack thieves and caught them in action, on camera. I then showed it the whole school via the Multi-Purpose Room projector screen. After that, I became Leisl Jessi James, Detective Girl for the school newspaper.

“What’s so funny?” Hayley asked when I laughed.

“Eh nothing, she just called me Detective Girl again…” I reminded her, sending the three of us back into laughter.

A huge crash came from downstairs, causing me to stop laughing and drop the phone. I heard frantic yelling and started sprinting down the stairs as fast as my feet allowed me to. Hayley was hot on my trail as I made it to the bottom of the stairs, seeing a hot orange glow radiating from the kitchen. Hayley screamed and followed Bryan and Ronnie, who were hurrying a crying Leila out of the front door and away from the flames. I ripped the fire extinguisher from the wall and ran to the kitchen to see Craig slapping the flames with a rug and Max bringing a pot of water to the burning stove.

“NO! You two, get out!” I demanded. They looked at me skeptically and ran from the area, as I pulled the pin, aimed at the base of the fire, squeezed the triggert, and swept the extinguisher from side to side as the white chemical powder put the fire out. The flames licking at the cupboards and stove began to die away with the extinguishing agent. Smoke was billowing from the fire, and I raised the collar of my shirt up to cover my mouth and nose. I got it all the way from the floor up the ceiling and the orange glow was finally dissipating. After a another few moments or so, the fire was completely out. I choked and coughed, stumbling out of the kitchen and to the front door. I walked out to the porch, still coughing, to see Bryan, Hayley, Ronnie, Max, Craig, and Leila waiting nervously for me. I dropped the extinguisher to the ground as my best friend ran to me and squeezed me in a tight hug. The boys actually clapped for me, even Bryan reluctantly did so.

“Start opening windows or this place will smell worse than my grandmother’s feet,” I warned.

Only Day Two and it’s already a major meltdown…