Who Says Love Has to Be Left up to Fate?

I stepped on the tour bus and gasped when I took it all in.

“Shockingly big isn’t it.” Said Kevin climbing aboard behind me.

“Tell me about it Kev, I rather live here than in my house. I wouldn’t need to buy a car. Two for the price of one!”

“Actually this baby here probably costs more than both of those.” He said plopping himself down on one of the couches next to the already large group of boys that were there. This bus was big, but thirteen boys is still a lot, plus Gina, Frankie and me made fifteen. We couldn’t all fit in her. Could we? Right now even the couch was already full.

“Olive my lovely French hen, come sit on my lap. There’s always room for you,” This is Stephen speaking. Creepy Jake’s best friend.

“No thanks, I fine for now.” I would not sit on his lap in million years.

“Come on, didn’t them fancy Brits teach you any manners?” he continued with a lick of his lips. Gosh it so much more appealing when Joe does it.

“She said no!” said Joe intervening and sternly glaring at Stephen, “Dude, she’s not interested. Come on Olive, I’ll give you a tour of the place.” And he led me off with Stephen scowling after him and he went of and joined Jake on another couch. Not before giving the figure at Joe’s turned back and saying some kind of swear word.

“Are you even friends with those two?” I asked.

“Used to be, but they haven’t forgiven me and Joe for not backing them up with Hollywood records for their demo. Their not good enough.”

“Do they tend to hold a grudge,” I asked nervously.

“Like you wouldn’t believe. At least they decide to give up singing and focused on their boxing. Anyway… that’s the little ittibity kitchen, with the food. And through here is the beds, there’s ten.” Joe continued to show me the bus. It was massive, with three other couch areas.

“Wow! Impressive.” I heard a girl say from the front of the bus. It was Gina! I rushed back to the front of the bus and we hugged like long lost friends.

“Gina!”

“Hey sweetie, have you been a good little girl while I was gone. Demi told me to keep a sharp eye on you. She said and I quote ‘don’t let those wolves touch my Olive, she’s too innocent to know any better.’”

“There are wolves at the Rox?” Gina’s face fell and a rowdy cheer came from the group of boys.

“Olive, those, dudes over there, those are the wolves. Mama mia.” She said taking a seat and throwing her hands up in the air. Well how was I supposed to know? Wolves fit nicely in between dangerous cliffs and guns.

Nick jumped aboard and waved hello to Gina before quickly throwing open the fridge and grabbing an ice cold bottle of water. It was so hot today, but he was supernova. He whipped his mouth with the back of his hands and led me and Gina to a smaller sitting area where Joe and Frankie were already attacking the snacks. We settled down and started mingling with everyone and just generally hanging out. The Jonases had the coolest friends and they were hilarious; I lost like two inches of stomach by the time we arrived. We chatted, watched some movies with me sitting in Nicks lap and Gina in Joe’s. The Journey was long about ten hours, but it went by too fast. At some point in the afternoon I feel asleep in the most comfy laps ever. I could stay there forever. Happily ever after.
~~~

Gina watched Olive sleeping soundly in Nick’s arms and Frankie laying at her side his small fingers entwined in her long hair and sleeping also. She had missed Olive enormously over those three years she’d been gone, anyone that meets Olive once remembers her afterwards. Being with again and under these circumstances was mind blowing. Before hand she had never been close to the Jonas boys, aware that though she was just year younger than Nick, they had so little in common. Whereas now they had safely moved on to the close friend stage and while away, they had talked on the phone twice a day at least, and even more with Joe who asked her endless questions about Olive.

She stretched and leaned back and wriggled herself into Joe’s arms. She felt comfortable there, which surprised her, but not as much as it bothered her. She had a sweet boyfriend and she didn’t want do start falling for another piece of eye candy. Plus she loved watching Joe look at Olive. He’s eyes light up and he laughed harder with her than anyone else. She was good for him. She made him restrain his bad qualities and brought out his good.

But then there was Nick, who had asked Olive to sit with him and had barely let her get up since. Gina knew a lot had changed since she last saw these three together. These guys were more than obviously into her they were gaga, head over heels, love struck, windblown, crushing, in it deep and so on. Olive on the other hand she had no idea about, it’d be easier if Olive blushed or stuttered or even looked self conscious in front of them at some point, than Gina could tell who she liked more. Olive’s mind was a complex thing that tested the patience of most people, and not being one to rush thing she’d happily stay like this forever with the friendship of both boys instead of loosing the respect of one for the love of another. Gina knew she had to move things along.

“Hey Jake,” asked Gina to the bad boy type boy that was sitting with the other group of guys that had migrated over. “Did I just see you checking out Olive like, I don’t know, five times today?” She felt Joe tense all of a sudden and Nick stopped playing with his guitar. Good she had gotten their attention.

“Maybe, she’s worth looking at” he said surprised by the question.

“Not cool, what are you doing looking at Olive?” said Nick a tight laugh escaping his throat.

Joe didn’t even try to stay friendly. “Back off guys, Olive isn’t like those other girls you pick up at the clubs.”

“I was just answering a question, what’s your problem?” Jake said now even more interested in the conversation. To say he had checked out Olive was an understatement, all the guys had. Than again Gina had received a lot more. Small and pale she was like a white tigress in the Texan wilderness. Plus she had confidence.

“Plus what are you getting all protective for, Nick you’re too young for her and Joe you just had Annabelle,” said Stephen, another older dude like Jake and a friend of Kevin. Gina froze with their comments, Crap she thought Olive still hadn’t told them her real age. She was sure she had, because why else would Nick be into her. He didn’t normal go for the older women. Was he really that into her, even though he thought they had three years or so difference? Gina winced, Olive will pay for this in the long run, it’s going to come out sooner of later.

Nick and Joe didn’t answer and looked away unsure of how to answer that. Kevin spoke up “Olive’s like our little sister of sorts, it’s our rights to be protective.” Nick and Joe relaxed noticeably. Joe knew that he would have never been able to call Olive his sister, not with the way he felt around her.

“I was just asking,” Gina started again, “because well Olive is very smart but innocent. She’s never been with anyone, never been kissed.” Nick looked surprised at the news. “So be gentle with her okay boys. Don’t lead her astray.”

“Olive’s a virgin?” Gina literally growled, what was it with these boys and sex. “No way, she had no purity ring, so I thought a girl like her would have been plucked a long time ago.” This Jake guy really was starting to infuriate Gina. He had no right to have such a perverted gleam in his eyes. All the other boys at least had the politeness to try and hid their sudden increase interest for Olive.

“Back off right off, now all of you. Out!” said Gina fiercely. “Now, this is the girl’s and Frankie room, get out, let us sleep and don’t you dare even even day dream about Olive. Or even touch yourselves when she’s in the same continent as you.” The boys laughed and left the room.

“Calm down, little one,” joked one of the guys, “Olive’s not my type. To much sugar and spice for me, you though would do nicely.” Gina flushed and returned a teasing smile, gosh she needed to get away from these entire male model look a likes.

Joe stood to leave, kissing Frankie goodnight, he considered doing the same for Olive but he chickened out, after what Gina said.

He slowly walked out and tried to sort out his emotions. Why did his stomach lurch so much at the thought of all the other boys, except for Kevin, being into Olive. They were all single come to think of it, and he suddenly saw them as competition. He didn’t know who was his biggest competitor, maybe Stephen or Jake. Nick and his friends were too young for her so that took some pressure off. But now that he thought about it, Nick was always with Olive as well. It was weird though, Nick had never been into older girls before, why would he be into Olive. Joe decided to not concern himself with Nick but instead ask him for advice. Either way he had to act fast, if he was even going to act at all.

Back in the small room, Nick stood up carefully placing the unknowing Olive into Gina’s arms. He started leaving but Gina held him back.

“Nick, what are you thinking of?” he looked at her unsure how to admit his emotions, that had taken alarming proportions. “Here sit back down and talk to me, I know how to listen to people. Go on, I can tell something is confusing you.”

Nick wasn’t’ ready to openly admit to Gina what he knew he felt for Olive so he hesitated, but Olive was right Gina was like a barman. “Well this other day I made a list of the characteristic of my ideal person, as in girlfriend. I did it with Joe and he found it again laying around, and reading it over Joe said ‘That’s just like her, exactly like her, isn’t that strange?’ I don’t know who he was talking about and how he knew exactly who it described immediately. It took me sometime but I know who I thought of when I reread it a few times. I am certain. I don’t think it’s that same girl Joe though of, or else he would have asked her out by now. Normally Joe asks a girl he is into after maximum of two days.

My problem is I don’t feel ready to even ask her out, well that’s not really necessary since we see each other all the time. But admitting I like her- that I can’t do.”

Gina hid a smile. “Why not?”

“It’s too different this time. I normally move slowly and but I’ve just met her. Plus normally there are ways to know if she’s into me too. With the others I knew they liked me, here I don’t even know. Plus she’s older and I’ll look ridiculous. I know my parents are pushing me towards her, which is surprising considering the age difference. They are worried about my love life which, apart from being weird, proves the point that it’s a mess.”

“You should move fast Nick,” Gina said calmly. She hoped she was right in encouraging Nick to go for Olive. Joe would have to act on his own if he wanted her. “Olive is apparently a popular person on this bus. You saw the way the guys reacted when I told them Olive has never-"

“Who said anything about Olive?” he was deep red and his eyes kept darting from mine to hers.

“Your eyes did. Come on Nick, it’s easy to see. But better move fast bucko, I don’t know what’s going on in her head but I can tell you that she’s not going to reject you. I don’t understand you about that whole age thing anyway. You need to ask before one of your other perverted friends. Who are those two?”

“You mean Jake and Stephen? They are old family friends, and used to be Kevin’s best. But we sort of had a really terrible argument because we wouldn’t use our connection to get them singed by the record company. Their just not that good and we didn’t want to vouch for them. Well they took it hard and I can’t help feeling there are planning on getting back on us in someway for the ‘friendship betrayal’. We only hang out together still because our parents aren’t aware. They can be real annoying but they’re harmeless.”

“Humm. Well they seemed just then slightly interested. Watch them. I am going to nap as well Nick even if it’s only four.”

He left quietly and Gina slumped into her seat. She didn’t know what she had done or why she suddenly preferred the idea of Nick being together with Olive than Joe. But she hoped there was nothing selfish about it.

Olive had been into Joe Jonas from the start simply because she did tend to get attracted to older guys, but Gina was sure she and Nick would complement each other better. She just wondered if Joe would be able to accept it. She slowly fell into a deep sleep even if it was only four o’clock they had been on the road for eight hours. Alistair the driver said they only had two more to go. Just as she was drifting off she heard the curtain pull back and slow footsteps creep.

What she thought looked like Nick, leaned in and kissed Olive on the forehead with a lot of tenderness. She smiled sure that this proved that Nick was the right choice for Olive. Olive, Gina knew, was the type that needed to properly date someone before knowing if she could love them. So unless one of the boys dated her, Olive would never know who she liked more.

“Sleep well Olive,” he twirled her hair before he slowly crept out. “I need to stop doing this every time you fall asleep. Sweet dreams,” The curtain pulled back and light flooded in this time.

“Oh shit.” Thought Gina, when she saw Joe’s face, through her partly closed eyes. “This had to go and get complicated.”