Forever

A soft blanket was tucked up to my chin as I sat watching a movie with arguably the cutest person in the world, in my opinion.

Mia Toretto Vengeance.

Oh, and I’m forgetting Icky. He’s definitely cute too.

Have I mentioned his owner yet?

Yep. He’s not so bad either.

As if reading my thoughts, Zacky turned his head and tried to kiss my cheek, but I moved my face out of his reach. He frowned at me.

“Really, Lev, I don’t care if I get sick. It would give me an excuse to spend more time cooped up in here with you anyway.”

I sneezed, turning away from him. When my gaze returned to him, I sniffed and looked at him sadly. He had no idea how much I missed his tender gestures, but I refused to let him catch whatever I had. I’d been coughing and hacking and sneezing for almost two weeks now. This cold, or whatever it was, wouldn’t be going away any time soon, I reckoned.

“You’ll be down and out for probably three weeks or more, Zacky. I can’t do that to you.”

He brought his hand up to my face and as much as I tried to fight him off, he wouldn’t budge. I hadn’t so much as kissed him since I’d gotten sick, and it seemed like he couldn’t stand it any longer than I could and wouldn’t take no for an answer.

The doorbell going off stopped him before he had a chance to get close to me and he sighed, getting up off the couch and disturbing Mia and Icky’s light sleep. I knew it was only the early evening and not even dark yet, but they were just as tired as I was. With the curtains closed, it was even darker in here: perfect for a movie. I paused the movie and waited for Zacky to come back and tell me who our visitor was.

While I was waiting, I got a dry spot in my throat and began coughing harshly. When my little fit was over, I sniffed again and sighed. Mia and Icky wagged their tails and both hopped in my lap. I smiled and brought my arms out of the blanket to scratch them, knowing how much they’d love that.

“Who the fuck is in here hacking up a lung?”

I tensed, knowing that voice all too well. I had just spoken to him on the phone days before I got my cold, and he told me he thought he and his band would be getting a break from tour soon. He said the first thing he was going to do was come and visit me.

It was Jacoby.

There he stood in the entryway to the living room, in all his rockstar glory. I couldn’t help the smile that took over my face.

“That would be me.”

Tony and Tobin were right behind Jacoby, smiling at me in greeting. Jerry appeared with Zacky moments later.

Jacoby took a step in my direction, but Zacky shook his head.

“She won’t even let me go near her.”

“Is she sick?” Jacoby asked, concerned.

At this point in our ‘relationship’, it wasn’t weird for Jacoby to be worried about me. It wouldn’t even cause Zacky to raise an eyebrow because he knew that me and Jacoby were really close friends. Zacky thought that Jacoby and I had gotten over our feelings for each other by now, which should have been the case. I believed that Jacoby was over me since his flirting had become far less serious and his gestures were only friendly, but I knew I was far from over him.

Who knows if I ever would be.

“She’s had a bad cold for a couple weeks,” Zacky answered, looking over at me worriedly as I tried to take a deep breath through my nose, failing miserably.

Jacoby frowned at me, “You poor baby.”

His tone of voice and sad expression were strangely enticing, or maybe it was just the fact that it was him that turned me on.

Either way, I realized, I should not be thinking these thoughts at all, especially when my loving, caring, and devoted boyfriend was standing right there.

I glanced over at Zacky to see him with the same expression as before: worry for my health. He wasn’t the least bit concerned with Jacoby’s comment.

Hmm. Maybe it was just me.

I feel dirty now, like I need a shower. I haven’t even spoken more than…four words to Jacoby and I already feel like a tramp. It’s getting so bad…I can’t even stand to be in the same room with both of them at the same time anymore…

I suddenly jumped up from the couch, my womanly hospitality urges kicking in. I sneezed three times, the four houseguests politely replying in unison with ‘bless you’ each time, and forced my aching joints into the kitchen.

Zacky was quick to catch up with me, “Woah, there. Just where do you think you’re going?”

“I need to make food! We have guests!” I insisted.

He let go of me and stared at me, probably dumbfounded as to why I would care about feeding the Papa Roach guys. We all know they could care less.

It was just…an urge to cook for people. Time with Addison had become far too abundant over the past few months, it seemed.

Jerry chuckled as he, with the rest of the crew, followed me as I bustled around the kitchen, trying not to hack all over everything.

“She sounds so stuffy and nasally.”

Jacoby laughed. My eyes drifted to him, snapping back to the fridge when we made eye contact. I knew I couldn’t do that in front of Zacky, or I’d definitely have a problem on my hands.

“Look at me, I’m Levee! Ah-choo!” Jacoby plugged his nose with his fingers and fake sneezed. I gave him a look to show I was not amused with his impressions of me, though deep inside I loved his attention.

Zacky gave him a playful smack on the arm, “Don’t make fun of my woman!”

Something flashed across Jacoby’s face for a split second, but it was too quick for me to identify. He broke out into a smile.

“My bad.”

I observed him from the corner of my eye, seeing as his appearance had changed slightly since I saw him last. His hair was a bit shorter and instead of being gelled up, it lay flat and smooth against his head. His bangs, along with the rest of his hair, looked so fluffy and soft that I just wanted to run my fingers through it.

But that would be awkward, especially since I currently had dripping wet vegetables in my hand.

My thoughts drifted to all those times I would run my hands through Zacky’s hair. His was softer than Jacoby’s could probably ever be. It just slipped through my fingers when I would have my hands wound in his hair while he would be making sounds escape me that I never knew possible…

My head snapped up from the counter I was cutting tomatoes on and I looked around wearily, hoping no one caught me spacing off with dirty thoughts in my head. Relief washed over me when I realized Jacoby was the only one left in the kitchen and he was busy watching the large kitchen knife in my hand as it went down on the tomatoes.

I hadn’t been caught. Whew.

Voices drifted in from the living area and I assumed Zacky was chatting with Tobin and Jerry about whatever movie we were watching before their arrival. I faintly heard them mention Tony using the bathroom.

My eyes shifted back to Jacoby as I watched him watch me, which really wasn’t as awkward as it probably should have been. His light green eyes were now on my own as I continued to slice tomatoes for the pasta I was making.

He smiled lightly, “What ‘cha making us?”

“Nothing special, just spaghetti,” I replied, afraid of looking at him any longer for fear of being unable to stop.

I am such a terrible person. I really am.

“Ah,” he said. A tiny glance up at him showed that he resumed watching the knife. He must not like knives or something. He was watching it with extreme cautiousness.

Images of him and Zacky swirled through my mind, and I found myself drifting off. Not to sleep or anything, but just spacing off. It was obvious to me how hopelessly in love I was with Jacoby, though my love for Zacky was so much worse. Zacky could rip my heart out of my chest, stomp on it numerous times, and throw it into a garbage dump and I would still love him. The question occurred to me: could I ever be that way with Jacoby?

Sharp pain shot through my hand and I looked down to see red juice everywhere. Judging by Jacoby’s ‘Oh, shit’, I came to the conclusion that not all of it was from the tomatoes.

Too stunned to do anything but stare at my left hand like an idiot, Jacoby hopped up off his barstool and ran around the kitchen island and grabbed my hand, leading me to the sink. I allowed him to hold my hand under the water that was shooting down out of the faucet with enough force on my wound to bring me to my knees. Jacoby apologized and turned the water off slightly, it becoming a gentle flow cascading down my bleeding hand with a steady stream of red going down the sink. I tried not to blush too hard, seeing as he was actually holding my hand. Worry was written all over his face and body language.

“You should be more careful,” Jacoby mumbled. He, like me, was looking at the long cut on the palm of my hand as it oozed out more of my red lifejuice. Upon closer observation, I noted that if I would have cut any higher, I would’ve possibly lost four fingers on my left hand. I would’ve only had a thumb.

I should really not get distracted by Zacky and Jacoby. Stupid men.

Zacky chose that moment to walk in, his face immediately contorting into confusion. I hissed as the water poured itself into my wound again. My hand felt like it was on fire, partially from the cut and partially from Jacob’s touch.

“What’s wrong?” Zacky asked shortly, trying to look into the sink and see what Jacoby was doing that was causing me so much pain. It was kind of cute, actually, how he was kind of acting protective over me.

I dig that.

When he saw the blood trickling down the drain and Jacoby’s grossed out expression, his eyes widened in shock and he turned to me, going into Concerned Boyfriend mode.

“What the fuck happened, Lev? Are you okay? Shit, do you need to go to the hospital? That’s a fucking huge ass cut! How the fuck did you slice your hand open like that?”

I winced in pain again, a concentrated Jacoby mumbling an apology as he tried to wash out my cut some more.

A sneeze made its way out and Jacoby gave me another grossed out look. By the end of today I don’t how he’d be able to stand being around a sick, disgusting, accident prone freak like me. Zacky, on the other hand, could’ve cared less about my illness and lightly tapped Jacoby, gesturing to leave so he could be alone with me.

Jacoby nodded and gave me a smile, one that made my heart rate speed up, before he joined his fellow bandmates in the living room. Zacky frowned at me and took my hand in his own, resuming what Jacoby had been doing in washing my hand out. I groaned softly at the pain.

“I was cutting tomatoes up for the pasta and the knife just…slipped,” I said honestly. Though the feeling of Zacky holding my hand was nothing new, it still tingled at his tender touch.

“Just…be careful. I wouldn’t want to have to take you to the hospital,” he said, lifting his eyes to meet mine. He was referring to the first and only time he had ever taken me to the hospital for an emergency: the earthquake. I shivered slightly at the thought of it. Those mental, and physical, scars would never disappear.

“I know,” I said, sniffing up harshly. I hadn’t even noticed I was crying until Zacky reached up to wipe the tears off. The reality of the true pain I was in from the deep cut was starting to set in.

From the corner of my eye, I saw Jacoby leaning against one of the sides of the large doorway to the kitchen. He was watching me and Zacky.

The distance was too much for me to be able to tell what his facial expression read, but I could see that his arms were crossed, as was one of his knees over the other.

Zacky’s lips on my cheek shook me from my observing of Jacoby. Part of me wanted to tense at the fact that I knew Jacoby was watching, but the other part took over and I relaxed instantly at Zacky’s touch. Jacoby went back into the living room without a word and Zacky, despite my earlier adamant protest, captured my lips with his own. I frowned and tried to pull away, slightly peeved that he ignored my warning about getting him sick, but his stubbornness was too much for me. Jacoby and the strong ache of my wound were momentarily erased from my mind as I tangled my uninjured hand in Zacky’s hair and his tongue slipped into my mouth.

Such a fucking distraction, I swear.