Head on Collision

Jack’s POV

As Zack and a bunch of others, including reassuringly some police officers I followed Alex outside of the auditorium. I stopped on the top step and glanced around the parking lot that opened up in front of me. I spotted Alex about half way across it, in the middle of the seniors lot. With his back to me I could see that he had his cell phone pressed his ear. I approached slowly, not wanting to frighten him. I wrapped my arms around him from behind and popped my chin over the shoulder on the side he didn't have his phone on.

“Thank you,” he told the person on the phone. “I’ll see you soon.”

“Babe?” I asked.

“My mums just coming to get me,” he said pulling out of my grasp. He turned to face me. His eyes were red, his cheeks tears streaked.

“Okay,” I smiled trying to get him to smile back. To no avail. I pulled him into another hug. He wrapped his arms around me this time; tucking himself tightly against me.

“I'm just going to go home,” he said; his voice muffled a little by the fabric of my tshirt. “I can’t be here Jack. I can't come to terms with what just happened, with everyone finding out like that.”

I held him a little tighter. He was still shaking, trembling. If it wasn’t warm out I’d think he was just shivering.

“That's okay,” I rubbed at his back trying o comfort him the best i could. I didn’t know what to say to make him feel better. I couldn’t fix this. Only time would. “I'm pretty sure I saw Mr Chapman and Mrs Coleman sort of converge on Chris. And Zack and Rian are so pissed I wouldn't be surprised if an ambulance pulls up.”

Alex pulled back again.

“What ever happens,” He sighed. “Remember I love you Jack.”

“And I love you,” i pressed a kiss to his forehead and this time he actually did shiver. “Nothing will change that.”

I squeezed him back into a hug. Behind me i heard movement. I looked over my shoulder, watching students start to come down the back steps of the auditorium. Just as they started to approach, Isobel pulled up behind Alex in her car.

“I can't deal with everyone Jack,” Alex grabbed both my hands in his. “Not now.”

“That’s what I’m here for,” I have his hands a squeeze and smiled at him. “I’ll do it.”

“You don't have to.”

“Hush. Yeah I do,” I replied. “You’re the love of my young life.”

“What does that have to do with it?” Alex asked. His eyes were trained on the approaching group behind me. I shifted a little to catch his eye.

“It means i stick up for you,” I shrugged. “This is our problem. Not just yours. You’re my boyfriend. I’ll talk to everyone.”

“Okay,” he nodded and started to pull away. “Thank you.”

“You’re welcome,” I let his his hands go. “I’ll talk to you tomorrow.”

“Bye Jack,” Alex looked me in the eye.

“See you tomorrow or something.”

Alex didn't answer me. He just bit on his lip, hesitating a little before crossing the drive way and hopping in his mums car and driving away.

“Is he alright?” Little Emily Rose asked. I turned to face the group standing around me.

"I think so," I told her honestly. "He's just really shaken about what just happened. It was a big secret that he didn't expect to come out like this."

"Chris is being arrested. For trespassing, for tampering with private equipment and all that," Zack told me. "Asshole."

"Did you guys know?" One of the guys from Maggot Death Cockroach asked us. "Did you guys know about Gaskarth's brother?"

"Yeah, we knew," I answered.

"That's fucking heavy dude," he continued. "I remember when news got out about my little sister going the same way. I was fucking terrified."

"I had no idea," I said sympathetically. "I'm sorry."

"It's alright," he shrugs a shoulder. "I just remember being scared I wasn't going to have anyone to talk to. Like I'd lose all my mates and shit."

“That’s what happened to him before," I looked around at the every growing crowd around us. "He's lost all his friends before. In England, I don't know if I should be telling you this. All of you, but I feel like I should."

"Tell us what?" Mrs Coleman stepped out from between the hoards of students.

I looked at her sort of surprised. God, even she was here. I looked around at the crowd of students around me. Cheerleaders, jocks, kids i knew just by their faces from my classes. From the years below and above and teachers. Fuck there were teachers here. If i said this, if i told them everything that Alex had told me, the whole fucking school would know. I swallowed nervously, rubbing the back of my neck. I took a deep breath before continuing.

"The reason Alex moved here to Baltimore in the first place was because everyone in Essex knew," I started. "Everyone found out about Alex's brother. Daniel’s friends blamed Alex. Some of what Chris was saying tonight was actually true. About Alex's success, about Daniel feeling down about it. That was all true, but he was sick. He wasn't a happy young man and the pressures put on him by his teachers, coaches and friends just became too much. But Alex was blamed for it it all, just because he was so good at this music thing. That’s what everyone saw. Alex excel and Daniel fall out of good graces and because of that Alex lost all his friends. They didn't want to be involved with someone like that. Someone who apparently contributed to Daniels decline."

"What the fuck?" Zack interrupted. I looked at him. He looked so pissed off. ”That’s the stupidest thing I've ever heard."

"It gets worse," I sighed. I hated this part of the story. ”They saw him as a suicide risk. Because his brother had died that way they thought it was only a matter of time before it was Alex's turn. He had a girlfriend too. She broke up with him three days after Daniels death. Called Alex a ticking time bomb. She told him she didn't want to be the cause of him losing himself. She didn't want to be the reason he committed suicide too.”

I glanced around at my class mates. Some of the girls were crying, the guys looking at the ground.

"I need you guys to not be like that," I asked them desperately; pleading even. I needed them to get this. I needed them to not act like those assholes in England had been. I felt myself getting choked up just thinking about losing him. Zack laid a hand on my shoulder; Rian on the other side. The girls stood to either side creating a sort of front against the rest of the school. I was so fucking thankful for my friends. ”I need you guys to not change. Offer your condolences maybe but don't turn your back on him. He's not like that. I promise he’s not.”

"Why would we do that?" Emily Rose asked, wiping her cheek with the back of her hand. "We've all got secrets; things we don't want people to know for reasons I can guarantee are very similar to Alex's. We can't condemn him for that. We can’t. Alex is such a good guy. He helped me out heaps of times with my music and with my chemistry homework.” I smiled at that. My little nerd. “I couldn’t see him in any other way then how i already do. As an absolute sweetheart and just a generally good guy.”

The classmates around Emily started nodding in agreement with her. People shouting out, 'she's right' and 'nothing will change.' I felt overwhelmed. Here was this school I always hated because i thought everyone was an asshole, that everyone only cared about themselves. But I was wrong. Chris Stanley was the asshole, his cronies were assholes. But everyone else, everyone standing around me and my friends promising that nothing was going to change are definitely not. Emily stepped up and wrapped her arms around me and i hugged her tightly.

"Thank you guys," i told them over the top of her shoulder. "Thank you guys so much."