Sing Me To Sleep

“Way to go, Jack,” Cassadee muttered bitterly at her best friend. “You are officially a douche bag. You’re a big bag of douche.

Jack glared at the short girl, who was scuffing her shoes along the sidewalk. She was walking beside him as they made their way slowly to All Time Low’s practise for tomorrow night. The late-June sun was low in the sky, and it cast an orangey glow over them – a kind of peaceful end to the day, when really it was more of a hectic end.

“Look…” But Jack didn’t really have anything to say. “Shut up.”

Cassadee scoffed and balled her small fists up. She let out a small scream of frustration and plopped herself down on the sidewalk suddenly. Jack stopped and stared at her.

“What the fuck are you doing?” Jack asked, squinting to avoid the suns rays. His heart sunk when Cassadee pressed her face into her knees, letting out a huge sob. So he’d just made Cassadee cry. Great. ‘A-fucking-plus, Jack. Cassadee, the girl with skin thicker than fucking George W. Bush’s skull, andyou made her cry.’

He sighed and quickly sat himself next to the crying girl, opting to wrap his arms around her shoulders awkwardly.

“Cassadee…,” he began, at a loss for words. So he said the only two he could think of. “I’m sorry.”

She shook her head and sniffled, pulling her head up to wipe at her face. Jack smiled at her softly, but she ignored it.

“I just… I’m not angry at you, Jack. You reacted badly but I just… I didn’t notice. How long has she even been doing this? There are scars on her arms for Christ’s sake! Scars, which look like they’ve been there a good few months. I’m her best fucking friend” - Jack bit his lip. Cassadee hardly ever swore properly – “and I didn’t notice.” Cassadee sniffed again. “I didn’t notice,” she whispered to herself.

“Cass, you can’t blame yourself for not noticing,” Jack told her, rubbing her arm. “None of us noticed. Not even Alex, and you know what Katy and he are like.” Jack laughed quietly, trying to ease the mood. Cassadee scowled and her eyes showed an emotion darker than before. Jack’s laugh trailed off as he eyed Cassadee warily. “Cass?”

“Alex. Did you know he’s a part of why she’s doing this?!” Cassadee burst out, staring fiercely at the skunk-haired boy. Jack’s eyebrows almost rose to his hairline.

“Alex? Why… I…,” he spluttered, confused. “Why would Katy do this because of Alex? Did he do something to her? I know he’s been a little distant since he started dating Lindsey, but I’m pretty sure they’re still friends, Cass.” Jack smiled reassuringly, but Cassadee was already shaking her head furiously.

“She’s in love with him, Jack. She’s in love with Alex, and that bitch Lindsey…”

“Whoa, whoa, whoa!” Jack said, interrupting Cassadee. “It’s not Alex’s fault, if that’s even true!” Jack scolded the blonde-and-brown haired girl. “Lindsey isn’t a bitch, either. I don’t care much for her, but she’s not a bitch, Cass. A little self-centred, maybe…”

Cassadee laughed humourlessly, pushing Jack away and standing up. Jack sat on the floor, still, and looked up at Cassadee, confused. Cassadee had a look on her face angrier than he’d ever seen her before, let a lone this afternoon. Jack didn’t like this new angry, sad Cassadee. She didn’t seem like the girl he knew.

“She is a bitch, Jack. She freaking bullies her, Jack. None of us knew! How has this all been happening without one of us noticing?! Katy’s ring? You know? Alex’s ring?” Jack nodded slowly, shocked at all this new information. He was seriously getting a migraine from it; there was so much. “Lindsey took it from her and flushed it down the toilet at school.” Cassadee nodded with an angry smile on her face when Jack’s face dropped. “She’s not a bitch,” Cassadee mimicked. “A little self-centred, maybe…” On that note Cassadee stormed away, leaving Jack sitting on the sidewalk.

Alex sat on the sidewalk outside Rian’s house. Jack was running late to practise, and they really needed to practise because tomorrow was Friday and Friday was the day of their gig and…

Alex took a deep breath and closed his eyes. He needed to stop himself from worrying too much. He really, really, really did not want to have a panic attack tomorrow night, or any time between now and tomorrow night. It would suck, hugely, and Alex wanted it to be their best gig yet. It was also the first time Lindsey would see All Time Low perform. The school had held a few months of testing, for something or the other. Alex didn’t really pay attention – academics weren’t his strongest point – but his and the guys’ parents had made the band stop playing gigs so that they could get their heads down and study. Alex had failed, naturally, and he was stoked to be able to play a gig again. He could feel the excitement filling his veins as the thought of being on stage floated through his mind.

And Jack mother fucking Barakat was going to ruin the perfect flow of this gig because that damn boy was always late!

“Hey,” Zack said in his quiet voice, brushing off the sidewalk before sitting next to his friend. “You still mad at Jack for being late?”

Alex growled, as if that were answer enough for Zack. Zack just sighed, and punched Alex lightly on the arm.

“Lighten up, dude. You’re gonna burst a vein or something. We’ll be fine tomorrow.”

Alex ignored the laid-back bassist and stared across the street. Zack sighed and got up, going back into Rian’s house. A couple of minutes later and none other than Jack Barakat came dawdling down the sidewalk, scuffing his shoes. Alex glared at the younger boy before standing up. Jack nodded at him, staring mostly at his feet, and missed Alex’s outraged expression.

“Where the fuck have you been, Jack?!” Alex asked, flicking the skunk-haired boy’s ear. Jack made an ‘ow’ face before looking up at Alex. His mouth formed an ‘o’ shape when he saw Alex’s expression. He hadn’t meant to be so late. The whole thing with Katy and Cassadee had taken a lot longer than anticipated, however, and, if he were being honest, Jack had taken his time getting here by dragging his feet along the sidewalk. He needed time to think, what with the nuclear bomb of information he’d received in the past couple of hours. His head still hurt, and he wasn’t actually looking forward to practising tonight. He wanted to get to the weekend so that he had time to sort this out with Cassadee and Katy. But no, he had to go to school tomorrow, and the gig after that.

He sighed loudly, forgetting Alex was there. He didn’t look impressed. Jack gulped, and quickly scrambled to make an excuse.

“I… My mom needed me longer than she first figured… I’m sorry, ‘Lex; seriously.” Jack gave his friend puppy dog eyes, hoping that would suffice. Alex’s face still remained like a raging storm cloud as he stomped inside Rian’s house and down into the basement. Jack pulled at the long stands of his hair at the sides of his head before following, although a little quieter.