Lost In The Stereo Sound

Natalie's POV:
"Hello?" I muttered into my cell phone on an obscenely early Saturday. Its ringing had woken me up from my deep, drunken sleep.

"NATTY!" Jack shrieked on the other end of the phone. The fucking kid sounded like he'd been up for hours. Rubbing my tired eyes, I glanced at the clock on my nightstand and saw that it was nearly two in the afternoon. Like I said, obscenely early on a Saturday.

"Fuck you," I mumbled.

"Aw, Nat, I love you as well," Jack replied with a smile in his voice.

"So, why the fuck did you wake me up?" I said sitting up in my bed. I immediately regretted it as soon as I felt dizzy and nauseous.

"To inform you that you are to be ready to go out at four," Jack stated.

"Oh, really?" I asked with a snort.

"Yes, really," Jack insisted. "Don't be late, bitch."

"Whatever," I said clicking the END button on my phone.

How in the world could I be this hungover? Wait, the tequila shots from last night that Alex and Jack kept feeding me were coming back to me in an awful way. Swallowing hard, I looked over at my nightstand. Drunk me decided that I should have some Advil waiting with a bottle of water. Good call. Quickly, I downed the bottle of water and pills and crawled back into bed and set my alarm for an hour later. I swear, I fell asleep the second my head hit the pillow.

An hour or so later, I awoke to the vibrations of my phone.

Nat, I hope you're awake and getting ready... Alex.

What the hell do you and Jack have planned for me? I replied sitting up in bed.

Secret, babe. See you in an hour! Alex responded a minute later.

Shaking my head at the thought of all of the possible shenanigans that the boys had planned for me today, I stripped my clothes off and stepped into the shower. When I was finished, I grabbed some mousse and carefully put it in my hair. I hurried over to my closer and pulled on some underwear and a bra. Surveying my options, I decided on a white sundress with a pale blue vest and some cowboy boots I'd bought the week earlier. Slipping off my bra, I pulled the sundress over my head. Bra straps always looked tacky with a dress like this. I braided two strands of my hair and tied them back around my head together to resemble a crown. I walked back into my bathroom and decided I should probably wear a little make up because the white needed an accent. I found some charcoal eyeliner in the bottom of my makeup bag and applied it with a little mascara. My eyes appeared smoky and I liked it. With a few sprays of Vera Wang's Princess, I grabbed my dark brown shoulder bag and headed downstairs for some breakfast. The time was nearing four so I decided on a bowl of Lucky Charms. I sat down at the table and saw a note that my mother had written earlier that morning about how she would be running errands all weekend in New York. She was an interior designer, so that really didn't phase me. There are always new fabrics and carpet swatches to keep track of and New York certainly would be plentiful with that. Like clockwork, my doorbell rang at four exactly.

"Well, you look abso-fucking-lutely hot," Alex smirked as I opened the door. "Holy shit, Nat."

"Uh, thanks, Gaskarth," I said making a 'you're crazy' face at him. "Now, do you mind telling me where we're going?"

"No, not really," Alex said grabbing my hand as I stepped out my front door.

"You're a real pain in the ass, Alex," I sighed as I sat down in the passengers seat of his car.

"Thanks, babe," Alex said flashing a mega-watt smile.

"You do know that I can figure out where we're going because I can see, right?" I retorted.

"No you can't," Alex said smirking like an asshole.

"Yes, I can-"

In a swift, evil, motion, Jack popped up from the backseat of Alex's car and wrapped a bandanna around my eyes so that I couldn't see a thing. Jack also bound my hands so I couldn't untie it.

"What the fuck, Jack!" I yelled.

"Yeah, Nat, don't even think about trying to count the turns or anything because I'm going to drive in a few circles first," Alex said mischievously.

"I swear to god, take this thing off my eyes or you're not getting any for an entire month," I said getting desperate. I hated surprised.

"Oh, please," Alex scoffed with a laugh. "You love sex as much as I do. And that being said, there's no way you'd be able to last a month. Am I right?"

"No comment," I scoffed.

"So, if you're not fucking Alex, can we fuck?" Jack asked innocently from the backseat.

"Hell no," Alex said a little too quickly.

"It was a joke, chill, man," Jack said with a nervous laugh.

An hour and a half later, we arrived at what I could only assume was downtown Baltimore. I mean, it had to be because the smell was the same as I remembered.

"I hope you don't think that you can walk me down the street blindfolded," I said as we came to a halt.

"Watch us," Jack said with a giggle.

"I hate you both," I sighed.

Ten minutes of walking later, we stopped walking and I could feel the ground move below my feet. I reached out quickly and grabbed Alex closely. Water had always been my biggest fear since I was a child and almost drowned. I grip tightened and my heart started to race.

"We're here!" Jack shouted.

"Ready, Nat?" Alex whispered in my ear. I nodded and breathed deeply.

Jack untied my blindfold and I immediately heard screams of "Surprise!" ring out as I struggled to blink my eyes. As they adjusted to the sunlight, I saw all of my friends. Secondary to that, I noticed that we were on a fucking boat. I turned to face Alex and he just smiled.

"You did this for me?" I asked not understanding his intentions.

"Yeah, babe. It is your most important birthday, Nat. You know, now I can't get arrested for statutory rape," Alex said smirking. He leaned down and kissed my nose.

"I love you," I said with a gigantic smile. How could I forget that my birthday was today. I guess I'd been so preoccupied with college stuff that I'd completely forgotten about it.

"Natalie," Rian said from behind me. I turned to face him and he held out a keg. "This is from Kara and I."

"Aw, thanks guys!" I said hugging them both.

"Well, we know you love doing keg-stands and it's good practice for college," Kara winked.

"True," I said looking over at Alex. His face fell and turned to talk with Jack about something.

"And, I got you a bottle of Malibu," Zack said presenting the white bottle of deliciousness.

"Well, since you're going to be without me all year in college," Jack said coming over to me with a brown paper bag, "I figured I'd get you some Jack to keep you company." I opened the bag and saw a bottle of Jack Daniels.

"How thoughtful!" I said hugging him around the neck. God, I was going to miss him.

As various other people presented me with gifts, I noticed a trend. The majority of them were alcohol bottles. Feeling generous, I offered all of it to the boat. A few hours later and it's safe to say that we were all relatively trashed. At this rate, I'd be able to drink like a pro at college next year. My poor liver.

"Babe," Alex said coming up to me with a cup of beer in his hand. "Want to go to dinner?"

"Sure," I said with a smile. "When are we going to be back at the dock?"

"We already are, Nat," Alex said with a chuckle. Looking around, I realized he was right. Oops.

It was nearing dark and Alex helped me off the boat. I wasn't as drunk as everyone else, but I definitely was in the happy state of buzzed. Alex seemed relatively sober.

"Are you alright?" I asked him as we walked down Thames Street to a small Italian restaurant on the water.

"Yeah," he responded flatly.

"I can tell when you're not," I said squeezing his hand.

"I know," he said with a small smile.

"You can tell me," I said.

"I just feel like I'm not good enough for you," he suddenly blurted out. "You're going to a top 25 college and I'm the idiot kid who wants to be a fucking rock star."

"Don't think like that, Alex," I said getting angry. "We're both doing things that make us happy. It just happens that your path is very different."

"But what if I fall flat of my face and we're just a giant fucking failure?" Alex said in a small voice I'd never heard him use.

"Then you failed," I said plainly. "But that's a hell of a lot better than going to college and taking the traditional route and always wonder what would have happened if you'd chosen music over education."

"You're right," Alex said putting his arm around me and kissing the top of my head.

"Plus, mark my words, you guys will be amazing," I said smiling up at him.

"Thanks, Nat," he said as we walked into the restaurant.

A giant bouquet of purple hydrangeas was sitting on a chair to the left. The host smiled when he saw us and led us over to the table with two menus.

"You remembered I love hydrangeas!" I said admiring them.

"Aren't you proud?" he said sitting down across from me.

Our meal consisted of the best Italian food I'd ever eaten and some very sober conversations about various topics.

"I'm so fucking full," Alex said as we exited the restaurant.

"Me too," I agreed. "What now?"

"Now? Well, now we check into the prettiest suite at the Marriott," Alex said with a smirk.

"But I don't have anything," I said wrinkling my eyebrows.

"Actually, your mother took care of that," he said with a smile.

"Holy shit, Gaskarth, you're good at this," I said impressed with Alex's sneaky skills.

We walked down the street to the Marriott that we'd stayed at over prom weekend. Alex presented his fake ID to the concierge and they handed over the room keys.

"Enjoy your luxurious stay," he said with a blank stare.

We ascended in the elevator and the higher we rose, the more anxious I got. We got to the top floor and walked out of the elevator and into the most beautiful suite I'd ever seen. It was lit by the dim light of candles and smelled of roses. I gasped as I walked around the room. I headed to the bedroom and saw the bed with red rose petals arranged in a heart.

"I might have lied and said that this was our honeymoon," Alex said with a laugh, "but it was totally worth it to get a free upgrade."

"You're a bastard," I replied as I walked over to the minibar and pulled out two small bottles of champagne. "I love you nonetheless."

"Well, that's given," he said grabbing two glasses and pouring our bubbly into it.

"To... us," I said holding up my champagne flute.

"Shut the fuck up, Natalie," Alex said putting his hand over my mouth. "I get to make the toast because it's your birthday." I rolled my eyes and he cleared his throat. "To the most amazing girl I've ever met. You've made me a better person and I love everything about you. Don't ever change, Nat."

"I won't," I said rolling my eyes at him after I'd take a sip, er, gulp, of champagne.

"Good," Alex said grabbing my head and walking me into the bedroom. "God, this shit is gay," Alex said gesturing the rose petals. he ripped off the comforter and shook it out over the floor and brought it back with an accomplished look on his face.

"Well, that's one way to do it," I laughed.

"Come here, Natty," Alex said plopping down on the bed and kicking his shoes off.

I smiled and settled next to Alex.

"To be completely honest with you," I said after a few minutes of silence, "if someone were to tell me I'd be dating someone right now last year, I'd probably laugh in their face."

"Uh... thanks?" Alex said sounding confused.

"No, I mean that you're something special, Alex," I said hitting his chest.

"I know, babe," he said turning to face me.

We just stayed there staring in each others eyes for a few seconds before he closed the gap between our faces. Gently, he kissed my lips lightly. He knew that within seconds, I grab the back of his head and press my lips against his forcefully because I couldn't handle that. And as if on cue, I did. One of his hands roamed to the back of my head as he kissed me and the other went to my back. I wrapped my leg around his body as we continued to kiss passionately. His hands gently removed my vest and started to work on the many buttons on the front of my dress as I slid his shirt off. Finally, he finished unbuttoning my dress and exposed my bare chest. Alex started to kiss my neck as I worked on his belt buckle. He lightly kissed his way down to my chest and started to kiss the area between my breasts. Getting anxious, I tugged his jeans down to his ankles as he kicked them off and over the side of the bed. As our breathing became heavier, he hands traveled all over my body. As cliche as it sounds, my skin felt like it was on fire wherever he touched me. His touch was gentle, yet hungry, as if he couldn't get enough of me. As he kissed my neck, I pulled his underwear down as he did the same to me. The dim light allowed me to see his face. He looked at me with a questioning look and I nodded. Not a second later, he entered me and I stifled a cry. We moved in rhythm with each other and everything was perfect in that moment.

"Holy shit," Alex said collapsing next to me an hour or so later. His breathing was labored and his face was dripping with sweat.

"I know," I said trying to catch my breath.

"You really are too good for me, Nat," Alex said staring up at the ceiling.

"Not a chance," I replied.

"Seriously. You're amazing at everything you do. You're the only girl I know that can keep up with me while drinking, you get along with my friends like you've known them as long as I have, you are super smart, you are strong-headed, you have the same humor I do, you're confident but not cocky, and you're fucking amazing in bed," Alex concluded.

"That sounds pretty normal to me," I said with a laugh.

"You're one of a kind, Nat," Alex insisted. "Believe me."