Status: Complete

Every Time You Fall Apart You Can Hide Here In My Arms

Condoms and birth control; gifts from God.

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"Matty, you're such a dork! Don't you dare spray that hose!"
Ten year old Austin Barker had screeched like a banshee and did her best to stay away from him as he sprayed the cold water straight from the hose at her. He got her good once. Her light blond hair clung to her shoulders and back as she turned around and stared at him in shock.
"Sorry," Matt had grinned and set the hose down. "Didn't see you there."
She'd frowned at him, her best friend and shivered involuntarily.
"Here," Matt had offered her his towel, wrapped it around her, and hugged her tight.

"Hey Matt you would not belive what just happened," Austin was hurrying towards him through the school hallway hugging her binder to her chest.
"What?" Matt closed his locker and asked curiously as she approached him.
"That new kid totally just got caught cheating in math again and Mrs. Adams is threatening to suspend him."
Matt smiled. She had her hair in a side pony tail and was wearing an old sweater and her jeans were worn out. He often wondered how she could be so cheery despite the fact that she had a shitty home life. It was part of the reason she spent every waking minute with him, and quite honestly that was totally fine with him. She was pretty much one of the guys.
"Hey picture for the yearbook?" another kid interrupted them.
Matt snapped out of his thoughts and pulled Austin close. He wrapped his arm around her shoulders as the kid with the camera adjusted the lens, "smile."
The flash went off.


Matt slapped the photo album shut and tossed it onto the floor amazed at how vivid his memory was.

"You know, one day you're going to want those and you're going to wonder why they're wrecked."

Still in just a towel, Matt looked up at his mother from the his perch at the end of the bed. She was standing in the doorway smiling at him softly.

"I still can't believe my baby boy is covered in tattoos," she covered her mouth and giggled as she entered the room.

Matt stood up and she stepped into his arms.

She had to smile up at him now. "I"m so glad that you're able to do what you love."

"Me too," he smiled down at her before letting her go.

She leaned down and picked up the photo album he'd thrown on the floor. She flipped it open to the first page and smiled at the pictures of Matt and all the boys and Austin. She then closed it again and laid it down on his bed, trailing her fingertips over the cover before looking up at him.

"Look after them," she she said earnestly. "They may not seem too important now, but when you're eighty, you'll love them."

Matt cracked a grin. His mom was amazing.

She patted him on the chest before turning around heading for the door. "You know," she spoke to him over her shoulder before she stopped in the door frame like she suddenly remembered something, "if you feel like you need to see her, she's still around."

She tapped the door frame with her hand and smiled at her son once more before disappearing around the corner down the hall.

He was about to get dressed when she poked her head back into the room. "Your dad just said Johnny's car pulled into the drive way." She grabbed the door handle and closed the door behind her, disappearing as quickly as she appeared.

Realizing that he only had a few minutes, he headed back into the bathroom to get
dressed.

"Yo, Matt!"

His few minutes didn't last long. Entering the hallway he leaned over the banister to see Zacky and Johnny standing in the entry way to the house at the bottom of the stairs.

He pulled up his jeans the rest of the way and did them up, slipping on his belt, and doing it up as he descended the stairs.

"Fuck man what were you doin up there? Jerking off?"

Matt laughed, "thinking of you Zacky."

Zacky smirked and stepped aside allowing Matt to slip on his shoes.

"Hey, Johnny, Zacky," Mrs. Sanders was now standing in the living room shaking a bottle of orange juice before sitting down in her chair. "Where are you boys off to?"

"Billy's," Johnny filled in the information Matt could not.

Matt opened the front door and let them step out first, "I'll be back later."

"Oh, hun," his mom smiled softly not really wanting to be the bearer of unpleasant news. "Val called."

Great. He hadn't been home one hour and she'd already tracked him down. Matt half nodded and followed the guys outside. Johnny quickly lit up a cigarette and headed for his car. He was obviously the one driving.

"So what's up with you and Val?" Zacky climbed into the back seat allowing Matt to have shotgun.

"I don't know. We left on a bad note, so I'm going to assume that we're still on a bad note since I haven't really talked to her at all in the past six months."

"That's harsh," Johnny muttered.

Matt couldn't agree more. "You ain't kiddin." He pulled on his seatbelt as Johnny pulled out of the driveway.

"So what about you and Gena?" he directed his question over his shoulder at Zacky.

"We're alright I guess," Zacky smiled softly.

It was becoming a well known fact among the guys that the boy could always pick the heartbreakers. Sure, they may look good, but they weren't interested in him other than his success. Or name. Which brings them into the spotlight as well.

Matt was always amazed at how stardom throws your life into turmoil. It ain't all it's cracked up to be. People come out of the wood works claiming to be long lost relatives lookin' for money. People wanna be your friend just to get in on the action. And girls throw all morals aside just to get in your pants. It was crazy.

Johnny turned left at the first intersection bringing him out of his thoughts. He knew immediately where they were going first. Syn and Michelle's house. The good thing was, that Michelle didn't hold a grudge against him for not getting along with her twin sister, Val. So it'd make this pit stop a little easier.

Johnny parked behind Syn's car and beside the Rev's, which meant that Leana was probably here to. Zacky pulled his blackberry from his belt and within a few minutes Syn and the Rev were coming down the drive way and climbing into the back of the car.

"Michelle and Leana not coming?" Johnny asked before backing out of the driveway.

Syn shook his head no in response as he lit up a cigarette and rolled down the window."Michelle went with Leana to the doctor."

Matt turned slightly in his seat. "Hey, Rev, when exactly is Leana due?"

Rev shrugged and glanced from the window up to Matt, "couple months."

Zacky laughed, "a couple months? We're talkin about your kid here Jimmy boy,"

Rev laughed and brushed back his black hair out of his eyes; eyes you couldn't see because he had his big black sunglasses on. "Yeah, but the kid ain't here yet. I guess it just really hasn't set in. Though it should, Leana's driving me crazy."

Syn laughed and patted him on the leg. "Condoms and birthcontrol, Rev. That's why god created them."

"What did you two expect?" Zacky glanced over at the Rev with a smirk. "The amount of sex you two have, something was bound to happen,"

"Condoms," Syn stated again, "believe me, they save your ass."

"Oh just wait until it happens to you, Syn," Johnny was looking at him through the rearview mirror.

Syn shook his head in defiance. "Ain't gonna happen, Johnny Boy." The thought of having a kid at this age scared the hell out of him. Hell, just the topic scared the hell out of him. "So where are we going anyway?"

"Billy's," Johnny turned onto the main road and merged into traffic, "he wanted us to stop by before they head out on tour tomorrow."

"Hey this is a little off topic, but what's everyone doing tonight?" Matt clipped his aviators onto his shirt, he'd nearly forgotten about the party happening next door.

"Nothing, why?" Syn's interest was piqued everyone could tell.

"The girls next door to the rents are having a party tonight."

The Rev started laughing. "You mean the two crazies that moved in just so they could meet your parents and get to know you?"

Matt nodded, "two in the same."

Johnny was grinning, "the one is kinda cute."

Syn slapped him in the arm, "you should hit that, Johnny."

Zacky smirked, "we should rock their fuckin' house tonight."

"All we gotta do is show up," Rev's special grin emerged, and that was never a good thing.

"Yeah I know, but I mean really fill this place up. Syn you should call Brent, James, Danny and Johnny, and Matt you could call up the Confession boys and we'll bring Billy and Linzi and of course the girls."

"Fill the place up with drunk musicians, huh?"

"Are you protesting?" Zacky asked Syn a little shocked.

Syn shook his head, "hell no, bring on the booze!"
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