Jasey Rae

About a month passed, and the boys are my best friends now. We're practically inseparable. They're seriously the most amazing guys I've ever met. I couldn't have asked for better people to meet on my first day of high school in Maryland.

I constantly go to Alex's house to listen to them practice. Half the reason I go is just to see Zack because I never get to see him otherwise, and the other half is of course to listen to the band. They're incredible, and I keep telling them they'll make it big one day, but they never believe me. And then we'd stay in Alex's room all night for hours, just goofing off. Normally, Jack, Rian, and Zack would all play video games, and Alex and I would lay on his bed together, but some nights we all just laid around and talked.

Alex and I have become closer and closer, we're practically the best of friends. We pretty much tell each other everything. Well, I almost tell him everything. Everything I can without blowing my secret. We don't talk of the time when I yelled at him for talking to the blonde, because we both know we'll just fight over it. And I'm happy to say he never talks to her anymore. But he doesn't care. "I'd rather talk to you any day." He tells me, which just about makes my heart stop beating. Yes, you could say I have a small liking to Alex. I mean, how couldn't you? He's amazing in his own Alex Gaskarth way. Everyone tells us, especially Jack, Rian, and Zack, that we'd be the perfect couple, but we both just wave it off and say we're only best friends and nothing more.

We haven't spoken about him kissing my cheek that one night when I went to see the boys practice for the first time. And I guess that's okay with me. It was probably just a friendly gesture and I over-thought it too much.

"I'm tellin' ya, if you ever make it to the big times, which I know you will, you better remember me. I'm the person who kept telling you you'll be famous." I smiled, causing them to laugh.

"Shut up, Chicago. You're crazy. I doubt that we'll ever be famous." Jack said, waving it off.

I shrugged. "You never know."

"Okay...so, I got some bad news." Alex said, catching all of our attention. "We can't have practice at my house today."

Jack and Rian asked why, and Alex told them the reason, which I didn't listen to, but just concentrated on eating my sandwich.

"Hey, Chicago?"

"Hm?" I asked, breaking out of my thinking track. I noticed they were all staring at me, causing me to flinch. "What?"

"Could we possibly have practice at your house? Please?" Jack asked, giving me a puppy-dog face.

I bit my lip, about to say no, but then saw Rian's and Alex's puppy dog faces too, which pushed me over the edge. I sighed. "Fine."

"Yes!" They cheered, and Jack put an arm around me, kissing my head.

"Thanks, Chicago! You're the best!" Alex grinned, which made me smile in return.

"Yeah, I know."

"Okay, so, I'll text you my address and everything, and you can come over whenever. Just give me a little warning, okay?" I asked Jack, which in return, he nodded, giving me a large grin.

"Awesome. See ya then. Bye, Chicago." He grinned, and gave me a final hug before I went home.

[jasey rae]

I groaned, shoving all my dirty clothes in my hamper. Right now, it was overflowing, and it was really aggravating me just looking at it, so I picked up my hamper and put it in Jake's room. I told Jake to go to his friend's house so my friends could practice without disturbing him and his homework, which he happily agreed to. I knew he didn't mind. And mother was just off to work like usual. So, I had the house to myself.

"Here ya go, Miss Scott." Nina, the family's personal chef, smiled, handing over an Italian sub she had made for me because I was starving by the time I got home.

"Thanks, Nina! It looks delicious!" I grinned, then took a bite. I immediately went to Heaven. Just the way I like it. "By the way, if Jake didn't already tell you, my friends are coming over, and they're all guys, so they might stay for dinner. Just a little heads up."

"No problem, Miss Scott. I'd be happy to make anything." She smiled, and I gave her a thumbs up before leaving the kitchen.

The doorbell rang then, resulting in me walking over to the door. I opened it, taking a large bite of my sandwich. I waved the boys in, and led them to the basement where they would be practicing.

"Nice house, Chicago." I heard Alex comment, and Rian and Jack both agreed.

"Thanks." I said, my voice muffled from the food in my mouth. Honestly, I eat like a guy, and I know it doesn't seem that way, but I eat a ton of food every day.

"Where'd you get that sandwich?" I heard Jack ask, eyeing the half-eaten sub in my hands.

"My chef made it." I shrugged, plopping down on the couch in front of where the guys were setting up.

"You have a chef?" Rian asked, shocked. I only nodded, taking another bite.

Jack sat next to me, still watching the sandwich in my hands. He looked as if he was going to pounce any minute. I groaned, holding out the sub and telling him to take bite. Which he gratefully did. Although it was more of a chomp. He practically ate half of it in one bite.

"Fuck, that's one good sandwich." He said after swallowing it.

I nodded, grinning. "I know, I love it. Nina makes the best fucking sandwiches ever."

"Okay, not to be a nag or anything, but we really need to practice." Rian said, and everyone nodded in agreement.

"I'll be right there. I have to go get a book." I said and walked upstairs, savoring the last bite of my sandwich. I said hello to George as I passed his room, telling him I didn't need anything after he asked, and walked upstairs to the third floor where my room was. The whole third floor was my room.

I sighed, my eyes scanning over the hundreds of books I had shelved in a bookcase. I'd read all these books a thousand times, but Mother said I wasn't allowed to buy anymore while we were staying in Maryland. Finally, I picked out a book I've read countless times because it was my favorite and headed back downstairs.

The boys were already practicing one of their songs, and I silently sang along with Alex as I sat down on the couch. I still had Alex's sweatshirt he lent me. I never gave it back to him for a few reasons. One was because I absolutely loved the smell of it. It smelled like Alex. Two was because I'm always cold and I need it. And three was because I was just too lazy to give it back to him. Even though it was a few sizes too big for me.

"Earth to Chicago."

I looked up quickly upon hearing Alex's voice shout the three-word phrase. I didn't realize they were pretty much packed up and I had almost read through all the pages of The Outsiders. "Hm? Oh, sorry." I blushed, closing my book and stretching my arms above my head, the air cool against the exposed skin between my jeans and shirt. "You guys wanna head up to my room? Or we can go to the home theater and just crash there."

"You have a home theater?" Jack asked, shocked. "Jesus fucking Christ, how the hell are you so rich?"

I swallowed hard, rubbing the back of my head nervously. If only I could tell you.... "Mother's job." I mumbled, throwing my book down out of anger, then sighed, rubbing my temples. "Anyways, uhm, we'll just go up to my room."

After they were all packed up, I led them through the house up to my room. I internally cringed when I saw that George was respectively waiting outside his door, smiling.

"Miss S-"

I inhaled sharply, my eyes wide as I obnoxiously cleaned my throat, interrupting George. "George, we won't be needing your services at this time, thank you. I'll call you if we need you. In case Mother, Angela Johnson-" I said, emphasizing on the last name, hopefully he would catch the hint, which he thankfully did. "-comes home, tell me, please."

He nodded, giving me a smile and a respective bow, then continued to walk downstairs, calling for Nina.

I ignored the stared from Rian, Alex, Jack, and Zack and continued to walk up to my room.

"Wow."

I swallowed hard and stood awkwardly by the door as I watched the boys look around my room. I walked over to Alex and took my sketchbook out of his hands softly. "U-Uh, don't touch that." I mumbled, putting it in my top drawer of my dresser.

"Sweet guitar, Chicago." I heard Jack say, causing me to turn around to see him picking up my electric guitar admirably.

"Thanks." I mumbled. "U-Uh, there's some movies over there, the TV is in the entertainment center over there. Couches right here, my bed is pretty comfy too, if you want to sit there." I explained, pointing to everything as I said it.

Zack immediately went for the movies and Rian and Jack attacked the chair and couch, which left the bed for Alex and me. I laid on my stomach with my head at the foot at the bed, and Alex quickly copied my actions, his arms immediately going around my waist.

"Nice bed." Alex mumbled, his head resting on the bed, a smile on his face. "It's really comfy. And big."

I laughed lightly, nodding after I rested my head on the bed, my face only inches away from Alex's. "Yeah, it helps me sleep."

"This house is perfect." He said, his eyes connecting with mine.

"For?"

"Parties."

I laughed, shaking my head. "No way. No party is happening here, ever."

He pouted, but dropped the subject anyways. We stared at each other for a while; the only sound was Jack complaining how he didn't know how to work the DVD player, and Rian trying to fight him for the remote. "Chicago...have I ever told you that you're beautiful?" He whispered, his hand brushing my fake black hair behind my ear. I couldn't help but lean into his hand and blush crimson.

"No, you haven't because it's not true." I mumbled, causing him to scoff.

"Who the fuck told you that?" He asked.

I felt my stomach drop a little as I tried to block out all the memories. "My mom." I croaked out, on the verge of tears.

"Well, she's dead fucking wrong. Chicago...you're the most beautiful girl I've ever seen. Don't let anyone ever tell you otherwise." He whispered, pulling me close to him.

I sighed, resting my head on his chest as he kissed my head. "Maryland, you're too good to me."

I felt his breath on my head as I heard him chuckle lightly. "Only because you deserve it, Chicago."

I bit my lip, ignoring the tear that had fallen from the corner of my eye. No, I don't. I've been lying to you this whole time about everything. But I just bit my tongue and didn't say anything.

"Chicago...." He mumbled, and I knew he was on the verge of falling asleep. "Hayley...such a pretty name...." I couldn't help the blush that crept up on my face, and thanked God Alex couldn't see it. "Such a pretty name for a pretty girl...." And with that, he was asleep.

I yawned myself, snuggling up to Alex a little more, and felt his grip tighten, causing me to smile. And I just fell asleep in Alex Gaskarth's arms, completely forgetting that I was lying to everyone I knew here...and I was happy.

[jasey rae]

When I woke up, I didn't want to open my eyes. I was so tired for some reason. The space around me was warm, and I figured it was my blankets, so I didn't think anything of it. The boys probably went home late last night.

Then I remembered.

The boys.

I opened my eyes quickly, almost letting out a scream as I noticed Alex Gaskarth's face less than an inch away from mine. His face was dare I say it adorable. His mouth hung slightly open, and his messy hair half covered his eyes as I whisper to the side. We didn't move a single inch when we fell asleep.

Suddenly, his eyes were fluttering open, so I took my chance to look down and pretend I wasn't staring at him. He groaned a little as he stretched his arms above his head, then placed his arms back were they were. I looked up at him, and he looked down at me, a grin stretching on his lips.

"Good morning, beautiful."

I blushed crimson, feeling my ears getting hot. "Morning."

"Looks like we didn't move last night." He chuckled silently.

I laughed lightly, shaking my head. "I guess not."

"But that's not a bad thing." He said quietly, his nose brushing mine, resulting in me catching my breath. "Means I get to be close to you."

I blushed even brighter, and I knew I probably looked like a human tomato. "And I get to be closer to you...."

He leaned forward, closing the gap between us and kissed my nose, causing me to blush even more. "You're cute when you blush." And that made me blush even more, causing him to chuckle. He opened his mouth to say something, but was cut off by a tired groan from across the room.

"Rian! Get the fuck off me, man!"

I laughed, looking up as best as I could to see Jack pushing Rian, who had been lying across him, off the couch and onto the floor. Rian immediately woke up then, getting angry at Jack for pushing him. They both stood up, glaring at each other.

I took this time to stand up and walk over to them, and pulled Jack back before he did anything rash to Rian. "Calm it down, guys. No fighting. Jack, that was mean what you did to Rian, so say you're sorry."

"What?! But he-" Jack complained, his eyes wide with shock.

"No, I don't want to hear it. Say you're sorry." I scolded, and he sighed angrily.

"Sorry, Rian." He mumbled.

"Huh? What was that?" Rian smirked, putting his hand by his ear.

"I'm sorry!" Jack practically shouted, on the verge of laughing.

"Well...I don't forgive you."

Jack laughed and tackled him to the floor and they started wrestling, calling each other choice words as they both laughed and goofed around. Zack kept cheering on Rian to beat Jack, resulting in Jack to flip him off and continue to wrestle Rian.

I laughed and shook my head at them, the sound of my grumbling stomach filling my ears. "I'll be downstairs for breakfast. Anyone who wants the best waffles ever can follow me."

Suddenly, the boys were staring at me, a hungry look on their faces. Jack even licked his lips. "Waffles?"

"The best you'll ever eat." I nodded, smirking, then sighed dramatically. "But I guess since you want to wrestle, that means more for me." I said, and started to walked out the door.

"Fuck that! Rematch later, Rian! Let's go Chicago!" I heard Jack yell, then someone picked me up wedding style and ran down the stairs.

I screamed a little, wrapping my arms around the boy's neck and laughed. "Jack! Put me down!"

"No!" He laughed, stopping at the bottom of the stairs and looking at me with his dark brown eyes. "Now where's the kitchen?"

I sighed, smiling, and pointed down the hallway. "Down the hall and third left."

"Waffles!" He screamed, running down the hallway. I laughed, shaking my head. Boys and food. I noticed Alex, Zack, and Rian were following quickly.

The smell of Nina's amazing waffles filled the house quickly as we made our way closer to the kitchen.

"Good morning, Nina!" I smiled as we entered the kitchen.

She turned around, smiling, then quickly frowned when her blue eyes rested on the boys. "Good morning, Miss S...Johnson. Who's this?"

Jack set me down then, an awkward silence filling the room.

"U-Uh, Nina. I'd like you to meet my friends. This is Jack, Rian, Zack, and uh, that's Alex." I said, pointing to each boy, smiling a little when I said Alex's name.

Nina noticed my smile and didn't like it, but she put on a smile anyways. "Well, they must be hungry, huh?"

The boys had a grin on their faces in a second, and Nina put them all at the table quickly in the dining room. The second she put the sky high stack of her amazing waffles, the boys attacked them like crazy animals that haven't been fed in months. After a while of the boys constantly eating and complimenting her on her amazing food, she was thankfully warming up to them and by the end, she was treating them like they were her own kids.

"Oh my fu-" Alex started, his hand on his now full stomach, but he stopped once Nina scolded him. "-freaking gosh, Nina, best food I've ever had." The boys agreed, patting their full stomachs as well.

"Thank ya, darling." She smiled, patting his shoulder before disappearing into the kitchen with the dirty dishes.

I yawned, stretching my hands above my head, then looked at the boys. They had tired looks on their faces, as if they were about to fall asleep at any moment. I laughed lightly. "How about I take you guys home, yeah? You can go get ready and stuff."

"What about the van?" Jack yawned, scratching his head before he fixed his hair.

"It'll be here when you get back. No one's going to steal it here. No worries." I smiled, already getting up to go find the keys. "Let's see, there's five of us? That means we can take either the Mustang or the Corvette, or one of my personal favorites: the Viper." I smiled, hovering my hair over each pair of keys, my eyebrows raised. They all stared at me, shocked. "Well?"

"Is the Viper fast?" Rian asked.

I laughed, picking up the keys. "'Is it fast?' he asks. Well, it takes about eight seconds to get to a hundred miles an hour."

[jasey rae]

"Where the fuck do you get the money to buy cars like this, Chicago? Where does your mom fucking work?" Alex asked, his hand making waves in the air outside the window.

I gripped the steering wheel tightly for a few seconds, my heart thumping loudly in my ears. I took the question rhetorically since I noticed Alex looking back to talk to Jack about something I didn't listen to. You'll have to tell them eventually, Jasey Rae. You can't hide it from them for ever. I sighed, slamming my hand down on the steering wheel lightly, hoping no one would notice my sudden anger.

[jasey rae]

"I'll just wait out here." I yawned, sinking down in my seat a little to get comfortable.

Alex scoffed, already opening the door. "No way. Come on inside. I'll only be an hour."

"You know where everything is. Sorry if my bed's not made. I didn't really get a chance to make it yesterday." Alex smirked, causing me to laugh lightly. "I'm gonna go take a shower, kay? If you need anything, just call."

"Thanks." I smiled, and he disappeared into the bathroom, a towel in his hand.

[jasey rae]

I yawned, turning over and bringing over the blankets with me. For some reason, Alex's bed spread and sheets were a lot warmer than mine, which was definitely a good thing. I could fall asleep for days on that bed. But right now, by the sound of Alex turning off the light and climbing into bed with me, I'd say it was time to get up.

He let out a yawn, stretching out his limbs before relaxing. "You know, we really should get up. We have to pick up the guys and everything."

I sighed, my eyelids refusing to open. "Yeah, I know.... But I don't know...something about this bed is so comforting, I wanna sleep in it for days." I yawned, my head turning to the side to look at him. He had a smug smirk on.

"Trust me, you're not the only girl who has said that." He smirked, winking slyly.

I felt my eyes go wide, starting to sit up. "Ew! Alex!" I laughed, ready to get out of this bed. God knows what happened on here. But Alex pulled me down, attaching me to his side.

"But you're the only one who I actually care about you saying that.... All those other girls...well, it just doesn't mean the same when they say it." He whispered in my ear, giving me chills up my spine. Good chills. Very good chills.

I rested my arm across his stomach, my head against the side of his chest. I could hear the thumping of my heart loud and clear in my ears, and I knew my stomach was getting butterflies. What this boy does to me.... "You're my best friend, Alex. And I really love you." I mumbled into his side, and his grip got just a little tighter.

"I love you, too, Chicago. I really do." He said back before kissing my head.If only he knew I meant it in other ways.

[jasey rae]

"You know, I really need to give you a nickname." I said to Alex before biting down into an apple.

He raised his eyebrow in confusion, but smirked all the while. "Why? What's wrong with my name?"

"What's wrong with mine?"

"Touché. So, what do you have in mind, Chicago?"

I thought about it, taking another bite into my apple. "I was thinking somewhere along the lines of either Lexi, Lex, or just stick with Maryland."

"Lexi?" He asked, the smirk gone from his lips. "No. That's a girls' name."

"No way! You get no say in this! I don't get a say in you calling me Chicago!" I said, the apple almost gone now. "Lexi...Lexi Gaskarth. I like it!" I smiled, deciding on a nickname finally.

"You are not calling me that in public." He half glared, the smile almost breaking free through the frown.

"Fine. You can't call me Chicago in public anymore then." I shrugged, getting up to throw away the apple core. I heard Alex groan, so I turned around, smiling. "So, Lexi, let's go get the boys. They should all be rested by now."

He groaned, lifting up his hands for me to grab and help him up, but a smiling playing on his lips. "Sure thing, Chicago."

[jasey rae]

I sighed angrily, scratching my head as I kept flipping through the TV channels to find anything that was on. Apparently no one makes good TV anymore. "Oh my fucking gosh! There's nothing on!"

"Jasey Rae Scott-"

I inhaled sharply, changing the channel quickly before they saw anything. But it was too late, they were already yelling at me to change the channel back. Alex had grabbed the remote, turning it up as my face came onto screen. No one, thankfully, realized how tightly I was clutching the pillow in my hand.

"It's pretty crazy being out here, you know? I mean, I've been with the guys since I was thirteen. They're my family now." Me on the TV smiled, fixing the baseball hat that rested on my head.

"And do you think you'll be playing for a long time?" The interviewer asked, causing me to shrug.

"Who knows? Let's see where the season takes me."

It takes me here, to Maryland.... I thought, anger and sadness rising up.

"Dude, she is so fucking hott." Jack said, staring at me on the TV. The camera crew was taping me practice. "I'd do her any day!"

The boys agreed, going into a discussion about how I was so amazing at what I did, and that they'd do anything to meet me. And they didn't even realize that the one person they were talking about was sitting right in that very same room with them.

You'll have to tell them, Jasey. They'll find out eventually. And you won't want them to have to find out in a way you don't want them too. And they'll be so mad at you if you don't. And think about Alex.... What would he say to all of this? He'd be more than furious at you, you know that.

"Chicago, has anyone ever told you that you look exactly like her?"

I swallowed the lump in my throat, my eyes going slightly wider than their neutral place. Trying to think up a quick lie, I looked anywhere but at the boys. "I-I ge-get tha-at a lot."

Alex gave me a look, and I knew he knew I was lying, but I just ignored him. This was something I just couldn't tell him. Well, not any of them. Not now anyways. It's too early. I've only known them for a month.

"Wait, so you're saying you'd do Chicago any day then?" Rian smirked, causing all of us to laugh.

Jack blushed as red as me, telling them to shut up or he'd kill them, but they only continued to say that 'he was in love with me.'

"You guys fucking suck." Jack mumbled, crossing his arms in anger, the blush never leaving his face.

I laughed lightly, getting up and walking over to him. He looked up at me, his eyes full of curiosity as he watched me sitting on his lap. His arms uncrossed and wrapped around my waist so I wouldn't fall off, so I returned the gesture and put mine around his neck.

"Getting bashful, Jack?" I smirked, my face getting closer to his face with every word. He blushed as red as a tomato, and his mouth stuttered out something that just mumbled into mixed words, not making any sense. That caused me to smile even wider, so I got a centimeter from his face, my lips dangerously close to his. "What's the matter, Jacky? Nervous?" I said quietly, but he only stared in my eyes, swallowing hard. I leaned in like I was about to cover his lips with mine, but moved my head slightly to the left and kissed his cheek instead. I heard Rian and Zack hoot and whistle. I smiled, leaving my lips there for another second before pulling back, laughing lightly at his red face.

I stood up then, straightening my shirt and shorts before stretching out a little. "Well, I think it's about time for me to get goin'. I'll see you guys later."

[jasey rae]

After I said goodbye to Jack, Rian, and Zack, Alex offered to walk me to my car, which I happily agreed to.

I unlocked my car doors, the headlights going on immediately, then turned towards Alex, flinching when I saw that he had an angry look on his face. "What's the matter?"

He grumbled something I couldn't catch, and he shook his head at me. "I'm fine."

"No you're not. You're mad. How come?"

He only shook his head, and I saw the flash of hurt in his eyes for a second. He stared at the ground for what seemed like hours, his large hands shoved in his pockets. His face was scrunched up in frustration, and I knew he was thinking about something hard. Finally, he looked at me, the same hurt in his eyes. "You like Jack, don't you?"

I took a small step back, my eyes wide with shock. Why would he think I like his best friend? Wait...the kiss on the cheek.... "Oh shit, no Alex, you got it all wrong-"

"It's fine if you do, I mean, all the girls like him." He mumbled, his feet dragging along the cement.

"No, Lexi, I don't! I swear, I don't like Jack."I like you.

He sighed, shrugging. "If you say so...."

I bit my lip. "I like someone else." I regretted saying those words the second they came out of my mouth because I know curiosity gets the best of everyone and I knew he'd ask who I liked.

"Who?" He asked, curiosity overshadowing his brown eyes as they looked down at me, but just a hint of sadness was hiding behind the curiosity.

"A-A guy...." I mumbled, my own eyes glued to the ground. It seemed the cement was a great thing for us to look at today instead of each other. I cleared my throat, knowing he could see right through me. "Look, I gotta get going. My brother is waiting for me back home so we can go out. I'll txt you later or something." I said quietly, turning so I could get in the car. But a hand grabbed my arm, turning me back around softly, and forced me to look into their eyes. I bit my lip, Alex's eyes boring into my own, searching for the truth that he knew I would tell him. And there were more secrets about me that he didn't even catch a hint of. "Bye, Lexi...." I whispered after a few minutes of silence. I could barely take it anymore. If it weren't for the consequences I'd get later, I'd tell him everything right then and there.

"See ya, Chicago." He mumbled before leaning down to place his lips on my cheek. My break caught, and I was almost positive my heart was going to beat right out of my chest.

I got in my car then, speeding out onto the road. My heart was as loud as a cranked up bass in my ears.

This can't go on for much longer.....